Birmingham age-herald., 1895-01-25
THE KING OF BEASTS.
THINGS WORTH KNOWING BEFORE, l TRYING TO TRAIN HIM. 70

Tells All About the Processes of Train
 ing and Teaching Them.
 You have often heard it remarked of some person or other that he could not be driven but must be led," said Edward Darling, the famc1s lion tanner If you have ever tried to accomplish anything with a person so disposed, you will appre- ciate that great amount of discretion and discrimination must be exercised if you desire to be successful Keeping in mind the difficulties that present them selves in a human individual who cannot be driven, you will at once conoede that lion tanners task is not an easy one when tell you that the king of beasts can neither be led nor driven l mean this literally. If you succeed in having lion permit you to lead him-and l tell you that it requires no little patience and work to accomplish this apparently sim pie trck-you can rest assured that the balance of his training will come easy.
 Many people have wondered why dogs always accompanied lions while perform- ing on the stage. have heard some offer tho explanation that they were there for the protection of tho tanner. Others claimed that there was a psychological connection between the dogs and the lions. by which the former had the latter hyp- notized, so that the least bark or move- ment from tho dog would bring tho lion to a realization of what he was then to do. While these theories may sound very well, they are all wrong. The dogs are simply there for example. They are of course the most domestic of all animals, and their association with the lions makes tho lat ter take on some of their habits.
 ''From the time a lion is first placed in tho trainers hands, which is at about the age of Q months, young dogs are placed in its cage. At first there is some ontagonism shown, but after they have been together for awhile they begin to romp and play with each other like kittens. Lions arc usually trained in pairs-that is, two in one cage This is done to make them bolder. If they have company, they do not have the same fear of tho trainer as they would if alone. And it may seem strange to you to know that trainer drcads fear In lion more than boldness.e If when you enter a cage lion sneaks away from you and commences to jump about, striking its head against the bars as if it would dash it's brains out, seeking to escape in every possible way, then look out to protect yourself for as sure as death that lion, after having exhausted every way he supposed he could gain his liberty will turn his attention to you and deal with you in manner not the most polite. A timid lion is to be dreaded, but ; bold one you can always tell how to deal with The only protection the trainer takes with him when he first enters a cage is board about four feet long. This is to hold up in front of him in case tho g beast makes a plunge at him. The tanner ~ usually enters the cage as if he had some ; business there, such as sweeping or clean ing doing his work, apparently not paying the slightest attention to the lions. He keeps this up for long time, and gradu- ally the lions become accustomed to hfs presence. Then he offers them food out z of his hand cautiously, for the lion usual ly makes grab for his food with his paw {, first, and there is danger of having an arm, taken off After this is accomplished he- begins to stroke the beasts with his stick, which shows them it is not for beating them, then with his hand rewarding each advance with meat.
 After a lion has permitted his trainer to stroke his back without remonstrance he is considered to know the difference be- tween right and wrong, and from that time on is punished for bad behavior. Be- fore this no punishment has been admin istered as the prime object is to first get the confidence of the beasts and let them know what you want them to do. But after the trainer has petted and rewarded him for it, should the lion show any de- sire to go back to his primeval wildness and make any attempt to claw or bite his master, then the whip is applied and not sparingly either. He is whipped and whipped until his will is broken and he permits a renewal of tho familiarity I have seen lions almost beaten to death be- fD,, fyixo in, ht,t at ln.f thnyr were conquered. The trainer has become the master, and, strangely, the punish ments inflicted are never remembered against him by the lion.
 "Tho first and most difficult step, as have said before, is teaching them to bo led Tho idea of being led seems to be contrary to the lions nature. And no wonder, for what king would not revolt at such treatment? But the king of beasts can be taught although it requires many long and severe lessons before he will bring himself down to it. Even after lion has been fully trained you can never be absolutely sure of him. They are very peculiar animals. Sometimes they will not get out of sorts for years, yet in a day will develop nasty traits that make them decidedly dangerous. These spells only last, luckily, for two or three days, when they return to the former condition. We work upon the jealous feelings of lion with great success while training one have seen some animals that could never have been conquered had it not been for the jealousy that was created in them. I. They became so jealoy- of dogs and other lions that were having great deal of at tention paid to them by tf7 trainer that they absolutely forgot themselves and came up to him as the other beasts had done. Naturally we get very much at. tached to our own animals, but you cansA not develop the same affection for a lion as you can for a dog, I suppose becatise' you cannot have the lion always with yulL ' My lions know no ono but myself. at-A tend to them exclusively, with the exccp- tion of cleaning out the cages. feed them every morning and let them exercise, ,soS that they are almost part of my family"s