36 THE LIVING CYCADS 



out fresh leaves, and I saw plants which had been entirely 

 dislodged and had rolled down to the dry bed of the 

 stream, where they looked like round stones as large as 

 one's head; and yet they were sound, and some of them 

 were forming leaves. Mr. Edward Meilland, one of the 

 three bachelor brothers, told me that a large, under- 

 ground stem, lying in the path near the door, had been 

 tramped over for twenty years, but when the house and 

 the path had been abandoned, vigorous new leaves 

 began to appear. Plants from this vicinity are now 

 growing in the greenhouse at the University of Chicago, 

 at the St. Louis Botanical Garden, and at the Brooklyn 

 Botanical Garden. 



The most interesting animal of the region is the 

 kangaroo. Some are large and some are small, but all 

 are amazing jumpers. 



Raising cattle is the principal occupation, and the 

 great ranges are in striking contrast with the small 

 farms of New Zealand, where nearly 90 per cent of the 

 land is in holdings of less than three hundred acres. 



CYCAS 



Cycas, the genus which extends from Japan to 

 AustraKa, is represented in Queensland by four or per- 

 haps five species (Fig. 14). I saw it first at Rock- 

 hampton, where it is very abundant within an hour's 

 drive from the town. I spent several days at the home 

 of Mr. Sydney Snell, who was thoroughly acquainted 

 with the plants of the vicinity and knew the distribution 

 of Cycas not only in that region but throughout the 

 Bersirker ranges. I secured material and arranged with 

 Mr. Snell to collect cones at frequent intervals and also 

 to send plants to Chicago. 



