66 



THE WORLD OF ANIMAL LIFE 



Owing to the cowardice of the hysna, the Arabs entertain 

 a great contempt for the animal, and think that it is beneath 

 the dignity of a man to kill it. When they find a hyasna in 

 its burrow, they fling a handful of wet mud in its face, drag out 

 the bewildered animal before it has recovered from its surprise, 



Spotted or Laughing Hyfena 



bind its limbs, and then give it to the women and children to 

 be stoned to death. Even a spear or gun which has been 

 employed to kill a hysena is considered as defiled and unfit for 

 further use. 



The jackals, as we shall see, act as scavengers in the towns 

 of India and Ceylon, roaming in large bands through the streets 

 by night, and devouring all the offal which has been thrown out 

 from the houses. The hysnas behave in just the same manner in 

 the African villages. But they are more enterprising than the 

 jackals, and the inhabitants are obliged to close their doors at 



