THE CANID^E, OR DOGS. 



265 



state must have been the primeval form of the 

 domestic dog ; but after what has been said above, 

 this general way of settling the question must be 

 regarded as one that no longer holds good. Wold- 

 rich's ! views show a greater amount of probability, 

 and have lately been taken up again ; he maintains 

 that our domestic races are descended from several 

 wild forms of the Canidse of the Diluvium, and 

 herein he agrees with what Darwin and Huxley 

 have stated regarding the relation between the 

 Domestic Dog and the living Jackals and Wolves. 



It may with certainty be maintained that the 

 direct ancestors of the European Wolf are to be found 

 in the Diluvial deposits. Formerly a huge animal 

 of the wolf species was distinguished as the Cave 

 Wolf, without there being any distinct character to 

 separate the two forms. A third form of wolf 

 Canis suessii, from the Loss near Vienna is de- 

 scribed as a slim but powerful animal, strong 

 enough even to pursue and overpower the larger 

 species of plant-eaters. It is, in fact, one of the 

 eight species of wolves which can be distinguished 

 during the Diluvial early ages of man. And in 

 addition to these there are about five kinds of foxes. 



1 Woldrich, ' Wilde Caniden des Diluviums,' Wiener Denk- 

 schriften, 1879. 



