CHAPTER X 



MAMMALS OF AUSTRALIA 



By CHARLES BARRETT, M.A.O.U. 



(MELBOURNE, VICTORIA) 

 CO-EDITOR OF "THE EMU " 



INTRODUCTION.— The animals of Australia form a remarkable 

 assemblage of strange types which are of absorbing interest to both 

 the scientific zoologist and the field naturalist. Where else in the 

 world will be found such a variety of forms which present problems 

 for the biologist to solve, and possess curious habits for the con- 

 sideration of field workers ? Many great naturalists have visited 

 Australia and spent more or less time in the island continent study- 

 ing the fauna; and they have published books giving the results of 

 their investigations. Now, these books often contain much valuable 

 material, but they also contain a good deal of erroneous information 

 — statements based on meagre observation or " facts " gleaned at 

 second hand. To properly study the Australian fauna one must 

 dwell in the land over which the Southern Cross beams in benedic- 

 tion. I have read in books compiled by hasty travellers that in 

 Australia men hunt the Kangaroo with doormats hanging from their 

 necks to defend their bodies from the terrible claws of the giant 

 marsupials. Perhaps it is hardly necessary at the present time to 

 give denial to such an absurd statement, yet others equally foolish 

 and false have been published in books and magazines during recent 

 years. 



For readers who may desire to pursue the subject of Australian 

 natural history beyond these pages no better work can be recom- 

 mended than Lucas and Le Souef's Animals of Australia. It 

 contains a fund of reliable information, and I am indebted to the 

 authors for some of the facts I am about to set out. 



Of all the distinguished naturalists who have visited Australia 



174 



