Sept. 11, 1875. 
868 
PROTECTION NEEDED. 
DOGS OF GREAT BRITAIN. 
BY D. H. BRCCE. 
I have frequently read communications from gentle- 
men who, as I do, entertain almost a passionate love for 
the great wilderness in the northern part of the State, re- 
cognizing the generally admitted fact that game and fish 
are becoming more and more scarce in that locality, 
from year to year, and assigning reasons therefor. In 
some instances science is applied, and we are told of 
causes that have little or no foundation in fact. Others 
arsert that the lakes and streams are being “ fished out” 
by the multitude of sportsmen and tourists who now 
annually visit that region. The scarcity of deer is at- 
tributed to their becoming more and more wild, and the 
death of fawns from the effects of unusual weather. I 
am convinced that several of these writers draw theo- 
retical conclusions, and have few facts before them. 
There are two principal reasons, and two only, why 
game and fish are becoming so scarce. 
1. Last winter 2,500 deer were killed in the wilder- 
ness for their skins. Who shall say how inanj- fawns were 
thus destroyed in addition? In the vicinity of Number 
Four from eight hundred to one thousand were killed. 
They are not only run by dogs till snow comes, but all 
winter the slaughter continues. They are killed, strip- 
ped of their skins on the spot, and their carcasses left to 
destruction by wild beasts. The effect of the general 
raid of last winter was plainly and sadly apparent dur- 
ing the present season. Very few deer were found by 
even good sportsmen, those who kill or catch only what 
their tables require. A righteous indignation was gen- 
erally felt, and another year those guides who contrib- 
uted to the outrage will find retribution in the falling 
off of visitors to their region. 
2. The scarcity of trout arises mainly from their de- 
struction upon their spawning beds. Now, very soon 
there will be large numbers of outlaws in the woods, 
fishing and packing their catches, in as much of a busi- 
ness-like manner as a cod-fishery is conducted. All 
anglers understand that when trout are upon their beds 
little effort is required to catch them. Their appetites 
are so ravendus that they will snap at a bare hook. I 
venture the opinion, based upon observation and relia- 
ble information, that more trout will be caught in the 
woods between Sept. 13 and the time when the streams 
and lakes shall be locked by ice than have been taken 
by sportsmen during the two seasons last past. But 
the trouble is not in the number that will be caught; 
it will be found in the destruction of spawn, by which 
millions of small fry will never swim, which otherwise 
would take its chances among its natural enemies in an 
effort to reach maturity. There are other “ causes,” 
but they are not worth mentioning when compared with 
this paramount one. 
Now the remedy. Law alone can save deer and trout 
in this region from annihilation. The method is easy 
and would be found effective. The reserves of Canada 
are protected without the slightest difficulty, and it 
would be a reflection on both our civilization and enter- 
prise to say that we in America can not do as well. Let 
us have a commission of five or more thorough sports- 
men who have an honest desire to protect the game and 
fish of the North woods. Let its appointments be au- 
thorized by the Legislature, and such men as S. S. 
Richards, broker at 22 Pine street. New York, and re- 
siding at Nyack, and W. W. Hill, of Albany, be put 
upon it. Let the commission have whatever authority 
it shall ask for, and it will gladly perform its arduous 
duties without compensation. It will quickly discover 
a way to end these abuses, and save the wilderness from 
spoliation. A chief game-constable is required, with 
such number of assistants as may be necessary — 
men whose integrity shall be unquestioned, and who 
shall have an interest in the protection of both game 
and trout. Men found with tackle in hand out of season 
should be subject to fine and confiscation of tackle, with 
a no greater penalty if caught fishing. They must be 
taught to avoid even “the appearance of evil.” A man 
found fishing on a Canada reserve atoer 6 o’clock in the 
afternoon, even in the “oiien” season, is liable to have 
his tackle confiscated by the keeper, and from his seizure 
there is no appeal. Give us a good commission, with 
plenty of authority, and the evils so generally com- 
plained of now will soon cea.se to exist. 
