FEUS. 
the size of a large greyhound, and of a long 
inake, with narrow chest, and long legs. Jt 
is a native of India, where if is said to he 
•tamed, and used for the chase of antelopes 
and other animals ; being carried into the 
field chained and hooded, and at the proper 
time loosed ; when it is said to steal Along 
the ground at first, concealing itself till it 
gains a proper advantage, and then to dart 
on the animal it pursues with several repeat- 
ed springs. If it happens to miss its prey, it 
returns to the call of its master. 
d- f elts uncia, the ounce, is scarcely infe- 
rior in size to the leopard. Its colour is dull 
white, with a slight yellowish or tawny cast, 
and the whole is scattered over with differ- 
ently-sized spots and markings of black. 
About the head these spots are small, nume- 
rous, and roundish; along the back they 
form a kind of abrupt or irregularly inter- 
rupted stripes, while on the sides and limbs 
they are variously shaped, forming in some 
places angular and in others somewhat round 
■or oval marks, with a central space included, 
and on the legs and tail they are black and 
scattered. In its general form the animal 
seems much allied to the leopard. It seems 
not to have been distinctly described by any 
modern author till the time of BuU' 011 *; In ft 
it is supposed to have been known to the 
nntients, and to have been the smaller pan- 
ther ot Oppian, and the panthera of Pliny. 
It is a native ot several parts of Africa and 
Asia. 
7. I-'eiis onca, the Brasilian tiger, is a na- 
tive of the hotter parts of South America, 
and is c onsidered as a very fierce and de- 
structive animal. Its manners are said to 
resemble those of the tiger, lying in ambush 
for its prey. See Plate Nat. Ilist. fig. 198. 
Jt is about the size of a wolf, or even larger. 
Its ground-colour is a pale brownish-yellow, 
variegated on the upper parts with streaks 
and open oblong spots or markings of black, 
the top ot the back being marked with long 
interrupted stripes, and the sides with rows of 
regular open marks; the thighs and legs are 
.also variegated with black spots, but without 
central spaces ; the breast and belly are whi- 
tish; tiie tail not so long as the body; the 
tipper part marked with large black spots in 
•an irregular manner, the lower with smaller 
•spots. 
8. Felis pardalis, ocelot. The ocelot or 
.partialis is certainly one of the most beautiful 
of the present genus. In size it is almost 
equal to the jaguar. Mr. Pennant describes. 
'I as about four times the size of a large cat. 
i he ground-colour of the male is a bright 
reddish-tawny above, nearly white on the 
lower part o: the sides, breast, limbs, and 
belly. Several large, tong, and variously in-' 
Booted broad stripes, ot a deeper or richer 
tmge than the ground-colour, are disposed 
over the upper parts of the body: these 
stripes are edged with black, and have also 
several differently-shaped black spots in the 
middle part. The head is streaked and 
spotted with black, and the upper as well as 
under parts of the limbs and the belly mark- 
'd in a beautiful manner with small and nu- 
merous round ^spots; the ta3 is patched or 
spotted also. The colours of the female are 
less vivid, and more inclining to ash-colour, 
fins is an extremely ferocious animal, and 
inhabits ihe hotter parts of South America, 
where .it is said to commit great ravages 
among cattle, & c. It is also said to be un- 
taineable m a state of captivity. See Plate 
Nat. Hist. fig. 203. 
9. belts puma. The puma is the largest 
of the American beasts ot prey, measuring live 
teetor more from nose to tail, the tail' itself 
tibout two feet eight inches. It is a iong- 
bodied animal, and stands high on its legs. 
Its colour is a pale brownish-red, with a slight 
dusky cast on some parts; the chin is white; 
the breast and belly ash-coloured; and the 
insides ol the legs are ot the same colour ; the 
. l!l ot a dusky-ferruginous tinge, With a black 
bp- It is a native of many parts of America, 
noth north and south, occurring from Canada 
to Brasil. The puma is an animal of great 
strength and fierceness, preying on cattle, 
deer, &c. Sometimes it is said to climb 
tree-,, and watch the opportunity of springing 
oil such animals as happen to pass beneath,. 
10. r elis discolor, black tiger. This, like 
the former species, is a native of America, 
and is considered as a very destructive and 
feiocious animal. It is about the size of a 
large dog, and is entirely of a deep brown- 
ish-black colour on the upper parts, and 
pale-grey or whitish beneath; the upper lip 
and the paws are also whitish; the tail is of 
the same colour with the body. See Plate 
Nat. Ilist. fig. 205. 
H. Felis tigrina, margay. The margay is 
a native of South America, and is about the 
size of a common cat. The ground-colour is 
a bright tawny ; the face striped downwards 
with black ; the shoulders and body marked 
both with stripes and large oblong black 
spots; on the legs the spots are small; the 
breast, belly, and insides of the limbs, are 
whitish ; the tail is long, and marked with 
black, grey, and fulvous. It resides princi- 
pally on trees, preying on birds: it is said to 
breed in the hollows of trees, and to bring 
but two young at a birth, it is very fierce 
and untamable. 
