5 i8 THE CARNIVORES 



ancient Romans were accustomed to class their different breeds into house-dogs, 

 sheep-dogs, and sporting dogs, the latter being again subdivided into fighting dogs, 

 hounds hunting by scent, and hounds hunting by sight (greyhounds). An Assyr- 

 ian monument with an assigned date of about B.C. 640 shows the figure of a large 

 mastiff; and Egptian monuments, ranging from about B.C. 3400 to 2100, exhibit 

 numerous figures of dogs, most of which approach the greyhound type. On one 

 monument of the later of these two dates there is a dog resembling a hound, with 

 drooping ears, but with a longer back and more pointed muzzle than those of 

 modern hounds. There is also a short and crooked-legged dog with a long body, 

 which Darwin compares to a turnspit, although thinking it improbable that this 

 ancient race was the parent of the modern breed. The oldest dog represented on 

 the Egyptian monuments is, however, one of the most peculiar, resembling a grey- 

 hound in general form, but with long pointed ears, and a short curled tail, a some- 

 what similar race of dogs still existing in Northern Africa. The ancient Egyptians 

 had also a dog like the Indian pariah. "We thus see," observes Darwin, " that at a 

 period between four and five thousand years ago, various breeds, viz. , pariah dogs, 

 greyhounds, common hounds, mastiffs, house-dogs, lap-dogs, and turnspits existed, 

 more or less closely resembling our present breeds. But there is not sufficient evi- 

 dence that any of these ancient dogs belonged to the same identical subvarieties with 

 our modern dogs." The record of the antiquity of domesticated dogs does not, how- 

 ever, stop with the Egyptian monuments, for there is evidence that several breeds 

 existed during prehistoric periods, that is to say, during the iron, bronze, and 

 polished-stone epochs. Thus, in Denmark, there was one race in the stone epoch, 

 succeeded by a larger one in the bronze age, and by a still larger breed in the newer 

 iron age. Again, during the polished -stone period in Switzerland, the inhabitants 

 of that country had a medium-sized dog which appears to have possessed character- 

 istics common to hounds and setters, or spaniels ; its skull being markedly distinct 

 from those of both the wolf and the jackal. In the bronze period this lake-dog was 

 succeeded by a larger kind, probably very similar to the one we have already noticed 

 as occurring in Denmark during the same period. Remains of the lake-dog, 

 together with those of two other breeds, have been recognized from caverns on the 

 Continent ; and Woldrich comes to the conclusion that the lake-dog was not de- 

 rived from either the wolf or the jackal but from some extinct species. If, then, 

 we regard the lake-dog as in any way related to our modern breeds, and also admit 

 its descent from an earlier extinct form, it will be apparent how hopeless is the task 

 of attempting to solve the problem of the actual parentage of the dogs of the pres- 

 ent day. 



The number of varieties of domestic dogs was estimated by Fitzinger in 1876 at 

 no less than one hundred and eighty-five, which were grouped in seven main divi- 

 sions. Mr. Harting considers, however, that the main groups may be reduced to 

 six, characterized to a certain extent by the form and size of their ears. These 

 groups are (i) wolf-like dogs, (2) greyhounds, (3) spaniels, (4) hounds, (5) 

 mastiffs, and (6) terriers. By intercrossing between various members of these dif- 

 ferent groups he considers that all the existing breeds may have been produced. In 

 the case of the more important breeds this grouping will be followed so far as 