A BEAR, measuring 7 ft. 4 in. by 8 ft. 6-J in. was 
trapped and shot in the town of Ohio, Herkimer Co., a 
few daya ago. 
Mr. Forney is in Europe, and presumably the follow- 
ing in the Philadelphia Press is from his pen. Forney 
is evidently not an expert, but as he always writes well 
it is interesting: 
London, July 12. — The apparent scarcity of wander- 
ing dogs in the streets of London is one of the thousand 
curiosities to an American. Constantinople is said to 
be the dog heaven, and there is no feature in the towns 
of the United States more unpleasant than the multi- 
tudinous ocinine population, and the consequent hydro- 
phobic panic every summer. Here, however, there is 
a systematic effort to improve the canine species, and 
the result is their marked absence from the highways. 
There is not quite as much care taken, perhaps, in the 
rearing of dogs as in the breeding of horses, cows, 
sheep, and other valuable animals; but when you are 
told that the exhibition of dogs at the Crystal Palace is 
one of the most attractive ot the attractions of that 
brilliant resort, you will understand that the .system has 
beceftne a sort of commerce, and that large sums of 
money are paid for the different varieties. The pub- 
lished report of the grand national exhibition of sport- 
ing and other dogs at the Crystal Palace on the first four 
days of June of this year, is a singular document, some 
features of which will be strange reading to my Amer- 
ican friends. 
GI.YNT MASTIFFS. 
Among the bloodhounds which belong to the first 
class the price of a dog called Rival, three years and 
nine months old, was £500 ($2,500), and that of Rolla, 
one year and eleven months old, 500 guineas. 
Among the mastiffs, the price of the Champion Turk, 
owned by the Rev. J. W. Mellor, seven years and three 
months old, the dog that has won more than thirty first 
prizes and cups, and is of immense size, is £5,000 
($25,000.) 
[The writer gives a list of prices of first-cla.«s dogs, 
$10,000 and other ridiculous sums, seemingly unaware 
that purely nominal prices are attached to favorites at 
dog shows, partly to deter purchasers when there is no 
intention to sell, and partly from a conceit that such a 
practice is a kind of testimonial of esteem and regard.] 
--Ed. 
SETTERS, BFLL-DOGS AND TERRIERS. 
Among the setters I counted a large number held at 
£1,000 each, and one, the property of Mr. P. B. Slone, 
M. D., aged five years, was labelled £10,000 sterling. 
The sporting puppies were held at a charge of about £5 
each; non-sporting puppies, 20 guineas, 10 guineas and 
6 guineas. An immense assortment of harriers were 
exhibited, but were so valuable as not to be offered for 
sale. 1 notice that nian 3 - of tnese were owned by cler- 
gymen. The Prince and Princess of Wales and most 
of the nobility figured largelj' in the catalogue as chief 
owners. The prizes awarded to the best dogs amounted 
to a very large sum, and ranged from £10 to £5. 
The North of Ireland International Dog Show, which 
took place on the 24lh and 25lh of June, was an im- 
mense affair. Over three hundred persons, including 
the nooility, have joined the association; while the en- 
tries for the Crj'stal Palace Dog Show, noticed above, 
included 27 bloodhounds, 83 mastiffs. 68 St. Bernards, 
22 Newfoundlands, 22 deerhounds, 26 gre 3 iiounds, 39 
extra foreign class, 88 pointers, 97 setters, 73 retrievers, 
8 Irish spaniels, 14 Clumbers, 21 Sussex, 24 ordinary 
field spaniels, 153 fox terrieris, 2 otter hounds, 7 beagles, 
83 Colleys, 10 Dalmatians, 62 bull dogs, 26 bull-terriers, 
12 smooih-haired terrier.s, 27 black-aud-tan terriers, 32 
Skyes, 29 Dandies, 5 Yorksiiire terriers, 13 wire-haired 
terriers, 1 Scotch terrier, 15 Bedlingtons, 30 Dachshunds, 
14 Pomeranians, 46 pugs, 13 Maltese, 10 Blenheims, 10 
King Charles, 6 Italians, 81 toys, 31 litters of puppies, 
and 80 harriers. Total, 1,360. 
