AFRICA. 



819 



quadrupeds. He has the sliape and graces of the horse, the swiftness of ihe stag, and a striped 

 robe of black and white, alternately disposed with so much regularity and symmetry, that it 

 seems as if nature had made use of the rule and compass to paint it. These alternate bands 

 of black and white are so much the more singular, as they are straight, parallel, and very ex- 

 actly divided, like a striped stuff ; and as they, in other parts, extend themselves not only over 

 the body, but over the head, the thighs, the legs, and even the ears and the tail ; so that, at a 

 distance, this animal appears as if it was surrounded with little fillets, which some person had 

 disposed, in a regular manner, over every part of the body. In the females, these bands are 

 alternately black and white ; in the male, they are brown and yellow, but always of a lively and 

 brilliant mixture, upon a short, fine, and thick hair ; the lustre of which, ptill more increases 

 the beauty of the colors. The dow, and the quagga, are distinct species of this genus. 



The -African Elephant (Elephas Jlfricanus) is a distinct species from the Asiatic. The 



elephant is the most sagacious of all animals, 

 and the most easily tamed ; and yet the indo- 

 lent inhabitants of Africa have never converted 

 this noble quadruped to any useful purpose. 

 Herds of elephants are frequently met with in 

 the middle regions of Africa. They are fond 

 of rivers, deep valleys, shady places, and 

 marshy grounds. It cannot subsist long with- 

 out water, with which they often fill their 

 trunks, and sprinkle it about for amusement. 

 They suffer equally from excessive heat or 

 cold, and penetrate the thickest forests, to 

 avoid the burning rays of the sun. Notwith- 

 standing their unwieldy figure and great size, 

 they walk so fast, that the}' can easily overtake 

 a man running. Tb.eir common food is roots, 

 herbs, leaves, and young branches ; they dis- 

 like flesh or fish. As ihey go in large herds, 

 and need a great quantity of fodder, they often 

 change their places, and when they find culti- 

 their bodies being of an enormous weight, they de- 



African Elephant. 



'ated lands, they make prodigious waste 



itroy JO times more with their feet than they consume for their food, which may be reckoned 

 it the rate of 150 pounds of grass daily. These animals are nsore numerous in Africa than in 

 Asia, and they are of a different species, not being so large, and being less \vilil, than the Asi- 

 itic elephant. The latter, also, is distinguished from the African ppecies, by having 5 toes on 

 each foot, instead of 3. 



T^vo species of ilic lico-homrd Rhinoce- 

 ros (R. Jlfricanus and BtirclielU) are found 

 in South Africa. The horn of the female 

 is, however, much longer and more slender 

 than that of the male ; being sometimes 3;^- 

 feet long. Being a strong, ponderous, and 

 elastic substance, it is much prized by the 

 natives, for liandles to their battle-axes. 

 The secondary horn is, in many instances, 

 so small as to be scarcely perceptible at a 

 little distance. The general figure of the 

 Rhinoceros, is that of an enormous hog. 

 His prodigious size and strength, and his 

 destructive horn, seem to point out this ani- 

 mal, as the real unicorn of Scripture. 



The Hippopotamus {H. nmphibivs) is 

 about 6 feet 9 inches long, from the ex- 



Two-honied Rhinoceros. 



long, 



tremlty of the muzzle to the beginning of 



tne tail ; 15 feet in circumference, and 6i feet in height. He swims quicker than he runs, 



