All the cat tribe, when well supplied with food, seem to delight in throwing themselves about in graceful attitudes in a kind of play; and lions and tigers, when much pleased, purr like the common domestic cat. The lion is distinguished from the tiger not only by his colour, but by his large and flowing mane, and by his tufted tail, in the midst of the hair of which is a black prickle-like horn, like a small claw. The ancients were aware of this peculiarity, and one of the early commentators on the Iliad, referring to the passage where Homer describes the lion as lashing himself with his tail to provoke himself to rage, mentions this prickle, and asserts, that when punctured by it, it is not surprising that the lion should become irritable. Modern naturalists, however, assert, that the prickle is so small, and so buried in the tuft of hair, that it is impossible it could wound the sides of the lion, however vehemently he might lash them with his tail; but they all agree that this prickle or small claw does exist, and they do not give any explanation of its use. In the Nimroud sculptures, which are supposed to be part of the ruins of Nineveh, which were removed to the British Museum in June, 1847, there is represented a lion hunt, and in one of the lions there is an exaggerated representation of the claw in the tail.
Domestic cats are not all descended from the same origin, and, in fact, there are four or five quite distinct varieties. The wild cat of the woods has the peculiarity of having the tail thickened at the tip; and the Egyptian cat, of which we sometimes see mummies preserved in museums, had a tuft of hair at the tip of its tail like a lion. Most domestic cats have their tails tapering to a point at the tip, but the tabby and the black cats have somewhat thicker tails than cats of lighter colours, and, indeed, seem to bear most resemblance to the wild cats in this respect. If the tails of ordinary cats are observed, they will be found to differ considerably; and we had once a tabby cat which had a tail that she could curl like the tail of a pug dog. The tortoise-shell cats were originally brought from Spain; and it is only the females of this race that are tortoiseshell, the males being of a kind of buff, with dark stripes of a reddish hue. The white cats are descended from the Chartreuse breed, and they have all a bluish tinge in their fur, and red eyes. Some of these cats are without tails, and others have tails which look as if a joint or two had been cut off. The Angora cats are quite distinct, and are known by their long silky hair, and large bushy tails. When a cat is enraged, its hair stands erect, and its tail swells to an enormous size.
THE DOG TRIBE.
The sagacity and fidelity of dogs are so well known, that it seems scarcely necessary to say anything here in their praise. Indeed, in some cases, the instinct of the dog approaches so near to the intelligence of man, that it is extremely difficult to know where to draw the line. There are, however, some points in which the superiority of the intellect of man to the most sagacious of the brute creation, is evident at a single glance; and one is, that no brute, however quick it may be found to learn any kind of trick, has yet been found capable of imparting what it has acquired to another. A dancing dog cannot teach another dog to dance, and one who has learnt to pick out letters, or perform any other tricks, can only do exactly what it has been taught without the power of making any variation, and very often can only perform them at the command of the master who taught them. In the summer of 1845, there was a dog in Paris who performed in a melodrama the part of a smuggler's dog, who opened a cupboard door, and took out some food for the smugglers, shutting the door again carefully; stole a key, which he carried to a prisoner to set him free, and contrived to get his own neck out of a collar by which he was chained up, with many other tricks that almost seemed to vie with human intelligence. So far, however, from this being the case, the dog was so incapable of performing without the presence of its own master, that it was found necessary to engage the latter at a considerable salary to appear every night on the stage, though he was no performer, even after he had sold his dog to the manager. Many curious stories are related of the instinct of dogs, and, amongst others, that pointers in the fen country, instead of putting out a foot when they smell game, which could not be seen among the numerous rushes and similar plants which grow in the fens, stand up upon their hind feet, so that their noses are seen above the herbage.
Wolves are nearly allied to dogs, and have in many respects the same habits; but they are more ferocious and more cowardly. When excited by hunger, they will attack the stables or outhouses of a dwellinghouse; and in the northern regions, wolves are said frequently to venture upon the ice for the purpose of destroying the young seals. The wolf is occasionally afflicted with madness, which resembles the hydrophobia of the dog. Wolves, like dogs, when in a wild state associate together, as do the jackals.
Foxes also belong to this tribe, but they are distinguished by their bushy tails and offensive smell.
THE WEASEL TRIBE.
