358 
MAMMALIA. 
In 1825 there were, in the menagerie in the Tower of London, 
two young Lions, a male and female ; they had been obtained 
in India, where they were captured when only a few days old, 
and a Groat had been employed to suckle them during the early 
months of their existence. So docile were they, that they were 
allowed to wander about the courtyard, and visitors caressed and 
played with them with impunity. At a later period, it was 
deemed proper to shut them up, to prevent accidents ; hut this 
more rigorous captivity did not alter the character of the male. 
With regard to the female, she became intractable when suckling 
— a circumstance perfectly explained when we know the violent 
affection this creature displays towards its progeny. 
In menageries, the keepers who look after these ferocious 
beasts perform every day as great feats as the professional trainers, ! 
for they enter the cages, and are received by the occupants with | 
much affection — a truly curious interchange of greetings between 
the Man and beast. 
There is still preserved the remembrance of a deep friendship 
which arose between two Lions, male and female, brought to the 
Jardin des Plantes, in 1799, and a man named Felix, the keeper, 
at that period, of the menagerie. When he became unwell, and 
it was necessary to replace him, the male Lion persistently refused 
to have anything to do with the stranger, and would not even 
allow him to approach the place of confinement. When Felix 
reappeared, the Lion, accompanied by the Lioness, rushed to meet 
him. They roared with pleasure while licking his face and hands, 
and in all their movements demonstrated the greatest joy at seeing 
him once more. 
A Lioness has been exhibited in England which would allow 
her keeper to get upon her hack, and, with a still greater degree : 
of familiarity, drag her about by the tail, or even place his head 
between her teeth. 
The ancients, more adroit or less timid than ourselves, were 
much better skilled in taming ferocious animals. Hanno of 
Carthage employed a Lion to carry a portion of his baggage. 
Mark Antony was often drawn in a chariot to which Lions were 
yoked. The Indian princes of the last century knew the science of 
training Tigers and Lions to hunt for them. Even at the present 
time, the Orientals frequently reduce the Lion to domesticity. 
