CHAPTER VIII 



WOLVES AND WOLF-HOUNDS 



THE wolf is the archetype of ravin, the 

 beast of waste and desolation. It is still 

 found scattered thinly throughout all the 

 wilder portions of the United States, but has 

 everywhere retreated from the advance of 

 civilization. 



Wolves show an infinite variety in color, 

 size, physical formation, and temper. Al- 

 most all the varieties intergrade with one 

 another, however, so that it is very difficult 

 to draw a hard and fast line between any two 

 of them. Nevertheless, west of the Missis- 

 sippi there are found two distinct types. One 

 is the wolf proper, or big wolf, specifically 

 akin to the wolves of the Eastern States. The 

 other is the little coyote, or prairie wolf. The 

 coyote and the big wolf are found together in 

 almost all the wilder districts from the Rio 

 Grande to the valleys of the Upper Missouri 

 and the Upper Columbia. Throughout this 

 region there is always a sharp line of de- 



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