J12 COMMON ANTELOPE. NYLGHAU. 



their sides, and three lines of whitish hairs on the internal 

 sides of their ears. They resemble the goat in never 

 shedding their horns ; on the other hand, they have a 

 conformity to the roe-buck in the elegance of their form, 

 and the graceful agility of their motions. 



Most of these animals are natives of the torrid zone ; 

 and are always confined to it, or its vicinity. There is 

 none, however, in the New World ; but in Asia and 

 Africa they are surprisingly numerous. All the species, 

 of which we can only enumerate a few, may be charac- 

 terized as active and elegant, restless and timid, vigilant 

 and vivacious, and remarkably swift and nimble. The 

 eyes are so extremely brilliant, and at the same time of 

 such a mild aspect, that they furnish a never-failing simile 

 to oriental lovers, when they wish to compliment the 

 beauty of their mistresses. One species produces the 

 bezoar, which was once held in high reputation for its 

 fancied medicinal virtues. 



THE COMMON ANTELOPE. 



This animal, which is a native of Barbary, is somewhat 

 inferior in size to the fallow-deer, but resembles it in all 

 the proportions of its body. Its horns are upright, spirally 

 twisted, and encircled almost to the top with prominent 

 rings. The colour of the body is brown mixed with red 

 and dusky ; the belly and the insides of the thighs are 

 white. The female is destitute of horns. 



THE WHITE-FOOTED ANTELOPE, OR NYLGHAU. 



This peculiarly elegant and beautiful animal measures 

 upwards of four feet to the top of the shoulders ; and 

 nearly the same in length, from the bottom of the neck 

 to the insertion of the tail. Its horns are short, and pro- 

 ject a little forward. It has a short black mane, extend- 

 ing half-way down the back ; and a tuft of long hair on 

 the fore-part of the neck, above which is a large white 

 spot, another on the chest, a third on each fore-foot, and two 



