where a remarkably fine deer was turned out. The field was extremely
numerous. The deer, at starting, showed great sport, taking, at full
speed, through the enclosures, making towards Slough, and afterwards for
Datchet, where he crossed the Thames, and then took to the right, and
again crossed the river. The deer proceeded up a lane at the back of
Eton College, running with great swiftness into the yard of Mr. Castles,
pork butcher. He boldly proceeded through the house into the street,
with a cur-dog at his heels; and crossing Windsor Bridge, to the bottom
of Thames-street, actually ran up the Hundred Steps, a steep and winding
ascent to the Castle. On his reaching the top, he made a pause, and then
returned into Thames-street, many of the sportsmen having rode round
into the Castle, with the object of heading him as he came up the steps.
The stag crossed Windsor Bridge again with great swiftness, and passed
down Eton, entered the shop of Mr. Levy, an orange merchant, making his
way in different parts of the house, till he got into the kitchen, where
he remained some time: a great crowd was collected round the house. On
his leaving the kitchen, he passed through the back way into gardens. At
this time, many hundreds of persons joined in the chase. This excellent
deer, after having performed these extraordinary feats, and afforded a
charming day's sport, was at last taken in attempting to leap over the
high wall between Eton College and the Fifteen-arch Bridge." In the open
country and in the olden time a stag hunt was, of course, a very
different thing, though the hunting of so sensitive and so timid an
animal as the stag could never be other than a cruel pastime. Of the
speed and endurance of the stag a remarkable illustration will be found
on page 127. Many years ago the Duke of Cumberland thought to make trial
of a stag's courage by placing him in an enclosure with an ounce, or
hunting tiger, on Newmarket Heath. The enclosure was made by a net-work
of about fifteen feet high, and the contest took place in the presence
of some thousands of spectators. On seeing the stag, the ounce crouched
down and prepared to spring, but the stag kept such a steady front that
the ounce, turn as he would, was out-man[oe]uvred by the stag and could
not get a chance of turning his flank. After a long time the ounce was
goaded to the attack by the order of the Duke, whereupon it leapt, not
upon the stag but over the enclosure and among the people, immediately
crossing the road and entering the wood opposite, where it fastened upon
the haunches of a fallow deer.
The Tame Stag.
Stags have been tamed and brought largely under control but they are
said to be uncertain in their temper, probably from their timidity. Many
years ago Lord Oxford trained four red deer stags to draw a phaeton, and
Captain Brown tells an amusing story of an adventure which befell him
while driving his unique team in the neighbourhood of Newmarket. It
happened that as they were proceeding on the road to Newmarket they
heard the cry of a pack of hounds and immediately the four stags made
off at the top of their speed, followed by the hounds who had sighted
them or scented them from a distance. The animals were quite beyond
control, but on reaching Newmarket, they ran into the yard of the Ram
Inn where Lord Oxford had been accustomed to take them, and they were
safely housed in a barn when the pack of hounds came up. Stags have also
been trained to play tricks of various kinds. A tame stag at one time
marched with a Newfoundland dog, with the band of the 42nd Highlanders.
The Reindeer.
The Reindeer belongs to the north of Europe Asia and America, where he
is the chief source of comfort and wealth of the natives. In Lapland,
as the author of "Tales of Animals" puts it, he supplies the place of
the horse, the cow, the sheep, and the goat. "Alive and dead, the
reindeer is equally subservient to their wants. When he ceases to exist,
spoons are made of his bones, glue of his horns, bowstrings and thread
of his tendons, clothing of his skin, and his flesh becomes a savoury
food. During his life, his milk is converted into cheese, and he is
employed to convey his owner over the snowy wastes of his native
country. Such is the swiftness of the reindeer that two of them, yoked
in a sledge, will travel a hundred and twelve English miles in a day."
