128 BRITISH QUADRUPEDS. 



before, lie had been showing every mark of fond- 

 ness. 



A third separation, however, seemed to be too much 

 for this faithful animal's temper ; he became gloomy 

 and desponding, refused his food, and for a long time 

 his life appeared in danger. His health, however, re- 

 turned ; but he no longer suffered the caresses of any 

 but his keepers, and towards strangers was as savage as 

 the rest of hi* species. " Now if," adds Mr. Bell, " we 

 find that the mere education of a young wolf, taken 

 from its parents in a wild state, could so far change its 

 natural disposition, and render it so fond, so intelligent, 

 so grateful as this, what may we not expect from the 

 successive transmission of improvement by the culture 

 and training of a whole race for ages ?" 



We have no means of deciding, however, when the 

 dog was first trained. It was said during the sojourn 

 of Israel in Egypt, that " against them a dog should 

 not move his tongue ;" from which it would appear, that 

 these animals were kept in a domesticated state in the 

 families of the Egyptians. This is the earliest refer- 

 ence we have to them. It may seem strange that the 

 dog should almost uniformly be spoken of in Scripture, 

 in such terms as to show that it was held in great con- 

 tempt among the Jewish people. But it is probable, 



