544 



DIGITIGEADE CAKNIVOKA. 



the foot is provided : these likewise serve to break the 

 shocks to which their violent leaps would otherwise expose 

 them. 



The Cats do not hunt or pursue their prey, but lie in 

 wait at the spots to which their victims are known to 

 resort, hidden in some covert whence they spring upon 

 the unsuspecting animal with irresistible force, and with 

 one stroke of the fore-paw, fell it to the ground. 



Foremost of this extensive genus stands 



The Lion {Fells leo), distinguished by its uniform tawny colom-, 

 the tuft of hair at the end of its tail, and the mane which covers the 

 head, neck, and shoulders of the male : this is the strongest and most 

 courageous of all animals of prey. Formerly the species was 

 diffused over the three divisions of the old world, but at present 

 it seems almost confined to Africa, and some neighbouring parts of 

 Asia. The majestic air, proud look, and noble gait of the Lion at 

 once proclaim him monarch of the deserts, where he reigns supreme, 

 and uncontrolled. His strength is prodigious ; with a single blow 



~-A^i 



]<>;. 468.— SKELETON OF LIOX. 



of his paw he will break the back of a horse ; he can clear at a 

 bound a space of tliirty feet, and drags to great distances even 

 the largest bullocks. His terrible roar resounds through the moun- 

 tains like rolling thunder, and startles his trembling prey from their 

 concealment. This roar is hollow and deep, but when infuriated, 

 he utters another cry, not less friglitful, but short, broken, and 

 reiterated. Nothing can be more dreadful than the appearance of 

 tlie Lion when he prepares for combat. He lasiies his flanks with 

 his long tail, his mane becomes erect and bristling, enveloping his 

 whole head, his enormous eyebrows half conceal the pupils of 