The reindeer will draw about 300 lbs. weight, though 250 lbs. is a
sufficient average load. His ordinary pace is said to be about ten miles
an hour and his powers of endurance are very great. His pace for a short
distance is thus given by Pictet, who took the measurements and tested
the speed of three animals yoked to light sledges. "The first deer
performed 3089 feet, 9 inches, in two minutes, being at the rate of
nearly 19 English miles in an hour, and thus accomplishing 25 feet, 9
inches, in every second. The second did the same in three minutes; and
the third and last deer, in three minutes and twenty-six seconds. The
ground in this race was nearly level." The reindeer is gregarious in its
wild state, and retains its social instinct when in a state of
domestication. When travelling, the hindmost animals follow their leader
with dogged persistency, even though the leader may make a circuit which
the followers might avoid by taking a direct cut. Nor will they accept
the guidance of their drivers in such cases and if dragged out of their
course by main force will return to it as soon as the force is removed.
In his own way, however, the reindeer will follow unerringly though his
leader may be out of sight, moving along with his nose close to the
ground and tracing the way by his scent, which is very keen. The
reindeer is much troubled in the summer time by the attacks of small
flies. De Broke says "The poor animal is thus tormented to such a
degree, that the Laplander, if he were to remain in the forests during
the months of June, July, and August, would run the risk of losing the
greater part of his herd, either by actual sickness, or from the deer
fleeing of their own accord to mountainous situations to escape the
gad-fly. From these causes, the Laplander is driven from the forests to
the mountains that overhang the Norway and Lapland coasts, the elevated
situations of which, and the cool breezes from the Ocean, are
unfavourable to the existence of these troublesome insects, which,
though found on the coast, are in far less considerable numbers there,
and do not quit the valleys; so that the deer, by ascending the
highlands, can avoid them." Reindeer are extremely timid when hunted,
but if the hunter can get sufficiently near to strike panic into a herd
they seem to lose all sense but that of fear, and are easily captured in
numbers. Writing of the North American Reindeer, Sir John Richardson
says:--"The Chippewayans, the Copper Indians, the Dog-ribs, and Hare
Indians of the Great Bear Lake, would be totally unable to inhabit their
barren grounds, were it not for the immense herds of this deer that
exist there. Of the caribou horns they form their fish spears and hooks;
the hide, dressed with the fur on, is excellent for winter clothing, and
supplies the place both of blanket and feather bed to the inhabitants of
these arctic wilds." Captain Franklin gives the following description of
the manner in which the Dog-rib Indians kill the reindeer. "The hunters
go in pairs, the foremost man carrying in one hand the horns and part of
the skin of the head of a deer, and in the other a small bundle of
twigs, against which he, from time to time, rubs the horns, imitating
the gestures peculiar to the animal. His comrade follows, treading
exactly in his footsteps, and holding the guns of both in a horizontal
position, so that the muzzles project under the arms of him who carries
the head. Both hunters have a fillet of white skin round their
foreheads, and the foremost has a strip of the same round his wrists.
They approach the herd by degrees, raising their legs very slowly, but
setting them down somewhat suddenly, after the manner of a deer, and
always taking care to lift their right or left feet simultaneously. If
any of the herd leave off feeding to gaze upon this extraordinary
phenomenon, it instantly stops, and the head begins to play its part by
licking its shoulders, and performing other necessary movements. In this
way the hunters attain the very centre of the herd without exciting
suspicion, and have leisure to single out the fattest. The hindmost man
then pushes forward his comrade's gun, the head is dropped, and they
both fire nearly at the same instant."
The Moose or Elk.
The Moose or Elk is the largest of the Deer kind, and often attains to
and even exceeds the size and bulk of the largest horses. He is less
graceful than other members of his family, having a short thick neck,
necessary perhaps to sustain his huge antlers, which sometimes reach
five feet in length and weigh as much as sixty pounds. He escapes the
torment of insects by taking to the water, in which he is an expert
swimmer. Like the other animals of the Deer kind he sheds his horns
annually. Year by year these huge growths increase in breadth and in the
number of branches they bear, until there are sometimes as many as
twenty on each horn. He is docile and easily tamed, and has been broken
to run in harness. The Elk occupies much the same geographical area as
the reindeer, though not travelling so far north.
The Fallow Deer and the Roebuck.
The Fallow Deer (_Dama vulgaris_) is smaller than the stag, but similar
to it in colour, form, and habit. It is this species which is
domesticated and kept in the parks of the wealthy in England. Fallow
Deer often quarrel among themselves over rights of pasturage, the herd
dividing into two and engaging in a pitched battle for the possession of
the disputed land. The Roebuck is smaller than the Fallow Deer, his
height being about two feet six inches and his length three feet. He is
less sociable than other species of his kind, living alone with his
family and not in herds like the Fallow Deer. He is found in Scotland
and in the northern parts of Europe.
