220 



THE BEASTS OF PREY. 



made me look through the window, to see whether 

 an acquaintance was there. I noticed that Tom 

 kept looking alternately at me and at the train, 

 evidently thinking that I expected somebody. De- 

 sirous to know whether I had guessed his thought, I 

 said: 'Yes, Tom, run!' Like a flash of lightning 

 he was off to the station, after the train. I hurried 

 there also, and arrived in time to see how he hastily 

 looked over all the alighting passengers, went 

 through all the cars twice and then only, not having 

 found any well-known friend, sadly took his depart- 

 ure. From that time the Dog always went to meet 



THE EETBIEVEE. The Retriever variety of Hounds includes besides the smooth-coated kind known as 



the Pointer, the Retriever proper, or Water Spaniel, the beautiful, rough-coated Dog shown in the picture. It has the 

 same traits as the Pointer, but is more fond of the water. Well trained Dogs of this species are not only valuable 

 assistants of the chase but are amiable and especially docile friends of Man. {Cants familiaris sagax avicularius,) 



all our guests who came by rail and whom he knew, 

 and really was the most trustworthy messenger we 

 could send, especially at night time. As soon as 

 the train came into the station, he would make his 

 way through the crowd to the cars, kindly greet the 

 arriving guests, coax them to give him a piece of 

 luggage to carry, and triumphantly lead the march 

 home, opening a way through the crowd in an admi- 

 rable manner, and leading our friends by the most 

 direct route to the place where we stood outside the 

 platform." 

 Physical Charao- The Bulldog {Cams familiaris molossus 

 teristics of the - hibemicus) is a sub-order of the Mas- 

 Bulldog. tiffs ; he is of a stout, vigorous build, 

 the body being but slightly retracted in the flanks ; 

 the back is not arched, the chest is broad, the neck 

 is rather short and thick, the head long and rounded, 

 the forehead is strongly curved; the muzzle is short, 

 narrows somewhat in front and is very blunt. The 

 lips hang down low on both sides, but do not come 

 together in front, and saliva is perpetually dropping 

 from them; the ears are rather long, of moderate 

 width, rounded and semi-erect, the tips hanging over. 

 The legs are strong and of medium length. The 

 tail is thick at its root, tapering towards the end and 

 reaches to the ankle-joints; it is seldom held straight 



or backward, but is usually lifted and bent forward. 



The ordinary coloring is a pale or brownish yellow, 



sometimes with a surface tinge of black; the muzzle, 



the lips and the outer margins of the ears are black. 



There are many variations in coloring, however, as 



with all other Dogs. 



Life and Princi- The original native country of the 



pal Traits of the Bulldog is probably Ireland; at 



Bulldog. least it is there that one finds the 



best existing types of Bulldog. In keeping with 



the heavy and clumsy build of these animals their 



pace is neither swift nor enduring. On the other 



hand they are possessed 

 of enormous strength, 

 much determination and 

 great courage; and it 

 may be said that, with 

 a few exceptions, they 

 are the most courageous- 

 of animals. By virtue 

 of their great strength 

 Bulldogs are especially 

 adapted for a difficult, 

 dangerous chase and for 

 fights with wild animals. 

 Their mental qualities 

 are not as pronounced 

 as those of other saga- 

 cious Dogs, but neither 

 are they on as low a, 

 plane as is generally 

 supposed; for every 

 Bulldog accustoms him- 

 self to Man and sacri- 

 fices his life for him 

 without hesitation. He 

 is particularly adapted 

 for the duties of a watch 

 Dog and defends what 

 is confided to him with 

 really a wonderful intre- 

 pidity. As a travelings 

 companion to Man in a, 

 dangerous, lonely coun- 

 try he has no equal. 

 There are anecdotes, relating how he has success- 

 fully defended his master against five or six high- 

 waymen, and there are further narratives of victo- 

 ries he has won in such unequally matched fights, 

 in spite of the numerous wounds he received. He is 

 also used to guard herds of Cattle and he knows 

 how to tame the wildest Bull, for he is expert enough 

 to suspend himself by his teeth from the Bull's face, 

 and hold fast until the beast is ready to patiently 

 submit to him. He is easily trained for fights with 

 large Beasts of Prey, such as Bears, Wolves and Wild 

 Boars. He is very forbearing in his behavior t& 

 other Dogs; seldom picks a quarrel, and allows 

 smaller Dogs to take liberties with him. He is faith- 

 ful to his master, but is dangerous to strangers, no 

 matter whether he is chained up or at liberty; and 

 when pitted against people, he is a really formidable 

 foe. 



Bulldogs proper are very large and strong ani- 

 mals, with a short, truncated muzzle, whose upper 

 lips, though hanging down low at the sides, do not 

 close in front, so that the teeth are always exposed. 

 The nose is not infrequently split, the fur usually 

 consists of short hair of a plain reddish color; sorne- 

 times it shows several colors. In former and less 

 secure times, when protection was more needed, 



