Vulpine (pronounced vuhl-pahyn or vuhl-pin)
(1) Of or resembling a fox.
(2) Possessing or being thought to posses the characteristics often attributed to foxes ( crafty, clever, sly, cunning etc).
1620-1630: From the Latin vulpīnus (foxy, fox-like, of or pertaining to a fox), the construct being vulp(ēs) (fox) + -īnus. Vulpēs was from the earlier volpes (genitive vulpis, volpis) of unknown origin, though though probably from the primitive Indo-European wl(o)p and cognate with the Welsh llywarn (fox), the Classical Greek ἀλώπηξ (alṓpēx) (fox), the Armenian աղուէս (ałuēs), the Albanian dhelpër, the Lithuanian vilpišỹs (wildcat) and the Sanskrit लोपाश (lopāśa) (jackal, fox). The Latin suffix -inus was from the Proto-Italic -īnos, from the primitive Indo-European -iHnos and cognate with the Ancient Greek -ινος (-inos) and the Proto-Germanic -īnaz. It was used to indicate "of or pertaining to, usually a relationship of position, possession, or origin. Vulpine is a noun & adjective, vulpinism & vulpinist are nouns and vulpinary is an adjective; the noun plural is vulpines.
The Holy Fox, Lord Halifax: The Right Honourable Edward Frederick Lindley Wood, First Earl of Halifax, KG, OM, GCSI, GCMG, GCIE, TD, PC, was a leading Tory (Conservative & Unionist Party) politician of the inter-war and war-time years; among other appointments, he was Viceroy of India, foreign secretary and ambassador to the United States. He was known as the Holy Fox because of his devotion to church, the hunt and Tory politics though was more holy than foxy and perhaps too punctilious ever to be truly vulpine. He was also born too late; had he lived a century earlier, he’d likely be remembered as an eminent statesman of the Victorian era but even before 1945, he seemed a relic of the bygone age.
Some three months after signing the infamous Munich Agreement that rubber-stamped Adolf Hitler's (1889-1945; Führer (leader) and German head of government 1933-1945 & head of state 1934-1945) takeover of Czechoslovakia, Chamberlain and Halifax visited Rome to confer with Mussolini. Although it had long been obvious the Duce had been drawn into the German orbit, British foreign policy was still based on the hope war could be avoided and, having seen appeasement prevent immediate conflict over Berlin's demands about Czechoslovakia, the hope was to find a way to appease Rome, the goal at the time little more ambitious than the maintenance of the status quo in the Mediterranean. Pointless in retrospect, the meeting, held between 11-14 January 1939, was the last attempt through official channels to tempt the Duce away from the entanglement with Hitler to which, in reality, he was already committed although he certainly didn't expect war to be declared as soon as things transpired.The spirit of the meeting was well captured in Count Ciano's diary. Ciano's entries are not wholly reliable but he was one of the century's great diarists, an astute observer and, too clever to be much bothered by principles, he painted vivid pictures of some of the great events of those troubled years. Mussolini, flattered by Hitler and already seeing himself as a Roman emperor, must have thought he was being visited by the ghosts of the past, Chamberlain looking like the provincial lord-mayor he'd once been and Halifax the archbishop he probably wished he'd become.
“In substance, the visit was kept on a minor tone, since both the Duce and myself are scarcely convinced of its utility. . . . How far apart we are from these people!" Ciano noted in his diary. "It is another world."After dinner with Mussolini he recorded the Duce's feelings: "These men are not made of the same stuff as the Francis Drakes and the other magnificent adventurers who created the British Empire. These, after all, are the tired sons of a long line of rich men, and they will lose their Empire,... The British do not want to fight. They try to draw back as slowly as possible, but they do not want to fight." Whatever other mistakes he may have made, on that night in Rome, Mussolini made no error in his summary of the state of thought in Downing Street and the Foreign Office. "Our conversations with the British have ended" Ciano concluded and "Nothing was accomplished." He closed the diary that evening with the note "I have telephoned Ribbentrop (Joachim von Ribbentrop (1893–1946; Nazi Foreign Minister 1938-1945) that the visit was a big lemonade [ie a farce].”
In zoology, the family Canidae is
divided into (1) Vulpini (foxes) and (2) Canini (wolves, dogs, coyotes, and
jackals). From these beasts comes the
metaphorical use of “canine” and “vulpine”, both tending to be used of character
traits rather than appearance. In the
metaphorical sense, “canine” is associated with qualities such as friendship loyalty,
trustworthiness, dependability, devotion and loyalty, thus the phrase: “Dog is man’s best friend”, pointed
variants appearing in quips from politicians such as Frederick II’s (Frederick
the Great, 1712–1786, Prussian king 1740-1786): “The more I learn of the nature of man, the
more I value the company of dogs” and Harry Truman’s (1884–1972; US
president 1945-1953): “Want a friend in Washington? Get a dog”. Jeff Kennett (b 1948; premier of the
Australian state of Victoria 1992-1999) would late adapt that Truman doctrine
and coined one to use in an internecine squabble, disparaging Peter Costello (b
1957; Treasurer of Australia, 1996-2007) for possessing “all the attributes of a dog - except loyalty”. If “canine” brings to mind honestly and guilelessness,
“vulpine” does not. Because foxes stereotypically
are though sly, clever and cunning, they’re regarded not as loyal companions
but solitary creatures whose every calculation in life is one of shrewd self-interest,
their folkloric reputation for deceit well-deserved.
