Natural History in Anecdote Part 11

The breed has since been crossed by stag and blood hounds and the present is a magnificent animal of great power and n.o.ble character. The ancient breed was brindled yellow and black, the present is usually deeper or lighter buff with-dark muzzle and ears. The mastiff is sometimes twenty-nine or thirty inches in height at the shoulder.

The Mastiff's Fidelity.

The Mastiff is the best of watch dogs, for he brings an intelligence to bear upon his duty which is in the highest degree surprising. He has been known to walk by the side of an intending thief "forbidding his laying hands upon any article, yet abstaining from doing him any bodily harm, and suffering his escape over the walls," but leaving his master's property intact. A mastiff who had been left by his master, who was a sweep, in charge of his bag of soot in a narrow street in Southampton, refused to leave it either for coaxings or threats, and rather than desert his duty allowed himself to be run over and killed.

The Mastiff's Discrimination.

The mastiff has a powerful scent, and remarkable skill in discovering the lost property of his master. Captain Brown gives the following extract from a letter from St. Germains: "An English gentleman some time ago came to our Vauxhall with a large mastiff, which was refused admittance, and the gentleman left him in the care of the body-guards, who are placed there. The Englishman, some time after he had entered, returned to the gate and informed the guards that he had lost his watch, telling the sergeant, that if he would permit him to take in the dog, he would soon discover the thief. His request being granted, the gentleman made motions to the dog of what he had lost, which immediately ran about amongst the company, and traversed the gardens, till at last he laid hold of a man. The gentleman insisted that this person had got his watch; and on being searched, not only his watch, but six others, were discovered in his pockets. What is more remarkable, the dog possessed such a perfection of instinct as to take his master's watch from the other six, and carry it to him."

The Mastiff as Protector.

Mr. Jesse gives the following story which he reprinted from a contemporary newspaper:

"A most extraordinary circ.u.mstance has just occurred at the Hawick toll-bar, which is kept by two old women. It appears that they had a sum of money in the house, and were extremely alarmed lest they should be robbed of it. Their fears prevailed to such an extent, that, when a carrier whom they knew was pa.s.sing by, they urgently requested him to remain with them all night, which, however, his duties would not permit him to do; but, in consideration of the alarm of the women, he consented to leave with them a large mastiff dog. In the night the women were disturbed by the uneasiness of the dog, and heard a noise apparently like an attempt to force an entrance into the premises, upon which they escaped by the back-door, and ran to a neighbouring house, which happened to be a blacksmith's shop. They knocked at the door, and were answered from within by the smith's wife. She said her husband was absent, but that she was willing to accompany the terrified women to their home. On reaching the house, they heard a savage but half-stifled growling from the dog. On entering they saw the body of a man hanging half in and half out of their little window, whom the dog had seized by the throat, and was still worrying. On examination, the man proved to be their neighbour the blacksmith, dreadfully torn about the throat, and quite dead."

The Bull-Dog.

The Bull-dog (_Canis Anglicus_), is said to be an original English breed, and Colonel Smith suggests that this dog rather than the mastiff was the one which flourished in England in Roman times. Not indeed the breed as it at present exists, but "one little inferior to the mastiff,"

"but with the peculiar features of the bull form more strongly marked."

"The bull-dog," says Colonel Smith, "differs from all others, even from the mastiff, in giving no warning of his attack by his barking, he grapples his opponents without in the least estimating their comparative weight and powers. We have seen one pinning an American Bison and holding his nose down till the animal gradually brought forward its hind feet and crus.h.i.+ng the dog to death tore his muzzle out of the fangs, most dreadfully mangled. We have known another hallooed on to attack a disabled eagle; the bird unable to escape, threw himself on the back, and as the dog sprang at his throat, struck him with his claws, one of which penetrating the skull, killed him instantly, and caused his master the loss of a valued animal and one hundred dollars in the wager." "The bull-dog is possessed of less sagacity and less attachment than any of the hound tribe; he is therefore less favoured, and more rarely bred with care, excepting by professed amateurs of sports and feelings little creditable to humanity. He is of moderate size, but entirely moulded for strength and elasticity." He never leaves his hold, when once he has got it, while life lasts, hence he has become the type of obstinate pertinacity; and unflinching courage.

