MAMMALIA—RHINOCEROS 305 
body ; they are the only hairy parts of it. The end of ine tail is, like that 
of the elephant, furnished with a tuft of large bristles, very hard and very 
solid. Huge and seemingly unwieldy as the rhinoceros is, he has the 
power of running with very great swiftness. 
The rhinoceros which arrived in London in 1739, had been sent from 
Bengal. Although he was young, (being but two years old,) the expens- 
es of his food, and his voyage, amounted to near one thousand pounds 
sterling ; he was fed with rice, sugar, and hay. They gave him daily seven 
pounds of rice, mixed with three pounds of sugar; which they divided into 
three parts. He had, also, a great quantity of hay and green grass, to which 
he gave the preference. His drink was nothing but water, of which he 
drank a great quantity at once. He was of a quiet disposition, and let his 
manager touch him on all the parts of his body. He grew unruly when he 
was struck, or was hungry; and in both cases he could not be appeased 
without giving him something to eat. When he was angry, he leaped 
forward with impetuosity to a great height, beating furiously the walls with 
his head; which he did with a prodigious quickness, notwithstanding his 
heavy appearance. 
This rhinoceros, when he was two years old, was not much higher than 
_ ayoung cow who has not yet borne young; but his body was very long and 
very thick. The tongue of this young rhinoceros was soft, like that of a 
calf; his eyes had no vivacity; they are like those of a hog in form, and 
were placed very low; that is, nearer the opening of the nostrils. 
Mr Parsons says, that he has observed a very particular quality in this 
animal; he hearkened witha sort of continual attention to any noise; so 
that, if he even was sleepy, employed in eating, or in satisfying other urgent 
wants, he started instantly, raised up his head, and gave attention till the 
noise had ceased. 
It is certain that some rhinoceroses have but one horn on the nose, and 
others two. In the two-horned rhinoceros, one of the horns is smaller than 
the other, and is situated above it. When the animal is quiescent these 
horns are loose, but they become fixed when it is irritated. There are single 
horns of three feet and a half, and perhaps of more than four feet in length, 
by six or seven inches in diameter at the base ; there are also double horns 
which are but two feet in length. Commonly, these horns are brown, ot 
olive color; yet some are gray and even white. They have only a small 
concavity, in form of a cup, at their basis, by which they are fastened to the 
skin of the nose; the remaining part of the horn is solid, and very hard. It 
is with this weapon that the rhinoceros is said to attack, and sometimes to 
wound mortally the largest elephants, whose long legs give the rhinoceros 
who has them much shorter, an opportunity of striking them with his horn 
under the belly, where the skin is tender, and more penetrable; but if he 
misses the first blow, the elephant throws him on the ground, and kills him. 
The horn of the rhinoceros is more valued by the Indians, than the ivory 
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