DOGS. 675 



DOGS. 



THE dog belongs to a family that is widely distributed over nearly every portion of the 

 globe, and is thought by many to have been the first animal ever domesticated by 

 man. However this may be, we have no positive proof as to the fact. There is, 

 however, abundant evidence to show that the dog existed in a domesticated state in pre 

 historic times, and we have no definite knowledge respecting its origin. It is supposed by 

 some that all our present breeds of dogs have been derived from a single source, such as the 

 wolf or jackal; others that they are the product of a blending and crossing of several distinct 

 species, some of which may be living, others extinct. Others, still, regard them as the 

 descendants of an extinct wild species. The most prevalent opinion entertained at the present 

 day, however, is that the dog is the product of the crossing of several distinct species of 

 animals. This opinion is based upon the fact of the many distinct breeds of dogs in the 

 earliest historic period, these breeds so widely differing from eacli other, yet closely 

 resembling wild animals of other species; the Esquimaux dogs, for instance, which closely 

 resemble the wolf of that region in general appearance and voice; also the existence of wild 

 species of dogs in all portions of the world, the fondness of man in a savage state for taming 

 wild animals, etc. It is well known that even the most savage and degraded tribes of the 

 human race all have dogs, and, notwithstanding they are often cruelly and brutally treated, ,, 

 they always entertain to a certain extent an attachment for their master and submission to 

 his will that characterizes dogs bred by the more intelligent and civilized races of mankind. 

 The dogs of savages, however, are lacking in that intelligence, faithfulness, and other 

 desirable qualities that the improved and well-trained dogs of enlightened people possess, 

 which shows that, like mankind, the dog is capable of a higher education, and that its 

 intellectual and nobler qualities may be developed to an astonishing degree. The dog is 

 universally conceded to be the most intelligent of the brute creation, and has long been the 

 companion as well as faithful servant of man. Like the human kind, the dog is subject to 

 all the varying passions, such as anger, jealousy, envy, hatred, love, and grief; while he also 

 sympathizes with his master in joy or sorrow, is quick to anticipate his wants, and shows 

 gratitude, pride, generosity, love of praise, fear, often a remarkable memory, and the exercise 

 of those faculties which in man would be called reasoning powers, and which cannot, as is 

 usually the case, be justly attributed merely to what is termed &quot; instinct.&quot; 



A certain French writer has said that &quot; the best part of a man is the dog there is in 

 him.&quot; It is certainly true that if, according to their intelligence, mankind were as faithful 

 in the performance of duty as an intelligent and well educated dog, there would be less of 

 deception, treachery, and evil of every form in the world than there is at present. Some one 

 who evidently lacked a certain element of character essential to a just appreciation of what 

 was noble in a dog, has said that &quot;the best treatment for a dog was to cut off his tail behind 

 his ears,&quot; a sentiment in which we cannot concur; and we doubt if there could be found 

 many among the intelligent and thinking class of people that would endorse such an opinion, 

 except as it were applied to the worse than useless curs that are so common in the country, 

 and which have been such a nuisance to farmers in connection with sheep raising. A story 

 is told of the faithfulness of a dog at the Mill River disaster that occurred at Williamsburg, 

 Mass., several years ago, and which brought desolation and death to so many homes. A 

 person who visited the scene of the disaster a few days after it occurred says: 



&quot; I shall never forget a scene I witnessed there during the search for bodies. The drift 

 wood and debris had made a deposit beside a tree nearly twenty feet in depth, and there I 

 saw a large dog crying pitifully. As we drew near we found that the dog was fastened down 



