18 THE TOWER MENAGERIE. 
darker colour, and the less extensive mane of the African. 
It remains, however, to be mentioned that, even in this 
latter race, there are two varieties, which have been long 
known to the settlers under the names of the Pale and~ 
the Black Lion, distinguished, as their appellations imply, 
by the lighter or darker colour of their coats, and more 
particularly of their manes. This variation, there can 
be little doubt, is entirely produced by the different 
character of the districts which they inhabit, and of the 
food which they are enabled to procure. The black 
Lion, as he is termed, is the larger and the more ferocious 
of the two, more frequently attacking man himself, if 
less noble prey should fail him; and sometimes mea- 
suring the enormous distance of eight feet from the tip 
of the nose to the origin of the tail, which is generally 
about half the length of the body. He is, however, of 
less frequent occurrence than the pale variety. 
It is in the night-time more particularly that the Lion 
prowls abroad in search of his prey, the conformation of 
his eyes not only, like those of the cat, allowing him to 
see with a very moderate degree of light, but even ren- 
dering the full glare of day distressing and intolerable 
to him. It is for this reason that travellers, who are 
compelled to sleep in the open air in countries infested 
by these animals, are careful to keep up a blazing fire, 
which the tenderness of their eyes deters them from 
approaching, unless when they are extremely hard 
pressed by the calls of hunger. These, it would appear, 
sometimes become paramount to every other considera- 
tion, and urge the Lion, as they do many more ignoble 
beasts, into the exhibition of a degree of courage, which, 
