ery similar in their appearance and habits;
so much so, that I shall introduce them both in the same chapter. The
engraving represents a panther. He is in some danger from the serpent
near him, I am inclined to think.

A panther is spoken of by an English lady, Mrs. Bowdich, who resided for
some time in Africa, as being thoroughly domesticated. He was as tame as
a cat, and much more affectionate than cats usually are. On one
occasion, when he was sick, the boy who had charge of him slept in his
den, and held the patient a great part of the time in his arms, and the
poor fellow appeared to be soothed by the care and attention of his
nurse. He had a great partiality for white people, probably because he
had been tamed by them; and the lady who gives this account of him was
his especial favorite. Twice each week she used to take him some
lavender water, which he was very fond of, and seized with great
eagerness. He allowed the children to play with him; and sometimes, when
he was sitting in the window, gazing upon what was going on below, the
little urchins would pull him down by the tail. It would seem to be
rather a dangerous experiment. But the panther let his play-fellows
enjoy the sport. I suppose he thought that though it was not very
pleasant to him, he would make the sacrifice of a little comfort rather
than to get angry and revenge himself. Besides, he might have said to
himself, "These boys like the sport pretty well; I should guess it was
capital fun for them; it is a pity to rob them of their amusement it
does not hurt me much, and I will let it go; they don't mean any harm;
they are the kindest, best-natured children in the world; they would go
without their own dinner, any day, rather than see me suffer." If the
panther said this to himself, it was a very wise and sensible speech;
and if he did not say it, my little readers may consider me as the
author of it. I am satisfied, whether the panther has the credit of
making the remarks or whether I have it, so that my young friends get
the benefit of the lesson.

In their wild state these animals are very destructive. The same lady
who tells the story about the tame panther, says that in one case a
panther leaped through an open window near her residence, and killed a
little girl who happened to be the only occupant of the house at the
time, except a man who was asleep.

The tame leopard is often used in India for the purpose of hunting
antelopes. He is carrie