"It is not always realised that the lion, ordinarily looked upon as a native of Africa, had in historic times a habitat extending beyond the limits of that continent from Macedonia to Western Bengal—though the Old Testament should afford a reminder of its former existence in Palestine. Outside India, there is no doubt that the lion was still to be found in the remoter parts of Mesopotamia and southern Persia in the beginning of the present century. When in the Persian Gulf during the [first] Great War, I heard of definite evidence of its continued existence in both countries so late as the year 1917; but it is there almost certainly on the verge of extinction, if not absolutely extinct, today. ... The last stronghold of the lion in India was, and is, the in Kathiawar; there alone he has been able to maintain a footing up to the present time, by reason of the enlightened policy of strict preservation followed by the authorities of the Junagadh State."