96 AUSTRALIA AND THE AUSTRALIANS. 



For two full years he has been pairing and reproduc- 

 ing his species, through all this time quite safe, 

 because he has no attractive beauty. 



An enthusiastic taxidermist in Melbourne had in a 

 case, stuffed, the five specimens, the female and one 

 male of each year up to the fourth, and through him 

 we learned many most interesting facts respecting the 

 regent, and other birds and animals of Australia. 



To me, however, that new world presented such a 

 variety of interesting subjects, that I found great 

 pleasure in observing for myself, and then asking 

 many questions of those who seemed to have quite as 

 much pleasure in answering them, besides reading 

 every book I could find bearing on these subjects, 

 though I had no intention at the time of making a 

 book. 



THE EMU. 



The emu, or New Holland cassowary ought, I sup- 

 pose, to be classed with the ostrich, which it resembles. 

 It stands five or six feet high. Its feathers are more 

 like coarse hair than like feathers. Its flesh is like 

 coarse beef. It lays a large, greenish-colored egg, 

 about two-thirds the size of that of the ostrich. 



It is very fleet of foot, and cannot easily be over- 

 taken by either dogs or horses ; as for man, it laugheth 

 at him. 



