第23章 The Tiger 老虎

The tiger is a giant cat. His body is nearly covered with black stripes.

Unlike the lion, he runs so fast that the swiftest horse can not overtake him. He goes over the ground by making bounds or springs, one after another.

By night, as well as by day, the tiger watches for his prey. With a frightful roar, he will seize a man, and carry him off.

Have you ever thought what use whiskers are to cats? Lions have great whiskers, and so have tigers and all other animals of the cat kind.

Whenever you find an animal with whiskers like the cat's, you may be sure that animal steals softly among branches and thick bushes.

By the slightest touch on the tiger's whiskers, he knows when there is anything in his road.

A few years ago, some English officers went out to hunt. When coming home from their day's sport, they found a little tiger kitten.

They took it with them and tied it, with a collar and chain, to the pole of their tent. It played about, to the delight of all who saw it.

One evening, just as it was growing dark, they heard a sound that frightened them greatly. It was the roar of a tiger.

The kitten pulled at the chain, and tried to break away. With a sharp cry, it answered the voice outside.

All at once, a large tigress bounded into the middle of the tent. She caught her kitten by the neck, and broke the chain which bound it.

Then turning to the door of the tent, she dashed away as suddenly as she had come.

老虎是种巨型猫。它浑身几乎都是黑色的条纹。跟狮子不同的是，它跑得太快了，以致于最快的马都跑不过它。它通过一步一步奔跑或者弹跳穿过地面。

到了夜晚，跟白天一样，老虎会静静注视着自己的猎物。一声嘶声力竭的吼叫，它就能抓到一个人，然后把他杀掉。

不知道你是否想过对猫科动物来说，胡子的作用是什么呢？狮子有大的胡须，老虎和其它猫科动物一样，也都有胡子。

几年前，一些英国的官员出外打猎。当他们打完猎回家的时候，发现一只小老虎崽。

他们把它带回来，用链子系着脖子，系到帐篷的杆上。它自己欢蹦乱跳的玩着，逗的每一个看到它的人都很开心。

一天晚上，就在天刚刚黑的时候，一声惊叫把他们都吓了一跳，是老虎的叫声。

老虎使劲拉着链子，试图想挣脱。用一声尖利的叫声，它回应了外面的声音。

一大只母老虎立刻冲到了帐篷中间。它抓住了小老虎的脖子，弄断了拴着它的链子。

然后它转向了帐篷边上的门，以最快的速度跑开了。