The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1891-06-16
A RACE OF WILD DOGS.
They Roam Arlzansas and Resem-
BILE tho Tarno SPACES.
Tho Animals Said to IIavc Ereuucntcd IL
Certain Locality for Twenty-Five Years
Some of Their Queer Char
actcriStics.


ark correspondent of the st. Louis
Globe Democrat. The fact that they
have been here for more than n quarter
of century has been known to some
of the old citizens, who seem to have
thought the matter of small impor-
tance. and consequently valuable con
tribution to science and history is yet
TO be published Mr. Jacob Evcrman,
n citizen of this town, is the first man
to investigate the matter and establish
the fact that these dogs are unlike any
breed of dogs known in this country.
Evcrman is an old woodsman and hunt
or and keeps a pack of as fine fox
hounds as ever gave music to the
hunters horn" One morning recently
he went into thc woods alone, and his
dogs not sccnting Il trail in the To-
cality where foxes have always seemed
SO plentiful, he extended the hunt sew
cral miles further i:.to the mountains
than usual. i''!acn lie reached the
hcadwaters Of City, i'll what is known
rs Panther canyon, he heard the dogs
baying at something in the distance,
and, hurry;ng ~ 10 them, at the root of
Il large black oal; tree he saw what he
supposed 10 DC = bincl wolf snarling and
swapping at them furiously but as
soon as it saw him it wheeled and ran
off at great speed. lie discovered that
it was not y wolf. bat dog of some
lSird. lie Missed and urged the dogs to
give it chase, and they started in pur-
suit. lint, he tharght, rather reluctant
", ard returned after following short
distance. Looking into the hollow Of
the tree, lic found four small pups,
probably about two weeks old, which
the mother had been defending SO saw
ayely.
Having no means of taking them
with him, he returned the next day
prepared 20 carry them home, but when
gone. After considerable hunting his
dogs found them sccrctcd in IL tree
some three hundred yards from the
hollow tree. He brought them home,
and they are growing finely under 60
mcstic care. These young dogs are
black, the hair being finer and more re-
scmbling fur than that of the tame dog,
ard their feet arc like the feet of n cat;
their toc-nails turn under and are longer
and sharper ;llan those of the doincs-
ticatcd dog.
Since the capture of these puppies
some Of the old liountainccrs who lived
here i'll antc-bcilunl days have been tell
ing what they know concerning these
wild dogs, and from the best authcnti-
Gated accounts Evcrman can gather
they now number Us many as twenty
and probably moro, and are frequently
seen, but seldom more than three or
four together. There is Il tradition that
there were wild dogs in this vicinity
when the earliest wi.itc settlers came
here, but whether they were left by the
original occupants OF the country or
were as distinct a wild species as those
found in South America, Australia and
the countries CT ,1c far cast no onc pre-
tends to explain.
The country in which these dogs are
found is one Of The most Inaccessible
regions in the state. 1t abounds in
high mountains, deep gulchcs and dense
thckcts and IS seldom visited and those
who DO visit it are hunters and farmers
who have stock to stray into it. The
dogs have seldom boon seen out of this
particular locality in the daytime, but
it is known that III late years they como
into the settlements ct night ana com
init great dcprc .lasicns by killing the
sheep, hogs and other small animals be-
longing TO the farmers. Several have
been killed from time to time by hunt
crs. Only on enc occasion have they
been known to attack man. Many have
mistaken them for wolves, bnt the cx-
pc-icnccd wocds..le1 have always CON
tended that thy we're rot wolves
They are invariably black. and black
wolf is q rarit., :. sai; part Of the coun-
try. Then t!.cy are not 50 large as the
tiinbcr wolves, cnl DO net seem so
active in their movements. They have
never been !src"-l - howl or make
much demonstration by barking. 1t is
said that when discovered III some dense
thichct they usually utter kind of ter
riiied bark and make OF at great speed
They show 10 inclination 10 affiliate
with the domestic dogs, and will fight
them wit. great courage. They are of
medium Size, having rather small heads,
with small pointed ears, slender limbs
and long bushy tails. In some respects
they look rs though they might be al
lied to the Esqui:nan dog, except that
their hair is not SO long and the nose
not so small ard fox-li!xc. Then there
is another peculiar feature about these
dogs. They carry their tails in hori-
zontal position like the fox. while the
Esquimau dog carries his caudal ap-
pcndagc in Il short curve.