Taming Lions in Melbourne

Evening Post, Volume XLIX, Issue 109, 9 May 1895, Page 4

Taming Lions in Melbourne

For Borne time beck isays the Age) peoplo in Fliniiors-laiie ha*e been in a state of perp'cxity bordering on consternation. At 'periodical intervals their oars have been assailed by fcatfnl and myste- ious sounds proceeding from what was snppcsed to be a vacated warehouse. The air trembled, and tho more imaginative thought the earth shook. Tho noises turned ont to be the roaring of young lions under tuition. There are five of them, all under three years of age, two males and three females. They belong to a fairly well known profcpsional gentleman in Melbourne and hia wife, whose "pet" weakness is so strong that she never feels really comfortable unless in the society of lions. Having an eye to business, this nervy conple harbour a design to convert their weakness in the wild-beast line into financial strength. It may be that they are laying the foundation of an Australian show ala Barnum. In any case they have certainly "tarred a new colonial industry in the fotm of lion-taminc, and the publio will probably be invited a, few months henco to witness Australian lions put through their petforuiancos by an Australian lady. As a matter of feet, the lady iB a native of South Melbonrne, and at least two of the lions are Australian-born. The owner is in no hurry to disoloßo his identity, bnt when ferreted ont the other day he was frank enough. During an interval in his proper professional career ho tasted Bohemian life as a -Victorian > conjurer in connection with a oiroug-cum-menagerio entertainment, and took a liking for wild animals. Bnt years have elapsed since then, and the old attachment has revived. Thirteen or 14 months ago he purchased a little female onb born at the Melbourne Zoo," another from the Adelaide Gardens, two imported from Algeria by a sailor, and one from a travelling circus. These were, when purchased, only as big as tneir heads are now, and he and bis wife have reared them as pets. It is said that wrens hons aro frequently trained in too much of a hurry, and that haste involves cruelty, such as poking red hot iron bars into their mouths. Ihe cubs in question have never yet been ohaatisod with anything more severe than a lady's riding whip, andalthongh uncompromising in their fierce demeanour towards strangers, they are most dooile, obedient, and affectionate towards their master and mistress. The most advanced of the lot is the lioness cubbed in Melbourne. It is named Psyche, and already measures 10ft from tip to tip. Psyohe has a fine St. Bernard dog aB a oage-mate, and the two are always full of fun. and frolic, excepting at meal times, when the lioness must not be molested. The two go through the usual oirotu performances under the whip of their mistress, who also handles the lioness with all the liberty a housewife oan take with her

favourite cat. A week or two ago a young relative of the owner, after seeing a private rehearsal, ventured too near tho caste. There was an instantaneous flash of a furry paw, and the young man had to be conveyed to a surgeon to have the palm of his hand atitohed. Psyche, with all her docility towards her mistress, bear? out the statement of an Amerioan lion tamer in a reoent interview, that " the lioness, though smaller than the male, possesses Inore devil to the square inch than any other created being."