INTRODUCTION 



Mammals and their Study 



THE first questions that present themselves in the study ct 

 mammals are: What is a mammal and what is an animal? An 

 animal we are told is anything endowed with life, that is not 

 a plant. Very true, but popularly we use the word in another 

 sense, meaning a beast as opposed to a bird, a fish or a rep- 

 tile that is to say we mean one of the classes of back-boned 

 animals. 



Unfortunately we have no English name for this group. 

 The term "quadruped," it is true, applies to a great majority 

 of its members, but does not fit the whales or bats which 

 belong here just as much as the four-footed beasts; nor does 

 "quadruped" apply to man who stands at the head of the 

 group. Therefore we have to adopt an abbreviation of the Latin 

 name for this class of animals and call them mammals. A mam- 

 mal then is characterized by having a more or less hairy body, 

 and in suckling its young, while it has warm, blood like the 

 birds. 



The relations between man and the lower mammals have 

 always been most important. He depends upon them for meat 

 and clothing, he uses them as beasts of burden, he hunts them 

 and trains them to hunt each other. With the exception of the 

 beasts of burden and those which aid him in the chase, man's 

 attitude toward mammals has always been that of a destroyer; 

 in whatever field he may meet them his object is always to kill. 



Those which furnish good meat are slaughtered for food or 

 are pursued from pure love of the chase; those which furnish 

 valuable skins are killed by the trappers as a means of liveli- 

 hood; fierce beasts are everywhere shot on sight, while a relent- 

 less war is being perpetually carried on against the great army 

 of rats, mice and other despoilers of our crops. 



Much of this slaughter is justified, but much is unwarranted 

 and is speedily effecting the extermination of all the large and 

 especially desirable mammals of the world. 



Pure greed and wantonness are destroying many of the most 



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