THE MASTIFF. 



THE English Mastiff was so famous in the time of the 

 Roman Emperors, that an officer was appointed to breed 

 and send to Rome such of this species as might be deemed 

 proper for the combats of the amphitheatre. But the gen- 

 uine and unmixed breed of those dogs, although not abso- 

 lutely extinct, is now seldom met with, and most of those 

 now distinguished by the name are a compound of various 

 breeds. The real Mastiff is much larger and stronger than 

 the bull-dog. His ears are pendulous, his lips large and 

 loose, his aspect sullen, and his bark loud and terrific. The 

 distinguishing characteristic of his disposition is that of be- 

 ing a faithful guardian of property, suffering no depredation 

 to be committed on the premises where he resides. Dr, 

 Cailus, who wrote in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, informs 

 us that three of these dogs were considered a match for a 

 bear, and four for a lion ; but from an experiment made in 

 presence of James the First, it appeared that a lion was not 

 a match for three of them ; for although two of the dogs 

 were disabled by the conflict, the third seized the lion by 

 the lip, and held him until, being dreadfully torn by his 

 claws, he was obliged to let go ; and the lion, exhausted by 

 the contest, took a sudden leap over the dogs, and retired 

 to his den. Experiments of this kind, however (besides 

 being cruel and unnecessary), cannot give us any just 

 knowledge of the proportion of courage and strength be- 

 tween those animals ; for it must be remembered that the 



