The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1879-03-07

there is also the bark OF anger or despair
which Is yelp or howl, when the dog Ia shut
up In room OF JOY when starting on n walk.
or OF demand or supplieation when he wants
the door opened.
THE HISTORIC Dog
Tho dog has been domestlcated as far back
as history extends. The sculptures or ERypt
and Assyrla contain outlines OF dogs aud
Cheops, who built the great pyramid, hunted
with n dog resembling II Siberian deerhound
with With tan curled tight around on his hack back
and ears stuck out al right angles. The
Greeks not only had dogs, but took great
palms In rearing them. Plato says toGlauoos,
In the Republic: 81 see that you raise Mt your
house great many dogs for the chase. Do
you take care about breeding and pairing
) them2 Among animals OF good blood there
are always some superior to the rest The
Romans had hounds, house-dogs, lap-dogs
and turn-splts" There was found the famous
picture or fresco Of q Roman watchdog In tho
ruins OF Pompei; the animal was fastened by
chain In the act Of ieaping savagely Mt the
Intruder. Underneath II were the words:
" tnne cdnenn" beware Of the dogD Dogs
must have been thoroughly tanned nearly
two thousand years ago, Tor Cicero said that
their devotion, trustworthness. dislike Of
strangers, their power OF scent and aptitude
Tor the chase proved them to be formed for
the service OF man. II was nearly three
Thousand years ago, according to the gener-
ally accepted chronology, that Ulysses. re-
turning from the Siege OF TROY after an nh
|
his wife or servants, but his dog Argus knew
him at once, erawled toward him, licked his
hand, and died OF Joy at seeing his old mas
ter.
THE DOG MEMORY.
The memory OF the dog Is extraordinary
considering how limited his powers, nor does
II always depend upon his affection. Mr..
Darwin had savage dog with which he part
ed and did not see for five years. He spoke
to him as he had boen In the habit OF doing,
but though the dog showed no signs Of joy,
he followed klm and obeyed him exactly MS
lf he had not been absent moro than half an
hour.
Sometimes It is the odor only that Is re-
CURED to awaken memory In dogs, just as
odors will bring back to mems minds scenes
long since forgotten. A Prussian officer re-
turning home after the war did not see his
dog. Preasently the animal came tearing
down the road In great excitement, and rush
ed Into tho house overjoyed ut finding his old
friend. During hs rambles through the
town the dog evidently had struck the scent
OF his masters Footsteps and all his old af-
lection came In upon him like flood. A dog
having lost his master became in time old,
and blind, and unable to smell One day he
suddenly left his place on hearing what
seemed familiar footsteps. He rubbed his
face against the mans stockings which hap
pened to be ribbed" and broke Into the
\ most eXtrayagant expressions Of delight be,
cause his dead master wore that kind Of
stockings. But as soon IA the owner Of the
stockings spoke tho Illusion vanished, the
poor dog returned TO his corner apparently
neart-broken, and the next day was found
dead.
These displays of strong feeling which
dogs have toward mankind led Burus TO say
MAN Is God Of the dog, he knows no other
and see how he worships him." and Ger
man writer, Professor Braubach, maintains
that @ dog looks on his lmaster as in a god,
while Pope, the poet, declares that history
Is fuller Of examples OF fidelity In dogs than
in friends.
DOCS OF WAR.
ENot only were dogs formerlyIused to pro-
cure food byjhunting other animals, but they
were used by the Romans and Greeks in war;
SO that the phase, dogs of war;" Is literal
rs we'll as figurative. Caesar employed them
In his army, and 50 did some of the Wild
tribes which the Romans fought. When
Marius, the Roman general, had defeated
the Clmbri, the dogs and the women de
Tended their baggage so savagely that he
was forced to fight another battle in order to
get possession Of 1t. The dogs thus en-
ployed were very savage, and not only pur
sued the fugitiyes Of defeated armies, but
were sent after deSertcrs.
! The citadel Of Corinth, when besieged, was
defended at night by band Of fifty dogs. The
garrison felt so secure that one night they all
went TO sleep, leaving the dogs on duty. The
enemy attacked the canine sentinels. Like
| NapOleons Old Guard at Waterloo they
i fought until there WAS only one survivor.
! Finding himself alone, this animal retreated
! and alarmed the garrison who came out and
drove off the enemy. The Senate voted him
q silver collar, with the inscription upon it.
! "1he savior and deliverer of Cornth" and a
| monument WAS erected to the dogs on the
spot where they fell, with the names of all
OF them sculptured upon the stones. In
! those times war dogs were armed with spiked
! collars and sometimes with coats OF mail.
Hounds were used In armies until q com
paratively recent period The Earl OF Essex,
Queen Ellzabeth's favOrite, had 800 Of them
! during his campaign In Ireland. They were
| F4tfafyn In tab,
| to catch thieves marauders, murderers and
cattle-stealers, and Robert Bruce had fine
one, which his enemy, Lord of Lorne, stole
from him, and used to track and betray his
known device of crossing a stream and break
| ing the scent,
ACTION AND HIS IMPTDENCE
Action and his hounds are frequently re-
! ferred to, especially when politicians want to
! show that their opponents schemes have de-
| stroyed those who devised them. Action was
famous hunter, and one day played Peep
ing Tom when Diana was taking bath 10
stream, and was not exactly prepared to re-
| celve callers. So she prayed Jupiter to turn
MIN into stag to pay him for his impudence,
and his own hounds flew at him, not recog-
nlZing him In his new Goat and his addi-
tional HON; for they'd been In the habit OF
seeing him carry only one when out hunting.
they made square meal Of him. II we may
trust the Latin poet Ovids description Of Ac-
teOn's pack, 1t would be despised nowadays
by breeders and masters Of the hounds It
was very mixed lot. There were thirty-six
In the lot. Some were barking dogs" some
''quick-scented, some STRONG" some SAY
age" of a dozen different breeds; some fuse
full with their feet" some with their mos
trils,' one sprang from wolf, another would
spring at one, another formerly followed cat
tie; one had snow-whte hair, another was
jet black; some were shaggy and some were
smooth.
SAVAGE DOGS.
But modern breeders of dogs are not the
only people who put high price on them. In
Guiana the Tumura Indians take great care
with their dogs, and they are extensively |
bought and sold. A price of good one is /
equal to that Of a wife. In South Africa the
Damaras will give two oxen for q good dog
The Fuegians will, when famished, Kill their
old women for food rather than their dogs
''old women no use; dogs catch offers; %