Chapter 8

THE AFRICAN BUFFALO (Bubalus Caffer.)

Inits general form the Buffalo has a great resemblance to the ox; but it differs from that animal in its horns, and in some particulars of its internal structure. It is larger than the ox; the head is also bigger in proportion, the forehead higher, and the muzzle longer. The horns are large, and of a compressed form, with the exterior edge sharp; they are straight for a considerable length from their base, and then bend slightly upward. The general colour of the animal is blackish, except the forehead and the tip of the tail, which are of a dusky white. The hunch is not, as many have supposed it, a large fleshy lump, but is occasioned by the bones that form the withers being continued, to a greater length than in most other animals. Buffaloes are found in most parts of the torrid zone, and of almost all warm climates; always dwelling in moist and marshy places, where they delight to roll in the mire. In a wild state, the Buffalo is exceedingly fierce; but in some of the tropical countries heis perfectly domestic, and very useful for many purposes, being an animal of patience and great strength. When employed in the labours of agriculture, he has a brass ring put through his nose, by which means he is led at pleasure. Buffaloes are common in the Pontine Marshes near Rome, where they were brought from India in the sixth century. In India they constitute the riches and food of the poor, who employ them in their fields, and make butter and cheese from their milk. They are much valued for their hides; of which, in several countries, and especially in England, military belts, boots, and other implements of war are made. There are various species of Buffaloes, of which the Cape Buffalo, from South Africa, is the best known, and most valuable.

Buffaloes, in their native country, fight so fiercely with each other, that African travellers have remarked that they are seldom found without torn ears, and scars of various kinds on the neck and body. And they are no less treacherous than ferocious, lurking among the trees in concealment until some unfortunate passenger passes. The animal will then suddenly rush upon him, and there is little chance of the victim escaping unless a tree be at hand. The furious beast, not contented with throwing him down and killing him, stands over him for a long time, trampling on and tearing the body to pieces; he then strips off the skin with his rough and prickly tongue. Even after all this he repeatedly returns to the body to gratify afresh his savage disposition.

THE BISON. (Bos or Bison Bonasus.)

Thereare two kinds of Bison; one a native of Europe, and the other of America. The European Bison, or Bonasus, is as large as a bull or ox; maned about the back and neck like a lion; and his hair hanging down under his chin, or nether jaw, like a large beard. The fore parts of his body are thick and strong, but the hinder parts are comparatively slender. He has a little ridge along his face from his forehead down to his nose, which is very hairy; his horns are large, very sharp, and turning towards his back, like those of a wild goat. The American Bison (B. Americanus), attains a size far superior to that of the largest breeds of our common oxen, and is met with throughout nearly the whole of the uninhabited parts of North America, from Hudson’s Bay to Louisiana and the frontiers of Mexico. Captains Lewis and Clarke, and Dr. James, bear frequent testimony to the almost incredible numbers in which these animals assemble on the banks of the Missouri. “Such was their multitude,” say the first-named travellers, “that, although the river, including an island overwhich they passed, was a mile in breadth, the herd stretched, as thick as they could swim, completely from one side to the other.” And again they say: “If it be not impossible to calculate the moving multitude which darkened the whole plains, we are convinced that twenty thousand would be no exaggerated number.” Dr. James tells us that, “in the middle of the day countless thousands of them were seen coming in from every quarter to the stagnant pools;” their paths, as he informs us elsewhere, being “as frequent, and almost as conspicuous, as the roads in the most populous parts of the United States.”

These wild cattle defend themselves from the wolves in the most admirable manner. When they hear their savage enemies approaching they form themselves adroitly into a circle. The weakest are left in the middle, whilst the strongest are on the outside, and present to their foes an impenetrable phalanx of horns. The vignette is an illustration of this subject.

Exciting stories of the buffalo hunt, both American and African, will be seen in Catlin’s North American Indians, and Harris’s Wild Animals and Sports of Southern Africa.

THE ZEBU, OR BRAHMIN BULL. (Bos Indicus.)

Pennantdescribes the Zebu, or Indian Ox, as sometimes surpassing in size the largest of the European breeds, and the hunch on his shoulders as weighing frequently fifty pounds. There are many varieties, with and without horns, differing in size from that above-named, down to the dimensions of an ordinary hog. They are spread over the whole of Southern Asia, and also in Africa. In all these countries the Zebu supplies the place of the Ox, both as a beast of burden and as an article of food. By the Hindoos they are treated with great veneration, and it is held sinful to deprive them of life, or eat their flesh. A select number are exempted from all labour, and allowed to wander about, and subsist on the voluntary and pious contributions of the devotees of their faith.

