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feet at a bound; and the tiger, who is ten times as long, can no doubt spring proportionably.

As to the number of its young, we have no certain accounts; however, it is said, that it brings forth four or five at a time. Although furious at all times, the female, upon this occasion, exceeds her usual rapacity; and, if her young are taken from her, she pursues the spoiler with incredible rage; he, to save a part, is contented to lose a part, and drops one of her cubs, with which she immediately returns to her den, and again pursues him; he then drops another, and by the time she has returned with that, he generally escapes with the remainder. If she loses her young entirely, she then becomes desperate, boldly approaches even the towns themselves, and commits incredible slaughter. The tiger expresses its resentment in the same manner with the lion; it moves the muscles and skin of its face, shows its teeth, and shrieks in the most frightful manner. Its note is very different from that of the lion; being rather a scream than a roar: and the ancients expressed it very well, when they said that, tigrides indomite rancant rugiunt que leones.

The skin of these animals is much esteemed all over the east, particularly in China; the mandarins cover their seats of justice in the public places with it, and convert it into coverings for cushions in winter. In Europe, these skins, though but seldom to be met with, are of no great value, those of the panther and the leopard being held in much greater estimation. This is all the little benefit we derive from this dreadful animal.*

There is an animal of America, which is usually called the red tiger, but Mr Buffon calls it the cougar,

would give but a very faint idea; it will be, therefore, sufficient to observe, that they are both equally slender, and are smaller where the neck joins the head, than others of the panther kind. There is one at present in the Tower; and it seemed to me, as well as I could see it through the bars, that were it properly streaked and coloured, it would in all things resemble a small tiger. It is, however, of a very different colour, being of a deep brown, and the tail very long and pointed. It is rather darker on the back; under the chin it is a little whitish, as also on the lower part of the belly.

Of all the American animals, this is the most formidable and mischievous; even their pretended lion not excepted. It is said, there are several sorts of them; and, as well as I can remember, I have seen one or two here in England, both differing from the present, in size and conformation.

The cougars are extremely common in South America, and, where the towns border upon the forest, these make frequent incursions by night into the midst of the streets, carrying off fowls, dogs, and other domestic creatures. They are, however, but weak and contemptible, compared to the great tiger, being found unable to cope with a single man. The Negroes and Indians are very dexterous in encountering them; and some, even for the sake of their skins, seek them in their retreats.

This animal, as we are assured, is often successful against the crocodile; and it is the only quadruped in that part of the world, that is not afraid of the engagement. It must be no unpleasant sight to observe, from a place of safety, this extraordinary combat, between animals so terrible and obnoxious to man. Such as have seen it, describe it in the following manner :-When the tiger, impelled by thirst, that seems continually to consume it, comes down to the river side to drink, the crocodile, which makes no distinction in its prey, lifts its head above water to seize it; the tiger, not less rapacious than the other, and unacquainted with the force of the enemy, boldly ventures to seize it, and plunges its claws into the eyes of the crocodile, which is the only vulnerable part of its body; upon this the crocodile instantly dives under water, and the tiger goes down with him, for it will sooner die than let go its hold. In this manner the combat continues for some time, until the tiger is drowned, or escapes, as is sometimes the case, from its disabled enemy.*

THE PANTHER AND THE LEOPARD.-We have hitherto found no great difficulty in distin

guishing one animal from another, each carrying its own peculiar marks, which, in some measure, serve to separate it from all the rest. But it is otherwise, when we come to these of the cat kind, that fill up the chasm between the tiger and the cat. The spots with which their skins are diversified, are SO various, and their size so equivocal, that it is no easy matter to distinguish the species, par

situation he may be compared to a man who has been tarred and feathered. The anxiety produced by this strange and novel predicament soon discovers itself in dreadful howlings, which serve to call the watchful peasants, who, in that state, find no difficulty in

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ticularly as we have little else but the spots and the size to guide us in making the distinction.

Of all this tribe, whose skins are so beautifully spotted, and whose natures are so mischievous, the panther may be considered as the foremost. This animal has been by many naturalists mistaken for the tiger; and, in fact, it approaches next to it in size, fierceness, and beauty. It is distinguished, however, by one obvious and leading character; that of being spotted, not streaked; for, in this particular, the tiger differs from the panther, the leopard, and almost all the inferior ranks of this mischievous family.

This animal, which Buffon calls simply the panther, Linnæus the pard, Gesner the pardalis, and the modern Latins the leopardus; this animal, I say, which goes by too many names, and which the English have indiscriminately called by the name of the panther or the leopard, may be considered as the largest of the kind, and is spotted in a manner somewhat different from those that are smaller. As those spots however, make the principal difference between it and the lesser animals, which it otherwise resembles in shape, size, disposition, and beauty, I will first show these slight distinctions, and mention the names each animal has received in consequence thereof; and then proceed to give their history together, still marking any peculiarity observable in one of the species, which is not found in the rest.

Next to the great panther, already mentioned, is the animal which Buffon calls the leopard, a name which he acknowledges to be given arbitrarily, for the sake of distinction. Other naturalists have not much attended to the slight differences between this and the great panther, nor have they considered its discriminations as sufficient to entitle it to another name. It has hitherto, therefore, gone under the name of the leopard, or panther of Senegal, where it is chiefly found. The differences between this animal and the former are these: the large panther is often found to be six feet long, from the tip of the nose to the insertion of the tail; the panther of Senegal is not above four. The large panther is marked with spots in the manner of a rose, that is, five or six make a kind of circle, and there is generally a large one in the middle. The leopard of Senegal has a much more beautiful coat, the yellow is more brilliant, and the spots are smaller, and not disposed in rings but in clusters. As to the rest, they are both whitish under the belly; the tail in both is pretty long, but rather longer in proportion in the latter, than the former. To these two animals, whose differences seem to be so very minute, we may add a third; namely, the jaguar or panther of America.* This, in every respect, resembles the two

was in a great degree indebted to an absurd notion on the part of the early colonists, which was even shared by many naturalists, that he was in reality, neither more nor less than a degenerated variety of that far more noble animal. This opinion has given way to sounder views, and he is now universally recognised as forming a species clearly distinguishable from every other, by a combination of characters which it is impossible to mistake. In captivity, the puma readily be comes tame, and may even be rendered docile and obedient. His manners closely resemble those of the domestic cat; like it he is extremely fond of being noticed, raises his back and stretches his limbs beneath the hand that caresses him, and expresses his pleasure by the same quiet and complacent purring. They soon become attached to those with whom they are familiar; and numerous instances might be mentioned in which they have been suffered to roam almost at large about the house without any injurious re

sults. The late Mr. Kean, the tragedian, possessed an animal of this species so tame as to follow him about almost like a dog, and to be frequently introduced into his drawingroom, when filled with company, at perfect liberty.-ED.

*THE JAGUAR.-Buffon has mistaken the jaguar, which he describes from an ocelot, and refers to the former animal, because, probably, it was a larger species, to the panther of the ancients, transposing his figures accordingly. The furriers, and exhibitors of wild beasts have imbibed this error; and the jaguar of America has altogether usurped the name of panther, from the species of the old world, to which it was originally applied.

ANIMALS OF THE CAT KIND.-In this spe cies, we have, in a remarkable manner, the opportunity of observing the mutual harmony existing between the mental impulses and the physical powers of animals; their disposition or inclination to destruction is precisely in unison and proportion with their

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