THE LEOPARD. 163 



Dissimilar as are the lion and Tiger, there has been an example of a mixed offspring 

 of these animals, the lion being the father and the Tigress the mother. The lion had 

 been born and bred in captivity, and the Tigress had been captured at a very early 

 age, so that the natural wildness of their character had been effaced by their captive 

 life, in which they felt no need to roam after living prey, as their daily sustenance 

 was always forthcoming. 



It has already been mentioned, that the young of the lion are marked with faint 

 stripes of the tigrine character. Similar streaks were observed on the fur of the Lion- 

 Tiger cubs, but they were darker than those of the lion cub, and were permanent in- 

 stead of vanishing as the creature increased in years. The shape of the head was 

 like that of the lion, while the contour of the body resembled that of the Tiger. These 

 curious little creatures were too valuable to be entrusted to the care of the mother, and 

 therefore were removed immediately after birth, and placed under the fostering care of 

 a goat and several dogs. Under this treatment they throve well, but did not reach 

 maturity. This is not the only instance of a hybrid breed between the lion and Tiger. 

 Although Europeans do not seem to succeed very perfectly in taming the Tiger, many 

 native Indians meet with a better reward for their labors. Some of the fakirs or 

 mendicant priests have so far subdued the savage nature of the Tiger, that they permit 

 their fierce favorites to wander at large among the jungles and to enter or leave their 

 rude dwellings at pleasure. They give these tame Tigers no raw animal food, but 

 supply them with a mixture of boiled rice and ghee. One of these men was ac- 

 customed to walk in the streets of a neighboring town accompanied by his favorite 

 Tiger, which followed him like a dog, without requiring even the frail bondage of a 

 cord and a collar. The inhabitants of the town were quite accustomed to the man and 

 the beast, and felt no alarm when this strange pair promenaded their streets. English 

 visitors, however, could not exhibit an equal stoicism, and were rather uneasy at the 

 inquisitive air with which the Tiger walked round them. The fakir had wisely pro- 

 hibited all people from touching his brindled favorite, to which caution it is probable 

 that much of his success was owing. The natives were withheld from infringing this 

 command by the dread of religious anathemas which were liberally threatened by the 

 fakir, and the English visitors were respectfully begged to adhere to the same rule. 

 However, in this case, such a precaution was totally unnecessary, for they felt in no way 

 inclined to diminish the distance between themselves and the perilous-looking animal 

 that regarded them with curious eyes. 



Unlike the Tiger, which is confined to the Asiatic portion of the world, the LEOPARD 

 is found in Africa as well as in Asia and is represented in America by the Jaguar, or, 

 perhaps, more rightly, by the Puma. 



This animal is one of the most graceful of the graceful tribe of cats, and, although far 

 less in dimensions than the tiger, challenges competition with that animal in the beautiful 

 markings of its fur, and the easy elegance of its movements. It is possessed of an ac- 

 complishment which is not within the powers of the lion or tiger, being able to climb 

 trees with singular agility, and even to chase the tree-loving animals among their 

 familiar haunts. On account of this power, it is called by the natives of India " Lakree- 

 baug," or Tree-tiger. Even in Africa it is occasionally called a " Tiger," a confusion 

 of nomenclature which is quite bewildering to a non-zoologist, who may read in one 

 book that there are no tigers in Africa, and in another, may peruse a narrative of a 

 tiger-hunt at the Cape. Similar mistakes are made with regard to the American 

 felidae, not to mention the numerous examples of mis-called animals that are insulted by 

 false titles in almost every part of the globe. For, in America, the Puma is popularly 

 known by the name of the Lion, or the Panther, or " Painter," as the American forester 

 prefers to call it, while the Jaguar is termed the " Tiger." 



In Africa, the Leopard is well known and much dreaded, for it possesses a most 

 crafty brain, as well as an agile body and sharp teeth and claws. It commits sad dep- 

 redations on flocks and herds, and has sufficient foresight to lay up a little stock of 

 provisions for a future day. A larder belonging to a Leopard was once discovered in 

 the forked branches of a tree, some ten feet or so from the ground. Several pieces of 



