256 
THE JACKAL. 
its opponents by the exercise of mingled craft and endurance. Mr. Bennett, in his well-known 
“ Wanderings,” mentions several instances of the wonderful tenacity of life exhibited by the 
Dingo, and the almost incredible fortitude with which it will submit to wounds of the most 
fearful description. One of these animals had been overtaken by its exasperated foes, and 
had been “beaten so severely that it was supposed that all the bones had been broken, and it 
was left for dead.” After its supposed slayer had walked away from the apparently lifeless 
carcass, he was surprised to see the slain animal arise, shake itself, and slink away into the 
x bush. Another apparently dead Dingo had been brought into the hut for the purpose of 
being skinned, and had actually suffered the operator to remove the skin from one side of its 
face before it permitted any symptoms of life or sensation to escape it. 
Mr. Bennett further remarks, that this marvellous vitality of the Dingo accounts for the 
fact that the skeletons of these animals are not found in the places where they have been 
reported to lie dead. For, although the carrion-devouring beasts and birds will soon carry 
away every particle of the flesh of a dead animal, they always leave its larger bones as 
memorials of their ghoul-like repast. There are many similar accounts of the Dingo, and its 
fast hold of life. 
As a general fact, the Dingo is not of a pugnacious character, and would at any time 
rather run away than fight. But when it is hard pressed by its foes, and finds that its legs are 
of no use, it turns to bay with savage ferocity, and dashes at its opponents with the furious 
energy of despair. It carries these uncivilized customs into domesticated life, and even when 
its restless limbs are subjected to the torpifying thraldrom of chain and collar, and its wild, 
wolfish nature allayed by regular meals and restricted exercise, it is ever ready to make a 
sudden and unprovoked attack upon man or beast, provided always that its treacherous onset 
can be made unseen. After the attack, it always retreats into the farthest recesses of its 
habitation, and there crouches in fear and silence, whether it has failed or succeeded in its 
cowardly malice. 
A Dingo which was kept for some years at the Zoological Gardens was accustomed to sit 
on its tail and bay the moon after the manner of dogs, making night hideous with its mournful 
monotone. Moreover, its voice was not silenced by the genial light of day, but rose continually 
in dolesome ululation, as if in perpetual lament for its captive lot. 
In its native land it is a very crafty animal, rivalling the cunning fox in its ready wit 
when it feels itself endangered, and oftentimes outwitting even the intellectual power of its 
human foes. A litter of Dingo cubs was once discovered in a rocky crevice near the Yas 
Plains, but as the mother was not with them the discoverer marked the locality, intending to 
return in a short time and to destroy the whole family at one fell swoop. After leaving the 
spot for such a length of time as he judged sufficient for the return of the mother, he came 
back to the den, and to his great discomfiture found it to be deserted. The maternal Dingo 
had probably seen the intruder, and had carried off her young family into a place of safety as 
soon as she found the coast clear. It is possible that she might not actually have witnessed 
the hasty visit which this unwelcome guest had paid to her family mansion, but on her return 
to her little ones had perceived by her sense of smell the late advent of a strange footstep. 
It is generally found that any large group of animals in one country will be represented 
in another land by creatures of similar character, and not very dissimilar form. In accordance 
with this general rule, we find that the part which the dingo plays in Australia is taken up in 
Asia and Africa by several animals belonging to the canine race, of which the most remarkable 
are the Jackals and certain wolves. From the former animals the continent of Europe is free ; 
and in these comparatively civilized times the wolves which still haunt several portions of 
Europe are simply looked upon as pests of which the country ought to be rid, and not as 
holding undisputed possession of the territory, and scouring at will over the land in nightly 
search after prey. 
There are several species of the Jackal, two of which will be noticed and figured in this 
work. 
The common Jackal, or Kholah, as it is termed by the natives, is an inhabitant of India, 
