SPORT IN WESTERN CHINA 179 



generally broadly and evenly striped, and the fur, though short, 

 is a rich and glossy chestnut-red. The skin of a young male 

 in my possession, which was killed in Changyang Hsien, in 

 the early summer of 1907, measures only 82 inches, total 

 length ; height at shoulder about 22 inches ; yet a more 

 perfectly marked specimen could scarcely be found. 



In western Szechuan this animal is very rare, but is occa- 

 sionally found in the jungle-clad wilderness around Wa shan. 

 In the Chiench'ang Valley and southward through the Yunnan 

 province it is more common and attains to a larger size. 

 From its geographical range this Tiger would appear to 

 constitute a local race which does not ascend to any great 

 altitude, but is thinly scattered through the warmer parts of 

 central and Western China. 



Tiger-bones (Hu-ku) are a highly prized Chinese medicine, 

 and are supposed to transmit vitality, strength, and valour 

 to those who partake of them. In the Imperial Maritime 

 Customs Trade Returns of Hankow for 1910 is the following 

 item : " Tiger-bones, ']'] piculs ; value, Tls. 6522." 



LEOPARD 



Two distinct races of Leopard (Lao Pa-tsze) are found 

 in western Hupeh, namely, a lowland variety {Felis pardus 

 variegata), distinguished by its darker, more red colour and less 

 bushy tail, which extends inland from the coast to the neigh- 

 bourhood of Ichang, where it is rare ; and an upland variety, 

 {Felis pardus fontanieri) which differs in its smaller size, paler 

 colouring, and more bushy tail. This latter animal ranges 

 westward from Ichang to the Chino-Thibetan borderland, in 

 places being fairly common. The two varieties are found in 

 brush-clad, rocky country, the upland kind ranging to 11,000 

 feet altitude or more. In western Szechuan, Leopard is scarce 

 north of Mao Chou, but from Mount Omei southward into 

 Yunnan it is prevalent. 



This animal is usually taken by the natives in log-traps, 

 as described above for the Tiger ; but occasionally it is noosed 

 in bamboo snares in the same way as Goral. When after the 

 latter animal, near the head of the Ichang Gorge, Mr. Zappey 



