30 



NATURAL HISTORY. 



with, but he does not seem to stand in much fear of them. 

 Gnoos, zebras, and antelopes, seem to be his favorite prey, 

 although one of the antelopes, the oryx, or gemsbok, not 



LEO. (Lat. a Lion.) 



Barbarus (Lat. fierce), the Lion. 



unfrequently avenges its own death by the destruction of its 

 pursuer, its long straight horns impaling the Lion from side 

 to side. The two skeletons have been seen lying together. 

 The roar of the Lion is one of its chief peculiarities ; the best 

 description of it is in Cumming's Adventures : 



" One of the most striking things connected with the Lion 

 is his voice, which is extremely grand and peculiarly striking. 

 It consists, at times, of a low, deep moaning, repeated five or 

 six times, ending in faintly audible sighs ; at other times he 

 startles the forest with loud, deep-toned, solemn roars, repeated 

 five or six times in quick succession, each increasing in loud- 

 ness to the third or fourth, when his voice dies away in five 

 or six low, muffled sounds, very much resembling distant 

 thunder. At times, and not unfrequently, a troop may be 

 heard roaring in concert, one assuming the lead, and two, 