The Giraffe.
The Giraffe (_Camelopardalis giraffa_) belongs to Abyssinia, Nubia and
South-Africa. It is the tallest of living animals, attaining to the
height of eighteen feet. Its body has some similarity to that of the
camel in form, and its head, which surmounts a neck seven feet long and
bears two horns six inches long, resembles generally that of a horse.
Its tongue, which can be extended seventeen inches, is very mobile and
can be so tapered as to enter a small ring. It is used in tearing off
the foliage of the trees upon which the animal feeds. Its neck, but for
its length, is like that of the stag, and its legs are slender. The hide
is spotted like that of the leopard and when young is of a light red
colour, which becomes deeper with age, that of the female becoming a
yellow brown and that of the male a dark brown approaching to black. In
repose it lies on its side, resting its head on its hind quarters.
Though only living in a wild state, the Giraffe is a mild and docile
animal, only fighting in self-defence, and then making powerful use of
its heels. The lion is its great enemy and if it succeeds in leaping
upon its back there is not much chance for the giraffe, which usually
runs until it drops from exhaustion. A blow from the heel of the Giraffe
in the right place would probably kill any of its enemies, and even the
lion has been known to pay dearly for coming within its reach.
The History of the Giraffe.
The Giraffe was known to the ancients, though, like the gorilla, it has
been re-discovered in recent years. Le Vaillant saw and described the
giraffe, but he was credited with having invented it, and it was not
until a live specimen of it was brought to Paris that his credibility
was established, Mrs. Bowdich, who happened to be in Paris at the time
this animal arrived, gives an amusing description of its triumphal
march from Bordeaux to the Capital. "A deputation from each large town
through which she passed," says Mrs. Bowdich, "formed of the municipal
authorities, met her; and one of the most learned savants went all the
way from the Jardin des Plantes, to accompany her on her march. 'La
giraffe,' however, did not appreciate these honours, and was often
impatient under the etiquette imposed on her. On one occasion she broke
loose from her cavalcade, keeper and all, and dashing among the
horsemen, scattered them right and left, some on and some off their
steeds. A dignified mayor lay in the dust, and by his side rolled the
painstaking savant who had performed so long a journey in her service.
The enthusiasm did not abate when she reached her destination. Thirteen
thousand more than the usual weekly number passed over the Pont
d'Austerlitz alone; and as the public curiosity did not but increase for
six weeks, steps were obliged to be taken to prevent the multitude from
pressing upon her. Her love for roses was very great; and she eagerly
snatched them from those who carried or wore them, to their great
astonishment; for few could calculate on the distance which she could
reach." Mr. Gordon Cumming describes a herd of ten giraffes which he saw
moving together along an African valley, forming an imposing spectacle.
Hollow-Horned Ruminants.
We come now to a family of great importance to the human race, the
family which includes among its members the Ox and the Sheep. These are
grouped as hollow-horned ruminants, this one touch of nature making the
whole family kin. The hollow-horned ruminants are divided into numerous
sub-families, of which the Ox, the Antelope, the Sheep, and the Goat are
the best known representatives. The horn by which the family is
characterised, comprises a hollow horny sheath which covers a bony core,
and which, except in one case, unlike the horns of the stag, which are
shed annually, is permanent. Sir Victor Brooke divides the family of the
Bovidæ into thirteen sub-families. I Bovinæ, II Tragelaphinæ, III
Oryginæ, IV Hippotraginæ, V Gazellinæ, VI Antilocaprinæ, VII
Cervicaprinæ, VIII Cephalophinæ, IX Alcephalinæ, X Budorcinæ, XI
Rupicaprinæ, XII Nemorhedinæ, XIII Caprinæ.
The Bull, The Bison, and The Buffalo.
The sub-family Bovinæ includes the Bull, the Bison, and the Buffalo. The
antiquity of the ruminants shrouds their origin in obscurity. They are
of frequent mention in the sacred writings as belonging to the earliest
historic period, and as living in a state of domestication in all times.
