QUEER FRIENDS—CAMEL, LIONESSES, AND DROMEDARY
The following night the lions were turned into the arena again, but in a very short time they had scratched away the sand and sawdust and dug up the earth, and it was only just in time that the lions were once more removed to their traveling-cages in exceedingly ugly and dangerous moods.
Many solutions were offered by various people,—especially by those who knew nothing whatever about animals,—but no satisfactory one could be found. We thought of the change of climate, of air, scene, and food. The lions had grown accustomed to changes of air and climate, and the food was the same kind that they had been accustomed to in captivity. We next thought of the water; but it was pure and good, and there seemed to be no accounting for this strange freak on the part of the animals. Had one or two shown this peculiar propensity, we should naturally have concluded that they had “gone bad,” but as all were doing the same thing, and two were quite young lions, this could not be the case.
At last this was mentioned to the chief of police and one or two old residents, and we then discovered that the tent had been pitched directly over an old graveyard in Ocala, and although most of the bodies had been removed, there was, of course, every probability that some of the remains were still under the ground.
This, of course, solved the mystery, to our great relief; for, having found out the cause, we very soon applied a remedy, and it was not long before we had the tent and the animals removed some distance off. As soon as the animals were removed, their savage sulkiness vanished, and they at once settled down into their old routine, and were as obedient and good-natured as they had ever been.
CHAPTER VII
HOW WILD ANIMALS ARE CAPTURED
Few who see wild animals in cages realize the vast amount of trouble, danger, and expense necessary to get them there. The greatest danger lies in capturing the animals in their native countries.
It is an easy task to hunt wild animals for sport, compared to the difficulties connected with their capture, not only alive, but uninjured. An injured animal is rarely any use. The injuries, added to the frenzy of a wild animal when first caught, leave very little chance of his surviving the ordeal, even for a few days; and should he do so, the chances are that he will remain in such a miserable state for so long that he will not repay the cost of capture, feeding, and transportation.