El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1912-08-10

!
! cerned, pits were doubtless dug to
! serve as traps. When the monarch of
/ the jungle had fallen in (the pit being
( artfuly covered with brush to hide it,
| and baited with fresh meat), it was a
/ simple matter to entangle him with
I net
Lions Numerous in Palestine Then.
| Lions became extinct long ago in
/ Palestine but in Solomons day they
/ were very numerOus--so much SO that
/ Lash, in Dan, on the borders of the
/ great Syrian desert, derived from these
beasts It's name, meaning city OIL lions
! Ezekiel (xiX:2-9) speaks of the capture
/ OF lions in pits. They were commonly
| Kept in cages, and let loose for hunt
ing. 1t is further mentioned IN the
! Scriptures that their favorite food was
! the flesh of wild asses; and it is
/ Iact worthy OF note that at the pres
ent day the domestic dOnkeyS in Rho
! desia and other parts of Africa are
sought as prey by lions TO such an eX-
tent that the farmers make systematic
war upon the latter with poison
Old man Job, who is supposed to
nave lived zoo years before Christ was
born, was the taunal naturalist Of the
Bible. In fact, he seems to have been
the I1rSt real nature student IN history,
and his observations on such matters
as preserved in the Scriptures, are re-
markably accurate For instance, IN
3 the fourth chapter of his justly cele-
brated book (Which for literary excel
Ience compares well with anything IN
the Old Testamen) he says; The old
Q
! indeed, often happens; and Gambler
Bolton speaks OF d very aged king Of
beasts which he found actually re-
ouced to the eXpedient of hunting field
mice along a hillside.
Camels and dromedaries are included
IN every modern menagerie, but it is
. likely that they were not represented
IN King SOlomOnS collection, simply
Tor the reason that they were too com
mon Both are mentioned in the Bible
Gambler Bolton calls attention to the
fact that Jobs great wealth consisted
partly OF the one bumped baggage
camels of the East. But it is certain
that the rarer tWO-humped Bactrian
camelS Of Central Asia were Familiarity
known in ancient Palestine. Both are
represented on Assyrian monuments
dating back to Old Testament days As
for the baggage camels, the sons of
Gambler Bolton calls attention to the
than $4,000 of them in one raid on the
desert-dwelling HaGGaritCs.
siermaids If lie Wished Them.
If solomon did not have mermaids in
his zoo, it was because ne did not want
them, for there were plenty of them in
the Red Sea, where they are caught
even at the present day. But natural
lists nowadays call them "dugOngs."
They are a very Interesting species of
marine mammals, quite harmless, at
tanning length OF eight feet, and feed
ing on seaweeds. Their heads have more
than a suggestion OF human outline,
and the attitude of mother dugOng
SACh4llS llGI NOuuS anu ElaSDlllS the
latter to her breast with one fIipper
while she swims with the other so as
to hold the heads Of both above water,
may well account for mistake by ignOr-
ant observers When disturbed, she
dives and displays her fish-like tail
much after the manner of a Yeritable
mermaid
LeOpards are numerous in Paies-
tine, and so likewise are hyenas, which |
latter are mentioned in Isiah as dole |
full creatures referring to their habit |
Of Hrrnn r. =
ing and hideous human-like laughter. |
Even at the present day wolves are
very common in that part of the world, /
and anciently they must have caused !
enormous destruction TO the flocks and !
herds, a pastoral people like the Chill I
dren Of Israel The wolf, indeed, was 4
the symbol or totem of the tribe OF J
Bears StIu Numerous.
Still numerous in parts OF Palestine,
and very destructive TO sheep and cat !
tie as of old, are the Syrian bears, /
which are almost exactly like the
brown bears of Europe. but lighter in !
color. One of them was killed by the
lad David $50 the Bible tells us) as IL
he was tending. And OF this species,
also, we may suppose were the two I
that ate up the children who made
fun of the prophet Elisha person
age who, however piOus, must have
been totally lacking II. sense OF humOr,
especially when the joke was on him
sell
&1anifestly there was no lack of ma
terlal for King SOlOmOn'S collection of
wild animals. With the help of his sea-
trading friend, Hiram OF Tyre, he could
draw upon three continents for them,
and the species thus assembled must
have been to q great extent such as
were unknown TO our own ancestors up
TO within very recent times. He hau
all Of the tropics of the Old World to
draW upon for strange and interest
ing birds, and of feaUhered creatures
the largest, namely, ostriches, We're
very numerous in the Sinaitic wilder
ness. Job. in the S9th chapter of his
book, gives a remarkably accurate de-
of their peculiar habits, which
doubtless he had often observed.
Rene Bache.