AUTHOR'S ACKNOWLEDGMENT. 



In sending this volume forth to the public, the preparation 

 of which has been a matter of profound interest and pro- 

 longed labor to me, I wish to acknowledge the courtesy of, 

 and return my thanks to, the scores of men, who, scattered 

 over the country, have given me their encouragement and 

 assistance in my work. Especially would I acknowledge 

 the courtesy of the President of the Nation in accepting so 

 graciously, and with such manifest interest, the dedication of 

 the work ; and the great services done me personally by Rev. 

 Henry Ward Beecher in contributing the Introduction, and 

 by Hon. George B. Loring in the preparation of his most 

 interesting: and valuable article. 



It is not often that one can see such a grouping of names 

 as this ; and it does of itself suggest how wide-spread and 

 profound is the interest in and affection for the animal of 

 which they write. To these gentlemen, and to all who have 

 aided me by fiivor and counsel in my effort, I regard myself 



personally a debtor. 



W. n. n. MURllAY. 

 viU 



