October 1, 1896.] 



KNOWLEDGE. 



221 



tbe fur is normally of a unifonii tawny hue (save the mane 

 and tail-tip of many lions), although traces of spots may be 

 detected in tbe young, and sometimes, under certain con- 

 ditions of light, even in the adult. The beauty of a lion's 

 skin depends almost entirely upon the degree of develop- 

 ment and darkness of the mane ; and it ig a somewhat 

 curious fact that this magnificent appendage attains larger 

 and finer proportions in menagerie specimens than in wild 

 animals, this being especially the case with regard to its 

 extent on the under surface of the body. Still, captive 

 animals lack that glossiness of mane which forms such a 

 striking feature of tbe lion in its native haunts. That 

 black-maned and yellow-maned lions belong to one and the 

 same species, is, we presume, as well known as that there 

 is no specific distinction between the African and the Asiatic 

 lion. Black-maned skins are by far the most valuable. 

 We are not aware of any instance of eitber black or white 

 lion«. With tbe puma the case is, however, different, 

 blick specimens being far from uncommon. 



The skins of tbe ordinary Indian tiger are not of much 



rugs, leopard skins are manufactured into trappings for 

 the chargers of the oificers and bandsmen of some of the 

 British cavalry regiments, as well as for the aprons 

 of the drummers of the infantry. By the Kaffirs, who 

 prepare them in a remarkably excellent manner, they 

 are used as karosses, or cloaks. In a variety of the 

 leopard from China, described under the name of F. 

 fontanieri, tbe fur is much longer and more woolly than in 

 the ordinary form, while the dark spots of the rosettes 

 tend to coalesce into more or less complete rings, recalling 

 those of the jaguar, although the central dark spot of the 

 latter is wanting. The ground colour is unusually light, 

 and the tail very long and busby. Another variety of 

 the leopard (/•'. tuUiann), with still longer and lighter- 

 coloured fur, is an inhabitant of Persia. 



Far handsomer than either of the two latter is, however, 

 the snow leopard, or ounce ( F. uncia), of tbe highlands of 

 Central Asia, whose pellage excels in beauty that of all 

 other members of the cat tribe. As shown in the plate 

 accompanying an article on the coloration of animals 



Tlie Ocelot. 



value, but those of the long-haired and somewhat pale- 

 coloured variety from Siberia and Mongolia command a 

 much higher price. Turkestan tiger skins are also held 

 in considerable estimation. Of the Siberian and Mon- 

 golian race, one hundred and thirty-five skins are said 

 to have been imported into England in 1891. The 

 scarcest and most beautiful variety is the white or 

 buff tiger, in which the stripes are generally dark brown, 

 although rarely dark drab. 



In the pellage of the leopard, or panther {FAis pnrdus), 

 there is even greater variation than in the tiger ; this 

 variation showing itself not only in regard to the size and 

 form of the dark rosettes, but also in tbe length of the 

 hair. African skins are nearly always distinguishable 

 from Oriental ; and whereas in Oriental countries a black 

 variety is by no means uncommon, in Africa wo only 

 meet with races in which the rosettes on the back are 

 agglomerated into a number of small spots, and the 

 general tint of tbe fur is darker than usual. A few 

 thousand skins of ordinary leopards annually find their 

 way into the London market. In addition to being used as 



published in the January (1895) Number of Knowledge, the 

 spots form large interrupted rings or rosettes of irregular 

 shape, and are superior in size to those of the typical form of 

 the leopard. The ground colour is white, the entire fur very 

 long (sometimes as much as two inches in length), and 

 the bushy tail, which tapers but slightly, is nearly three- 

 quarters tbe length of the head and body. Comparatively 

 few skins of this splendid feline reach the Englisli market. 



The last of the larger members of tbe genus FAix is the 

 American jaguar {F. tincin), readily characterized by the 

 dark markings taking the form of nearly complete rings, with 

 one or more black spots in the centre ; the ground colour 

 being some shade of tawny or orange. A black variety is 

 not very uncommon. 



In marked contrast to the wild species o( true cits is the 

 importance of the domestic cat as a fur producer, the 

 number of skins annually used in the trade amounting to 

 many thousands. The colours of tbo iMiropean races are 

 too well known to need mention ; and although to our mind 

 dark tabby is by far the handsomest of all, pure black 

 skin 3 are those commanding the highest price. 



