276 Reminiscences of 



As Dingo was so ready and eager for scraps, the 

 'coon was brought out to him the following day and 

 staked within easy limit, and when let go, flew for 

 him, who was equally eager, and immediately fol- 

 lowed an encounter of sanguinary ferocity difficult to 

 describe. A 'coon, protected by its bountiful fur and 

 rapidity of movement, is more than a match for any 

 ordinary dog, and in weight — in this instance — was 

 much more than Dingo's, but the latter was more 

 alert than the 'coon, and provided with larger teeth 

 and probable tenacity. Still, the 'coon was fighting 

 for life and the loss of offspring, while Dingo was 

 fighting simply for fun, and he soon obtained all he 

 wanted, although no white feather existed among 

 his holdings, and he worked himself up into a great 

 fury. 



It was soon apparent that it would be a long-drawn 

 contest, and for fear that Dingo might in the end 

 receive serious injury, which looked probable, he was 

 withdrawn from reach, although desperately deter- 

 mined. That night the 'coon broke away, and has 

 since been missing. 



Dingo seems never quiet, and is always on the 

 move about his arena, circling around incessantly, 

 and, although having a house of rest and refuge, seems 

 never to occupy it or to be found sleeping. 



Often in the night his peculiar wild call breaks 

 out in answer to other distant wild coyote calls, but if 

 he breaks away by the breaking of his chain he is 

 always found about again, and is secured. 



The coyotes are the great pest of the sheep busi- 

 ness, and our loss from them annually amounts, 

 over a long period, to from 200 to 300 head, although 



