THE WILD CAT. 31 



they were going to lie down. In this attitude, having 

 taken a survey of the road, they slide down with the swift- 

 ness of a meteor. In the mean time, all the rider has 

 to do is to keep himself fast on the saddle, without check- 

 ing therein ; for the least motion will disorder the equi- 

 librium of the animal, in which case they unavoidably 

 perish. But their address in this rapid descent is truly 

 wonderful ; for in their swiftest motion they follow exactly 

 the different windings of the road as if they had previously 

 settled in their minds the route they were to follow, and 

 taken every precaution for their safety. Some of these 

 Mules, after being long used to such journies acquire a 

 kind of reputation for their safety and skill ; and their value 

 rises in proportion to their fame. 



THE WILD CAT. 



THE hair of the Wild Cat is soft and fine, of a pale 

 yellow colour, mixed with grey ; a dusky list runs along 

 the middle of the back, from head to tail j the sides are 

 streaked with grey pointing from the back downward ; the 

 tail is thick and marked with alternate bars of black and 

 white. It is larger and stronger than the tame cat, and 

 its fur much longer. 



It inhabits the most mountainous and woody parts of 

 this island, lives in trees, and hunts for birds and small 

 animals, such as rabbits, hares, rats, mice, moles, &c. It 

 frequently makes great havoc among poultry, will even 

 kill young lambs, kids, and fawns, and is the fiercest and 

 most destructive beast of prey in this kingdom. 



It is taken either in traps, or by shooting. There is fre- 

 quently danger in the latter mode ; for if it be only slightly 

 wounded, it will attack the person who has injured it, and 

 is not easily repelled. 



Wild Cats are found, with very little variety, in almost 

 every climate. They existed in America before its discovery 

 by the Europeans. One of them was brought to Columbus, 

 which was of the ordinary size, of a brownish grey colour, 

 with a long tail. They are common in many places of Asia 

 and Africa. Sparrman gives a description of one which 

 he shot at the Cape, which was in every, respect similar 

 to those of this country. It was of a grey colour ; and 

 measured, from the nose to the tail, nearly twenty-two 

 inches : the tail was thirteen inches long ; its height was 

 about a foot and a half. The intestines were full of moles 

 and rats. 