The Poodle Dog.

The Poodle dog while possessing many natural qualities which endear it to its owner, is capable of great cultivation and is for this reason much affected by those who train dogs for public performances. Of the clever tricks the poodle has been trained to perform many stories are told, among which the following from M. Blaze's "History of the Dog," as quoted in Mr. Jesse's "Anecdotes of Dogs," is one of the most amusing.

"A shoe-black on the Pont Neuf at Paris had a poodle dog, whose sagacity brought no small profit to his master. If the dog saw a person with well-polished boots go across the bridge, he contrived to dirty them, by having first rolled himself in the mud of the Seine. His master was then employed to clean them. An English gentleman, who had suffered more than once from the annoyance of having his boots dirtied by a dog, was at last induced to watch his proceedings, and thus detected the tricks he was playing for his master's benefit. He was so much pleased with the animal's sagacity, that he purchased him at a high price and conveyed him to London. On arriving there, he was confined to the house till he appeared perfectly satisfied with his new master and his new situation.

He at last, however, contrived to escape, and made his way back to Paris, where he rejoined his old master, and resumed his former occupation."

Weasels, Otters and Badgers.

We come next to the family of the Mustelidae which includes Weasels, Otters and Badgers, which we take as the heads of the three sub-families into which it is divided. The first of these includes the Pine Marten, occasionally found in Ireland and Scotland but more commonly in different parts of Europe; the Sable, which belongs to northern Europe and Asia; the American Sable, which supplies the English market with hundreds of thousands of skins annually; the Ermine or Stoat, still to be found in Great-Britain and familiar in the northern parts of Europe, Africa and America; the Weasel which has much the same _locale_ as the Ermine; the Ferret which hails from Africa and which is cultivated in England for its use in the destruction of vermin; and the Glutton (_Gulo luscus_) which is found princ.i.p.ally in North America. The Polecat is also a member of this family. It is about seventeen inches long and in form resembles the weasel. Its colour is deep chocolate. It generally lives in the neighbourhood of houses on hares, rabbits, and birds. When pinched for food it will also catch and eat fish. It is remarkable for an insufferably fetid odour.

The Weasel.

The weasel though thought by some to be incapable of domestication has, like most other animals who have had the chance, shown itself amenable to kindly treatment. Mdlle. de Laistre possessed one which she kept in her chamber, dispelling its strong odours by perfumes. This weasel displayed towards her extravagant evidence of affection. "If the servant sets it at liberty before I am up in the morning," she writes, "after a thousand gambols, it comes into my bed, and reposes in my hand or on my bosom. If I am up before it is let out, it will fly to me in rapture, and spend half an hour in caressing me. The curiosity of this little pet is unbounded, for it is impossible to open a drawer or box, without its roving through every part of it; if even a piece of paper or a book is looked at, it will also examine it with attention." This weasel lived on friendly terms with both a cat and a dog who shared his mistress'

favours. That the weasel can defend himself when attacked is shown by the following incident told by Mr. Bell: "As a gentleman was riding over his grounds, he saw, at a short distance from him, a kite pounce on some object on the ground, and rise with it in his talons. In a few moments, however, the kite began to show signs of great uneasiness, rising rapidly in the air, or as quickly falling, and wheeling irregularly round, whilst evidently endeavouring to free himself from some obnoxious thing with his feet. After a short but sharp contest, the kite fell suddenly to the earth. The gentleman instantly rode up to the spot, when a weasel ran away from the kite, apparently unhurt, leaving the bird dead, with a hole eaten through the skin under the wing, and the large blood-vessels of the part torn through." The length of the common weasel is about eight inches.

The Common Otter.

