THE WOLVES. 135 
made efforts to drag him through; his cries awa- 
kening the whole vicinity, the beast was compelled 
to quit his hold, but although encountered and 
struck at by many, he escaped; the man was nearly 
scalped and dreadfully lacerated, but recovered. 
Wolves, when attacking cattle or horses, are said to 
take them by the throat, or by the nose, till they 
pull them down. A French farmer, however, re- 
lated that a horse of his, killed by a wolf the pre- 
ceding night, had been seized by the tail and dragged 
over till it fell upon the side; and on visiting the 
remains of it, we verified the fact of no wound 
appearing in front; the ham had been strung, and 
the wolf had fed exclusively on the solid parts of the 
buttock. A similar mode of attack appeared to 
have been adopted, where a cow was the victim of 
an American wolf, which likewise came under our 
personal inspection. Sheep and lambs they actually 
carry off at a round pace, contriving to throw a part 
of the weight upon their shoulders. Capt. William- 
son describes a case that came under his own eyes, 
and where he, being on horseback, attempted to 
interpose, but the wolf laid down his burden and 
gave sions of assailing the Captain’s horse; and he 
being unarmed, felt the prudence of allowing him to 
escape with his prize. 
According to accounts we received from the Don 
Cossacks, their horses bred wild on the steppes 
resist the attacks of whole troops of wolves. The 
mares form circles round the foals; and the stallions, 
remaining outside, resolutely charge them, and gene- 
