200 HISTORY OF QUADRUPEDS. 



be greatly diminished; for, if we may credit the 

 testimony of those who have traversed these vast 

 deserts, the number of Lions is not nearly so great 

 as formerly. Mr. Shaw observes, that the Romans 

 carried more Lions from Lybia in one year, for their 

 public spectacles, than could be found in all that 

 country at this time. It is likewise remarked that 

 in Turkey, Persia, and the Indies, Lions are not 

 now so frequently met with as in former times. 



It is observed of this animal, that its courage 

 diminishes, and its caution and timidity are greater, 

 in proportion as it approaches the habitations of 

 the human race. Being acquainted with man, and 

 the power of his arms, it loses its natural fortitude 

 to such a degree, as to be terrified at the sound of 

 his voice. It has been known to fly before women, 

 and even children, and suifer itself to be driven 

 away by them from its lurking places in the neigh- 

 bourhood of their villages. 



This alteration in the Lion's disposition suffi- 

 ciently shews, that it will admit of a certain degree 

 of education : and it is a well-known fact, that the 

 keepers of wild beasts frequently play with him, 

 pull out his tongue, hold him by the teeth, and 

 even chastise him without cause. The animal 

 seems to bear all with a sullen kind of composure, 

 and rarely retaliates this unmerited treatment. It 

 is dangerous, however, to provoke him too far, or 

 to depend upon his temper with too great security. 

 Labat tells us of a gentleman who kept a Lion in 

 his chamber, and employed a servant to attend it; 

 who, as is usual, mixed his blows with caresses. 

 This ill-judged association continued for some time. 

 One morning the gentleman was awakened by an 

 unusual noise in his room, and drawing his curtains, 



