TV/A' SOOTY /'//I A. I 



The fur <>f th.- discus js lieaiitifnlh -oft ;m,| -ilken in it- t. \tun, and in of some value 

 for com. -r-ion into articl.-s ,,f lniinaii attire or luxury, such a-, cloak- ami mantle-. The 

 ix.loi of tin- fur is singularly variable, even if the Sjx.ti<-l discus IM- realh ; .-..., 



and still inure ao If, aooording to many skilful zoologfeto, It ran only be considered as a single 

 i> . 



The ground tint of tin- Spotted discus in a whitish -gray. I ]H,H this ]>nlc tint are scattered 

 ven largQ Md ln>l(l sjxits uf .;..;. browa, OOrtnd "li a reddish -chest nut. Sometimes ii i- 

 almost wholly whit.-, \\itli only one or two small -i.i- scattered sparingly over the body. 

 Tin- tail i- yellowish-white. Another >]< ini.-n will lie almost entirely of the darker color, 

 :ui.| marked as follow. s: The shoulders and head of a curious gray grizzle, ami the remain- 

 der of the body to the tail grayish-white. A number of large angular black sjiois or Bitches 

 are so placed iij-oii this pale lield. that they communicate with ju-h other, ami fonn a kind 

 of indistinct 1. lack pattern on the creature's back. The color of these dark pitches in 

 nearly Mark, and would be so entirvly Imt from a numlier of whit*- haii-s which are s'n among 

 th- black. Tin-.- description* an> taken from actual specimens. Another species, called the 

 Ursine discus, is of a uniform il.-.-p brown. 



Thf-M- animals are in some request anionj; the white and tin- native {Hipnlation of tli- 

 country which tlu-y inhabit, for tln-\ not only furnish valuable fui or " jifltry," as thf skin 

 of these and .similar crvatnivs is popularly t<-rm*d. but also afford nourishment to their 

 captom. The flesh of the discus is thought to be remarkably good by those who have j>ar- 

 taken of it, and is said to be quite equal to that of the kangaroo. There is a certain rather 

 powerful ami not MTV atriveable scent that is-sues from the <'nsriis and most of its i.-lalions, 

 which does not, however, disqualify the creature from forming a most valued jxtrtion of th 

 hunter's dietary. Tins scent proceeds from some small glands which an- situated near the 

 insertion of the tail. 



In captivity it is not a particularly interesting animal, being dull ami -low in its move- 

 ments, and seldom exhibiting any energy, except, perhaps, when it ontrht nit her to keep it.self 

 quiet. One of tlif- < features, which had been for some time partially doim--iicat.-<|. was very 

 sluggish and unimpres-il.lf in its manner until a companion was placed in the same cage. Tin- 

 two animals immediately became violently excited, attacked each other fiercely, and growled, 

 and scratched, ami bit, with infinitely more energy than would have been exjHM-ted from creat- 

 ures of such apjiarently apathetic natures. 



These s|H-cimens were great water-drinkers, and would eat bread, although they evidently 

 _-.iv- the preference to meat, thus confirming the opinion that their diet is naturally of a 

 mixed character. 



PASSING by the curious little dormouse-like animals which are classed under the genus 



Dromicia. \\> arrive at the true Phalangists, the first of which Is the Tu-o \. or S > PH \i.\.\- 



OIST, an animal w hich lias been gifted with its rather dismal title in consequence of the uniform 

 smoky-black color of its fur. 



The Sooty Phalangist is tolerably common in Van Diemen's Land, where it is much sought 

 after on account of its skin, which is highly valued by white and black men for the purpose of 

 being manufactured into a soft, warm, and beautiful fur. As with the preceding animal, there 



is considerable variatbi i>' ''!/ of th at, some sjtecimeiiH U-ing entfawij dottnd vtthl 



uniform dark, dull, blackish-brown, while the fur of others is warmly tinged with a chestnut 

 hue. The tail of this animal is extremely full, the hair being thick, long, and very bushy, 

 more HO than that of the body and limbs. One of the most remarkable ]>oint- in the color - 

 in_' of this animal is the fact that the abdomen and the under jMirlions of its Ixtdy retain 

 the brown hue of the nj.jM-r j-oition- instead of being covered with the beautiful white m 

 \ellowish fur which is found in nearly all the preceding animals. Theearsof the Tapoa are 

 ntlier elongated, and triangular in form, thickly covered with hair on the outside, but naked 

 on their inner faoea. 



In the structure of this creature a rather j-<-iiliar formation is well delim-d. and as it is on.- 

 of the distinctive marks by which the p-nu- Phalan^i-ia i- *.parat-d fn>m its neighbors, it is 



