Wisconsin Tribune

Human Wolves.

The following is an extract from a work lately published in England, entitled "Journal of a winter's Tour in India," by the Hon. Capt. Francis Edgerton:

"After breakfast we all stopped at home, scribbling and playing at billiards, &c. Colonel Sleeman told us a singular story of carrying off and 'educating' of children by wolves in this neighborhood. Some time ago, two of the king Oude's suwars riding along the banks of the river Goomptje, saw three animals come down to drink. Two of them were evidently young wolves, but the third was some other animal. They rode up and captured the whole three, and to their great surprise, found that the doubtful animal was a small naked boy. He was on all fours like his companions, had callosities on his knees and elbows, evidently caused by the attitude used in moving about, and bit and scratched his captors as any wolf might have done. The boy was brought in to Lucknow, and after a long time to a certain extent tamed. At first he could not speak at all, but he seemed to have a dog-like facility of finding out what was meant by signs. He lived some time at Lucknow; and what became of him I don't know. Another boy found under similar circumstances, lived with two English people some time. He learned at last to pronounce one word, the name of a lady who was kind to him; but his intellect was always clouded, more like the instinct of an animal than the mind of a human being. There was another more wonderful but less well authenticated story of a boy who after his recapture, was seen to be visited by three wolves one evening. They came evidently with evil intentions; but after examining him closely, he apparently not the least alarmed, they fraternized with him, played with him, and subsequently brought the rest of the family, until the wolves were five in number; which was also the number of the litter the boy had been taken from. A curious part of this story is the statement this boy always had about him, in spite of ablutions, &c., a strong wolfish smell. This story my informant did not vouch for; but he said he knew of five instances of his own personal knowledge."