The terms (of both endearment and disparagement) “foxy” and “vulpine” can be used interchangeably but context must be studied to determine which
meaning is being deployed. A US citizen
studying in Italy, Amanda Knox (b 1987) was twice wrongfully convicted of
murder by Italian courts and, as a young, photogenic American accused of
killing the young lady who was at the time her flat-mate, the trials received extensive
international coverage. It wasn’t long
before the media were referring to Ms Knox as “Foxy Knoxy” and while many
assumed that was typical tabloid journalism and a use of “foxy” in the sense of
“sexy young woman” (perhaps with an overtone of “manipulative”), it was revealed
to be her nickname on MySpace (an early social media site on which Rupert
Murdoch (b 1931) would book a big loss), the moniker gained from the pace and
agility she displayed in her youth on the soccer (football) pitch. Of Ms Knox, the use of “foxy” can be debated
but it would never be appropriate to speak of her as “vulpine”.
Both however could be applied to Franz
von Papen (1879-1969; German chancellor 1932 & vice chancellor 1933-1934)
who appears in the history books described variously as “vulpine”, “foxy”, “the sly old fox” and “the old silver
fox”. No author has ever used
these terms to suggest von Papen was “sexy” and the references are all to his
cunning, slyness and extraordinary ability, over many decades, to extricate
himself from situations where his prospects seemed dismal or doomed. Few have ever quibbled over André
François-Poncet (1887–1978; French ambassador to Germany 1931-1938) famous
thumbnail sketch of von Papen: “There is something about Papen that prevents either his
friends or his enemies from taking him entirely seriously” and the
Frenchman was acknowledged a fair judge of politicians, even Hitler more than
once admitting: “Poncet is the most intelligent of
the diplomats I've known”, to which he’d sometimes pause to add (especially
if anyone from the foreign office was in earshot): “…including the German ones.” Most Germans were as sceptical as the
ambassador. General Kurt von Schleicher
(1882–1934; German chancellor 1932) who was a confidant of Generalfeldmarschall
Paul von Hindenburg (1847–1934; Reichspräsident (1925-1934) of Germany
1925-1934) schemed and plotted to have the dilettante von Papen appointed
chancellor, believing his inexperience and known political ineptitude make him
a malleable tool (others would later make the same mistake with Hitler). When astonished associates protested: “Papen has no head
for administration”, the General replied” “He doesn’t need a head, his job is to be a
hat”.
Then serving as vice-chancellor, von Papen sits behind Hitler during a
parade, Berlin, May 1933. The car is a
Mercedes-Benz 770K (W07, 1930-1938) Cabriolet D. Despite the "K" ("Kompressor" in the context of the 770s), not all W07 770Ks were supercharged but all those suppled to the Chancery had the Roots type "blower". Big, heavy and with less than slippery aerodynamic qualities the 770K needed the power of its 7.7 litre (468 cubic inch) straight-8 but despite the mass, the updated 770K (W150, 1938-1943) could top 100 mph (160 km/h) on the long straights of the new Autobahns although such was the fuel consumption that even with its 195 litre (52 US gallon; 43 Imperial gallon) tank, when cruising at high speed, the time between "top-ups" could be brief.
Von Papen’s brief
chancellorship went badly (later, narrowly he would avoid being murdered by the
Nazis) but, foxy as ever, he remained a part of the Third Reich’s political and
diplomatic establishment almost to the end.
One of the century’s great survivors, after being indicted for (Count 1)
conspiracy to commit crimes against peace and (Count 2) waging aggressive war, he
was acquitted by the IMT (International Military Tribunal) in the first Nuremberg Trial (1945-1946), a verdict which disappointed some but didn’t surprise those lawyers
who’d found the conspiracy charge dubious in many aspects and thought the
defendant too remote from the business of waging war. He was subsequently convicted by a German
de-Nazification court but his two years in captivity were not unpleasant, spent
mostly in a hospital and, upon release, he resumed his robust good health. Many of his more obviously credentialed contemporaries
were either murdered by their “friends” or sent to the gallows by their
opponents but the old fox lived to his ninetieth year, dying peacefully in his
bed.
Launched
in August 2021 on Ethereum, the Canine Cartel NFT was a generative NFT
collection launched in late August 2021 on Ethereum. The collection included a reputed 10,000 unique
(ERC‑721) canine characters,
each with what was claimed to be “randomly generated traits” (subsequent
analysis would correct that) inspired by ten dog breeds, the fictional back-story
being of dogs which formed a “cartel” that emerged victorious over feline
rivals in a stylized Sinaloa-inspired turf war. As all know, cats are evil so the happy ending
was good triumphed over evil. There was
a charitable element to the project, the first 10 ETH raised (some 10 % of mint
revenue) pledged to dog shelters. At the
time, there was quite a buzz around EFTs and (with a mint price of 0.05 ETH per
NFT) the drop apparently sold out quickly but like many EFT “bubbles”,
expectations of profits were not realized by most speculators and recent floor
prices have hovered around 0.0045 ETH on very low volumes. The Canine Cartel model was a classic example
of the promotional technique used when speculative interest in NFTs was high
and was one common to many ventures, some of which by centuries pre-date the
internet.
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