FELINES OF THE OLD WORLD. 



165 



present day nothing more is heard of the 

 lion in Algeria. The European hunters have 

 managed to rid the country of them entirely. 

 It is now impossible to have such hunts in 

 the colony as those which were carried on by 

 Jules Gerard, who used to stand unprotected 

 in the moonlight awaiting with firm foot the 

 onset of the lion, and then, just at the instant 

 when the animal was crouching on the ground 

 a few yards off, preparing to take his fatal 

 spring, would smash his skull with a well- 

 aimed ball which struck between the eyes. 

 Formerly the Arabs organized great lion- 

 hunts, when they used to form a ring round 

 his lair, and all fired together on his appear- 

 ance. Almost invariably the lion, whether 

 wounded or not, would break through the 

 circle, killing or wounding some of the hunters 

 before he breathed his last. The native 

 Negroes and Kaffirs hunt him fearlessly in 

 the same manner, though only armed with 

 lances. Others capture him in snares or pit- 

 falls. Everywhere he has given way before 

 firearms much more quickly, and, we may 

 well say, in a much more cowardly manner 

 than the tiger. 



When there is plenty of food the lion 

 commits great ravages, killing every day a 

 large animal such as an antelope, buffalo, 

 zebra, or wild boar, the remains of which it 

 leaves to the hyaenas and jackals. When 

 urged by hunger it will even attack carrion, 

 but never except with great reluctance. The 

 powerful Cape buffaloes are the only animals 

 which often wage successful battle against 

 this assailant. The lion never attacks the 

 elephant, the rhinoceros, or the hippopotamus ; 

 he knows only too well that the struggle 

 would not always terminate in his favour. 

 Conscious as he is of his strength he never- 

 theless prudently withdraws. 



The lioness gives birth to three or four cubs 

 at a time, and these are born with open eyes, 

 and are of about the size of a small cat with 

 a large head. The mother shows great fond- 

 ness for them, and takes delight in their sports. 



When caught young the lion can easily be 

 tamed, and becomes attached to its keeper; 

 and it easily breeds in captivity. Most of 

 the lions which are exhibited in menageries 

 and zoological gardens have been born within 

 the bars of a cage. Even the ancient 

 Egyptians knew how to tame the lion, as we 

 can see from numerous drawings and sculp- 

 tures on their monuments. The Romans 

 of the Empire used immense numbers of lions 

 for their games in the circus. It is probable 

 that the lion still inhabited the Balkan 

 Peninsula within historical times, but at the 

 present day it is entirely banished from 

 European soil. 



The majestic aspect of the male lion, which 

 is incontestably a type of calm conscious 

 strength, has procured for this animal an 

 undeserved reputation. The lion has been 

 credited with all the attributes of a ruler 

 magnanimous even in his wrath, has been 

 depicted as full of compassion for the weak, 

 grateful for services rendered to him, and 

 indulgent towards an overthrown antagonist. 

 It would be in vain to seek in the accounts 

 of those natives who have become acquainted 

 with the king of beasts in a state of freedom, 

 for traits corresponding to these enthusiastic 

 prepossessions. The lion is a feline and 

 nothing more than a feline, sluggish and not 

 easily moved by day, but by night a mighty 

 beast of prey, employing craft and force 

 alternately, terrible when hungry, indolent 

 when satiated. The captured lion easily 

 resigns himself to his fate. When trained 

 from youth up he even shows less inde- 

 pendence of character than his small ally, 

 the domestic cat. But like the latter he has 

 moments of ill-humour, which he vents not 

 in a few light scratches, but in serious and 

 often fatal wounds. Most lion-tamers can 

 tell us something of that. 



The Tiger {^Felis tigris), which is repre- 

 sented in fig. 74 as he is seen dashing through 

 the forest, is inferior to the lion neither in 

 strength nor size, and surpasses him in 



