72 
THE LION HOUSE AT THE ZOO 
In spite of the deaths of the three tigers, of 
“Duke,” the old lion, and of a jaguar and puma, the 
years 1892 — 1894 have seen an increase in the 
numbers of the inmates of the Lion House greater than 
at any period since the return of the Prince of Wales 
from his Indian visit, and the collection of so many 
fine young animals gives a good idea of the difference 
in “points” and form in creatures of the same species. 
There is as much difference in lions as in horses 
or in dogs of the same breed, and they are by no 
means uniformly noble or impressive to look upon. 
Some are “ down at heel,” some narrow-chested, 
others have Roman noses, a very ugly feature in a 
lion ; some, on the other hand, are all that a lion 
should be. 
By far the finest pair in the Gardens are the lion 
presented to the Queen by the Sultan of Sokoto, and 
the pale lioness bred in the Amsterdam Zoological 
Gardens. Those in the “fancy” say, that if the 
Sokoto lion had a black mane it would be the finest in 
Europe, except that in the Clifton Zoological Gardens. 
Its coat and mane are the colour of red gold-dust, 
its head twice the size of that of the lioness, its eyes 
a clear brown, and its gaze steady and tranquil. Its 
body is compact, its limbs straight, and its attitudes 
unconsciously striking and magnificent. The lioness 
is a very pale fawn, almost cream colour, and the 
damask spots of cub- hood were still visible on her legs 
and feet when she was three years old. In temper 
she is as savage and ferocious as her partner is gentle. 
