DOG 135 



people. Most dogs bark, yelp and howl ad nauseam, but there 

 are at least three varieties that never bark, viz., the Austrab'an 

 dog, the Egyptian shepherd-dog, and the " lion-headed " dog of 

 Thibet. The Skye terrier holds first place easily in respect of 

 intelligence. Lightfoot, in his Flora Scotica, pays it a special 

 tribute, describing the class as "particularly good and much 

 encouraged in most parts for the destruction of foxes in the 

 Hebrides, in which they were in 1790." As to the terrier, the late 

 " Nether Lochaber " has a happy reference to this graphic descrip- 

 tion of one of the class, viz., " A fiery ettercep, a fractious chiel, as 

 het as ginger and as stieve as steel." The term "cur" originates 

 from a rule once existing, preventing common people's dogs from 

 joining in a hunt with the hounds of chiefs, noblemen, or gentle- 

 men, unless the dogs' tails were shortened, i.e., made court or 

 curt, hence curtail dog, curtle dog, and finally "cur." Biting and 

 hydrophobia has a good deal to do with the dislike of some 

 people to dogs. Our knowledge of hydrophobia is advanced from 

 the time when the ancient Celt held it in even more dread than 

 we do ; they dreaded the bite of any dog, sane or mad. In the 

 case of another dog being bitten, water was put on the bitten 

 dog's teeth, and used to wash the wound. Some say, on the 

 teeth of the mad dog, which must be nonsense. The cure, 

 whichever way carried out, was called loc-shlaint (health-restorer), 

 certainly a pretty general name. A dog's rabies is said to be 

 rendered sterile and innocuous by sapphires. Rabies was also 

 said to be cured by placing a " blessed " cloven stick on the tail 

 of the infected animal, which stick bore the somewhat singular 

 term of "Seangan," thin one, or ant. A term for a mangled 

 carcass is derived from this animal's habit of gnawing and tearing, 

 viz., " conablach " (cu ablach — dog refuse) ; a kennel again is 

 "conbhair." Lazy dogs are not unknown, and though "South- 

 country " lore, it may be given here, as bad Highland or Celtic 

 dogs are not known, or at least, recorded. "Hall's" dog was so 

 lazy as to lean against a wall to bark ; another, still lazier, was 

 called "Larriman's" dog, while still another's weakness is handed 

 down to posterity under the name of " Lumley's " dog " as laid him 

 down to bark, or leaned his sen agean a door or a wall when he 

 went to bark ! " 



A parallel to the foregoing, though ending more creditably, 

 was the historical " black dog " possessed by MacPhee of Colonsay, 

 which seldom quitted the fireside, and when it did, only lounged 

 about the door. Various versions of this animal's history are 

 given, and though fairly well known, we venture to give one, to the 

 effect that all efforts were made to induce this dog to follow the 

 chase, but in vain. MacPhee was said to be so disgusted at 

 this, holding, as he most probably did, the same hatred to a 

 worthless hound as Fionn himself, that he often spoke of destroying 

 him (the black dog). The cook, however, round whose heart the 



