AND AMERICAN RURAL SPORTS. 



49 



NEWFOUNDLAND DOG. 

 C^NJS FJIMILMRIS. VAR. SENSILIS. 



[Plate v.] 



Man exercises a more unlimited and singular sway 

 over the Dog, than over any other animal; this is so com- 

 plete that the whole species has become his property, 

 each individual of it being identified with his master, 

 whose orders, and even whose wishes, he is always soli- 

 citious to execute; he adopts his manners, and surrenders 

 his own feelings and propensities with cheerfulness and 

 alacrity, remaining faithful even under the severest treat- 

 ment; he calmly suffers and forgets the most cruel out- 

 rages, or only remembers them to increase his devotion; 

 and all this originates neither from necessity nor constraint, 

 but appears to arise from innate feelings of gratitude, and 

 true friendship. The speed, strength, and scent of the 

 Dog, have constituted him a powerful ally of man against 

 other animals, and his services have, in all probability, 

 contributed in no sliaht degree to have reclaimed man from 

 the savage state, and induced him to adopt the pastoral, or 

 second grade of civilization. 



In fact, it must be evident to every reflecting mind, that 

 without the aid of this faithful animal, man could never 

 have obtained the mastery he now holds over the rest of 

 creation. To conceive the importance of this acquisition, 

 let it be supposed that it had never been attained. With- 

 out the assistance of the Dog, how could man have attempt- 

 ed to reduce the other animals to a state of subjection ? For 

 his own safety, and to constitute himself master of the ani- 

 mated world, it was absolutely necessary to form an alli- 

 ance with some of the animals themselves, and to conciliate 

 such as were capable of attachment and obedience, in order 

 to oppose them to such as were possessed of opposite quali- 

 ties. Hence, the domestication of the Dog seems to have 

 been almost coeval with the history of man in a social state, 

 and the result has been the conquest of the earth. 



The generic characters of the Dog are, having the face 

 prolonged, and the naked, glandulous part of the nose more 

 or less rounded; the cheeks somewhat elevated, the tongue 

 smooth, and the ears erect, and pointed. This last cha- 

 racter, however, becomes altered by domestication. Fore 

 feet with five, and hinder feet with four toes, provided 

 with strong, slightly carved nails, which are not retractile, 

 as in the cats. The dental system in this genus is peculiar; 

 there are in all forty-two teeth, namely, twenty in the 

 upper jaw, and twenty-two in the lower, which are dis- 

 posed as follows: Incisors I, canine |z-i, molars l-zf. The 

 incisors are placed on the same line, and are trilobed before 

 they have been much used. The canines are conical, 

 N 



acute, and smooth. The superior molars are six in num- 

 ber, on each side, viz. three small acute teeth or false cut- 

 ting molars, having a single lobe, a bicuspid or carnivo- 

 rous, and two small teeth with a flat crown. The inferior 

 molars are seven in number, on each side, viz. four false 

 molars, a carnivorous, and two tuberculous teeth. This 

 genus, as we have mentioned in a former number, includes 

 the domestic Dog, the fox, the wolf, and the jackal. All 

 the species are endowed with very acute senses, especially 

 that of smelling. They are carnivorous, even feeding on 

 flesh, when in a putrid state; more or less intelligent. The 

 generality of them unite in troops, for the purpose of taking 

 their prey, which they follow by the scent. Some species 

 live in burrows, but the greatest number inhabit woods and 

 thickets. 



The specific characters of the domestic Dog, as given by 

 Desmarest, are: tail curved upwards in a greater or less 

 degree; face more or less prolonged, or shortened; hair 

 very various as to colour, though in almost every in- 

 stance where the tail is varied with white, this colour is 

 terminal. Linnseus assigned as a character of this species, 

 that the tail inclined to the left side, but this, daily obser- 

 vation proves to be incorrect. 



To dwell at greater length on the description or particu- 

 lar qualities of this well known animal, would be superflu- 

 ous. Instead, therefore, of entering into a detail of his 

 character and uses, we shall principally call the attention of 

 our readers to the different opinions of naturalists, as re- 

 spects the original species, with a few intances of his saga- 

 city, attachment, and perseverance, as have occurred in the 

 course of our reading. 



It must be obvious, even to the most unobservant, how 

 exceedingly Dogs differ, not only in their habits, faculties, 

 and propensities, but also in the form and proportions of 

 their bodies, the infinite and incessant mixture of races, 

 and the ramification of crosses, rendering it almost impos- 

 sible to enumerate each distinct breed or variety. This 

 however, has been attempted by several naturalists. The 

 first systematic arrangement of these animals, which we 

 have met with, is that of Dr. Caius, who divivides them into 

 three classes: 1. Those of a generous nature. S. Farm 

 Dogs; and 3. Mongrels. After the time of this author, 

 numbers of classifications have been given, all more or less 

 defective. Buffon has draw up an elaborate genealogical 

 table to prove that all the varieties may be traced back to 

 the shepherd's dog, which he considers the original type, 

 from its great sagacity. In this table he not only attempts 

 to class the different varieties, but also to give an idea of 

 the mode in which they have been produced, by the influ- 

 ence of climate, and the commixture of breeds. It is con- 

 structed in the form of a geographical chart, so as to pre- 



