lUGHES'S

NECDOTAL . ATURAL ISTORY

WM. C. G. LUDFORD,

Hill,

BUTTON COLDFIELD.

X

HUGHES'S

ILLUSTRATED

pitotorjj*

THE REV. J. G. WOOD, M.A., F.L.S.,

Author of "Homes Without Hands" &c., &c.

AND

THEODORE WOOD, M.E.S.,

Joint author of " The Field Naturalist's Note-Book.

HouHon :
JOSEPH HUGHES, PILGRIM STREET,

LUDGATE HILL, E.G.

1882.

CONTENTS.

I. THE SQUIRREL TRIBE j

II. THE CAMEL 1 8

III. BATS 30

IV. THE .MOLE 43

V. THE CAT TRIBE 56

VI. THE CAT TRIBE. PART II. ... 69

VII. THE CAT TRIBE. PART III 83

VIII. THE DOG TRIBE 93

IX. THE CETACEA, OR WHALES . . . .HO

X. THE SEAL TRIBE*. 124

XI. THE ELEPHANT 139

XII. THE RHINOCEROS, HVRAX, AND HIPPOPOTA-
MUS 150

XIII. ELEPHANTIANA 163

2090972

ANECDOTAL NATURAL HISTORY.

No. I.— THE SQUIRREL TRIBE.

ALMOST everybody is familiar with the common
squirrel (Sciitn/s Europeans), that reddish-brown
animal with the bushy tail which is so plentiful in nearly
all our woods and forests, where it sometimes works
considerable mischief. And even those people who
have never been fortunate enough to see it in its
native haunts, springing from tree to tree, and gam-
bolling merrily among the branches, must have noticed
the unfortunate specimens exhibited for sale by the
itinerant hawkers who pervade the streets of the
metropolis and other large towns.

Besides the British species there are many other
squirrels found in different parts of the world, Aus-
tralia being the only continent where none are known
to exist.

Particular attention is drawn to this point, because in
nearly all travellers' accounts of Australia we read of
the flying squirrel among the quadrupeds inhabiting
that land. In fact, however, the so-called squirrels
are not squirrels, nor even rodents, but are Mar-
supials, belonging to the great group of Phalangists.

The mistake arises from the natural errors made
by travellers and colonists, who name every creature
they see after the inhabitants of their own country.
o

6 A necdotal Natural History.

Our Australian colonists talk and write with mar-
vellous composure of wolves, bears, monkeys, bats,
cats, squirrels, rats, and mice as inhabiting the country.
Similarly, American writers sadly bewilder the tyro in
zoology by mentioning American buffaloes, lions,
tigers, and panthers, all these creatures being strictly
confined to the old world. The ' Robin ' again, so
often mentioned in American literature, is not our
English redbreast, as is usually assumed, but an
erroneous name for the migratory thrush, a bird far
larger than the redbreast and belonging to a totally
different group.

The squirrels belong to the great division of the
rodents, which comprise nearly a third of all the known
mammalia. The animals of this group are distin-
guished by the possession of two powerful chisel-edged
incisor teeth in each jaw, formed for cutting or
gnawing away hard substances, and which are replaced
by fresh material as fast as they are worn away. The
power of these incisor teeth is strikingly exemplified
in the beaver, which has been known to gnaw its
way through logs no less than eighteen inches in
diameter.

Were there not some means of replacing these
teeth as quickly as they are worn down, the death of
the animals would speedily follow, as they would
shortly starve from their inability to procure food.
In order to avoid this, the teeth are continually forced
forward from the jaw by the formation of fresh sub-
stance at the base, which is secreted by a pulpy sub-
stance at the root of the tooth. Now, as this growth
takes place whether the teeth are used or not, it
follows that, unless they were in constant use, they
would soon increase to an inordinate length, and
before very long would project from the mouth. Such
an event does occasionally occur, when by some

The Squirrel Tribe. 7

accident one of the incisor teeth has been broken
short off. The corresponding tooth in the other jaw,
finding no resistance to its growth, continues to in-
crease until it sometimes forms a perfect circle outside
the mouth, usually resulting in the death of its owner
by preventing it from feeding.

Without some means, however, of preserving the
chisel-like sharpness of these teeth, the mere replace-
ment of wasted substance would be of little use. In
order to obtain the desired result, the teeth are con-
structed after a very singular fashion.

The body of the tooth is composed of pure ivory,
coated on the outer surface with a thin layer of
enamel, which being of a very much harder nature,
is not worn away with the same rapidity. Besides
this, the ivory nearest the enamel is harder than the
rest, and the softer parts being easiest worn down, the
edge of the tooth always keeps the same proportions,
the actual cuttiug being performed with the edge of
the enamel.

Our carpenter's chisels are constructed on exactly
the same principle, the chief portion of them being
composed of soft iron, while a very thin plate of steel
is laid along the back and forms the cutting edge of
the tool.

So much for the characteristics of the rodents as a
whole. Now for those of that group which are
known as squirrels.

The true squirrels are scientifically known as Sciu-
ridce, or shadow-tails, a title derived from two Greek
words, the former signifying a shade and the latter a
tail. This refers to the habit in these animals of
carrying the tail over the back, as though to protect
the body from the rays of the sun, a position always
adopted except when running or leaping. They are
remarkable among the rodents as possessing particu-

8 Anecdotal Natural History.

larly perfect clavicles or collar-bones, which enable
them to use the fore-paws to a certain extent after the
manner of hands. This is especially the case in carry-
ing food to the mouth, when the paws are managed
with extraordinary dexterity. In eating a nut, for ex-
ample, a squirrel, by the aid of its fore-paws and teeth
alone, will break the shell and peel the kernel to the
full as successfully as a skilful human being furnished
with crackers and penknife. And it does so as
follows. Holding the nut close to the teeth, it gnaws
away at the point of the fruit until it fairly pierces the
outer shell. It then dexterously inserts the edge of
the upper teeth into the aperture, and splits away the
shell just as an idle boy does with his knife when
opening nuts in school hours. By means of its hand-
like paws, it then holds the kernel against its upper
teeth, and rapidly turning it round and round, strips
off the whole of the peel before beginning to devour
it.

With the exception of the jaws and the adjacent
parts of the head, the skeleton is exceedingly light
and slender in order to suit it to the rapid movements
of the animal.

To furnish the squirrels with the means of ascending
the trees in which they spend the greater portion of
their existence, the long toes are provided with sharp,
curved claws, which can be inserted into the smallest
crevices of the bark, and thus secure a firm foothold.

The rapidity and ease of their aerial motions is
something astounding. A squirrel will gallop up a
perpendicular tree trunk fully as fast as a cat can run
on level ground, and will throw itself from branch to
branch with the most perfect recklessness. And even
if it misses its mark, it simply extends its limbs and
allows itself to fall to the ground from most alarming
heights, never seeming to be in the least damaged by its

Squirrel's Summer Nest.

IO Anecdotal Natural History.

rapid descent. One would imagine that the creature
must infallibly be dashed to pieces, but, almost before
one can look round, the squirrel is off to the nearest
tree trunk, where it is quickly lost to sight amongst
the foliage.

As a refuge both by day and night, and also as a
place wherein to rear their young, the squirrels always
construct a large and comfortable nest, generally in
the fork of some lofty branch, and always carefully
concealed from sight. The materials are chiefly
leaves, grass, and moss, woven together in a most beau-
tiful manner, and forming a perfect protection against
the rain. The old nests may sometimes be seen in
winter when they are no longer surrounded by foliage,
and stand out boldly among the naked boughs.

In these nests the young, three or four at a litter,
are brought up, and remain until they are old enough
to shift for themselves.

At the approach of winter the squirrels, not being
able to find their food during the cold months, lay up
stores for use during that period. Their provisions
consist generally of nuts of various sorts, grain, beech-
mast, and so on, and are hidden away as a rule in
holes at the roots of trees in the neighbourhood of
their winter habitation. It is a somewhat curious fact
that the squirrel never includes a bad nut in these
hoards.

This winter retreat is also a nest of much the
same character as the former, but hidden away in
holes in trees, the junctions of large branches
with the trunk, and similar localities. As soon
as the cold weather fairly arrives, the squirrels,
having previously laid up their winter stores, repair
to this hiding-place, and there pass the time until
spring, when they again return to their summer
haunts. For the greater portion of the interven-

Squirrel's Winter Nest

12 A necdotal Natural History.

ing period they lie in a state of complete uncon-
sciousness, something more than sleep and less than
death, and which can be only partially described by
the word ' trance.' This state is not, as is generally
imagined, produced by intense cold ; lor should the
temperature fall below 32° Fahrenheit, or 'freezing-
point,' a hibernating animal is first awakened and
then killed by the frost. Those animals, therefore,
which pass the winter in a state of unconsciousness,
always select a retreat where they are sheltered from
the direct action of the elements, and where the
temperature is only slightly varied.

While in the hibernating condition respiration en-
tirely ceases, and the animal could be kept for hours
under water, or in a vessel of carbonic acid gas,
without the slightest effect. The circulation of the
blood is greatly retarded, and digestion, at any rate
in those animals which spend the whole winter in
unconsciousness, is wholly at a standstill.

The squirrel, however, is only a partial hibernator,
and is obliged to leave its hiding-place three or four
times during the winter months in search ol food. For
this purpose it always selects a milder day than usual,
and on such occasions may be seen repairing to its
stores for a meal before again proceeding to its place
of refuge. These hoards seem always to be more
than sufficient for its wants, and the remainder of the
provender is left to its fate. Sometimes the nuts, etc.,
take root, and the squirrel is often the cause of trees
springing up in unexpected places.

In the far north the cold of the winter has a very
marked effect upon the fur of these animals, which
from a rich brownish red becomes of a pale grey hue.
And even in our own climate there is a perceptible
change in the colour of the fur at different periods of
the year.

The Squirrel Tribe. 13

It is not generally known that squirrels can use
their paws as paddles, and by their aid swim to con-
siderable distances.

In some parts of the eastern coasts of Scotland,
where innumerable armlets of the sea run many miles
inland, the squirrels are in the habit of swimming
across from shore to shore, and making rapid progress
through the water. A friend was an eye-witness of
this habit. Being in a boat, he came upon the little
creature as it was swimming, and took it into the boat.

As it was tired with its journey, it allowed itself to
be caught without any difficulty. But as soon as it
felt itself rested, it sprang back into the water and
swam steadily to land

Leaving this country for America, we find there are
many kinds of squirrels found in that country, several
of which are very interesting. For example, there is
the Grey Squirrel (Sciurus dnereus) of North America,
which is extremely abundant, and often works very
great damage to the growing crops. In Pennsylvania,
more than a century ago, these animals were found to
be so very destructive that a Government reward of
threepence per head was offered for all that were
killed. In a single year, a sum of no less than ^£8000
was expended in redeeming this promise, which gives
a grand total of 640,000 squirrels destroyed.

Now, although these animals wrought such terrible
mischief to the agriculturist, and by their numbers
and perseverance ruined the result of his labours, in
their native forests they were in their proper situation,
doing the work for which they were sent into the
world. But as soon as man arrived upon the scene,
cleared away the jungle, and laid out the ground for
cultivation, he upset the balance of nature : the
squirrels were no longer required, and became a
plague instead of a benefit, making it necessary to

14 Anecdotal Natural History.

thin their number. Even our own squirrel is oc-
casionally the cause of much damage, especially in
young plantations, where it has a habit of nibbling
off the topmost shoots, and so stopping the growth of
the tree. Nor does it confine its depredations to
vegetable life, for it is by no means uncommon to
find a bird's nest ransacked by the animal, and the
eggs or young ones devoured, as the case may be. It
is probable that the squirrel is the real delinquent in
many a case of nest-robbing when the blame falls on
the shoulders of thoughtless schoolboys.

It occasionally happens with the grey squirrels, that,
having pretty thoroughly devastated a neighbourhood,
and finding winter approaching, they are unable to
lay up a sufficient stock of food on which to subsist
until the spring. Knowing instinctively that if they
remain in their present locality they must inevitably
die of starvation, they migrate in vast numbers, after
the fashion of the lemming in Northern Europe,
allowing nothing to check their course, climbing over
instead of avoiding any obstacle, such as a wall or
house, and leaving nothing eatable behind them.
Every blade of grass and every green thing dis-
appears, and the transit of one of these hosts leaves
the country in much the same condition as if a swarm
of locusts had passed over it.

Then there is the Black Squirrel (Sciurus niger),
which, though not nearly so numerous as the preced-
ing species, is still far from uncommon. It is a
curious circumstance that the black and the grey
squirrels seem unable to live in company, and as soon
as the latter animal shows itself, the former dis-
appears. As its name implies, this animal is of a
uniform black hue, and from the fineness of the fur,
is much sought after for the sake of the skin.

There is a somewhat strange-looking squirrel in-

The Squirrel Tribe. 15

habiting Borneo, and which is popularly known as
the Long-eared Squirrel (Sdiin/s macrotis). It is thus
named on account of the singularly long fringe of hair
with which the ears are decorated, which is of a dark
brown colour, and pretty well two inches in length.
The tail also is remarkably bushy.

Besides all these, there are some animals, none of
them inhabiting this country, however, which are
generally known as 'flying' squirrels on account of
a singular modification of structure. This is found in
the skin of the flanks, which is developed to a large
extent, almost hiding the paws in its folds when the
creature is at rest. When in motion, however, and
particularly during the tremendous leaps which these
animals make from branch to branch, the legs are
stretched out as far as possible, the loose skin acts
as a parachute, and the squirrel is enabled to pass
through a much greater distance than would otherwise
have been possible.

The petaurists of Australia possess a similar de-
velopment of the skin, and use it for a similar purpose.

One of the best known of the flying squirrels is the
Taguan (Pteromys petaurista) of India, which is of a
brownish colour, varying from deep chestnut along
the back to a greyish white on the under surface of
the body. The tail is long and bushy, and very much
darker in colour. The whole length of the animal is
nearly three feet.

Leaving the true squirrels, we come to a very
closely allied group of rodents, the members of which,
however, construct their habitations beneath the earth
instead of among the branches of trees, and but rarely
leave the ground. These are called ground squirrels,
and are furnished with cheek-pouches, which the true
squirrels do not possess. The object of these we
shall presently see.

1 6 A necdotal Na tit, nil History.

The Hackee, Chipping Squirrel, or Chipmuck, as
it is indifferently termed (Tamias Lysteii*), of North
America is one of the most widely known of these
quadrupeds. It is a very pretty little creature, rather
less than a foot in total length, of a brownish-grey hue,
with five black and two yellow stripes running longi-
tudinally along the back. The under surface is of a
fine white.

The hackee is very abundant over a great portion
of North America, and may be seen almost everywhere
dashing in and out of the underwood with a rapidity
which has caused its movements to be compared to
those of the wren.

By way of habitation, and also as a refuge from
its numerous foes, it constructs rather complicated
burrows below the surface of the earth. For this
purpose it generally selects some protected situation,
such as the roots of a large tree, the side of a bank,
or the foot of a hedge. A winding tunnel, usually of
considerable length, leads to the dwelling chamber,
or nest, where the young are brought up, and from
this run galleries leading to other chambers which
are used for storehouses. In these a most astonish-
ing quantity of food is laid up. In a single nest, we
are told, were found no less than a peck of acorns, two
quarts of buckwheat, a quart of beaked nuts, some
grass seeds, and a quantity of maize, with which the
interstices were filled up.

It seems almost incredible that so small an animal
as the hackee can lay up so large a quantity of food,
but such is the case, and it is in carrying the pro-
visions to the burrow that the use of the cheek pouches
is found. It can, of course, carry only a small
quantity at a time. Four beaked nuts, for example,
constitute the load for a single journey, three being
packed into the pouches, and the fourth carried

The Squirrel Tribe. I/

between the teeth. In order to prevent the nut from
hurting its mouth, the hackee invariably bites off the
sharp beik of the fruit before consigning it to the
pouches.

When thus loaded, the animal presents a very
curious appearance, bearing a ludicrous resemblance
to a human being suffering from a very bad attack of
mumps.

The well-supplied condition of the hackee's lardei
is widely known, and in times of scarcity the natives
repair to the burrows, and, digging out the contents,
find the materials for a hearty meal.

When pursued by one of its numerous enemies, the
chipping squirrel always takes refuge in its burrow,
trusting in the inability of its pursuer to follow it
down the complicated windings of its narrow tunnel.
There is one foe, however, to whom this is no
obstacle, and which follows the hackee to the very
end of the burrow, there making a meal of the
unfortunate owner. This enemy is found in the
stoat, which sometimes kills the whole of the occupants
of a burrow merely for the gratification of sucking
their blood.

All three of the popular names are applied to this
animal on account of the curious cry, which somewhat
resembles the clucking of newly-hatched chickens.
The scientific title, Tamtas, is a Greek word, signify-
ing a storekeeper, the application of which is at once
apparent.

No. IT.— THE CAMEL.

^^HE ;:iace ot the horse is supplied, and more
than supplied, in the East by the Camel, the
' Ship of ihe Desert,' as the Arabs poetically term it,
whose structure is singularly adapted to the nature of
the country which it has to traverse. A horse could
not pass through the sandy deserts, beneath the fierce
heat of a tropical sun, bearing the heavy load of the
camel, and dispensing almost entirely with food and
water, especially the latter, for days together ; and
would, in fact, find it by no means easy, even if en-
tirely unencumbered, to make its way through the
treacherous soil, in which it would sink for several
inches at every step. But the camel has evidently
been constructed with an especial view to the exi-
gencies of the desert traffic, and can therefore perform
work which would be quite impossible to any other
animal.

There are two species of camel, the chief of which
is the true camel of Arabia, bearing one hump only
upon its back. This is the animal most in use as a
beast of burden. The second species, the Bactrian
camel, or Mecheri, which possesses a second hump,
is almost entirely used for riding purposes.

Now, when we consider the nature of the soil over
which the Arabian camel has to pass, it is evident
that there must be some provision in the foot of the
creature in order to enable it to find a firm foothold.
So, instead of the single hard hoof which is found in
the horse, the foot of the camel is provided with two

The Camel. 19

broad toes, furnished with large, soft, and very elastic
cushions beneath, so as to afford a large surface,
and prevent the animal from sinking in the loose
sand.

Then, as the animal must be loaded and un-
loaded when in a kneeling position, the knees and
breast are furnished with thick callous pads, so that
the skin is not injured by the contact with the rough
ground.

A curious part of the structure of the camel is found
in the hump, which is not, as many think, a malforma-
tion of the back, for the spine is as straight as that
of any other animal, but is merely a fleshy and fatty
protuberance, connected in some strange way with
the health of its owner. The Arab always judges the
state of his camel by the hump, and will not allow
the animal to start upon a long journey unless the
hump is in perfect condition.

The chief use of the hump seems to lie in its power
of nourishing the animal when other food is scarce.
During a long desert journey, for example, the camels
are very sparingly fed, and appear to subsist upon the
nourishment derived from the hump, which gradually
diminishes in size, until at the end of the journey it
is scarcely visible, not regaining its former propor-
tions until after two or three months of careful
feeding.

In a somewhat similar manner, the hibernating
animals exist without food for several months. They
accumulate a quantity of fat largely in excess of the
normal amount, and by the absorbing of the super-
abundant fat into the body, are enabled to supply the
waste of tissue.

Another noticeable point in the structure of the
camel is to be found in the formation of the eyes and
nostrils, the former of which are provided with long

20

Anecdotal Natural History.

lashes, while the latter can be closed at will, thus pre-
venting the admission of grains of sand during the
storms so common in the desert.

Perhaps the most extraordinary part of the forma-
tion of the camel lies in its power of storing up

The Came i. 2 :

sufficient water within the stomach to last it for several
days without again drinking. To understand this
properly, we must enter somewhat more carefully into
the details of the internal anatomy.

Like that of the sheep and other ruminating
animals, the stomach of the camel is divided into no
less than four portions, which, though each is a sepa-
rate cavity, are connected with each other. Into the
first and largest of these, usually known as the paunch,
or rumen, the food passes as soon as swallowed, and
before it is masticated. There it remains until a
convenient opportunity arises for chewing it, when it
is returned to the mouth and thoroughly macerated.
Before this process takes place, however, it passes into
the second stomach or reticulum, which consists of a
number of polygonal cells, in which the food is formed
into a number of smooth balls. This is the 'honey-
comb tripe ' of butchers. Thence it is expelled into
the oesophagus, or gullet, which opens both into the
first and second stomachs, and is carried by the
contraction of the spiral muscles composing that tube
into the mouth, where it is masticated at leisure.

As soon as it is thoroughly chewed, the food is
once more swallowed, and this time passes directly
through the first and second stomachs into the third,
or psa/terium, the walls of which are composed of
very numerous folds, not unlike the leaves of an
uncut book. This is the ' manyplies ' or ' manyplus '
tripe of butchers, presenting a very large surface to
the food which is here prepared for admission to the
fourth stomach.

This, which is scientifically known by the name of
abomasiis, and by butchers called the ' red/ is the
true digestive stomach, the other three being only
employed in the prior preparation of the food. In
this division of the stomach the gastric juice is

22

Anecdotal Natural History.

secreted. In the calf it is called ' rennet,' and is used
for curdling milk in the preparation of cheese.

While the animals of this class, the Ruminants, are
still young, and are fed by their mother's milk, the fourth
stomach only is fully developed, the other three not

Arabian Camel.

being required until the animal is old enough to find
its nourishment in vegetable substances.

This structure is common to all the ruminating
animals, but in the camel there is found to be a still
further development. The polygonal cells which are

The Camel. 23

found in the reticulum, and in part of the paunch, are
very large in proportion, and are surrounded by
muscular bands, enabling them to be closed at will,
their contents not mingling with the food contained
in the stomach. In these cells is reserved the water
drunk by the animal, a small quantity of which can
be released and allowed to flow into the stomach as
occasion requires, the rest remaining in the reservoirs
until needed. By this arrangement a camel is able
to store up sufficient liquid for five or six days, a
provision of the greatest service in crossing the hot
arid desert where water is unprocurable.

It would seem that by practice the camel is enabled
to store away a larger quantity of water than had
previously been the case, for an old and experienced
animal will contrive to lay up half as large again a
stock as it could when young and unused to desert
travelling.

It has sometimes happened in a caravan that the
water has run short, and the only alternative has been
to kill some of the camels in order to obtain the
water contained in their stomachs. It is then found
to be of a pale greenish colour, and very unpleasant
to the taste. Yet it is preferable to dying of thirst, and
is really hardly more disagreeable than the water
contained in the leathern bags carried on the camel's
backs, which is heated by the sun, besides tasting
very strongly of the tar with which the seams are
dressed.

This structure presents a singular analogy to the
blood-reservoir of the whale, by which it is enabled
to spend a considerable time beneath the surface of
the water. A large supply of blood being purified
and aerated in the lungs, is stored away in a mass of
blood-vessels set apart for that purpose, whence a
portion is introduced into the circulatory apparatus

24 Anecdotal Natural History.

as it is from time to time required. But for thia
provision the whale could never spend more than two
or three minutes together beneath the surface of the
water, the air or aerated blood being quite as necessary
to its existence as the water is to that of the camel.

Of the two species of camel, the Arabian is by far
the more valuable, being both stronger and more en-
during of privation and fatigue than its Bactrian
relative. The load of the Arabian camel is usually
from five to six hundred pounds in weight, this being
the average amount that the creature can carry with
ease. It is by no means a swift creature, its pace
seldom exceeding two miles and a half in the hour,
and often not coming up to even that standard. There
is a swifter breed, usually known as the Dromedary,
which is chiefly kept for the saddle, and which can
keep up a pace of eight or nine miles per hour for
twenty hours at a stretch, being to the camel what the
racer is to the cart-horse. The motion of the camel
is most unpleasant to any one riding it, for it moves
both legs of each side together, progressing at a long
swinging trot, and jolting its unfortunate rider in the
most unmerciful manner. Novices in camel-riding
almost always suffer from sickness as badly as if they
were in a Channel steamer on a rough day. With some
of the faster dromedaries it is even necessary for the
rider to swathe his body, from the hips to the arms,
in bandages drawn as tightly as possible, before he
commences his journey.

There is a mistaken idea that the camel is a very
patient, gentle, and docile animal, and that he is very
easily managed. In reality, the case is just the reverse,
for a more quarrelsome, unruly, and revengeful animal
hardly ever existed. No sooner is he unloaded than
he begins to fight any of his fellows who may be in the
neighbourhood ; the loading and unloading are never

T/ie Camel.

Water Cells in Camel's Stomach

26 Anecdotal Natural History.

performed without much trouble, and many savage
grunts on the part of the camel, and when fairly loaded,
his first endeavour is always to get free of his burden,
or, failing that, to ruin every article included in it.

Then, at night, when it is time to unload, the cross-
grained animal has to be compelled to kneel by main
force, and his head tied to his fore legs in such a
manner that he cannot rise until the proper time. An
experienced traveller says that he has never yet seen a
camel in anything but a bad temper, at any rate, to
nidge by appearances.

Besides its use as a beast of burden, the camel is
of service to its masters in various other ways. Its
milk, for example, is a standard article of food, and
is mostly kept until quite sour, the Arabs considering
it to be then a much greater dainty than when it is
sweet and fresh. A very inferior kind of butter is
churned from the cream by pouring it backwards and
forwards in a goat skin for a certain time.

The flesh of the camel is considered a great dainty,
but is very seldom eaten, owing to the value of the
animal. Occasionally, however, a rich Arab will kill
one of his camels, and invite all his friends to a feast,
at which the flesh of the slaughtered animal appears
as the crowning delicacy.

At certain times of the year the camel sheds its
hair, which is collected, and being spun into thread,
is used in making garments. Certain portions of it
are also utilized for the ' camel's hair pencils ' used by
artists.

THE two-humped or Bactrian camel, which is found
throughout Central Asia and China, though now
almost entirely used for the saddle, was at one time
put to a very curious use. The East India Company
formed a regiment of these animals, each being pro-

The Cavicl.

27

vided with a couple of swivel guns, placed between
the humps, and managed by the rider. This company
was known as the camel artillery, and was sometimes
of considerable service.

The colour of the Bactrian camel is darker than

V

Bactrian Camel.

that of its Arabian relative, varying from dark brown
to a sooty black in hue.

THOUGH the true camels are exclusively confined
to the Old World, a closely allied genus, comprising

28 Anecdotal Natural History.

four species, is found in America. These animals are
popularly known by the name of Lamas, and differ in
many respects from the true camels.

In the first place, the toes of the foot, instead of
being connected, as in the camel, are separated, and
can be extended at will. This is on account of the
rocky and mountainous nature of the localities which
they inhabit, and in which the power of moving the
toes is necessary in order to give them a firm foothold.
All the Llamas are of very much less size than the
camel, the Guanaco, the largest, not standing much
more than three feet six inches at the shoulder. The
hair is long and woolly, and the general aspect of the
animals is remarkably like that of an overgrown sheep.

The four species are the Vicugna, the Guanaco, the
Yamma, and the Alpaca. The first of these is found
in the most mountainous parts of Northern Chili and
Batavia, and is valuable on account of its skin, which
causes it to be much sought after. In other ways it is
entirely useless, as from its wild and untameable nature
it cannot be employed as a beast of burden. In
colour it is brown, approaching to grey beneath ; the
height is about two feet six inches at the shoulder.

The Guanaco, which is found in the more northern
regions of Patagonia, is of a reddish-brown colour, the
ears and hind legs being grey, and stands about three
feet and a half at the shoulder. It lives in herds,
varying from ten to forty or more in number, and like
the sheep, under the guidance of a single leader, whose
orders are always implicitly obeyed. Should this
leader be killed or trapped, the flock seem perfectly
bewildered, and wander vaguely from place to place,
laying themselves open to easy capture by the hunters.
The sense of curiosity is very strongly developed in
the Guanaco, which, though naturally a wary and
timid animal, can be brought within a short distance

The Camel. 29

of a hunter if he lies on his back on the ground and
kicks his legs in the air. It is able to swim well, and
has often been known to take voluntarily to the water
and swim from one island to another.

The Yamma, or Llama, which was formerly used as
a beast of burden by the Spaniards in America, is of a
variegated brown colour, with long and slender legs.
It is now little used in any way, the sheep having
replaced it with regard to the wool supply, and its flesh
being dark and coarse and seldom eaten.

The fourth species, the Alpaca, or Paco, as it is
sometimes termed, is, together with the last-mentioned
animal, sometimes thought to be only a domesticated
variety of the Guanaco. It is a valuable creature on
account of its wool, which is long and silky. A herd
of Llamas was even imported into Australia, where it
flourished fnirly well, yielding a large supply of the
valuable wool.

No. TIL— BATS.

IN almost every temperate part of the world, but
more especially abounding in tropical climates,
are found the curious creatures which are popularly
known as bats, and scientifically as cheiroptera, an
appropriate word signifying ' hand-winged ' animals.
Australia, however, must be excepted, as the whole
of the Australian mammalia belong to the Marsupials.

It is only of late years that their proper position in
the scale of creation has been discovered. Before that
time, some of the wildest conjectures were made on
the subject. As the creatures possessed the power
of flight, some authors placed them among the birds,
entirely overlooking the differences in structure,
which should at once have pointed out their place
among the mammals. Some, considering them to be
quadrupeds, because they were able to walk upon
the ground, though after a rather clumsy fashion,
imagined that they must form a connecting link
between the mammals and the birds ; and it was not
until later discoverers carefully investigated their
anatomy that the real position of the bats was arrived
at, namely, just after the monkey tribe, and before
the cats.

The appearance of the bat is familiar to almost all,
the strange membranous wings, enabling their owner
to pursue their aerial evolutions with an ease and
rapidity not exceeded by any bird, being the first
points which arrest the attention.

