92 WILD ANIMALS. 



very favourable for the creature when in his wild state to approach 

 his victim without being seen, " he makes a circuit to a place where 

 he thinks they will pass over, and if there is not grass enough 

 to cover him, he scrapes up the earth all around and lies flat while 

 they approach so near that by a few bounds he can seize on his 

 prey." 



In the " Magazin Pittoresque " for 1842 there is an illustration 

 of a cheetah being used by an Arab, mounted on a dromedary, 

 which is engraved from a sketch taken from life by M. de Chacaton, 

 who had just returned from travelling through Asia Minor, and 

 visiting Cairo and Alexandria. A copy of this picture is inserted 

 on the opposite page. The accompanying letterpress remarks that 

 gazelles were frequently seen in the desert in great numbers, and 

 did not appear to be frightened by the passing caravans, to which 

 they had apparently become accustomed, unless any movement 

 was made in their direction, or they were alarmed by some unusual 

 noise. The Arabs employed several methods of killing them; 

 shooting under cover of holes, dug on purpose, was frequently 

 adopted, but the one most to their taste, because it is accompanied 

 by more action, excitement, and noise, which they like, was hunt- 

 ing them with cheetahs. For this purpose they keep animals 

 trained on purpose, which are generally the smaller-sized species, 

 as they are easier handled and lighter to carry. The hunter is 

 sometimes mounted on horseback, but more frequently on a fleet 

 dromedary, the cheetah being held in front, as seen in the 

 engraving, until it catches sight of the gazelles, when the animal 

 is dispatched on its mission, which it seldom fails to accomplish. 



An Englishman, who had been the guest of an Indian Rajah 

 who owned a number of trained cheetahs, described hunting with 

 the animals as very poor sport. From the point of view of a 

 hunter who wishes to do his own killing, and takes delight in 

 muscular exertion, it can easily be imagined that this would be 

 a natural verdict ; but for natives, imbued with different ideas of 

 pleasure, it is full of excitement, or" it would not have continued 

 as a popular amusement for so many centuries. The careful 

 manoeuvring required to lessen the distance between the hunters 

 and the antelopes, without alarming them, then the loosening of 



