^8 MAMMALIA. 



has ever heard a wild Panther scream. This is nesfative evidence it 

 is true, but it is by no means without value ; and it is certainly safe 

 to assert that at least ninety-nine per cent, of the so-called " Panther 

 screams " emanate from a widely different source. 



^tli. Concerning the Size of the Panthe?-. 



In talking with border hunters of a certain type, and in perusing the 

 literature of the subject, one is ever\- now and then confronted with the 

 most fabulous statements concerning the size of the beast now under 

 consideration. Some would have us believe that Panthers have been 

 killed and measured with a " two-foot rule " that were eleven, 

 twelve, and even thirteen feet in length. Formidable beasts, in- 

 deed ! No less an authority than James De Kay tells us, in appar- 

 ent good faith, that one was killed on an island in Fourth Lake (of 

 the Fulton Chain) in Herkimer County, that, when recently killed, 

 " had a total length of eleven feet three inches."'-' To those that are 

 inclined to credit such statements I have only to say : measure off 

 eleven feet on your floor ; place the largest Panther you ever saw on 

 this measured line, and then tell me on what part of the beast you 

 would " annex " or " splice on " the three or more additional feet. 



jth. Concerning the way a Panther carries its Prey. 



We often see statements to the effect that a Panther has killed a 

 deer or a young bullock, " slung it over his back," and marched off 

 (perhaps up an embankment, or even climbed a tree) with it. A 

 Panther drags a deer along the ground just as a dog drags a sheep, 

 or a cat a big piece of meat, and if he is a large one he may be able 

 to lift the deer so high that only its hinder parts drag. 



♦Zoology of New York, Part I, Mammals, 1842, p. 48. 



