d he did whatever he was ordered to do, even the hardest
work. And he did that willingly, as if to prove that he had truly
repented.

Then those very princes whom he had tried to kill felt sure that Mukna
had begun a new life, and would always be good in the future. So the
princes took him back into favor.

And today Mukna wears a cloth-of-gold, with gold rings on his tusks, and
he walks in a royal procession. Sometimes he carries grand people on his
back, and sometimes children. And no elephant is more gentle and
thoughtful with little children than he is. For he actually curls the
end of his trunk near the ground for them to sit upon--and then he lifts
them up to his back, three at a time!

CHAPTER V

Flesh-Eating Animals: the Felines, or the Cat Tribe

So far most of the animals I have described to you are vegetarians, that
is, they eat vegetables of all kinds, for even leaves, herbs, and grass
may be classed as vegetables. These animals are the elephant, the
buffalo, the deer, the antelope, and others. The bear is the only animal
I have so far described to you (in Book I) that eats both
vegetables--that is, the roots of trees--and the flesh of other animals
as well.

But now I shall describe to you quite a different class of animals,
namely, animals that eat only meat. Among these animals the most
important group is the Cat Tribe, or the _felines_, as they are
sometimes called. They possess many of the qualities of the ordinary
cat.

The principal felines are the tiger, the lion, the leopard, the puma,
and the jaguar. All felines have a special kind of fangs, tongue, claws,
and paws, which I shall now describe in detail.

_The Feline Has Strong Fangs_

Besides the ordinary teeth, every feline has two pairs of strong fangs
which look like big projecting teeth. One pair of fangs is placed on the
upper jaw, pointing downward; they are wide apart. The other pair of
fangs is placed in the lower jaw, pointing upward; they are not quite so
far apart as the fangs of the upper jaw. Why? So that the animal can
close its mouth comfortably without striking the lower fangs against the
upper fangs.

These fangs are three to four inches long in a tiger or a lion; they are
not quite so big in a leopard or other feline. The fangs of the tiger or
the lion are so strong that he can hold down a heavy bullock by gripping
it with his fangs. He can also drag the bullock along the ground by
gripping it in that way,