Bat v 3 1

Though possessing an almost equal power of flight
with the birds, the wings of the bat are by no means
constructed upon the same principle. Instead of
feathers, the wing is composed merely of a membrane
tightly stretched between the bones of the fingers,
and extending along the sides as far as the tail. In
order to fully understand this structure, we must
examine the modifications of the skeleton whicli
render it possible.

In the first place, the framework of the wing of
the bat is formed merely by the bones of the arm and
hand, which, more especially those farthest from the
body, are elongated to a wonderful extent, the middle
finger being actually of greater length than the whole
head and body of the animal. The only exception
is the thumb, which is very short, and armed with a
strong curved claw.

Not only are the bones of the fingers elongated,
but those of the palm of the hand, or ' metacarpals,'
are drawn out to an astonishing length, that of the
thumb being excepted, as above mentioned.

If we spread our own fingers widely, we shall see
that their bases are connected by a fold of skin which
is hardly perceptible when the hand is closed. Now
and then, it is extended as far as the first joint, and
there are many of the mammalia in which it is still
further developed. The seals which fly through the
water have the hand membrane greatly extended,
and other water-living mammalia have it developed
in a lesser degree.

Then, the flattened skin-fold of the flanks is not
peculiar to the bat tribe. It can be traced in the
common squirrel, and in the flying lemurs, flying
squirrels, and flying opossums a similar structure is
seen.

In the lower part of the arm, that from the elbow

32 Anecdotal Natural History.

to the wrist, there is practically one bone only, instead
of two, as is usually the case, the reason of which is
very apparent. It is owing to the two bones of the
arm that we are enabled to turn the limb inwards and
outwards at the elbow. If the bat were possessed of
the same power, it would be impossible for the wing
to strike the air with the steady beat necessary to
flight, for the resistance of the air, turning, the arm
sideways, would allow the wing to cleave through it
sideways, and the power of the stroke would thus be
of no avail. As it is, however, being one bone only,
the bat is unable to turn the limb, which therefore
always presents its full surface to the air.

The bones of the hand, too, cannot be clenched as
in a fist, but possess a side motion only, enabling
the wing, when not in use, to be folded closely against
the body.

The membrane which forms the wing is merely a
prolongation of the skin of the flanks and other
parts of the body, stretched tightly between the
finger-bones, and extending as far as or farther than the
tail, which, in the insect-eating species, is included in
it, serving, like the tails of birds, as a natural rudder
by which the animal can direct its course. In the
fruit-eating bats, however, where so great agility in
the air is not necessary, the tail is left partly or
entirely free, and is much used in climbing and
walking.

The membrane is a double one, very thick in those
parts contiguous to the body, but so delicate near the
edges, that by the aid of a microscope the blood
corpuscles can be seen passing along the vessels that
supply the wing.

Though the powers of flight of the British bat are
fully equal to those of many birds, they have never been
known to migrate from one country to another, and

Bats.

33

it is very doubtful whether they possess the ability.
For bats have none of the large auxiliary air-cells found
in birds, acting as a sort of reservoir, and their bones
are not permeated with air - cells as are those of the
feathered migrant.

There are, however, several bats belonging to the
genus Mycteris, found in Africa, which possess a
somewhat similar apparatus, though not constructed
upon quite the same principles.

The skin is very loosely fastened to the body, a
few membranous threads being the only bonds. The
space between this loose skin and the body is utilized
as an air reservoir, and is filled as follows. At the
bottom of the cheek-pouches on either side is found
a small opening, which can be closed at the will of
the animal, and the air prevented
from escaping. When the bat
wishes to inflate its body, it closes
the mouth, and forces the air from
the lungs through the cheek-pass-
ages into the vacant space. To
such an extent does it inflate itself,
that it loses all resemblance to a
bat, and looks merely like a round
ball of fur provided with head and
limbs.

The objects of this curious struc-i
ture are not known, besides the
evident one of increasing the
buoyancy of the animal.

The shoulder-blades of the bat
are enormously large, almost cover-
ing the whole of the ribs. These
also are large and strong, and the
breast-bone, besides being of un-
usual length, is furnished with a

Keeled Breast-bone of
Bat.

34 -A nccdotal Natural History.

central ridge, or keel, like that of birds, for the better
attachment of the powerful muscles which work the
wings. The rest of the skeleton is of the very slightest
description, in order that no unnecessary weight shall
hamper the movements.

The feet are very small in proportion to the rest of
the body, and are furnished with long curved claws,
which are of assistance in walking, but are chiefly
used in assuming the extraordinary position of rest,
when the bat hangs head downwards, from some con-
venient ledge or beam, merely hooking itself on
by means of the claws. In this strange and, one
would think, extremely uncomfortable attitude the
bat always rests, and passes the winter in a torpid
condition.

It was remarked many years ago, that the bat pos-
sessed a most wonderful power of avoiding any ob-
stacles that presented themselves in its path, and that
itcould pass among the branches of trees, even where
the twigs were thickest, without coming in contact with
them. In order to ascertain whether this was always
the case, a number of strings were stretched in a
darkened place, and several bats let loose among
them ; yet it was found that the animals avoided
them with the greatest ease. Thinking that this power
might be the result of an unusually keen eyesight, one
investigator, named Spallanzani, in a very cruel experi-
ment, put out the eyes of a bat, and again let it fly,
but was surprised to see that the creature avoided
the objects exactly as before. It was then thought
for many years that the bat possessed a sixth sense
unknown to man, and it was not until comparatively
lately that the true secret was discovered.

A careful examination of the membranes of the
wings and ears showed that they were intersected by
exceedingly delicate nerves, and it was found that

36 A necdotal Natural History.

the bat was thus made aware of the neighbourhood
of an obstacle, and enabled to avoid it accordingly.

The fur of the bat is of a very soft and silky
nature, and the hair is a most beautiful object under
the microscope. It is densely clothed with scales
somewhat resembling those of a butterfly's wing,
which in some species are arranged in circles round
the hair, a short distance from each other. The whole
object bears a wonderfully strong resemblance to the
well-known mare's-tail plant.

Easy and graceful as are the movements of the bat
whilst disporting itself in the air, it is a very different
creature when attempting to walk upon a level
surface. Its mode of progression can at best only be
described as an awkward waddle, the creature hitch-
ing itself along by means of the claw at the extremity
of one of the wings, giving a kind of tumble forwards,
at the same time advancing the corresponding foot ;
the same process is then repeated with the other
wing.

In the illustration representing the bats in a cave,
the extraordinary attitude assumed in walking is well
shown. The long finger-joints are pressed together,
their tips projecting on either side of the back. The
weight of the body rests on the wrist, and the creature
pulls itself forwards by hitching the claw of the thumb
upon any roughness of the surface on which it walks.

Bats are remarkably averse to taking to the wing
from a level surface, and always prefer to climb to
some little height from which they can throw them-
selves into the air. This is evidently the reason for
the strange and apparently uncomfortable attitude
adopted when at rest, the animal being then in the
most convenient position for launching itself into the
air should there be any signs of danger.

It has been sometimes said that the bat is unable

38 A necdotal Natn ral History.

to rise from the ground, but such is not the case ;
and should the creature be hard pressed, it does not
hesitate to do so.

It is able to climb with tolerable facility, and
always does so with the tail uppermost, making its
way up by the aid of the hind feet, the long claws of
which are inserted into any convenient crevice in
order to gain a foothold.

The food of all the British bats consists of the
various small insects which fly about dusk, and at
that time people the air in myriads. The appetite
of the animals is almost insatiable, as may be gathered
from the fact that a specimen of the short-eared bat,
lately kept in captivity by ourselves, consumed daily
from forty to fifty blue-bottle flies of the very largest
dimensions, rejecting only the wings, and in a few
cases the legs. Even upon this allowance, which
seldom occupied it for more than twenty minutes, it
did not thrive, but gradually wasted away, and finally
died.

The bat was one which had been found in a hollow
tree, and suffering from an injury to one of the wings,
which entirely prevented it from flying. It was kept
under a glass shade, into which the blue-bottles were
introduced. It never took the slightest notice of the
insects until nearly dusk, allowing them to crawl
over all parts of its body without manifesting the
least signs of activity. As soon, however, as the day
began to close in, it was on the alert, and imme-
diately set to work devouring the flies which had been
procured for it.

This it did in the following manner : —

Resting upon the floor of its cage, it remained
motionless until a fly settled within a few inches.
It then began, by an almost imperceptible move-
ment, to approach the insect, and when within

Bats. 39

an inch or so of it, with a sudden spring, clutched
the insect between the wings, and holding them
tightly together, bent down its head, and swallowed
its captive. If a fly happened to take flight before the
bat was near enough to make its spring, it merely
remained motionless until another presented itself.

It was fiercely voracious when it once began to
feed, and scarcely had one fly been swallowed than
the bat was eagerly looking out for another. Its atti-
tude when thus engaged strongly reminded us of that
of the toad or the green crab when hunting after prey.

Though as a rule a nocturnal creature, owing to
the habits of its prey, the bat may occasionally be
seen flying in broad daylight, and sometimes, in the
early spring, even hawking for the insects which are
enjoying the warmth of the sun. In these cases, it is
probable that the bat, having for the first time left the
retreat where it had passed the winter in a torpid condi-
tion, has felt the want of food, and knowing instinct-
ively that no insects would be on the wing at sunset
so early in the year, has so far altered its usual habits
as to prosecute its search by day instead of by night.

Most bats, however, resort to dark and retired
hiding-places during the day, and in some parts of
the world there are large caves which are celebrated
as haunts of the bats. When travellers visit these
caves, the guide will fire a gun into the cave for the
purpose of startling the bats, which come rushing out
in such numbers that unwary visitors have been fairly
knocked down by them.

In Great Britain alone, there are nineteen cata-
logued species of bats, many of which, however, are
rare, and very seldom seen. One of the commonest
is the Long-eared Bat (Plecotus communis), which
abounds throughout the British Islands. It derives
its popular title from the great length of its ears,

4O Anecdotal Natural History.

which stand out for some distance from the head,
and which are thrown at every moment into a variety
of graceful folds. In consequence of its gentle
temper, this bat is easily tamed, and is often kept as
a pet, coming when called by those with whom it is
familiar.

Another of the British bats is the Noctule, or
Great Bat (Noctulinia altivolans), which is remarkable
for the great height at which it usually flies. The
specific name, altivolam, refers to this habit. It is
the largest but one of the bats found in this country,
being almost three inches in length from head to tail,
while the spread of the wings is nearly fourteen
inches. Its cry is remarkably keen, and, like that
of some other species, closely resembles the squeak
which can be produced by rubbing two keys sharply
together. So shrill is the cry of the bat, that to
many, among them even practised musicians, it is
perfectly inaudible, the note produced being too
attenuated to make any impression upon the ear.

A curious development of the nasal organ is found
in the Horse-shoe Bat (Rhinolophus Ferrum-equinuni),

which is also a native
of this country. It
consists of a mem-
brane, commencing at
the lips, surrounding
the nose, and project-
ing upwards for some
" j. distance. Im-
mediately behind it is
a second membrane,
placed on the fore-
Head of Horse-shoe Bat. head, and sharply
pointed. It has been thought that the object of the
structure is to increase the delicacy of the sense of

Bats. 4 1

smell. The same apparatus is found in the Vampire
Bats, and is there developed to even a greater extent.

In other parts of the world, and especially in
tropical climates, are found many other species of
bat, some of them reaching the tremendous; dimen-
sions of nearly five feet in stretch of wing. This is
the case in the well-known Kalong of Java (Pteropus
rubricollis}, which is often known as the Flying Fox,
or Roussette. This, instead of feeding upon animal
food, finds its subsistence in fruit, and is often the
cause of terrible damage to the agriculturist. In
some districts, indeed, where the bat is more than
usually abundant, it is even necessary to envelope the
whole of the fruit in a bamboo network, in order to
secure it for human consumption. By way of a
counterbalancing advantage, however, the flesh of the
Kalong is eaten in many places, and is even con-
sidered a great delicacy.

A curious point about the Kalongs is, that they do
not trouble themselves to find a dark and retired
spot in which to pass the daytime, but hang in large
clusters from the boughs of various trees, especially
those of the fig tribe, where they are hardly recog-
nisable as bats, resembling clusters of fruit more than
anything else.

Perhaps the most widely known and famous of the
bat tribe is the Vampire Bat ( Vainpyrus spectrum} of
South America. It is by no means one of the
largest of the family, its total length being six or
seven inches only, while the spread of wings is not
more than a couple of feet.

The blood-sucking propensities of this animal are
well known, men and animals alike suffering from
its attacks.

Settling upon its victim when plunged in slumber,
it perforates with its sharp teeth any exposed portion

42 Anccdotul Natural History.

of the uody, generally selecting a toe as the point 01
operations, when it attacks a human being, and then
sucking the blood from the wound until it is thoroughly
satiated, a condition which seldom ensues until a
considerable quantity of blood has been abstracted.
The bite causes no pain at the time, and very little
afterwards, the only ill effects arising from the loss of
so large a quantity of blood.

The Vampire seems rather capricious in its tastes,
for while one person may suffer from its attacks night
after night, another individual, reposing perhaps only
two or three feet distant, may leave his feet uncovered
with perfect impunity, the bats never attempting to
interfere with them. The late Mr. Waterton was one
of these fortunate individuals. When travelling in
British Guiana, with the hope of ascertaining exactly
the mode of the vampire's attack, and the effects of
the bite, he slept for several months in an open loft,
purposely leaving his feet exposed. Yet, though the
bats were frequently seen hovering over his hammock,
and a young Indian, who also slept there, was
repeatedly bitten, he was never attacked.

Cattle are great victims to the ravages of the vam-
pires, which often reduce them to a mere mass of
skin and bone by the frequency of their attacks. The
wound is usually inflicted upon the flanks of the
animal, just where the teeth or feet of the victim
cannot reach it ; and in cases where there is pressure
from harness or other causes, often leads to consider-
able damage.

None of our British species are capable of harm,
the teeth being too small to produce any impression
upon the skin. Among the lower classes, neverthe-
less, bats are held in the greatest dread, and many
a countryman would as soon handle an enraged viper
as one of these harmless little creatures.

No. IV.— THE MOLE.

ONE of the most useful, and, at the same time,
one of the least appreciated of the whole
animal creation, is found in the Mole (Talpa Europ&a],
which, in spite of the inestimable benefit it confers
upon agriculturists, is ranked by them as one of
their worst enemies, and persecuted accordingly.

We can hardly pass through a meadow in many
parts of the country without noticing a number of
upright sticks planted in various parts of the field,
to many ot which is suspended a mole which has
been captured and slain by one of the professional
trappers employed by the farmer. Now, if the
farmer had taken the trouble to look below the
surface, and traced the mole through its day's work,
he would have found that, instead of damaging his
fields and ruining his crops, the animal was in reality
rendering him services which could hardly be procured
for money, and that instead of untiring persecution
and ruthless extermination, it ought to be protected
and encouraged to the utmost of his power.

But, as with many other almost equally useful
creatures, so it is with the mole, which, placed in
the category of ' vermin,' falls under the ban of the
farmer, and pays with its life the penalty of human
ignorance.

To us who inhabit the upper world, it seems a
strange and comiortless life, this of the mole, spent
in its cold, dark tunnels beneath the earth. \Ve can

44

Anecdotal Natural History.

hardly conceive a more wretched existence than one
passed in an underground dungeon, damp and cold,
and never cheered by a ray of sunlight. Yet our
pity would be wasted were we to bestow it upon the
mole, for no puima) is better suited to its own mode
of life, or more carefully adapted to obtain enjoyment
from its apparently unpleasant surroundings.

Common Mole, and White or Albino Variety.

Indeed, the mole is quite as unhappy when taken
from the darkness, damp, and cold where it lives, as
we should feel if placed in a subterranean dungeon
and deprived of the light, dryness, and warmth which
are essential to our comfort.

In every detail of its structure, we see how well
the mole is suited to the life it has to lead.

The Mole. 45

Cylindrical in form, its pointed snout and powerful
digging-claws enable it to burrow through the soil
with wonderful rapidity, while every sense is modified
to suit the circumstances of its existence.

Like those of all the rest of the Insect ivora, or
insect-devouring animals, to which group it belongs,
the teeth of the mole are formed for biting and
seizing prey alone, and not for masticating the food,
a few sharp pecking bites being the only preparation
for swallowing it. It is by this structure of the teeth,
also, that these animals are enabled to grasp and
retain the struggling prey.

In order to fit the mole for its burrowing life, the
strength of the fore-parts is developed to a wonderful
degree.

The bones of the fore-limbs are stout, ridged, and
considerably bowed, always a sign of great strength.
The shoulder-blade, in particular, is of extraordinary
length, in comparison with those of other animals,
even that of the tiger or lion, either of which creatures
can strike an ox to the ground with a single blow of
its paw, fading into comparative insignificance beside
it. In fact, if the mole were enlarged to the size
of the tiger, it would be quite as active, by far the
stronger and more terrible animal of the two.

This extra length of shoulder-blade is necessary
for the attachment of the large and powerful muscles
which work the fore-limbs, and which, when the skin
is stripped off, can be seen lying in thick masses,
almost as hard and strong as so much steel wire.

With this wonderful development of muscular
power, it is no wonder that the burrowing powers
ot the mole should be so great, seeing, besides, what
efficient digging instruments it possesses in its fore-
paws. These are set obliquely with the body, in
order to secure a larger scope for their movements.

46 Anecdotal Natural History.

They are large and powerful, not covered with fur
like the rest of the body, and are furnished with
long, curved, and rather flattened claws, which can
penetrate the hardest earth.

These paws occasionally fulfil other offices than
those of digging, for the mole is by no means a bad
swimmer, and is often known to cross brooks and
small streams, using the paws as paddles.

It is scarcely possible to select two creatures which
present stronger contrasts to each other in point of
structure than the moles and the bats, both in-
sectivorous, but the one formed for flying in the air,
and the other for burrowing in the ground.

In both animals the hind-limbs are but little
required, and therefore they are feeble and compara-
tively insignificant, the chief distinction being in the
development of the fore-limbs.

Beginning with the shoulder-blade, or ' scapula,'
we find it large in both animals, but differently
developed, in the bats being wide, thin, and covering
many of the ribs, reaching as far as the pelvis.

In the mole, the scapula is long, narrow, very
strong, and projecting upwards so as to affcrd
attachment for the powerful muscles of the arm.
The other bones are shortened and thickened in
order to carry the enormous digging claws, and are
deeply ridged for the attachment of the tendons which
work the joints. In the bats they are attenuated to
the last degree, and only one of them is capable of
bearing a slight, hooked claw, solely employed lor
dragging itselt clumsily over a level surface.

Yet the bones are the same in each case, and
when the creature is dissected, the exquisitely perfect
adaptation of each bone to its own office cannot but
excite our highest wonder and admiration.

In the accompanying illustration the skeleton o{

The Mole.

47

the fore-limbs is given, so that the reader may
compare the bones with those of the bat, which have
already been described and figured.

The structure of the long and flexible snout is
well calculated to aid the mole both in digging and
also in ascertaining the nature of the soil in the
places which it selects for its burrows ; for, though
sensitive and possessing a keen sense of touch, it is
of great service in shovelling out the loosened earth —
a task for which it is further suited in some species
by the possession of a small auxiliary bone in the
tip. This auxiliary bone is also found in the snout

Common Mole. Bones of Fore-limbs.

of the pig, which in its wild state procures a con-
siderable portion of its food by means of the digging
powers of that member.

While the animal is living, the snout is of a
pinkish colour, and of a very elastic nature ; it is a
curious fact that, after death, it becomes hard and
wrinkled, and not even the most experienced taxi-
dermist can restore it to its pristine appearance.

Even the fur of the mole is arranged in such a
manner as not to impede its progress while passing
either backwards or forwards along its burrow. In

48 Anecdotal Natural History.

order to attain this result, each hair is finest nearest
the body, gradually increasing in thickness towards
the tip, and is set perfectly upright, in order that its
resistance may not impede the animal in its
movements.

When washed perfectly clean, and viewed in a
good light, the fur is seen to be beautifully iridescent,
all the colours of the rainbow playing over it in
succession. This is still more strongly the case in
the changeable mole of South Africa (Chrysochloris
holosericea), which will be presently mentioned.

Attempts have been made to put the skin of the
mole to various uses, only one of which, however,
seems to have met with any particular success. This
solitary instance is in the manufacture of purses, a
custom much in vogue among the peasantry in some
parts of the country. The operation is simplicity
itself, the head and legs of the animal being taken
off, the skin of the rest of the body dried, and the bag
thus formed being closed by a string round the neck.
In Wiltshire these purses are in very common use.
From the great warmth of the fur of the mole, it has
often been thought that it might be utilized in the
manufacture of garments ; and the late Mr. Frank
Buckland, always fond of trying experiments in
anything relating to natural history, procured a
number of the skins, and had a waistcoat made from
them.

However, he was never able to wear it, for two
reasons — the first being that it was even too warm,
so much so as to be almost unendurable ; and the
second, that it was impossible to get rid of the
unpleasant odour which characterizes the mole, and
which persistently clung to the skins for years after they
had been separated from the bodies of their owners.

So strong is this odour, and so long does it retain

The Mole. 49

its power after the death of the animal, that the
professional mole- catchers are accustomed, before
setting each trap, to rub their hands with the body
of one of their victims, which they carry with them
for that purpose, in order that the wary animals may
not detect the human scent about the trap, and be
warned of their danger accordingly.

With the single exception of sight, the senses of
the mole are developed to a very considerable extent.

Its hearing is proverbially acute. For instance, in
Shakespeare's play of The Tempest, the deformed
slave Caliban advises his friends, when they are about
to rob Prospero : ' Pray you, tread softly, that the
blind mole may not hear a footfall,' — a phrase which
has since become almost a household word.

It is not to be supposed that this sharpness of
hearing is entirely owing to the delicate structure of
the mole's ear ; for if it were to live in the open air,
it is doubtful whether it would be able to hear better
than any other animal. The fact is, that the earth
is a very good conductor of sound, as may be easily
proved by laying the ear upon the surface of a high
road, when the noise of an approaching carriage may
be distinctly heard while it is yet two or three miles
distant.

Here, again, we have an instance in Shakespeare.
In Romeo and Juliet, Act v. Scene iii., occur the
lines ;

' Under yon yew-tree lay thee all along,
Holding thine ear close to the hollow ground ;
So shall no foot upon the churchyard tread,
Being loose, unfirm, with digging up of graves,
But thou shalt hear it.'

The sense, too, of scent is particularly strong,
enabling the mole to detect the presence of the
insects and \\orms upon which it preys.

D

50 Anecdotal Natural History

The sense of touch, also, is highly developed,
more especially in the snout, which the animal uses
to examine the nature of the soil into which it intends
to burrow. If a mole on the surface of the ground
wishes to sink a fresh tunnel, it may often be seen
running to and fro, and trying various places with
the snout, until it has settled upon one to its liking.

Although the senses of scent, touch, and hearing
are so extremely sensitive, that of sight is little more
than rudimentary. On casually examining a mole,
the observer would be unable to detect the presence
of eyes, which are deeply buried in the fur, whence,
however, they can be protruded at the will of the
owner. The creature can be forced to expose them
by suddenly dipping it into a pail of water, when the
mole, alarmed at the unexpected immersion, instinc-
tively protrudes them from the mass of fur with
which they are usually covered, looking like very
small black beads. Even when thus exposed, the
vision is very imperfect, and is, indeed, hardly neces-
sary in the subterranean existence which the animal
leads.

The FOOD of the mole consists chiefly of worms,
grubs, and other small creatures which it finds
beneath the surface of the earth. By the mere
destruction of the dreaded ' wireworm ' grubs, and
the larvae of the common cockchafer, which so often
devastate the crops, it renders no small service to
the farmer, and this alone should protect it from the
persecution to which it is so constantly subjected.

Although it finds the greater part of its food in
these creatures, it by no means despises prey of a
larger nature, and will eagerly devour any small bird
or mouse which it may happen to meet with.

Its voracity is something extraordinary ; for if kept
as a pet, it is one man's work to keep it supplied

The Mole. 5 i

with worms. It is almost impossible to describe the
ferocity with which it devours its prey.

As soon as a worm is put into the cage, it detects
the presence of food as if by magic, springs upon its
victim, and rapidly forces it into its mouth with the
fore-paws, giving meanwhile a series of rapid crunch-
ing bites, and causing the unfortunate worm to dis-
appear with marvellous celerity.

No sooner is the first worm swallowed than it is
on the look-out for a second, which is speedily dis-
posed of in a like manner. So voracious is its appetite,
that it is said to be unable to endure a fast of more
than three hours. Among the peasantry it is commonly
reported that the animal alternately works for three
hours and sleeps for three hours, and this seems very
likely to be the case.

The mole seems to suffer greatly from thirst, and
always digs a series of wells in different parts of his
burrows, to which it can repair when in need of
moisture.

The passions of the mole are all of the fiercest
nature, and when enraged, it seems utterly devoid of
fear, attacking an enemy far superior in size to itself,
and fighting with the greatest ferocity until death
puts an end to the scene. One mole was even
known to turn upon the individual who was holding
it, and inflict a severe wound, refusing to quit its
hold until almost killed by the teeth of its victim, no
other means proving of avail.

If, by any chance, two strange moles should happen
to meet in a burrow, there is but one invariable ter-
mination to their encounter. They fight, and the
conqueror devours its vanquished foe.

The rather unsightly although useful ' molehills/
which are so plentiful in many places, serve to show
the course which has been followed by the mole, the

52 A necdotal Natural History.

hillocks being merely the superabundant earth which
it is obliged to throw out at short intervals. These
tunnels mostly terminate in the 'fortress,' as it is
termed, which is a really fine specimen of excavation,
almost attaining the rank of architecture.

The situation selected is generally at the roots of
a tree or large bush, where the ground is unlikely to
give way above it.

The general plan of the structure is as follows : —

In the centre is a rather large circular chamber with
exits at various places, which lead into a gallery sur-
rounding it Above this is a second circular gallery,
communicating with the lower one by no less than
five passages.

A large passage opening into the high road, is
driven down from the lower gallery, and a large series
of tunnels, radiating on all sides, and all communicat-
ing with the lower gallery, are finally constructed.

It will thus be seen that the mole, if chased by an
enemy able to follow it along the tunnels, can take
refuge in the fortress, pass through the centre chamber,
and escape by one of the passages on the opposite
side, leaving its foe bewildered in the complicated
maze of tunnels. The reader must not, however,
think that every fortress contains the whole of these
passages and galleries; and, indeed, it is very doubtful
whether any individual fortress contains both the cir-
cular galleries and all the connecting passages.

The central cavity is usually filled with a quantity
of moss, dead leaves, grass, etc., and is used as a
bed-chamber by the mole during the colder seasons
of the year. In warmer weather, however, it generally
takes up its abode in one of the ordinary hillocks.

Generally at some little distance from the fortress,
the female mole constructs her nest, which she builds
in seme large hillock, and lines with moss or dried

The Mole. 53

grass. In this she brings up her young, usually from
four to six in number, and provides for them until
they are able to take care of themselves. Some good
examples of the mole's nest may be seen in the
museum at Liverpool.

The colour of the mole is usually of a blackish grey,
somewhat paler upon the under side, although it varies
to a considerable extent. Some specimens have been
found of a pure white, and pale varieties are by no
means uncommonly taken.

Putting on one side the immense benefit conferred
upon the farmer by the wholesale destruction of
'wireworms,' the larvae of the cockchafer and daddy-
long-legs, which, feeding upon the roots of the crops,
cause wholesale devastation, the mole is of the greatest
service to the agriculturist in more ways than one.

His complicated network of subterranean passages,
daily and hourly extended, not only forms a nearly
perfect system of subsoil drainage, which could with
difficulty be equalled by human labour, but the fresh
earth brought continually to the surface from a con-
siderable depth below the reach of the plough or
spade, acts almost like manure in increasing the fer-
tility of the land, and renders it capable of nourishing
the crops with which it is planted. All that is neces-
sary in a mole-inhabited meadow is to apply a rake to
the heaps of earth, and spread them evenly over all
parts of the field, in order that every yard shall receive
its due share.

In yet another way does the mole prove himself
the friend of the farmer, for by means of the loosened
earth the air is enabled to reach the roots of the
plants, where it is so much needed, and where it
would have little chance of reaching were it not for
the beneficent and untiring labours of the mole.

With such claims upon the farmer, it seems strange

54 si necdotal Natural History.

that the habits of the animal should be so little
understood and appreciated, and we can only hope
for the time when the spread of zoological knowledge
shall have shown that both this, and many others of
the so-called ' vermin,' instead of being persecuted,
should be protected and encouraged to the utmost
of our power.

TURNING to foreign countries, we find several very
near relations of our common mole, some of which
present very great peculiarities both in habits and
form. One of the most remarkable of these animals
is the Chrysochlore, Shining Mole, or Changeable
Mole (Chrysochloris Jwlosericea), found chiefly in the
Cape of Good Hope. As before mentioned, the fur
of this creature possesses a brilliant metallic radiance,
changing in various lights, and far superior to that of
our British example, beautiful though that is. The
scientific title is singularly appropriate, the name
Chrysochloris being formed from two Greek words sig-
nifying gold-green ; and Jiolosericea, i.e. wholly silken,
referring to the texture of the hairs.

In other ways, also, the Chrysochlore is worthy of
notice. The digging paws are formed after a very
singular fashion, being provided with four toes, the
last of which is but of small size. The remaining
three, however, are furnished with very long and
powerful claws, the middle one especially being of
surprising dimensions.

