THE LIONESS AND HER CUBS. 15 
and are fondled by their dam in a similar manner to 
that in which the domestic cat caresses her young. 
While they were small enough she carried them from 
place to place in her mouth, and showed the greatest 
solicitude to keep them from the view of strangers; and 
even now that they are grown too large for this mode of 
treatment, she continues to pay the strictest attention to 
the cleanliness of their persons, and licks their fur, as 
they tumble about her, with all the matronly dignity 
and gravity of an accomplished nurse. 
The Cubs have hitherto exhibited very faint traces of 
the striped livery which is generally characteristic of the 
Lion’s whelp; but it is highly probable that when they 
lose their winter coat, this marking may become more 
obvious, although, on account of their advancing age, it 
will never show itself with that distinctness which has 
been observed in other instances. It consists of a blackish 
band, extending along the centre of the back, from the 
head almost to the extremity of the tail, and branching 
off into numerous other bands of the same colour, which 
are parallel to each other, and pass across the upper 
parts of the sides and tail. The very young lion conse- 
quently bears no small resemblance to the tiger; a 
circumstance which it is interesting to remark as one 
which furnishes additional evidence of the close affinity 
of these formidable animals. The colouring of its bands 
is, however, much less intense; and in addition to these 
it possesses on the head and on the limbs numerous 
irregular spots of a darker hue than the rest of the fur, 
which are never found in the neighbouring species. On 
the limbs of the present Cubs these spots and blotches 
are distinctly visible amidst the rough and half shaggy 
coat which covers them, and which is not exchanged for 
