524 THE CARNIVORES 



reddish brown, tending in some individuals more decidedly to gray, and in others to 

 yellow. Occasionally black or tawny individuals may be observed. Their ears are 

 short, pointed, and usually erect. They live a perfectly independent life, generally 

 frequenting the rubbish mounds with which the old Egyptian towns and villages, 

 are surrounded, and passing the greater part of the day in sleep, while toward even- 

 ing they wake up and prepare themselves for their noctural peregrinations. Each 

 dog possesses its own particular lair, which is chosen with especial care ; and fre- 

 quently one dog will have two such lairs, one of which is occupied in the morning, 

 and the other in the afternoon. When, as is often the case, the mounds in the 

 neighborhood of Cairo run nearly north and south, so that both sides are equally 

 exposed in winter to the cold north wind, the dogs are careful to excavate a hole 

 facing the south, in which they may gain protection from the cutting blasts. In 

 the morning the dogs will be found lying in these lairs, which have an easterly 

 aspect, so that they may receive the full benefit of the sun's rays; toward ten or 

 eleven o'clock, however, these quarters become too hot to be pleasant, and they then 

 shift to the west side of the mound, or to some other shady spot where they may con- 

 tinue their sleep. When the sun reaches their lairs on the western side of the mounds 

 the dogs once more return to their morning haunts, where they remain till sunset. 



Pariah dogs in other countries are very similar in manners to the above, but 

 in Constantinople and most Indian cities they habitually frequent the streets, and 

 are as habitually ill used by the passers-by. In Siam and some other Buddhist 

 countries they are, however, specially protected by the lamas, or priests, and are 

 allowed to use the temples as places of refuge ; but the food supply of these dogs 

 is of the scantiest, and their appearance is consequently miserable in the extreme. 



With this breed we come to the first member of the second main 

 Dg h d fey " S rou P f dogs, all of which are characterized by their long and narrow 

 muzzles, their slight build, elongated limbs, and small ears, falling at 

 the tips ; but they differ greatly in the length of the hair. They are further char- 

 acterized by their habit of hunting either entirely or partially by sight instead of by 

 scent. 



The long slender skull of the greyhound points to close affinity with the wolf r 

 and this group of dogs is, therefore, placed here. The English greyhound which 

 is of great antiquity, has indeed been regarded by some as the ancestral stock of all 

 our domestic breeds of dogs, but this is more than doubtful. It may be so readily 

 distinguished at a glance from all other dogs by its general slender form, smooth 

 hair, and rat-like tail, coupled with its comparatively large size, that no detailed 

 description is necessary. The animal is, indeed, thoroughly adapted for extreme 

 speed, the long slender limbs, with their wire-like muscles, giving the utmost possi- 

 ble length of stride, while the smooth coat, sharply-pointed head, elongated neck, 

 and thin tail are calculated to offer the least possible resistance to the air. The long 

 muzzle and neck are, moreover, necessary to enable the greyhound to seize a small 

 animal like a hare when running at speed. We may further notice the great depth 

 of the chest, calculated to afford ample room for the lungs, and the small size of 

 the abdomen. The extremely attenuated muzzle is of itself sufficient indication 

 that the greyhound cannot hunt solely by scent, as it is too small to contain space 



