90 



The Living Animals of the World 



/ 1 ■f,.-/, I'\Z.S.] [Xni'll, Fi,:chln/. 



INDIAN WOLF. 



This phntngvalih shows the iDilian wulf alarnied. It ha.^ 

 re^iutation fur stealing chiMreQ as well as killing cattle. 



Some years ago experiments were made at 

 the Regent's Park Zoological Gardens to ascertain if 

 there were any foundation for the old legends that 

 wolves feared the sound of stringed instruments such 

 as the violin. Every one will remember the story of 

 the fiddler pursued by wolves. It is said that as the 

 ]iack overtook him h(^ broke a string of Ids instru- 

 ment, and that the sudden noise of the parting cord 

 caused tlie pack to stand still for a minute, and 

 so enalili'd him to reach a tree, which he climbed. 

 Further, that when he improved on the hint so given, 

 and played his fiddle, the wolves all sat still ; when 

 he left off, they leapt u}) and tried to reach 

 him. Experiments with the Zoo wolves showed that 

 there was no doubt whatever that the low minor 

 chords phived on a \iolin cause the greatest fear and 

 agitation in wolves, lioth European and Indian. The 

 instrument was first played behind the den of an 

 Indian wolf, and out of sight. At the first sound the 

 wolf began to tremble, erected its fur, dropped its 

 tail lietween its legs, and crept uneasily across its den. As the sounds grew louder and more 

 intense, the wolf tremliled so \i(ilcntly. and showed such physical evidence of being dominated 

 by excessive fright, tliat the kcejier begged that the experiment miglit be discontinued, or 

 the creature would have a fit. A large European wolf is described in "Life at the Zoo" 



as having exhibited its dislike 



of the music in a different 



"• way. It set up all its fur till 



it looked much larger than its 

 ordinary size, and drew back 

 its lips until all the white 

 teeth protruding fr(.)m the red 

 gums were shown. It kept 

 silent till the \iolin-player 

 approached it ; then it flew at 

 him with a ferocious growl, 

 and tried to seize him. 



There are instances of 

 wolves having been quite 

 successfully tamed, and de- 

 \'eloping great affection for 

 their owners. I'bey are 

 certainly more dog-like tlian 

 any fox ; yet e\-en the fox 

 has been tamed so far as to 

 become a domesticated animal 

 for the lifetime of one par- 

 ticular individual. An 

 extraordinary instance of this 

 was lately given in Country 

 JAfe, with a p)hotograph of the 

 fox. It was taken when a 

 cub, and brought up at a large 



WolJi'S HEAD. 



A very lino study of the heail, jaws, anil teetli of 



liincli larger. 



[Berlin. 



female wolf. The head of tlie liialo is 