The jaws of this species are constructed after a per-
fectly unique fashion, a gap equal to the width of a
tooth being left between each ; so that when the
jaws are closed, the teeth of each jaw fit into the in-
terstices of the opposite one like those of a steel
trap.

In the skeleton, also, are found several peculiarities.

The Mole.

55

one being that there are no less than nineteen pairs
of ribs. The tail is entirely wanting.

Another of the foreign moles, and one of a very
extraordinary appearance, is the Radiated or Star-
nosed Mole (As-
iroinyces cristatus\
sometimes known
as the Condylure,
which is found in
Canada and the
United States.

In this animal
the tipof thesnout Snout of Condy|ure-

is modified into a number of pink, fleshy rays, branch-
ing off in every direction, and sometimes being as many
as twenty in number. These rays are retractile at will,
and are supposed to aid the animal in its delicate sense
of touch, and in procuring the worms, etc., on which it
feeds. Another curious point about the Condylure is
the size of its tail, which sometimes exceeds two and
a half inches in length. The name Condylure is formed
from two Greek words, the former signifying a knob
and the other a tail. It was given to the animal by a
person who had only seen the dry skin and not the
living creature. Except for its great comparative length,
the tail has little about it that is remarkable. But,
when the animal is dead, the skin contracts so forcibly
over the vertebrae of the tail, that the organ looks
something like a row of roundish beads strung upon
wire and covered with skin.

No. V.— THE CAT TRIBE.
PART I.

INCLUDED among the members of the cat tribe —
or Felicia, as they are scientifically termed — we
find many of the largest and most powerful of all
the Carnivora, or flesh-eating animals. The lordly
lion, the fierce and savage tiger, the crafty leopard,
and many others, all belong to this family, which,
Australia excepted, is spread over the greater part of
the world

Intended by nature for an active and predacious
existence, the structure of the Cats is pre-eminently
adapted to suit their mode of life, and the whole
form is a marvellous combination of strength, light-
ness, and activity.

Take the lion, for example. Who would think that
an animal of such ponderous size and weight, who can
strike an ox to the ground with a single blow of his
mighty paw, could glide noiselessly through the thickest
jungle and overtake an antelope in fair chase ?

Let us now proceed to examine this wonderful
structure in detail, and afterwards to devote a short
space to each of the more prominent animals of the
group.

We will first examine the skeleton, beginning with
the skull.

The first point which strikes the attention is the bony
ridge which runs along the crest of the skull, and
which chiefly serves as the attachment for the powerful
muscles which act upon the jaws. Inside the skull a

58 Anecdotal Natural History.

second ridge of bone is found, partly separating the
two great divisions of the brain from one another.
The object of this ridge has never been satisfactorily
proved, but it is thought to be of service in guarding
the brain from the severe shocks to which it might
otherwise be subjected from the leaps and bounds of
the animal.

The teeth of the cats, like those of all other exclu-
sively flesh-eating animals, are formed for biting and
tearing the prey alone, and not for masticating it before
it is swallowed. None of them are found with the flat
surface necessary for grinding the food, and, even
were such teeth possessed, the construction of the
iaws would render impossible the side motion neces-
sary for mastication. Upon watching a cat devouring
her food, it will be seen that she bolts it in large lumps,
swallowing it by a succession of sharp, pecking bites.

Passing to other parts of the skeleton, it will be
noticed that the two first vertebra are provided with a
similar enlargement to that of the skull, for the better
attachment of the muscles.

The bones of the limbs are of great strength, as is
necessary for the rapid and powerful motions of the
animals. The muscles are particularly hard and
tough, seeming almost like bands of iron, and turning
the edge of the sharpest knives.

The claws, which are the chief weapons of the
animal, are long, sharp, and strongly curved.

All the animals of the tribe being fUgitigraa'es, or
those which walk upon the tips of the toes alone, it
might be thought that the points of the claws would
be constantly worn down by the friction with the
ground, and thus rendered useless for purposes of
offence.

In order to prevent this, there is a beautiful me-
chanism which, when the paw rests upon the ground,

The Cat Tribe.

59

withdraws the claws into the sheaths provided for
them, and protects them from injury by the ground ;

Claw of Lion, sheathed.

as soon, however, as the paw is thrust forward to
strike or grasp the prey, they are mechanically thrown
out ready for use, the tendons being stretched, and
therefore pulling them forwards.

Claw of L'on, protruded.

Most people have had their hand licked by a
favourite dog as a mark of affection, and know that
his tongue is wet and smooth. Not so that of the
cat, which is comparatively dry, and provided with a
number of sharp, file-like points, pointing backwards,
and serving to scrape every particle of flesh from the
bones of a slaughtered animal.

60 Anecdotal Natural History.

So rough is the tongue of the domestic cat that it
will cause pain to a delicate skin, while the larger
animals of the tribe will draw blood almost im-
mediately.

There is a well-known story of a gentleman who
owned a pet lion, of which he was very fond, and with
which he often indulged in a game of play. One day,
whilst lying asleep upon a couch, the lion came up,
and seeing one of his master's hands hanging outside
the covering, began to lick it, just as a pet dog would
under the circumstances.

In a short time the rough tongue cut through the
skin and drew blood, which was greedily licked up by
the animal, the pain at the same time awaking his
master.

No sooner did he attempt to withdraw his hand
than the creature uttered an angry growl, whereupon
the gentleman, knowing the danger in which he was
placed, and that a moment's hesitation might seal his
fate, drew with his other hand a loaded pistol from
beneath the pillow and shot his favourite through the
head, as his only chance of escape.

All the feet of the cats are provided with soft, fleshy
pads, which enable them to move noiselessly from
place to place, and also serve to break the fall from
the long leaps and bounds of the animals.

Another point to be noticed, too, is to be found
in the whiskers.

These are provided at their roots with an extremely
sensitive nerve, so that the slightest touch is at once
felt by the animal. Those springing from the sides
of the mouth, too, are of exactly the same width as the
body, so that the animal is able to tell, even in the
dark, whether it can pass through a narrow orifice or
not.

Having now noticed the chief points of the structure

The Cal Tribe. 61

of the cats, we will take each of the more important
members of the family in their order, and examine
their habits and mode of life.

To begin with, we will take the Lion (Leo barbarus],
which stands at the head of the cat tribe — the ac-
knowledged King of Beasts. No animal, and scarcely
even man, can hear without trembling his mighty roar,
and from his strength and courage he is feared by
every denizen of the forest.

It is yet uncertain whether or not there is more than
one species of lion. Some authors suppose the
African lion, the Gambian lion, the Asiatic lion, etc.,
to be different animals ; while others consider them to
be merely varieties of the same type, slightly modified
according to the country in which they live.

The most widely known of these species, or varie-
ties, is the African lion, which is spread over the
whole of the southern part of that continent, excepting
those parts where civilised man has gained a permanent
footing, and driven the wild beasts from his neigh-
bourhood.

The lion, when it has spent its life free and un-
trammelled in its native haunts, attains to considerable
dimensions, a full-grown animal averaging some four
feet in height at the shoulder, and nearly eleven feet in
total length from the nose to the tip of the tail. The
lioness is rather less in size, and, owing to her want
of mane, appears even smaller in comparison than is
really the case.

The colour of the lion is a dark tawny yellow, deeper
on the back, and lighter on the under parts of the body.
The ears are blackish, and there is a thick tuft of hair
at the end of the tail, found in no other member of
the cat tribe, which is also black. The male lion,
when it has attained the age of three or four years, is
furnished with a shaggy mane of long hair, which falls

62 Anecdotal Xatitml History.

from the neck and shoulders, and part of the throat. In
the female this mane is wanting. It is remarkable that
when young the lion bears dark stripes and spots on
its fur, so that a well-marked specimen might easily
be mistaken for a tiger-cub. A similar arrangement of
colour is found in several animals, such as one or two
species of swine, and the Malayan tapir.

There are various opinions as to the character of the
lion.

Some hold him up as a model of generosity and
courage, sparing the weak, but fighting the strong with
the utmost courage. Other writers represent him as
a mean, sneaking animal, afraid to face an armed man,
and preferring to obtain his prey by stealth rather than
by open warfare. Others, again, consider that his
temper is uncertain, and that one day he will fight
with great courage and ferocity, while on another he
will fly in terror from a comparatively insignificant
foe.

It is certain that the courage of even the same lion
seems to vary at different times, and that on one
occasion he will openly attack a number of armed men,
while on another he takes refuge in flight before a single
savage.

Like the rest of the cat tribe, the lion is of a very
indolent nature except when suffering from the pangs
of hunger, and, unless he be in want of a meal, will
seldom take the trouble to fight.

Even when in pursuit of prey, he never takes more
exertion than is absolutely necessary for his purpose,
but prefers to stalk the quarry until he can creep within
five or six yards. One powerful bound and a single
blow of his paw then suffices to kill his prey, and he
earns his meal with very little active exertion.

Not that he cannot overtake most animals if he is
forced to do so, but, just as the cat prefers to spring

The Cat Tribe. 63

unawares on a mouse rather than chase it, so does the
Jion act towards the larger animals on which he preys.

Should the animal be of such size that the hlo\v
from his paw would be insufficient to kill it, the lion
springs upon the flank or shoulder, and drags it to the
ground by sheer strength, when it is easily despatched.
A lion and his mate have been seen to spring upon a
giraffe, and by their combined efforts to tear it to the
ground.

Although the lion prefers living animals for his prey,
he by no means disdains a repast from any carcase
which he may find lying in his path. It is thought by
several writers that many " man-eaters " acquire their
taste for human flesh by preying upon the bodies of
slain natives which they find in the bush.

If large game be scarce, he will satisfy his hunger by
a meal on some of the smaller rodents, and has even
been known to devour locusts and other insects in
times of scarcity. If he should happen to suffer from
thirst, too, when water cannot be procured, his instinct
teaches him to search for the juicy water-melons which
grow in the desert, and which answrer the purpose of
liquid nourishment to many animals ; so that we have
the remarkable fact of a carnivorous animal voluntarily
taking to vegetable food.

The lion is justly dreaded by the colonists of Southern
Africa, for hardly a more determined foe to the farms
could be found. Night after night he visits the
enclosures, carrying off a valuable animal at each
visit, and making his raids with such cunning and
ingenuity, that it is generally a most difficult matter
to trap or shoot him. Favoured by the darkness of
the night, he creeps close to the folds, carefully
watching for every sign of danger ; as soon as he is
satisfied that his presence is unnoticed, he leaps
among the cattle, strikes one of the animals to the

64 Anecdotal Natural History.

ground, and drags it off into the bush before the alarm
is fairly given.

Travellers passing through the country with a
train of horses and oxen, often lose a considerable
quantity of stock by means of the lion's nocturnal
visits. It is always the custom, at the approach of
night, to tether the horses and oxen to the bushes,
and making a large fire, to form an encampment
around it.

The lion will prowl round and round within twenty
or thirty yards of the camp, but dares not approach
nearer on account of the fire. Finding that the cattle
do not seem inclined to stray, he retires to a short
distance, places his mouth close to the ground, and
gives vent to two or three of his loudest roars. The
oxen, alarmed by the terrible sounds, often break away
from their tethers and rush out into the darkness, when
the lion has no difficulty in making one of them his
victim.

The most dreaded of all, however, is the terrible
" man-eating " lion, which prowls in the neighbour-
hood of the villages, ready to pounce upon any-
unprotected human being who may pass within the
vicinity of his lair. When once a lion has tasted
human flesh, he prefers it to every other kind of food,
and, daily growing bolder in his raids, causes a perfect
panic in the neighbourhood. In such a case, the
whole population of the village takes the field, and
there is no rest until the dreaded man-eater is slain.

Several lions often band together in search of prey,
and act in concert, each having his appointed part.
In such a case, one of the lions drives the prey,
generally a herd of elands, or other large animals,
towards his companions, who lie in wait until the
flying animals are within reach, when they fall an easy
prev to their hidden foes.

The Cat Tribe. 65

Many stories of adventures with lions have been
told, in some of which the lion has reversed th-o
wished-for order of proceedings, and slain the hunter
instead of being himself killed.

Even when mortally wounded, the animal generally
has sufficient strength to throw himself upon h: ;
assailant, often killing or severely wounding him
before succumbing in the death-struggle. Experienced
hunters, therefore, always try to conceal themselves
until the lion has been forced to yield himself to death.
The few seconds of furious life that remain in the
stricken animal may suffice to lay the hunter beside
his dead enemy.

In a few instances it has happened that a hunter has
been carried off by a lion, and has yet escaped with com-
paratively slight injuries. The lion, like most of the
cat tribe, when he has captured any animal, prefers
to play with it for a short time before killing and
eating it, just as our domestic cat amuses herself with
a mouse, sometimes for hours, before putting an end
to its miseries.

Knowing this habit, the hunter has remained per-
fectly quiet until the lion placed him on the ground,
when, drawing a pistol or knife, he has contrived to
shoot or stab his foe to the heart, and thus rescue
himself from a horrible death.

Sometimes, as in the well-known case of the late D.v
Livingstone, it has happened that the lion has dallied
with its prey long enough to permit the comrades of
the fallen man to come to his rescue.

Men who have escaped in this manner always say
that the first shake of the lion deprived them of all
sense of fear and pain, and that they were then only
conscious of a kind of languor, mixed with a wonder
as to the way in which the lion intended to eat

them.

E

66 Anecdotal Natural History.

It has often been noticed, in the case of a mouse
caught by a cat, that even when released by its enemy
it did not seem to attempt to save itself, but moved as
though fascinated and unable to fly.

So we may conclude that the same merciful provi-
sion is made for the various animals upon which the
carnivora feed, and that after the first shock little or no
pain is felt.

Livingstone, who was once carried off by a lion,
compares the sensation to that of a patient, partially
under the influence of chloroform, who sees all the
operation, but feels not the knife. ' The shake,' he
says, ' annihilated fear, and allowed no sense of horror
in looking round at the beast. This peculiar state is
probably produced in all animals killed by the carni-
vora ; and, if so, is a merciful provision by our bene-
volent Creator for lessening the pain of death.'

Even should a man succeed in making his escape
from the clutches of a lion, and his wounds heal in due
course, he is very unlikely to have entirely recovered
from the effects of his injuries, for there seems to be a
peculiar poisonous property about the lion's teeth and
claws, causing the wounds made by them to break out
afresh every year about the time at which they were
first inflicted.

The lion is an exceedingly cautious and wary animal,
and will carefully avoid any object which it does not
understand, or which bears the least resemblance to
a trap.

Knowing these cautious habits, the hunters are ac-
customed to protect the carcase of a slaughtered animal,
which they are unable to carry away at the time, by
fastening a streamer of white cloth to a stick, and
planting it in the ground close by the animal. Or, a
kind of clapper is constructed, which rattles in the
wind, and which is planted in the same way. Although

The Cat Tribe. 67

the lions will prowl in the neighbourhood all night, not
one will dare to approach so mysterious an object, even
though he may be half wild with hunger.

The young of the lion are generally from two to four
in number, and are about the size of an ordinary tom-
cat. For the first few months of their life, the fur is
brindled with darker stripes, in the same way as that
of the tiger ; as they grow older, however, these stripes
gradually become fainter, and at last entirely disappear.
The cubs are wonderfully playful little animals, and
frisk and gambol about their mother just like so many
kittens. Their weight is very great in proportion to
their size, the skeleton and muscular systems being
very solid and massive in structure. The full growth of
the lion is not reached until the end of the fourth year.

In the more northern parts of Africa a variety, or
species, of the lion is found, usually known as the
Gambian lion (Leo Gambianus). In character and
habits it differs only in the very slightest degree from
its southern relative.

The lion which inhabits Asia presents no particular
points of difference from that of Southern Africa, and
a detailed description will therefore be unnecessary.
A peculiar variety, or species, according to some
writers, however, is found in Guzerat. This is usually
known as the Maneless Lion (Leo Goojrattensis), on
account of its lacking the hairy covering of the neck
and shoulders which is found in the other species.
This is not entirely wanting, but is very imperfectly
developed, the animal not possessing, in consequence,
the majestic aspect with which we are so familiar. The
tail is shorter in comparison, with a large tuft of hair
at the tip.

By the natives, this animal is often called the
' camel-tiger,' on account of the resemblance its fur
bears in colou r to that of the camel.

68 Anecdotal Natural History.

Like most of the members of the cat tribe, the lion
has often been tamed as a pet, and learned to follow
and obey its master just as does a dog. In these
cases the animal has always been captured while quite
a cub, before the wild and savage instincts of its nature
had yet been implanted in its breast. It is commonly
the case, too, to find a troop of performing lions in
menageries and circuses. No matter how well trained
the animals may be, however, it is always a dangerous
performance, for a slight whim or a piece of ill-temper
on the part of one of the animals may bring out all
the savage nature of the beasts, and, before aid can be
given, cause the death of the trainer, as has but too
often happened.

r:

No. VI— THE CAT TRIBE.
PART II.

"XT EXT in order comes the Tiger, which is spread
•!• ^ over a considerable part of Asia. The animal
which if. popularly called the ' tiger ' by African
hunters is only a large leopard, and the ' tiger ' of
American hunters is the jaguar. It is by no means
equally distributed, some parts of the country being
absolutely infested by the animals, while in others
they are seldom or never seen.

The tiger is fully equal both in size and strength to
the lion, and certainly surpasses that animal in the
ease and grace of its movements. Its colour is a
bright, tawny yellow, with a number of dark brownish-
black stripes, some of which are double, running round
the body at right angles to the limbs. On the lower
parts of the body the fur becomes nearly white, and
the dark stripes melt almost imperceptibly into the
general ground colour.

Occasionally a tiger is found whose fur is of a
uniform greyish-white hue, the stripes being scarcely
visible. This is usually known by the name of White
Tiger, but is merely a variety of the common species.

It seems strange that so brightly-coloured an animal
as is the Tiger should be so extremely inconspicuous
among the underwood of its native jungles. Such, how-
ever, is the case, and a tiger at the distance of ten or
fifteen yards would be perfectly invisible except to the
most practised eye. For the dark stripes harmonise so
perfectly with the dark shadows between the upright

/o Anecdotal Natural History.

blades of the long grass, and the tawny yellow fur so
strongly resembles the bright hues of the surrounding
foliage, that, until it moved, even the most experienced
hunter would probably be unaware of the presence of
the animal.

Like the lion, the tiger seldom undertakes more.
active exertion when in pursuit of prey than is abso-
lutely necessary for the attainment of his object. He
seldom or never attempts open chase, but prefers to
stalk his quarry, sometimes for miles, gradually
creeping closer and closer, until he is able to effect his
purpose by means of a single bound.

In the same way the dreaded ' man-eaters ' wili
follow human beings, generally devoting their attention
to women and children, who are not likely to carry
weapons.

The mortality from these animals is very great, for a
tiger, when once it has tasted human blood, ever after
thirsts for it, just as is the case with the lion. In some
districts, even, a victim is carried off almost daily, the
mingled apathy and superstition of the natives allow-
ing the animal to carry on his depredations with
impunity.

The spots most infested by tigers are those localities
where the road passes through a small copse, or patch
of jungle, and where water is in the immediate neigh-
bourhood. Where water is scarce, in fact, the tiger is
seldom found, as he requires to quench his thirst aftei
every meal.

In such a retreat he lies in wait, always upon the
opposite side of the road to that on which his lair is
situated, until some unfortunate animal, or human
being, happens to pass by. With a tremendous spring
he bounds upon his victim, dashes him to the ground,
and drags his body across into his lair without being
Dbliged to turn round.

The Cat Tribe. 71

Should he happen to miss his aim, as does some-
times happen, he seldom or never repeats his attack,
but seems bewildered, and mostly slinks away among
the bushes. Should a number of people be together,
he always selects the last of them, so that in tiger-
hunting the post of honour is, as in a retreat, in the
rear.

The natives divide tigers into three kinds, namely,
the Hunting tigers, the Cattle-eaters, and the Man-
eaters.

The first are the younger animals, which are strong
and active enough to hunt prey for themselves. The
natives do not try to destroy these animals, and find
them rather beneficial than otherwise, because they
keep down the antelope herds that make havoc in
the grain-fields.

The second are the older animals, which can no
longer trust to the chase for food, but hang about
villages for the purpose of pouncing upon any stray
cattle that may come in their way.

No less than seven such tigers have been driven out
of one cover, so that the destruction which they work
can easily be imagined.

Their mode of attack is always the same. They do
not knock down their prey with a blow from the paw,
as is generally imagined, but seize it by the nape of
the neck, and with both paws on the head, twist its
neck.

A single tiger has been known to destroy annually
between sixty and seventy head of cattle, none cost-
ing less than five pounds, and many being worth
double the money. These cattle-eaters are curiously
fastidious. When they have killed an ox, they drag it
to their feeding-place, and then open and clean the
body as neatly as any butcher could do, always putting
the offal at some distance from the meat.

72 Anecdotal Natural History.

Old tigers, who cannot even destroy cattle, are
tolerably sure to become man-eaters. Fortunately for
ihe natives, European huntsmen never allow a man-
eater to live. It is even necessary to destroy every
cub of a man-eater, for if a tiger, no matter how young,
has once tasted human flesh, it becomes at once a man-
eater.

The fur of such an animal is never worth anything
in a pecuniary point of view, as it is almost always
mangy, bald in patches, dingy in hue, and" never
exhibits the rich, warm colouring of the healthy
fur.

So great is the terror of the natives at the mere pre-
sence of a man-eater, that they seem quite demoralized.
They never venture out at night, and even by day
will only dare to move in large bodies, all being
heavily armed and accompanied by the beating of
drums and the shouts of men, the firing of shots,
and the glare of flaming torches.

A single man-eater has been known to kill a hun-
dred human beings in a single year, and to put a stop to
traffic in a triangular district measuring from thirty to
forty miles on each side. Many villages were wholly
deserted, and others in which the inhabitants remained,
tvere surrounded with strong palisades.

The claws of the tiger form most terrible weapons,
being sickle-shaped, and as sharp as a knife. As is
the case in the lion, the claws seem to possess some
poisonous influence apart from the actual wound, for,
i:i many cases, even a slight scratch has been pro-
ductive of lockjaw, followed rapidly by death. One
hunter, of many years' experience, states that he has
never known a patient to die from the effects of a
wound caused by the tiger's claws without suffering
from lockjaw previous to death.

Naturally, no pains are spared to exterminate so

The Cat Tribe. 73

powerful and dangerous an animal, and traps of all
kinds are constructed for his capture.

Some of these are most ingenious. A very common
method of destruction is the spring bow, which is set
as follows :

Two stout posts are planted in the ground by the side
of the tiger's path, and to these the bow is firmly fastened,
the string being parallel with the path. The bow is
then stretched, and kept in that position by means
of a stick, which prevents the string from approaching
the wood. At the end of the stick is placed a long
wedge, to which is fastened a cord, which crosses the
path of the animal. The arrow, generally poisoned,
is then laid in its place.

Naturally, as soon as the tiger presses the cord with
his breast, the wedge falls, the stick is drawn away,
and the arrow discharged into his body, where the
poison very shortly proves fatal.

Should a tiger have paid a visit to a farmyard, and
carried off a horse or bullock, his track is followed up
until the carcase of the slaughtered animal is dis
covered. Knowing that the tiger will shortly return
for a second meal, the farmer cuts a few gashes in the
flesh and introduces a quantity of arsenic. Before
very long, the tiger makes his appearance, and
swallows great lumps of the poisoned food, which in
a short time puts an end to his existence.

Farmers in this country are familiar with a method
of catching rooks, when they attack the newly-planted
grain, by twisting up a number of paper cones, placing
a grain or two of corn at the bottom, and smearing
the interior with bird-lime. These are placed in the
furrows, with the pointed end downwards. The rook
comes flapping along, sees the corn at the bottom of
the cone, and immediately attempts to secure it. His
head once in, however, he is unable to release it, the

74 Anecdotal Natural History.

tenacious bird-lime fixing the cone over his head, and
preventing him from seeing. After a short time he is
exhausted by his struggles, and is then easily secured.

In much the same manner tigers are often
captured.

A number of the broad leaves of the prai^s-\xo.& are
secured, and thickly smeared with bird-lime. These
are laid in the animal's path, the hunter concealing
himself in the neighbourhood.

The tiger passes along, and treads upon one of the
prepared leaves, which adheres to his foot. Not being
able to remove it, he rubs his paw against his head, after
the fashion of the cats, thereby transferring the sticky
substance to his ears and eyes. By this time he has
trodden upon more leaves, which serve to still further
incommode him, and he struggles to free himself from
the mysterious substance, rolling upon the ground in
his efforts, until he has completely covered himself with
the bird-lime. Guided by his voice and struggles, the
hunters come up and despatch him without difficulty.

Sometimes a building resembling a huge mousetrap
is constructed, and baited with a sheep or goat, which
is placed in an inner chamber, so that it cannot be
reached from the outside by the claws of the tiger ; or
a large bamboo cage is built, the hunter taking up
his position inside, and spearing his foe through the
bars as he ventures to attack.

Sometimes a large bamboo platform is erected near
the haunts of the animal, on the summit of which the
hunter takes up his station, firing at the creature the
moment it appears. Even should the wound not prove
instantaneously fatal, and the tiger attack him, he is in
perfect safety, being above the reach of its claws, while
the polished bamboo affords no foothold to his in-
furiated enemy, who is easily killed by a second shot.

When a hunter has been fortunate enough to kill a

The Cat Tribe. 75

tiger, he always preserves the teeth and claws as tokens
of his success, and the natives would not think of
leaving the cLad tiger without burning off its whiskers,
as a kind of charm.

Besides these manifold traps, the tiger is also hunted
in various ways, the most usual being by means of
elephants. Upon these animals ride the hunters, who
are seated in the ' howdah ' (pronounced ' huodah '),
a sort of open carriage firmly fastened upon the back
of the elephant. A large number of beaters are pressed
into the service, who endeavour, by means of shouting,
blowing horns, beating drums, letting off fireworks,
etc., to drive the tiger from its concealment.

In spite of the size and strength of the animals
ridden by the hunters, this sport is not without danger,
the tiger often facing his pursuers, leaping upon the
elephant, and even reaching the howdah.

It is only by careful training that the elephants are
induced to face the infuriated beast at all. First, they
are taught to familiarize themselves with a stuffed skin,
and to gore it with their tusks, and trample upon it.
Next, a boy is placed inside the skin, in order to
counterfeit the movements of the animal, and accus-
tom the elephant to the sight of the skin in motion.
Finally, a dead tiger is shown to the animal, instead
of the stuffed skin.

Yet, with every precaution, and the most careful
training, even the most courageous elephant will some-
times turn and run before an angry tiger, in spite of
the exertions of the ' mahout,' or driver, who rides
upon the neck of the creature.

One would naturally think that so destructive an
animal would be almost universally sought after and
destroyed. Yet in many parts of the country the
tiger is absolutely protected, being considered as a
sacred animal, and treated accordingly. Many of the

76 Anecdotal Natural History.

native chiefs, too, protect it for hunting purposes, just
as the fox is preserved in our own country.

The tiger is a good swimmer, and has even been
known to board vessels lying at a considerable distance
from the shore, causing the greatest consternation
among the crew.

The young of the tiger are two or three in number,
and do not arrive at their full growth until three or
four years have passed.

Owing to the colouring of the skin, to which allusion
has been made, the tiger can with difficulty be dis-
covered, even when its haunts are known. Hunters
say that a tiger can hide itself in places where a rat
could hardly find cover.

Practised hunters are always on the look-out for
indications of the tiger's presence, one of which is a
bush covered with berries. If no tiger were hidden
there, the monkeys would not have left a berry on the
bush, but as from their strongholds in the treetops
they can see the enemy, they take care to keep their
distance, and so let the berries remain on the branches.

Peacocks, again, are mostly found in places where
the tiger lives. The bodies and feathers of dead pea-
fowl are sometimes found strewn about a tiger's den.
The natives account for this fact by saying that the
tigress teaches her growing cubs how to hunt prey for
themselves, and that they practise on peafowl before
they can aspire to antelopes or cattle.

As to the size of a full-grown tiger, it varies almost
as much as does the height of man. The average
length of an adult male tiger is about nine feet six
inches, measured from the tip of the snout to the end
of the tail. A ten-feet male is as unusual an exception
to the ordinary dimensions of tigers as is a man six
feet three inches in height among ourselves. Measure-
ments of the skin after it is removed from the animal

78 Anecdotal Natural History.

are quite fallacious, a skin being capable of almost any
amount of extension by stretching. To be worth
anything, the measurements should be made before,
and not after the skin has been taken off.

It is a curious fact that the mother does not seem
so careful for the welfare of her offspring as is usual
among animals, but, if she suspect danger, will often
send her cubs on first, in order to see whether the path
be clear. Experienced hunters, aware of this, refrain
from firing at the young, knowing that the mother is
behind, and will soon make her appearance.

NEXT in order is the Leopard (Leopardus varius],
which is found both in Asia and Africa. It is by no
means as large and powerful as the tiger, but is even
more graceful in its movements. The colour of its
fur is a bright golden yellow, closely studded with
rosette-shaped dark spots.

A few leopards have been occasionally found whose
fur was so dark as to earn them the title of Black
Leopards, which were for some time supposed to con-
stitute a separate species. However, it was found that
the dark spots were still dimly visible, and that, except
in point of colour, there were no particular differences
between these black leopards and the ordinary animal,
and that therefore they could only be considered as a
mere variety of the common species.

To the leopard belongs a power which is not pos-
sessed by the lion and tiger — namely, the ability to
climb trees. So quick and agile are its movements
among the branches that it is even able to chase and
capture the various tree-frequenting animals in their
native haunts.

