The Greeley tribune., 1910-06-09
FIERCE ESKIMO DOGS.
They Retain Their Wild Mature
Despite Long Training.
As SAVAGE As THE WOLVES

As SAVAGE As THE VOL lvE&
An Liks Their Psrseisus censsmsss
Thsy Always Av~t In pssks-la-
sGs~sss In laheaAsr Whseo Thsv
baaws 0ssswrsd Human 0sines. -
TAses undoubtedly = an aa,nity b.
tvesa ths wolf and the Eskimo doe.
yor gsnsrations the dog has besa
traipsd b. the Eskimos. chiefly By tn
women. and taught to haul siedgs u
winter. The Hudson Bay company.s
assats and the ssttisss On the coast a
Labrador VIE with each othsr 10 gse-
t1ns together splendid tearns. Ons
would naturally suppose that doas q
this kind. - long trained and assoc1-
atsd with men. woald become moee -
lsss domsssicated and ioss their origi-
nAl savage character. It y. howsvse.
quite Otherwise. an
The Hsktmo dog Of today y stu q
pare, unmitieatsd savage. Like. As
eoagsesf. the wolf. be always hunts II
DackA Quite recently an Esklmo. With
A1s wife and child. was making q 3oor-
nsy with his team 70 4 nearby settls-
neat On biz way the driver became
~ and weak and quite unable to con
trol bis team. The dogs turned on
them and devoured the whole family.
An old resident at Labrador told me-
that one winters evening he was sit
ting reading when he heard a furious
barking among his dogs outside.
Fighting among the pack was so COM
mon that he took no notice Of the dis
turbance. Next morning the cause Of
the row was discovered. A poor Es-
kimo woman was coming to the house
for medicine for her sick child. she
stumbled over the heap Of snow near
the door The pack sprang on her. and
some rags and bones discovered next
morning told the tale OF her tragic
fate.
The Newfoundland fishermen often
bring home these Eskimo dogs from
Labrador. They Invariably turn ont
have all the same savage instinct
They have been known to kill q scOre
or more sheep In one night. all being
found with their throats torn. but not
one eaten. It u simply the savage lust
for blood. The early settlers In New
fOundland found the great timber
wolves q terrible pcst. They killed
their sheep and cattle and sometimes
attacked women and children. They
vefs continually chased and killed,
bat stu they Increased. A handsome
bounty on wolfskins. however. even
tnally hro0Ght about their extirpat3eo.
AntanAh TN Aunt or move togseAsR
r 6ocAs slways retain this charsctas-
tgkac. The reindeer In Lapland have
bssn trained and d0mesticated BY man
toe countless generations. but they still
retain this instinct Of the pack. ~
econ a. the team mOves all the rooA-
1sef start Oh: nothing can stop thsn.
while the savage pack bunting char.
acsse of the Eakimo dog remains %
Issg unchanged. We have. on the oh
e hand In setter and retriever dogs
Q very striking illustration Of how N
aetiacial character can be given TO the
1og and . special characteristic firmly
Implanted In breed and retained for
Centuries. II n. however. purely arti-
0ciai and Is easily lost. For instance.
settefs and pointers kept by ladies -
pets and not trained lose the instinct
to point. The unframed breed within
. generation lose II altogether Every
sportsman knows that the young ones
are very easily trained and point nat
tsally. l have seen setter pups only
six weeks old setting ut hies.
The instinct for retrieving Is perpet-
uated in no breed no strongly rs the
real Newfoundland dog. the fisher
mans friend and constant companion
and the most splendid Of all retrievers.
A remarkable instance of his gifts and
courage il the story of Newfound-
hand settler George Harvey, how with
the aid OF his dog and two children no
saved lG3 lives In 1882. In the autumn
Of that year the brig Dispatch. on her
way to Quebec with emigrants. in 4
tremendous gale of wind struck a rock
about three miles from Harvey's resi-
dence at Isle aux Morts Harvey heard
lne signals OF distress and immediately
nunched his boat. His only help WAS
. Doy OF twelve. his girl. sixteen years
old. and his dog To get close to tho
doomed ship In such sen wns to court
destruction. Tnrvey's dog understood
what was required OF him. He swan.
toward the ship. The sens overwhelm-
ed him and drove him back. but final
ly he came near enough The sailors
threw him rope. which he caught
~a,itN, his taafh Az lnst hs, Vnf hack IN