194 
THE MUSCOVY DUCK. 
but the two following instances show a similar ten- 
dency towards animals as well as human beings. 
A clergyman had a very fierce and noisy house- 
dog, within the length of whose chain it would have 
been dangerous for a stranger to have ventured ; but, 
notwithstanding his apparently savage disposition, a 
brood of Ducklings, reared in the yard in which 
he was kept, soon became so fond of him, that 
whenever, from his barking, they apprehended 
danger, they would rush towards him for protection, 
and seek shelter in his kennel. 
A farmer's wife had a young Duck, which by 
some accident was deprived of its companions, and 
from that moment seemed to concentrate all its 
affections on her. Wherever she moved, it followed 
her so closely, that she was in constant fear of 
treading upon and crushing it to death. As it grew 
older, its affection seemed to strengthen rather than 
diminish; it laid itself by the fire and basked on 
the hearth, and when noticed, seemed delighted: 
this continued till some other Ducks were procured, 
when, being constantly driven out of the house, it 
gradually associated itself with its more natural com- 
panions. 
Another case was that of a pair of Muscovy Ducks, 
which were landed at Holyhead, from a Liverpool 
vessel returning from the coast of Africa. The 
male was conveyed to a gentleman's house in the 
neighbourhood, and introduced to a flock of Ducks ; 
but to them he manifested the greatest indifference, 
and was evidently pining at the loss of his mate, 
when one day, she too was brought up and turned 
loose ; for a short time, being engaged at a distance, 