Emboldened by the toleration they experience, they make free with every vegetable to which they take a fancy, no one daring to resist or drive them away; often they lie down in the street; no one must disturb them: every one must give place to the sacred Ox of Brahma; thus they are frequently nuisances, which superstition alone would endure.

THE SHEEP. (Ovis Aries.)

TheSheep has been so long subjected to the empire of man that it is not known with certainty from what race our domestic species has been derived. It is supposed, however, to be from the Mouflon, or Musmon, of Sardinia and Crete. This animal is one of the most useful ever bestowed on us by a bountiful Providence; and in patriarchal times the number of Sheep constituted the riches of kings and princes. It is universally known, its flesh being one of the chief kinds of human food, and its wool being of great use for clothing. Although of a moderate size, and well covered, it does not live more than nine or ten years. The Ewe has one or two young at a time, and the young one, which is called a lamb, has always been an emblem of innocence.

In its domestic state it is too well known to require a detail of its peculiar habits, or of the methods which have been adopted to improve the breed. No country produces finer Sheep than England, either with larger fleeces or better adapted for the business of clothing. Those of Spain have confessedly finer wool, some of which we generally require to work up with our own, but the weight of a Spanish fleece is much inferior to one of Lincoln or Tees Water. Merino, or Spanish Sheep, have of late years been introduced with somesuccess into our English pastures, and the wool of the hybrids, raised between the Merino Sheep and the South Down Sheep, is thought nearly equal to that of Spain.

In stormy weather, these animals generally hide themselves in caves from the fury of the elements; but if such retreats are not to be found, they collect themselves together, and, during a fall of snow, place their heads near each other, with their muzzles inclined to the ground. In this situation they sometimes remain till hunger compels them to gnaw each other’s wool, which forms into hard balls in the stomach and destroys them. But in general they are sought out and extricated soon after the storm has subsided.

“The Sheep,” Mr. Bell observes, “is one of the most interesting of all animals as regards its historical relations with man. It was the subject of the first sacrifices, and was used in its typical character as an offering of atonement; and the relation which existed between the patriarchal shepherds and their flock was of so intimate and even affectionate a nature as to have afforded the subject of many beautiful passages in the Holy Scriptures.”

THE RAM

Isthe male Sheep, and is so strong and fierce that he will boldly attack a dog, and often comes off victorious: he has even been known, regardless of danger, to engage a bull; and his forehead being much harder than that of any other animal, he seldom fails to conquer. He overcomes the bull, who, by lowering his head, receives the stroke of the Ram between his eyes, which usually brings him to the ground.

THE WALLACHIAN RAM.

Thesingular conformation of the horns, which adorn the head of this breed of Sheep, has induced us to insert a figure of the animal in this work, though it is only avariety of the common species. The horns of the Ewe are twisted also, but not so much as those of the Ram, which form, near the head, a spiral line. The wool is much longer than that of the common Sheep, and resembles the hair of the goat. A fine Ram of this species was presented some years since to the Zoological Gardens in the Regent’s park, by Dr. Bowring. It is there called the Parnassian Sheep, having been brought from Mount Parnassus.

in figure somewhat resembles a ram, but his wool is rather like the hair of a goat. His horns are large and bent backwards, and his tail is short. He is of the size of a small deer, active, swift, wild, and found in flocks in the rocky, dry deserts of Asia. His flesh and fat are delicious. He is called also the Siberian Sheep or Goat, and is considered by some to be the parent stock of the domestic Sheep.

THE GOAT. (Capra hircus.)

TheGoat, next to the cow and the sheep, has been always reckoned, especially in ancient and patriarchal times, the most useful domestic animal. Its milk is sweet, nourishing, and medicinal, and better adapted for persons of weak digestion than that of the cow, as it is not so apt to curdle on the stomach. The female has generally two young ones at a time, which are called kids. This animal is admirably adapted for living inwild places; it delights in climbing precipices, and is often seen reposing in peaceful security on rocks overhanging the sea. Nature indeed has in some measure fitted it for traversing these eminences; the hoof being hollow underneath, with sharp edges, so that it can walk as securely on the ridge of a house as on the level ground. The flesh of the goat is seldom eaten; but that of the kid is esteemed a very delicate food, and is frequently eaten on the Continent. In the East, the long soft hair of the goat is used in making the beautiful Cashmere shawls; and from the skin is manufactured morocco leather. The skin of the kid is well known for its use in making gloves.