In some ways the leopard is even more dreaded
than its larger and more savage relatives, especially by
f e farmers, who suffer greatly from its depredations

The Cat '1 nbe. 79

among their flocks. Combined with great agility, he
possesses the craft and cunning of the fox, and, like
that animal, usually selects the hen-houses of the
neighbourhood for his nocturnal raids. In these he
commits the greatest havoc, striking the birds to the
ground before they are even aware of the presence of
their enemy, and following them into the trees should
the}' roost among the branches.

The mischief he commits is rendered even greater
by his custom of storing up provisions for a rainy day.
For this purpose he usually selects the junction of a
large branch with the tree-trunk, and constitutes this
his larder, which he carefully conceals by means ot
dead leaves, etc. He has even been known to carry
the body of a slain child into the fork of a tree, and
hide it there.

When on the look-out for prey, the leopard generally
conceals himself among the branches of some tree be-
neath which game is likely to pass. From his leafy
retreat he can then leap down upon the unfortunate
animal, and bring it to the ground merely by the force
of his spring. When hunted, too, he almost always
takes refuge among the boughs of a tree, and displays
great sagacity in selecting a spot where he is protected
from the aim of his pursuers.

On ordinary occasions the leopard is a much more
timid animal than most of his relatives, and is easily
frightened if taken by surprise. When driven to bay,
however, he fights with the greatest ferocity and des-
peration, dashing savagely at his foes, and wreaking
his vengeance upon them with tooth and claw.

In consequence of this fierce disposition, a native
who has killed one of these animals is held in the
highest esteem by the rest of his tribe, who regard with
envy the necklace of the teeth and claws, and the
' kaross,' or cloak, which he forms from the skin. The

8o Anecdotal Natural History.

tail, too, is carefully preserved, and dangles from the
string which passes round the waist of the successful
hunter.

During all its ravages, the animal behaves with a
caution which renders it a very difficult matter even to
trace the marauder.

He will not approach a farm where he can detect the
least sign of the presence of danger, and is even cun-
ning enough to take up his quarters near one village,
and commit his depredations in another at a consider-
able distance, in order to lessen the chance of his re-
treat being discovered. He often removes to a dis-
tant part of the country, too, if he has committed many
ravages in his old locality, and fears that he may be in
danger in consequence.

Although the size of the leopard is far inferior to
that of the lion or tiger, its strength is very great
when the dimensions of the animal are taken into
account. One of these creatures has even been known
to drag a couple of wolf-hounds, which were tethered
together, for a considerable distance into the bush, in
spite of their struggles. Animals far larger and heavier
than itself, too, fall victims to its attacks, and are
carried away without apparent difficulty.

The muscular force which is compressed into a
leopard's body is really amazing. In his ' Eight
Years in Ceylon,' Sir H. Baker has the following
remarks on it : —

' The power of the animal is wonderful in proportion
to its weight. I have seen a full-grown bullock with
its neck broken by a leopard. It is the popular belief
the effect is produced by a blow of the paw : this is
not the case ; it is not simply the blow, but the com-
bination of the weight, the muscular power, and the
momentum of the spring, which render the effects of a
leopard's attack so surprising

The Cat Tribe.. 81

The immense power of muscle is displayed in the
concentrated energy of the spring. The leopard flies
through the air, settles on the throat, usually throwing
his own body over the animal, while his teeth and
claws are fixed on the neck. This is the manner in
which the spine of an animal is broken, viz., by a
sudden twist, and not simply by a blow.'

The same author mentions that he once found a
Malabar lad sitting under a tree and looking very weak
and ill. He sent some of his men to bring the lad to
his house, but when they reached him they found
that he was dead. He was buried by the road-
side, but a few days afterwards it was found that the
leopards had discovered the buried body, dug it up,
and devoured it. The footprints, which were quite
fresh upon the damp soil, afforded unmistakable
evidence against the offenders.

Leopards seem to be one of the many hindrances to
agriculture in Ceylon.

They are so cunning that it is hardly possible to
take effectual precautions against them, and they can
hide themselves so easily in the almost impenetrable
jungle, that to extirpate them is a hopeless task, unless
the whole of the jungle be cleared away. Even then,
so great is the power of vegetation, that the neglect
of two or three months will permit the jungle to replace
itself by fresh growths.

Cattle can hardly be considered safe even when
fastened into their houses, for the leopards will clamber
on the roof, tear away the thatch, and so gain admis-
sion to the shed. Once inside, a leopard will kill
every animal in the shed, not for the purpose of
satisfying its hunger, but from the mere lust of
slaughter.

The cunning of the man-eacers is proverbial. One
favourite manoeuvre is for the animal to show itself at

82 Anecdotal Natural History.

one end of a village, and ' make a sham attack upon
it. When it has drawn all the armed men in pursuit, it
quietly sneaks away, skirts the village under cover,
slips in at the other end, pounces upon one of the
inhabitants — generally a child — and escapes with its
prey into the bush.

The young of the leopard vary from one to five in
number. They are pretty little creatures, and as play-
ful as kittens, gambolling with their mother in just the
same manner. For the first few weeks of their life the
markings are very indistinct, but become more con-
spicuous as the animals grow older.

Like most of the members of the cat tribe, the
leopard has occasionally been tamed, and has some-
times even been allowed to range the house at will,
after the manner of a favourite cat. All these animals,
however, have been captured when very young, before
their savage instincts have had time to show them-
selves.

This animal is sometimes known as the Panther, the
two being merely very slight varieties of the same
species.

No VII— THE CAT TRIBE.
PART III. — THE JAGUAR, PUMA, ETC.

THE Ounce (Leopardus undo) of Asia resembles
the Leopard so closely, both in appearance and
habits, that a detailed description is unnecessary. It
may be distinguished from either of the preceding
animals by the woolly aspect of its fur.

We therefore pass it by and come to the Jaguar
(Leopardus onca) of the American continent. In its
native country the animal is usually spoken of as the
Tiger, just as the bison is erroneously dubbed the
buffalo.

The jaguar is by no means unlike the leopard in
form and markings, but may be easily distinguished by
one or two peculiarities.

In the first place, two or three bold black stripes are
drawn longitudinally across the breast, these being
never found in the leopard. The spots, too, with
which the body is thickly covered, are more angular in
shape than is the case in that animal, and are formed
like rosettes, each containing either one or two
smaller spots in its centre. Along the spine, from the
neck to the first foot or so of the tail, runs a chain of
solid black spots and dashes. The tail, too, is much
shorter in proportion to the size of the animal, and
barely touches the ground when its owner is standing
erect.

The ground colour of the jaguar's fur is a bright

84 Anecdotal Natural History,

tawny brown, in some specimens being much more
brilliant than in others. A black variety is occasionally
met with, just as is the case in the leopard, the whole
fur assuming the dusky hue of the spots, which are
very indistinct, and only to be distinguished in certain
lights.

Like the tiger, the jaguar is of an extremely cautious
nature, and seldom ventures upon an open attack, un-
less his enemy be very much inferior in size and
strength to himself. Should he meet with a herd of
animals, or a party of travellers, he will dog their
steps for miles, hoping to surprise an individual when
separated by a short distance from his comrades.

As regards his food, the jaguar is extremely impar-
tial, and preys alike upon all branches of the animal
kingdom. His favourite diet is, perhaps, the flesh of
the various monkeys which inhabit the American forests,
the attainment of which delicacy, however, is attended
with considerable difficulty.

For, though the jaguar is an adept in the art of tree-
climbing, and can make his way among the branches
with considerable ease and facility, the monkeys are
even greater proficients, and, by the quickness and
agility of their movements, would soon distance their
pursuer if he resorted to open chase. His usual
method of obtaining his favourite food, therefore, is by
leaping upon the unsuspecting animals from some
place of concealment, or by surprising them when
asleep. In such a case a few strokes of his powerful
paw dash several of the animals to the ground, where
their assailant can devour them at his leisure.

Another favourite delicacy is the flesh of the peccary,
the procuring of which is fraught with equal difficulty
and far more danger than is the case with the
monkeys.

For the peccary is distinguished by the possession

Tlie Cat Tribe. 85

of a fierce, unreasoning courage, causing it to dash at
the most formidable foe, and wreak its vengeance with
its terrible tusks, which cut like so many razors. In
fact, if a jaguar were to be attacked by a herd of these
little animals, he would have no chance against them,
and could only save his life by resorting to a tree until
their patience became exhausted, and they retired from
the neighbourhood.

The capybara falls a frequent victim to the attacks
of the jaguar, who even follows it into the water. Large
animals, such as horses or deer, it kills in the same
manner as does the leopard, namely, by leaping upon
them from the overhanging branches of some tree, and
breaking their necks by a powerful wrench with the
fore-paws. Even animals of considerable si/e are
carried off without difficulty by the jaguar, which
has been known to attack two horses which were
tethered together, kill one, and drag both animals to
its lair, in spite of the struggles of the survivor.

Of birds, also, the jaguar is fond, and strikes them
down with a blow of his paw. Even should his in-
tended prey take to flight, he is often able, by one of
his wonderful bounds, to capture it before it has passed
beyond his reach. Fish he captures by lying in wait up-
on the banks of a stream, and hooking them out with
his paw as they pass beneath him. Turtles, too, often
fall a prey to him, and are killed and eaten in a very
ingenious manner.

Watching for the female turtles as they make for the
sea after laying their eggs in the sand, the jaguar
springs upon them, and quickly turns them upon their
backs, a position in which they are perfectly helpless.
He then breaks away the softer parts of the shell by
the tail, and, inserting his paw, scoops out the whole
of the flesh through the aperture thus made. Of the
eggs, too, he is very fond, digging them up from the

86 Anecdotal Natural History.

sand in which they were deposited. Lizards, shellfish,
and even insects also fall victims to his voracious
appetite.

In farmyards the jaguar is a terrible enemy, doing
the utmost damage among stock of all kinds. Some
of the earlier settlers, in fact, were so troubled by
these animals that they found it perfectly impossible
to keep any live-stock whatever until the jaguars were
finally driven from the neighbourhood. And this was
no easy task, the craft and cunning of the animals
rendering it a very difficult matter to kill or trap
them.

The hunting-dogs of the country show a wonderful
aptitude for tracking the jaguar, as is well described
by the late Mr. C. B. Brown, in his Camp and Canoe
Life in British Guiana, as follows : —

' Many of the Indian hunting-dogs, trained for
deer or tapir, will hunt tigers (i.e., jaguars). When
on the track of either of those animals, should they
come across the scent of a tiger, their eager and con-
fident manner of pressing on after the game is imme-
diately changed, and, with the hair on their backs
erect, they become cautious and nervous to a degree,
jumping at even the snapping of a twig. Abandoning
the hunt, they take up the tiger's track, and follow it.
But should the huntsman call them from it, or not
cheer them on with his voice from time to time, they
exhibit great fear, and, keeping close to his heels,
cannot be induced to hunt any more in that district
for that day.

'On the contrary, if allowed to follow the tiger,
they track it up with caution, being fully aware of the
cunning dodge practised by that animal; which is,
when the dog is close at hand, to spring to one side
and Ik: in ambush until it passes, when with one spring
the do2 is seized.

The Cat Tribe. 87

' Ordinary dogs would fall a prey to this trap, but
not the self-taught tiger-dogs. Their fine powers of
scent warn them of their near approach to the quarry,
when they advance with great caution, never failing to
detect the tiger in time, and when once their eye is
upon their enemy it has no chance of escape.

' In its pride of strength the jaguar scorns the dogs,
and, with a rush like a ball from a cannon, springs
at one of them, feeling sure that it cannot escape.

' It has reckoned, however, without its host, for the
dog eludes the spring witli ease, and with great quick-
ness flies on the tiger's flank, giving it a severe nip.
As the tiger turns with a growl of pain and disappoint-
ment, the dog is off to a little distance, yelping lustily,
and never remaining still an instant, but darting first
on one side and then on the other. After one or two
ineffectual charges the tiger gives it up, and on the
approach of the hunter springs into the nearest
suitable tree, which it seldom leaves alive.'

The jaguar is very tenacious of life, and even when
mortally wounded will often travel to a considerable
distance before it succumbs to its hurt.

This animal seems more easily tamed than most of
the larger members of the Cat tribe, and becomes
thoroughly domesticated, following its master like a
dog, and allowing all manner of liberties to be taken
with it without resenting them.

The Puma ( Leopardus concolor) is the next of
importance among the members of the Cat tribe.
This animal is known under a bewildering variety of
names, among which may be mentioned the American
Lion, th£ Panther (or ' Painter '), the Cougar, and the
Goua/ouara. Sometimes, too, it is erroneously
termed the Carcajou, which is one of the deer tribe,
and also the Kinkajou, a remarkable animal belong-
ing to the ursine group

88 Anecdotal Natural History.

The title of American Lion evidently refers to the
colour of its fur, which is of an uniform tawny hue
like that of the animal after which it is named. The
tip of the tail is black also, but does not possess the
tuft of hair which is a distinguishing characteristic of
the true lion.

The puma is by no means so large an animal as
any of the preceding, seldom exceeding six feet and
a half in total length, of which almost one-third is
occupied by the tail. The head is remarkably small,
causing the animal to appear even less in size than is
actually the case.

It is a rather curious fact that the cubs of the puma
should be marked during their infancy with greyish-
black stripes, just as are the young of the lion.
Besides these, a number of darker spots are visible
over the greater part of the body, both stripes and
spots disappearing in the course of a few months.

The puma is another of the tree-climbing cats, and
its limbs are wonderfully strong and powerful in order
to fit it for its semi-arboreal life. Its habits, when in
search of prey, strongly remind one of those of the
jaguar, crouching, as it does, like that animal, among
the branches of some convenient tree until an animal
is unfortunate enough to pass beneath. While resting
among the foliage it is remarkably inconspicuous, the
body being flattened against a bough, and the dark-
tawny fur harmonizing almost perfectly with the bark.

Although terribly destructive in farmyards and so
on, as many as fifty sheep in one district alone having
been known to fall victims to the animal in the course
of a single night, the puma is not personally feared
by the settlers and hunters. When meditating an
attack it is even more cautious than the jaguar, often
following its quarry for miles without daring to show
itself. Even when it summons sufficient courage to

The Cat Tribe. 89

follow up its attack, and arrives within springing
distance of its intended victim, it cowers and shrinks
away if a bold front be shown, appearing unable to
withstand the gaze of the human eye.

The food of the puma is much the same as that of
the jaguar, the peccary and the capybara being especial
favourites with it.

The various species of Felidai, called TIGER-CATS,
include several pretty and graceful animals, such as
the Ocelots, the Margay, the Rimau-Dahan, and the
Chad.

The Ocelots are all inhabitants of tropical America
the most abundant species being that known as the
Common Ocelot ( Leopardus pardalis). This animal
is a singularly pretty one, some four feet in length,
from the nose to the tip of the tail, and standing about
eighteen inches in height at the shoulder. The
ground colour is a delicate greyish fawn, marked with
broken bands of darker fawn edged with black. Along
the spine runs an unbroken black line. The ears are
black, with the exception of a white spot upon the back.

In consequence of the handsome markings and
delicate fur, the skins of these animals are much sought
after.

Another species is the Grey Ocelot (Leopardus
griseits), which is of a lighter colour than the preceding
animal, the spots, also, being less numerous and dis-
tinct. All the species are very quick and active in
their movements, and in form and habits strongly
resemble miniature leopards.

OUR own domestic cat, really a descendant from
the Egyptian animal (Fells vianiculata), is generally
supposed to have sprung from the Wild Cat ( Felis
catus), which at one time was very abundant in this
country. In the olden times, when hunting and war-
fare were almost the sole occupation of the upper

QO Anecdotal Natural History,

classes, this animal was even preserved for the chase,
just as is the fox at the present time, and severe penal-
ties were enacted against those who should cause its
destruction, except in the legitimate manner.

At the present day, the Wild Cat is almost extinct,
as far as regards Great Britain, a few scattered speci-
mens, only, existing in some of the Scottish mountain
woods. There it causes considerable havoc amongst
the game, just as our domestic cat will if it once im-
bibes a taste for poaching. In fact, there is hardly
a more inveterate enemy to partridges and pheasants
than a pet cat, which will visit the coverts night after
night, and destroy the birds in numbers, often paying
the penalty with her own life should the keeper happen
to meet with her. Many tame cats, even, leave their
homes, and take entirely to a wild life, living on the
game which they capture. When trapped, these are
often mistaken by the keepers for the genuine wild
species. It is hardly possible to pass through a
preserve without noticing the dead bodies of several
cats, which have been shot by the gamekeepers, and
hung up on the ' keepers' trees ' in company with the
carcases of weasels, stoats, etc., as a warning to other
' vermin.'

The differences between the wild and the domestic
cats are very apparent. The markings of the former
vary but very little, the ground colour being an
uniform yellowish grey, while a number of dark streaks
run round the body at right angles to the line of the
body and limbs, reminding one rather strongly of the
markings of the tiger. A chain of black spots
runs down the spine as far as the tail, which is very
much shorter and more bushy in proportion than that
of the domestic species. The tip, for an inch or so, is
invariably black, the rest being banded in the same
way as the body. The ears, too, are much shorter

The Cat Tribe. 91

than those of the tame animal, and the aspect of the
creature is remarkably fierce and savage. Its character
is not belied by its appearance, for its courage and
ferocity are so great that even to an armed man it is
no contemptible foe.

The Lynxes form a very conspicuous group. The
Common Lynx (Lyncus vir gains) of Southern Europe
is well known by name, its keenness of sight having
passed into a proverb. It is spread over a consider-
able part of the mountainous parts of South Europe,
and is also found in many of the forests of Northern Asia.

The Lynx is not a very large animal, being about
three feet in total length, exclusive of the tail. The
fur is of a dark-grey colour, varying slightly, according
to the season of the year, with darker spots of various
sizes. The tail is very short, sometimes being barely
six inches in length. The ears are remarkable for the
tuft of long hair which fringes the tips.

The Canadian Lynx, or Peeshoo (Lyncus Cana-
densis) is chiefly noticeable for its mode of running,
which operation consists of a series of bounds, all four
feet coming to the ground almost simultaneously. The
fur, which is long and fine, is much sought after.

There is another species, the Booted Lynx (Lyncus
caligatus) found both in Asia and Africa, which is so
called from the deep black colour of the lower parts of
the legs, causing them to appear as though enclosed in
tightly-fitting boots. None of the Lynxes are particu-
larly destructive, except to the small animals, such as
hares, rabbits, etc., upon which they prey.

One of the most interesting of the Cat tribe, and
the last which can be mentioned in this paper, is the
well-known Chetah, or Hunting Leopard (Gueparda
jubata), sometimes termed the Youze.

The Chetah is found both in Asia and Africa, but
in the former continent alone has been brought under

92 Anecdotal Natural History.

the dominion of man. In size it is slightly superior
to the leopard, its long limbs causing it to appear even
larger than it is in reality. The markings are not un-
like those of the leopard, to which animal, however, it
is by no means closely related, appearing to form a
connecting link between the feline and canine races.
It is only slightly possessed of the power of climbing
trees, and its limbs do not possess the strength of most
of the cats.

Unlike most of its tribe, the Chetah captures its prey
by open chase, and it is in this way that it is made
useful to man, the animal being carefully trained for
capturing game by many of the Asiatic races.

For this purpose, the animal is blindfolded, and
taken out to the scene of operations in a light cart,
where he is kept until a herd of deer or other game
comes within sight. The hood is then removed, and
the animal's attention directed towards the quarry.
The Chetah immediately slips gently off the car,
always doing so on the side which is away from the
deer. Flattening his body on the ground, he creeps
up to within a short distance of the unsuspecting
animal, taking advantage of any bush or stone as a
cover. He then launches himself upon the doomed
animal, seldom needing more than two or three
springs, fastens on its neck, and pulls it to the ground.
The keepers immediately hurry to the spot, and take
off his attention by offering some dainty, such as a
ladleful of the blood. The slaughtered animal is then
secured, and the Chetah is hooded and led back to the
car, when he waits for another victim.

The Chetah is very easily tamed, being naturally of
a very gentle and placid disposition. Even a newly-
caught individual is easily managed, seldom or never
exhibiting the savage nature of the lions and tigers,
and other members of the Cat tribe.

No. VIII.— THE DOG TRIBE.

UPON examining the respective skeletons of one of
the cats and of a member of the dog family, we
shall see that the distinctions are very apparent. The
form of the cat is evidently that of an animal which is
intended to creep up stealthily to its intended victim,
and then to despatch it by means of a single bound.
Almost every detail of the cat tells the same story ; the
structure of the skeleton, the pads beneath the feet,
the retractile claws, and the powerful fore-limbs all
unmistakably pointing to the same conclusion.

But the members of the dog tribe are as evidently
intended for the pursuit of prey by rapidity of foot
alone. The limbs are formed more for speed than for
strength, and the head and shoulders do not possess the
massive power found in the cats, which bury their
teeth in the flesh of the victim, and retain their hold
until the death-blow is given.

The members of the dog tribe, including the wolves,
jackals, and foxes, differ from the cats in many points
both of structure and habits.

It will be remembered that the latter animals feed
chiefly upon prey captured by themselves; the dogs, on
the contrary, will devour with equal avidity the flesh
of any slaughtered animal which they may find, as well
as offal of all sorts.

A glance at the feet will at once point out the

94 Anecdotal Natural History.

reason. The claws, which in the cats are of such
service in the capture of prey, are in the dogs of
comparatively little use for this purpose, being short,
blunt, and non-retractile.

That there must be some original type of the dog is
self-evident, though it is almost, if not quite impossible
to ascertain with any precision what that type may
be.

There is no similar difficulty about the wolves, foxes,
and other members of the dog tribe, because they live a
wild life, and so can preserve their own typical
character. But the very nature of the dog compels it to
withdraw itself from a wild life, and attach itself to man.
More or less it becomes his companion, and does his
work, and it is therefore necessarily modified according
to the race, the climate, and the domestic economy of
the human beings with whom it associates itself.

Take the cities of the East.

There we have the dog, not quite, but nearly wild,
doing the work of man, by acting as scavenger, and
so enabling man to live.

Take the semi-nomad North American Indian, who
lives in tents, but remains for months, and sometimes
for years, in the same locality. He is a warrior and
hunter, and nothing else, utterly despising work, and,
even if he does grow a crop of mai/e, delegating all
the work to the women.

With him the dog becomes the guardian of the
temporary village. He knows every inhabitant, and
allows no stranger to enter unless accompanied by one
of the warriors.

Go further north, and take the Esquimaux, an
aggregation of equally nomad tribes, but inhabiting a
region of almost perpetual snow and ice. Here the dog
becomes the beast of burden and traction. He can have
no roof to cover him, for his masters are themselves

7 lie Dog Tribe. 95

glad to huddle in their little huts of snow, which are
hardly large enough to hold them and their families. So
he is supplied with a mat of long and dense fur, which
enables him to live where the smooth-haired dog would
be frozen to death.

Should he belong to a pastoral race, he becomes
the faithful guardian of the flocks. Should he belong
to a race that lives by hunting, and has to contend
for food with the wild beasts, he becomes the fierce
and tireless hound. And should he belong to those
who only want him to make a pet of him, he becomes
a pet accordingly, useless, silly, and selfish.

All the varieties of the domestic dog are purely
artificial, and as in these pages we treat of Nature,
and not of art, we make no mention of them.

These, therefore, will be altogether omitted, and the
wild animals of the tribe alone taken into considera-
tion.

The first to be mentioned is the well-known Dhole,
or Kholsun (Cuon DitkJniensis\ which is found in the
more western parts of British India

The colour of the animal is a dark bay, the muzzle,
ears, and tip of the tail being darker than the rest of
the body. In size, it about equals a rather small grey-
hound.

Common though the dhole is in the country which
it inhabits, it is seldom or never seen by the residents,
owing to its timid and retired mode of life By many
travellers, indeed, it has been considered as merely a
myth of the natives. In the dense jungles, however,
it is abundant enough.

The most noticeable point concerning the dhole is its
fondness for the chase. For the purpose of procuring
prey it combines in large packs of some fifty or sixty
individuals, and by sheer force of numbers contrives
to overcome such large and powerful game as the wild

g6 Anecdotal Natural History.

boar and the tiger. And this is the more remarkable
when we consider what insignificant weapons the dhole
can bring to bear against the powerful tusks and
talons of its adversaries. The secret of success, how-
ever, lies in its courage and pertinacity, for, although
their comrades are being struck down on all sides, the
survivors continue the attack without allowing their
foe an instant's rest, and do not cease their onslaught
until the unfortunate animal yields from fatigue and
loss of blood.

The speed of the dhole is very considerable, even
the swift-footed deer being unable to escape from their
apparently insignificant pursuers. It is a curious fact
that, while engaged in the chase, the dhole is almost
silent, an occasional low whimper being the only sound
ever emitted.

In Nepaul, and the northern parts of India, an
animal nearly allied to the dhole is found, which is
generally known as the Buansuah (Cuon primcevus),

This animal, which is generally supposed to be the
progenitor of our domestic dog, is very similar in
habits and general appearance to the animal already
described. Like the dhole, it hunts in packs, which,
however, seldom consist of more than ten or a dozen
individuals. It differs also in its habit of giving
tongue while running, continually uttering a peculiar
bark, very distinct from that of the domesticated
animal.

The buansuah is often captured when young, and
carefully trained for the chase, the wild boar being
the selected quarry. For the purpose of hunting this
animal the buansuah is very valuable, its sudden,
snapping bite being far more effective than the attack
of the ordinary hound. It is not so easily taught,
however, to follow other game, being rather apt to
relinquish the pursuit almost at the moment of capture.

98 Anecdotal Natural History,

The well-known DINGO (Cants dingo] of Australia
must not be passed by without mention.

This animal is hot thought to be an indigenous in-
habitant of the continent it inhabits, inasmuch as all
Australian mammals seem to be marsupials, but is
supposed to have been imported from some unknown
source many years ago. It is rather a handsome
animal, being of a rich reddish-brown colour, sprinkled
with blackish hairs over the greater part of the body ;
the ears are short and erect, and the tail is thick and
bushy, almost as much so as the well-known ' brush '
of the fox.

To the colonists and farmers of Australia the dingo
is an unmitigated pest, ravaging the flocks night after
night, and committing incalculable damage in a very
short space of time. As many as twelve hundred sheep
and lambs have been stolen from a single colony by
these animals in the course of three months. And the
cunning of the dingo, being little inferior to that
of the fox, renders it a very difficult matter for the
settlers to protect their herds from the attacks of the
wily foe.

Like the dhole of India, the dingo hunts in large
packs, each of which has its appointed sphere of action,
and never trespasses into the district of another band.
When attacked by human foes, it shows little inclina-
tion to fight except when brought to bay, when it will
attack its pursuers with great ferocity.

Various attempts have been made to domesticate
the dingo, and with partial success ; but its temper is
always very uncertain, and it is always apt to attack
any passing human being, its own master not excepted,
without the slightest provocation or apparent cause.

LEAVING the dogs themselves, we come to the
closely allied JACKALS, which are found in many parts
of the African and Asiatic continents. There are

TJie Dog Tribe, 99

several species of these animals, of which the most
abundant and familiar are the common Jackal, or
\\\\o\3\\(Canisaureus} of India and Ceylon, etc., and the
Black-backed Jackal (Cam's mesomelas) of Southern
Atnca.

The former of these animals is found in very great
numbers, but, owing to its nocturnal habits, is more
often heard than seen, keeping up, as it does, a per-
petual howl from dusk to dawn. It usually herds to-
gether in packs, which retire to the thick forest during
the day, and sally out after dark in search of food.

Their prey usually consists of the smaller quadru
peds, which they can overpower without much diffi
culty. They are not very particular, however, and are
equally satisfied with the carcase of any slain animal
which they may happen to fiud.

The jackal is often known as the' lion's provider,' owing
to its habit of following closely upon the footsteps of the
large members of the feline tribe. This title, however,
is rather misapplied, for jackals follow a lion or tiger
solely for the purpose of preying upon what remains of
the carcases of his prey after his lordly appetite is
satisfied. A ring of jackals may often be seen sur-
rounding a lion when engaged in feeding, patiently-
waiting until his wants are supplied and they can con-
sume the remainder.

Occasionally a jackal will separate himself from his
companions, and live in solitude. These hermit
animals are terrible foes to the farmers, attacking the
hen-roosts and sheep-folds by night, and causing great
havoc amongst the assembled animals.

The fur of the jackal is of a yellowish-brown tinge,
whence the scientific name, aureus — i.e., ' golden ' — is
derived. In size, it rather exceeds the common British
fox. Like that animal, it is possessed of a powerful
and unpleasant odour, which, singularly enough,

The Dog Tribe. 101

gradually dies away if the creature be kept in confine-
ment.

The black-backed jackal of South Africa may be
easily distinguished from the Asiatic species by the
black and white markings upon the back. The size
and general appearance of both animals are much the
same; in habits also they are so similar that a detailed
description is rendered unnecessary.

THE fiercest and most terrible animals of the dog
tribe are found in the WOLVES, which inhabit almost
all parts of the world, from the Arctic regions to the
tropics.

There are several kinds of wolves, as well as many
varieties, which by some authors are elevated to the rank
of species. The best known of these is the Common
Wolf (Cam's lupus}, which is so abundant in many
parts of Europe. The colour of this animal is grey,
rather thickly sprinkled with black hairs, and tinted
in some parts of the body with a warm fawn hue ;
the lower parts of the body are almost white.

When found singly, which is not very often, the
wolf is a comparatively insignificant enemy, his
courage not being of a very high order ; when banded
together in packs, however, which is almost always
the case, there are few animals which he cannot
overcome. Even the bear himself often falls a
victim to his attacks, and such powerful animals as
the buffalo and the elk have little or no chance against
him.

