acute scent; and they would remove to some distant part before the destroyer could reach them. The Lion, too, as well as the tiger and others of the same species, seldom runs. He either walks or creeps, or, for a short distance, advances rapidly by great bounds. It is evident, therefore, that he must seize his prey by stealth; that he is not fitted for an open attack; and that his character is necessarily that of great power, united to considerable skill and cunning in its exercise.

The Lion requires about fifteen pounds of flesh, for food, every day. As he prefers the flesh of animals recently killed, and will seldom condescend to make a second meal upon the same carcass, it is obvious that the havoc he must make among the antelopes and other beasts upon which he preys, is prodigious. If we contemplate the death of one of these harmless creatures; the shock of affright when he hears the bound of his enemy; the agony when he feels his grasp, and the mortal pang when his throat is fastened in the jaws of the monster; we cannot but be struck with wonder at the amount of suffering which is necessary to support this king of the forest during a life which sometimes extends to seventy years.

But if we look further, we shall observe the same process going on around us on a smaller scale. The cat inflicts similar pain and destruction upon the birds and mice, and is as greedy and bloodthirsty, in proportion to her sizė, as the Lion himself.

Every one, almost, is familiar, by reading or by hearing, with the roar of the Lion. It is a sound of terror, and produces an appalling effect. It is said by travellers that it sometimes resembles the sound which is heard at the moment of an earthquake; and that he produces this extraordinary effect by laying his head upon the ground, and uttering a half-stifled growl, by which means the noise is conveyed along the earth. The instant this roar is heard by the animals who are reposing in the plains, they start up

with alarm; they fly in all directions; and sometimes they rush into the very danger which they seek to avoid.

The Lion, as well as all of the cat tribe, takes his prey at night; and it is necessary, therefore, that he should have peculiar organs of vision. In all those animals which seek their food in the dark, the eye is usually of a large size, to admit a great number of rays. The power of seeing in the dark, which the cat tribe possesses, has always appeared a subject of mystery; and it is natural that it should be so, for man himself sees with more difficulty in the dark than any other animal; he has a compensation in his ability to produce artificial light by lamps and candles. This peculiar kind of eye, therefore, is necessary to the Lion to perceive his prey and he creeps toward it with a certainty which nothing but this distinct nocturnal vision could give.

You must have observed what are usually called the whiskers on a cat's upper lip. The use of these in a state of nature is very important. They are organs of touch. The slightest contact of these whiskers with any surrounding object is felt most distinctly by the animal, although the hairs are themselves insensible. They stand out on each side, in the Lion, as well as in the common cat, so that, from point to point, they are equal to the width of the animal's body.

If we imagine, therefore, a Lion stealing through a covert of wood in an imperfect light, we shall at once see the use of these long hairs. They indicate to him, through the nicest feeling, any obstacle which may present itself to the passage of his body; they prevent the rustle of boughs and leaves, which would give warning to his prey if he were to attempt to pass through too close a bush; and thus, in conjunction with the soft cushions of his feet, they enable him to move towards his victim with a stillness greater even than that of the snake who creeps along the grass, and is not perceived till he has coiled round his astonished prey.

I have thus gone through several of the most striking peculiarities of the Lion. His formation is evidently designed for the destruction of animal life. I have noticed the roar by which he rouses his prey; the eye by which he sees it in the dark; the sensitive whiskers, and the cushioned foot, by which he creeps upon it without noise; and the great physical force by which the spring upon the victim is performed. I might further notice his powerful paw, the instrument with which he strikes his prey; his strong teeth, his formidable jaw, with which he can crush the bones of an ox or buffalo; and his tongue, provided with a prickly surface, enabling him to lick flesh from the bones.

All these properties form a part of the condition of the Lion's existence; and it should be borne in mind that the very nature of his food has a tendency to preserve his character unaltered, to support his enormous muscular strength, and to perpetuate his bloody habits. The more we extend our researches into the animal kingdom, the more shall we be struck with this extraordinary adaptation of the parts of living bodies to their respective uses; the more shall we be convinced, by our own imperfect knowledge, of the perfection of that Wisdom and Power, whose works are as marvellous as they are unbounded.

ANECDOTES OF THE LION.

A few years ago there was a remarkable exhibition at Warwick, in England, of two combats between Lions and dogs. The tempers of the two Lions were very different. The one, an exceedingly gentle creature, could not understand that the dogs seriously meant to attack him; and he bore their onset with the greatest patience. The other, of a fiercer and more unsubdued disposition, would not endure the liberties of the fierce bull-dogs that were set upon him; and he very soon made a fearful havoc amongst them.

This cruel and disgraceful experiment had its precedents. The ancient Romans delighted in such brutal exhibitions.

Sylla caused one hundred to engage together; Pompey, six hundred; and Cæsar, four hundred. The emperors of Rome also found pleasure in these exhibitions of barbarian magnificence. Adrian, it is said, often caused a hundred Lions to be destroyed in the circus; and Antoninus and Marcus Aurelius were equally prodigal in providing such savage excitements for the appetite of the people.

It may be judged from these relations, which we find in the Roman historians, that Lions were infinitely more abundant in ancient times than they are now.

Mr. Burchell, who travelled in Africa a few years since, gives an account of the following interesting adventure with a Lion.

The day, says he, was exceedingly pleasant, and not a cloud was to be seen. For a mile or two we travelled along the banks of the river, which in this part abounded in tall rushes. The dogs seemed much to enjoy prowling about, and examining every bushy place, and at last met with some object among the rushes which caused them to set up a most vehement and determined barking. . We explored the spot with caution, as we suspected, from the peculiar tone of their bark, that it was, what it proved to be, Lions.

Having encouraged the dogs to drive them out, a task which they performed with great willingness, we had a full view of an enormous black-maned Lion, and a Lioness. The latter was seen only for a minute, as she made her escape up the river, under concealment of the rushes; but the Lion came steadily forward and stood still to look at At this moment we felt our situation not free from danger, as the animal seemed preparing to spring upon us, and we were standing on the bank at the distance of only a few yards from him, most of us being on foot and unarmed, without any visible possibility of escaping.

us.

I had given up my horse to the hunters, and was on foot myself, but there was no time for fear, and it was useless to

attempt avoiding him. I stood well upon my guard, holding my pistols in my hand, with my finger upon the trigger; and those who had muskets kept themselves prepared in the same manner. But at this instant the dogs boldly flew in between us and the Lion, and, surrounding him, kept him at bay by their violent and resolute barking. The courage of these faithful animals was most admirable; they advanced up to the side of the huge beast, and stood

making the greatest clamour in his face, without the least appearance of fear.

The Lion, conscious of his strength, remained unmoved at their noisy attempts, and kept his head turned towards us. At one moment, the dogs, perceiving his eyes thus engaged, had advanced close to his feet, and seemed as if they would actually sieze hold of him; but they paid dearly for their imprudence, for without discomposing the majestic and steady attitude in which he stood fixed, he merely moved his paw, and at the next instant I beheld two lying dead. In doing this, he made so little exertion that it was scarcely perceptible by what means they had been killed.

Of the time which we had gained by the interference of the dogs, not a moment was lost; we fired upon him; one of the balls went through his side just between the short