HUNTING WITH THE CHEETAH. 217 



In order to obtain this end, the Cheetah watches for a herd of deer or antelopes, or is 

 content to address himself to the pursuit of a solitary individual, or a little band of two 

 or three, should they be placed in a position favorable for his purpose. Crouching upon 

 the ground so as to conceal himself as much as possible from the watchful eyes of the in- 

 tended prey, the Cheetah steals rapidly and silently upon them, never venturing to show 

 himself until he is within reach of a single spring. Having singled out one individual 

 from the herd, the Cheetah leaps upon the devoted animal and dashes it to the ground. 

 Fastening his strong grip in the throat of the dying animal, the Cheetah laps the hot 

 blood, and for the time seems forgetful of time or place. 



Of these curious habits, the restless and all-adapting mind of man has taken advantage, 

 and has diverted to his own service the wild destructive properties of the Cheetah. In 

 fact, man has established a kind of quadrupedal falconry, the Cheetah taking the place 

 of the hawk, and the chase being one of earth and not of air. The Asiatics have brought 

 this curious chase to great perfection, and are able to train Cheetahs for this purpose in 

 a wonderfully perfect manner. 



When a Cheetah is taken out for the purpose of hunting game, he is hooded and placed 

 in a light native car, in company with his keepers. When they perceive a herd of deer, 

 or other desirable game, the keepers turn the Cheetah's head in the proper direction, 

 and remove the hood from his eyes. The sharp-sighted animal generally perceives the 

 prey at once, but if he fails so to do the keepers assist him by quiet gestures. 



No sooner does the Cheetah fairly perceive the deer than his bands are loosened, and 

 he gently slips from the car. Employing all his innate artifices, the quadrupedal hunter 

 approaches the game, and with one powerful leap flings himself upon the animal which 

 he has selected. The keepers now hurry up, and take his attention from the slaughtered 

 animal by offering him a ladleful of its blood, or by placing before him some food of which 

 he is especially fond, such as the head and neck of a fowl. The hood is then slipped 

 over his head, and the blinded animal is conducted patient and unresisting to the car, 

 where he is secured, until another victim may be discovered. 



It is a very curious fact, that although the Cheetah is found in Africa as well as in 

 Asia, it has not been subjected to the dominion of man by the African races, but is 

 suffered to roam at large, unfettered and unblinded. 



The natural disposition of this pretty creature seems to be gentle and placid, and it 

 is peculiarly susceptible of domestication. It has been so completely trained as to be 

 permitted to wander where it chooses like a domestic dog or cat, and is quite as familiar 

 as that animal. Even in a state of semi-domestication it is sufficiently gentle. One 

 sleek and well-conditioned specimen with which I made acquaintance behaved in a 

 very friendly manner, permitting me to pat its soft sides, or stroke its face and uttering 

 short self-sufficient sounds, like the magnified purr of a gratified cat. Unfortunately, 

 the acquaintance was rudely broken up by an ill-conditioned Frenchman, who came to 

 the front of the cage, and with his stick dealt the poor animal a severe thrust in the 

 side. The Cheetah instantly lost its confident expression, and was so irritated by this 

 rough treatment that it would not permit a repetition of the former caresses. 



Certainly these caged animals have a wondrous perception of the intentions of those 

 who visit them. I heard one curious instance of forbearance on the part of a caged 

 tiger. 



A little girl, about five or six years of age, was taken to see the lions and tigers in a 

 travelling menagerie. They presented to her mind the idea that they were simply very 

 large cats, only differing in size from her favorite cat at home. So she crept close to 

 the cage, and getting on a stone, in order to lift her small person to a proper elevation, 

 fearlessly thrust her arm through the bars, and began to stroke the nose of the tiger. 

 The spectators, seeing the child thus engaged, very unwisely set up a general 

 scream, which had the effect of startling the tiger, and of making it so suspicious, 

 that a second attempt to stroke it now would have probably resulted in the loss of 

 the arm. 



The fur of the Cheetah is rather rough, and is by no means so smooth as that of the 

 African or Asiatic leopard. Its color is very similar to that of the leopard, but the 

 ground color of the fur is of a deeper fawn. The spots which so profusely stud the 