At the Newton Abbot show there were 312 entries, 
the exhibition being larger than an 3 ’ previously held in 
the We.st of England. Here w’ere gre 3 ’hounds, setters, 
pointers, retrievers, spaniels, fox terriers, bull dogs, 
mastiffs, Scotch collies and toy dogs. One writer, evi- 
dently a clergyman, who dates his letter “ Great Smeaton 
Rectory,” dilates upf.n the Dandy Dinmont dog, the 
celebrated species described by' Sir Walter Scott. The 
portrait of the renowned Dandy Dinmont painted by 
Landseer, now at Abbotsford, is' referred to as the best 
authority, and persons who desire to prove the claim of 
their dogs to this noble canine ancestor are advised to 
consult the published pedigree. 
At a meeting of the Bulldog Club, held on the 20th of 
May, there was an elaborated discussion of the correct 
appearance and special points of a perfectly formed 
bulldog, in the course of which the whole anatomy, run- 
ning through nearly two columns, was seriously dis- 
cussed. The Not th American wolf-dog is elaborately 
described. The chief specimen, called Gary, is about 
eighteen months old, and has been in England seven 
months. He was brought from the Saskatchewan 
mountains, Manitoba, in the far northwest of Canada. 
Height of shoulder, 2 feet 7 inches ; length of centre, 
between shoulder blades, to centre between ears, 1 fool; 
from the latter to the end of the nose, 11 inches ; length 
from shoulder to setting of the tail, 2 feet 7 inches ; 
weight, 8 stone 8 pounds ; hair long, straight and pure 
white, which is his chief beauty. Sheep dogs are among 
the most valuable after the sporting breed. 
The National Canine Society' held its first meeting at 
the Westminster Palace Hotel on Wednesday, June 2, 
the object being to encourage excellence and' purity in 
the various breeds of dogs, and to reform abuses that 
have sprung up in connection with canine affairs. 
It would surprise you if the money spent upon what 
are known as pet dogs could be faithfully set forth. As 
you walk the streets of London you see hundreds of 
thousands of the.se little animals carried or led by ladies, 
and it is a common thing, as the nobility and gentry ride 
along in their splendid equipages, to see a variety of 
spaniels and poodles resting on the costly cushions. 
Some of these little pets are not much larger than a cot- 
ton or snow ball, and with their fine, fleecy covering, 
nothing else visible save their black, piercing eyes, they 
present a laughable appearance. 
In this connection the Temporary Home for Lost and 
Starv'ing Dogs in Battersea Park, though not quite as 
bizarre as the commercial aspect I have been discussing 
(because we have such establishments in American 
cities), has its amusing side. The published report of 
this institution has on its title page the following pas- 
sages : 
I cannot understand the morality which excludes animals from 
human sympathy, or releases man trom the debt and obligation be 
owes to.them.— Sir.tohn Bowring. 
THE DOG. 
With eye upraised, his master's look to scan. 
The joy, the solace, and the aid of man; 
The rich man's guardian and the poor man's friend. 
The only creature faithful to the end. 
The Patron and President is the most honorable' the 
Marquis Townshend,) assisted by various patronesses, 
all taken from the nobility, followed by vice-presidents, 
trustees, treasurer, a committee, a banker, auditors, 
manager and secretary, and a keeper, making it fifty in 
all. The treasurer’s report shows an annual expendi- 
ture of .£2,000 ($10,000) for wages, food, medicine, print- 
ing, and intere.st on mortgage. In order to remove any 
inducement for dog stealing, no fee is paid on the deliv- 
er 3 ' of lost or starving canines at the Home, the chief re- 
liance being upon the duly and humanity of the police. 
