THE BLACK WOLF. 151 



the species, appears in doubt whether it be not hy- 

 brid ; although in a former part of the same account,* 

 he maintains the gradual extinction of mule breeds 

 between wolf and dog. This is the wolf of Southern 

 Europe, and is the predominant species of Spain, 

 where the dark brown variety of the more open 

 mountain ranges is even still more powerful and 

 heavy than the black. We have seen a letter from 

 an English gentleman holding a high public station 

 in the Peninsula, wherein he describes a wolf-hunt 

 in the mountains near Madrid. There was a lattice 

 of the country people driving the game towards the 

 mountain, where the sportsmen, armed with rifles, 

 were placed in ambush. One came bounding up- 

 wards towards him, so large, that he took it, while 

 driving through the high grass and bushes, for a 

 donkey. The slight noise of cocking his rifle was, 

 however, sufficient to warn the animal, for it turned 

 off* out of sight. At the close of the hunt seven 

 were found slain, and their weight was so consider- 

 able, that, although the gentleman is both active 

 and in the flower of life, he could not lift one en- 

 tirely from the ground. The specimen we were 

 enabled to figure came from the banks of the Tagus ; 

 it was equal in size to the largest mastiff^, of a very 

 dark brown colour, with ears rather larger and the 

 muzzle thicker than in the common wolf; but, 

 withal, resembling a very large and shaggy wolf-dog. 

 The Spanish wolves congregated formerly in the 

 passes of the Pyrenees in large troops, and even 



* Diet, des Sciences Naturelles, au mot Chien. 



