When the Romans invaded Britain they found that the natives had a breed
of large fierce dogs, who would fight bravely for their masters; these
animals they called _pugnaces_, or fighting dogs, and from them the
modern English mastiff is descended.
Soon after the conquest of the island some of the British mastiffs were
sent to Rome, where their sagacity, strength and courage excited so much
admiration, that an imperial officer was appointed to reside in Britain
for the express purpose of selecting the finest dogs to fight with other
animals for the amusement of the vast crowds assembled in the Colosseum.
The strongest dogs previously known to the Romans were the Molossian
dogs of Epirus, which in their native country were trained by their
masters to fight in battle, but when they were matched against the
British mastiffs they were thoroughly beaten. The dogs of Britain were
then pitted against various wild beasts; and it was said that three of
them were a match for a bear and four for a lion. And so famous were
they for courage, that the Gauls imported them, and trained them for
war, and used them in their battles.
The British mastiff is no longer trained to fight in battle, but his
character for sagacity and fidelity as well as courage, is as high as it
was in the days of the Romans.
[Illustration: ANCIENT BRITISH SOLDIER AND MASTIFF.]