Chapter Seven.
Wounds from Claws versus Teeth discussed—Mr Ross’s Story of the Battle with the Eagles—Their Mountain Aerie—Their Hunting Skill—Their Voracity—The Eaglets—The Conflict—The Result—The Painful Wounds.
The next day, as Sam was having his hand dressed, quite a discussion arose in reference to which wounds were the more painful, those received from the teeth of wild animals or those from the claws. Sam’s present opinion, very decidedly expressed, was that those from the claws were the worse. This was the general testimony also of the Indians when questioned on the subject, one of their reasons being that the teeth were smoother and did not make such a torn, jagged wound as did the claws. Another was that the claws were very much dirtier than the teeth, and hence the wounds of the claws were much slower in healing than were those from the teeth.
“But what about hydrophobia from the bites of the dogs and wild animals?” said Frank.
To this Mr Ross’s reply was that that dreadful disease was about unknown among them, although there were said to have been some cases occurring from the bites of the fox.
“Did not a Governor-General of Canada die from the wounds received from the bites of a fox?” said Alec.
“Yes,” replied Mr Ross. “It was a tame fox, but it was supposed that it had gone mad.”
“Perhaps it had been bitten by a mad dog, and then became mad itself,” said Sam.
“That is in all probability the correct solution of the difficult problem, which for a long time troubled many medical men and others,” said Mr Ross.