Some quadrupeds are undoubtedly diminishing in British India, and markedly- the elephant and the lion. The lion, until the middle of the 19th century of not unfrequent occurrence in the region between Sind, Kattyawar, and the Central Provinces, is now (1884) almost unheard of. We have the evidence of Jahangir and the Bev. Edward Terry that in their days the province of Malwa abounded with lions. Jahangir records that he had killed several, and Mr. Terry mentions his having been frequently terrified by them in his travels through the vast woods and wildernesses of the country. It is known to the people as the Untia-Bag, literally camel-coloured tiger. They do little injury. Tigers, however, have always been destructive to the domestic cattle, and as the opening up of British India by roads and railways has led to the destruction of the herds of deer, the tiger has been more and more making man his prey. They are supposed to breed largely in Bustar. In the extreme south of the peninsula of Malacca they are very numerous. The unculti
vated forest tribes of India revere the tiger, style him brother, and the Burmese eat the tiger in the belief that they may improve their courage. They buy its flesh at a shilling a pound.
A mere mention of the hyaena, the jackal, the wild dog, the porcupine, rhinoceros, and tapir will suflice. They cause little injury to man. From time to time, frequently following famine years, swarms of rats invade the already wasted lands, and their original habitats remain un traced. One of the leopards, the Fells jubata, has been trained to hunt the deer. The mungoose, species of the genus Ilerpestes, readily attacks and kills the venomous cobra, and thus aids to protect man.
The wolves, wild dogs, and jackals hunt in packs, and evince much intelligence and cunning. Notices of them will be found under their respective headings.
The following details exhibit the families, genera, and principal species of mammals in the south and east of Asia, with some of Africa :—