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THIS beautiful animal was erroneously supposed by Buffon to be the same as the serval of India, but we have recently seen a living specimen in Boston, from which the above accurate likeness was taken, and which enables us to testify to the accuracy of the following description from Shaw. "This animal is extremely brilliant in color, it being of the brightest fulvous yellow, with jet black stripes and spots; the chin, throat, and breast, pale ash color; along the back are black stripes; on the sides of the neck, and on the breast, numerous small crescent shaped spots pointing upwards; on the legs numerous roundish spots; and the tail very strongly and distinctly annulated with black and yellow."

The specimen of the cape cat to which we have referred, was certainly one of the most beautiful animals we have ever seen. Its motions were exceedingly quick and graceful, and its countenance mild, lively, and pleasing. Its form was very slender; the head and body not being larger than those of a domestic cat; yet its height and length were nearly twice as great.

1 Felis capensis.

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THOUGH an animal of prey, is a useful domestic. It is neither wanting in sagacity nor sentiment; but its attachments are stronger to places than to persons. The form of its body corresponds with its disposition. The cat is handsome, light, adroit, cleanly, and voluptuous: he loves ease, and searches out the softest furniture in order to repose on, and rest himself.

Young cats are gay, lively, pretty, and would be very proper to amuse children, if the strokes of their paws were not to be feared. Their disposition, which is an enemy to all restraint, renders them incapable of a regular education. We are told, nevertheless, of the Greek friars of Cyprus having taught cats to hunt, take, catch, and destroy the serpents with which that island was infested; their scent, which in the dog is an eminent quality, is far from being good, and therefore they do not pursue animals which they no longer see; they do not hunt, but wait and attack them by surprise.

The most immediate physical cause of this inclination which they have to spy out, and surprise other animals, comes from the advantage which they receive from the particular conformation of their eyes. The pupil, in man, as well as in the greater part of animals, is capable of a certain degree of contraction and dilatation; it enlarges a little when there is no light, and contracts when it becomes too strong.

In the eye of the cat, and of nocturnal birds, this contraction and dilatation are so considerable, that the pupil, which in obscurity is large and round, becomes, in broad day, long and narrow like a line; and for this reason, these animals see better during the night than during the day, the form of the pupil being always round when it is not constrained. During the day, there is a continual contraction in the eyes of the cat, and it is only by effort, as it were, that he sees in a strong light; whereas, at twilight, the pupil resuming its natural form, he sees perfectly, and profits from this advantage, to know, attack, and surprise other animals. The whiskers, too, appear to aid him in the chase, by possessing qualities analogous to those of the antennæ of insects.

1 Felis catus, LIN.

Cats seem to have a natural dread of water, cold, and bad smells. They are very fond of perfumes, and gladly suffer themselves to be taken and caressed by persons who use them. The scent of valerian has so powerful, and so delicious an effect on them, that they appear transported with pleasure by it; and, in order to preserve this plant in gardens, it is common to surround it with a close fence. Cats will smell it from afar, will run and rub themselves against it, and will pass and repass so often over it, as to destroy it in a short time.

One of the most remarkable properties of the domestic cat is, the anxiety with which it makes itself acquainted, not only with every part of its usual habitation, but with the dimensions and external qualities of every object by which it is surrounded. Cats do not very readily adapt themselves to a change of houses; but we have watched the process by which one, whose attachment to a family is considerable, reconciles itself to such a change.

He surveys every room in the house, from the garret to the cellar; if a door is shut, he waits till it be opened to complete the survey; he ascertains the relative size and position of every article of furniture; and when he has acquired this knowledge, he sits down contented with his new situation. It appears necessary to a cat, that he should be intimately acquainted with every circumstance of his position, in the same way that a general first examines the face of the country in which he is to conduct his operations. If a new piece of furniture, if even a large book or portfolio, is newly placed in a room which a cat frequents, he walks round it, smells it, takes note of its size and appearance, and then never troubles himself further about the matter.

This is, probably, an instinctive quality; and the wild cat may, in the same way, take a survey of every tree or stone, every gap in a brake, every path in a thicket, within the ordinary range of its operations. The whiskers of the cat, as we have mentioned in the case of the lion, enable it to ascertain the space through which its body may pass, without the inconvenience of vainly attempting such a passage.

The memory of a cat must be very strong, to enable it to understand this great variety of local circumstances, after a single observation. The same power of memory leads this animal, much as its affection may be doubted, to know the faces of individuals. We have seen a cat exhibit manifest delight upon the return of its master, or of a person from whom it had received peculiar kindness. There are several instances of strong attachment to the human race, in cats, though, in number and intensity, they fall short of the attachment of the dog.