THE IBEX, OR BOQUETIN, (Capra Ibex,)

Isa Wild Goat, which inhabits the Pyrenean mountains, the Alps, and the highest mountains of Greece. He is of an admirable swiftness; his head is armed with two long, knotted horns, inclining backwards; his hair is rough, and of a deep brown colour. The male onlyhas a beard, and the female is less than the male. This animal skips from rock to rock, and often, when pursued, leaps down enormous precipices, and is said to bend his head between his fore legs while springing, so as to break his fall, by alighting partly on his horns. The Ibex has been known to turn on the incautious huntsman, and tumble him down the precipice, unless he has time to lie down, and let the animal pass over him.

THE ANTELOPE. (Antilope cervicapra.)

Thesebeautiful inhabitants of the temperate regions of Africa, and southern Asia, possess swiftness and elegance of shape in an eminent degree. They are timid, inoffensive, and gregarious. The males have horns like those of the goat, and never shed them; they are smooth, long, twisted spirally, and annulated. The general colour of the hair is brown, and, in some species, a beautiful yellow. The eyes are exceedingly bright, and have often been compared to those of a beautiful nymph by Persian and other poets. Enjoying perfect liberty, theyrange in herds through the deserts of Arabia, and bound from rock to rock with wonderful agility. Their long and slender legs are peculiarly suited to their habits and manners of life, and are, in some of the species, so slender and brittle as to snap with a very trifling blow. The Arabs, taking advantage of this circumstance, catch them by throwing sticks at them, by which their legs are broken.

THE GAZELLE. (Antilope Dorcas.)

“The wild Gazelle, on Judah’s hills,Exulting yet may bound,And drink from all the living rillsThat gush on holy ground.Its airy step and glorious eyeMay glance in tameless transport by.”—Byron.

TheGazelle is the most elegant of antelopes. The Arabian poets have applied their choicest epithets to the beauty of this animal, and their descriptions have been adopted into our own poetry. Byron, in speaking of the dark eyes of an eastern beauty, says:

“Go look on those of the Gazelle.”

When the Persian describes his mistress, she is “an antelope in beauty,”—“his Gazelle employs all his soul;” and thus, in their figurative language, perfect beauty and Gazelle beauty are synonymous. These animals are spread, in innumerable herds, from Arabia to the river Senegal in Africa. Lions and panthers feed upon them; and man chases them with the dog, the cheetah, and the falcon. The height of the Gazelle is about twenty inches, the skin beautifully sleek, its body extremely graceful, its head unusually light, its ears flexible, its eyes most brilliant and glancing, and its legs as slender as a reed.

THE CHAMOIS. (Antilope Rupicapra.)

TheChamois is about three feet in length and two in height; its horns six or seven inches long, its ears small, and its head resembling that of the goat. The body is covered with long brown hair, the hue of which varies with the season.

The flesh is considered a savoury food, and the skin is wrought into a soft pliable leather, well known in domestic economy.

The Chamois is found only in the mountainous regions of Europe, where they herd together on lofty and almost inaccessible cliffs and precipices. They are so acute and shy, that it is only by the greatest patience and skill that the hunter can approach near enough to shoot them; and they are so swift, and leap with such extraordinary sureness of foot, that to overtake them is impossible.

“—— —— —— But beasts have reason too.And that we know, we men that hunt the Chamois,They never turn to feed—sagacious creatures—Till they have placed a sentinel a-head,Who pricks his ears whenever we approach,And gives alarm with clear and piercing pipe.”Schiller’s William Tell.

THE NYL GHAU, OR BLUE OX. (Antilope picta.)THE NYL GHAU, OR BLUE OX. (Antilope picta.)

THE NYL GHAU, OR BLUE OX. (Antilope picta.)

