CAT COMMON. 51 



The Californian variety is of a reddish hue, with well- 

 defined black or dark red spots on the belly ; the fur is 

 tolerably thick ; many specimens, especially from the 

 Western or Middle States, are quite light or pale in 

 colour ; those from the South are well spotted on the 

 back, but the fur is very short and harsh. 



Many animals are quite plain like Lynx, others are 

 marked with circular rings like a Leopard, and again 

 others are very beautifully marked on the back and 

 belly with large black spots, which are more oblong on 

 the back. Some skins are almost white, and others of a 

 beautiful light blue colour. 



When attacked by dogs it defends itself with vigour ; 

 and by some authors its flesh is said to be excellent 

 eating, a fact which would not seem probable from its 

 carnivorous habits. 



The skins of Cat Common are not very numerous. 

 Six thousand seven hundred and seven were sold in 

 1891 at prices from 3d. to 4s. 9d. It is a useful fur, 

 and generally used for wrappers in this country; the 

 bulk, however, usually go to Herzegovina, Bulgaria, 

 Turkey, etc. A few are dyed black to imitate Lynx. 



The Hudson's Bay Company rarely import these skins ; 

 a few sometimes come from their Columbian posts. 



THE CANADIAN OR HALIFAX BAY LYNX is a large and 

 woolly variety of the animal just described ; it does not 

 appear to have been previously described, and seems to 

 have escaped notice altogether. 



It is much larger than the usual type of Cat Common ; 

 the fur is longer, richer, and denser, and the colour is 

 of a richer grey-brown ; that of the belly is long and 

 beautifully marked with black spots. 



This large Northern variety is not numerous, a hundred 



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