The Arizona champion., 1891-01-03
LIONS IN HARNESS.
The Long Training Needed by the Desert
 King Before He'll Slave.

The Long Training Needed by the Desert
 King Before He'll Slave.
 The very spirited illustration of three lions driven abreast by a man standing erect in Roman chariot is familiar to most residents in London. It portrays, without the usual absurd exaggeration of mural art, an entertainment which is given daily at the French exhibition at Earl's court.
 In the center of the large circular space which has been used during the last few years for the display of the h. dians of the Wild West. the sports of the Roman amphitheatre, etc., is erected smaller circle, securely surrounded with iron bars, having at the back an inclosed building containing dens The "open sesame" of my host passed us into the private recesses of this prison house, in which I found four young lions. the old est being about years of age.
 These constituted the trained troupe. and there was also one younger scholar, who had just been added to the collec- ton. The education of this one was just commencing, and he still retained the feline characteristics to such an extent that any approach to familiarity was met by snarl which displayed the unshed milk teeth of the owner, looking as sharp and needlelike as those of puppy.
 The training of these young lions rarely occupies less space of time than twelve months, and is chiefly accom- plished by kindness. MT. Darling, their trainer, informed me that he regarded force as not being desirable, as it excited the animals to rebellion and was not conducive to obedience, whereas, trained under the system adopted, each animal knows its name and answers to it. So successful are the methods employed by Mir. Darling that he has never been bitten by the animals during the time he has had them in hand.
 In addition to the lions the collection includes two huge Bavarian boarhounds, which take very prominent part in the performance.
 After this introduction to the perform CTS took my seat with the audience to witness the exhibition. Mir. Darling and his assistant entered the arena with the lions and one of the dogs; the former, at the word of command, leaped up upon pedestals and arranged themselves in pyramidal groups While in this posi- ton MT. Darling placed the ends of two scarfs in the mouths of the lions, form ing festoons. over and under which one of the dogs leaped; two of the lions then stepped upon plank forming a seesaw, the dog leaping on to the center and swaying it from side to side.
 One of the lions then mounted tri- cycle, working the pedals moving the front wheel with its fore feet, while the boarhound was pushing behind. The chariot was then brought forward; one lion entered readily between the shafts, and two others took their places at either side, one proving rather refractory; but after sundry growls he submitted to the stronger will of the trainer, who mounted the chariot and drove the trio round the circle
 The performance is very distinct from that of lion tanners in general, who rule their charges with rods of iron and prod them with points worse than the stings of scorpions, utilizing the fear and terror of the animals at the superior power of man. MT. Darling, on the other hand, is very familiar with the members of his troupe. The manner in which he took hold of the forelegs of one of the largest and pulled him down from his pedestal when he was not sufficiently quick in descending was amusing.
 The lions are of African descent, but, like the majority of the species now in menageries, have all been born in captiv- ity, and familiarized with man from their birth. Whether they will retain their docility as they advance toward their full size remains to be seen; but at present they offer the most complete specimens of trained lions that it has ever been the writer's fortune to witness. London Field.