Thisis a large kind of antelope, found in India. In the wild state these animals are very ferocious, but they may be domesticated, and in that condition give frequent tokens of familiarity, and even of gratitude, to those under whose care they are placed. The female, or doe, is much smaller than the male, and of a yellowish colour, by which she is easily distinguished from the buck, who is of a grey tint.

Its manner of fighting is very peculiar, and is thus described:—Two of the males, at Lord Clive’s, being put into an enclosure, were observed, while they were at some distance from each other, to prepare for the attack, by falling down upon their knees; they then shuffled towards each other, still keeping upon their knees; and, at the distance of a few yards, they made a spring, and darted against each other with great force.

The following anecdote will serve to show that these animals are sometimes fierce and vicious, and not to be depended upon:—A labouring man, without knowing that the animal was near him, went up to the outside of the enclosure; the Nyl Ghau, with the quickness of lightning, darted against the woodwork with such violence that he dashed it to pieces, and broke one of his horns close to the root. The death of the animal soon after was supposed to be owing to the injury he sustained by the blow.

The Nyl Ghau usually keeps closely concealed in the jungle, but in the night or early morning it sometimes passes into the open ground, to feed in the corn-fields belonging to the neighbouring villages. This is the moment chosen by the natives to attack it. A platform is erected near the spot the Nyl Ghau is known to frequent, from which the hunters can take aim with precision and safety.

THE GNU. (Antilope Gnu.)

Thisvery singular animal is sometimes called a horned horse; as it has the shape and mane of a horse, with the addition of a formidable pair of horns, a kind of beard below the chin, and a fringe of hair below the body, along the breastbone. The Gnus live together in herds, and when alarmed, fling up their heels, and plunge and rear, tossing their heads and tails, before they gallop off; which they do, the whole herd following their leader singly, like a troop of soldiers. The Gnu inhabits the sandy deserts of South Africa; and its flesh, which is said to resemble beef, is sometimes eaten by the colonists near the Cape of Good Hope. When caught young the Gnu may be tamed, but its disposition is always uncertain, and when offended it throws itself on its knees, like the nyl ghau, and then springing up, butts furiously with its horns.

THE STAG. (Cervus Elaphus.)

Thisanimal is the male of the red Deer, and is generally famed for long life, though upon no certain authority. Naturalists agree, however, upon this point, that his life may exceed forty years: but that his existence, as it has been asserted, reaches to three centuries, is too absurd to be believed. His horns are at first very small, but gradually increase in size, as they are yearly shed and renewed, till the stag has completed his fifth year, when they become very large and branching, andremain so during the remainder of his life. The Stag is one of the tallest of the deer kind, and is called a Hart after he has completed his fifth year; the female, called the Hind, is without horns. Every year, in the month of April, when the Stag has lost his horns, he appears conscious of his temporary weakness, and hides himself till his new ones have grown and are hardened. This is generally in about ten weeks, even when the Stag is full grown; his horns at this age weigh between twenty and thirty pounds. Little need be said of the pleasure taken in hunting the Stag, the Hart, and the Roebuck, it being a matter well known in this country, and in all parts of Europe. The following fact, recorded in history, will serve to show that the Stag is possessed of an extraordinary share of courage, when his personal safety is concerned:—In the reign of George the Second, William, Duke of Cumberland, caused a tiger and a Stag to be enclosed in the same area; and the Stag made so bold a defence, that the tiger was at length obliged to give up. The flesh of the Stag is accounted excellent food, and his horns are useful to cutlers; even their shavings are used to make ammonia, so much esteemed in medicine under the name ofhartshorn. The swiftness of the Stag has become proverbial, and the diversion of hunting this creature has, for ages, been looked upon as a royal amusement. In the time of William Rufus and Henry the First, it was less criminal to destroy a human being than a full-grown Stag. This animal, when fatigued in the chase, often throws himself into a pond of water, or crosses a river; and, when caught, sheds tears like a child.

“To the which place a poor sequestered Stag,That from the hunter’s aim had ta’en a hurt,Did come to languish; and indeed, my lord,The wretched animal heaved forth such groansThat their discharge did stretch his leathern coatAlmost to bursting; and the big round tearsCoursed one another down his innocent noseIn piteous chase.”Shakespeare.

