29$ NATURAL HISTORY. 



The most beautiful skins of the lynx are Brought 

 from Siberia, as belonging to the lupus cervarius, and 

 from Canada, as belonging to tiie fclis-cervarius. 

 Because they are like all other animals of the New 

 Continent, smaller than those of the Old World. In 

 Europe they are compared to a wolf in size, and in 

 Canada to a wild cat. 



The lynx of which the ancients have said that the 

 sight was so sharp as to penetrate opaque bodies, and 

 of which the urine was made to possess the marvel- 

 lous property of hardening into a solid substance a 

 precious stone, called lapis lyncurius, is an animal 

 which never existed. To the true lynx this imaginary 

 one has no affinity, but in name. We mast not, there- 

 fore, as the most of naturalists have hitherto done, at- 

 tribute to the former, which is a real being, the pro- 

 perties of this imaginary one, the existence of which, 

 Pliny himself does not seem disposed to believe, and 

 which he classes with the spliynx, the pegasus, and 

 other prodigies, or monsters, the produce of ./Ethiopia. 



Our lynx possr-sscs not the wonderful quality of 

 seeing through walls ; but it has bright eyes, a mild 

 aspect, and, upon the whole, an agreeable and lively 

 appearance. Its urine produces not precious stones, 

 but, like the cat, an animal which it nearly resembles, 

 and of which it retains the manners, and even the 

 cleanliness, it covers it over with earth. 



The lynx 5ias short legs, and is generally about the 

 size of the fox. It differs from the panther and the 

 ounce in the following particulars. It has long hair, 

 its marks or spots are of a colour less lively, and are 

 badly disposed. Its ears are surrounded at the extre- 

 mity by a stripe, or rather tuft, of black hair : its tail 

 Which is much shorter, is black at the tip ; its eyes. 



