THE COMMON DOG*. 



THE Dog, in a wild state, is a savage and ferocious 

 beast, allied, in a great measure, both in tempera- 

 ment and disposition, to the Wolf. Wild Dogs are 

 found, in great troops, in various- parts of Africa. 

 These are described as having red hair, ami slender 

 bodies, with turned-tip tails, like greyhounds. 

 They, however, sometimes vary in colour, have 

 upright ears, and are of the general size of a large 

 fox-hound. 



The disposition of this animal, where it has been 

 taken into the protection of mankind, domesticated, 

 and instructed, has undergone a radical change ; 

 and whilst all its courage and its sagacity are left, 

 its ferocity has been softened down to obedience. 

 For an animal, destitute of the faculties of reasoning 

 and reflection, we are astonished at the quickness of 

 his perception, and sensibility. Without excepting 

 even the Elephant, the Dog seems the most tractable 

 and docile of all the brute creation. His gentleness 

 and fidelity have rendered him, in many countries, 

 not merely a useful, but a necessary companion 



* Canis familiar is. Linnceus. Le Cliien. Biiffbn. 

 For the description of the Dog, see the Synopsis, p. 14, No. 9. 



Of 



