42 THE NATURALIST IN NOEWAY. 



The flesh of the wolf is not palatable, but I have 

 been informed that some of the Norwegian peasai)ts 

 are glad enough to eat it in severe winters, when they 

 can get nothing else. 



It is very probable that the Norwegian wolf occa- 

 sionally pairs with the dog. I have seen dogs in this 

 country that exhibited undoubted signs of their wolfish 

 origin. One particular dog, that often passed me in 

 the streets of Christiania, closely resembled a wolf in 

 appearance. 



Medicinal virtues are ascribed to the wolf in Nor- 

 way. The peasants believe that powdered wolfs flesh 

 excites an appetite, and that an ointment made from 

 its fat, and applied externally on the chest, is a specific 

 in pulmonary complaints. 



The skin of the wolf is used in this country for fur 

 coats, rugs, and thick warm aprons for sledges, to pro- 

 tect the traveller's legs from the severe cold. A large 

 wolf-skin coat costs in Norway from 20 to 100 sp. 

 dollars. In ancient times, heroes were permitted to 

 wear a wolf-skin as a mark of distinction ; and an old 

 writer states that, once upon a time, Norse warriors 

 wore wolf-skins over their coats of mail, to terrify 

 their enemies. 



The wolf is commonly captured in Norway by the 

 ordinary steel trap ; he is also taken in pitfalls called 

 ulve grav, which are made very deep for the purpose, 

 and are guarded round the sides by pointed stakes, by 

 broken scythes, and sharp pieces of iron, so that the 

 captive may not leap out again and escape. It is also 

 captured in the ulve-gaard, or wolf-house or yard, a 

 fenced enclosure into which the animal is enticed, and 

 when it is inside, a person stationed to watch closes 



