W O L 
his teeth wear by ufe. He (leeps when ilitisfied, 
or fatigued, rather by day than night; and is al- 
ways, like the dog, eafily awaked. He drinks 
frequently; and in times of drought, when no wa- 
ter is to be found in the trunks of old trees, or in 
the pools about the foreft^ he often defccnds from 
his retreats, in order to vific the brooks or lakes 
in the plains. Though extremely voracious, he 
fupports hunger for a confiderable time; and fre- 
quently lives four or five days without any food, 
provided he is well fupplied with water. 
This animal pofieffes fuch vaft ftrength, parti- 
cularly in his fore parts, in the mufcles of his neck> 
and in his jaws, as to be able to carry off a fheep 
in his mouth, without ever fuffering it to touch the 
ground, and to run with it much fwifter than the 
jfhepherds can purfue; fo that nothing but the 
dogs can overtake, and oblige him to quit his 
prey. " He bites very cruelly, and always with 
greater vehemence in proportion as he is lefs re- 
filled; for he generally ufes precautions with fuch 
animals as attempt to ad on the dcfenHve. He 
is invariably a coward, never fighting but when 
under a neceflity of fatisfying hunger, or making 
good his retreat. When wounded by a bullet, 
he is heard to cry out; and yet, when furrounded 
by peafants, and attacked with clubs, he never 
howls as the dog under correftion, but defends 
himfclf in filence, and dies as hard as he lived. 
In fad, the nature of the Wolf is more favage 
than that of the dog. He poficfles lefs fenfibility, 
and abundantly more ftrength. He travels, runs, 
and continues his predaceous excurfions for days 
and nights fucceffively. He is in a manner in- 
defatigable; and perhaps, of all animals, he is the 
mod difficult to be hunted down. The dog is 
mild and courteous. The Wolf, though favage, 
is ever fearful. If he happens to be caught in a 
pit-fall, he is for fomc time fo terrified and afto- 
nilhed, that he may be killed without refiftance, 
or taken -alive without any confiderable danger. 
At that inftant, a collar may be clapped found 
his neck, he may be muzzled, and dragged along, 
without ever teftifying the leaft figns of anger or 
refeqtment. At all other times, he_ enjoys his 
.fenfes in great perfedion; his" eye, his ear, and 
particularlv his fenfe of fmelling, which is fupe- 
■rior to all the reft. He fm.ells a carcafe at more 
thari-a league's difl:ance; and alfo perceives living 
animals a great way off, and follows;them a pro- 
digious way by the fcent. Whenever he leaves 
the wood, he always obferves the precaution of 
going.againft the wind ; and, when juft at it's ex- 
tremttVj'^hc ftops, in order to examine on all: fides, 
by his'fmeli,; the emanations that proceed either 
from his enemy, or his pfey, w|iich he diftinguifhcs 
■vyith great exadnefs. He prefers thofe animals 
which he kills himfelf to fuch as, he may fi,nd 
:dead;vahd y.et, when driven to extremities,; every 
fort of fiefti is acceptable. : ■ > 
Wolves have fometimes been feen following 
Armies, and arriving in numbers on the field pf 
■ battle, where they devoured fuch bodies as, w^ere 
left upon the field, or but negligently interred. 
Th^fe, when once accuftomed to human_ flefli, 
ever after Ihew a particular prediledion for it, and 
-chufe , rather to attack thefhepherd than his flock. 
,J.t fometimes happens that one or two of thefe fe- 
!-Qcioiis anjif als alarnfi a whole province ; and; a 
whole country has been called out to extirpate 
thefe moft dangerous invaders. ' _ ; ; 
The hunting the Wolf is a favotjrite diverfion 
WO L 
among the great of fome nations; and it muft be 
confeffed, it feems to be the moft allowable and 
ufeful of any. Thefe animals are difcriminated -. 
by hunters into the young Wolf, the old Wolf,:, 
and the great Wolf. They are diftinguilhed by 
the prints of their feet. It is neceffary tojiave a 
good ftarter for the purpofe of forcing the Wolf 
from his retreats; and it is even proper to ufe 
every art to encourage him in the purfuit, as all 
dogs have a natural reludance to follow this wi~ 
mal, and their endeavours are confeqiiently void . 
of animation. ' 
When the Wolf is once put up, grevhounds are 
then let fly at him, in leaflies, one after another. 
The firft lealh is fent after him at the beginning:, 
feconded by a man on horfeback; the fecond is let. 
loofe about half a mile' farther ; and the third, 
when the reft of the dogs come up v/ith him, and 
begin to bait him. The Wolf keeps them 6ff for 
a confiderable time, ftands his ground, threatens 
them on all fides, and fometim.es efcapes^; but the. 
luinters generally arrive in due time to the aflift- 
ance of the dogs, and help fo difpatch him with 
their cutlaffes. When killed, the dogsiteftify no 
appetite to enjoy their vidory; but leave him 
where, he falls, a frightful fpedacle, and hideous 
even in death. 
This animal is alfo fometimes hunted with har-?' 
riers ; but as he always proceeds in a direift courfe, 
and often holds his fpeed for a whole ^ay, without 
intermiftion, this kind of chace is tedious and dif- 
agreeable ; at leaft if the harriers are not fupported 
by the greyhounds, which, by their fuperior fleet-; 
nefs, are enabled to harrafs him at -every view. 
Several other methods have alfo been adopted 
for the deftriidion of this noxious anirpal. He is 
furrounded and wounded by, men and large houfe- 
dogs; he is caught in traps; he is. poifoned 'by 
carcafes prepared and placed for that ' purpo.Ie j 
and he is trepanned by pitfalls. Gefnermentipris 
a,fri?ir,-a woman, and a; Wolf, being caUght in one 
of thefe, all in" the faixie night.. The woman loft 
her fenfes by the fright, the friar his reputatic^j 
^ild the Wolf his life. - 'All thefe difafters-,; - how- 
ever, do not prevent Wolves from mukip^lying in 
great numbers, particularly in thofe countries 
which ;are abundantly woody. France,, Spain, 
and Italy, are much infefted.with them; but-Eng- 
land, Ireland, and Scotland j ar<3 happily lib^^^ated 
from fuch difagr^eable company-. ' ^S")r -!'-•■'/. 
. Edgar is faid to have been the fiffb who endea- 
voured to extirpate thefe animals, by commuting 
the puniftiment for certain crimes into the accep- 
tance of a number of Wolves tongues from each 
offender. In Wales, he- converted the tax pf gold 
and filver into an annual ;tribute of three hundred 
^V;olves heads. . We find^ howeyeri that fome: cen- 
turies after the reign of that Saxon monarcli, thele 
animals were again fo much incre.afed, as, to 'be- 
come the objed of royal attention. Edward, theFirft 
iffued out his mandate to Peter Corbet, to fuper- 
intend and pffift in their deftrt^dioi) in, the fev^rail 
counties of Gloucefter, Wprcefter," .fl^refprd, 
Salop, and Stafford.. Camden inforiTis -uSj that 
certain pcrfons at Wormhillain Derby^l:^ire, .'held 
their lands by the duty of hunting and catching 
fuch Wolves as infefted that county; whence they 
were callqd Wslve-hifht . And.tliefe animaU .wfre 
. fo numerous; in Yorjclhire, , during the r^igfl'-of 
Athclftan, that a retreat was built at Flij^tojo, in 
that county, to defend paffengers frpmi their at- 
taclcs. 
Wolves 
