The Fairfield herald. [volume] (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1849-1876, 1876-03-01

sort of claw or prickle ut the tin O
the lions tail, the existence of which
pricklc was first ascertaincd b,
Blumenbach, was given to thit
animal by ttature, with tho intent o
acting as a goad, when, wishing t.
stimulate himself to rage, he
lashes his sides tllerewitl. Bs it as
it may, the anatomy of the lion
has been cxlaustively studied he
has been magnificcntly modelled and
painted b, Snyders, Sir Edwin
Landscer, and Mr. Rivicrc. There
is a sntlicicncy of leonine specimens
ut the Geological Gardens III the
Regents Pnlk, and in the 1ncnagc.
ries Of every European capital and
the time seems really to have Ill,
rived when those who are unxious
for the preservation Of peace ana
good order in society nro entitled to
inquire whethcr travelling wild beast
shows have not become HI anuch-
ronisnl, and moro especially whether
nny exhibition Of what is called wild
beast tanning should not bo
made illegal. The subjecticn of tho
most felocious brutcs was an art
undeniably practical among the
ancient Persians and other Oricn
tails, and among the Romans Of old
In the East, where the combuts of
savage beasts nro still favorite
amusement with "barbarous" or
"barbaric" potcntatcs, tricks Of lion
and tiger tanning MAY yet OCCASION
ally be Witnessed but in Europe
the abolition by Constantine the
Great of the sangninaly sports of
the amphitheatlc put IN end for
many nges not only to the en-
counters of the gladiators, but to
the cunning of tho wild beast
quellcrs. An illustrated manuscript
III the Ambrosian Library at Milan
demonstrates, indeed, that in the
tenth century there was Snowman
who used to lead /. tame lion throus sh
the streets Of ConStantinoplc, and
forced the brute to perform II varie
ty of antics; but throughout the
Middle Ages, although every Prince
III Europe possessed his mcnagcric,
attempts were rarely made to tame
any OF the royal pots more formil;:-
bio than wolves or bears. The
dancing bear, as IN object of exMbi
ton i'll the pubic thorouyhfares,
came down to our own times, ana
the popular bolicf was that tho AMI
nal had been taught the terpischo-
l ean art in his youth by being made
to foot it Oh hot metal plates while
ut country fairs the wretchel Brr,in,
strapped down in al arm
chnir, arraycd in feminine garb, and
with his muzzlo closely shaven was
by IN audaciously impudcnt impos-
turc made to'pcrHonatc the mythical
pig faced lady.
Nearly 10 years have elapsed
since the attention Of thc whole
civilizo wecld Wa irrcsistibly di-
rectel toward the exploits of an
named Van Amburgh,
with lions and tigers, panthcrs and
lcopards> The triumphs which lie
achieved over fcrnl nature invested
him with Worldwide rcnown nor
was ANY class Of the community IN
susceptible to the attractions Of his
extraordinary feats. Ovor the great
Duke of Wellington, in particular,
the brute tamers exhibition seemed
to exercise kind of fascination
and the hero of Waterloo commits
stoned E;lwin Landsecr t. punt u
picture representing Van Amburgh
III the enjoyment Of his full suprnmA
cy over the beasts in his den, while
similar picture WAS painted Of Her
Majesty. Bets to prodigious
were made in London and
Paris on the contingency of Van
being one day torn in
pieces by his savage pupils But he
seems to have escaped without a
scratch, and some years since peace
fully retired on his wcll-earncd
laurels, On the exploits of Carter,
"the Lion King" and of numerous
other "kings" "---,,nd We regret to add
queens who, with more or loss
have omulated the powers
Of Van Amburgh it were needless to
dwell but the public will not fail
to remember that the violent deaths
among wild beast quellors in modern
times have equalled tho fatal casual
ties among aeronauts. Az regards
the exhibition Of women in the ,cxls
Of wild beasts, such displays, we
hope, would no longer he tolerated
by public opinion. Yet there aro
many lion kings scattered through
the provinces, and mt any moment
the intelligence may bo telegrnphod
that one OF those heroic but foo,-
hardy men has been horribly mutt
lated OF has met with IL dreadful
death, Wild boast tanning, indeed,
cruelty of e double kind.
There is potential cruelty to the per-
former, who literally carries his life
in his hand, and whose risks are
at times greatcr thnn
those incurred by tho Spanish bull
lighter, who, before he enters the.
arena, is confessed and receives ab
solution, 1t also means actual and
lndefcnsible cruelty to animals. The
4 f..