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A HISTORY OF 



tion of the tail. It is the most delicately shaped 

 animal in the world, being completely formed 

 like a stag in miniature ; except that its horns, 

 when it has any, are more of the gazelle kind, 

 being hollow and annulated in the same man- 

 ner. It has two canine teeth in the upper 

 jaw; in which respect it differs from all other 

 animals of the goat or deer kind, and thus 

 makes a species entirely distinct by itself. 

 This wonderful animal's colour is not less 

 pleasing; the hair, which is short and glossy, be- 

 ing in some of a beautiful yellow, except on the 

 neck and belly, which is white. They are 

 natives of India, Guinea, and the warm cli- 

 mates between the tropics ; and are found in 

 great plenty. But though they are amazingly 

 swift for their size, yet the Negroes often over- 

 take them in the pursuit, and knock them 

 down with their sticks. They may be easily 

 tamed, and then they become familiar and 

 pleasing; but they are of such delicate con- 

 stitutions, that they can bear no climate but 

 the hottest ; and they always perish with the 

 rigours of ours, when they are brought over. 

 The male in Guinea has horns : the female is 

 without any ; as are all the kinds of this ani- 

 mal, to be found either in Java or Ceylon, 

 where they chiefly abound. 



Such is the list of the gazelles; all which 

 pretty nearly resemble the deer in form and 

 delicacy of shape; but have the horns hollow, 

 single, and permanent, like those of the goat. 

 They properly fill up, as has been already 

 observed, the interval between these two 

 kinds of animals; so that it is difficult to tell 

 where the goat ends, and the deer may be 

 said to begin. If we compare the gazelles 

 with each other, we shall find but very slight 

 distinctions between them. The turn or the 

 magnitude of the horns, the different spots 

 on the skin, or a difference of size in each, 

 are chiefly the marks by which their varieties 

 are to be known; but their way of living, 

 their nature, and their peculiar swiftness, all 

 come under one description. 



The gazelles are, in general, inhabitants of 

 the warmer climates ; and contribute, among 

 other embellishments, to add beauty to those 

 forests that are for ever green. They are often 

 seen feeding in herds, on the sides of the 

 mountain, or in the shade of the woods; and 

 fly all together, upon the smallest approaches 



of danger. They bound with such swiftness, 

 and are so very shy, that dogs or men vainly 

 attempt to pursue them. They traverse those 

 precipices with ease and safety, which to every 

 quadruped else are quite impracticable ; nor 

 can any animals but of the winged kind over- 

 take them. Accordingly, in all those countries 

 where they arechiefly found, they are pursued 

 by falcons; and this admirable manner of 

 hunting makes one of the principal amuse- 

 ments of the upper ranks of people all over 

 the East. The Arabians, Persians, and Turks, 

 breed up for this purpose, that kind of hawk 

 called the falcon gentle, with which, when pro- 

 perly trained, they go forth on horseback 

 among the forests and the mountains, the fal- 

 con perching upon the hand of the hunter. 

 Their expedition is conducted with profound 

 silence ; their dogs are taught to hang behind ; 

 while the men, on the fleetest coursers, look 

 round for the game. Whenever they spy a 

 gazelle at the proper distance, they point the 

 falcon to its object, and encourage it to pur- 

 sue. The falcon, with the swiftness of an ar- 

 row, flies to the animal, that, knowing its dan- 

 ger, endeavours, but too late, to escape. The 

 falcon soon coming up with its prey, fixes its 

 talons, one into the animal's cheek, the other 

 into its throat, and deeply wounds it. On the 

 other hand, the gazelle attempts to escape, 

 but is generally wounded too deep to run far. 

 The falcon clings with the utmost persever- 

 ance, nor ever leaves its prey till it falls ; up- 

 on which the hunters from behind approach- 

 ing, take up both, and reward the falcon with 

 the blood of the spoil. They also teach the 

 young ones by applying them to the dead ani- 

 mal\j throat, and accustoming them betimes 

 to fix upon that particular part ; for if it should 

 happen that the falcon fixed upon any other 

 part of the gazelle, either its back or its 

 haunches, the animal would easily escape 

 among the mountains, and the hunter would 

 also lose his falcon. They sometimes also 

 hunt these animals with the ounce. This car- 

 nivorous and fierce creature being made tame 

 and domestic, generally sits on horseback be- 

 hind the hunter, and remains there wilh the 

 utmost composure, until the gazelle is shown ; 

 it is then that it exerts all its arts and fierce- 

 ness ; it does not at once fly at its prey, but 

 approaches slyly, turning and winding about 



