ANIMALS OF THE 



tail. The principal of these is the Lynx, the name 

 by which the animal was known to ^lian, among 

 the ancients ; and to all our old English writers 

 among those of a more modern date. This name 

 has been corrupted by the Portuguese into the 

 word Ouze ; and this corruption has been adopt- 

 ed by Ray, who has improperly called this animal 

 the Ounce, after some of the foreign travellers. 

 The first striking distinction between the lynx 

 and all those of the panther kind, is in its tail, 

 which is- at least half as short in proportion, and 

 black at the extremity. Its fur is much longer, 

 tile spots on the skin less vivid, and but confusedly 

 mingled with the rest. Its ears are much longer, 

 and tipped at the point with a black tuft of hair. 

 The colour round the eyes is white, and the phy- 

 siognomy more placid and gentle. Each hair of 

 this animal is of three different colours : the root 

 is of a greyish brown ; the middle red, or of an 

 ash colour ; and the ends white. This whiteness 

 at the ends takes up so small a part of the par- 

 ticular hair, that it does not prevent us from see- 

 ing the principal colour, which is that in the 

 middle part ; so that it only makes the surface of 

 the body appear as if it was silvered over : how- 

 ever, the hair of which the spots consist has no 

 white at the ends, and at the roots it is not quite 

 so black as the other part. This animal is not 

 above the size of the ounce, but is rather stronger 

 built, and it has but twenty-eight teeth ; whereas 

 all the rest of the cat kind already mentioned 

 have thirty. 



