The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1902-04-30
cHILD'S BEST FRIEND.
OLD NEWFOUNDLAND DOG NOW
PRACTICALLY EXTINCT.

| Few still Left In Eng1and-HOuse-
| hold Pet That Formed the Subject
of Landseer's Famous Painting
Has Been Allowed to Perish
| Through NegIect-NOne Left in the
Dog the Rage.
From the Washington Post.
what has become Of the Newfound-
land dog?" said man to a Post re-
porter several days ago, in discussing
Boston terriers. French bulldogs, and
several other of the new canine breeds
that are now the rage. ''When was
a young man the Newfoundland dog
was everywhere, and the most popular
breed in America. 1 we'll remember
the time when the streets of this city
were full of Newfoundlands, and when
every family had one of these animals
to protect and play with their chill
dren. To-day. SO far as this place is
concerned, they are completely extinct
They seem to have played out soon
after the Civil War, for it has been a
long time since 1 have seen one"
| The foregoing observation caused an
investigation. The Newfoundland dog,
the embodiment of courage, intelli-
gence, and kindness, the highest type
OF canine excellence, the animal that
formed the subject of Landseer's fam
Gus painting, THE Child's Best
| Friend" is to-day almost extinct.
The origin of this remarkable breed
OF dogs is lost in the mists of an OBJ
seure past. The general belief is that
the breed was indigenous to the Island
OF Newfoundland. and this much Is
! correct, but the statement that these
aogs We're found there by the first
whites who landed on that island, and
that the M1cmacs, the only tribe Of
INDIANS inhabiting Newfoundland. had
bred them for centuries. is assaiIed ON
every side by doubts OF the gravest
character.
Ihus FAR, ethnologists have not taken
the trouble to examine the traditions
OF the newfoundland Micmacs nor
those of the Indians living on the OPP
posite coast of Labrador, to ascertain
! whether the Newfoundland dog was
an aboriginal product The writings
OF those who first visited the island
Sebastian Cabot, Father Charleyo,x
(Histoire de Melville France, the
relations of the Jesuit fathers, are
all silent as to this animal.
NewfoundIand's First settlers.
The old settlers OF Newfoundland
nave left some records. however. that
seem TO throw more light on the mat
ter, although even they are far from
satisfactory They state that the first
'white man to settle in Newfoundland
! (Which enjoys the honor and distinction
OF being the Oldest English colony not
| only OF America. but of the world).
round the Indians in possession of a
oreed OF dogs representative specimens
! OF Which stood about twenty-six inches
mgn, with black licked body, gray
! muzzle, white legs and clew claws be-
hlnd The most reasonable supposition
Is that the Newfoundland dog was the
! result of cross of some English breed
on the native Indian dogs
30 much for the past history and or
lgin OF the Newfoundland dog. Now
for his disappearance. The Newfound-
land dog is now almost extinct. In the
United States the animals have van
lshed completely, and had it not been
Tor Mr.. Edwin Nichols, of South Ken
sington, England, they would have died
out in that country as well. In the lat
/ ter country they were for many years
extremely popular and the animal that
| formed the model for Landseer's fam
4 GUS painting became the progenitor of
| the famous Landseer strain of New
! foundlands. Five years ago, with the
| exception of few animals of the old
| Landseer stock, the breed had vanished
| from Great Britain
1t was then that Mr.. Nichols deter
mined that a breed that had figured so
| conspicuously in English literature and
| art should not disappear through sheer
neglect, gathered together the scattered
| remnants of the old Landseer pack.
and is now sole breeder of Newfound-
! lands in the world. The dogs bred from
his kennels have all the characteristics
of the old breed. head broad and mas
! sive,. with fiat skull and somewhat
square muzzle; ears small in proportion
to the body; coat, straight, dense, and
capable of resisting water; color, black,
black and white, and white and bronze;
| weight, 100 pounds for males, So pounds
! for females; tail, carried gayly but not
| curled over back. Such is the New
| foundland of to-day; the last of his
| race.
Few I'm Land of Origin.
The Newfoundland dog is almost ex-
tinct, even in the land of it's origin.
Joseph Hatton, writing as early as 1880.
| in his book entitled, "Newfound-
| land; the Oldest British Colo
! n.y." says: There are very few
| fine speciments of the Newfound-
| land dog now on the island
The dogs most common and numerous
are wretched mongrel race, coward
| ~, thievfsh, and given to sheep killing.
| Starvation and neglect has killed out
the old Newfoundland breed, which
| thrives better anywhere except on this
| island, the place of it's origin. The
| life-saving stations and lighthouses
are importing dogs of the Leonberg
breed from Germany to fill the places
of the Newfoundland breed, which,
with few exceptions, have become ex-
tinct all over the island"
Why this valuable dog should have
become extinct, even in his native ISL
and. where they were almost a necessi-
ty, is mystery The coast of New
foundland is a storm-swept region,
where shipwricks are both common
and frequent and the Newfoundland
dog was an animal peculiarly adapted
and inclined to the work of saving
shipwrecked persons from drowning
Protected by his dense and shaggy
coat of hair, swimming in the cold
est water was a delight rather than a
hardship for these dogs, and the re-
ports of the keepers of life-saving sta
tions along this coast for the years
prior to the Civil War show every year
where many lives were saved by these
faithful and intelligent animals.
But the people of Newfoundland did
not appreciate the value of these dogs,
and as result of neglect and lack of