MAMMALIA, 65 
have more than once mistaken a band of wolves for the dogs of a party of Indians ; 
and the howl of the animals of both species is prolonged so exactly in the same 
key, that even the practised ear of an Indian fails at times to discriminate them. 
The following notices, by Captain Lyons, of the wolves of Melville Peninsula, 
are good illustrations of the strength and habits of the northern wolves in 
general :—‘‘ A fine dog was lost in the afternoon. It had strayed to the hum- 
mocks ahead without its master, and Mr. Elder, who was near to the spot, saw five 
wolves rush at, attack, and devour it in an incredibly short space of time : before 
he could reach the place the carcase was torn in pieces, and he found only the 
lower part of one leg. The boldness of the wolves was altogether astonishing, as 
they were almost constantly seen amongst the hummocks, or lying quietly at no 
great distance in wait for dogs. From all we observed, I have no reason to 
suppose that they would attack a single unarmed man, both English and Esqui- 
maux frequently passing them without a stick in their hands ; the animals, however, 
exhibited no symptoms of fear, but rather a kind of tacit agreement not to be the 
beginners of a quarrel, even though they might have been certain of proving 
victorious.” —‘ The wolves had now grown so bold as to come alongside, and on 
this night they broke into a snow-hut, in which a couple of newly purchased 
Esquimaux dogs were confined, and carried them off, but not without some 
difficulty, for in the day-light we found even the ceiling of the hut sprinkled with 
blood and hair. When the alarm was given, and the wolves were fired at, one of 
them was observed carrying a dead dog in his mouth, clear of the ground, at a 
canter, notwithstanding the animal was of his own weight. Before morning they 
tore a quantity of canvass off the observatory, and devoured it.”—‘ The Esqui- 
maux wolf-trap is made of strong slabs of ice, long and narrow; so that a fox can 
with difficulty turn himself in it, but a wolf must actually remain in the position in 
which he is taken. The door is a heavy portcullis of ice, sliding in two well-secured 
groves of the same substance, and is kept up by a line, which, passing over the top 
of the trap, is carried through a hole at the furthest extremity: to the end of the 
line is fastened a small hoop of whalebone, and to this any kind of flesh-bait is 
attached. From the slab which terminates the trap, a projection of ice, or a peg 
of wood or bone, points inwards near the bottom, and under this the hoop is lightly 
hooked ; the slightest pull at the bait liberates it, the door falls in an instant, and 
the wolf is speared where he lies.” 
