FELID^E 511 



satiated with a good meal the night before, unexpectedly disturbed 

 in the day-time, will occasionally retreat when confronted, even by 

 an unarmed man, that is Scarcely a reason for assigning cowardice 

 as one of the characteristics of the species. The latest authority, 

 Selous, while never denying the daring courage of the Lion when 

 hungry or provoked, and vindicating the awe-inspiring character of 

 the roar of several Lions in unison, when heard at close quarters, 

 as the grandest sound in nature, says with regard to its outward 

 aspect : 



"It has always appeared to me that the word 'majestic' is 

 singularly inapplicable to the lion in its wild state, as when seen 

 by daylight he always has a stealthy furtive look that entirely 

 does away with the idea of majesty. To look majestic a lion 

 should hold his head high. This he seldom does. When walking 

 he holds it low, lower than the line of his back, and it is only 

 when he first becomes aware of the presence of man that he some- 

 times raises his head and takes a look at the intruder, usually 

 lowering it immediately, and trotting away with a growl. When 

 at bay, standing with open mouth and glaring eyes, holding his 

 head low between his shoulders, and keeping up a continuous low 

 growling, twitching his tail the while from side to side, no animal 

 can look more unpleasant than a lion ; but there is then nothing 

 majestic or noble in his appearance." 



Notwithstanding this evidently truthful description of the 

 animal when seen under what may be called unfavourable circum- 

 stances, no one with an eye for beauty can contemplate the form 

 of a fine specimen of a Lion, at all events in a state of repose, even 

 though in the confinement of a menagerie, without being impressed 

 with the feeling that it is a grand and noble-looking animal 



The Tiger (F. tigris) is so closely related to the Lion that it is 

 chiefly by external characters that the two species are distinguished. 

 There are, however, slight distinctions in the proportionate size of 

 the lower teeth, the general form of the cranium, and the relative 

 length of the nasal bones and ascending processes of the maxillaries 

 by which the skull of the Lion and Tiger can be easily discriminated 

 by the practised observer. 



Although examples of both species present considerable varia- 

 tions in size, and reliance cannot always be placed upon alleged 

 dimensions, especially when taken from skins stripped from the 

 body, it seems well ascertained that the length of the largest-sized 

 Bengal Tiger may exceed that of any Lion. According to Mr. W. 

 T. Blanford, 1 adult males measure from 5 to 6| feet from the 

 nose to the root of the tail ; the tail itself measuring some 3 feet 

 in length. Measured along the curves of the head and back to the 

 tip of the tail, males usually give a length of from 9 to 10 feet, 

 1 Fauna of British India, " Mammalia," p. 59(1888). 



