It was the time for feeding the animals, and the children saw the men coming along with the food in a wheelbarrow. The lions saw him too, and they began to lash their tails and growl. At first it was a low grumbling sound, but it got louder and louder.
It ended at last in a roar that made the children cling closer to their father.
"What a mouth he has got!" said Fred, "and just the same long, sharp, cruel teeth as the cat, only so much bigger."The men came, and threw in for each animal a great joint of meat, enough to feed a small family for a week. With a savage growl the lions sprang at the meat. The children could see theirstrong curved claws, as they tore the meat to pieces. "Just think," said the father, "of these fierce animals in the lands where they are found wild. They live in the forests, and prey upon animals as large as the horse and cow. Sometimes they spring upon a man and carry him off in their strong claws. They sleep in their dens or holes all day long, and at night come out to prowl through the forests for their prey. One spring, and one blow from thatgreat paw, is enough to fell an ox."
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