THE SCAVENGER OF THE DESERT. 249 



it that the sight of a stick planted in the ground, with a strip 

 of calico fluttering from the top will be enough to prevent it 

 from carrying off the dead game. 



Of all scavengers, none is more horribly repulsive in 

 appearance or more disgusting in its ways than the hyaena ; 

 yet Mr. Wood calls it the " very saviour of life and health " 

 in Asia and Africa, and declares it to be a libel on the 

 animal to say that it is incapable of being tamed. There 

 are several species, and from the immense quantity of fossil 

 remains, hyaenas would seem to have been still more 

 numerous in former ages, and to have been almost the sole 

 scavengers of the great mastodon, mammoth, &c. 



With its extraordinarily powerful teeth it does all the 

 rough work of scavenging in the desert, in the forest, on the 

 beach, crushing with ease such bones as would resist the 

 strength of any other animal, and finishing up even the 

 hides and other tough morsels left by them. It has been 

 known to drag a dead camel above a mile from the caravan 

 in the course of a single night, but probably in this case 

 two or three, or perhaps more, acted together. 



When they are too numerous to find sufficient carrion 

 for their support, they become terrible pests, hanging on the 

 outskirts of villages and encampments, even roaming through 

 the streets at night and carrying off not only cattle but 

 sleeping children. 



It is a very cowardly creature, and is afraid to touch 

 any animal unless it takes to flight, and thus the sickly often 

 escape by standing still, while the strong fly and perish. 



With its horrible voice, offensive odour, great personal 

 uncleanness and cowardice, together with its habit of 



