476 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, 1891. 



although, it had a broken jaw, scored deep grooves in the barrels of 

 my rifle with her teeth. Some claw wounds were mere scratches, which 

 I attribute to the fact that they clutch at the surface of your coat 

 thinking it is all solid underneath, and so reach the flesh pretty late. 

 In fact, my coat was torn in some places without any corresponding 

 wound beneath. I never felt the slightest shock. Tigers and panthers 

 as a rule immediately leave any one they seize in a charge, but this 

 lioness, having left me, went a few yards to roar at my men, returned 

 and stood on me growling, and then bit my arm : I got no bite the 

 first go off as she was occupied in biting the rifle. 



Comparing the size of lions with tigers I should have been inclined 

 to say that tigers were the heavier of the two. But Sir Samuel Baker 

 in "Wild Beasts and their "Ways" expresses a contrary opinion. 

 Mr. Selous in his book gives the weight of one large lion in poor 

 condition as 376 lbs. Jerdon gives the weight of an Asiatic lion 8 ft. 

 9 1 inches long as 35 stone. Mr. Selous says that the largest male 

 he shot was nearly 10 ft. long, while of 9 lionesses the pegged out 

 skins measured from 8 ft. 10 in. to 9 ft. 7 in., which would make the 

 animal in the flesh at least a foot less in length. The largest lion I 

 shot measured as he lay 9 ft. 1 in. The largest lioness was 8 ft. 3 in. 

 Another old lion I got with a very fine long mane measured 8 ft. 8 in. 

 Coming to the measurements of the skulls (and I hold a strong 

 opinion that the size of the skull of tiger or lion gives a better idea 

 of the bulk and weight of the particular tiger or lion than the 

 measurement of its length), I have measured some skulls I have of 

 tiger and lion of the same or about the same length, and the result 

 is as follows : — 



Lion (No. 1). In length 9 ft. 1. Skull length about 1U or 15 

 inches, width 10| inches, depth 6h inches. 



Lion (No. 2). In length 8 ft. 8. Skull length 12f inches, width 



9 inches, depth 6 inches. 



Tiger (No. 1). In length 9 ft. 5. Skull length 14 inches, width 



10 inches, depth 6^ inches. 



Tiger (No. 2). In length 9 ft. 1. Skull length 12| inches, width 

 9^ inches, depth 6| inches. 



Tiger (No. 3). In length 9 ft. Skull length 12$ inches, width 

 9£ inches, depth 6 inches. 



