New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1881-10-02
DOGS And THEIR MJSTEES.


IOVfON NiINNFu.
| At the meeting which has just taken place at
Dautzic. of the TWO EmperorS who between them
sway half Europe, there Is mention of the fact that
| Prince Bismarck arrived to attend the interview
| accompanied by bis shorthand writer and his
famous dog" The image OF the :" Iron Chancellor
| who has welded loug-dIvded Germany into one
Empire will 20 down 10 poStcTty not quite solitary
| mn n, ,tcrnucss Beside him will always stand the
noble beast whom he has loved, and who, it Is said
| has more than once saved his life.
Perhaps, A. Schopenhaucr, win ms candid VANITY,
remarked OF himself 1t is always lonely upon the
heights" A philosopher who is bored b the folly
of his human neighbors, a poet who is disguised
with the vulgauty of mankind a king, OF great
noble who is weary OF the toad yaln OF his courters,
doubtless may all find relief IN the dumb companion
shu OF some faithful hound who troubles his master
with no stu'ld remarks or petty. gossip, ana
whose hattery Is free from suspicion of any
deeper mtcrcStcdncss than may arise from cove
tousnoSs Of biscuit or alnhltlop Tor "a bone. Inc
greatest Sovereign earth may safely unbcnd with
Li, dog and neither fear 10 raise Unsuitable hopes
nor to provoke dangerous JeMoqscS unless IL be IN
less fortunate canine minds. Even this slight III
convenience may be removed when. as IN the case
OF one of the Queens favor cSa ,p .endd DachSund
the animal is 50 perfectly dlgullcd aud rlgld III
hi, demeanOr that lac keeps all her M1JcstyS inferior
terriers and coilcys III meek suhordluatlon. ana Is
himself generally known Is the Lord Chamber
lain of the car mo Cont.
prrh1p, il would not be too much to say that as
the Aryau race loved dogs more than the Semitic 50.
among Aryaus, the Anglo-SaNOns have been pre-
eminent tor the same sentiment. IL l. true nave
among the Cclt, the Dog OF Llcwelyn Though,
alas Professor Max Muller, We believe has fer
r.trd out that pleasant tale IN another poem H.
krly Sausc IT, leaving on us, IN spite OF Bcddgelcrt,
as unpleasant sense oil mythical uncertainty; and
among the French and Germans, besides the Dog oI
MuntaI gIS, have Innumcrahle gOrltled dogs OF
tradition and poetry. But the tone of nine French
writers cut OF ten, when they talk OF dogs. reveals
the hollowncss OF Gallo regard for the loyal beast
which has not half enough OF lnessr ana duplclty
10 suit the readers Of MN BalZac et Cle Good
honest old Dumas tPd.Re) might describe poor
Black IN slmplr ana glowing coIors; but IN more
recent French novels az mechaEt chen bdr6et,' or
" an det,stabie petit cdRohe hdrgHeUT' Is commonly
introduced solely to add point of ridicule TO the
old smplctOn or dsagrceable woman whose steps IL
follows. "
Truth must be told, indeed, that dogs, with their
wonderful habit of growing like the thing they
worship seem constantly to become. under French
master, and mistreSseS, less slHgle-mnded than We
find them "a cruel canine critic has described
the species ChienlOup,' pr eWHence-" frivolous,
volatile, Interested, and wholly without cOnSclen-
iouSness' In the same way III Italy dogs are as arue
infinitely less useful than English dogs, and are
often treachcrOus enough to receive careSSeS
graciOuSly and alterward. when opportunity offers,
to turn round and bite But the very land ot dogs,
and the land wherein the dog receives most genu-
inc honor, and himself rises to his noblest develop
mcnt of character Is unqueStlOnably England Ii
Is TO be- dcplOrcd that the greatest English poet
never drew the character of u noble dog, and con
descended to degrade his pen by the miserable car
feature OF Launce's eur; but since bohakespeare's
days poets have done what IN them lay To make
up for the omission. COwper, Waiter Scott, Burns,
Byron, Tennyson the two Brownngs, and Matthew
Arnold have all been eminent dog lovers and have
written tender things OF dogs, living and dead.
English history is full OF records of dogs-nobe
dogs of Charles |. and Kenelm Digby; pitifully
faithful dogs, like the little creature which accom-
panied Mary Queen OF Scots to the scatfold and LAID
itself down between the severed head and beautiful
neck; silky spoiled fayortes like the spanIels of
Charles H., aud Diamond, the dog of Sir Isaac New
ton, which gave that great philosopher a years
extra trouble by destroying his papers We have
materials for book of English Dogs of Dignity;
and moreover, we have had in Eng and (slnee the
gaunt boarhounds of Synders rather wild beasts
than dogs the one greatest painter Of dogs whom
the world has seen-Edwin LandScer the Titan and
Yandyk he of the canine race.