THE BRITISH MASTIFF. 37 



entitled "Ancient History of Assyria from the Monuments," 

 by George Smith, chap. xv. We read the high state of 

 civilization the Assyrian monarchy had obtained under Assur- 

 ban-i-pal, the Sardanapalus of the Greeks. Under his rule 

 works on geography were made, a list of countries, their 

 positions and products, etc. And in chap. xv. page 183, Geo. 

 Smith mentions the noble breed of mastiffs to which particular 

 attention was paid, whether native or imported from the 

 Cimmerians, Scythians, or other barbarians. 



Another piece of canine evidence of probable Phoenician 

 importation is the existence from time immemorial of the 

 water spaniel peculiar to Ireland and Spain, introduced by 

 the same traders, probably from Carthagena, as Dr. Birch has 

 identified the breed on the early Egyptian monuments 

 Among the Papyrus and other reeds of the Nile, this variety 

 would be most useful for retrieving water fowl, shot with the 

 primitive bow and arrow. 



The Sluideen or wattled old greyhound pig of Ireland 

 forms another very suggestive connecting link of intercourse 

 between that country and Africa, the animal having seemingly 

 a closer affinity to the Ethiopean wild boar (the Apis JEthi- 

 opicus or wart-hog of Pallas, which he inferred was the same 

 as the Sus Larvatus of Madagascar) with its wattled excress- 

 ences, than to other British varieties. 



To the Romans little was known of Britain previous to 

 Julius Caesar's conquest in 55 B.C., before which, the name 

 Britain was almost unknown to the Roman writers, thus it is 

 not surprising that Virgil makes no mention of the British 

 dogs, and his contemporary cowardly little Horace contented 

 himself with imprecating war on the inhospitable Britons at 



