The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1894-05-10
Dogs FOR THE
ARCTIC DASH.
Walter Wellman Writes About
His Canine Teams.
THEY WERE SECURED AT LIEGE,

Tifty-three Beasts of Burden at an Average
Price of 10 Francs Apiece-How the Peo-
pie of Western Europe Use Them In
Place of Horses.
copyright. 1894, by Walter wellman. All
rights reserved.
BERGEN, Norway, April 23.-It is gen.
uine pleasure to be able to report that the
Wellman north polar expedition is NOV
ing along in good order. I was about to
say moving quietly along" but how
could party composed Of quartet of live
Americans and So Belgian dogs do any
thing quietly? Our dogs have been nine
days wonder over in Europe-we and the
dogs together. We have been the inno-
cent cause of so much establishment among
the natives in two or three countries and
have attracted so much attention en- route
that we scarcely know whether we are rum
ming polar expedition or circus. Nor
could the old fashioned country circus
fitting from town to town between mid
night and morn, experience more hustling
to the square inch than we have had since
leaving London. We went straight to
Liege, Belgium, being led thither by the
kindly interest in the dog part of our prof.
ect which had been taken by Colonel Mich
olas Smith, American consul We had
had correspondence with the consul con-
cerning the use of Belgian draft dogs in
the arctics, and his opinion, given after
year Of close observation of the animals,
confirmed the conclusion which the writer
had reached as result of his own investi-
cations in Europe last summer. Colonel
Smith had made an official report on the
>f ~ D~1 Il.
tracted attention all over the world, espe-
cially in the United States, in which he
showed beyond question the enormous in
dustrial value of these faithful animals.
In the United States he pointed out that
there are about 100000 dogs living in
idleness more or less luxurious. These
millions of animals contribute nothing
whatever to the wealth of the country.
They toll not; neither do they spin Es-
timating the strength of dog at 500
pounds, low estimate, Colonel Smith
figured out that in these 1000, 900 dogs
America has an idle force of 3, 5OO 900, 900
pounds, or power which, like faith, if
once exercised, could move mountains
Colonel Smiths argument in favor of
the use of draft dogs on the streets of our
American cities was convincing enough,
but we were interested in the draft hound
as an arctic and not as an industrial beast
of burden. In reply to our inquiries Con-
sui Smith wrote as follows:
Il have no doubt these Belgian dogs
will suit you to a nicely. They easily
draw thousand pounds over the rough
block pavements which prevail here They
are quick in their movements, very trac-
table, as easily guided as ones own nose
and are not subject to fits. Their feet.
never tender, tougher with usage, and
they can easily endure such cold as you
expect to encounter in the arctic summer
They are tougher than either donkeys or
mules. You know foxhound will in a
day run two or three horses down, and
their cousins here are of equal bottom in
harness. They are nominally fed on horse
flesh and black bread, though the meat is
often left out of their bill of fare. A half
pound of bread, the cost of which is a
cent, saturated in broth of any kind, is re-
garded by the dogs as a sop fit for Cerberus.
A ration costing cents and weighing one
half pound would be liberal allowance
per day."
We had asked Colonel Smith to give his
opinion of the draft dog as an article OF
food for man in case we should be reduced
to the extremity of eating our friends in
the arctics, and he replied in the following
racy fashion:
GAS to the dogs edibility, you know he
is the piece de resistance of all Celestial
dinner tables, and can only ascribe our
American love of free lunches to mild
form Of rabies, that which comes from
the bitter being bitten. Be assured of the
wholesomeness of his flesh. The question
of appetite for him you can safely post
pone till the repast is served. You remem.
Der how Juan's spaniel,
"Spte of his entreating,
Was killed and portioned out for eating.
"They do say there is a sauce prepared
In the arctic regions so much more piquant
than caviare or chatnee that it savors
even an anthropophagous feast. In the Sc
lection of your party, therefore, consider
their esculent qualities as well as those of
your dogs. Be sure that you have no rev.
erend Pedros in your train
It was therefore to Liege that we went
from London to have there the friendly as
sistance of this able champion of the draft
dog. 1t was we'll that we did so, for we
could not have been in better hands. The
consul and his son-the latter bright lad
~ I II! = !..;a' !. 81 |
G/1 @&AttfTMM