Middletown transcript., 1869-10-30
Our Olio,
THE LION.

= Gerard's work upon lion hunting in
Northern Africa gives an interesting ac-
count Of the lion as husband and father.
He says that the lion generally seeks to
form matrimonial alliance at about the !
close of January; but he first has to seek |
his wife (; and as the males are far more
abundant than the females, it is not rare
to find young lady pestered by the ad-
dresses of three or four young gallants If |
one of these does not succeed in driving |
away the others, the impatient maiden
leads them into the presence of an old
lion, whose roar she has appreciated at
distance. The lovers fly at him with all
the temerity of youth. He, however,
soon kills or cripples them, and then basks
himself in the sunshine of his inamorita's
eyes, ,,r,. ....... ......,,
When two adult lions are the rivals, the
encounter is more serious. An Arab
perched in tree one night, saw a lioness
followed by tawny lion with full grown
name; she lay at the foot of the tree, the
lion stopped on his path and seemed to
listen. The Arab then heard the distinct
growing of lion, which was instantly re-
piled to by the liopess under the tree.
This made her husband roar furiously.
The distant lion was heard approaching,
and as he came nearer the honess roared
louder, which seemed to agitate her hus-
band, for he marched towards her as if to
force her to be silent, and then sprang
back to his old post, roaring defiance at
his distant rival. This continued for
about an hour, when a black lion made
his appearance on the plain. The lioness
arose as If to 60 towards him. But her
husband guessing her intention, bounded
towards his rival. The two crouched and
i sprang on each other, rolling on the grass
in the embrace of death. Their bones
cracked, their flesh was torn, their cries
of rage and agony rent the air, and all
this time the lioness crouched and wagged
. her tail slowly in sign of satisfaction.
When the combat was ended, and both
warriors were stretched on the plain, she
rose, smelt them, satisfied herself that
they were dead, and trotted off, quite re.
gardless of the uncomplimentary epithet
which the indignant Arab shouted after
her. This, Gerard tells us, in an example
of the conjugal fidelity of Milady-where-
as, the lion never quits his wife, unless he
is forced, and is quite pattern of conju-
gal attention.
Towards the close of December, the
happy couple repair to some secluded ra-
vine, and the lioness becomes the gratifed
mother OF one, two, or sometimes three
young generally one male and one
female. The little strangers are the idols
of their parents. The mother never quits
them for an instant, and their father leaves
them only for the purpose of procuring
provisions for their subsistence When
these interesting youths are three months
q old, the process of weaning commences
; The mother teaches them to become recon-
ciled to her occasional absence, and feeds
them with mutton carefully skinned; and
at this time the father for the sake of tran
quility, removes his lodgings to distance
near enough, however, to render assist
9 ance il required. fq s sFsfs-,r
At the age of four or Eve months the
children follow their mother to the border
of the forest, and where the father brings
them their supper. At six months old,
they accompany their mother and father
In all nocturnal expeditions. From eight
to. twelve months they learn to attack
sheep, goats, and even bulls; but they are
so awkward that they usually wound ten
for one they kill it is not till thew are
- two years old that they can kill horse or
a bull with one bite. While their educa-
"a tion is thus in process, they are ten times
more ruinous to the Arabs, since the fam
lily does not content itself with killing the
cattle required for its own consumption
but kills that the children may learn tC
kill. At three years old the children qui
home and set up for themselves, becomine
.sifathers and mothers in their turn. 70 Theii
places are occupied by another brood. A
eight years old the lion reaches maturity
and lives to thirty or forty When adul
he is.a magnificent creature, very ditferen
in size, aspect, and disposition from tn,
ssslions TO be seen in menageries and zoolog
ical gardens-animals taken from th,
mothers breast. bred like rabbits, depriy
ed Of the fresh mountain air and iampl,
nourishmeRt, As an indication of tb,
size attained by lions in a state of nature
> we may cite the fact mentioned by Gerard
that Che strongest man in the cavalry reg.
iment, to which he belonged, was unable
to carry the skin and head of the lion Ger
ard had killed,