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kennels of Mr. B. W. Donkin, and, though quite a stranger to them, handled some dozen bulldogs, of all ages and both sexes, with perfect impunity. Mr. Donkin considers them second to no breed of dogs in good temper and manners, and intelligent when treated as companions; but not in respect to mental capacity equal to colleys, retrievers, poodles, Scotch terriers, &c. This is not surprising, since they have not the advantage of inheriting the effects of long continued association with man, like many other breeds.

find and retrieve fur The remarkable pro

Mr. Donkin informs me that his champion Byron, the subject of this illustration, will not only track his footsteps, but has been broken to the gun, and will and feather, both by land and water. gnathism of the lower jaw, which occasionally appears in a modified degree in other breeds, is, of course, the result of selection-a deformation, by the way, which would place a dog that had to hunt for his living at the greatest disadvantage. This peculiarity was at one time highly valued, because it was said, accompanied as it is by nostrils set far back, that it enabled the dog to breathe freely while hanging on to the nose of a bull; however this may be, this character, as well as the shortness of face, has become much exaggerated during the past hundred years. It is somewhat singular that so great a degree of modification should have taken place in a direction the very opposite of that which is serviceable to the animal. The bulldog cannot take hold quickly with his mouth, and in hunting he is obliged-the nostrils being set so far back-to bring his nose almost under his chest, with the risk of falling forwards. These disadvantages are, to my thinking, conclusive against the supposition that this breed, if no other, is descended from a wild species with similar characters; for, exactly in proportion as these structural disadvantages exist, the animal would be impeded in hunting and securing his prey.

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MR. B. W. DONKIN'S BULLDOG, "BYRON."

CHAPTER V.

Rabies-Summary of the Present Condition of Knowledge with Respect to its Genesis, Symptoms, and Results—Immunity from the Disease of the Australasian Colonies and Réunion -Singular Cases-Reputed "Hydrophobia" in Human Subjects-Spontaneous Recovery of Man and AnimalsPasteur's Investigations—Nostrums and Empirical Treatment -The Dogs' Home.

NOTWITHSTANDING all we owe to the dog, both as our friend and our servant, he is, unfortunately, liable to become our deadly enemy, by reason of the communication to us, by his bite, of a malady resulting from the virus contained in his saliva when suffering from rabies, or canine madness. This is attributable, in great measure, to our own ignorance, indifference, and neglect; for a purely contagious disease ought to be almost entirely under control. During the past ten years-from 1874 to 1884-it has become more prevalent, with the largely increased number of dogs bred for fancy purposes, and kept for competition at shows and by the public generally.

A brief summary of the present state of knowledge with respect to the genesis, symptoms, and effects of this disease, may be acceptable to the reader, and will not be considered out of place in a book on the carnivora, since all the families

may be affected by it, and, on account of their habit of using their teeth in attack and defence, they are especially likely to communicate it to man and other animals. Although, on this account, the carnivora are more frequently the subjects and bearers of the disease, it can probably be communicated from any mammal to any other, and thence to man. It is certain that it can be communicated, both by the natural bite and by inoculation, to the horse, ass, ox, rabbit, rat, guinea pig, as well as to every species of canis, wild or domesticated; and some of these are known to be able to transmit it to man as well as to other animals.

Until a very few years ago, it was believed that rabies might, and often did, originate in the subject owing to pathological changes in the blood or the cerebral matter itself, due perhaps to starvation, want of water, excessive heat or cold, long continued confinement, ill-treatment, or other causes disposing to constitutional disturbance. Experiments, however, conducted with the utmost care by foreign physiologists, and extending over a large field and a protracted period, failed to show generation of the disease in any case. then, be almost certainly concluded to be rarely, if ever, of spontaneous origin. Thus there is hope of extinguishing it altogether, or reducing it to a minimum, if, as is now generally conceded by the best veterinary authorities, the malady can be communicated only by the bite of a rabid animal. The presumption in favour of communication solely by this means, is immensely strengthened by the following facts.

It may,

Rabies is known to have been imported into the island of Mauritius in 1813, and has ever since been prevalent there, no restrictions on the importation of European and other dogs having been at any time adopted. On the contrary, it has never been recorded in the neighbouring island of Réunion, where strict measures prohibitory of importation have for long been enforced. The disease has never made its appearance in Australia, Tasmania, or New Zealand, though thousands of dogs have, from time to time, been imported into

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