Buffon's Natural History. Volume 05 (of 10): Containing a Theory of the Earth, a General History of Man, of the Brute Creation, and of Vegetables, Minerals, &c. &cBuffon, Georges Louis Leclerc, comte de
History
Buffon's Natural History. Volume 05 (of 10): Containing a Theory of the Earth, a General History of Man, of the Brute Creation, and of Vegetables, Minerals, &c. &c
Buffon, Georges Louis Leclerc, comte de
Natural history
The dog, independent of his beauty, strength, vivacity, and nimbleness,
has all the interior qualities which can attract the regard of man. A
passionate and ferocious temper, makes the wild dog dreaded by most
animals, as much as the pacific disposition of the domestic dog renders
him agreeable; to his master he flies with alacrity, and submissively
lays at his feet all his courage, strength, and talents; he seems to
consult, interrogate, and supplicate for orders, which he is solicitous
to execute; a glance of the eye is sufficient, for he understands
the smallest signs of his will. Without having like man, the faculty
of thought, he has all the ardour of sentiment, with fidelity and
constancy in his affections; neither ambition, interest, nor desire of
revenge, can corrupt him, and he has no fear but that of displeasing;
he is all zeal, warmth, and obedience; more inclined to remember
benefits than injuries; he soon forgets ill-usage, or at least only
recollects it to make his attachment the stronger. Instead of becoming
furious or running away, he exposes himself to the severity of his
master, and licks the hand which causes his pain: he only opposes by
his cries, and in the end subdues by patience and submission.
More docile than man, more tractable than any other animal, the dog
is not only instructed in a very short time, but he even conforms
himself to the manners, motions, and habits, of those who command him.
He assumes all the modes of the family in which he lives; like other
servants he is haughty with the great and rustic with the peasant.
Always attentive to his master, and desirous of pleasing his friends,
he is totally indifferent to strangers, and opposes beggars, whom he
knows by their dress, voice, and gestures, and prevents their approach.
When the care of a house is committed to him during the night he
becomes more bold, and sometimes perfectly ferocious; he watches,
goes his rounds, scents strangers at a distance, and if they stop,
or attempt to break in, he flies to oppose them, and by reiterated
barkings, and other efforts of passion, he gives the alarm to the
family. He is equally furious against thieves as rapacious animals; he
attacks, wounds, and forces from them what they were endeavouring to
take away; but contented with having conquered, he will lie down upon
the spoil, nor even touch it to satisfy his appetite; giving at once an
example of courage, temperance, and fidelity.
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