One great peculiarity in the wolf lies in its unweary-
ing pertinacity when engaged in the pursuit of prey.
Once fairly upon the trail, it follows up the victim with
a long, swinging gallop, which carries it along at a
wonderful pace, and is certain, sooner or later, to bring
it up with the quarry, however fleet the hunted animal
may be.

IO2

Anecdotal Natural History.

When the victim is bnce overtaken, its chance of
escape is small indeed. The wolves crowd round it

Wolf.

attacking it with a series of fierce, snapping bites, each
of which causes the teeth to meet in the flesh of their

'lue nog Tribe. 103

adversary. If one animal is killed, another at once
takes its place, and before very long the issue of the
struggle is decided.

When the victim is once slain, the wolves seem to
lose all control over themselves, fighting fiercely for
every morsel of the coveted flesh, and attacking each
other with the most ungovernable fury. If one should
be overcome, he is instantly devoured by the survivors,
and it is even reported that any animal who is unfor-
tunate enough to dabble himself with the blood of the
victim is certain to share the same fate. A weak and
sickly wolf, also, is sure to fall a prey to the ravenous
hunger of its comrades.

The wolf is not very particular as to the nature of
his prey, animals of all kinds, even to frogs, toads,
and insects, supplying him with food.

It seems strange that so bold an animal as is the
wolf as a general rule, should at other times
exhibit the most utter cowardice. If a wolf is caught
in a trap, for instance, its courage seems at once to
leave it, and it cowers down in a corner of its
prison, and allows itself to be slaughtered without
offering the slightest resistance.

As is the case with the lion, too, its suspicious nature
sometimes offers a chance of escape to its intended
victims. Travellers, when chased by wolves, have more
than once escaped by trailing a piece of rope, or some
other object from the carriage, and changing it for
another as soon as the wolves began to lose their
suspicions.

The hunters also take advantage of this excessive
caution, and protect their slaughtered game from the
wolf as they do from the lion — viz., by planting a stick
by the side of the carcase, and attaching to it a streamer
of white cloth, which flutters in the wind, and deters
the fierce animals from approaching.

IO4 Anecdotal Natural History.

The Black Wolf (Cants occidentalis) of America
greatly resembles the last-mentioned animal, both in
character and habits. In appearance also it differs
only in a slight degree, and for a long time was con-
sidered to be nothing more than a permanent variety
of the common species.

A smaller and more abundant animal, found in
great numbers upon the vast American plains, is the
Prairie Wolf (Cam's latrans). These animals are
always to be seen in great profusion upon the outskirt
of the herds of bisons which populate the plains,
hovering in the neighbourhood in the hopes of over-
coming any injured or weakly member of the herd.
A considerable number also usually follow the hunter,
feeding upon the carcases of animals which he has
slain, and from which he has taken sufficient for his
own requirements.

One of the best-known of the American wolves is
the Coyote, or Cajote (Cants ochropus), which is
equally hated and despised by the hunters on account
of its skulking and cowardly nature. This animal,
which is very abundant on the prairies, has more of a
fox-like aspect than the other wolves. In general
habits it presents no very great difference from the
previously-mentioned species.

The young of the wolves vary from three to eight
or nine in number, and are brought up in a kind
of nest constructed by the mother, which is lined
with moss and fur pulled from her own body. When
they attain the age of six or seven months, the young
wolves are able to take care of themselves.

In spite of their fierce and savage nature, wolves
have occasionally been tamed and brought into subjec-
tion— such animals, of course, being captured when
quite young, before their character was fully developed.
A mixed breed has sometimes occurred, between the

TJie Dog Jrtbe. 105

tame wolf and the domestic dog, their offspring being
especially powerful and courageous.

NEXT we come to the FOXES, of which there are
several species. Formerly included by zoologists in
the preceding genus Cants, together with the dogs
and the wolves, they were separated by later
writers on account of the elongated pupil of the
eye, and also from the bushy nature of the tail.
The ears, too, are always triangular, and are sharply
pointed.

The best known of the foxes, of course, is that
found in our own country ( Vulpes vulgaris\ and which
is so familiar to us on account of the chase, for which
it is specially preserved.

The colour of this animal is a rich reddish-brown,
becoming rather lighter on the lower parts of the
body. At the approach of winter the fur becomes
perceptibly paler, and at the same time increases
greatly in thickness, just as is the case with the stoat,
although not to the same degree. The tip of the
tail, or ' brush,' always retains a more or less whitish
hue.

Perhaps the most remarkable point in the nature of
the fox is the singularly powerful and unpleasant
odour which is exuded from the body, and which
proceeds from glands situated near the tail. So
strong is this scent, that any object touched by the
fox retains the odour for a considerable period of
time.

The fox seems to be aware of the possession of
this peculiar property, although, in all probability, his
nostrils are unable to perceive the odour ; for when
hunted he will try every means which occurs to his
fertile brain to break the line of scent. For this
purpose he employs a perfect variety of tricks, such
as returning upon his own track for some little distance,

The Dog Tribe. 107

and leaping oft' at right angles, in the hope of escaping
before the fraud is discovered. The animal will even
roll in any odorous substance he can find, in order to
disguise his own peculiar scent, and mislead the
hounds by causing them to imagine that they are upon
the wrong track.

Many foxes become so crafty that they make their
escape again and again, always contriving to elude the
pack, until the hounds become completely dispirited,
and consider the issue of the chase as a foregone con-
clusion.

There is a gravel pit in Kent which exhibits the
cunning of the fox in a very singular manner.

The animal has burrowed into the ground at some
distance from the mouth of the pit, carefully concealing
the entrance to the ' earth ' among the tangled vege-
tation. Carrying the tunnel on, a second exit appears
in the side of the pit itself, some half-way to the
ground.

When hunted, the animal was evidently accustomed
to enter his burrow at the upper end, pass through it,
and make his escape by leaping into the quarry, while
the hounds were at fault above, the idea of the second
exit not being likely to strike the huntsmen, at any rate
for some little time.

The same craft and cunning is employed by the
fox when pillaging the hen-roosts, etc., of the neigh-
bourhood, his visits being paid with such caution that
detection is rendered almost impossible.

Yet, cunning as is the fox as a general rule, on some
occasions his craft seems almost entirely to desert him.
The late Mr. Charles Waterton, in one of his well
known essays, relates an instance of this want of saga-
city.

A fox, visiting a poultry-yard, had made oft" with
eight young turkeys. Finding that his booty would

io8 Anecdotal Natural History.

more than suffice for a single meal, he buried five of
his victims in a neighbouring garden, evidently intend-
ing to return on the following evening and resume his
banquet. But although the bodies of the slaughtered
birds were carefully concealed, one wing of each
was left projecting above the soil, thus pointing out
the transaction to every passer-by. As Mr. Waterton
remarks, 'An ass, in this case, would have shown just
as much talent and cunning as Reynard himself had
exhibited.'

Passing to the foxes of other countries, the Ameri-
can fox ( Vulpes fulvus) deserves a passing mention.
This animal is very variable in its colouring, specimens
having been found of almost every intermediate hue
between black and pale yellow. A black streak
almost invariably crosses the shoulders, earning fo*-
the animal the alternative title of ' cross fox.'

The Arctic fox ( Vulpes lagopus) is a very well-known
animal, chiefly on account of the valuable fur, which
is much used in commerce. During the winter, at
which time it is most in request, the coat is of a beau-
tiful silky white, darkening to a dull greyish-brown
as the season advances. The Arctic fox inhabits the
northern regions of Europe, Asia, and America.

This animal appears to be almost destitute of the
remarkable cunning of the others of its race, being
easily trapped, and allowing a hunter to approach within
easy shooting distance. In one way, however, it is
sagacious enough, possessing the power of imitating
the cries of the birds upon which it feeds, and so en-
ticing them within its reach.

SOMEWHAT resembling a very small fox in general
appearance, the Asse, or Caama ( Vulpes caama) merits
a passing mention.

This animal is found in Southern Africa, where it is
remarkable for its inroads upon the nests of the ostriches

The Eog Tribe. 109

the eggs of which it destroys in great numbers. Not
being able to pierce the thick shell with its tiny jaws,
it rolls the egg against a stone, or other hard substance,
and so contrives to obtain the contents.

Passing by the Otocyon and the Fennec, we come
to the last of the dog tribe which can be mentioned in
this paper, and whose position in the family is as yet
very uncertain. This is the Hunting Dog (Lycaon
Tenaticus], which has been thought to constitute a
connecting link between the dog tribe and the hyaenas ;
a final decision, however, has not as yet been arrived
at. In fact, the characteristics of the hyaenas and the
dogs are so curiously intermixed in this strange animal,
that it must be a matter of extreme difficulty to rele-
gate it to its true position in the scale of creation.

The colour of the hunting dog is a reddish-brown,
mottled with black-and-white patches ; the nose and
jaws are black, and a black streak runs along the head
between the eyes. The ears are large, and the tail is
long and bushy.

Like the dhole and the buansuah, the hunting
dog combines in large packs for the purpose of
procuring game, generally choosing the night-time for
its predatory excursions. Its sense of scent is won-
derfully keen, and its speed very great, and it is but
seldom that the hunted animal is allowed to escape.

It will be seen that, although the cat and dog tribes
both include some of the larger carnivora, the two
families are, in structure as well as in habits, essentially
different ; and that the distinctions between the do-
mestic cat and dog are no greater than between their
more savage relatives which have never known the
loss of freedom.

No. IX.— THE CETACEA, OR WHALES.

THE mere fact that the Whales are exclusively
inhabitants of the water, is usually held to be a
sufficient proof that they should be included among
the fishes. In fact, it is generally considered that all
sub-aquatic creatures, be they mammals, fish, Crustacea,
or radiates, may be included under the one compre-
hensive title.

As far as the whales are concerned, there is certainly
some ground for the idea. Their habits and mode of
life, their food, and their very form, so closely resemble
those of the fishes that we can scarcely wonder if these
animals are popularly supposed to form part of that
group. We have only to look a little more closely into
their structure, however, to find that they have nothing
in common with fishes.

An examination of their mode of breathing is alone
sufficient to point out the true position of the whales
in the animal kingdom.

It is well known that all the fishes respire by means
of gills, by the agency of which the necessary oxygen
is extracted from the water which they inhabit. But the
whales, like all other mammals, are obliged to breathe
atmospheric air by means of lungs, for which purpose
they are compelled to rise to the surface of the water.
Were they prevented from doing so, they would be
drowned just as would any other mammal under

The Cctacea, or Whales. 1 1 1

similar circumstances. The mode of life of the
whales, however, differs completely from that of other
mammalia, the breathing apparatus being modified in
such a manner as to allow them to remain beneath the
water for a considerable space of time. This structure
we shall presently examine in greater detail.

As the method of respiration effectually disproves
the general notion that whales should be ranked among
the fishes, there is little difficulty in placing them in
their true position. The structure of the heart, which
possesses two auricles and two ventricles, whereas the
fishes only possess one of each, and the fact that the
young are nurtured by the mother's milk, are proofs
amply sufficient to determine their true situation to be
among the mammalia.

In few animals do we find the structure more
curiously modified to suit the conditions of existence
than is the case with the whales. Passing the whole of
their life in the water, their form, like that of the fish,
is that best adapted for passing through their native
element ; the organs of locomotion, however, are of a
different nature.

The fore-limbs, until stripped of their covering,
closely resemble the fins of a fish. They are, however,
of little use in forcing the animal through the water,
their chief duty lying in preserving the equilibrium of
the body and in clasping their young. The hinder
limbs are not developed, being visible merely as small
and imperfect bones when the skeleton is examined.
In fact, they can scarcely be said to exist at all, and the
very pelvis is only a slight rudimentary process, not
attached to the spine.

The great organ of locomotion is found in the tail,
which is set transversely with the body, and is usually
of very great comparative size. In a whale of ordinary
dimensions, the tail, though only a few feet long, would

112 A necdotal Natural History.

measure in breadth almost one-fourth of the whole
length of the body. Even these dimensions, large as
they are, are sometimes exceeded ; a whale captured a
year or two since, and which was only sixty-five feet in
length, measured no less than twenty-seven feet in the
breadth of the tail.

The muscular power of this organ is simplyenormous,
the animal being enabled by its aid to leap clear out
of the water to a height of several feet, a movement
usually known as 'breaching.' The chief danger in
whaling lies in the blows of the animal's tail, any one
of which is sufficient to dash the boat and its occu-
pants to fragments.

Although in almost every pictorial representation of
the whale the eye forms a very conspicuous object, it
is in reality extremely small in comparison with the
size of the animal, sight being of little use in taking
the prey. The ear, too, is exceedingly minute, and
for a very good reason.

It will be remembered, of course, that water, which
is much more dense than air, is a proportionately excel-
lent conductor of sound. If a man submerges his head
he can hear the beat of oars upon the surface, while
the boat to which they belong is a mile or more
distant.

Again, if a swimmer dives beneath the water, and a
heavy blow be struck upon its surface above him, he
not only hears the sound, but is almost stunned by the
shock. So we can easily see that if the ear of the
whale were proportioned in size to the dimensions of
its owner, the animal would inevitably be killed by the
shock caused from the first blow of its own tail.

In point of fact, the external ear of the whale is so
small that it will scarcely admit a crowquill.

Here we are met by another problem.

Even when the whale lies on the surface the ear

H

H4 Anecdotal Natural History.

is under water, and can only hear sounds that are
transmitted through the water. How, then, is the
whale to hear sounds that are made above the surface
and are transmitted through the air ? The difficulty
seems insuperable, but is overcome in the simplest
manner imaginable. Let us see what is the struc-
ture of the ear in mammalia, taking our own as an
example.

First, there is an aperture for the admission of air.
At a variable depth in this aperture, a very elastic mem-
brane, called the ' tympanum,' or drum, is stretched
tightly across it, and is acted upon by any vibrations
of air which are rapid and regular enough to become
sounds.

On the other side of the drum is a set of bones,
called, from their appearance and office, the hammer,
anvil, and stirrup. These take the vibrations of the
drum, and transmit them to the nerves of hearing,
through which they pass to the brain. I may incident-
ally mention that the modern telephone is nothing but
a rude imitation of the structure of the ear.

The tube does not end at the drum, but passes on,
though very much reduced in size, to the back of the
throat. If this secondary tube (called the Eustachian
tube) be stopped, deafness results, because the vibra-
tions of the drum are checked.

Now, in the whale the size of the two tubes is
reversed. The external tube is very small, but the
Eustachian tube is very large, and passes into the
nostrils, or 'blow-hole.' The aperture of this blow-
hole is always above water when the whale floats
on the surface, so that the vibrations of the air can
pass through it to the tympanum. Thus the whale hears
through the blow-hole any sounds which are caused
by the vibration of air, and through the external tube
those sounds which are caused by the vibration of water.

Il6 Anecdotal Natural History.

I mentioned that the blow-hole has only a partial right
to the name of nostril. It performs only one duty of
a nostril, i.e., that of admitting air to the lungs, and is
not in any way an organ of scent. In fact, the sense
of smell is absolutely wanting in the whale tribe, the
entire system of olfactory nerves being absent.

No water can pass down the blow-hole, a simple and
very effective valve being so arranged that it closes
the aperture by the mere pressure of the water above it.

The whales being warm-blooded animals, some provi-
sion must necessarily be made for retaining the vital
heat of their bodies in the conditions under which their
lives are passed. Yet to all outward appearance, this
seems to have been entirely neglected, the smooth and
polished skin being apparently the very worst medium
which could possibly have been chosen.

A glance beneath the surface, however, tells a diffe-
rent tale. We find that immediately beneath the skin
is a layer of coils of fat, some twelve to eighteen or
more inches in thickness, which is enclosed in tough,
membranous cells. This substance, commonly known
as ' blubber,' serves a double purpose, the non-con-
ducting fat retaining the heat of the body, while the
thick elastic mass resists the enormous pressure of the
water at the vast depths to which the animal descends.

We now come to the remarkable modification of
the breathing apparatus which allows the whale to
remain beneath the water for a considerable space of
time without rising to the surface in order to obtain a
fresh supply of air.

As is the case with all warm-blooded animals, respi-
ration in some form or other must be continually kept
up. The blood must be constantly supplied with
oxygen, or life cannot be preserved.

With the whale, however, the necessity for constant
respiration would entirely prevent it from pursuing its

The Get ace a, or Whales. 117

search for prey at the depths to which it descends,
and would oblige it to face death in one of two forms
— starvation or suffocation.

A most wonderful structure is therefore provided,
which enables the animal to aerate a supplementary
stock of blood, which can be introduced into the
circulatory system as occasion requires, taking the
place of the exhausted fluid, and doing away with the
necessity for constant respiration. This is managed
as follows : —

When the whale ascends to the surface of the water
in order to breathe, it makes a succession of inhalations,
generally some forty or fifty in number, which are
usually termed the spoutings, on account of the
shower of water mixed with hot breath, which is
thrown up into the air to the height of eighteen or twenty
feet. During this operation the whole of the blood is
thoroughly aerated, not only that in the circulatory
system, but also the reserve supply, which is stored
away in a vast mass of auxiliary blood-vessels which
line the interior of the chest. These vessels contain a
sufficient stock of the purified blood to sustain the
animal for a considerable time without obtaining a fresh
supply of air, and it is by no means unusual for a
whale to disappear beneath the water for upwards of
half-an-hour without rising to replenish its stock.

Were it not for the knowledge of this habit the
difficulties of whaling would be greatly increased ; as
it is, however, the huge animal is slain with compara-
;ively little trouble.

When a whale is seen, a boat puts off and makes
for the spot as speedily as possible.

As soon as the boat approaches within a short dis-
tance, a harpoon — a spear with a barbed head, to the
end of which is attached a coil of rope— is flung at the
animal.

Il8 Anecdotal Natural History.

The frightened whale instantly dives beneath the
surface, carrying the harpoon with it, the rope being
uncoiled from the boat as rapidly as possible. For half
an hour or so, the animal remains beneath the surface,
but is at length obliged to rise in order to procure a
fresh supply of air. No sooner does it appear, and
begin its spouting, than the boat approaches, and
again drives it below before the operation is completed.

Not having been able to aerate the whole of the
blood, it cannot remain so long beneath the surface,
and is soon obliged to again rise in search of air.
Again it is driven below, and so on until the animal is
so weakened from want of air that the pursuers can
come to close quarters.

The depth to which a whale will descend when pur-
sued is simply astonishing. On one occasion the
animal took down with it more than one thousand
fathoms of rope, or considerably over a mile, and yet
was enabled to bear the tremendous weight of the rope,
and also to drag the boat with its pursuers rapidly
through the water.

It appears strange that so comparatively insignificant
a weapon as the harpoon should prove so deadly to
an animal of such enormous dimensions. But the
animal does not lose its life on account of the very
slight wound produced by the harpoon.

The real instrument of death is the spear, which has a
small and very sharp blade and a very long handle.
When the whale is quite exhausted by fatigue, the spear
is thrust into the vital organs, and in spite of its size the
animal easily succumbs.

Formerly, ihe harpoon was always thrown by hand.
It is now mostly shot from a gun, and, of course, can
penetrate more deeply than the hand-thrown weapon.

To -mankind, whether in a civilized or a savage con-
dition, the whale is of inestimable value. From the

The Cetacea, or WJiales. 119

blubber and other parts of the body we obtain the
valuable oil, which in many countries is almost a
necessity of life ; the so-called ' whalebone,' and the
bones themselves are of considerable value ; and, by
the dwellers of the polar regions, almost every part of
the body is used as food, the skin, and, more
particularly, certain parts of the gums, being considered
as very great dainties.

The curious substance popularly known as ' whale-
bone ' deserves a few words.

To the title of ' bone ' it has no claims whatever, its
structure being analogous to that of hair, feathers, scales,
and teeth, which are merely the same substance under
different forms. It is found in the jaws, lying in thin
flat plates of various breadth, and from ten to twelve
feet in length. These do not spring from the gums
themselves, but from a curious vascular formation
resting upon them. Each plate is split at the extremity
into a number of hair-like filaments.

In a certain sense, the whalebone takes the place of
the teeth, inasmuch as it captures the prey, although it is
not used for mastication, which, from the nature of
the food, is rendered unnecessary. Its use is as
follows.

Those species of whales which are provided with
the 'baleen,' or whalebone, prey upon creatures of very
minute size, such as small shrimps, crabs, and lobsters,
medusae, etc., which are generally found in large
shoals. Its chief food consists of a small mollusc
called the Clio. Opening its huge jaws to the widest
extent, the whale drives rapidly through the shoal, thus
filling the mouth with the little creatures; the jaws are
then closed, and the contained water is driven out
through the interstices of the whalebone. This, how-
ever, completely prevents the escape of the prey, which
can then be swallowed at leisure.

I2O Anecdotal Natural History.

Having now glanced at the principal characteristics
of the whales as a family, we will take each of the
more important members in turn, and devote a short
space to their habits and peculiarities.

The first in order is the Greenland Whale (Baltzna
mysticetus), or, as it is often termed, the Right Whale.
This whale is an inhabitant of the seas bordering upon
the northern polar regions, where, in spite of the
annual slaughter, it is still to be found in considerable
numbers.

The Greenland whale, although of great size, is by
no means equal to the huge rorqual in its dimensions.
Its average length is from fifty-five to sixty feet. The
head is extremely large, occupying rather more than
one-third of the whole bulk.

The colour of this whale • is a deep velvety black
upon the upper parts of the body, and greyish white
upon the under surface. It is one of the most useful
of all the whales to mankind, the baleen, or whalebone,
being long and of fine quality, and the oil rich, and
found in great quantity. Even the very bones teem
with the oil, the jawbones especially producing a con-
siderable amount.

It is believed that one cub only is produced at a
birth in the case of the Greenland whale. For the
first few month of its life the baleen is not developed,
and the young whale is obliged to depend for the
whole of its nourishment upon its mother, who never
leaves it until it is old enough to forage for itself.

The Rorqual (Physalus boops) is the largest of the
whale tribe, sometimes attaining to the extraordinary
length of one hundred feet, or even more. In spite of
its huge size, it is of comparatively little value, the oil
obtained from the body being very scanty, and the
whalebone short and of very inferior quality. The
animal is therefore seldom molested except by inex-

The Cetacea, or Whales, 121

perienced sailors who are unable to distinguish it from
the Greenland species.

The food of the rorqual consists not only of the
minute creatures before mentioned, but also of the
larger fish, such as the cod, etc. The nature of the
food being so different, the gullet of this whale is of
much greater size than in the Greenland whale, in
which animal it barely exceeds two inches in diameter.
• There is a popular saying among seamen that the
Greenland whale can swim a jolly-boat and crew in its
mouth, and yet be choked with a herring.

In search of its prey, the rorqual often follows the
shoals of fish from place to place, and occasionally
takes up its quarters upon the borders of the fisheries,
to which it causes considerable damage. In such a
case it often happens that, pursuing its wished-for prey
rather too rashly, it becomes stranded upon the beach,
where it is utterly helpless, and is easily slain. A
year seldom passes, even in our own country, without
a rorqual or two being stranded upon the shores.

The rorqual may be distinguished from the Green-
land whale by its dark-greyish hue, by its more
slender form, and by the fact of its possessing a
dorsal fin. The skin lies in deep longitudinal folds
along the under parts of the body, for which reason
the name ' rorqual ' was given to it, that title being
derived from a Norwegian word signifying a ' whale
with folds.'

The Spermaceti Whale ( Catodon macrocephalus), or
Cachalot, is of great value to mankind, both on
account of the oil procured from the blubber, which is
of a very fine quality, and also of the substance known
as spermaceti, which is found in considerable
quantities.

This whale differs in several important points from
the two preceding species.

122 A necdotal No tural History.

The head is extremely large, occupying nearly a
third of the entire length, whence the name macro-
cephalus — i.e., 'large-headed ' — is derived. The snout
is abruptly squared off, and the blow-hole is placed
upon the fore part of the head. The jaws are not
provided with the baleen, or whalebone, but are
furnished instead with a number of formidable teeth,
set in the lower jaw, and fitting into corresponding
cavities in the upper one. The upper jaw has merely
a short row upon each side.

Although to us these teeth are of no particular value,
they are held in the greatest esteem by certain savage
tribes. On more than one occasion a war has been
waged by one chief upon another, merely for the
possession of a single whale's tooth.

The cachalot attains to a considerable size, its
average length being from seventy to seventy-five feet
in length.

The skull, which is elongated and narrow, does not
occupy more than one-half of the space assigned to
the head, the upper portion being composed of ten-
dinous cells. In two great cavities in this mass is con-
tained the spermaceti, which is found in a fluid, oily
condition, and is literally baled out by means of
buckets, a hole being cut in the upper part of the
head, and the spermaceti extracted just as is water
from a well.

The oil expressed from the blubber is of a very fine
quality, and is obtained in considerable quantities, a
cachalot of ordinary size yielding about one hundred
barrels, as well as twenty-four barrels, or thereabouts,
of the spermaceti.

This whale is able to remain beneath the water for
a much longer period than the previously described
species, an hour sometimes elapsing before it is obliged
to return to the surface. The ' spoutings ' are from

The Cetacea, or Whales. 123

sixty to seventy in number, and occupy about ten
minutes. It is a curious fact that the number of
spoutings is always exactly the same in the same
individual.

As regards the locality in which it is found, the
cachalot is a rather ubiquitous creature, inhabiting all
parts of the ocean, excepting those in the neighbour-
hood of the polar regions. It is an occasional visitor
to our shores, but is less often seen there than is tbe
rase with the Greenland species.

No. X.— THE SEAL TRIBE.

LIKE the whales, which formed the subject of
the preceding paper of this series, the Seal?
are inhabitants of the water, although they are not
entirely aquatic in their habits, as we shall presently
see.

Supposing that we possessed no previous informa-
tion upon the subject, a single glance at their outward
structure would be sufficient to indicate to us the mode
of life for which these animals were intended ; for the
long, slender body, and the broad, webbed lirnbs,
formed almost like the fins of a fish, would at once
inform us that the water was their appointed habita-
tion.

For an aquatic life the seals are singularly adapted.

The form of the body allows them to pass through
the water with great facility, and the swimming powers
are so highly developed that the animals are enabled
to pursue and capture the fish in their own element.

If the motions of a captive seal are watched, as the
animal disports itself in its tank, it will appear to pass
through the water without active exertion, the lithe,
supple body going through its manifold evolutions
without any visible means of propulsion. By looking
a little more closely into the matter, however, we may
find out the secret.

The fore limbs have but little to do with the matter.

The Seal Tribe. 125

being used as an aid to progression more upon dry
land than in the water. Indeed, when the seal swims,
it presses the fore-feet, or flippers, as they are called,
against the body. The hinder feet, however, which
are not rudimentary as in the whales, but are flat and
broad, serve both to propel the body through the
water, and also as a rudder to direct its course. And
this is managed in a manner very different to what we
might expect. The feet do not beat the water,
like those of the duck or frog, and thus answer
the purpose of oars, but are placed side by side, thus
forming a single paddle, set edgewise, like the tail of
a fish. These united feet being then swept from side
to side, the animal is driven along by the action against
the water, a slight alteration only of their position
being required in order to direct the course.

By the aid of this simple means of progression, the
seal is enabled to traverse the water with wonderful
speed, and at the same time with an easy and undu-
lating grace which is equalled by no other creature.
This peculiar motion is owing in a great measure to
the flexibility of the spine, which allows the body to
be bent with facility in almost any direction.

Once upon dry land, however, the graceful move-
ments degenerate into an ungainly shuffle, and the
animal reminds the observer of some huge and over-
grown caterpillar crawling awkwardly along. The
fore-limbs now come into play, and the animal scuttles
along, clumsily enough, it is true, but yet with con-
siderable speed.

The nostrils and ears are provided with the means
of preventing the ingress of water when the animal
dives below the surface, the former closing by their own
elasticity, while the latter are furnished with a structure
analogous to that found in the whales. There is
a curious point concerning the locality of the external

126 A necdotal Natural History.

ears. The orifice is not placed as we might think,
directly over the organ itself, but below, and rather
behind the eyes — a passage running beneath the skin
to the ear jtself.

The whiskers of the seal bear a very strong resem-
blance to those of the various animals of the cat tribe,
their bases being connected with sensitive nerves which
warn the animal of the slightest touch. It is thought
that these may be of service in the pursuit of prey.

In order to protect the animal from the evil results
of continued immersion, the body is clothed in a
manner which effectually retains the vital heat. This
is done in a threefold manner.

Beneath the skin is found a thick layer of fat,
answering the same purpose as the blubber in the
whales, and which of itself would, in water of ordinary
temperature, be sufficient to retain the animal warmth.
Inhabiting, however, as do:s the seal, the icy waters
surrounding the polar regions, something more is
necessary. This we find in a double coating of fur,
the inner layer — the sealskin of commerce — being of a
very fine and silky nature, and the outer of a more
coarse and bristly character, serving as a kind of thatch
to the whole. When the animal is in the water this
fur is pressed closely against the skin, and, being con-
stantly lubricated with an oily fluid secreted by the
skin, is rendered perfectly water-tight, just as is the
proverbial 'duck's back.' This coating of fat also
serves another and very remarkable purpose.

During the breeding season the adult males come
ashore, and each takes possession of a piece of ground,
and occupies it together with a number of females.
Each male endeavours to enlarge his territory so as to
accommodate more wives, but those who occupy the
adjoining spots will fight to the death rather than
allow him to encroach on their -property.

