CARNIVOROUS QUADRUPEDS. 21 



hair which covers the face, body, and limbs j the anatomy is ably indicated ; and the chiaroscuro 



is vig'orous. 



The hunters say that a dozen or fifteen dogs, trained to the sport, will overpower a Lion before 

 he can strike many blows : but these are the limbs which " at every blow destroy an enemy." 



We have next to treat of the ROYAL TIGER OF BENGAL, beautiful, powerful, fierce, and 

 unrelenting. Terrible, yet admirable ! 



Mr. BEWICK says that the Tiger " is the most rapacious and destructive of all carnivorous 

 animals. Fierce without provocation, and cruel without necessity, its thirst for blood is insatiable. 

 Though glutted with slaughter, it continues its carnage ; it fears neither the sight nor the opposi- 

 tion of man, whom it frequently makes its prey ; and it is even said to prefer human flesh to that 

 of any other animal :" a fact which is confirmed by COLONEL WILLIAMSON, and Mr. PAUL of Daud- 

 pore, the latter of whom has the reputation of having killed as many Tigers as any hundred other 

 men in India. 



The strength of this animal is so great, that when it has killed a Deer, it carries it oft' 

 with much ease. WOOD relates a story, on good authority, of a Buffalo being carried off 

 by one ; but it had previously refreshed itself by sucking the Buffalo's blood. The latter had 

 been hampered, and was weakened by its struggles in a quagmire; and the Tiger let fall its 

 prey, and fled at the approach of some Indian peasants. We must suppose, too, this Tiger 

 to have been one of the largest, and of extraordinary power, for COLONEL WILLIAMSON reports 

 that in the public combats that are sometimes exhibited in India, between Tigers and Buffaloes, 

 the latter is commonly the victor. 



But the eagerness of its voracity is believed to transcend that of any other creature whatever. 

 If undisturbed at the commencement of its meal, it plunges its head into the body of its reeking 

 victim, up to the very eyes, in order to glut itself with the bloody enjoyment. Oysters are not 

 opened and swallowed with more zest and avidity. 



