Bay Of Plenty Beacon Published Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. MONDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 1948 VALUE OF BLOODHOUNDS IN POLICE WORK QUESTIONED

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 13, Issue 17, 8 November 1948, Page 4

Bay Of Plenty Beacon Published Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. MONDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 1948

VALUE OF BLOODHOUNDS IN POLICE WORK QUESTIONED

There is no doubting the sincerity of the Member who questioned the Prime Minister in Parliament as to the; possibility of importing bloodhounds to aid the Police Force in tracking down the ever-increas-ing major criminals in New Zealand, and probably at the time he made the suggestion every New Zealander would have been only too pleased to see the Government take immediate steps to do- so, states J. F. Thurston in the Waikato Independent. However, even wnen there is a murderer at large the Bloodhound would have very limited capabilities of tracking, him, and it would be restricted to “blood-hounding” or “foot-scenting” the murderer. The Bloodhound is not just a breed that has .recently become famous for his tracking abilities. As far back as 500 B.C. Xenophon described him as a Lymehound that follows up by scent the quarry in quest, and • then, calling the others together, rouses the game by barking. The term Bloodhound was applied. to the dog because of the work set him and that in fact was because he was used as a Lymehour.d, as well as in tracking wounded deer and deer-stealers, sheep-stealer:? and other felons two centuries ago In 1887 “Stonehenge” said that the Bloodhound was so named because of the powers he was supposed to possess for scenting the blood flowing from the wounds made in its quarry. Before the invention of the rifle, the arrow was used to give the first found and this was sufficient to enable the forester to make his pick from the herd; because, though the arrow would seldom cause immediate death, yet it would lead to a flow of blood sufficient to induce the Bloodhound to hunt that one deer in preference to the rest of the herd. He was also employed to track the sheep-stealer, in which occupation his tendency to follow blood was developed in a similar manner. ,

Since the days of the bow and arrow have long since passed so have the days of general usefulness of the Bloodhound. The deadly rifle has taken one occupation from him, and the law, by preventing sheepstealing has deprived him of the other. So it has come to pass that the Bloodhound is now kept for ornamental purposes only. Many breeders of the Bloodhound stiil contend that he might be made useful in tracking criminals if laid on the trail of one-shortly after a crime is committed. In Cuba, no doubt, a dog was used to hunt slaves (as they were well known to' emit a strong scent and the dog was able to take advantage of this). But t seems almost an impossibility for

a dog to be taught to hunt a white man (supposing him to be a stranger) without exciting him to hunt' all of the same colour. This matter was publicly tested at Warwick recently and still remains unsettled.

Possibly the only value of Bloodhounds in this country would be if a criminal took to the bush and the police were unable to locate him the hounds would prove their value then, and only then, by being trained to hunt “man-scent.”