* 



THE CHEETA. 221 



Whether this animal ever produces other than black 

 cubs ought to be well known to many persons, for it is 

 common enough in the Zoological Gardens and menageries 

 of Europe and India; those at Burdwan have had several 

 litters, but none except black cubs, I understand. The dif- 

 ference of structure, organisation, and dentition between 

 this and other varieties and species of pards I leave to the 

 learned pundits of Natural History. 



I have never myself met with a single F. jubata in the 

 wild state, and have never heard of one being killed east 

 of Palamow in Chota Nagpoor. It may occur in the Santhal 

 Pergunnahs, and in the southern and hilly parts of Shah- 

 abad, but this cannot be asserted from my experience ; nor 

 have I ever seen its skin brought in by " Shikarees " in 

 Bengal, Behar, or Orissa. This animal, therefore, can 

 hardly be included among those likely to be encountered 

 by the sportsman in this part of India. In Bengal it is 

 very rarely employed in the chase of antelope or deer, 

 hunting with the " cheeta " being even less followed than 

 hawking by the wealthy natives of Bengal proper, whose 

 sports are more commonly confined to the courts, civil and 

 criminal, fields far more congenial to their tastes and habits ; 

 but in Behar, both pastimes are popular with the higher 

 classes. 