There are several genera of Otters. The common otter (_Lutra vulgaris_) is known throughout Europe and is not uncommon in Great Britain. The otter lives on fish, for the hunting of which he is admirably fitted. He is web-footed and has a body of great flexibility and short but remarkably muscular legs. The Otter was looked upon as a friend by the peasants living near salmon preserves years ago, for after landing his prey he was content with but a small portion for himself, and left the rest which the peasants readily appropriated.

"Otters," says Mr. St. John, "are very affectionate animals; the young anxiously seek their mother if she should be killed; and if the young are injured, the parent hovers near them till she is herself destroyed.

If one of a pair be killed, the one that is left will hunt for its mate with untiring perseverance; and if one be caught in a trap, its companion will run round and round, endeavouring to set it free, on which occasions, though so quiet at other times, they make a snorting and blowing like a horse."

"A labourer going to his work, soon after five o'clock in the morning, saw a number of animals coming towards him, and stood quietly by the hedge till they came alongside of him. He then perceived four old otters, probably dams, and about twenty young ones. He took a stick out of the hedge and killed one. Directly it began to squeak, all the four old ones turned back, and stood till the other young ones had escaped through the hedge, and then went quietly themselves. Several families were thus journeying together, and probably they had left their former abode from not finding a sufficiency of food." Otters have often been tamed and taught to catch fish for their masters. Captain Brown tells of an otter which was caught when young and trained by James Campbell near Inverness. "It was frequently employed in catching fish, and would, sometimes, take eight or ten salmon in a day. If not prevented, it always made an attempt to break the fish behind the a.n.a.l fin, which is next the tail; and, as soon as one was taken away, it always dived in pursuit of more. It was equally dexterous at sea fis.h.i.+ng, and took great numbers of young cod, and other fish, there. When tired, it would refuse to fish any longer, and was then rewarded with as much as it could devour. Having satisfied its appet.i.te, it always coiled itself round, and fell asleep: in which state it was generally carried home."

Professor Steller says that on killing and skinning a female otter, which he found at a place at which he had deprived her of her young eight days previously, he found her quite wasted away from grief at the loss of her progeny.

The Badger.

There are several varieties of Badger, the Indian and the American being the most important, respectively of the eastern and western worlds. The common badger (_Meles taxus_), which is found in different parts of England, feeds upon roots, bulbs, fruits, and all kinds of vegetables, as well as small animals, snails and worms. He has also a great fancy for eggs. He lives in burrows, which form pa.s.sages having a central chamber and various anti-chambers, which he makes in sandy and gravelly soil. He is nocturnal in his habits. "When pursued," says Mrs. Bowdich, "he constantly impedes the progress of his enemies by throwing the soil behind him, so as to fill up the pa.s.sages, while he escapes to the surface." He is a formidable opponent to his enemies, as his skin is so tough and his bite so severe, and he displays much sagacity in avoiding traps and escaping confinement. Mr. St. John placed one in a paved court for security, but before the next morning he had displaced a stone and burrowed his way out under the wall. Captain Brown tells an affecting story of the feeling of a badger for its mate. "Two persons in France killed a badger and proceeded to drag it towards a neighbouring village.

They had not proceeded far when they heard the cry of an animal in seeming distress, and stopped to listen, when another badger approached them slowly. They at first threw stones at it; notwithstanding which, it drew near, came up to the dead animal, began to lick it, and continued its mournful cry. The men, surprised at this, desisted from offering any further injury to it, and again drew the dead one along as before; when the living badger, determined not to quit its companion, lay down on it, taking it gently by one ear, and in that manner was drawn into the midst of the village; nor could dogs, boys, or men induce it to quit its situation: and to their shame be it said, they had the inhumanity to kill the poor animal, and afterwards to burn it, declaring it could be no other than a witch."

The Ratel and the Skunk.