THE WAPITI, (Cervus Canadensis,)

Isa native of Canada and other northern parts of America, and is one of the most gigantic of the Deer tribe, growing to the height of our tallest oxen, and uniting great activity to strength of body and limbs. His horns, which he sheds annually, are very large, branching in serpentine curves, and measuring from tip to tip upwards of six feet. These animals make a shrill noise, resembling the braying of an ass, and are supposed to be the most stupid of the Deer kind. The flesh is coarse, and little esteemed, but the hide, when made into leather, is said not to become hard in drying after being wetted, a quality which entitles it to a preference over almost every other kind. There are several of these splendid animals in the collection of the Zoological Society, in the Regent’s Park, where they continue to form objects of singular interest and attraction. The male is, however, very fierce, always endeavouring to attack those who approach him; and on one occasion seriously injured one of the visitors to the gardens.

THE ROEBUCK, (Cervus capreolus,)

Isone of the least of the Deer kind known in these climates, being not above three feet in length, and two in height, and seldom lives more than fifteen years. His horns are about nine inches long, round, and divided into three small branches, and his colour is of a brown shade on the back, his face partly black and partly ash-colour, the chest and belly yellow, and the rump white; his tail is short. The Roebuck is more graceful, more active, more cunning, and comparatively swifter than the stag; his flesh is much esteemed. He is very delicate in the choice of his food, and requires a larger tract of country, suited to the wildness of his nature, which can never be thoroughly subdued. No arts can teach him to be familiar with his keeper, nor in any degree attached to him. These animals are easily terrified; and in their attempts to escape will run with such force against the walls of their enclosure, as sometimes to disable themselves: they are also subject to capricious fits of fierceness; and, on these occasions, will strike furiously with their horns and feet at the object of their dislike. The only parts of Great Britain where they are now found are the Highlands of Scotland.

THE FALLOW DEER. (Cervus dama.)

Theseare the Deer now usually kept in our parks. The beautifully spotted kind are said to have been brought from Bengal, and the very deep brown from Norway by King James I. Their horns are broad and flat; the male is called a buck, the female a doe, and the young one a fawn. The buck casts his horns every spring, and they increase in size annually till he has attained his fifth year. The venison of this Deer is very far superior to that of the red deer, which is coarse and tough. The buck-skin and doe-skin are well known, as furnishing a peculiarly soft and warm leather, which is used for gloves, gaiters, &c. The horns are used for the handles of knives, &c., like those of the stag; and the refuse is, in the like manner, used in the manufacture of ammonia. The buck stands about three feet high, and measures about five feet in length; the doe is somewhat smaller. The tail is much longer than either that of the stag or the roebuck, being nearly seven inches and a half long.

THE ELK, (Cervus Alces,)

Isthe largest of all the Deer kind. The antlers, at first simple, and then divided into narrow slips, assume in the fifth year the form of a triangular blade, dentated on the external edge and very thick at the base; they increase with age, till they weigh fifty or sixty pounds, and have fourteen branches to each horn. The Elk lives in forests, feeding upon branches and sprouts of trees, and inhabits Europe, Asia, and America; in the last-named country he is known by the name of the Moose Deer. There is very little difference between the European Elk and the American Moose Deer, though they are larger in the New World than with us, owing perhaps to the extensive forests in which they range. In all places, however, they are timorous and gentle; content with their pasture, and never willing to disturb any other animal. The pace of the Elk is a high, shambling trot, but it runs with great swiftness. Formerly these animals were made use of in Sweden to draw sledges, but their swiftness gave criminals such means of escape, that this employment of them was prohibited under great penalties. The female is less than the male, and has no horns.

THE REIN-DEER, (Cervus Tarandus, orRangifer Tarandus,)

Isfound in most of the northern regions of Europe, Asia, and America, and its general height is about four feet and a half. The colour is brown above and white beneath; but as the animal advances in age, it often becomes of a greyish white. The hoofs are long, large, and black. Both sexes are furnished with horns, but those of the male are much the largest. To the Laplanders this animal supplies the place of the horse, the cow, the goat, and the sheep; it is their only wealth. The milk affords them cheese; the flesh, food; the skin, clothing; of the tendons they make bowstrings, and when split, thread; of the horns, glue; and of the bones, spoons. During the winter, the Reindeer supplies the want of a horse, and draws sledges with amazing swiftness over the frozen lakes and rivers, or over the snow, which at that time covers the whole country. Innumerable are the uses, the comforts, and advantages which the poor inhabitants of this dreary climate derive from this animal. We cannot sum them up better than in the beautiful language of the poet:

“Their Rein-deer form their riches. These their tents,Their robes, their beds, and all their homely wealthSupply, their wholesome fare, and cheerful cups:Obsequious at their call, the docile tribeYield to the sled their necks, and whirl them swiftO’er hill and dale, heaped into one expanseOf marbled snow, as far as eye can sweep,With a blue crest of ice unbounded glazed.”

