she offers them meat. They are particularly obedient
and affectionate to women, because it is from them that they receive the
only kindnesses bestowed upon them, and a word from a female will excite
them to exertion, when the blows and threats of the men only make them
obstinate.

The dog of the Hare Indians, or Mackenzie river, was first described by
Dr. Richardson, and is of a smaller size than the Esquimaux breed, but
with broad feet, which prevent him from sinking into the snow. One of
them, only seven months old, ran beside this gentleman's sledge for nine
hundred miles, frequently carrying one of his master's mittens in his
mouth; all are very gentle, and, like the Esquimaux dogs, do not bark.

The large, powerful, and handsome dogs which go by the name of
Newfoundland, are not the pure breed of that country. The latter are
more slender in their make, have a sharper muzzle, a wilder look, and
are generally black in colour, with a rusty spot over each eye, and a
tawny muzzle. These are called Labrador dogs, and it is supposed that
they and the Esquimaux have contributed to form the commonly accepted
breed. What the latter have lost, however, in purity of blood, has been
gained on the side of beauty, and there is no animal of its size which
conveys a higher idea of intelligence and dignity, than the so-called
Newfoundland dog. All are semi-palmate, and dive, swim, and keep longer
in the water than any others of their tribe. One was picked up in the
Bay of Biscay, out of sight of any other vessel, fatigued and hungry,
and which, judging from the circumstances, must have been there for many
hours. Their fidelity, their courage, their generosity, are proverbial,
and yet it is whispered that they are occasionally capricious and not to
be trusted. During long years of intercourse with these animals, I never
met with an instance of this; and I have been told that it is more apt
to occur when they have been kept in confinement.

A noble creature of the mixed breed, and of the usual colour--black and
white--belonged to me, and his extreme good-nature, and endeavours to
guard everything belonging to the family, made him like a confidential
servant. The great defects in his disposition were heedlessness, and an
under estimate of his own power; he did not stop to _think_ before he
acted, as many more cautious dogs will do; and he forgot that his weight
was so great as to spoil and crush whatever he laid himself upon. As an
i