The Bull has a very wide geographical area, and is found in most parts
of the world. In England, as the Rev. J. G. Wood puts it, there are
almost as many breeds as counties, and they are generally distinguished
by the length or shape of their horns. The "long-horned" breed belong to
Lancashire, the "short-horned" to Durham, the "middle-horned" to
Devonshire, besides which there is the "polled", a hornless breed. Of
the Bison there are two species, one belonging to Poland and the
Caucasus, and the other to North America. The Buffalo belongs to the
south of Europe, to India, and to North Africa, the Cape Buffalo
inhabiting the south of "the dark continent."
The Bull. The Ox. The Cow.
Few animals show as much difference of disposition in the male and
female as the Bull and the Cow. The Bull is often excited to
ungovernable fury, is generally unsafe and often dangerous. These
characteristics have doubtless marked him out as the object of sport in
the Roman Amphitheatre and the Spanish Bull fight. The Cow, on the other
hand, displays a gentle and docile disposition, is placid, mild, and
obedient to the will of those who govern it. The Bull is kept mainly for
the purposes of breeding, being too uncertain for use as a beast of
burden or for other employment. The Ox which is the subdued offspring of
the Bull and the Cow, is much more amenable to control and therefore a
much more useful servant to man. The Cow is invaluable for the milk it
supplies, upon which mankind is dependent for butter and for cheese.
The Bull.
The Bull is a handsome animal and of great strength, especially about
the head and neck. Its fierceness has often been turned to account by
the farmer, for it is an excellent animal to dispute a right of way, the
force of its arguments usually bearing down all opposition. It has been
known also to use its strength for the protection of other animals. "Two
robbers," says the author of "Domestic Animals and their Treatment,"
"took a pig, weighing fourteen stone, out of its sty, and drove it along
a lane leading towards Rotherham. On coming to a lonely path across the
fields they thought it would be better to kill the pig at once in this
quiet place, where no one would be likely to hear the cries of the
animal. One of the robbers accordingly took a knife out of his pocket,
and commenced cutting the pig's throat. The poor pig struggled
violently, and managed to escape from his hands, running squealing into
the next field, with a fearful gash in his throat. The men ran after the
pig, but found in the field a bull grazing, who seemed at once to
understand the state of the case, and took upon himself the championship
of the wounded animal. The bull ran furiously at the robbers, who fled
for their lives, and only just managed to escape a toss from his horns.
They lingered outside the fence, however, hoping that an opportunity
would still offer of their catching the pig; but the pig wisely kept
close to his new friend, and the men at last were under the mortifying
necessity of going home without their booty. These men were afterwards
convicted of stealing sheep and corn, when one of them confessed this
affair of the pig, and thus explained what had been a great mystery to
the owner, namely, how it was that his pig came to be in a field at some
distance from the sty, with his throat partly cut, and keeping close
company with the bull." Mr. Byam's "Central America" affords another
illustration: "A bull had gored so many cattle that he was lassoed, and
his horns blunted at the tips to prevent further mischief. A few weeks
after, a panther (jaguar) killed a cow; and from the torn condition of
the bull's head and neck, and the trampled state of the ground, he had
evidently done battle for the cow. He was secured, his wounds plastered
up, his horns made sharp again, and turned out into the savannah. The
wild dogs and vultures having been kept from the body of the cow during
the day, the panther returned to his feast at night, and a furious
engagement took place between him and the bull; for the former was found
dead close by the cow the next morning, pierced through and through. The
bull returned again and again to him with fury, and was himself again
wounded; but his gashes were sown up, and he remained so fierce that his
horns were obliged to be re-blunted."
The Brahmin Bull.
The Brahmin Bull of India, is a sleek, tame animal of a different
species to the ordinary working ox. He is protected as sacred and
allowed more liberty than is sometimes either convenient or pleasant, as
he is apt to become obtrusive and his devotees fear to check or thwart
him. Sacred as he is he does not believe in the eighth commandment and
so helps himself without scruple to the wares of the fruiterer and the
gardener's preserves.
The Ox.
