THE LYC1SCAN GROUP. 705 



they must necessarily stray to great distances in pursuit of 

 their game, and could easily make their escape from the 

 bondage in which they have lived. 



Of the Northern Sledge-Dogs, those of Greenland are bet- 

 ter known to us in England than any of the others, indi- 

 viduals being sometimes brought by our whaling ships. They 

 are generally of a white colour, like the wolves of the same 

 country. The old dogs are sufficiently fierce and rude, but 

 their progeny, reared in the domestic state, become as gentle, 

 social, and attached, as any other dogs. They have been 

 reared in different parts of Europe, and retain their likeness 

 to the primitive stock, even to the colour of the fur. They 

 are prized for their docility, fidelity, and social habits. They 

 are favourite companions of the conducteurs of diligences in 

 France. They lie at the feet of their masters, and are the 

 trusty guardians of the property intrusted to them, and will 

 hold the reins of the carriage in the absence of the coachman. 



On the Asiatic side of Behring's Strait, the dogs employed 

 for dragging sledges and bearing loads are more numerous 

 than on the American. They are also taller and handsomer 

 than the American race, but thfey have all the same essen- 

 tial characters, and are manifestly no other than the Wolves 

 of the country they inhabit. They are employed in Siberia 

 by the Russian Government, and relays of them are kept for 

 travelling, as horses are in other countries. Frightful ac- 

 counts are given by travellers of the sufferings of these 

 creatures in long journeys, from the failure of food. They 

 will, in this case, tear their harness to pieces, and eat it, 

 . and, when one of their fellows falls down, set upon him and 

 devour him, as in the case of wolves when any of their com- 

 panions are maimed or killed. 



Southward of the Arctic Regions, the Dogs become of 

 more varied kinds, so that we can then observe the effects 

 of that mixture of races which, in all the more temperate 

 countries, the domesticated dogs exhibit. Yet generally, in 

 the highest latitudes of the temperate zones, the prevailing 



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