T/ie Seal Tribe. 127

No male seal, therefore, can leave his ground for a
moment, as, if he did so, the surrounding proprietors
would at once take possession of it, and carry off his
wives. Consequently, he cannot venture into the sea for
food ; and, if he had not some other mode of sustain-
ing life, would soon die of hunger. But, just as the
camel can sustain life by absorbing the fat contained
in its hump, so the seal can feed — if we may use the
term — on the thick coating of fat which envelops the
body.

An adult male seal is really a formidable antagonist.
When in best condition, it will weigh some twenty-
five stone, and by the mere rush of its onset, and
weight of its body, will overset any human foe who
does not know how to oppose it.

Strong though the seal may be, it has one part of
its body which is as vulnerable as the heel of Achilles.
It has been already mentioned that a great number of
nerves converge upon the upper lips and nostrils. A
blow upon the nose will instantly stun, even if it
should not kill, the most powerful seal that ever lived.
But it must be well aimed, as the fatal area is very
small; and if it be missed, the antagonist will find
himself sprawling on the ground, and in very evil
condition froin the mere weight of the seal as it
flounders over him.

My readers may remember the celebrated fight
between Hector Mclntyre and the ' Phoca,' in Sir
W. Scott's ' Antiquary,' and the discomfiture of the
too impetuous Highlander.

The food of the seal consists chiefly of fish, which
its wonderful powers of swimming enable it to capture
with little difficulty. Various molluscs and Crustacea,
however, also form part of its diet.

In order to assist the animal in seizing its prey, and
also in retaining it when once secured, the teeth are

128 A necdotal Natural History.

formed in a very singular manner. The sharp
canines are long and powerful, and the molars are
covered with sharp projections of various sizes, so that
even the most slippery fish, when once fairly seized,
has very little chance of escape. The tongue, for
some unexplained reason, is slightly cleft at the tip.

The young of the seal are very few in number,
seldom being more than two, and generally only one
at a birth. When newly born they are almost white,
the colour gradually deepening as they advance in
age.

For the first few weeks of their lives the young seals
are brought up upon dry land, the mother carefully
tending them until they are sufficiently strong to take
to an aquatic life.

All the seals are inhabitants of the colder seas, and
are especially numerous on the borders of the Polar
Circle. The severity of the climate matters but little
to them, for they are rendered secure from cold by
their three-fold protection, and can always obtain prey
beneath the ice, no matter what may be the season of
the year.

In order to prevent the surface of the water from
being completely frozen over, and separating them
from the outside air, a number of seals are accustomed
to congregate together into a single spot, thus keeping
open a passage by the warmth of their bodies.

These passages are often utilized by the mother
for the reception of her young, in the following
manner : —

Ascending to the surface of the ice, the seal scrapes
away the snow above the entrance to the passage, until
she has excavated a small dome-like chamber, much
wider than the passage itself. It will be seen that a
ledge or shelf of ice must necessarily be left surround-
ing the aperture. Upon this shelf the baby seal is

The Seal Tribe. 129

placed, and is there nurtured in safety by its parent
until it is able to shift for itself.

Upon our northern shores, the Common Seal
(Phoca vitnlind] may mostly be seen, and on many
parts of the Scottish coast is found in considerable
abundance.

Seal-shooting is on these shores a sport which is
quite as exciting as deer-stalking, and needs as much
of the huntsman's craft. The seal is not only one of
the most wary of animals, but it never shows more than
its head above the surface of the water, and therefore
affords a much smaller mark than a stag. Moreover,
even when the sportsman has succeeded in hitting a
seal, it often sinks as soon as hit, and he loses it.

Such a misfortune as a seal lost from sinking never
occurs to the old hunter, and is a sure proof of inex-
perience. When a seal comes to the surface after a
long dive it remains quiet for a time. A young hunter
cannot resist so good a mark, sends a bullet through
the animal's brain, and when he reaches the spot finds
that it has sunk beyond his reach.

The reason is simple enough.

Like the whale tribes, the seals are enabled to
remain for a considerable time under water in conse-
quence of the power of aerating more blood than is
required at the time.

Before diving the seal takes a number of long
breaths, in order to aerate the blood fully, and just as
it dives fills the lungs with a powerful inspiration.
As it traverses its course below the water it allows the
air to escape gradually, and its course can be easily
traced by watching for the bubbles as they ascend to
the surface.

Consequently, when the seal rises its lungs are
empty, and if it be shot before it has had time to fill

them it is sure to sink.

i

130 Anecdotal Natural History.

But if the hunter will have patience to wait until the
animal has taken in its supply of air, and then shoot it,
he will find that the air in the lungs will act like a
float, and keep the body at the surface.

THERE are many different species of seals, several
of which are named after animals which they are sup-
posed to resemble. One of these is the Leopard Seal
(Leptonyx Weddellii), or Sea Leopard, as it is indiffe-
rently termed, which derives its popular title from the
whitish spots which are irregularly sprinkled over the
body. This is not one of the larger seals, seldom
exceeding ten feet in length, and not often attaining
even to those dimensions. It is an inhabitant of
various parts of the southern hemisphere.

A MORE interesting and well-known species is the
Crested Seal (Steminatopus cristatus), which is found
upon the northern shores of America.

Upon looking at a specimen of this animal, the
attention is at once struck by the remarkable crest, from
which it takes its name. This strange structure springs
from the muzzle, and rises to a height of several
inches, supporting a kind of cowl which entirely covers
the head. This curious organ, which is found in the
adult male animal alone, is found to be a development
of the ' septum,' or dividing gristle of the nose. As
regards its object we are entirely at fault, the theory
that it is intended to aid in the sense of smell at once
falling to the ground when we consider that it is
possessed by the adult males alone, being found only
in a rudimentary form in the female and the young of
both sexes.

Although the object of this strange development
has not as yet been discovered, it is certainly of
service to the animal as a means of protection
when attacked by man. All the seals being parti-
cularly sensitive in the region of the nostrils, it is the

Tlie Seal Tribe. 131

usual practice of the hunters to stun them by a heavy
blow upon the head, returning to complete the opera-
tion when the chase is over. The head of the crested
seal is, however, guarded in a great measure by the
curious helmet, and a blow sufficient to kill any ordi-
nary seal serves only to stun the animal for a very
short time.

When once roused, the crested seal is an active and
formidable enemy, using both teeth and claws with
considerable activity and address. Its strength, too,
is very great, and as the animal averages some eleven
or twelve feet in length, it will be seen that it is by no
means a despicable foe.

The colour of the fur is a dark bluish black, paling
almost to white beneath the body, and sprinkled with
a number of greyish patches, each of which encloses a
black spot. The head, tail, and feet are black. The
fur is of considerable value in commerce, the skins
being imported in great numbers.

NEXT comes the Harp Seal, or Atak (Phoca Grcen-
landica), a closely allied species.

This animal derives its somewhat peculiar name
from the markings of the body, which are disposed in
a very singular manner. The ground colour of the
fur is a whitish grey, upon which are drawn two broad
bars of a jetty black running from the shoulders, where
they almost join one another, to the root of the tail.
The form of these markings has been supposed to
resemble an ancient harp ; thence its popular title.
The greater part of the head is also black.

This peculiar marking does not show itself until the
fifth year of the animal's existence, the fur until then
changing its colour and markings with every succes-
sive season.

The harp seal is an inhabitant of the coast of
Greenland and Iceland, where it is found in great pro-

132 Anecdotal Natural History.

fusion, and is much sought after on account of the
valuable oil which is obtained from the bodies. Some
idea of the extraordinary abundance of these animals
may be gleaned from the statement, made a short time
since by one of the leading daily newspapers, that one
vessel alone, in the course of a single voyage, had pro-
cured no less than fifty thousand carcases, valued at
more than thirty thousand pounds. In the season of
1857, it is also said that half a million of seals
were captured by the combined efforts of the vessels
engaged in the trade. Success so great, however, is
the exception, and not the rule, an ordinary season
producing barely half the number of carcases.

Like the common seal, the harp seal is easily
domesticated, being often tamed and taught to per-
form a variety of tricks. Both animals are remark-
ably docile and intelligent in disposition.

WE now come to the huge and ungainly monster
known by the various titles of Walrus, Morse, and
Sea Horse, and scientifically as Trichecus Rosmarus.

This is, perhaps, one of the most extraordinary of
all the mammals inhabiting the water, its huge size,
its bristle-fringed jaws, and the enormous projecting
canine teeth, often nearly two feet in length, causing
it to assume a strangely grotesque appearance.

In consequence of the size of these tusks, the jaw
is much enlarged in front, the protuberant muzzle
giving to the animal a very ferocious aspect. The
nostrils, for the same reason, are placed very high in
the head. The lower jaw narrows rapidly towards
the centre, in order to pass between the two canine
teeth.

The walrus is found in great quantities upon the
borders of the Polar regions, both northern and
southern, generally congregating in herds of some six
or seven thousand in number. It is an animal of

The Sea! Tribe. 133

some value, even to civilised mankind, the oil and
skin being in considerable request, while the tusks
furnish valuable ivory, which has the advantage of
retaining its colour for a very long pei iod.

Head of Walrus,

To less civilised nations, too, the walrus is almost a
necessity of life ; nearly all the soft parts of its body
serve as food, while the intestines provide material
for the construction of fishing nets, hooks and other
articles being made from the tusks. The sinews
serve as fishing lines, and the skin as a covering for
the 'kajak,' or boat, so that from the animal are

134 Anecdotal Natural History.

procured the whole of the paraphernalia for obtaining
fish. The oil is burnt in the lamps, without which
life would be an impossibility, and, in fact, the walrus
is to these people what the camel is to the Arab, or
the bison to the North-American Indian, a necessary
adjunct to existence.

Only a short time before these lines were written,
an entire tribe of Esquimaux perished because the
walrus had deserted their coasts.

So needful do these tribes consider the walrus, that
it is almost impossible to persuade them that life in
any form is possible without the animals. They even
carry the idea to a further pitch, and refuse to believe
in the possibility of a future state of existence unless
plenty of walrus are to be procurable. In vain the
missionaries tried every means in their power to con-
vince them into a belief in the Christian religion.
' No walrus, no heaven,' was the terse and conclusive
answer, and there the matter had to rest.

Man is not the only being who recognises the
merits of the walrus, for the Polar bear is fully aware
of the advantages accruing to the fortunate slayer of
the animal. He attacks it in a singular but very
effectual manner.

Creeping closely up to the unconscious monster as
it lies sleeping upon the shore, he leaps suddenly
upon its back, clings to it with his hind feet and one
of his fore feet, and delivers a series of tremendous
blows upon its head with his unoccupied paw.
Usually, this plan succeeds in a very short time, the
mighty strokes first stunning the walrus, and at last
smashing the skull.

Now and then, however, with an old and excep-
tionally thick-headed animal, the tables are reversed,
the walrus plunging into the sea and carrying its
opponent beneath the surface, where, in a few

The Seal Tribe.

J35

moments, he is obliged to relinquish his hold in
order to obtain a supply of air, while his hoped-for
prey makes good its escape.

The chase of the walrus, formerly a very easy
matter before the animals had profited by bitter

Skull of Walrus.

experience, is now a business requiring great caution
and address.

The great difficulty is to prevent the animals from
reaching the water, for which they at once make
when alarmed, passing over the ground at a wonder-
fully rapid pace. As nothing can stand against the

136 Anecdotal Natural History.

combined onset of the alarmed animals, dogs are
employed in order to separate them as much as
possible, and to distract their attention from their
pursuers. When driven to bay the walrus becomes a
very formidable enemy, the huge tusks being capable
of inflicting most terrible wounds.

In spite of its enormous size, a full-grown walrus
attaining to the length of fourteen or fifteen feet, and
weighing as much as a large elephant, the animal has
often been tamed, and has even been taught to pro-
cure fish for its master, and to bring them to land
untouched.

ANOTHER strange and grotesque animal of this
tribe is the Sea Elephant, or Elephant Seal (Morunga
proboscidea\ so called from its enormous bulk, and
also from the elongation of the snout, which some-
what resembles the trunk of the elephant.

Huge as is the walrus, the elephant seal is far
superior in size, having been known to reach the
extraordinary dimensions of thirty feet in length, and
eighteen feet in the circumference of the body. The
strange nasal development, like the helmet of the
crested seal, is found only in the adult males. Unless
the animal is frightened or alarmed it is not very con-
spicuous ; in such a case, however, the snout is
thrown forward, and the animal blows through it with
great violence, causing a strange harsh sound, which
is audible at a considerable distance.

Notwithstanding their huge dimensions, the ele-
phant seals are by no means so formidable as the
walrus, apparently possessing no idea of revenging
themselves upon their pursuers. When alarmed, they
make for the water, the whole body quivering like so
much jelly, on account of the fat with which the body
\s laden.

From this fat a valuable oil is procured in large

138 Anecdotal Natural History.

quantities, a single animal yielding from seventy to
eighty gallons ; the skins, also, are of very fine
quality.

The elephant seal is an inhabitant of the seas of
the southern hemisphere, chiefly between 35 degs. and
55 degs. of south latitude. It is a migratory animal,
travelling southwards as summer comes on, and
northwards again at the approach of winter.

THE last of the seal tribe which we can mention in
this paper is the Sea Lion (Otaria jubata), an in-
habitant of Kamtschatka and the Kurile Islands, and
also of Northern America.

The dimensions of this animal are about equal to
those of the walrus, fifteen feet being an average
length. Upon the neck and shoulders is a thick mass
of stiff bristles, somewhat resembling the mane of a
lion ; to this is owing the popular name of the
animal.

The sea lion is remarkable for the hoarse roar
which it continually utters when on land, the united
clamour of a herd of these creatures being almost
deafening to the human ear.

The disposition of the sea lion is very quiet and
peaceable, the animal falling an easy prey to the
hunters. Amongst the animals related to its own
species, however, it is very fierce and determined,
ruling supreme in its own dominions, and holding
the smaller animals in complete thraldom.

It seems strange that so mild and apathetic an
animal upon shore should be so tyrannous in the
water. Yet such is the case, and the sea lion may
fairly be considered, even the crested seal not ex-
cepted, as the most fierce and savage of all the seal
tribe.

No. XL— THE ELEPHANT.

THE Elephant belongs to the curious family of the
Pachyderms, or ' thick-skinned ' animals, which
also includes such apparently dissimilar creatures as
the little Hyrax, or ' Coney ' of the Scriptures, and
the various swine.

At first sight, and judging by their outward forms,
these animals do not appear to have very much in
common, and it may seem somewhat strange that they
should have been included in the same family. An
examination, however, of the fossil animals of the
group supplies the requisite links, and affords conclu-
sive proof that all these animals really belong to one
and the same division.

As is well known, there are two distinct species of
elephant, the one inhabiting Africa, while the other is
a native of various parts of the continent of Asia. As
far as their chief characteristics are concerned, the two
animals are sufficiently alike to allow of a single
description sufficing for both.

The most singular part of the structure of the ele-
phant is, of course, the proboscis, or ' trunk ' as it is
popularly called, upon which the very life of its owner
depends. This wonderful organ is, in reality, merely
a development of the nose and the upper lip, the
nostrils running through its entire length. The ex-
tremity is furnished with a curious finger-like append-

140 Anecdotal Natural Histoiy.

age, which is of so delicate a nature that it can pluck
a single blade of grass if required.

The proboscis is formed alike for strength and
flexibi.ity, and is provided with the enormous number
of fifty thousand distinct muscles, some running
longitudinally along the proboscis, while others radiate
from its centre.

Upon the proboscis the entire nourishment of
the animal depends, and, were it deprived of that
organ, starvation would inevitably ensue. The short
and thick neck would prevent it from grazing, while
the long tusks would hinder it from devouring the
herbage which grew on a level with its body. Water,
also, could no longer be obtained, and thirst and
hunger combined would shortly end the sufferings of
the mutilated animal.

In somewhat the same manner as the camel, the
elephant possesses the faculty of storing up water in the
interior of the body, and is, moreover, able to withdraw
it when required by means of the trunk, and sprinkle
it over the body, in order to cool the heated surface.

The method of drinking is somewhat peculiar.
Inserting the tip of the trunk into the pool, the ani-
mal sucks a quantity into its cavities ; the proboscis is
then reversed, the end placed in the mouth, and the
fluid discharged down the throat.

In providing food, too, the trunk answers much the
same purpose, first plucking the leaves, etc., and then
placing them in the mouth.

The head and skull of the elephant are formed in a
very curious manner, affording a most wonderful ex-
ample of strength combined with lightness. The
former quality, of course, is indispensable, the enor-
mous weight of the tusks and proboscis necessitating
the provision of large and powerful muscles, while the
advantage of the latter is self-evident

The Elephant. 141

In order to satisfy these demands, the bony plates
which form the skull are separated from one another,
and form a series of cells, each of which contains a
number of smaller chambers, bearing, in fact, a con-
siderable resemblance to a honeycomb. These cells are
filled with a thick oily fluid.

In the midst of these cells lies the brain, which is
remarkably small in comparison to the size of the
animal, and is thus protected from the effects of the
various concussions it would inevitably receive during
the headlong rushes of its possessor.

In like manner, too, this structure protects the
animal in a great measure from the bullets of the
hunter, for, unless they should happen to enter by the
eye, the ear, or the nostrils, the leaden missiles stand
but little chance of reaching the brain, burying them-
selves in the cellular mass, and doing comparatively
little damage. An elephant has been known to receive
between twenty and thirty large balls in the head alone
before finally succumbing to its wounds.

It is, however, a somewhat curious fact that the
skulls of the African and the Asiatic elephant are not
formed exactly in the same manner, a'though the
curious cellular structure is found in both, so that a
bullet, which to the one would cause little injury,
would to the other be certain death.

For example. If a hunter stands in front of an
Indian elephant, and sends a bullet into the spot
where the proboscis joins the head, the animal falls
dead without a struggle, the bullet having penetrated to
the brain. But if he were to attack an African
elephant in the same manner, the bullet would pass
above the brain, and waste itself in the cells of the
skull, only irritating, and not injuring the elephant.

The limbs of the elephant, also, are admirably
adapted to sustain the immense Aveight of the animal.

142 Anecdotal Natural History.

Stout, and comparatively short, they are set perfectly
upright like so many pillars ; the hinder pair, also, are
without the elongated cannon-bone, so that the so-
called ' knee-joint' is absent, while the real knee is
very conspicuous.

The elephant is a far more active animal than might
be supposed, judging by outward appearance, his
speed when excited being almost equal to that of a
fleet horse. On rocky and mountainous ground,
too, he is perfectly at home, notwithstanding his
bulky proportions, and will ascend and descend
acclivities where a horse is utterly unable to gain a
foothold.

His method of descending precipitous ground is
very singular. Kneeling down, with the fore legs
stretched out in front and the hinder ones bent back-
wards, he gradually lowers himself towards the ground,
making use of every little inequality in the surface,
or scraping a foothold with his hoof, should a con-
venient one not be otherwise attainable. If the
declivity be very steep, he pursues a winding course,
just as does a horse in ascending a hill.

The foot of the elephant is wonderfully suited
to the work it has to perform. The hoof which
encloses it is formed of a vast number of horny
springs, similar to those found in the hoof of the horse,
which protect the foot from any concussion against
the ground, and enable the animal to move with sur-
prising ease and silence. Notwithstanding the huge
bulk of the body, the tread of an elephant is perfectly
noiseless, and as the animal possesses the faculty of
forcing its way through the thickest jungle without
snapping even a twig, a hunter may be in close prox-
imity to a herd of moving elephants, and yet not be in
the slightest degree aware of their presence.

The toes, five of which are found in each foot, are

The ElepJiant. 143

almost entirely encased in the hoof, and are only partly
visible to outward inspection.

The tusks of the elephant vary according to the sex,
age, and species of the animal, being most highly
developed in the male of the African variety. They
do not, as might be imagined, spring from the jaw
itself, but, like the teeth of the bottle-nosed whale,
proceed from a vascular formation found upon the
gums.

The molar teeth appear to be formed of a number
of smaller teeth, which are closely fastened together, so
as to form a single large mass. These are set
obliquely in the jaws, and are gradually worn away by
constant use, fresh teeth taking their places as often as
required. In this manner, an elephant may have
seven or eight sets of teeth, each set increasing in size
in proportion to the growth of the animal. The
incisors, which are found in the upper jaw only, are
long and projecting ; the canines are altogether want-
ing. The size of the elephant is generally much
exaggerated, even a large animal seldom exceeding ten
feet in height, while the average is a foot or so less.

The elephants of both continents alike are almost
invariably found in herds, varying considerably in point
of number, which are always under the guidance of
some old and experienced leader. They dwell in the
thickest forests, being seldom found at any great dis-
tance from water.

During the drought of summer, of course, the
smaller streams often run dry. In such cases, the
reasoning powers of the animals come to their assist-
ance and the elephants, as Sir Samuel Haker tells us, in
his well-known work 'Eight Years in Ceylon,' 'make
use of their wonderful instinct by digging holes in the
dry sand of the river's bed ; this they perform with
the horny toes of their fore feet, and frequently work

144 Anecdotal Natural History.

to a depth of three feet before they discover the liquid
treasure beneath.'

WE will now devote our attention to a description of
the habits, etc., of each of the two species, taking tne
Asiatic animal first in succession.

This elephant may be at once distinguished from its
African relative by the size and form of the ears,
those organs being in the Asiatic animal proportioned
to the dimensions of other parts of the body, whilst in
the African variety they are of very great comparative
size, almost meeting at the back of the head, and
hanging considerably below the neck. An African
hunter has been known to shelter himself under an
elephant's ear during a storm, and to emerge perfectly
dry when the storm had passed over. The head of
the former, also, is elongated, and the forehead
concave, while in the latter the very reverse is the
case.

Another point of distinction, too, is found in the
molar teeth, the enamel upon the surface of those of
the Asiatic elephant being moulded into a number of
narrow bands, while in the African species it is formed
in a series of diamond-shaped folds.

In the Asiatic species, too, the tusks are found only
in the males, and are not possessed by every member
of even that sex. When present, they are, generally
speaking, very much inferior both in size and quality to
those of the African animal.

The Asiatic elephant is chiefly remarkable for its
services to man when trained to do his bidding. In
all work which necessitates the employment of great
strength united with intelligence, the value of the
animal is inestimable. In such operations, for in-
stance, as piling logs, laying dams, or even building
walls, elephants are largely employed, their enormous

The ElepJiant. 145

strength and quick judgment rendering them most
valuable auxiliaries.

These advantages are, however, not unmixed with
drawbacks. The health of the animal, for example,
requires constant care and attention ; the skin, thick
as it is, is liable to abrasions, resulting in ulcerous
sores ; and the eyes are constantly subject to inflamma-
tion.

Taking these disadvantages into consideration,
many writers are of opinion that the value of the
elephant as a beast of burden is greatly over-esti-
mated, and that he is in reality of little more use than
a powerful dray horse, which can work for longer
hours, and is not so subject to sores and inflammations.

As far as some of the operations performed by ele-
phants are concerned, this theory may be true enough,
but when we consider the enormous weights which
these animals are accustomed to carry, and the preci-
sion with which the largest and heaviest beams are
placed by them, it seems hardly possible that their
duties could be adequately performed by any other
animal, no matter how powerful and intelligent it
might be.

Another of the manifold purposes for which the
Asiatic elephant is employed is that of an auxiliary ii
the chase of the tiger.

In order to serve in this capacity, the animals are
captured when very young, and are carefully trained t<?
perform their future duties. This is no easy task, for
in the very nature of the elephant there appears to be
an ingrained dread and abhorrence of the tiger, causing
it to fly in terror from the mere sight of the skin of the
fierce beast.

The education, therefore, of the hunting elephant is
a matter of care, time, and patience, and is conducted
as follows.

146 Anecdotal Natural History.

A tiger-skin is procured and stuffed, in order to
resemble as far as possible the form of the living animal.
This is continually presented to the elephant until
he loses his natural fear of the striped skin.

The next step is to teach the animal to gore his foe
with his tusks, and trample him under foot.

Next, a boy is placed inside the skin, in order to
counterfeit the motions of the living tiger, and,
finally, a dead animal is substituted for the stuffed skin.

Yet, with all the preliminary training, the elephant
is seldom to be depended upon in the hour of actual
danger, the rush of the furious tiger often causing the
huge animal to turn tail, and fly before the onslaught
of its foe.

During these expeditions, the animal is guided by a
driver, or 'mahout,' who sits astride upon the neck,
directing his charge by means of a spiked hook, or
'haunkus,' which is placed against the head of the
elephant in such a manner as to convey the driver's
instructions to the animal. The hunters ride in a
' howdah,' or car, which is fastened upon the elephant's
back.

The elephants intended for domestication are cap-
tured in two ways. In the first of these, ' koomkies,1
or trained female elephants are employed, which
divert the attention of the intended captive from his ap-
proaching foes, who even creep beneath his body
without alarming him, and place nooses of strong rope
round his limbs. The ropes are then fastened to con-
venient trees, the koomkies called off, and the elephant
finds himself a prisoner. For a time he struggles to
release himself from his bonds, but finally yields to
his captors, and is led off to a place of security.

The second method of capturing the elephants is of
a far more comprehensive nature, all the members of
one or more herds being included in the attack.

The Elephant. 147

For this purpose a large enclosure, or ' keddah,' is
formed of stout posts, which are driven into the
ground at such a distance from one am-ther as to
allow a man to pass freely between them. A head of
elephants is then surrounded by hunters, and gradually
driven towards the keddah, the door of which is left
open.

By slow degrees, the operation sometimes extending
over several weeks, the animals are forced into the
enclosure, the entrance to which is immediately
closed.

Should the animals attempt to burst from their
place of confinement, they are immediately driven
back by torch-bearers, who thrust their flaming brands
int'i the faces of the excited captives, and deter them
from breaking through the walls. After a time, the
imprisoned animals relax their efforts to escape, when
the hunters cautiously enter, and bind each of them
securely to a tree, or other immovable object.

The nature of the Asiatic elephant is, as a rule,
very quiet and peaceable, forming a great contrast to
the fierce and savage character of its African relative.
Even when hunttd, if it should be successful enough
to strike down its foe, the animal se« ms to have little
idea of revenge, and usually contents itself with kick-
ing its prostrate adversary from foot to foot without
causing any great injury.

It may seem remarkable that a domesticated animal
should be desirous of reducing its fellows to a state of
servitude. Yet the elephant does so, the females
using every m >ans in their power to capture the
males.

One case is known where a female escaped from
her owners, carrying with her a chain. In a few days
she returned, and by signs and sounds told her keepers
that she wished them to accompany her into the

148 Anecdotal Natural History.

forest. This was done, and she led them to a spot
where a fine male elephant was found chained to
a tree. In fact, she had acted the part or Delilah
towards Samson.

THE African elephant (Elephas Africanus) is spread
over a large tract of country, extending from Abys-
sinia to the borders of Cape Colony. Like the Asiatic
species, it is an inhabitant of the thick forests, seldom
venturing into the open country.

This elephant is also much sought after, although
from very different motives to those which influence
the hunter of the Asiatic animal.

The natives of Africa are either not aware of the
services rendered by the elephant when captured and
carefully trained, or mingled apathy and fear prevent
them from availing themselves of their opportunities.
Just the same is the case with the Chetah, or Hunting
Cat, which in Asia is carefully trained for purposes of
the chase, while in Africa it is allowed to remain in
freedom. Formerly, however, the African elephant
was trained for purposes both of war and peace, just as
is now the case in India.

The ivory of the tusks forms the principal incentive
to the efforts of the hunters engaged in the chase of
this animal, being of very fine quality and considerable
value. An ordinary pair of tusks, weighing, perhaps,
rather over a hundredweight, will fetch thirty-five or
forty pounds, although the price varies slightly accord-
ing to the condition of the market.

The flesh, too, is by no means an unimportant
article of diet, especially among the natives, to whom
the slaughter of an elephant is an occasion of great
rejoicing. Some parts, such as the foot, are justly
considered as especial dainties, but the greater portion
of the flesh is stated by many travellers to be little

Tne Elcpiiant. 149

superior in toughness and flavour to ordinary shoe-
leather.

The foot is baked in a somewhat curious fashion.
A fire is lighted upon the ground, and allowed to burn
itself out. A hole is then dug beneath the spot, and
the foot is inserted, being then covered up with the
warm earth. A second fire is now lighted, which is
also suffered to burn itself out, and when the earth is
thoroughly cool, the process is complete, and the
dainty in perfect order for the table.

Until the advent of firearms, the slaughter of an
elephant was only a very occasional event with the
natives, who were either obliged to follow it for days,
attacking it with their spears at every opportunity,
until the animal fell from sheer exhaustion and loss of
blood, or to trap it by means of pitfalls.

These latter are still employed, being dug in the
paths of the animals, and covered over with boughs
and earth to imitate the surrounding surface. With
the old and experienced leaders, however, these pre-
cautions are of little avail, for the crafty animals test
every inch of ground with their trunks before trusting
'.heir weight upon it.

Should one of the animals, however, be unfortunate
enough to fall into the snare, it has no chance what-
e' rer of escape, a sharp upright stake being fixed in the
centre of the pit, upon which the luckless creature is
impaled by its own weight.

In their wild and free state, it is probable that ele-
phants live to a very great age, and even when
domesticated, appear to be long-lived animals ; there
have been several apparently well-authenticated
instances of these animals attaining the age of two
hundred years.

No. XII.— THE RHINOCEROS, HYRAX, AND
HIPPOPOTAMUS.

THE RHINOCEROS is connected with the
elephant by a number of links, such as the
Tapir, in which a small and imperfect proboscis is
present, and the various swine, in which the pro-
boscis is modified into a very mobile, blunt-tipped
snout, with the nostrils at the extremity. Geology,
too, has revealed traces of many animals which are
now extinct upon the earth, and which render the
transition between these animals very much less abrupt,
conclusively proving their approximate position in the
scale of creation.