The Ratel (_Mellivora capensis_) of South and East Africa and the Skunk of Canada belong to this family. The Ratel is a small animal standing from ten to twelve inches high, with a very tough skin, which is so loose that, to quote Sparrman, "If anybody catches hold of the Ratel by the hind part of his neck, he is able to turn round, as it were, in his skin, and bite the arm of the person that seizes him." Dog-like in shape, the back and head are covered with a coat of lighter colour than that of the sides and under part of the body, giving it the appearance of a garment. The Ratel is the natural enemy of the Bees, his thick skin rendering him impervious to their attack, and he is said to show great sagacity in tracing their nests, watching at sundown, with his eyes shaded by his paws, the homeward flight of the honey makers and then following them to plunder and destroy. The Skunk is famous for its offensive smell, which according to Sir John Richardson is emitted by a deep yellow fluid which it discharges, and which is so strong that it retains its disgusting odour for many days. It is about eighteen inches in length, has short legs and a body that is broad and flat. It lives upon poultry and eggs, small quadrupeds, young birds, and wild fruits.

G.o.dman says: "Pedestrians, called by business or pleasure to ramble through the country during the morning or evening twilight, occasionally see a small and pretty animal a short distance before them in the path, scampering forward without appearing much alarmed, and advancing in a zigzag or somewhat serpentine direction. Experienced persons generally delay long enough to allow this unwelcome traveller to withdraw from the path; but it often happens that a view of the animal arouses the ardour of the observer, who, in his fondness for sport, thinks not of any result but that of securing a prize. It would be more prudent to rest content with pelting this quadruped from a safe distance, or to drive it away by shouting loudly; but almost all inexperienced persons, the first time such an opportunity occurs, rush forward with intent to run the animal down. This appears to be an easy task; in a few moments it is almost overtaken; a few more strides and the victim may be grasped by its long and waving tail--but the tail is now suddenly curled over the back, its pace is slackened, and in one instant the condition of things is entirely reversed;--the lately triumphant pursuer is eagerly flying from his intended prize, involved in an atmosphere of stench, gasping for breath, or blinded and smarting with pain, if his approach were sufficiently close to allow of his being struck in the eyes by the pestilent fluid of the Skunk."

The Racc.o.o.n and the Coati.

Our next concern is with the family of the procyonidae which includes several bear-like animals, the Racc.o.o.n and the Coati being the best known. The racc.o.o.n belongs to North America, the coati to Central and Southern America. The racc.o.o.n is an expert swimmer, about the size of a fox, and of nocturnal habits. "His food," says the Rev. J. G. Wood, "is princ.i.p.ally small animals and insects. "Oysters are also a very favourite article of its diet. It bites off the hinge of the oyster, and sc.r.a.pes out the animal with its paws. Like a squirrel, when eating a nut, the racc.o.o.n usually holds its food between its fore-paws pressed together and sits upon its hind quarters while it eats. It is said to be as destructive in a farm-yard as any fox, for it only devours the heads of the murdered fowl. When taken young it is easily tamed but very frequently becomes blind soon after its capture. The coati (_Nasua nasica_) is distinguished from the racc.o.o.n by a pointed nose. In size it resembles the cat, its tail being as long as its body. Like the cat it is a good climber, and preys upon birds. When domesticated, as it is in Paraguay, the coati is kept in tether, as its climbing habits render it dangerous to ornaments and furniture. The Kinkajou (_Cercoleptes caudivolvulus_) of Demerara belongs to this family. The Panda (_aelurus fulgens_) const.i.tutes another family. It is cat-like in the face, but otherwise resembles the bear. It lives in the dense forests which clothe the declivities of the Himalayas.

The Bear.

After the lion and the tiger the bear is probably the most popular animal in legend and story. Dr. Gray divides the bears into three cla.s.ses: the sea bear, the land bear, and the honey bear. The polar bear is the sea bear; the brown bear, the black bear, and the grizzly are land bears, and the Malayan bear is the honey bear. Mr. Wood says, "Bears and their allies are mostly heavy, and walk with the whole foot placed flat on the ground, unlike cats and dogs who walk with merely their paws or toes. They are omnivorous, that is, they can eat either animal or vegetable food, so that a leg of mutton, a pot of honey, a potatoe, or an apple are equally acceptable." The bears of Kamtchatka live princ.i.p.ally on fish, which they are adepts in catching. The bear is found in the polar regions, in Siberia, the Caucasus, the Pyrenees, the Himalayas, in various parts of Western Asia, in Canada, and the United States.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Hunting the Polar Bear]

The Polar Bear.

