L98 YERTEBRATA. 



of considerable aize, with a round muzzle, large bead, small, erect ears, pud long, hairy tail; lie is 

 spotted with black, white, and yellow, and baa a fierce, wolfish aspect. 



In Nubia there is a smaller dog of the same kind, which never burrows. It lives on small 

 animals and birds, ami rarely enters any of the towns. A similar dog inhabits the neighbor- 

 hood of the Cape, and particularly the Karroo or Wilderness. It is smaller than either of the 

 others, and lives among bushes or under prominent rock*. Others, although not identified with 

 the jackal, yet, associating with him, inhabit the uplands of Cambia and Senegal. 



( >n the Gold Coasl the dog is used and prized as an article of food. He is fattened and 

 driven to market as the European drives his .sheep and hogs. The dog is even more valued than 

 the sheep for human subsistence, and is deemed the greatest luxury that can be placed even on 

 the royal table. 



In Loango, or Lower Guinea, there are wild dogs which hunt in large packs; they fearlessly 

 attack even the elephant, and generally destroy him. In the neighborhood of the Cape, the 

 country is marly cleared of wild beasts ; but in Cape Town, as we have stated, there are a great 

 number of lean and miserable dogs who howl about the streets at night, quitting their dens and 

 lurking-places, in quest of offal. Not long ago, the wolves and hyenas used to descend and dis- 

 pute the spoil with these dogs, while the town resounded with their hideous bowlings all the 

 night long. 



The American dogs, whether wild or domestic, are supposed to be descendants of European 

 or Asiatic breeds. The Newfoundland dog, the Labrador dog, the Esquimaux dog, the Hare 

 Indian dog, are races which originated in the northern parts of the continent, probably at no very 

 remote date, from foreign varieties. When America was discovered, the Indians of both divisions 

 of the continent were already in possession of dogs in a half-tamed state, doubtless of nearly the 

 same breeds as those which their descendants still possess. A small species of dog called A I en, 

 in two varieties — one the size of a Guinea-pig, and the other larger — was found among the Mex- 

 icans and Peruvians, but it appears to have become extinct. Dogs were also found among the 

 Indians of the Caribbean Isles. 



The wiid dogs <>f America at the present day arc not numerous, except in some parts of South 

 America, where they exist in considerable numbers. These appear to be of various breeds, though 

 mosl of them arc of the race called Cayotte, which has a resemblance to the wolf, and has often 

 been described as a species of that animal. The Indians, as well in North as South America, have 

 numerous dogs, mostly derived from the wild breeds. In Mexico and Colombia great numbers of 

 similar dogs arc used for the purpose of guarding the droves of horses and herds of cattle — one 

 planter often having many thousands of these creatures. We are told by Dr. Lewis in his 

 excellent edition of "Youatt on the Dog," that "there is a diminutive species of dog running wild, 

 and burrowing in tin' ground like rabbits, in the neighborhood of Santa Fe and Chihuahua. They 

 ire of every variety of hue, and resort to their burrows whenever disturbed in their natural 

 haunts. \\ hat they subsisl on it is difficult to say, as they are too harmless and insignificant to 

 attack any other animal beyond a mouse or a snail. They are represented as being very 



difficult to ta , but when domesticated show no disposition to return to their former mode of 



life. The lady of the .\b\ican Minister, when in this city, had one of these dogs as a boudoir 

 pet ; it was lively, and barked quite fiercely. We have not beeh able to ascertain whether they 

 bark in their natural state." 



The clebrated mastiffs of Thibet, the dingo of Australia, and the Esquimaux dog, arc semi- 

 civilized races, and will be noticed with the domesticated breeds. 



PRELIMINARY BISTORT OF DOGS. 



The classification ,,f the various breeds of dogs we have to propose, like every other, will 

 necessarily be defective, from the want of information as to the races of antiquity, and even some 

 of the existing varieties. We know, indeed, from the sculptures and paintings of ancient Egypt, 

 'hat in the early ages the people of that country had various breeds of dogs, and some of them 

 were favorites. In these representations we find hounds and greyhounds, >pet domestic dogs, 

 turnspits, watch-dogs, and bunting-dogs. Some kinds were regarded with religious veneration, 



