136 FLESH-EATERS OF THE LAND 



appearance, for, in spite of its terrible jaws, it is a cowardly 

 creature. Only when driven to bay will it turn upon its 

 foes and fight with desperate courage, but as a rule it will 

 not attack any enemy which will boldly face it. 



The Hyaena is the veriest pariah of the animal world, 

 and few writers are able to say anything too scathing 

 concerning it. In his book upon lion-hunting in Algeria, 

 Jules Gerard states that the Arabs hold the animal in utter 

 contempt, and think that if any weapon of war, such as a 

 rifle, a sword, or a spear, be used against a Hyaena, that 

 weapon will desert its owner in the day of battle. Some 

 Arabs, however, are less punctilious, and will not hesitate 

 to eat the flesh of the animal, although it is so rank and 

 offensive that even a hungry dog will not relish it. 



There are three species of Hyaena, neither of which is 

 now found in Europe, though the unlovely carnivore once 

 ranged the Continent, and spread right across Asia to the 

 shores of the Pacific. 



STRIPED HY-ffiNA (Hycena striata). 

 Coloured Plate VII. Fig. i. 



The Striped Hyaena inhabits a large portion of Africa 

 from Senegal to Abyssinia, and thence into Asia Minor, 

 Persia, and India as far as the Himalaya. Of a dirty-grey 

 colour, with darkish transverse stripes on the sides and 

 limbs, the animal is about five feet in length, including the 

 tail. It is the size of a large mastiff, with head and neck 

 of great thickness and enormous strength. Owing to the 

 bowed and proportionately weak hind legs, its walk is a 

 shuffling, awkward pace, but it can run with great celerity. 



Only the Striped Hyaena is found in India. It is a 

 solitary animal, and rarely are more than two seen 

 together. It feeds principally at night, and conceals itself 

 during the day in its den, among ruins, craggy rocks, or 

 lonely thickets. As evening draws in the animal com- 

 mences its prowl, haunting the streets of villages and 

 towns, where it devours the offal and bones, for in many 

 Eastern cities the inhabitants pay little heed to sanitary 