There is a large list of donations and legacies, man 3 ' of 
the former being from anonymous hands. In the print- 
ed list the donor of £24 is credited to “ Open thy Mouth 
for the Dumb;” and another of £8 16s is “ Pity the 
Sufferings of a Housele.ss Dog.” A gift of £5 is " In 
Remembrance of Tiney’s ‘dear Mistress;’” and the 
same amount comes from “ Persecuied Dogs in Belgra- 
via.” This temporary Home for lost and starving dogs 
was established in 1860 by the late Mrs. Tealby, who, 
although not a lady of large means, was its unwearied 
benefactress. The late Mrs. John Hamilton left a lega- 
cy to the institmion of £1,000, and others are following 
her example. T hirty-tw'o hundred dogs were last year 
either restored to their former owners or sent to new 
homes, being an increase of 1,094 over the previous 
3 'ear. After being kept for three days, the keeper is 
empowered to dispose of inmates in the Home either 1)5’ 
death or sale, but they are usually kept in their pens for 
a week, and sometimes much longer f*rus8ic acid is 
used to poison them, which, bv' its almost instantaneous 
effect, is considered the most humane method. The 
Home affords accommodation for 600 dogs, although 
there are not usually more than half that number. All 
brought in during one day are put in a double pen, with 
a yard for exercise, and small cells are provided for 
special ca.ses, such as quarrelsome or afflicted dogs. 
Charles Reade, the novelist, with his love for the curi- 
ous, and a highl 3 ' cultivated imaignalion, recently paid 
a visit to Battersea, and brought serious charges against 
this humane establishment in a letter to the Daily Tele- 
graph. His statement that half the occupants of the 
Home were caught while tr 3 ’ins to find their way back 
to their owners, and that a great proportion of the re- 
mainder are caught in the immediate neighbornood for 
ihe sake of the fee paid for the apprehension of lost 
dogs, is unquestionably false. This writer also claims to 
have obtained entrance to a compartment kept from Ihe 
sight of the public, wherein lay a great heap of dead 
dogs, and his fancy was enlivened bv visions of cheap 
sausage; but from the mode of disposing of crippled or 
worthless patients, it is quite apparent that such a base 
use is impossible. It i= a singular fact that among thou- 
sands of dogs brought into the Home there has been no 
case of hydrophobia, which is attributable, no doubt, to 
the absence of excessive heat in this moderate climate. 
Bone Gathering in the Vaixey or the Arkansas.— During the 
winter and spring hnndreds of settK rs i II along this vailey have 
supported their families by gaihering up buffalo bones and hanling 
them to the towns. The p-airies for forty miles each way from the 
railroad have been gleaned over till not a relic of the chase can be 
found. Heads and ribs are worth $5 a ton. These aie shipped to 
Philadelphia and ground up into fertilizers. Shins and shoulder- 
blades are worth $10 a ton; these go to the sugar refineries. The 
horns are worth $30 a ton; the tips are sawed off here and sent to 
the factories of umbrellas, fans, pipes, etc.; the remainder is need 
by the chemisls. Bits of hide found hanging to the head are taken 
off and sent to the glue factories. Every fragment of these animals 
Is made to serve a purpose. The trade has been opportune for the 
settlers, as It broueht them the means of a livelinood when the 
crops failed: otherwise they w-onld have been compelled to abandon 
their homesteads , — Kansas City Journal. 
At the annual meeting of the North Philadelphia Game Protective 
Society held at Bray’s Hall, Frankford. on Thursday evening last. 
ths» following gentlemen were elected to serve as ofllcers for one 
year, commencing Sept. 7, 1875; Henry R. Allen. Esq., President : 
Thomas W. Marchment, Esq., Treasurer ; and J. Emory Byrara, 
Esq., Secretary. The Society is thqronghly in earnest and intends 
to prosecute all who kill birds out of season or break the laws by 
gunning on Sunday. The Association passed a unanimous vote of 
thanks to Hon. William S. Stokley, Mayor of Philadelphia, for the 
prompt action he has taken In co-opeiating with the Society. Reso- 
lutions were also passed requesting his Honor to confer the neces- 
sary authority upon Mr. John Cornell, who is employed by the So 
clety to make arrests. 
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