The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1886-11-05
WILD DOGS OF ATLANTA.
A Curious Result OF the Late Rebell-
ion.

Dlu you ever hear OF the wiz uOgS
of Atlantap At one time the country
around here was ut the mercy of these
savage animals. Horses, elephants. and
camels can be made to take an almost
human interest in war. but dogs can
not stand the racket. The din OF battle
and the smell of vilaino GUS saltpeter
breaks them up entirely.
Our dogs had hard time during the
siege. There were thousands of them
in those days, and when the season OF
short rations set in they were the first
to feel it. In many instances they were
abandoned by their rcfugeeing owners
and had to literally forage for living.
The thunder of the big guns, the un-
earthly shrieks of the shells. the noise
of falling buildings, the rattle of mus
kerry, and the heavy tramp of march,
ing soldiers all struck terror to the ca
nine contingent. Toward the close of
the siege nearly every dog in the city
was half rabid or in the last stage of
nervous prostration. The wretched
brutes sought shelter under houses and
in bomb-proofs. Majestic mastifis and
surly bulldogs curled their tails betw cen
their legs and yelpcd mournfully at
every unusual sound. Hundreds of the
| holder ones made Il frantic break over
the breastworks and bitches, and made
their way through the lines of both
armies, never stopping until they reach
ed the woods.
1t was even worse after Sherman's
army entered the place. The citizens
were driven out in such Il hurry that
they had no time to think of their pets
and no means of transportation for
them. Later. the destruction of the
city by fire, and the general pandemo-
mum that ensucd, scattered the few re-
naming dogs.
These innocent victims of the ravages
of war had terrible experience during
the rigorous winter of 1868. Their
misery drove them to form strange part
nerships, and it was a common sight to
see them rowing in bands of a dozen or
more. The old saying, Danish tine
dog from his kennel and you have
wolf" was illustrated in this case. In
the course of five or six months the
country people for fifty miles around
were spinning marvellous yarns about
'them wild dogs from Atlanta"
The dog belongs to the genus which
produces the wolf, the jackal, and the
fox. Tame dogs of course lose many of
the characteristics of these animals,
but when persecution and misery cause
them to relapse into wild state they
take the appearance, the habits and
the tastes of wolves and jackals. Such
was VIGOROUSLY the fact with the Allan
ia dogs. They lost every trace of domes-
ITCHY They grew to enormous size,
with savage eyes and cruel-looking
fangs.
Occasionally a gang of these ferocious
beasts would swoop down on farm
yard, devouring chickens and pigs, and
attacking men when they stood in their
way 1t took the livelicst kind of shoot
ing TO drive them off Sometimes they
would surround lonely cabin and wait
for the inmates 10 come out They
even made raids into little villages,
forcing the inhabitants to shut them
selves up in their houses. The disap-
pearancc of many a negro in those
perilous times was fully accounted for
| when his skeleton was found with every
particle of flesh gnawed off and with
the ground around showing evidences
of desperate struggle.
Early in 1865, when few refugees
began returning to Atlanta, they had to
struggle with these wild dogs for the
possession of the ruins. Bloody en-
counters occurred among the ash heaps
and piles of debris Every cellar and
hole in the ground held these raven
Gus brutes, and they lcapcd upon men,
women and children without the slight
est provocation. At that time it was
dangerous 10 ride or drive out in the
country. On the main road between
here and Decatur, in broad daylight,
dogs were known to attack horses ut.
tached to buggies, forcing their driver:
to open hot fusilade with their revol'
vcrs.
After getting this taste of wild life
the Atlanta dogs went to the bad alto
gether. They never reformed. A re-
lentless warfare was waged upon them
from Stone mountain to Kenesaw, and
one by one thcy bit the dust until they
were all wiped out The reader at
distance must not jump to the conclu-
sion that this indiscriminate slaughter
has caused any unusual scarcity Of dogs
in this region. Thanks to the univer-