The mode of hunting the wild Rein-deer by the Laplanders, the Esquimaux, and the Indians of North America, has been accurately described by late travellers. Captain Franklin gives the following interesting account of the mode practised by the Dog-rib Indians, to kill these animals. “The hunters go in pairs, the foremost man carrying in one hand the horns and part of the skin of the head of a Deer, and in the other a small bundle of twigs, against which he, from time to time, rubs the horns, imitating the gestures peculiar to the animal. His comrade follows, treading exactly in his footsteps, and holding the guns of both in a horizontal position, so that the muzzles project under the arms of him who carries the head. Both hunters have a fillet of white skin round their foreheads, and the foremost has a strip of the same round his wrists. They approach the herd by degrees, raising their legs very slowly, but setting them down somewhat suddenly, after the manner of a Deer, and always taking care to lift their right or left feet simultaneously. If any of the herd leave off feeding to gaze upon this extraordinary phenomenon, it instantly stops, and the head begins to play its part, by licking its shoulders, and performing other necessary movements. In this way the hunters attain the very centre of the herd without exciting suspicion, and have leisure to single out the fattest. The hindmost man then pushes forward his comrade’s gun, the head is dropped, and they both fire nearly at the same instant. The Deer scamper off, the hunters trot after them; in a short time the poor animals halt, to ascertain the cause of their terror; their foes stop at the same moment, and having loaded as they ran, greet the gazers with a second fatal discharge. The consternation of the Deer increases; they run to and fro in the utmost confusion; and sometimes a great part of the herd is destroyed within the space of a few hundred yards.”

THE AXIS. (Cervus Axis.)

A verybeautiful species of the Deer is found in the East Indies, of a light red colour, though some of the kind are of a deeper red. It is about the size of a fallow deer, and often variegated with beautiful spots of bright white. The horns are slender and triple-forked. The Axis is a timid and harmless creature, more ornamental to the landscape, where it skips and plays in a wild state, than useful to man. It is extremely docile, and possesses the sense of smelling to an exquisite degree. Though it is a native of the banks of the Ganges, it appears to bear the climates of Europe without injury.

Thisis a small species of Deer, quite destitute of horns, which lives on the vast plains of Central Asia. It is distinguished by possessing a pair of canine teeth or tusks in the upper jaw; and these teeth, which are not found in the ruminant animals generally, are so long in the Musk Deer that they project from the sides of themouth and descend below the chin. The Musk Deer is exceedingly active, and leaps to an astonishing height. The male is remarkable for possessing a pouch about the size of an egg, near the navel; this contains a brown, oily matter, of a most powerful odour, which is the well-known perfume calledmusk, so highly esteemed amongst Eastern nations.

THE GIRAFFE, OR CAMELOPARD.(Camelopardalis Giraffa.)

Thismost remarkable ruminant, which in its general structure nearly approaches the Deer, has points of affinity also with the antelopes and camels, besides very striking peculiarities of its own.