The rhinoceros, of which several species are known,
is found in various parts of the African and Asiatic
continents, preferring those neighbourhoods in which
water is easily to be obtained. Although the various
species differ in several minor characteristics, they are
sufficiently alike in their chief peculiarities of structure
to allow of a single description sufficing for the
whole.

The so-called ' horn ' is naturally the first point to at-
tract our attention ; and a very curious and wonderful
object it is.

Notwithstanding the powerful shocks it is called
upon to bear, and its uses as a weapon of offence, it is
not in any way connected with the skull, as is almost
universally imagined to be the case. It is, in fact,

Rhinoceros, Hyrax, and Hippopotamus. 15 i

merely a growth from the skin, from which it may be
removed by a few cuts around the base from a keen-
bladed knife. An ordinary penknife is quite sufficient
for this purpose. This horn must be ranked in the
same category with hair, spines, and quills, the structure
being precisely similar in all. This may be at once
proved by an examination of the horn, which, although
smooth and polished at the tip, is separated at the
base into a number of filaments, the hair-like formation
of which may be easily seen.

In order to avoid the effect upon the brain of the
violent concussion caused by the headlong charges of
the animal, the bones of the face are modified in a
very remarkable manner, forming a kind of broad and
strong arch, one end of which is left free and unsup-
ported. Above this end the horn is situated, the elas-
ticity of the bony arch effectually breaking the force of
*he shocks. The horn does not attain its full dimen-
sions for several years after the birth of the animal.

In olden times, the horn of the rhinoceros was held
in great estimation on account of its supposed poison-
detecting powers, and bore a fancy value in conse-
quence. Eastern monarchs, for example, were
accustomed to have their drinking-cups formed from
the horn, the superstition being that any poison intro-
duced into the vessel would cause the contents to
bubble violently, and so bring about a discovery of the
attempted assassination.

At the present time the horn is still of considerable
value, being largely employed in the manufacture of
umbrella handles and various other articles.

The skin of the rhinoceros is of great thickness, and
of so tough a nature that it will resist any but a
specially hardened bullet. The balls used in the chase
of the animal are therefore alloyed with solder or tin or
mercury, in order to supply the requisite hardness.

152 A necdotal Natural History.

By the natives of both Africa and Asia the skin of
the rhinoceros is greatly prized, being largely utilised
in the manufacture of shields, which form a most ef-
fectual protection from spears, no matter how keen
their points or how great the force with which they are
hurled. Even a rifle bullet, indeed, unless fired at
close quarters, would probably be checked or turned
aside in its flight.

Yet, stout as is the skin in most parts of the body,
there are places where its character seems to be al-
together changed. In the Asiatic species of rhinoceros,
for instance, the skin falls in heavy folds upon the
neck, shoulders, and flanks, forming flaps which may
be lifted up with the hand. Beneath these folds the
skin is of a much softer and more delicate nature,
and may be pierced without any very great difficulty.
This fact is taken advantage of by the various para-
sites which infest the tropical forests, and which in-
sinuate themselves beneath these folds, directing
their attacks upon the thinner skin lying beneath them,
and driving the animals almost mad by their incessant
persecutions. Upon the under side of the body, also,
the skin is comparatively soft.

Here we find a reason for the fondnes* of the rhi-
noceros and its allies for wallowing in the mud, the
thick tenacious substance rapidly hardening beneath
the rays of the sun, and affording an impenetrable
barrier to the tiny assailants.

The eyes of the rhinoceros are by no means large,
and are placed rather deeply in the head, the sight
consequently being of a rather imperfect nature ; in
fact, the animal is unable to see any object directly in
its front. The senses of scent and hearing are, how-
ever, developed to a considerable extent, and fully
compensate the animal for its partial lark of visual
power.

Rhinoceros, Hyrax, and Hippopotamus. 153

The INDIAN RHINOCEROS (Rhinoceros tmicornis} is
chiefly remarkable for the comparatively small size of
the horn, the height of which sometimes little exceeds
the diameter. It nevertheless forms a most effectual
weapon, a well-known traveller stating that this animal is
able to hold its own against an adult male elephant.

Another o' the Asiatic species is the Sumatran Rhi-
noceros, which is provided with two horns upon the
head instead of one. It does not appear, however,
to make use of its formidable weapons, for its dis-
position is very quiet and timid, the animal flying
from the presence of danger, and seldom facing even a
single dog.

FOUR distinct species of rhinoceros are at present
known to inhabit Africa, and it is yet uncertain whether
still others do not exist.

The best known of these is the Rhinaster, Borele,
or Little Black Rhinoceros of Southern Africa (Rhi-
noceros bicornis\ which may be known by the shape
of the horns and the upper lip.

The anterior horn is long, pointed, and curved
backwards towards the head, while the posterior one is
small and conical, closely resembling the weapon of the
Indian rhinoceros. The upper lip, which is sharply
pointed, overlaps the lower to a considerable extent.

The Borele is usually considered to be by far the
most savage of all the species of rhinoceros, and the
natives are said to fear the animal far more than they
do the most infuriated lion. When wounded it is a
truly dangerous opponent, and will attack its foe with
a ferocity and determination which render escape o
matter of considerable difficulty.

During the day-time the animal is seldom to be
seen, selecting some secluded retreat in the thickest
part of the forest, and there passing the hours of day-
light. When night sets in, however, he awakes, and

154 Anecdotal Natural history.

at once sets out for the nearest pool, in order to slake
his thirst before prosecuting his search for food.

This he generally finds in various roots, which he
ploughs out of the ground by means of the powerful
horns, and also in the young shoots of the ' wait-a-bit '
thorn. Clumsy as it is in appearance, this rhinoceros
is yet active and agile to a wonderful degree, possess-
ing considerable speed, and severely trying the powers
even of a good horse when attempting to escape from
its furious onslaught.

Another well-known African species is the Keitloa
or Sloan's Rhinoceros {Rhinoceros keitloa), which may
be readily distinguished from the borele by its horns,
which are of considerable and almost equal length.
It is altogether a larger animal than the preceding,
and is, if anything, even more to be dreaded as a foe,
owing to its superior strength and length of horn.

Both the borele and the keitloa are black in
colour ; there are, however, two African species of rhi-
noceros in which the colour of the skin is a greyish
white.

The first and more abundant of these is the common
White Rhinoceros, or Muchuco, as it is termed by the
natives {Rhinoceros simus\ which differs considerably in
appearance from the two above-described species.
Setting upon one side the colour of the skin, the chief
differences may be summed up as follows. The muzzle
is square instead of pointed, the head is elongated,
and the anterior horn attains to considerable dimen-
sions, three feet being by no means an uncommon
length. The second horn, however, is of far lesser
size, and closely resembles that of the borele.

In disposition, also, the animal is very different,
being as mild and peaceable as the borele and the
keitloa are fierce and savage. Even when attacked it
seldom assumes the offensive, but generally seeks

Rhinoceros, Hyrax, and Hippopotaitms. 155

safety in flight instead of endeavouring to revenge
itself upon its pursuer. Should its young be assailed,
however, it will fight with great fury, and is then to the
full as dangerous an opponent as either of its relatives.

The second of the white species, viz., the Kobaoba,
or Long-horned White Rhinocer s^RhinocerosOswellii},
is a very much rarer animal, and is far less generally
distributed

The anterior horn of the kobaoba is of considerable
size, sometimes exceeding four feet in length. Owing to
the manner in which the head is carried, this horn,
which is almost straight, and is directed forward
instead of backward, is generally found to be more or
less worn away by the friction with the ground. In
consequence of its length and straightness the horn is
of great value in the market.

A walking-stick made of a single piece of this horn
will fetch almost any price in London or Paris. In
the old days of muzzle-loading rifles, a ramrod made
of rhinoceros horn was invaluable, as it was almost
unbreakable, and yet was tolerably light to carry. A
large knob was left at one end, and so it became not
only a loading rod, but a formidable weapon. Short
clubs of similar form are much used by the Kaffir
tribes in hunting, and are called knob-kerries.

All the African species of rhinoceros are occasion-
ally to be seen in small herds of eight or ten specimens,
but can yet be scarcely described as gregarious, each
animal in time of danger separating from his com-
panions and selecting his own path. They are not pro-
lific animals, a single young one only being produced
at a birth.

THE HYRAX.

We are told in Ps. civ. v. 18, that 'the rocks are
a refuge for the conies,' and in Prov. xxx. v. 26,

156 Anecdotal Natural History.

reference is made to the same animal. ' The conies
are but a feeble folk, yet make they their houses in
the rocks.' The 'coney' is also named in the book
of Leviticus as one of the animals which might not
be eaten by the Jews.

Now, the coney which is here mentioned is not
the rabbit, as most readers of the Scriptures suppose.

Rabbits are not frequenters of rocks. They live
in holes which they excavate with their fore-feet, so
that they need a tolerably loose soil, and would be
entirely at a loss among hard rocks. The animal in
question is a little creature, so like a rabbit in general
appearance that it might well be mistaken for that
animal.

Its teeth are apparently those of a rodent, and its
feet look very much like those of the rabbit. It is
clothed with brown fur, very much like that of the
wild rabbit, and is wonderfully active, darting about
with such rapidity that the eye can scarcely follow
its movements.

But, when examined by the eye of the zoologist, the
rodent-like teeth are evidently those of a miniature hip-
popotamus, and the paw-like feet are seen to be com-
posed of hoof-clad toes like those of the rhinoceros.
The rhinoceros has three toes on each foot, while the
hippopotamus has four. The Hyrax has four toes
on the fore-feet, and three on the hind-feet. In fact,
this little creature, so apparently dissimilar to the
hippopotamus and rhinoceros, forms a connecting
link between them.

The species of Hyrax which inhabits Africa is
popularly called the Rock-rabbit by the English
colonists, and Klip-das by the Dutch. Its scientific
name is Hyrax Capensis, that of the animal men-
tioned in Scripture being Hyrax Syriacus. It is
called ' Ashkoko ' by the natives.

Rhinoceros, Hyrax, and Hippopotamus. 157

Both creatures have similar habits. They are ex-
ceedingly wary, darting into the recesses of the rock
at the slightest alarm, or, if they fear that their move-
ments may betray them, crouching motionless against
the rock and resembling it so closely that the keenest
eye can hardly detect them.

THE HIPPOPOTAMUS.

Having now traced the connection between the
elephant and the swine through the tapir, and that
between the rhinoceros and Hippopotamus through
the hyrax, we come to the Hippopotamus itself.

This animal {Hippopotamus ampJiibins], often known
as the River-Horse, or Sea-Cow, is a native of various
parts of Africa, being never found very far from the
neighbourhood of water. Huge as is the animal, its
size lies chiefly in the bulk of the body, the legs being
very short, and the actual height seldom exceeding
five feet.

The teeth of the hippopotamus are of wonderful
size and curious shape, the canines being strongly
curved, while the incisors lie almost horizontally.
These latter are chiefly used in tearing up the various
aquatic plants upon which the animal feeds. These
teeth are of very fine quality and close consistency,
and, the ivory obtained from them retaining its colour
for a great length of time, are of considerable value,
averaging in price from £i to ^i 55. per Ib. A single
tooth is usually from five to eight pounds in weight.

Formidable as these teeth appear, they are em-
ployed solely for the purpose of feeding, unless the
animal is wounded, or otherwise irritated. For their
legitimate purpose they are most suitable implements,
Capable of severing a stem of considerable size, or of

158 Anecdotal Natural History.

:roppingthe herbage as closely as if a scythe had been
employed.

In consequence of its huge appetite and destructive
habits, the hippopotamus is an object of great detes-
tation in the neighbourhood which it frequents, as its
constant visits to the plantations in the v cinity result in
an almost total destruction of the crops. And the
havoc it causes is all the greater on account of the
position of its legs, which, being very short, and set
widely apart from one another, oblige the animal to
make two distinct tracks, thus exactly doubling the
damage caused by its passage through the crops.

In order to check its ravages as much as possible,
various means are employed, chief among them being
the pit-fall and the ' down-fall.'

The first of these needs no explanation, and the
latter may be described in a few words.

A log of wood is heavily weighted at one end, and
furnished with a spear-head dipped in poison. This
is suspended to a branch over the path of the animal.
To it is fastened a cord, which is carried across the
track in such a manner that the pressure caused by the
advancing hippopotamus causes the log to fall, and
the poisoned spear to sink deeply into its body. '1 he
doom of the animal is then effectually sealed, the
venom performing its destructive work in the course
of a very short time.

The hippopotamus is also slain by means of a
specially constructed harpoon, consisting of a stout
shaft, some ten or twelve feet in length, and a barbed
point fitting loosely into a socket at the end of the
shaft, to which it is fastened by means of a rope com-
posed of a number of separate strands ; this is in order
to prevent the animal from biting it asunder. To the
handle is fastened a stout line, to the other end of
which a float is attached.

Rlnnoceros, Hyrsx, and Hippopotamus. 159

When an attack upon one of these creatures is con-
templated, the hunters proceed, by means of a raft,
into the midst of a herd, and plunge the harpoon into
the body of the nearest animal. The wounded hippo-
potamus immediately dives, but is unable to shake off
the harpoon, owing to the barbed point. As often as
he rises he is attacked with spears, etc., which speedily
complete the work of destruction.

Sometimes the wounded animal turns savagely upon
its pursuers, and succeeds in tearing the raft or boat
to fragments, occasionally killing one or more of the
crew before they are able to reach the land.

The hippopotamus is generally found in tolerably
large herds, each consisting of from twenty to thirty
or more animals. Chiefly aquatic in their habits,
they are generally to be found in the larger rivers and
lakes. They are not averse to salt water, being often
noticed floating or swimming in the sea itself.

The hide is enormously thick and strong, being
fully two inches in thickness along the back. The
well-known ' sjambok ' whips are formed from this
skin, which is prepared for use in a somewhat
curious manner. Strips of suitable length are cut,
and are then beaten with a hammer in order to con-
solidate the substance of the hide. This done, they
are thoroughly dried, and are finally rounded off and
polished by means of a sharp knife and sandpaper.

A well-made sjambok is a terrible weapon, capable
of cutting a deep groove in a deal board with a single
well-directed stroke.

There are two kinds of sjambok. One is used for
driving oxen, and is attached to a long bamboo
handle in such a manner that the complete instrument
looks like a gigantic fishing-rod. In the hands of an
experienced driver it becomes a terrible weapon, to
which even the tough hide and obstinately sluggish

160 Anecdotal Natural History.

nature of the African draught ox are forced to suc-
cumb.

The driver can direct his blow with unerring cer-
tainty, and a single stroke will cut completely into the
skins of two oxen at once, raising a cloud of hair,
and often causing blood to spirt from the wound.
The crack of this sjambok is as loud as a pistol
shot, and at the very sound of it the oxen fling them-
selves against the yokes so as to avert the dreaded
blow.

The short sjambok is popularly known as the ' cow-
hide,' because it is made of the hide of the 'sea-cow.'

In order to retain the vital heat below the surface
of the water, a similar provision is found in the hippo-
potamus to that with which the whale is furnished.
Beneath the skin is a thick layer of fat, a wonderful
non-conductor of heat, while a system of glands keep
the outer skin constantly lubricated with oil, and thus
prevent it from coming into actual contact with the
watery element.

This sub-cutaneous fat-layer is considered a great
delicacy, and is known by the Dutch colonists as
'Zee-koe speck,' or sea-cow bacon.

The animal possesses the remarkable power of sink-
ing the whole of its body beneath the surface at will, and
remaining under water for a considerable period
of time. This feat is accomplished by the contrac-
tion of the body, so that, while the weight remains
the same, the bulk is considerably decreased, and
a lesser quantity of water displaced.

Like the rhinoceros, the hippopotamus, whether upon
land or in the water, is usually a very sluggish animal,
and seems greatly averse to active exertion. When
attacked, however, or otherwise alarmed, it exhibits the
most wonderful activity, dashing through the water in a
series of tremendous leaps, or rushing through the

Rhinoceros, Hyrax, and Hipjop^ta mu s, 161

forest with the most unexpected rapidity. Few
obstacles can stand against the onset of an infuriated
hippopotamus, the great bulk cf the animal bearing
down almost any barrier that can be opposed to it.

The colour of the hippopotamus is a dark brown,
marked with a number of irregular lines resembling the
cracks on the surfaces of old oil paintings. The skin
is marked with a number of sooty black blotches,
which are only visible, however, upon a close examina-
tion. When the animal is living in its native land,
the ears, nostrils, and the ridge over the protruding
eyes are of a bright red colour, and form capital
marks for the rifle of the hunter.

The slaughter of the hippopotamus by means of
the rifle is not at all an easy process, as the animal,
when alarmed, sinks at once to the bottom, and only
occasionally rises to the surface for air. Even on
these few occasions the nostrils alone are exposed
above the surface, so that only a very well-directed
bullet can do any harm.

The hunter always endeavours to lodge his first
ball in the nostrils, as, if they be wounded, the animal
is mable to remain submerged. A second bullet in
the eye, or behind the shoulder, will then mostly com-
plete the business.

When in her native rivers, the female hippopotamus
is a model parent to her offspring, carrying her cub
about on her back, and tending it with the most
affectionate care and solicitude. In confinement,
however, she generally behaves differently, and has on
more than one occasion been known to kill her infant
in a fit of passion.

In former days the hippopotamus was a native of
Eu.\)pe, and the fossil remains are found even in our
own country, the London clay being especially pro-
lific in these relics of a bygone time.

L

No. XIIL— ELEPHANTIANA.

" r~PHE fear of you and the dread of you shall be
J- upon every beast of the earth, and upon every
fowl of the air, upon all that moveth upon the earth,
and upon all the fishes of the sea ; into your hands
they are delivered " (Gen. ix. 2).

Section of Trunk of Elephant.

These bold and uncompromising words, written at
least four thousand years ago, are absolutely true now,
as they were then.

Wild animals, no matter what they may be, in-

Elephantiana. 163

stinctively flee from man. The domesticated horse,
which has never seen a beast of prey, trembles with
terror at the smell of a distant menagerie ; but the lion
which inspired that terror is, in its wild state, quite as
much afraid of the odour of man.

Let a lion but detect the dreaded emanation of
man, and he slinks off as quickly as he can.

For, though we are happily unconscious of it, a
very powerful odour emanates from all human beings,
and strikes terror into wild animals. Deer-stalkers
know well that they must approach a stag against
the wind, for that even at the distance of a mile the
stag can detect, the presence of man, should the wind
blow from him and not to him.

Similarly, the practical rat-catchers will never touch
a trap with bare hands. They wear gloves rubbed with
aniseed, and imbue the soles of their boots with the
same perfume, before they can venture to handle a
trap or to walk near the spot where the trap is set.
Inexperienced persons neglect these precautions, and
in consequence, the rat detects the dreaded odour of
man, and keeps aloof from it.

Mole-catchers, again, always keep the skin of a
dead mole by them, and rub it between their hands,
before they set their trap, so as to overpower the
natural odour of the hand.

Of course, there are some animals, such as lions,
tigers, and the like, which will attack and devour
human beings. But these are exceptional individuals,
being almost invariably the aged animals, which
have become too infirm to catch prey in the ordinary
fashion, and are reduced to lurking about villages and
pouncing upon any unwary straggler.

It is well known that the skin of a "man-eater,"
whether lion or tiger, is never worth preservation,
being mangy, bald in patches, and altogether un-

164 Anecdotal Natural History.

sightly. Its skull is equally useless as a specimen,
the teeth being blunt, worn down and decayed.

There is no animal, however gigantic, however
fierce, however powerful, of which man is not the
master. In proportion to his bulk, man is perhaps
the weakest of living beings, and yet he is master
of the strongest.

Not only can he destroy them — that is com-
paratively a simple task — but he can take them from
their own savage life, and force them to become his
servants.

So he has taken possession of the horse, the camel,
and the ox, and made them bend their backs to the
burden and submit their necks to the yoke.

He has reclaimed the dog from a predaceous life,
and taught some of them to guard the flocks which in
the wild state they would have devoured, and to be
the friends and companions of their masters. Others
he has taught to chase prey, not for themselves but
for him.

He has taught the falcon to chase birds for him
in the air, and the otter and cormorant to catch fish
for him in the water. They not only do his work, but
are proud of doing it, and contemptuously reject the
society of their relatives who live only for them-
selves.

No better example of the universal mastery of man
can be found than in the tame elephant. What is a
man, that he should make the mighty elephant obey
his orders ? The creature could crush him in a
moment, and in a fit of blind fury will do so. But
when it is in its senses, the elephant acknowledges
man as its master, and becomes his obedient
servant.

Man rules by two means, Fear and Love. There
are some beings which, from no fault of their own,

Elephantiana. 165

arc so constituted that they must be made subject
to fear before they can learn to acknowledge Love ;
and this is the case, not only with different animals,
but with different individuals belonging to the same
species.

Take, for example, the dog. There are some dogs,
just as there are some men, which are constitutionally
ill-tempered, violent, ungrateful for kindness, mis-
taking forbearance for weakness, and ready to bite
the hand that feeds them. It is impossible to rule
them by love, until they have learned to fear, and can
understand that the hand which gives food can with-
hold it at will, can render them powerless at will, and
can at will inflict pain without the possibility of their
evading or avenging it.

Having, then, been taught by fear to acknowledge
that man is their master, they can begin to learn to
be grateful for their food, and to lick the hand which
gives, in lieu of biting it. For such dogs a severe
chastisement is really the kindest of lessons, and
although " force is no remedy," it is often a needful
preliminary before applying the remedy.

But there are dogs, as there are men, of a higher
order, which are absolutely amenable to Love, but
would be only made obstinate and resentful by
fear. Such an one was my bull-dog " Apollo."
Possessing all the concentrated strength and courage,
added to the instinctive combativeness of his race,
which make the thoroughbred bull-dog one of the
most wonderful animals in the world, he could be
compared to nothing but the Faure " accumulator,"
wherein a million foot pounds of force can be carried
in one hand. Despite his powers, which none knew
better than himself, he was one of the gentlest and
most obedient dogs that I have ever dealt with. I had
him when he was but a puppy, and never once beat

1 66 Anecdotal Natural History.

or scolded him. Yet, he would obey the lifting of
my finger, or the glance of my eye, and the very idea
of incurring my displeasure was unendurable torment
to him.

All servants of the pen must of necessity be so
absorbed in the evolution of ideas and the balance of
sentences, that they are unconscious of time, space,
hunger, thirst, cold, or other material conditions.

It has happened that while I have been thus
absorbed, Apollo has tried to attract my attention,
and in failing, has taken it into his loving brain that
he must have offended me in some way. On such
occasions he grovelled on the floor, he whined, he
licked my hand, and lay in abject despair until again
noticed.

So it is with elephants. There are not two ele-
phants with precisely the same disposition, and the
best keepers are those who try to find out the
peculiar disposition of the creatures under their care,
and to treat them in accordance with that disposition.

As elephants, like falcons, are seldom bred in
captivity, but are captured when wild, it necessarily
follows that the first lesson they must learn is to fear
man, and to realize the strange fact that he is their
master.

It is a remarkable fact that there is no task which
tame elephants undertake so willingly as that of
capturing their wild relatives. They seem to enjoy it
with all their hearts; and both sexes are equally keen
at the sport, the females acting as decoys, and the
males as the representatives of force.

Supposing that a male has to be captured, two
female "koomkies," as these decoys are called,
saunter leisurely along, and soon make the acquaint-
ance of the victim. Each has her keeper, or "mahout,"
on her back, and it is a curious fact that an elephant

Elephantiana. 167

never seems to notice a man as long as he is on
another elephant's back.

The koomkies manage to place themselves on
either side of the male, and by degrees sidle him
close to a tree. One of the mahouts then slips
quietly to the ground, and while his koomkie and
her companion are distracting their victim's attention,
he passes strong cords round the animal's ankles, and
then makes them fast to a tree. The koomkies will
often aid him in this part of the work by taking the
ropes in their trunks, and passing them to their
master's hand as he wants them.

A similar process is then pursued with the forelegs,
and then the treacherous koomkies suddenly slip off,
leaving their dupe fast bound to the tree.

Sometimes, before the ropes are firmly tied, the
elephant becomes suspicious and tries to escape.
The koomkies employ all their blandishments to lull
his suspicions; but if he should still resist, and be
too strong for them, a powerful male is summoned
to their help, and all three beat him and hustle him
about until he is quite bewildered, and at last is held
firmly against the tree where the mahout is ready with
his ropes.

In either case, the duped elephant is left alone, his
vast strength paralyzed in some mysterious manner,
and his struggles for freedom only resulting in pain.
Those who have witnessed these struggles say that
the contortions into which a bound elephant will
fling its body are almost incredible. It rolls over and
over, it rises itself on its hind feet, butts at the tree
and tries to knock it down, uttering all the time its
screams of mingled terror and anger.

After a wrhile comes another feeling. It can neither
eat nor drink, and the pangs of hunger and thirst are
felt. At first, it seems to resent the unwonted feeling,

1 68 Anecdotal Natural History.

but by degrees is so exhausted that it lies motionless
on its side.

Now comes its future mahout. Bringing green
food in his hand, he cautiously approaches the
prostrate elephant. Mostly, rage will for the moment
overcome hunger and weakness, and the animal will
try to attack the man. In that case, the mahout
quietly retires, and leaves the elephant for a few
more hours.

This process is repeated until the elephant no
longer tries to resist. He has learned his first
lesson, that man, small as he may be, is, in some
inexplicable manner, stronger than himself, and that
resistance is useless.

Now he will take the grass from the mahout, and
before long he welcomes the man's presence as the
only mode by which he can obtain food. Sooner or
later the lesson is learnt, and the captive acknow-
ledges himself in subjection. The koomkies are
again summoned, his hind feet are freed from the
ropes, though the fore feet are kept hobbled, and,
guided by the koomkies, he is taken to his future
home, his new master seated on his neck.

As the late Mr. Rarey found to be the case with
horses, the subdued elephant entirely trusts in the
man who has conquered him, and even conceives a
strong affection for his captor.

Sometimes the elephants, instead of being taken
singly, are partly enticed and partly driven into a
large and very strong enclosure, called a " keddah."
This is made of massive posts planted deeply in the
ground, and set far enough apart to allow a man to
pass easily between them. These are supported on the
outside by stout buttresses, so as to withstand the
charge of the trapped elephants.

Fortunately, a herd of elephants never unites in a

Eleplian tiana. 1 69

charge on a given spot. If they were to do so it
would be scarcely possible to build a keddah which
could withstand them. As it is, the posts and
buttresses need only be strong enough to resist
charges of single elephants.

Once inside the keddah, the elephants are never
allowed to rest. By means of fireworks, guns, torches,
and shoutings, the elephants are driven backwards
and forwards until they are fairly wearied out, and
huddle together without even thinking of escape.
Then come the hunters, with their koomkies and
ropes, and bind the limbs of the wearied animals
before they can understand what is happening to
them.

Whether the elephant be taken singly or in num-
bers, the first lesson which it must learn is that
it fears man as being stronger than itself, and that
therefore it must obey him. Next, it learns to trust
to man for food, and is not long before it learns to
love him.

But, when, as was the case with the grand African
elephant " Jumbo," the creature has lived with man
from its infancy, the preliminary lessons are not
needed, and man can rule the animal by love with-
out any mixture of fear. On more than one occasion,
when Jumbo was disposed to be rather wilful, his
keeper, Scott, was urged to use his whip. This he
invariably refused to do, saying, that if he were once
to do so, his influence over the animal would be
gone.

I fully believe that if I had even once used the whip
to Apollo, his absolute belief in me as a being
whose displeasure was infinitely worse torture than
bodily pain, would have been lost. No creature
can defy the extreme of bodily pain more heroically
than a thoroughbred bull-dog. Diabolically cruel

170 Anecdotal Natural History.

experiments have been tried on the animal, and a
bull-dog has endured the severest tortures without
flinching. Pain he would not have feared, but he
did fear the loss of my love for him.

Not but that force may not be sometimes
necessary with any elephant. However gentle an
elephant may be, it is liable to occasional aberrations
of temper, which affect it much as a half-grown cat
is often affected with fits. The animal loses all control
over itself, and for a time is subject to raging mad-
ness.

Now, even a cat can do much harm during a fit,
and what a terrible creature a mad elephant must
be can be well imagined.

The elephant keepers of India, when they per-
ceive symptoms of coining madness, fasten the
animal to a tree just as if it had been newly taken.
They put it on very low diet, and if it should be very
outrageous, they employ their largest and strongest
male elephants to assist in coercing it. These
animals understand the necessity of restraining their
companion, and if other means fail, will beat him
with their trunks when he tries to break his bonds.

Only a short time before these lines were written,
a remarkable instance of madness in an elephant
occurred in Siam.

In that country an albino, or, as it is generally
called, a White Elephant, is held to be, not a mere
animal, but a material habitation of Divinity, and is
honoured accordingly, even the king paying homage
to it. The White Elephant is addressed as "Sublime
Grandeur." He has his court and household officers
like the king. He is lodged in a palace, and is
decorated with jewels of priceless value. The
" Order of the White Elephant " is in Siam what the
Garter is in England, or the Golden Fleece in Spain.

ElepJtantiana. 171

A short time ago, one of these elephants was un-
expectedly seized with madness.

lie begr.'i by trampling to death five of his atten
clants, and then broke away from all control. As he
was a sacred being, he might not be destroyed nor
even injured. By direction of the high priest a fence
of consecrated bamboos was hastily set up round
him, but he made short work of the bamboos, and
the high priest himself had a narrow escape of his
life.

" His Sublime Grandeur " then fortunately made
his way into a court of his palace, where he could be
barred in. Just as a cat does during a fit, the
elephant dashed himself furiously against the walls,
trying to batter them down with his tusks, and at
last inflicted such injuries on himself that he fell
dead.

