"A gentleman in Bristol had a greyhound which slept in the same stable, and contracted a very great intimacy with a fine hunter. When the dog was taken out the horse neighed wistfully after him; he welcomed him home with a neigh; the greyhound ran up to the horse and licked him; the horse, in return, scratched the greyhound's back with his teeth. On one occasion, when the groom had the pair out for exercise, a large dog attacked the greyhound, bore him to the ground, and seemed likely to worry him, when the horse threw back his ears, rushed forward, seized the strange dog by the back and flung him to a distance which the animal did not deem it prudent to make less."
The horse's sympathy with his own kind must, however, not pass without mention. Horses have been known to masticate food for their toothless companions, an instance being recorded by M. de Boussanelle, a cavalry officer, of a horse belonging to his company who was fed for two months in this way by the horses stationed on either side of him. Whether the horses in the following case were actuated by sympathy or fear, the story deserves to be retold for its extreme pathos. When Sir John Moore's soldiers embarked after the battle of Corunna, orders were given that the troop horses should be shot, rather than that they should fall into the hands of the enemy. "These horses," says Colonel Smith, "witnessing their companions fall one after another, stood trembling with fear, and by their piteous looks seemed to implore mercy from the men who had been their riders, until the duty imposed upon the dragoons who had been intrusted with the execution of the order became unbearable, and the men turned away from the task with scalding tears: hence the French obtained a considerable number unhurt, and among them several belonging to officers who, rather than destroy them, had left their faithful chargers with billets attached recommending them to the kindness of the enemy."
The ass is an animal which seems to be more than ordinarily affected by its surrounding and treatment. In eastern countries where it is well cared for, and employed in the service of the rich, it rises to the occasion and becomes both graceful and spirited in action and elegant and refined in appearance: in the west where it is discarded for the sake of the horse, and used almost solely as a beast of heavy burden, often suffering great cruelty and hardship, it seems to lose spirit and become dull and obstinate, as people do who, crushed by hard circumstances, lose hope. The ass has an ancient and honourable history which dates back apparently as far as that of the horse. He is mentioned alike by sacred and profane writers, Job and Homer making flattering reference to him. In Syria and Persia, where he is cultivated, he attains to a much larger size than in the west, where he may be described as about two-thirds the size of the horse. In ancient times these animals fetched very large sums, sums which in our day would be considered very large for a horse, a stallion mentioned by Pliny realising a sum exceeding £3000. "No domestic animal," says Colonel Smith, "in proportion to its bulk, can carry a greater weight, or continue to labour longer without sustenance. The ass is emphatically the poor man's horse in every country; and if care were taken of the breed, and well selected animals imported from Arabia, a very useful and handsome race might be reared." Though the ordinary ass is slow and obstinate, his eastern cousin is both fleet and obedient, and remarkable feats have been performed by half breeds. A half-bred, Spanish and English, of twelve and a half hands high, belonging to Mr. Wilson of Ipswich, drew a light gig from Ipswich to London and back again, a distance of 140 miles, in two days. He is said to have maintained a pace little short of that of a good gig horse and to have performed the whole journey with ease, finishing it without whip, at the rate of seven miles an hour. Though patient above most animals, the ass will sometimes turn like the proverbial worm, and instances are known in which he has adopted the offensive with effect. Some years ago, a bull dog which had been set on to an ass, was caught by the latter in his teeth, carried to the river Derwent and held under water until he was drowned. Donkeys have often been known after enduring great provocation from boys to turn on their assailants and put them to speedy and anxious flight.