OCTOBER 221 



LIII 



Nature never designed a more successful form of 



life than the Rodents or Gnawing Animals. 



,.,.., 5 . Rabbits 



which include a greater number of species 



than any other order of mammals, and are found in- 

 digenous to all parts of the world from Ultima Thule 

 to Madagascar and Australasia. At first sight it might 

 appear that the distinctive feature of these creatures 

 the pair of curving incisors or front teeth in each jaw, 

 constantly growing and requiring to be as constantly 

 ground down by gnawing would be a hindrance rather 

 than a help in the struggle for existence. The majority 

 of men have imposed upon themselves the task of daily 

 shaving, but the only inconvenience arising from one 

 who suspends or neglects that operation is shrill remon- 

 strance from his feminine acquaintance women being 

 the most conservative of created beings. But if a rat 

 or a rabbit were to spend a day or two without gnawing, 

 its irrepressible front teeth would grow to an un- 

 manageable length, so that it could not use them when 

 it would, and must die of starvation. 



What, then, does a rodent do when there is nothing 

 to gnaw ? We are told in Leviticus xi. that ' the hare, 

 because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the 

 hoof, he is unclean unto you ' ; and most outdoor folk 

 will assure you that hares do chew the cud. But Mr. 

 J. G. Millais, that most patient and scrupulous of field 

 naturalists, having devoted careful observation to this 

 question, has come to the conclusion that the hare 

 neither does nor can chew the cud, and that the 