12. Felis capensis, the Cape cat, inhabits 
the neighbourhood of the Cape of Good 
Hope, and is described in the Philosophical 
1 ransactions, vol. 71, by Dr. Forster. In its 
manncis it seems extremely to resemble the 
common cat, frequenting trees, and preying 
on the smaller animals. The specimen de- 
scribed by Dr. Forster was not more than 
nine months old, and had been taken quite 
y oti !ig. It was perfectly tame and gentle, 
and had all the actions and manners ot a do- 
mestic cat. Dr. Forster imagines it to be 
the same species with the Tinussi described 
by Fa bat, who calls it a sort of wild cat of the 
size ot a dog, with a coat striped and varied 
like that ot a tiger. The length of a skin 
measured by Mr. Pennant was near three 
feet from nose to.tail ; hut Dr. Forster’s spe- 
cimen seems to have been much smaller. 
U. felis mainil. This species inhabits 
. e imt "Jle part of northern Asia, and was 
lirst described by Dr. .Pallas. It is of the size 
ot a fox, and is of a strong and robust make. 
Its colour is tawny, but the crow n of the head 
is speckled with black, .and the cheeks are 
marked by two dusky .lines running obliquely 
from' the .eyes; the leeUire striped obscurely 
with dark. hues; the tail is .longer thah that of 
a domestic* <cut, <md is ‘thickly besot with hair, 
and encircled with ten black rings, of which 
the three next to the tip are placed so near 
as almost to touch each other. 
14. Felis catus. The cut, in a state of 
natural wildness, and from which are sup 
posed to have proceeded all the varieties o 
the domestic cat, is a native ot the northern 
regions of Europe and Asia, In this its natu- 
ral slate it differs in some slight particulars 
from the domestic animal, having a somewhat 
shorter tail in proportion, a hatter and larger 
head, and stronger limbs ; and, from an ex- 
act anatomical inspection of its interior parts 
it appears that the intestines are somewhat 
shorter than those of the domestic cat. The 
colour of the wild cat is commonly a pale 
yellowish-grey, with dusky stripes and varie- 
gations, those on the back running length- 
wise, those on the sides transversely and with 
a curved direction: the tail is anuulated with 
several alternate circles of blackish-brown 
and dull white ; the tip of the nose and the 
lips are black. Even wild cats, however, 
appear to differ in their shades of colour in 
different parts of Europe. Mr. Schreber, in 
his plate of quadrupeds, figures a specimen 
ot a pretty deep tawny colour, varied with 
black or deep-brown streaks, so that the ani- 
mal has very much the appearance of a tiger 
in miniature; while on another plate lie has 
exhibited one, communicated by Dr. Pallas, 
of a pale grey with black or dark-brown va- 
riegations. 
The manners of the wild cat resemble 
those of the lynx, and several others of this 
genus, living in woods, and preying on young 
hares, on birds, anti a variety of other ani- 
mals, which it seizes by surprise. It breeds 
in the hollows ot trees, and produces about 
four at a birth. “ The wild cat (says Mr. 
I ennant) may be called the British tiger: it- 
is the fiercest* and most destructive beast we 
have ; making dreadful havoc among our 
poultry, lambs, and kids. It inhabits the 
most mountainous and woody parts of these 
islands, living mostly in trees, and feeding 
only by night. It multiplies as fast as our 
common cats ; and often the females of the 
latter will quit their domestic mates, and re- 
turn home pregnant by the former.” 
r l he varieties of this animal, in a domestic 
state, are very numerous: it is either entire- 
ly black; black and white; black, fulvous, 
and white (called the tortoise-shell or Spa- 
nish cat) ; white without any variegation ; 
fulvous and white; dun-colour or tawny, 
either plain or with deeper stripes ; tabby, dr 
of a similar colour to the wild cat, but with 
much bolder or more vivid variegations; 
slate-coloured or blue grey (called the Char- 
treu.x cat) ; slate-coloured with very long 
fur, especially on the neck and tail (the Per- 
sian cat); white with hair of a similar length 
(called the Angora cat) ; or, lastly, with 
penciled or tufted ears, like a lvns, which 
sometimes, though rarely, takes place. Of 
all the above varieties, the Persian and the 
Angora are the most remarkable: the latter 
variety has one eye blue, the other yellow ; 
a particularity which takes place in some spe- 
cimens of the common white cat. It is aiso 
observable, that the w hite variety of the cat 
is sometimes perfectly deaf. 
Ihe cat, when well educated, possesses 
qualities w hich will entitle her to the regard 
and protec tion of mankind ; and if she does 
not exhibit the vivid and animated attach- 
ment of the dog, she is still of an affectionate 
and gentle disposition, and grateful to her 
benefactors. 
A singular instance of attachment in the 
