News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1888-12-20
DOGS AS DETECTIVES.
A Proposal to Keep BeagIes at tho
Rural Police Stations Of England.

The London Pal Nal Gazette gives
certain articles on the employment OF
hounds as detectives apropos of the re-
cent Whitechapel murders. Ono writer
says: For centuries the bloodhound has
been employed as detective. In an
cient days he is supposed to have been
introduced by the Normans to trace
| deer-stealers who broke their stringent
! forest laws. Wallace and Bruce were
both hunted by these hounds, and an old
Ms. tells how Bruce was sought for by
Edward l..
The King Edward with horse and hound him
sought.
DR.. Johannes Caius, one of the earliest
writer's on dogs, says that during his day
these animals were used in tracking
criminals. And during the times of bor-
der raiders they were employed to trace
the bold Moss troopers who had swept
down from over the Scottish border. In
one of the ballads it is told how Richard
Musgrave
By wlv turns and desperate bounds
And baffied Piercys best bloodhounds,
Nearly century ago the Thrapston
Association for the prosecution of felons
had trained bloodhound specially to
chase sheep-stealers. Youatt tells how
that on one occasion, in order to test
the dog, a man was given an hours
start, but it 'cured him in an hour and
half concealed in tree nearly fifteen
mil from home. Another instance
has been recorded how that a Mr.. Law
renee, who was well known as a sports
man early in the present century, had
10 'llschafge groom, who, out of re-
Vehge' returned to the stable and mutt
lated 1avorlte hunter He was traced
by means OF bloolhound for tventv
miles, the hound hndino, tho foiIoyv ~
bed, who, seeing escape i,S, ,,ass;i,Ia oo,,
fessed his crime. PoacSet" Io.n,o' l,,,'.o st So.
been traced by bloodhousa. - 49,.
fugitive slaves III America ~s.l C,,ba
Drring the wars III Ireland ts,-, ,ra,,
employed 10 discover those who haasaJ
to the bogs and wilds from their iesSs
and pages might be written illustrative
OF the marvellous scenting power, under
almost every variety of circumstances,
of the bloodhound. One of the most
recent cases was that Mt Blackbury,
about twelve years ago, when Fish, who
murdered little girl, was convicted by
q hound.
Another, evidently an advancer of the
little beagle says: As l have been for
years advocating tho use of dogs for the
purpose of assisting the police in the
detection of crime, perhaps the public
might be interested if state in what
way dogs would be useful. In the first
place l am convinced that bloodhounds
will not do, there being many objections
to them, the first objection being that
bloodhounds are savage, and if, by ac-
cident, they got onto the line of an in-
nocent man, they might, when they
overlook him, do him serious mischief
before the owner could come up; but to
q sportsman there seems to be an unan-
swerable bJection-namely, they are
too fast and, though it is true that you
could keep up with them on horseback,
in the daytime, it must not be forgotten
that the police require dogs as much in
the night time as i'll the day, and il
would be impossible to Observation-Disclosures
at night. 1t does not seem to be known
that small beagles can bo trained to hui
man beings quite as well, nay better
than bloodhounds, for they will hunt
colder scent, being much keener in the
nose. They are very good tempered,
and L have never known them to bite
any person that l have hunted down
with them, and they are very easily
5rained. In 1S4S had four couples of
,abbit beagle puppies, and the idea
struck me that would try il could
rain them 10 run human beings in the
lounds.u . tthuSa SandS52f" 81" hin him run short
then hide himself; the
puppies in q very short time knowl-
edged the scent and ran 1T truly.
decreased the quantity of OIL,
and at list sent off q boy without any
thing on his boots, when was delighted
to find That they opened with the aid OF
the bloodhound on the first occaslon)
and went away in full cry. was al
ways very particular to change boys
every week. When these puppies were
twelve months old L ran down poacher
with them after a hunt which lasted
forty minutes, and this man must have
lad start of nearly twenty minutes.
They ran him into the town, and finally
lrew up at public house in which the
nan was, with a rabbit in his pocket.
1t seemed to me that the scent was al
most as good upon the pavement in
streets rs in the fields. Surely, then,
he police would find them most useful
n the country and the snburnu districts,
,ut do not think they would be of
much value in town. If each rural
,olice station had three well trained
,eagles there all the police would 10
yhen they received information of an
ffense to take their hounds to the spot
s quickly as possible, throw them across
he garden and around the premises rs
f they were drawing for q hare. / am
that if the scent had not got
90 cold they would hit upon the line,
md when they had settled down they
would run into the man, wherever he
vas, the same as any bloodhound. They
10 not go too fast, so that they are cas-
ly followed on foot either by night or
lay, as their music Will let you know
where they are, let the night be evere so
lark.