Now it would have been much kinder to His Sub-
lime Grandeur if his attendants could have placed
him under control during the period of his madness.
It would not have lasted for any length of time, and
the animal might now have been enjoying the
luxuries of his royal home, and the king and court
of Siam would not be wearing the garb of woe.

That semi-worship should be offered to an elephant
in Siam, may seem absurd enough to us in England.
But really, when we recall the history of the great
African elephant " Jumbo," I do not think that we
can fairly laugh at the Siamese. The strangest part
of the Jumbo-worship is, that it sprang up like a
mushroom, in a single day.

There were four elephants in the Zoological
Gardens, two from Africa, and two from India, the
latter having been brought by the Prince of Wales
after his tour in India, in 1875-6. Of the two
African specimens, the male, named "Jumbo," was

172 Anecdotal Natural History.

obtained by exchange from Paris, and the female,
"Alice," was purchased in 1865.

Of all these creatures, the Indian specimens are
the most generally interesting, being playful, and
so gentle that they are quite pleased when the
keeper's children enter their enclosure. Now,
Jumbo, though a good-tempered and docile beast
enough, had for some time been so uncertain in his
temper, that only his keeper, Scott, dared to enter the
cage alone.

Temporary madness does not exclusively belong
to the male elephant, as is generally supposed.
With him, it is almost sure to take place after he has
attained adult age.

The Indian magnates are so well aware of this fact
that in order to gratify their love of a peculiar
department of sport, akin to the bull-fights of Spain,
and the badger-drawing, bear-fighting, and dog and
cock-fighting, which until lately disgraced our own
country, they keep a number of adult male ele-
phants for the purpose of fighting.

Elephants are mild enough except when in the state
of "must," as this peculiar condition is called, and
when two "must" elephants are placed in proximity
to each other, how they fight is admirably told by
Dr. W. Knighton in his " Private Life of an Eastern
King."

Mr. Davis, the American agent who came to buy
Jumbo, mentioned to me that out of the great
number of elephants which had been possessed by
the firm for which he is acting, some of the most
dangerous were females. Few of my readers may
be old enough to recollect " Madame Jack," the
elephant which took an important part in several
plays at the Adelphi Theatre, many years ago. She,
like others, went mad, killed her keeper, and, I

Elcpliantiana. 173

believe, several men besides, and then had to be
destroyed.

Mr. Davis told me that the first sign of the distemper
is that the elephants begin to play with something that
takes their fancy, and become so excited that they
do not obey their keepers. So that for all elephants,
male and female alike, the means of restraint ought
always to be at hand. We will now return to
Jumbo's life in this country.

To naturalists he was of more importance than
either of the others, as he was the first example of
an African elephant ever known to be imported
into England. To myself in particular he was a
singularly interesting creature, and I have watched
him at intervals since he was no larger than a Shet-
land pony.

Indeed, so anxious were his owners and keepers,
that Professor W. H. Flower, the President of the
Zoological Society, stated that he would have con-
sented to Jumbo's removal even if nothing had been
paid for him. More than this, Mr. Bartlett, who
has had a life-long experience of elephants, was
obliged, many months ago, to apply for means of
instantly destroying the animal if he should break
out into madness.

As Dr. Sclater, the Secretary, very forcibly remarks
of the great establishment possessed by Messrs.
Barnum, Bailey, and Hutchinson : " In so large an
establishment, any animal under temporary excite-
ment can be withdrawn from exhibition and placed
in seclusion, which there are no adequate means of
doing in the Zoological Gardens."

Several correspondents stigmatized this "excuse,"
as they were pleased to call it, as feeble and irrelevant.
To my mind, it is simply convincing. Surely it must
be kinder to Jumbo to place him among friends who

i/4 Anecdotal Naturae History.

can restrain him during the short and distinct
intervals of excitement, and so enable him to enjoy
along life of petted luxury, than to destroy him in the
first heyday of youth.

There is a stock argument very much in use by the
advocates of total abstinence, to the effect that man
is the only animal that will drink intoxicating liquors.

It is a pity that they should employ such an argu-
ment, or rather, illustration, for most animals will
indulge in stimulants when they can obtain them. In
one of Charles Dickens's letters there is an amusing
account of a Newfoundland dog that used to go to a
public-house every morning, and have his pint of beer
" drawed reglar, as if he was a brickmaker."

Wearied horses can be rendered capable of con-
tinuing their journey by the administration of a quart
of ale. Cows have more than once been known to
drink home-brewed ale that had been set outside the
farmhouse to cool, and to play the most ludicrous
antics in consequence of the indulgence.

The elephant is no exception to the rule, but is a
most determined toper whenever he can find an
opportunity.

A well-known writer and lecturer on total abstinence
lately cited "Jumbo" as a proof that the largest and
strongest quadruped in England was a teetotaler.
Had he made himself acquainted with the habits
of the animal, he would have found that "Jumbo,"
like all of his kind, is inordinately fond of any
alcoholic liquid, preferring whiskey or any other
liquor.

The Indian mahouts, when they have to teach
their animals any new accomplishment, always reward
them with arrack when they succeed, and the promise
of a bottle of arrack will always induce an elephant
to exert itself to the utmost

ElepJian tiana. 175

The mode in which the animal drinks a bottle of
beer, wine, or spirits is very curious.

The cork is half drawn, and the bottle handed
to the elephant. The animal puts the bottle on the
ground against a wall or tree trunk, holds it firmly
with one of its fore feet, grasps the cork with the
finger-like appendage at the end of the proboscis,
and twists it out in a moment.

Then it takes the bottle by the mouth, and gradually
tilts it up until all the contents have been transferred
to the trunk. Then it gives the empty bottle to the
keeper, puts the end of its trunk into its mouth, blows
the whiskey down its throat, and holds out its trunk
for another supply.

A rather ludicrous example of the fondness of the
elephant for spirits was lately exhibited by two of
Mr. Barnum's elephants.

They had taken cold, and had a fit of the shivers. A
gallon or so of whiskey administered to each of them
speedily set them right. Next morning they were
quite well, but as soon as their keeper came in sight
they began to shiver violently, in hopes of obtaining
another dose of whiskey.

Some years ago, an elephant, which belonged to a
travelling company, was housed for a night in the
stable of a hotel. Next morning the elephant was
gone, and no one had heard or seen anything of him.
That he should have been stolen was not likely, for
the thief could make no use of him, and how so
huge a beast could have concealed himself was a
mystery. The country was scoured in vain all day ;
but in the evening, a servant, who had occasion to
go to the wine-cellar of the hotel, there found the
elephant very quietly reposing among the bottles.
The animal had evidently been attracted by the scent
of the wine, and with the soft, noiseless tread of its

176 Anecdotal Natural History.

kind, had found its way up the great stairs of the
hotel, through the hall, and so into the wine-cellar.

Much of the interest excited by Jumbo is due to
his enormous size.

We read in many books of travel that elephants
are found from twelve to sixteen feet in height,
while some writers have even ventured upon twenty
feet.

Now an elephant of that height would be so
enormous that the tallest giraffe ever known would
need almost an additional yard of height in order
to look over the elephant's shoulder.

In India, the elephants used for riding are on an
average about eight feet in height, and may be com-
pared to men of five feet six inches. Many are little
more than six feet high, while an elephant of nine
feet is considered a large one, and a nine or ten feet
animal is about equivalent to a man of six feet two
inches. Any animal that passes ten feet takes rank
among giants. Every inch added to the height
causes a proportionate increase of bulk, so that when
Jumbo stands by the side of one of the Indian
elephants, he looks like a dray horse compared to a
Shetland pony.

Figures alone give but a poor idea of bulk.

In order to realize the gigantic dimensions of
Jumbo, measure eleven feet in height on the side of
a room, and then measure fourteen feet lengthwise ;
then picture to yourself an elephant of that height
and length, and you will form some idea of the pro-
•portions of Jumbo. Perhaps even those proportions
may be exceeded in time. He is yet but a lad,
according to the duration of elephant life, and if he
were to attain another six or seven inches in height, and
gain another ton in weight, I should not be surprised.

For years jumbo was an inmate of the Zoological

ElcpJtantiana. \ 77

Gardens, growing rapidly, and in course of time
helping the keeper to amuse the younger visitors
by carrying them on his back. Even their ciders did
not disdain a ride on so vast an animal, as I can
vouch from personal experience. Still, except for
iiis size. Jumbo created no particular interest, and
the public cared no more for him than for the other
elephants.

Then a report was bruited abroad that an Ameri-
can agent was negotiating for the purchase of Jumbo,
and the public naturally thought that the Zoological
Society would do itself harm by parting with the
largest elephant that had ever been known in Europe.

Still, beyond a few remonstrances, no great ob-
jections were made to Jumbo's removal. Indeed,
the generality of the visitors to the Zoological
Gardens did not even know the animal's name, nor,
indeed, could most of them distinguish one elephant
from another. Even on the eve of his departure
from England I heard several persons assert that the
female Asiatic elephant (" Suffa-Kulli") was Jumbo,
while, on the other hand, there were quite as many
who pointed out Jumbo as one of the Indian ele-
phants.

One morning, however, there appeared in one of
the daily newspapers a vivid and dramatic account of
an attempt to take Jumbo out of the Gardens, so as
to accustom him to the road.

We were told how he suspected a trap, and be-
wailed his hard lot; how he knelt to his keeper,
caressed him, and in all but human words besought
for restoration to the home of his childhood. We
learned how the other elephants from within their
houses responded to his piteous appeal, and how
they all rejoiced together when he returned among
them.

M

178 Anecdotal Natural History.

As by magic, a Jumbo literature sprang up. The
president, secretary, superintendent, and other officers
of the Society were inundated with letters, mostly
composed of vituperative epithets. Even persons
like myself, who have no connection with the Society,
but were known to take an interest in animals,
received letters from all quarters on the same sub-
ject. None of the writers seemed even to conceive
the idea that the officers of the Society were likely to
understand their own business, and would not part
from such an animal without very good reasons for
doing so.

Then the Jumbo-worship set in. A Jumbo Rescue
Fund was started. Presents of the most fatuous de-
scription were showered on the animal. Visiting
cards with " farewell " were attached to his box,
which was simply covered with farewell messages in
pencil.

That basket after basket full of hot-house grapes
should be given to him we can understand, though
the grapes would have been better employed if given
to sick poor who needed them, and who would not
have eaten the baskets as well as the grapes.

But it is scarcely possible to conceive how many
human beings could have been so ignorantly foolish
as to present an elephant with several boxes of cigars,
packets of snuff, a leg of mutton, and six dozen
oysters.

From their nature these gifts seem to have been
presented by donors of the male sex. But feminine
presents are even more absurd than the masculine.
No one, however imaginative, would have thought
that a widow's suit should be sent to Alice, to be
worn on Jumbo's departure. Or that numbers of
ladies would send their photographs for Jumbo's con-
solation during his absence from them. Or that

ElepJiantiana. 179

measurements of his travelling box should be taken,
so that it might lie decorated with wreaths of flowers.

Can anything be much more absurd than such con-
duct as the following ? " On Wednesday, we saw
a ladv weeping copiously in the Gardens. With
streaming eyes and a moist handkerchief, she was
testifying to the violence of her grief, inveighing
against the brutality of allowing Jumbo to catch cold
in his legs!"

It is impossible not to recall Trinculo's soliloquy
on discovering Caliban : " Were I in England now,
as once I was, and had this fish painted, not a
holiday fool but would give a piece of silver. When
they will not give a doit to relieve a lame beggar,
they will lay out ten to see a dead Indian."

One case, however, outdoes in absurdity all the
previous instances of human folly. Here is an extract
from the first column of a daily newspaper, the
names being suppressed : —

" Onthe'zyth ult." (i.e., February, 1882) "at ,

the wife of H B , Ksq., of a son and heir

(Jumbo)."

Here each sex is equally responsible, as both
husband and wife must have concurred in saddling
their unfortunate "son and heir" with a name that
will afflict him during the whole of his life, and,
if he should goto a public school, will be a perpetual
torment to him. "Tristram Shandy," of Sterne, or
Lord Lytton's "Anachronism," "Pisistratus Caxton,"
were nothing in comparison of "Jumbo B — ."

Then legendary history was foisted upon Jumbo, and
among other fables we were told that " he had been
on exhibition at the London ' Zoo ' for nearly sixty
years, and that upon his back Queen Victoria and the
royal family and thousands of children have ridden."

Now, all this outburst of Jumbo-worship was the

180 Anecdotal Natural History.

work of a few days, the rest of the animal's life
in the Zoological Gardens not exciting the least
enthusiasm in the public mind, even among those
who had ridden on his back when boys and girls, and
had in after years lifted their own children into the
familiar howdah.

Yet to all naturalists the years in which he passed
from infancy to adult age were full of interest, and to
none more so than to myself.

Some twenty-five years ago I stated (" Illustrated
Nat. Hist.," L, p. 739) that I believed the African
elephant to be quite as well fitted for the service of
man, and that the reason why it was not captured
and tamed might be found in the inferiority of the
negro race when compared to the Aryan. Many of
the elephants which were employed in the days of
ancient history were undoubtedly of the African
species, as were those highly-accomplished animals
which are stated to have walked along a set of ropes,
carrying a companion in a litter.

That an African elephant should be brought to
England was an epoch in Zoology, especially as the
animal was very young, and might therefore be
expected to live sufficiently long to enable its dis-
position to be carefully studied. He was then scarcely
as large as an ordinary Shetland pony, and, up to
the present time, when he is eleven feet in height
at the shoulder, and weighs some seven tons, he has
proved quite as gentle and docile as any of the Indian
animals. His compatriot "Alice" has also proved
herself as intelligent and capable of subjection to
man as either of the two Indian elephants.

Yet the art of elephant taming has not been
practised in Africa for many centuries. The natives
can kill them by catching them in pitfalls, or by the
" drop-trap," i.e., a device by which a log of wood,

Elepliantiaiia. 1 8 1

armed with a poisoned spike, or along, double-edged
blade, is dropped upon them from a height.

Some tribes, more courageous than the rest, can
hunt down the animal, and mob it to death, flinging
spears at it until the creature dies from weariness and
itsjtnultitudinous wounds.

Bravest of all are the Agageers, so well djscribcd
by Sir S. Baker.

They hunt the elephant in pairs, one being armed
with a long, straight sword, the edge of which is kept
as keen as that of a razor, and the other being un-
armed. When they hunt, both mount the same horse,
the armed man being behind.

Picking out an elephant with good tusks, they ride
towards him and attract his attention. The man with
the sword then slips off and hides himself under any
convenient bush which they may pass. His com-
panion then irritates the elephant, until it charges
him. The horse, which is always of the swiftest kind,
and carefully trained for the purpose, intentionally
keeps just so far in front of the elephant that the
latter thinks of nothing but catching it.

In course of the chase, the horseman passes close
by his comrade's hiding-place, the elephant being too
much excited to detect him. As the great beast
passes, the hunter steps from his ambush, and with
a single blow severs the tendon of the heel, which
in the elephant is close to the ground. The animal
is instantly rendered powerless, and can be killed
without the possibility of resistance.

Even if the tendon be only partially severed, the
next step is sure to snap it.

Yet in spite of the ingenuity of inventing such a
feat, and the cool daring by which it is accomplished,
no Agageer ever dreamed of taking the elephant
alive. Nor would the Zulus, bravest of the brave as

1 82 Anecdotal Natural History.

they may be, and utterly reckless of their own lives,
attempt such a feat. They have been known to
catch a lion alive, at the command of their king, but
the very idea of taking an adult elephant alive would
not have entered the head of Chaka himself.

Now, both the Agageers and the Zulus are of a much
higher type than the negro, and it is therefore not at
all wonderful that the negro cannot tame the elephant
when tribes which are far superior to him fail to do so.

In general formation, both species very nearly
resemble each other, and if the skull were removed,
it would not be easy to decide whether the rest of the
skeleton belonged to the African or Asiatic species.
The form of the head is, however, very different,
especially in the living animal.

In the first place, the enormous comparative size
of the ears in the African species renders it so con-
spicuous that even when the animal is at rest and
the ears are pressed closely against the head, there
is no possibility of mistaking one species for the
other. These ears, however, are best seen from
the front, when the elephant is excited. In such a
case, they stand out boldly on each side, looking like
a pair of huge black wings.

Looking at the two species in profile, it is easy to see
that the forehead of the African is convex, while that
of the Asiatic is concave. Looking at them from the
front, the head of the African narrows below the
eyes, and then widens again, very much like that of
the hippopotamus.

Its form is due to the manner in which the tusks
are set in their sockets.

In the Indian species, the sockets run nearly
parallel to each other, so that the skull is of tolerably
equal width.

Both species have the peculiarity that if, when

184 Anecdotal Naturae History

wounded, they once fall, they never rise again. The
lions, tigers, bears, and even the buffaloes, will spring
to their feet even when mortally wounded, and often
kill their slayer with their last struggles. But the
dying elephant " subsides like a great hayrick," to
use Mr. Sullivan's words, and expires so gently, that
the hunter is often uncertain whether the animal be
dead or merely resting.

Ivory workers often find bullets imbedded in the
tusks. They have struck the root of the tusk, which
is hollow, and filled with pulp, and have been
gradually carried towards the tip by the growth of the
tusk. In the ivory turners' department of the Crystal
Palace, there are some very curious examples of
imbedded balls. In one case, the track of the ball is
marked by a tunnel of bone extending across the
base of the tusk, the ball itself having passed towards
the point.

As is the case with the whale tribe, the brain of
the elephant is very small in proportion to the size
of the head, and is so deeply sunk in its bony out-
works, that the hunter must aim as accurately as if
shooting at a sparrow.

It is quite common to find in the skulls of slain
elephants the marks where bullets have passed
through the honeycomb-like mass of bone which
surrounds the brain, and where the damage has been
repaired by Nature. There are several such speci-
mens in the College of Surgeons.

If the African elephant cannot be induced to turn
his side towards the hunter, the only hope of the
latter is to aim at one of the legs so as to disable it.

The late Gordon Gumming once owed his life to an
accidental shot which broke the elephant's leg and
rendered it powerless. As it could not stir, he,
knowing very little of anatomy, tried to find its

Etephantiana.

185

vulnerable points by shots at short distances. After
receiving with comparative indifference ball after

ball, it sank dead from a shot which took effect
between the eye and ear.

He incurred much blame for the heartless cruelty
of this proceeding, but in reality he saved pain to

1 8 6 Elepha n tta net.

hundreds of other elephants, not to mention human
lives.

It was far more humane to learn how to kill an
elephant instantaneously with a single shot, than to
allow the animals to be caught in pitfalls and trans-
fixed by a stake, or to be slowly tortured to death
by countless spear wounds.

Also, with the flesh of the elephants he fed whole
tribes of starving natives, and so he brought the
ivory into the market with the least possible pain to
the animals, and the greatest possible good to the
various native tribes, which depend largely on the
elephant for their subsistence.

Both species have a similar gait. When they walk
they do not, like the horse, move the feet alternately
and diagonally, but walk alternately with the feet of
each side.

Moreover, instead of bending the leg at the so-
called "knee " and " hock," as the horse does, and
furthermore bending it again at the pasterns, the
elephant scarcely bends its legs at all, but swings
them forwards and backwards, planting the heel first
on the ground, just as man does. In fact, the
elephant is, in our modern athletic slang, " a fair heel
and toe pedestrian."

A glance at the skeleton will show the reason for
this gait. In the elephant, the " cannon bones," or
"shank bones," i.e., the middle mctacarpal bone of the
fore foot and the middle metatarsal bone of the hind
foot are not lengthened as in the horse, and the
entire foot is brought close to the ground, all five
toes resting on it.

This peculiar structure of the legs enables the
elephant to use them as offensive weapons. It does
not kick with its hind legs like the horse, nor strike,
boxer fashion, with its fore-feet, like the stag, but it

Bones of Fore-leg

Bones of Hind-leg1.

1 88 Anecdotal Natural History.

hustles its foe backwards and forwards under its
body, kicking it forward with the hind feet, and then
backward with the fore feet. In this way it has
bet n known to destroy a wild boar and a tiger, and
in both cases the elephant was a female which was
defending her offspring.

It is strange to see how artists ignore this structure,
even when they are engaged in scientific work. I
have now before my eyes a well-known zoological
diagram for schools, in which the elephant has knee,
hock, and pasterns just like a horse, and to make
matters worse, is standing with the pastern of one hind
foot gracefullv bent !

I may here mention that the footprint of an
elephant designates the size and serves to identify
the animal.

It is found by measurement that twice the circum-
ference of the foot is equal to its height at the
shoulder. Now, the circumference of "Jumbo's"
foot slightly exceeds five feet six inches, so that his
height is a little over eleven feet.

The identity of the animal is shown by the lines
which cross and recross each other in the sole of the
elephant's foot, just as do the lines of the palms of
our hands, and which are imprinted on soft ground.
When hunters track an elephant, they copy these
lines, and so are able to adhere to the " spoor" of the
same animal, even when it has been mixed with the
footsteps of many others.

These great feet, which can crush a tiger into a
jelly, and which have to support a weight which is
measured by tons, are as silent in their tread as those
of a cat. All elephant hunters know that elephants
can glide noiselessly through thick forests, where even
the barefooted savage can scarcely tread without
betraying his whereabouts.

Elephantiana. 189

Even upon the highroads of this country, where
the shod hoof of the horse is audible far off, the
elephant swings his mighty bulk along without
apparent effort, and. so silently that "the blind mole
may not hear a footfall."

Huge as it may be, no creature is so difficult of
detection. Dr. W. Knighton, the Cingalese elephant
hunter, tells me that in the forests of Ceylon you
may be standing within a couple of yards of a nine
or ten feet elephant, and not be able to distinguish
the animal from surrounding objects. Its legs are
just like tree trunks, and its brown body merges so
imperceptibly into the sombre forest shadows, that
the eye is incapable of discerning it.

Both species are playful, and are even fond of toys.
In one case, a large wooden ball was given to the
elephants. But they became so excited with their
toy, hurling it about as if it were shot from a cannon,
that the keepers were obliged to remove it.

Both species practise a most curious mode of
avenging themselves when angered.

In Mr. Baldwin's work on African hunting, it is
mentioned that fully half a mile from any water a
tolerably large crocodile was found, hanging in the
fork of a tree about ten feet from the ground. The
natives seemed to be familiar with this strange position
for a crocodile, and said that the reptile had been
put there by an elephant.

They stated that when the elephants wade iato
the lake (Nyami) for bathing purposes, the crocodiles
are apt to worry them and bite their legs. Some-
times, when an elephant is annoyed beyond all
patience, it picks up the crocodile in its trunk, puts
it among the branches of a tree, and leaves it
there.

The truth of this curious story is corroborated by

19° Anecdotal Natural History.

the behaviour of an Indian elephant, very inappro-
priately named Pangul, or Fool.

The animal knew perfectly well the weight of the
burden which he had to carry, and if he were over-
loaded, either refused to stir, or shook off his load by
wriggling his skin.

One day an officer was trying to overload him, and
became so angry at seeing the load repeatedly thrown
off, that he flung a tent-peg at the elephant. Pangul
took no notice at the time, but a few days after-
wards he met his persecutor alone. Pangul imme-
diately picked him up with his trunk, put him among
the branches of a large tamarind tree, and left him
there to get down as he could.

Gigantic as the elephant may be, it is horribly
afraid of any small quadruped. A kitten which
happened to stray among some elephants drove them
half mad with terror, occasioning as much unreason-
able consternation as a cockroach or mouse in a
drawing-room full of ladies.

Yet, an elephant has been known to take a fancy
to a cat, or rather, the cat took a fancy to the
elephant. She had a fixed idea that his back was a
sleeping-place expressly designed by nature for her,
and on his back she -would go. At first, the elephant
took her off his back and put her out of his cage, but
as fast as he put her down in front, she slipped
round and climbed up his hind quarters again. So
the elephant let her have her own way, and soon
became quite attached to the cat.

The reader may remember that I have alluded to
the assistant male elephants which play the part of the
Philistines to the captive Samson, just as the koom-
kies take the part of Delilah.

These assistant elephants are as carefully trained
to fight as our modern boxers, and, as with man.

Elephantiana* 191

size and brute strength are of small avail before
practised skill. The professional fighting elephant
knows beforehand every move in the game, — when to
bump his antagonist against a tree and thrash him
on the neck with his trunk before he can recover
from the shock, when and how to use his tusks, and
when to charge with his whole weight against his
adversary.

Some of these trained elephants have been sent to
Africa for the double purpose of capturing African
elephants and of showing the more intelligent tribes
how to take elephants alive instead of merely killing
them for the sake of the ivory.

The account of their transit is a very interesting
one, but too long to be given in full. There was
much the same difficult}' in embarking them as was
found with " Jumbo," but there was much more
difficulty in landing them.

Owing to the peculiar shore of Zanzibar, the ship
could not approach within two miles of land. At
last it was decided to lower one of them, poetically
named " Budding Lily," into the water, and induce
her to swim ashore.

So she was slung over the side, and let gently into
the sea, with the mahout on her neck. Now ele-
phants, when bathing, are rather fond of playing a
practical joke on the mahout. They sink them-
selves beneath the water so as to give the mahout a
sound ducking, while they can breathe through the
end of the proboscis, which is held out of the water.
" Budding Lily " played this same joke, but when
she rose to the surface became alarmed and tried to
scramble on board again. The captain of the ship
sent a boat, which tried to tow the elephant land
wards, but the animal was too strong, and dragged
the boat back to the ship's side, up which it vainly
attempted to climb.

192 Anecdotal Natural History.

After more than an hour had been thus wasted the
elephant suddenly comprehended the situation, and
swam towards shore, accompanied by the boat.
Some sand-banks on the way afforded it resting
places, and in about four hours after leaving the ship
the first Asiatic elephant set foot on African shore.

There was little trouble with the other elephants,
for they took courage from the conduct of their
companion, and swam ashore after her.

One of the elephants of the Jardin des Plantes. of
Paris, used to play an absurd trick with the visitors.
She would sink herself until only the tip of the
trunk projected from the water, and she was thereby
rendered practically invisible. Then she would send
a torrent of water over the spectators, who could not
imagine where the deluge came from.

That elephants should be such admirable swimmers
seems very remarkable, and especially that they
should have such propulsive power as to drag back a
boat fully manned. The capability of sinking or
rising at will in the water is equally remarkable, and
is owing to the power of contracting its body so as
to render it heavier than an equal bulk of water.

Activity, again, seems no characteristic of the
elephant. Its apparently stiff and ungainly legs,
which can swing some fourteen or fifteen feet at each
step, although well enough adapted to carry the huge
body along at a swift pace, appear to be totally in •
adequate to perform feats of activity.

Yet the elephant can climb rocks where one might
think no animal but the goat would venture. It can
slide down a steep hill just as a "coaster" slides
down a snow-clad declivity on his sledge, and can
guide or check its progress with equal skill. I have
seen an elephant stand on its hind feet, or fore feet,
or on the feet of one side, or on the fore foot of one

ElepJiantiana. 193

side and the hind foot of the other, and all the
time mounted on a wooden cylinder not large enough
to support all its four feet when placed together.

Yet, though it can swim so well, and can so easily
ascend and descend precipitous slopes, the elephant
is utterly powerless in mud of any depth. Should it
by chance stray into a quagmire it becomes frantic
with terror, utters screams of mingled fear and anger,
its eyes start from its head with fright, and its pro-
boscis feels in all directions for something firm on
which it may stand.

When an elephant is in this predicament, the
mahout slips off over the animal's tail, and runs
away as fast as he can. Did he not escape in this
way, the elephant would be sure to pluck him from its
neck, and place his body under his feet so as to form
a support for its weight.

The only plan by which an elephant can be relieved
from this awkward position is to approach as near as
is consistent with safety, and to throw logs, planks,
or branches of trees within reach of the proboscis.
The elephant immediately seizes them, and places
them one by one under its feet until it can stand
firmly, and by continuing the process, makes a road
by which it may regain dry ground. As soon as it
has done so, the mahout resumes his place on the
animal's neck, and can safely guide it as before.

Cautious as is the elephant in trusting its vast
weight to anything which may seem to be unable to
support it, the animal's wonderful power of balance
enables it to step for almost incredible distances
from one foothold to another.

First, it surveys the intervening distance, and
carefully takes the measure of it. Then it leans for-
ward, and stretches its proboscis forwards so as to test
the strength of the next foothold. Guided by the

194 Anecdotal Natural History.

proboscis one fore foot is then pushed forward until it
obtains a hold.

Next follows the hind foot of the same side, and
then the fore and hind feet of the opposite side are
gradually transferred to their new situation, the ever
restless proboscis always acting as pioneer of each
step.

No one who has not seen it can realize the mar-
vellous delicacy of the whole proceeding, or the per-
fection of balance shown by the apparently ungainly
animal.

Judging by appearances, the elephant is about the
last animal in the world which we should have
thought to be swift of progress on land and in the
water, a rock-climber, silent of tread as a cat, almost
invisible among trees, and capable of slipping
through dense forests without shaking the boughs
or producing a sound that would betray its presence.
Still less could we expect that it should be able to
perform the extraordinary feats of agility which have
already been mentioned.

Yet it does all these things, and, most wonderful
of all, its vast strength, its powers of intellect, and
its other great gifts are made to be subservient to
man.

I was never more impressed with the truth of the
passage quoted at the beginning of this article, than
by watching the mode in which the enormous animal
was rendered helpless by man, into whose hand all
living creatures are delivered.

A 000 049 504 4

WM. C. G. LUDFORD,

Hill,
SUTTON COLDFIELD.