Cats appear to possess, in some degree, the power of fascination. "There was at my house, a little while ago, a cat, seen watching a bird upon the top of a tree, and for some time they mutually fixed their eyes upon each other. At length, the bird let herself fall resistless into the cat's claws,

either dazzled and astonished by the force of imagination, or drawn by some attractive power in the cat."

As they are exceedingly clean, and as their coat is always dry and shining, their hair easily electrifies; and sparks are seen to come from it, when rubbed with the hand, in any dark place. Their eyes shine in the dark, almost like diamonds, and reflect outwardly, during the night, the light which they may be said to have imbibed during the day.

Cats may be taught to perform tricks, such as leaping over a stick, but they always do such feats unwillingly. There was an exhibition of cats, in Regent-street, London, where the animals, at the bidding of their master, (an Italian,) turned a wheel, drew up a bucket, rang a bell, and, in doing these things, begin, continue, and stop, as they were commanded. But the commencez, continuez, arretez of their keeper, was always enforced with a threatening eye, and often with a severe blow; and the poor creatures exhibited the greatest reluctance to proceed with their unnatural employments. They had a subdued and piteous look; but the scratches upon their master's arms, showed that his task was not always an easy one.

"At Elford, near Litchfield, in England, the Rev. Mr Sawley had taken the young ones from a hare which had been shot. His cat, which had just lost her own kittens, carried them away, as it was supposed, to eat them; but it presently appeared that it was affection, not hunger, which incited her, as she suckled them and brought them up as their mother."

Wild cats, from whence all the domestic varieties have been derived, have been seen in several parts of Africa, as in Guinea, at the Gold Coast; at Madagascar, where the original inhabitants had even domestic cats; at the Cape of Good Hope, where, Kolben says, "there are also, though in a small number, wild cats of a blue color;" and these blue, or rather slate colored cats, are found again in Asia. In Europe, but one species of wild cat is known, and seems to be but little varied by climate.

In England, the wild, or wood cat, is the fiercest and most destructive of predatory animals, and may not improperly be denominated the British tiger. At its full growth, it stands a foot and a half in height, measures nearly two feet round the body, and, including the tail, which is half a yard long, it is about four feet in length. A larger head, more vividly sparkling eyes, and a more agile and daring demeanor, distinguish it from the domestic species. Its color is of a yellowish brown; the head, back, sides, and tail, being marked transversely with bars of deep brown and black. It is a very solitary animal. Merely to wound them is dangerous, as they will turn furiously on their assailant, and they have strength enough to render themselves formidable. In spite, however, of their strength and agility, they are often vanquished by a much smaller enemy. That enemy is the pine marten. The combat between the two animals is well described by the author of a recent valuable work, The British Naturalist. "The onset," says he, "is one of some skill on both sides. The aim of the cat is to

pounce with her paws upon the head of the marten, in such a way that the claws may destroy or wound its eyes, while her teeth are embedded in its neck; and if she can accomplish that, the fate of the marten is decided. That, however, if done at all, must be done in a moment; and if it be lost, there is no repairing the mistake. The spring of the wood cat is larger than that of her opponent, and the cat takes up her position so that she shall, if possible, alight upon his head with her full spring and impetus. To distract her attention, he keeps moving his head from side to side, and if he succeeds in his object, he rushes to close quarters by a side movement. If the spring of the cat takes proper effect, there is a struggle, but not of long duration; and it is the same with the opposite result, if the cat miss and the marten fasten, during the short pause of exhaustion after the spring."

A singular animal has recently been discovered in the island of Java, which seems the connecting link between the cat and ferret tribes. It has the lengthened muzzle, and slender body of the latter, with the sheathed and retractile claws of the former. Dr Horsfield denominates it Prionodon gracilis.

FAMILY III-AMPHIBIA.

THESE animals have the feet short, enveloped in the skin, in form of fins; the posterior in the direction of the body; number of incisors variable, often six, and sometimes four above, more generally four, and sometimes two below.

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THIS animal has its head round, like that of the human species; its snout is broad, like the otter's; the eyes, large and elevated; little, or no external

Phoca vitulina, LIN. The genus Phoca has six or four upper and two or four lower incisors; two upper and two lower canines; ten or twelve upper and ten or twelve lower molars. Molars all cutting or conical; five toes on all the feet; tail short; eyes large; nostrils closing at the will of the animal; head round; external ears wanting; four abdominal mammæ.

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