98 



MUSEUM OF ANIMATED NATURE. 



[Hogs. 



of the enclosure, evidently soliciting food. It turns 

 the straw over and over with it* snout, and champs 

 in eatini;, but utters, as far as we could learn, no 

 grunt, as does the hoe, nor has it the unpleasant 

 smell of the latter. That the babiroussa might be 

 reclaimed, notwithstanding Lesson's account of its 

 savasre disposition in capti% ity, and added to our 

 domestic animals, is rer)- evident. Its flesh is re- 

 ported to be held in high estimation. Fig. 418 

 represents the head of the male babiroussa («) and 

 of the female (A) by way of contrast. Fig. 419 is an 

 admirable delineation of the skull of the adult 

 male, in which the form of the tusks, their relative 

 proportions and direction are faithfully given. Fig. 

 420, a lateral view" of the dentition of upper and 

 lower jaw. Fig. 421, dentition of upper jaw in two 

 views ; Fig. 422, those of the lower jaw. 



426, 431.— The Wild Hog 



(Sus A/>er, Briss. ; Sim Scrtrfa, Linn.'). The wild hog 

 is, as ail naturalists admit, the origin of our domes- 

 tic race, but at what period it was reclaimed is very 

 uncertain. The circumstances indeed connected 

 with the domestication of everj- animal subject to 

 the bondage of man are enveloped in obscurity. The 

 domestication, however, of the wild hog would not 

 involve much ditficulty. Young individuals taken 

 in their native forest soon become reconciled to 

 captivity, and display the same contentment and 

 familiarity which are so conspicuous in the ordinary 

 tame beast. It is this disposition, a characteristic 

 of the Pachyderraata, which renders the elephant, 

 the rhinoceroSj the tapir, and othere, so easily sub- 

 jiisrated ; but, on the other hand, the readiness with 

 which they submit to the restraints of captivity is 

 counterbalanced by an equal readiness to assume a 

 life of independence. The hog when left to itself 

 resumes its original habits, as is the case in Ame- 

 rica, where wild herds roam the forest ; and, as we 

 have seen, the elephant oilen escapes its trammels 

 and joins its wild brethren, immediately submitting, 

 if retaken, to the voice of authority which it had 

 previously learned to obey. The hoi'se in a wild 

 state scours the plains of Tartary and South Ame- 

 rica ; it requires but a struggle to break in the most 

 spirited. It may be laid down as an axiom, that 

 the animals of whose services man stands most in 

 need are, each in their way, those whose nature 

 most readily induces them to submit to his domi- 

 nion, nay, even court his friendship. Some we 

 can tame, and only tame ; others we can educate. 



The wild hog was once common in our island, 

 and it is almost surprising, considering the passion 

 for the chase which seems to be part and parcel of 

 our English temperament, that this animal is not 

 re-established in some of its old haunts, the parks 

 and forests of nobility. In India, indeed, the chase 

 of the wild boar is one of the field-sports to which 

 our counti-ymen are enthusiastically devoted ; nor 

 is there any reason why it might not be revived in 

 England. 



The wild hog is still common in the forests of 

 Germany, France, and other portions of Europe, 

 and extends also through Asia and Africa ; if in- 

 deed the species is positively identical — a point 

 which there is some reason to question. At all 

 events slight differences are observable between 

 the Indian wild boar and the present breed of the 

 German forests; and Sonnini expresses a doubt 

 as to the identity of the Egyptian and European 

 wild race. 



In no essential point does the wild race of Europe 

 differ from our domestic breeds ; the snout however 

 is more elongated, and, as might be expected, the 

 contour of the frame is more gaunt and bony. The 

 ears are short and erect, the tusks large, and the 

 bristles long and coarse ; the general colour is 

 rusty-black or blackish brown, more or less brindled 

 in patches. After the age of three years, the wild 

 boar leads a solitary life ifi the forest, fearless of 

 every foe and confident in his weapons, which, 

 added to his great strength, render him a formidable 

 antagonist. It is not, however, until the age of five 

 or six years that he attains to his full dimensions, 

 and the duration of his life is from twenty-five to 

 thirty years. The females with their young associ- 

 ate in herds for the sake of mutual protection : on 

 the approach of an enemy the young are placed in 

 the centre, the old on«s forming a circle round 

 them ; and should he be hazardous enough to ven- 

 ture on the attack, he meets with a rough reception. 

 It is thus that the young are preserved from wolves, 

 the chief foes to be dreaded by them ; to which in 

 some districts they often fall a prey, notwithstand- 

 ing the vigilance of their parent. It is only in 

 defence of their young that the females are furious, 

 but the old males are not to be approached without 

 caution, and often nish out upon those who venture 

 near the precincts of their lair. At certain seasons, 

 indeed, the wild boar is very savage, and should he 

 meet a rival, the most sanguinarj' combat ensues. 



