316 CASSELL'S POPULAR NATURAL HISTORY. 



the courtyards of Syrian houses, where their exquisite beauty and great playfulness render them 



favourites. 



II. CERVINE ANTELOPES. 



These animals approach the deer in character. They have rather a heavy, large body ; strong, 

 slender limbs, a long tail, cylindrical at the base, with the hair longer at the end, often forming a 

 compressed ridge. The horns are elongated, and generally of a large size. 



THE GEMS-BOC* 



TUE height of this animal is about three feet and a half at the shoulders. The horns are about two 

 feet and a half in length. The white face is crossed with two bands of black. The general colour is 

 iron-gray, and this is separated from the white body by a black band. Every part of this animal is 

 valuable. The flesh is good, and may be salted for future use. The hide, like the horns, is useful for 

 several purposes. 



THE LEUCOftYX.t 



OUR engraving represents the first Leucoryx born out of Africa. It was born in the Zoological 

 Gardens, and throve in so remarkable a manner, as speedily almost to equal its parents in height. It 

 is remarkable for its delicate colouring, its exquisitely curved horns, and its nulilo carriage. The male 

 was obtained by the late Earl of Derby from th.e Gambia ; the mother came from Nubia ; and the 

 species may therefore be taken to inhabit, like many others common to the eastern and western 

 coasts, the whole extent of the Negro zone in Africa. It occurs in the ancient monuments of Egypt, 

 as forming part of the tribute paid by the kings to Ethiopia, and it 'therefore, in addition to its natural 

 beauty, has a peculiar historic interest, which must be appreciated by all who arc familiar with the 

 ancient legends of the body of the Nile. 



III. GOAT-LIKE ANTELOPES. 



These antelopes have a heavy body ; strong logs ; the hoofs and false hoofs largo ; the tail very 

 short, flat, and hairy above j the horns conical and recurved. 



THE CHAMOIS.* 



IN tlic elevated districts Of the Alps, as well as the Pyrenees, the Chamois dwell in small herds 

 Cropping the herbage of the mountain-sides. This animal is about the size of a large goat; its colour 

 is of a dark chestnut-brown, with the exception of the forehead, the sides of the lower jaw, and the' 

 muzzle, which are white. Its horns, rising just above th,e eyes, are black, smooth, and straight, fur 

 two-thirds of their length, when they suddenly curve backwards. Its hoofs are admirably adapted 

 to avail themselves of any little roughness or projection, either of the naked granite or the icy glacier ; 

 and its hair is thick, long, and coarse, serving not only as a defence against cold, but as a provision 

 against the bruises to which the chamois is constantly liable. 

 Schiller describes Werni as saying : 



Beasts have reason too . 



And that we know, we men that hunt the chamois I 

 They never turn to feed sagacious creatures I 

 Till they have placed a sentinel ahead, 

 Who pricks hU ears whenever we approach, 

 And gives alarm with clear and piercing pipe." 



And this is not merely poetry, but fact. Oiily let man or beast of prey appear, and he makes a loud, 

 hissing noise, as a warning of danger ;' the herd now gaze intently, as if to see for themselves if there is 

 really peril, and when of this they are satisfied, they bound from ledge to ledge where the human eye 

 can mark no footing spring from crag to crag, clearing the crevasse sweep over the glaciers even 

 throw themselves down the precipice, and find safety where death would seem to b inevitable. 

 * Oryx G.r/.e!la. f Anlilop-, Lnicoryxi Pnllas. | Kiiplcnpra Tr-frs. 



