Naturalis historia 8.40.149

8.40.149

— (Certum est iuxta Nilum amnem currentes lambere, ne crocodilorum aviditati occasionem praebeant) — Indiam petenti Alexandro Magno rex Albaniae dono dederat inusitatae magnitudinis unum, cuius specie delectatus iussit ursos, mox apros et deinde dammas emitti, conteinptim inmobili iacente eo, qua segnitia tanti corporis offensus imperator generosi spiritus interemi eum iussit. nuntiavit hoc fama regi. itaque alterum mittens addidit mandata, ne in parvis experiri vellet, sed in leone elephantove: duos sibi fuisse, hoc interempto praeterea nullum fore.

and their packs of hounds have, each of them, one of these dogs, which acts as their guide and leader. This dog they follow in the chase, and him they carefully obey; for these animals have even a notion of subordination among themselves. It is asserted that the dogs keep running when they drink at the Nile, for fear of becoming a prey to the voracity of the crocodile. When Alexander the Great was on his Indian expedition, he was presented by the king of Albania with a dog of unusual size; being greatly delighted with its noble appearance, he ordered bears, and after them wild boars, and then deer, to be let loose before it; but the dog lay down, and regarded them with a kind of immoveable contempt. The noble spirit of the general became irritated by the sluggishness thus manifested by an animal of such vast bulk, and he ordered it to be killed. The report of this reached the king, who accordingly sent another dog, and at the same time sent word that its powers were to be tried, not upon small animals, but upon the lion or the elephant; adding, that he had had originally but two, and that if this one were put to death, the race would be extinct. Alexander, without delay, procured a lion, which in his presence was instantly torn to pieces. He then ordered an elephant to be brought, and never was he more delighted with any spectacle;