232 NATURAL HISTORY. 



disappear as a specially valuable stone to furnish grinding power for the bird. It is a queer feeling 

 to be in the middle and under the inspection of some fifty- eight pairs of eyes or more, with a good 

 sharp bill between each pair that could easily appreciate or say, borrow any little thing they take 

 a fancy to. It was queer, but it was most satisfactory, for here were birds two years old, machine.- 

 hatched, and in size, health, and quality everything that could be desired. This completed our round 

 of observation, in which we saw a good many contrivances for feeding, plucking, and general manage- 

 ment, the result of much thought and patient investigation. Since the farm has had no sheep upon 

 it the veldt has very much improved, and no doubt is still progressing in the same satisfactory 

 direction. " 



The Rheas, which are the remaining representatives of the sub-family Struthionince, are dis- 

 tinguished by having thi'ee toes, while the head and the neck are fully feathered, and there is no tail 

 visible. They are confined to the Central and Southern portion of the Neotropical region, and the 

 three species of the genus RJiea are the Common Rhea (R. americana), which ranges from Bolivia, 

 Paraguay, and South Brazil down to the Strait of Magellan, Darwin's Rliea (JR. darwini), which 

 replaces the foregoing bird in Eastern Patagonia, and the Long-billed Rhea (R. macrorhyncha), the 

 exact habitat of which is as yet unknown. The habits of these South American Ostriches are not 

 unlike those of their African relative, but as the feathers are not of such beauty as in the latter 

 species, a lesser exportation of plumes takes place from South America. They appear, however, to 

 be as capable of domestication, and an excellent account of their breeding in England is given by Mr. 

 Hart ing. 



THE SECOND SUB-FAMILY OF THE STRUTHIONKLE.- THE CASSOWARIES (Casuarlmc}. 



The Cassowaries and the Emus, which compose the present sub-family, are distinguished by the 

 wings and the feathering of tha body. The former are bare, and are represented only by some stiff 

 horny shafts of large size, and the after-shaft, or second feather on the body-plumes, is very long, and 

 almost equal to the feather itself, so that it has the appearance of being a double feather. 



The Cassowaries have three toes, with the claw of the inner one elongated and sharp, while on. 

 the head there is a horny casque : otherwise the head is bare. Nine species of Cassowary are now 

 known to science, and they are all peculiar to the Papuan sub-region, that is, to New Guinea and the 

 adjacent islands, Northern Australia having one species also. These birds inhabit the thick forests, 

 and are very shy in their native haunts, as well as being of a fierce disposition, using both beak and 

 legs dangerously in striking. They always kick in front, elongating the body at the same time, while 

 the Emu kicks outward and backward. Their habits are not very well known, the most familiar 

 species being the Mooruk, of New Britain (Casuarius bennetti], which is captured by the natives 

 and reared by hand ; and the inhabitants of the Aru Islands also keep Cassowaries in confinement. 

 It is probably owing to this means, and to the uselessness of the birds as articles of trade, that they 

 ai*e preserved to the present day, as the limited range of each species would conduce to its speedy 

 extermination if hunted to death. Like the Ostrich and the other flightless birds of this order, the 

 Cassowaries are very timid and shy, and of the Mooruk Dr. Bennett writes : " They are exceedingly 

 swift of foot, and possessed of great strength in their legs. On the least alarm they elevate the head, 

 and on seeing danger, thread localities where no human being can follow them, and disappear with 

 incredible rapidity. The Mooruk, with its powerful legs and muscular thighs, has an extraordinary 

 power of leaping, and it was from this circumstance that the first specimen brought from New Britain 

 was lost. One day, when allowed its liberty, it made a spring on the deck and went overboard. As 

 it was blowing a strong breeze at the time the bird perished. Their wings aid them in running, but 

 are never used for defence. The Mooruk is a robust bird, and differs from the Ostrich in its internal 

 anatomy, its digestive organs being adapted only for a soft and nutritious diet fruits, vegetables, 

 insects, and eggs grain or any similar hard substance not being digestible unless it had been previously 

 boiled. It also requires a quantity of small gravel or pebbles to aid in the trituration of its food, and 

 often picks up snails and small bits of iron for a similar purpose. I never heard them utter a sound 

 like Mooruk. I am inclined to consider that the name signifies in the native language 'swift,' 

 resembling closely the Malay term ' a muck,' or mad career ; and the extraordinary rapid movements 

 of these birds rather confirm my idea on this subject. The chirping sounds of the Mooruk are very 



