American citizen., 1876-02-26
Lion and 1iger-Tsmins Exhibitions.

In a receat article commenting on the
dangers eend cruelties attending the dis
plays of courage in the dens of wild beasts
by lion and tiger tanners, the London
Ddiiy Neics SAYS:
The subjection of the most frrocious
brutes was an art undeniably practiced
among the ancient Persians and other
Orientals, and among the Romans of old.
In the East, where the cornbats of savage
beasts are still a favorite amusement-with
barbarous' or "barbaric" potentatcs,
tricks of Hon and tiger tanning may yet
occasionally be witnessedS bat in Europe
the abolition, by Constantine the Great,
of the sanguinary sports of the amphi-
theater, put an end, for many ages, not
only to the encounters of the gladiators,
but to the cunning of the wild-bcast quell-
ers- An illustrated manuscript in the
Ambrosian Library at Milan demonstrates,
indeed, that in the tenth century there
was a Snowman whs used 10 lead a tame
lion through the streets of fConstantinople,
and forced the brute to perform a variety
Of antics, but throughout the middle
ages, although every Prince in Europe
possessed his mcnagerie, attempts were
rarely made to tame any of the royal pets
more formidable Than wolves or bears.
The dancing bear, as an object Of exhibit
ti6n in the public thoroughfares, came
belief was that the animal had been
taught the terpsicnorean art in his youth,
by being made to foot IL hot metal
plates; while at county fairs the wretched
bruin, strongly strapped down in an arm
chair, arrayed in feminine garb, and with
his muzzle closely shaven, was, by an au-
daciously impudent imposture, made to
peIsonate the mythical pig faced lady
Nearly forty years have elapsed since
the attention of the whole civilized world
was irresistibly directed toward the ex-
ploits of an American, named Van Am
burgh. with lions and tigers, panthers and
leopards. The triumphs which he
achieved over feral nature invested him
with worldwide renown; nor was any
class of the community unsusCeptible to
the attractions of his extraordinary feats.
Over the great Duke of Wellington, in
particular, the brute-tamer's exhibition
seemed to exercise a kind of fascination,
and the hero OF Waterloo commissioned
Edwin Landseer to paint picture repre-
senting Van Amburgh in the enjoy yment of
hisfull supremacy over the beasts in his den,
while a asimilaf picture was painted for Her
Majesty Bets to prodigious amounts
were made in London and Paris on the
contingency of Van Amburgh being one
day torn in pieces by his savage pupils.
But he seems to have escaped without a
scratch, and some years ago peacefully re-
tired ON his well earned 1aurels. On the
exploits of Carter, .'the lion king" and
of numerous other " "kings'-and we re-
gret to add "queens"-who, with more or
less success, have emulated the prowess
of Van Amburgh, it were needless to
dwell; but the public will not fail to re-
member that the violent deaths among
wild beast quellers In modern times have
equalcd the fatal casualties among aero
enAuts Asregards the exhibition of women
in the dens ofwild beasts, such displays, we
hope, would no longer be tolerated by pub
lie opinion. Yet there are many lion
kings scattered through the provinces,
and at any moment the intelligence may
be telfgraphed that one of these heroic
but foolhardy men has been horribly mu-
/. tiIated, or met with q dreadful death.
Wild beast tanning, indeed, involves cru
city of double kind. There is potential
cruelty to the performer, who literally
carries his life in his hand, and whose
risks are certainly ten times greater than
those incurred by the Spanish bull light
er, who, before he enters the arena, is CON-
means actual and indefensiDle cruelty to
animals. The lion, savage and ferociOus
beast rs he b; has after all his rights We
are entitled TO chase him. to kill him and
tocxtirpate his race altogether from the
face of the land, because he is a nuisance
and an enemy to civilization Jules Ger
ard and other daring hunters really de-
. serve the thanks of the world, since. as
lIon-slayers they contributed TO thin the
sock OF the sanguinary and trcacherous
brutes who devour cattle and deer, and
will devour mankind if they can. But
having caught the lion, we have no right
TO tame him into becoming performer at
. show by dint of the persuasion Of red
hotpokers. .scrowbars, ,.spikes and merciless
ecourgcs. It is with such instruments,
we fear, that wild animals have been rem
dercd docile by the Successors of Van
Amburgh, and society can well afford to
be nd of exhibitions of deeility which can
only have been produced by systematic
: and unrelenting barbarity to normally un-
tamable crextures. FlEks-Sy