VARIETIES OF THE DOG. 25 



strongest expressions of respect to leave the corpse of their deceased friends 

 to be torn and devoured by dogs. Every man was provided with a cer- 

 tain number of these animals, as a living tomb for himself at some future 

 period, and these dogs were remarkable for their fierceness. 



DOMESTICATED DOGS OF THE FIRST DIVISION. 



THE HARE INDIAN DOG. 



Some of the readers of this work may possibly recollect three beautiful 

 dogs of this species in the gardens of the Zoological Society of London, 

 which afforded a perfect illustration of the elongated head of the dogs be- 

 longing to Cuvier's first section. Mr. Bennett, the Secretary of the 

 Society, gave an interesting account of them in 1835, derived from the 

 observation of Sir John Franklin and Dr. Richardson. 



The elongation and sharpness of the muzzle, and the small capacity of 

 the skull, first attract attention. The dog was doubtless fitted for its 

 situation, where its duty is to hunt by sight after the moose or rein-deer, 

 but would have been comparatively worthless if he was to be guided by 

 the scent. Its erect ears, widened at the base and pointed at the top, gave 

 it an appearance of vivacity and spirit. Its depth of chest, and tucked-up 

 flank, and muscular quarters, marked it as a dog of speed, while its light 

 frame, and the length of the toes, and wideness of web between them, 

 seem to depict the kind of surface over which it was to bound. It is 

 not designed to seize and to hold any animal of considerable bulk ; it 

 bounds over the snow without sinking, if the slightest crust is formed upon 

 it, and eagerly overtakes and keeps at bay the moose or the rein-deer 

 until the hunters arrive. This animal furnishes a beautiful illustration of 

 adaptation for a particular purpose. 



The hair of these dogs is white, with patches of grayish-black and 

 brown. They are known only in the neighbourhood of the Mackenzie 

 River and of the Great Bear Lake in North America. They appear to 

 be good-tempered and easily manageable, and soon become familiar even 



