110 SPORT IN NORTH AMERICA. 



broker ; as cunning as a briefless barrister ; as 

 fierce as a peccary, and as hard as a tortoise. In 

 fact (say they), the brute is like a woman, — com- 

 parable to nothing but herself." 



The first time I examined the head of a wild cat, 

 one thing struck me very forcibly, — its resemblance 

 to that of the rattle-snake. The expression is of the 

 same liideous wickedness, the same jaws, the same 

 teeth. One morning, in North Carolina, on the 

 borders of the marsh known as the Great Dismal 

 Swamp, I had strayed from my friends, followed by 

 my faithful hound Black. I attempted a return to 

 the house from which I had set out, when, suddenly, 

 my dog darted back from the corner of a rock, his 

 hair on end, his tail between his legs, and growl- 

 ing loudly, as if for assistance. I looked before 

 me, and could scarcely contain a cry of horror. 

 Forty paces before me were a wild cat and a rattle- 

 snake engaged in mortal combat. One hissed, and 

 the other mewed, and both gave a terrible idea of 

 passions in a state of contention. The sequent 

 darted about in folds remarkable for their grace and 

 elegance, and the cat arched her back quite ready 

 to pounce upon her enemy, directly the opportunity 

 offered itself. The serpent darted forward ; the cat 

 leapt on one side. In an instant, however, the snake 

 caught hold of its antagonist by the haunch, and the 

 latter seized its antagonist in its claws ; but before 

 any further mischief could be done, I had put a 



