Page:The Hog.djvu/15

13 The domestic hog is the descendant of a race long since subjugated; yet while a race of domesticated swine has been and is kept under surveillance, the wild type whence this race sprung has maintained itself in its native freedom, the fierce denizen of the forest, and one of the renowned beasts of "venerie." Its wild source still exists, and is universally recognized; it roams through the vast wooded tracts of Europe and Asia. The wild stock of the hog is most extensively spread throughout Europe and Asia, and has been known, described, and celebrated from the earliest ages, alike by sacred and classical writers; it is the sus scrofa of Linnæus, the sus aper of Brisson.

Under the generic term or  many zoologists have included, besides the true hog as it exists in a wild or tame state in Europe, Asia, and Africa, the peccary, the babiroussa, the phacochoere, and the capibara; we will, therefore, slightly glance at each of these varieties before proceeding to the actual subject of the present work.

.—This appears to be the nearest approach to swine among the animals indigenous to the New World; and the Collared Peccary (Dicotyles torquatus) and the White-lipped Peccary (Dicotyles labiatus) actually do at first sight appear to bear a very close resemblance to the common hog, but a more careful examination soon enables us to detect material differences. The head is thicker and shorter, the body not so bulky, the legs shorter, the hoofs longer, the ears shorter, and the tail is supplied by a slight, and, at a cursorsy glance, almost imperceptible protuberance. But the great difference arises from a small gland on the back, which, although partially concealed by the hair, is nevertheless evident, and hence it is that the term Dicotyles, which signifies a double navel, has been given to this species. This gland secretes a fluid which is emitted in great abundance whenever the animal is irritated, and gives out a very strong odor, pronounced as fetid and disagreeable by some authors, and by others compared with musk.

Cuvier remarks that the external toe on the hind feet is wanting in the peccary. The body is of a grayish hue, and thickly covered with strong coarse bristles, stiff enough to penetrate a tolerably firm substance, and shaded black and white. These are longest on the back, where some will be found measuring four or five inches; they become gradually shorter and shorter on the sides, and disappear altogether on the belly, which is nearly bare. On the head is a large tuft of black bristles. The eyes and snout are small, the ears erect.

This animal is found in vast numbers in Paraguay and Guiana, and has been termed by some writers the Mexican hog. It has nearly the same habits and tastes as the common hog; feeds on seeds and roots; digs with its snout; expresses its emotions by grunts; is fierce in defence of its young; very prolific; and the