In the month of December or January, each male 

 attaches himself to the society of a chosen female, 



whom he accompanies in the deepest glens of the 

 forest for about thirty days. When about to pro- 

 duce her young, the female seeks some imdisturbed 

 retreat remote from the haunts of the male, who it 

 appears exhibits a propensity to devour her pro- 

 geny if he discover the litter. To her young the 

 female is a most attentive mother; she suckles 

 them for three or four months, and they remain 

 with her for a long time : an aged female is some- 

 times seen followed by several families, among 

 which are some of the age of two or three years. 

 I These young rovei-a the French hunters call bCtes 

 de compagnie. The wild boar seldom stirs from 

 his lair during the day, and may therefore be 

 regarded as in some degree nocturnal ; on the ap- 

 proach of twilight, he rouses from his indolent 

 slumbers, and sets out in quest of food, which con- 

 sists of acorns, beech-mast, grain, different vege- 

 tables, and roots ; in search of the latter, he ploughs 

 up the ground with his snout : corn-fields in the 

 vicinity of forests where wild hogs exist often suffer 

 extensively from their nightly incureions. The 

 wild boar, though not truly carnivorous, does not 

 refuse animal matters which chance may throw in 

 his way : he does not however ordinarily attack and 

 kill others for the sake of their flesh, but only 

 devours what he may meet with in his lambles. In 

 j the morning the wild boar returns to his lair in the 

 j thickest and most gloomy part of the Ibrest, under 

 I a rock, in a cave, or under the canopy of gnarled 

 and intertwined branches. When roused by the 

 hunter and his dogs, the old boar retreats sullenly 

 and slowly, gnashing his teeth, foaming with anger, 

 and often stopping to receive his pui-suers, on whom 

 he ollen rushes with sudden impetuosity, striking 

 with his tusks, goring doers and men, and scattering 

 terror around. When the boar turns upon a pack, 

 the foremost dogs are sure to suffer, and several 

 will fall by as many strokes. An instance is on 

 record in which a boar turned suddenly upon a 

 pack of fifty dogs which pursued him, and instantly 

 despatched six or seven of them, wounding all the 

 rest with the exception of ten. The young boar is 

 less resolute than the old animal, and will run to 

 a considerable distance before he is brought to bay ; 

 nor is the assault attended with any great degree 

 of danger. In all ages, the chase of the boar has 

 been a favourite diversion ; the classic writings 

 abound with allusions to it and to the risk incurred. 

 Ovid (Fab. iv., lib. viii.) gives a spirited account 

 of the chase, in which the fury and strength of the 

 enraged beast are admirably depicted. It would 

 seem that the ancients endeavoured to enclose the 

 boar by nets so as to prevent his escaping into the 

 recesses of the forest : the combat was close, and 

 therefore dangerous ; driven from his lair by the 

 dogs, and hemmed in, the infuriated animal turned 

 savagely upon his assailants, and died, after killing 

 and wounding dogs and men, transfixed by spears 

 and javelins. Our forefathers in the Middle Ages 

 deemed the wild boar one of the noble " beastes of 

 venery," and kept a powerful breed of hounds for 

 the chase : the weapons used by the huntsmen were 

 spears, and a sort of short sword, or couteau de 

 cliasse ; the speai-s were used when the boar was 

 brought to bay, and the attack gave abundant 

 opportunities to the hunters of showing their skill 

 and courage. The loud blast of the horn, mingled 

 with the shouts of men and the baying of the 

 hounds, proclaimed the vigorous home-thrust that 

 struck the savage lifeless to the ground. Figs. 427, 

 428, and 428* are illustrative of the boar-hunt as 

 conducted in Europe in the Middle Ages. Fig. 432 

 illustrates boar-hunting as practised in India at the 

 present day. The hunters are always mounted on 

 horseback, and, instead of meeting the animal with 

 spears, attack him with javelins, which are launched 

 at him as he flies, or as he rushes to the charge, 

 which is often so determined that the horses cannot 

 be brought to stand the shock, or, if they do, are 

 thrown down and gored ; serious accidents some- 

 times occur. Mr. Johnson relates an instance in 

 which a large and resolute boar, after being driven 

 by the hunters into a plain, stood at bay and chal- 

 lenged the whole party : he charged every horse 

 that advanced within fifty yards of him, with great 

 ferocity, causing them to rear and plunge, and 

 throw off their riders, whose lives were in jeopardy : 

 though many of the horses were accustomed to the 

 sport, none would stand his charges, or bring the 

 rider within javelin distance, and at last he fairly 

 drove the party from the iield ; and then, gnashing 

 his tusks and foaming, he made his way to the 

 jungle, where it was useless to attempt to follow 

 him. 



In our own country the boar, reserved for the 

 sport of the privileged classes, was protected by 

 severe laws. By one of the edicts of William the 

 Conqueror (a.d. 1087), it was ordained that any 

 who were found guilty of killing a stag, roebuck, or 

 wild boar were to have their eyes put out : some- 

 times, indeed, the penalty appears to have been a 

 painful death. 



