D O 



and also with the shepherd's dog of the Pyrenees, 

 which is distinguished for its size, beauty, and docility, 

 Sir Walter Scott's Maida was the offspring of a sire 

 of the latter species, and a dam of the Scottish high- 

 land race, and certainly was one of the finest dogs 

 ever seen in that country of the kind, not only on 

 account of his symmetry of form and dignified aspect, 

 but also from his extraordinary size and strength. 



This fine specimen of the dog probably brought on 

 himself premature old age, by the excessive fatigue and 

 exercise to which his natural ardour inclined him ; for 

 he had the greatest pleasure in accompanying the 

 common greyhounds ; and, although from his great 

 size and strength, he was not at all adapted for cours- 

 ing, yet he not (infrequently turned, and even ran 

 down hares. Maida lies buried at the gate of Abbots- 

 ford, which he long protected ; a grave stone is placed 

 over him, with the figure of a dog cut on it by Mr. 

 John Smith of Melrose, and bears the following- 

 inscription : 



Mairta, tu marmorea dormis sub imagine Maidse 

 Ad januam domini. Sit tibi terra levis ! 



This powerful and splendid variety of dog was, in 

 the olden time, employed in hunting the wolf, as well 

 as the deer ; but the circumstances of the Scotch high- 

 lands have changed, the wolf is no more, and the deer 

 is so rare in most places that it ceases to be an object 

 of sport, except to the few who have it as property. 

 The stocking of the hills with sheep has also dislodged 

 the deer, and rendered the deer dog a forbidden visitcr. 

 Gentler sport has succeeded, and the soft sportsman of 

 the south, with his pointer and his Joe Manton, have 

 come instead of the driving dog and the daring high- 

 lander. 



THE IRISH WOLF-HOUND. This race has also be- 

 come nearly extinct, though there are still a few. It 

 was, probably, larger than the highland greyhound, 

 yet it still bore a considerable resemblance. The 

 occupation of this variety is also gone ; for there are 

 no deer inferee naturae in Ireland, and through some 

 mismanagement, dreary and wasteful bogs have come 

 in the stead of her forests, and the memorials of her 

 deer must be sought under these wasteful and neg- 

 lected accumulations. The following is probably the 

 last general description, from nature, of the hound. 



In 1790, Mr. Lambert saw eight of them in the 

 possession of Lord Altamont. They were the sole 

 remnant of their race, which had then degenerated : 

 the hair was short and smooth, brown and white, or 

 black and white. One of the largest dogs was sixty- 

 one inches long from the muzzle to the point of the 

 tail, which latter was, of itself, seventeen inches and 

 a half in length. The ears were six inches long and 

 pendulous. The height from the toe to the top of 

 the fore shoulders, twenty-eight inches and a half; 

 the circumference of the breast thirty-five inches, and 

 of the belly, twenty-six. All were good tempered ; 

 and in former generations the race are said to have 

 borne a great resemblance to the greyhound. If this 

 latter fact is well authenticated, it throws some light 

 upon the progressive history of this first division ; for 

 the dogs of this subdivision stand something inter- 

 mediate between the greyhounds, properly so called, 

 and the wild dogs ; and so, if there is a return from 

 the greyhound to the type of this subdivision, there 

 might be a return in this to the type of the wild dog. 



There are dogs evidently resembling these in other 

 countries, such as the large and rough greyhound of 

 Russia, and that of the low lands of Scotland ; but 



G. 307 



a particular account of them would not add much to 

 the natural history of the genus. 



ALBANIAN DOG. If the wolf dogs of Ireland and 

 the Scotch Highlands were celebrated in the middle 

 ages, the Albanian dog was not less so in the classic 

 times of old. They are the veritable hounds of the 

 Goddess Diana ; and whatever it may make with 

 reference to the goddess, it is good evidence of the 

 excellence of the dog, that one presented by the 

 immortal huntress to Procris, her favourite, was so 

 staunch, that it never missed its prey. These appear 

 to have been dogs in high estimation, through all the 

 mountainous parts of Greece, and the breed is still pre- 

 served, especially in the wild country after which the 

 animal is named. This dog is about the size of a 

 mastiff, his hair is of a very fine consistence, very 

 thickly set, resembling fur, and of a long and silky 

 texture, generally of different shades of brown ; his 

 tail is long and bushy, which he carries somewhat in 

 the manner of a Newfoundland dog ; his legs are 

 strong, shorter, and with more bone than those of the 

 greyhound, on which account he seems formed for 

 strength rather than for excessive speed. The head 

 and jaws are elongated, with the nose pointed, some- 

 thing like that of the Greenland dog, but rather 

 longer. This dog in former times was used in hunt- 

 ing the wild boar and the wolf, as well as in fighting ; 

 and was also reared in pastoral districts to protect 

 their folds from wolves and thieves. We may natu- 

 rally expect that there should be some climatal varie- 

 ties in other parts of Europe of a dog which has been 

 so long known to history. One of these probably is 



THE SPOTTED DOG, DALMATIAN, OR HUNGARIAN 

 DOG. This is more an ornamental than a useful dog ; 

 as it is soft in its manners and far from being intel- 

 ligent ; but it is very handsome and very good- 

 natured, and therefore it is much used as an atten- 

 dant on carriages. It is so well known as to require 

 no further description. In form, this dog bears a 

 slight resemblance to some of the hounds, or the 

 smooth pointers, but he has none of their valuable 

 qualities. 



THE FRENCH MATIN. This dog is very different 

 from the last mentioned, and possesses properties in 

 some respects superior to any other dog of the divi- 

 sion, on which account he is a great favourite in 

 France, where his fidelity and his courage equally 

 recommend him. His general characters are, the 

 head elongated, and the forehead flat ; the ears pen- 

 dulous toward the tips, and similar to those of the 

 greyhound ; the hair is generally of a yellowish fawn 

 colour, with blackish, slate-coloured, oblique, and 

 parallel indistinct rays all over the body. He is a 

 very active and muscular dog, standing about two feet 

 high, and three feet long. He is possessed of great 

 courage, and displays much ferocity in attacking wild 

 boars and wolves, in the hunting of which he is 

 frequently used, and evinces great perseverance and 

 eagerness in the chasing of them. The principal use 

 of the matin in France is the tending of flocks, in 

 which service he has all the qualities of the shepherd's 

 dog of this country ; he is likewise employed as a 

 house-dog, and is extremely assiduous and watchful 

 in that capacity, protecting his master's property to 

 the last extremity. In France he is held in higher 

 estimation than any other of the watching or guard- 

 ing dogs. But we must turn to the varieties which 

 are still more deficient in scent and sagacity, but have 

 that deficiency compensated by additional swiftness, 

 great quickness of ear, and considerable acutencss of 



