THE CAT TRIBE 



37 



been almost entirely unmolested by human beings, have had no enemies. Perhaps such a 

 state of things does not exist at the present day, but there are many parts of Africa where such 

 conditions have existed from time immemorial up to within quite recent years. 



Since lions were once to be found over the greater portion of the vast continent of Africa, 

 it is self-evident that these animals are able to accommodate themselves to great variations of 

 climate and surroundings ; and I myself have met with them, close to the sea, in the hot and 

 sultry coastlands of Southeast Africa ; on the high plateau of Mashonaland, where at an altitude 

 of 6,000 feet above sea-level the winter nights are cold and frosty ; amongst the stony hills to the 

 east of the Victoria Falls of the Zambesi ; and in the swamps of the Chobi. In the great reed- 

 beds of the latter river a certain number of lions appeared to live constantly, preying on buffaloes 



Phote bj Frattlli Altnarf] 



A YOUNG LIONESS 



The sole of the hind foot shows the soft fads on -which the Cats noiselessly approach their prey 



[ Florcnci 



and lechwe antelopes. I often heard them roaring at nights in these swamps, and I once saw 

 two big male lions wading slowly across an open space between two beds of reeds in water nearly 

 a foot in depth. 



Although there are great individual differences in lions as regards size, general colour of 

 coat, and more particularly in the length, colour, and profuseness of the mane with which the 

 males are adorned, yet as these differences occur in every part of Africa where lions are met 

 with, and since constant varieties with one fixed type of mane living by themselves and not inter- 

 breeding with other varieties do not exist anywhere, modern zoologists are, I think, now agreed 

 that there is only one species of lion, since in any large series of wild lion skins, made in any 

 particular district of Africa or Asia, every gradation will be found between the finest-maned 

 specimens and those which are destitute of any mane at all. Several local races have, however, 

 been recently described by German writers. 



In the hot and steamy coastlands of tropical Africa lions usually have short manes, and 

 never, I believe, attain the long silky black manes sometimes met with on the high plateaux 

 of the interior. However, there is, I believe, no part of Africa where all or even the majority 



