Omniana/Volume 1/Dogs at Court

150. Dogs at Court.

The great Turk's dogs and manner of keeping them, says the merchant Sanderson, are worth the sight, for they have their several attendants as if they were great horses, and have their clothing of cloth of gold, velvet, scarlet, and other colours of cloth; their sundry couches, and the places where they are kept, most cleanly. My Lord Zouch when he was there, as Master Burton said, did like exceeding well of this place and attendance of the dogs. When the great Turk went out of the city toward the wars, it was with wonderful great solemnity and notable order, too long to describe particularly: but I remember a great number of dogs led afore him, well manned, and in their best apparel,.. cloth of gold, velvet, scarlet; and purple cloth.

Purchas, p. 1614. Do. p. 1620.

Sir Thomas Roe took out some English mastives to India, as a present for the Great Mogul; they were of marvellous courage. One of them leapt overboard to attack a shoal of porpoises, and was lost. Only two of them lived to reach India. They travelled each in a little coach to Agra: one broke loose by the way, fell upon a large elephant, and fastened in his trunk; the elephant at last succeeded in hurling him off. This story delighted the Mogul, and these dogs in consequence came to as extraordinary a fortune as Whittington's cat. Each had a palanquin to take the air in, with two attendants to bear him, and two more to walk on each side and fan off the flies; and the Mogul had a pair of silver tongs made, that he might when he pleased feed them with his own hand.

There was a Newfoundland dog on board the Bellona last war, who kept the deck during the battle of Copenhagen, running backward and forward with so brave an anger, that he became a greater favourite with the men than ever. When the ship was paid off after the peace of Amiens, the sailors had a parting dinner on shore. Victor was placed in the chair, and fed with roast beef and plumb pudding, and the bill was made out in Victor's name. He was so called after his original master, who was no less a personage than Victor Hugues.