22 2 THE LION AND OTHER BEASTS OF PREY 



allowing him to wander about the house at will, and to sleep in his 

 bedroom at night. One night he was awakened by feeling the rough 

 tongue of the animal passing along his hand which was resting outside 

 the bedclothes, for the lion was licking him just as a cat will those 

 to whom she is very much attached, and the file-like points had cut 

 through the skin and drawn the blood. He attempted, of course, to 

 draw the hand away, but was at once stopped by a low growl from the 

 lion, which had licked up the blood and was anxious to procure more. 



Now, the gentleman knew very well that a lion, when he has 

 once tasted human blood, never afterwards loses his desire for it, and 

 becomes what is called a "man-eater," that is, one which prowls about 

 the roads and villages in hope of seizing some passer-by. He also 

 knew that if he withdrew his hand the animal would at once spring 

 upon him, and he therefore, although much grieved at the thought of 

 losing his pet, drew a loaded pistol from beneath his pillow with his 

 other hand, and shot the lion through the head. 



The lion is not as large a beast as many people think. However, 

 the animal's length and great weight and strength make him an 

 impressive and dangerous antagonist. The ears of the lion, both male 

 and female, are round and black and the hair on the body and legs is 

 short and of a tawny-yellow color, darker on the back and lighter on 

 the belly. The uj^j^er parts of the head, the chin, neck, shoulders and 

 belly are covered with long shaggy hairs forming a copious flowing 

 mane, the color varying between tawny-brown and black according to 

 the age of the animal. A black spot at each corner of the mouth, and 

 the whiskers are strong and white. The eyes are yellow. The strong 

 teeth of the lion are so fetid and filthy from the carrion he eats that a 

 bite by one of them, even though not fatal in itself, often causes blood 

 poisoning and death results. 



The Leopard. — Next in order of the cat family is the leopard. 

 This animal is found in Africa and the warmer parts of Asia. He is 

 about six feet long, of which the tail forms a I'ttle less than half. The 

 fur is reddish-fawn, marked on the body with dark rosettes; the tail 

 is tinged wnth black, and the under-surface is whitish. He is arboreal 

 in habit — that is, he lives much more in the trees than on the ground ; 

 in this respect differing from the lion and the tiger, which rarely climb 