The Polar Bear is eight or nine feet long, and a little more than four feet in height. He has a long nose, short ears, large legs, and a short tail. His body and neck are long, and he has five sharp claws on each foot. His colour is a yellowish white; his hair long and s.h.a.ggy. He inhabits Greenland and Lapland, as far north as eighty degrees. He lives on fish and seals and the bodies of whales, which are thrown ash.o.r.e or which he finds in the sea. Dr. R. Brown deprecates the stories of the polar bear's ferocity which he regards as greatly exaggerated, though he admits, that when enraged, or suffering from hunger, they are formidable foes. That they are wary animals the following story quoted from Captain Brown will show. "The captain of a Greenland whaler, being anxious to procure a bear without injuring the skin, made trial of a stratagem of laying the noose of a rope in the snow, and placing a piece of kreng within it. A bear, ranging the neighbouring ice, was soon enticed to the spot by the smell of burning meat. He perceived the bait, approached, and seized it in his mouth; but his foot, at the same time, by a jerk of the rope, being entangled in the noose, he pushed it off with his paw, and deliberately retired. After having eaten the piece he had carried away with him, he returned. The noose, with another piece of kreng, having been replaced, he pushed the rope aside, and again walked triumphantly off with the bait. A third time the noose was laid; but, excited to caution by the evident observations of the bear, the sailors buried the rope beneath the snow, and laid the bait in a deep hole dug in the centre. The animal once more approached, and the sailors were a.s.sured of their success. But Bruin, more sagacious than they expected, after snuffing about the place for a few moments, sc.r.a.ped the snow away with his paw, threw the rope aside, and again escaped unhurt with his prize."

The polar bear displays a great love for its young and many pathetic stories are told of its rage and grief at the loss of them. The following is from Captain Brown's "Anecdotes of Animals." "A Greenland bear, with two cubs under her protection, was pursued across a field of ice by a party of armed sailors. At first, she seemed to urge the young ones to increase their speed, by running before them, turning round, and manifesting, by a peculiar action and voice, her anxiety for their progress; but, finding her pursuers gaining upon them, she carried, or pushed, or pitched them alternately forward, until she effected their escape. In throwing them before her, the little creatures are said to have placed themselves across her path to receive the impulse, and, when projected some yards in advance, they ran onwards, until she overtook them, when they alternately adjusted themselves for another throw."

The Black Bear.

The Black Bear (_Ursus America.n.u.s_) is about four and a half feet long and three feet high. He has long feet terminating in five claws each.

His body is short with longish legs, and he has a large head, with small eyes, and a sharp nose. He has long, soft and woolly hair. His food is chiefly fruit, such as acorns, chestnuts, grapes, and corn; but when hungry he will feed on flesh, and attack other animals with courage and fierceness. He climbs trees, and uses his paws like hands. In winter he retires to his den, which is usually a hollow in some decayed tree, where he hybernates until spring. Though of a wild disposition, he can be tamed, and taught various tricks, in which he displays a good deal of sagacity and docility. The following story is quoted by Captain Brown from Captains Lewis' and Clarke's travels to the source of the Missouri, as a striking instance of the astonis.h.i.+ng physical powers of the bear.

"One evening, the men in the hindmost of the canoes, discovered a large bear lying in the open grounds, about three hundred paces from the river. Six of them, all good hunters, set out to attack him; and, concealing themselves by a small eminence, came unperceived within forty paces of him. Four of them now fired, and each lodged a ball in his body, two of them directly through the lungs. The enraged animal sprang up, and ran open-mouthed at them. As he came near, the two hunters who had reserved their fire, gave him two wounds, one of which, breaking his shoulder, r.e.t.a.r.ded his motion for a moment; but, before they could reload, he was so near, that they were obliged to run to the river, and, when they reached it, he had almost overtaken them. Two jumped into the canoe; the other four separated, and, concealing themselves in the willows, fired as fast as each could load. They struck him several times, which only exasperated him; and he at last pursued two of them so closely, that they leaped down a perpendicular bank of twenty feet into the river. The bear sprang after them, and was within a few feet of the hindmost, when one of the hunters from the sh.o.r.e shot him in the head, and killed him. They dragged him to the banks of the river, and found that eight b.a.l.l.s had pa.s.sed through his body."

