240 Miscellaneous » 



however, has taken place ; and the radiating canals, having withdrawn 

 themselves from the covering of ectoderm which they possess when 

 forming a constituent part of the developed umbrella, are now com- 

 posed of endoderm alone, and lie between the endoderm and ecto- 

 derm of the manubrium, where they form csecal processes from the 

 spadix or endodermal portion of the manubrium. 



Rare Animals from India. 



By the * Nile,' which proceeded down the river yesterday morning, 

 we hear that the celebrated huge Tiger, " Jungla," the largest and 

 most beautiful of the famous fighting tigers of Lucknow, is shipped 

 for sale in England. This splendid animal is not only remarkable 

 for his size, which far surpasses that of any tiger or lion yet seen in 

 Europe, but for the extraordinary beauty of his colouring and mark- 

 ings — having all his body-stripes double. He is, moreover, extremely 

 tame and gentle to those he knows ; but many a big buffalo has been 

 felled by his tremendous sledge-hammer of a paw. There was, in 

 fact, no sport at all about his method of procedure : he went most 

 systematically to work ; and the business was done in no time. In a 

 civilized country he will of course have to forego the pleasure of such 

 feats ; but we doubt not that he will become an object of great 

 admiration for his size and beauty. 



By the same vessel is likewise forwarded, for sale in England, a 

 fine healthy yearling bull-calf of that very rare animal to obtain 

 alive, the gigantic Gaour, or Bos gaurus, which sportsmen in India 

 persist in miscalling the Bison ; it is the largest of existing bovine 

 animals — the finest bulls even exceeding 20^ hands high, measuring 

 from the summit of the singularly elevated dorsal ridge*. This, in- 

 deed, is one of the most remarkable features of the species, the spines 

 of some of the dorsal vertebrae measuring 16 inches in length. An- 

 other characteristic of the adult animal consists in its very broad 

 concave forehead, surmounted by a high transverse arched bony 

 ridge between the horns. The skull is extraordinarily massive. We 

 have seen one which, with the horns attached, but minus the lower 

 jaw, weighed exactly 30 lbs. The peculiar form of the head is 

 scarcely even indicated in the yearling calf; and the animal is a very 

 slow grower. We have heard of one which lived for three years in 

 the possession of an officer in the Madras Presidency, and was still, 

 to all appearance, a mere calf. This is doubtless the first Gaour 

 ever shipped for Europe ; and the species must not be confounded 

 either with the Gayal {B. frontalis), or with the Banteng {B. son- 

 daicus). Though only generally known as a wild animal, we have 

 been assured that the Gaour, in addition to the Gayal, is domesti- 

 cated in the interior of the Tippera Hills. The calf at present on 

 board the * Nile ' retains not a vestige of wildness, but is as quiet 

 and tractable as any ordinarv domestic animal. — Overland Hurkaru^ 

 Calcutta, Dec. 8, 1858. 



* Vide * India Sporting Review,' new ser. no. 3. p. 329, and no. 5. p. 210. 