The animals belonging to this tribe are all considered as vermin. They are very blood-thirsty, and as, from their slender flexible forms, they can easily penetrate into poultry-yards and other enclosures, they do a great deal of mischief. The polecat has a remarkably offensive smell, and very singular habits. In Scotland it is called the foumart, and one in that country having been observed to catch a frog was followed to its den, two miles off. Its track having been traced and its hole found, the nest was dug out, and in it were five young polecats nearly half-grown, sleek, clean, and well fed. The correspondent of The Magazine of Natural History who relates this, continues, "they [the young polecats] were comfortably embedded in dry withered grass; and where they were lodged all things were tight and snug to a wonder; but in a side hole, of proper dimensions for such a larder, I poked out, and counted most carefully, forty large frogs and two toads. But the most singular thing was this, that they were all and every one of them alive, but merely so; capable of sprawling a little, and that was all. For the mother, with a prudence and care for the comfort of her family highly creditable, and guided by some instinct to a surgical knowledge and skill that has ever since appeared to me most unaccountable, had contrived to strike them all with palsy. They were, as I said, merely capable of sprawling, but not of moving away, or into the nest, which would doubtless have been very inconvenient, as any one may easily suppose. On examination, I found that the whole number of puddocks, toads and all, were purposely and dexterously bitten through the brain." On another occasion, according to Mr. St. John, when the larder of a she polecat was examined, it was found to contain, amongst a variety of other things, the remains of three kittens which had been drowned at the distance of at least a quarter of a mile from the polecat's abode. Bewick also mentions that eleven eels were once found in a polecat's retreat. One of the peculiarities of these creatures is, that when they get into a poultry-yard or pigeon-house, they kill all the birds within their reach before they begin to eat one, and thus, on one occasion, a polecat was found to have killed no less than fifteen turkeys, none of the bodies of which were injured, though the polecat was caught sucking the blood of one of them. Notwithstanding the disagreeable smell of this creature, it has beautiful fur, and that of the polecats of the north is frequently used for muffs and tippets in this country, under the name of fitch. In some cases, indeed, the polecat is called the fitchet. Several of the animals belonging to this family have their skins used for furs; but one of the most valuable skins employed for that purpose is that of the Siberian marten, which we call the sable, and the hairs of which are so fine and soft, that when blown upon they will lie smooth in whatever direction they chance to fall.
The otter is very fond of fish, but, strange to say, it only eats the upper part, leaving the tail floating in the water. These mangled remains are, however, frequently eaten by the poorer classes, and Mr. St. John relates a story on the subject. At one of the falls of the Findhorn, he says, "I was much amused to hear the lamentation of an old woman on the badness of the times, when, after enumerating all her other troubles, she added, 'and the otters, too, are all gone, puir beasties.' 'Well, but what good could the otters do you?' I asked her. — 'Good, your honour? why scarcely a morn came but they left a bonny grilse on the scarp down yonder, and the vennison was none the waur of the bit the puir beasts eat themselves.' The people there (in the north of Scotland) call every eatable animal, fish, flesh, or fowl, venison, or, as they pronounce it, 'vennison.' For instance, they tell you that the snipes are 'good vennison,' or that the trout are not 'good vennison' in the winter."
AMPHIBIOUS ANIMALS.
SEAL
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The seal is called amphibious, but though it is furnished with four feet, its natural place of abode appears to be the sea, as its movements on land are excessively painful and awkward. The feet are so short, and so enveloped in skin, that they are of scarcely any use in assisting the motion of the animal on land; and its progress on solid ground is only effected by a sort of tumbling, jumping, or shuffling motion, excessively ridiculous to a looker-on. The fore-feet are, however, furnished with claws which are very useful to the animals to lay hold of the rocks when they are climbing out of the water; and as the toes are united by webs, the fore-feet serve as oars, while the hinder ones, which the seal generally drags after it, serve as a rudder, in much the same way as the tail of a fish. The animal is, in fact, admirably adapted for gliding through the water, not only in the outward form of its body, but in all the details of its construction. The flesh is covered with a thick layer of fat, which not only prevents the animal from being injured by sudden changes of temperature, as it retains the heat in the body, but it also renders the seal considerably lighter in proportion to its size than it would be under any other circumstances, and thus renders it easier to float in the water.
The following description of the general appearance of the seal is taken from Mr. Beete Jukes's very entertaining work called Excursions in Newfoundland. "We brought one young seal on board to-day, alive and unhurt, by my particular request. He lay very quiet on the deck, opening and closing his curious nostrils (which, when expanded, were nearly round, but closed firmly into a narrow slit), and occasionally lifting his fine dark lustrous eyes as if with wonder at the strange scene around him. His fur being quite dry and clean was as white as wool, short, and close, and thick, composed of strong hair standing out perpendicularly everywhere, except on his face and his flippers or paws. On being patted on the head he drew it in, making his face perpendicular to his body, knitted his brows, shut up his eyes and nostrils, and he then presented a very droll appearance, looking like a comical countenance in a circular bush-wig. With his head extended, however, and his eyes open, he was really a very pretty creature, looking so warm, and round, and comfortable. When teased, although quite young, he was fierce, biting and scratching at everything about him; but on being patted and stroked he immediately became quiet."