The head is the most beautiful part of the animal: it is small, and the eyes are large, brilliant, and very full. Between the eyes, and above the nose, is a swelling very prominent and well-defined. This prominence is not a fleshy excrescence, but an enlargement of the bony substance; and it seems to be similar to the two little lumps, or horns, with which the top of the head is armed, and which, being several inches in length, spring on each side of the head, just above the ears, and are terminated by a thick tuft of stiff upright hairs. The neck is remarkably elongated, and it is furnished with a very short, stiff mane, which stands out erect from the skin. The height of a full-grown Giraffe in a wild state is said to be seventeen or eighteen feet, measuring from the hoofs to the tip of the ears; but none of those in England exceed fourteen feet. At first sight, the fore legs appear much longer than the hind ones; but the fact is, that the legs are of the same length, and it is only the height of the withers that occasions the apparent disproportion. Le Vaillant was the first well-informed naturalist who studied the habits of the Giraffe in its wild state. “If,” he says, “among the known quadrupeds, precedency be allowed to height, the Giraffe without doubt must hold the first rank. A male which I have in my collection measured, after I killed it, sixteen feet four inches from the hoof to the extremity of its horns. I use this expression in order to be understood; for the Giraffe has no real horns; but between its ears, at the upper extremity of the head, arise in a perpendicular and parallel direction two excrescences from the cranium, which without any joint stretch to the height of eight or nine inches, terminating in a convex knob, and are surrounded by a row of strong straight hair, which overtops them by several lines. The female is generally lower than the male.... In consequence of the number of these animals which I killed, or had an opportunity of seeing, I may establish as a certain rule that the males are generally fifteen or sixteen feet in height, and the females from thirteen to fourteen feet.” The colour of the Giraffe is a light fawn, marked with spots only a few shades darker. The legs are veryslender; and, notwithstanding the length of the neck, it manifests great difficulty in taking anything from the ground. To do this, it puts out first one foot, and then the other; repeating the same process several times; and it is only after several of these experiments that it at length bends down its neck, and applies its lips and tongue to the object in question. In fact, the neck of the Giraffe, although so enormously long, is not very flexible, as it contains only the same number of vertebræ or joints (seven) that is found in other quadrupeds with a much shorter neck; it is admirably adapted for enabling the animal to browse upon the branches of trees, but is not intended to fit it for grazing. It willingly accepts fruit and branches of a tree when offered to it; and seizes the foliage in a most singular manner, thrusting forth a long, reddish, and very narrow tongue, which it rolls round whatever it wishes to secure. Indeed, the tongue is a most remarkable organ in this animal, and we have been witness of some amusing exploits with it. In the Zoological Gardens at Regent’s Park, many a fair lady has been robbed of the artificial flowers which have adorned her bonnet, by the nimble, filching tongue of the rare object of her admiration.

The Giraffe is a native of Africa; and it was for a long time known only by the descriptions of travellers. It was first sent to Europe in 1829; but since that time many have been introduced, and several young ones have been born in the Zoological Gardens in the Regent’s Park.

Le Vaillant, in his entertaining Travels in Africa, gives an animated account of a Giraffe hunt:—“After several hours’ fatigue, we discovered, at the turn of a hill, seven Giraffes, which my pack instantly pursued. Six of them went off together; but the seventh, cut off by my dogs, took another way. I followed it at full speed, but, in spite of the efforts of my horse, she got so much ahead of me that, in turning a little hill, I lost sight of her altogether. My dogs, however, were not so easily put out. They were soon so close upon her, that she was obliged to stop to defend herself. From the place whereI was, I heard them give tongue with all their might; and, as their voices appeared all to come from the same spot, I conjectured that they had got the animal in a corner, and I again pushed forward. I had scarcely got round the hill, when I perceived her surrounded by the dogs, and endeavouring to drive them away by heavy kicks. In a moment I was on my feet, and a shot from my carbine brought her to the earth. Enchanted with my victory, I returned to call my people about me, that they might assist in skinning and cutting up the animal. On my return I found her standing under a large ebony-tree, assailed by my dogs. She had staggered to this place, and fell dead at the moment I was about to take a second shot.”

The horns of the Giraffe, small as they are, and muffled with skin and hair, are by no means the insignificant weapons they seem. We have seen them wielded by the males against each other with fearful and reckless force; and we know that they are the natural arms of the Giraffe, most dreaded by the keeper of the present living Giraffes in the Zoological Gardens, because they are most commonly and suddenly put in use. The Giraffe does not butt by depressing and suddenly elevating the head, like the deer, ox, or sheep; but strikes the callous obtuse extremities of the horns against the object of his attack, with a sidelong sweep of the neck.

The Giraffe has a peculiarly awkward manner of trotting, as it moves both the legs on one side at the same time. In galloping, the Giraffe separates its hind legs widely, and at each stride brings them far forward on each side of the fore feet; in this way the animal makes rapid progress, although its appearance is rather extraordinary, and the stones cast backwards by the force of the hind feet not unfrequently assist in protecting it when closely pursued. The female Giraffe in the Regent’s Park was a very bad mother to her first young one, as she would not let it suck, and beat it away whenever it approached. The poor thing was fed with cow’s milk, but it soon died. Later young ones have been more kindly treated, and have in consequence thriven well.

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