232 Zoological Society. 



middle toes on the fore feet, all of equal length, and armed with 

 very long, powerful claws, besides a small rudimentary toe very di- 

 stinctly marked on each side. The form and character of the hind 

 feet were perfectly similar to those of the Perameles ; as were also 

 the teeth, as far as could be judged from the drawing, except that 

 the canines did not appear to surpass the anterior molars in point of 

 size. The ears were long, elliptical, and nearly naked ; the head 

 broad between the ears, and very much attenuated towards the muz- 

 zle ; the body about the size of a small rabbit, and the fur very much 

 of the same quality and colour as in that animal. Mr. Ogilby, after 

 expressing his confidence in the fidelity of Major Mitchell's draw- 

 ings, and the care with which that gentleman assured him he had 

 made the observation in question, expressed his belief that this 

 animal would be found to constitute a new genus of Marsupials, 

 and proposed for it the provisional name of Chceropus, in allusion to 

 the described characters of the fore feet. 



The following is the notice of this animal inserted by Major Mit- 

 chell in his journal, on the occasion of first discovering it. " June 16, 

 1836. The most remarkable incident of this day's journey was the 

 discovery of an animal of which I had seen only a head in a fossil 

 state in the limestone caves of Wellington Valley, where, from its 

 very singular form, I supposed it to belong to some extinct species. 

 The chief peculiarity then observed was the broad head and very long, 

 slender snout, which resembled the narrow neck of a wide bottle ; but 

 in the living animal the absence of a tail was still more remarkable. 

 The feet, and especially the fore legs, were also singularly formed, the 

 latter resembling those of a Pig ; and the marsupial opening was 

 downwards, and not upwards, as in the Kangaroo and others of that 

 class of animals. This quadruped was discovered by the natives on 

 the ground ; but on being chased it took refuge in a hollow tree, from 

 which they took it alive, all of them declaring that they had never 

 before seen an animal of the kind. This was where the party had 

 commenced the journey up the left bank of the Murray, immedi- 

 ately after crossing that river." Such, Mr. Ogilby remarked, was 

 all the information he possessed at present with regard to this sin- 

 gular animal ; but Mr. Gould had promised to examine the original 

 specimen on his arrival at Sydney, in the Museum of which town it 

 had been deposited ; and Mr. Ogilby therefore hoped that, through 

 the kindness of that gentleman, he should shortly have it in his 

 power to communicate a more detailed description of its form and 

 characters to the Society. 



Mr. Waterhouse afterwards called the attention of the Meeting 