At what precise period the wild boar became 

 extinct in our island cannot be precisely deter- 

 mined ; it is evident, however, that as population 

 increased, and the vast woods which spread over 

 many parts of the country were cut down and the 

 land cleared, that the range of the boar would be- 

 come more and more limited, and its numbers 

 decreased, till at length its extirpation would be 

 complete. We look in vain for the forest which, 

 in the 12th century, covered the country to the 

 north of London, and of which Fitzstephen, in the 

 reign of Henry II., writes, observinsr that "on the 

 north are corn-fields and delightful meadows, in- 

 termixed with pleasant streams, on which stands 

 many a mill, whose clack is so grateful to the ear ; 

 beyond them an immense forest extends itself, 

 beautified with woods and groves, and full of the 

 lairs and coverts of beast and game, stags, bucks, 

 boars, and wild bulls." Banished, however, as the 

 wild boar is from among our native Mammalia, 

 "its name is immortalized," as Mr. Bell observes, 

 " by having given origin to the appellation of many 

 places in different parts of the country, and by its 

 introduction into the armorial bearings ot many dis- 

 tinguished families of every division of the king- 

 dom." 



The skull of the hog (Fig. 429), which affords an 

 index of the habits of the animal, is of a conical 

 or wedge-like form ; the base or occipital portion 

 forms a right angle with the oblique upper surface, 

 and a bold transverse ridge is formed by the union 

 of the occipital and parietal bones. The nasal 

 i bones are prolonged nearly to the end of the snout, 

 which, in the living animal, terminated in a move- 

 able cartilaginous disc, pierced by the nostrils. 



The lower jaw is of great strength. The dentition 



f* 1 1 . 



(Fig. 430) is as follows : — Incisors, _ ; canines, ' 



7 ^7 



molars, - — =44. The canines of the upper jaw 



are prismatic, and curve downwards, having their • 

 anterior surface worn by the action of the huge 

 canines of the lower jaw, which are sharp, sweep 

 out from the sides of the mouth, and often attain to 

 the length of eight or ten inches, and sometimes 

 even more. These canines or tusks are terrible 

 weapons : rushing on his antagonist, the boar 

 strikes obliquely upwards, right and left, with pro- 

 digious violence ; a mode of action the best calcu- 

 lated for bringing these weapons into effective play, 

 and in which the muscular powers of the neck and 

 shoulders are the most advantageously and naturally 

 exerted. 



433, 434, d, e. — The Domestic Hog 



is too well known to need any description ; and its 

 utility too well appreciated to require comment. 

 It is not, however, valued alike in all countries, 

 and in some is regarded with abhorrence. In India 

 both Brahmin and Mussulman reject its flesh as 

 food, yet in many districts of that country semi- 

 domesticated hogs wander about the villages, feed- 

 ing on the refuse which they pick up in the streets. 

 Colonel Sykes states that in Dukhun "every vil- 

 lage abounds with hogs, but any property in them 

 is equally abjured by individuals and the commu- 

 nity." Detestation of the hog was a feeling enter- 

 tained by certain nations in remote antiquity. It 

 was classed by the Jews among the vilest animals, 

 and in Egypt the swineherd was numbered among 

 the profane, and forbidden to enter the temples of 

 their gods ; even the Ibwest dregs of the people 

 refused to bestow their daughter on him in mar- 

 riage. The Egyptians sacrificed the hog to Bac- 

 chus, and to the moon when full. " In the evening 

 of the festival of Bacchus," says Herodotus, " thougli 

 every one be obliged to kill a hog before the door 

 of his house, yet he immediately restores the car- 

 cass to the swineherd that sold him." The ancient 

 Scythians, according to- the same authority, made 

 no use of swine, nor suffered any to be kept in the 

 country. The Abyssinians and the Cophts of 

 Egypt, as well as the Mohammedans, reject the 

 flesh of the hog. Among the ancient Greeks and 

 Romans, though the office of swineherd appeare to 

 have been held in contempt, the flesh of the hog 

 was in high estimation, and a sucking pig was as 

 favourite a dish as amongst ourselves in the present 

 day. The Chinese have derived no prejudices 

 against the hog from the Mohammedan nations Of 

 the East : on the contrary, they rear these animals 

 in great numbers for the sake of their flesh ; and 

 even the numerous population who tenant the float- 

 ing town of rafts or barges contrive to keep and 

 rear them. 



" One of the most singular circumstances," says 

 Mr. Wilson, "in the domestic history of this animal, 

 is tile immense extent of its distribution, more 

 especially in far-removed and insulated spots in- 

 habited by semi-barbarians, where the wild species 

 is entirely unknown. For example, the South Sea 

 Islanders, on their discovery by Europeans, were 

 found to be well stocked with a small black-legged 



