THE CANADA LYNX. 49 
character, and his wonderful intellectual powers, are spoken of, as truly 
they deserve, with great enthusiasm and respect. Rat these amiable traits 
of character are brought into violent contrast with sundry ill-conditioned 
qualities which are attributed to the Cat, and wrongly so. The Cat 1s hell 
up to reprobation as a selfish animal, seeking her own comfort and dis- 
regardful of others ; attached only to localities, and bearing no real affection 
for her owners. She is said to be sly and treacherous, hiding her talons in 
her velvety paws as long as she is in a good temper, but ready to use them 
upon her best friends if she is crossed in her humours. 
Whatever may have been the experience of those who gave so slanderous 
a character to the Cat, my own rather wide acquaintance with this animal 
has led me to very different conclusions. ‘The Cats with which I have been 
most familiar have been as docile, tractable, and good-tempered as any dog 
could be, and displayed an amount of intellectual power which would be 
equalled by very few dogs, and surpassed by none. 
RETURNING once more to the savage tribe of animals, we come to a small, 
but clearly-marked group of Cats, which are distinguishable from their f-line 
relations by the sharply-pointed erect ears, decorated with a tuft of hair of 
varying dirnensions. These animals are popularly known by the title of 
LynxeEs. In all the species the tail is rather short, and in some, such as the 
Peeshoo, or Canada Lynx, it is extremely abbreviated. 
By name, if not by sight, the common LyNxX of Europe is familiar to us, 
and is known as the type of a quick-sighted animal. The eyes of the Lynx 
and the ears of the “ Blind Mole” are generally placed on a par with each 
other, as examples of especial acuteness of either sense. 
The European Lynx is spread over a great portion of the Continent, being 
found in a range of country which extends from the Pyrenees to Scandinavia. 
It is also found in the more northern forests of Asia. 
The usual colour of the Lynx is a rather dark grey, washed with red, on 
which are placed sundry dark patches, large and few upon the body, and 
many and small on the limbs. On the body the spots assume an oblong or 
oval shape, but upon the limbs they are nearly circular. The tail of the 
Lynx is short, being at the most only seven or eight inches in length, and 
sometimes extending only six inches. The length of the body and head is 
about three feet. 
The fur of the Lynx is valuable for 
the purposes to which the feline skin 
is usually destined, and commands a 
fair price in the market. Those who 
hunt the Lynx for the purpose of 
obtaining its fur, choose the winter 
months for the time of their opera- 
tions, as during the cold season the 
Lynx possesses a richer and a warm- 
er fur than is found upon it during 
the warm summer months. 
The New World possesses its ex- 
amples of the Lyncine group as well 
as the Old World, and even in the (ale S 
cold regions of North America are-  canapa tynx.—(Lyncus Canadensis.) 
presentative of these animals may be 
found. This is the CANADA LyNx, commonly termed the “Peeshoo” by 
the French colonists, or even dignified with the title of Ze Chaz. 
The hair of this animal is longer than that of its southern relatives, ana 15 
generally of a dark grey, flecked or besprinkled with black. 
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