Of his docility Mrs. Bowdich gives the following amusing, if, at the time, alarming ill.u.s.tration. "A young English officer, who was stationed at a lone fortress in Canada, amused himself by taming a bear of this species. He taught him to fetch and carry, to follow him like a dog, and to wait patiently at meal times for his share. The bear accompanied him when he returned to England, and became a great favourite with the pa.s.sengers and the s.h.i.+p's company. Bruin, however, especially attached himself to a little girl about four years old, the daughter of one of the ladies on board, who romped with him as she would with a dog. In one of these games of play, he seized her with one fore-paw, and with the other clambered and clung to the rigging, till he lodged her and himself in the main-top, where, regardless of her cries and the agony of her mother, he tried to continue his romp. It would not do to pursue the pair, for fear the bear should drop the child; and his master, knowing how fond he was of sugar, had some mattresses placed round the mast in case the child should fall, and then strewed a quant.i.ty of sugar on the deck; he called Bruin, and pointed to it, who, after a moment's hesitation, came down as he went up, bringing the child in safety. He was, of course, deprived of his liberty during the rest of his voyage." The black bear is hunted for the sake of his skin, many thousands of skins being sent to Europe every year.

The Grizzly Bear.

The Grizzly Bear is an enormous animal, according to the measurement of Captains Lewis and Clarke of one they killed, nine feet from nose to tail, though they claim to have seen one of even larger size. It is said to attain to a weight of 800 pounds. The fore-foot of the animal already referred to exceeded nine inches in length, the hind foot being eleven inches and three quarters, exclusive of the talons, the breadth of the hind foot being seven inches. The Grizzly does not climb trees, like the brown and the black bear. He is ferocious when hungry, and when attacked, and the female will die hard in the defence of her young. Such is his strength that he can master a bison, and drag him to his retreat. He is by far the most dangerous brute of North America. He unhesitatingly pursues both men and animals; but, though he feeds on flesh, he is capable of subsisting upon roots and fruits. He is very tenacious of life, and will pursue his enemy after having received repeated mortal wounds. He is found in the eastern vicinity of the Rocky Mountains. Though the Grizzly will sometimes move off on the approach of the traveller, without showing fight, he will at other times attack him with great ferocity. A man named Nathan Rogers who lived on a ranch in the mountains about a mile above West Point, near the North Fork of the Mokelumne, once had a terrific encounter with a grizzly bear. He was out shooting small game when he was suddenly confronted by an enormous animal. He fired his only shot into the breast of the bear and then awaited his attack. The fight was fast and furious, and though in the end the grizzly was killed, the man only survived in a terrible condition. Conscious that he must soon have help or perish, he summoned all his resolution and staggered along, and managed to reach a spring in sight of a house, when his endurance gave way, and he fell in a dead faint by the water's edge. Fortunately he was soon discovered by his son, a lad of some twelve years, who immediately gave the alarm. In addition to his horrible wounds, the shock to his system was a terrible one. His left arm, literally mangled and torn to shreds, had to be amputated at the shoulder. His left clavicle and scapula were fractured, and the three lower ribs on the right side broken. The flesh and muscles on his back were so broken and abraded that the vertebrae were actually visible in places; while, his lower limbs were literally seamed and furrowed by the crooked claws of the bear's hind feet. The left side of the bear was literally torn to pieces, there being no less than twenty-two knife-wounds, nearly every one of which reached to a vital point. Some idea of his size can be obtained when we state that one of his fore-paws just covered an ordinary dinner plate.