modes o f hunting this stupid animal, either in the night with dogs, or b y shooting h im ; but he never comes out o f his cave in the day-time, but sits at the further end o f it, staring with his eyes fixed. T h e ir general character is not to be afraid o f man, nor indeed to attack or avoid h im ; they will, however, attack and destroy sheep, goats, poultry, asses, and mules, and are v e ry fond o f the intoxicating herb called Hashisha.* T he hysena is said to liv e to a great age. T he dubbah and the deeb resemble each other in their propensity to devour dead bodies; so that whilst the plague ravaged West Barbary in 1799 and 1800, these animals were constant visitors o f the cemeteries. T h e drarwing o f the hysena in the fifth volume o f the work ju s t quoted is ve ry correct. The Gazel (antelope).— The gazel is that pretty light and elegant animal, swift as the wind, timid as a virgin, with a soft, beautiful, large, and prominent black eye, which seems to interest you in its favour. In its general appearance, the gazel resembles our d e er ; it is however much smaller, and has straight black horns, curving a little backwards. T he eye and figure o f the gazel, so well known to all Arabian poets, are emblematical o f beauty, and the greatest compliment that can be paid to a beautiful women, is to compare her eyes to those o f the ga zel.+ Much art is employed b y the Arabian females to knowledge of the Arabic language, and of natural history at the same time, has, in some measure, been the occasion of these errors among the moderns. Bochart discusses the several errors of the ancients with great judgment, and the Count de Buffon, in a very elegant and pleasant manner, hath nearly exhausted the whole. See Select Specimens of Nat. Hist, collected in Travels to discover the Source of the ^Nile, Vol. V. Appendix, p. 1808. Title Hyasna, * A description of this herb will be given in its proper place, f Andik aineen el Gazel ia Leila. Beek zin el Gazel ia Leila. You possess make their eyes appear like those o f this delicate animal. Eyes originally black and liv e ly , are made to appear larger and more languishing b y tinging the outer corner with E l kahol Filelly, a preparation o f lead ore procured from Tafilelt, which gives an apparent elongation to the eye . T h e eye-lashes and eye-brows being also blackened with this composition, they appear peculia r ly soft and languishing; i t is said also to improve and strengthen the sight. E ve ry one who has accurately observed the eye o f the African gazel w ill acquiesce in the aptness o f the simile before alluded to. T h e word angel, so often employed b y our poets to designate a beautiful female, is, with the Arabs, transformed to ga zel i thus the Arabian so n n e t; Ob* fW' l l l l K u l el gazelli rak K u litin i nerjak K iT el m’ amul mak A sh he liti wa ash amelli Rafki b ffli ihuak Ta taj miriamme gazelli, the eyes of an antelope, O Lady—You possess the beauty of a gazel, O Lady, ar irresistible compliments with the Arabs. Again, Zin el miUkumule, and Zin el Gazel, perfect beauty, and gazel beauty, are synonymous terms. M
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