The Ox is one of the most useful creatures of the animal world. It is
used as a beast of burden and employed to draw waggons and to drag the
plough in England, and in a variety of useful labours abroad. "Every
part of the Ox is of value," says the Rev. J. G. Wood. "We eat his
flesh, we wear shoes soled with his skin, our candles are made from his
fat, our tables are joined with glue made from his hoofs, his hair is
mixed with the mortar of our walls, his horns are made into combs,
knife-handles, drinking-cups, etc., etc., his bones are used as a cheap
substitute for Ivory, and the fragments ground and scattered over the
fields as manure, and soup is made from his tail." The value of the Ox
in drawing waggons abroad may be gathered from the following quotation
from Mr. Gordon Cumming's "Hunting Adventures in South Africa." "They
(the oxen) are expected, unguided by reins, to hold the rare-trodden
roads, which occur throughout the remoter parts of the Colony, either by
day or night; and so well trained are these sagacious animals, that it
is not uncommon to meet with a pair of fore-oxen which will, of their
own accord, hold the "spoor" or track of a single waggon, which has
perhaps crossed a plain six months previously."
The Cow.
The Cow after supplying enormous quantities of milk during life is
almost as valuable as the Ox when dead. It is from the Cow moreover that
we get the lymph used in vaccination, which has proved such a wonderful
safeguard against small-pox. In its quiet way the Cow sometimes shows
sagacity. Mr. Bell gives us the following illustration:--"A cow which
was feeding tranquilly in a pasture, the gate of which was open to the
road, was much annoyed by a mischievous boy who amused himself by
throwing stones at the peaceful animal, which, after bearing with his
impertinence for some time, at length went up to him, hooked the end of
her horn into his clothes, and lifting him from the ground, carried him
out of the field and laid him down in the road. She then calmly returned
to her pasture, leaving him quit with a severe fright and a torn
garment." Cows have been taught to graze close to forbidden crops
without yielding to the temptation to eat them.
The Pride of a Cow.
A writer in Frank Leslie's popular monthly gives an amusing instance of
vanity as shown by a cow. This cow, he was told, claimed precedence in
all cases; she always went ahead of the herd and claimed the best piece
of pasture as her exclusive domain. So far did she carry her
pretensions, that if any of the other cows entered the stable before
her, she would refuse to follow. Anxious to see this with his own eyes,
he desired to be taken to her stable at evening. The man, instructed how
to act, drove in some of the other cows. The white cow drew up; not only
did she refuse to advance, in spite of all encouraging words, but her
whole frame swelled with anger and offended dignity. She kept lowing
continually. At last the cows within, as though conscious that they had
forgotten their place, began to come out, and as they were driven out,
the proud white cow, with an evident air of gratified pride, strode in
in silence. It is almost impossible to convey the impression produced by
this exhibition of downright pride, Hidalgo pride, in what many would
call a dumb brute.
The Bison.
The American Bison is a formidable animal when engaged alone, and when
charging in a pack simply irresistible. He is about the size of an ox,
one measured by Sir J. Richardson being eight feet six inches in length,
without his tail, and more than six feet in height at his forequarters.
He has an enormous head, surmounted by a huge hump on his shoulder which
is covered in winter with shaggy mane-like hair. His hinder quarters are
comparatively thin and small, and his colour is a dark brown approaching
to black. Sharp piercing eyes and short powerful horns give him a fierce
appearance and dangerous powers. He has enormous strength in his head
and neck. The Bison is gregarious, associating in herds many hundreds
strong. These herds have been greatly reduced during late years, but a
herd seen by Captains Lewis and Clerk was numbered by them at not less
than twenty thousand. "Such was the multitude of these animals, that,
although the river, including an island over which they passed, was a
mile in breadth, the herd stretched as thick as they could swim
completely from one side to the other." When they join in a stampede,
they are said to rush over the plains like a cataract, with a noise
resembling that of thunder. Captain Brown says, "Bison generally prefer
the open plains, and do not resort to woods, except when attacked; they
seldom attempt to defend themselves, but almost invariably take to
flight. They are extremely fleet, and their sense of smell is so acute,
that they discover an enemy at a great distance, so that it is difficult
to get near them. They are frequently hunted by the natives, who live
principally on their flesh. When the hunters kill an old dam, they pay
no attention to the calf, as it is sure to remain by its dead mother.
Instances have been known of a mother entering the town of Cincinnati,
followed by its calves. Many of them fall victims to wolves and grizzly
bears. Their beef is of an excellent quality, and of a very superior
flavour."
Hunting the Bison.