THE EMEU — THE CASSOWARY. 381 



The Parrots, too, came, not of Afric or Ind ; 

 Yet loth their description the muse to rescind : 

 The Aterrimus, prince of the Psittacid tribe; — 

 The Scarlet rob'd Lory its name will describe; — 



straw at the bottom, on which the eggs are laid ; from sixty to 

 eighty have been found in one nest, and hence it has been 

 supposed that several females contribute to produce them, and 

 that each female lays sixteen or seventeen eggs; the egg con- 

 tains about two pints of liquid. The flesh of the young is 

 reckoned good eating. It defends itself with its feet ; and 

 calls its young by a kind of hiss. They are exceedingly swift, 

 and with difficulty caught. This is a separate genus in Dr„ 

 Latham's work, and there called Emeu. 



The Casuarius, Emeu, Cassowary, or Galeated-Casso- 

 wary, is brownish-black; it has three toes on each foot; helmets 

 and dewlaps naked. From the shortness of the legs and neck, 

 it is not so tall as the Ostrich; but its body is more heavy and 

 clumsy. Its helmet is the most remarkable of its characteristics ; 

 it reaches from the base of the bill to the crown, is nearly three 

 inches in height, and at the root three in thickness. The wings 

 are still shorter than those of the Ostrich, and, of course, cannot 

 assist the bird to fly ; they are furnished with four hard pointed 

 feathers resembling darts; the feet are also armed with large 

 claws; it is, nevertheless, peaceable and inoffensive; never 

 attacking others; when attacked kicks like a horse; pushing 

 down its assailant by running against him, and grunting like 

 swine ; it is as voracious as the preceding species. Eggs nu- 

 merous, ash-coloured, or greenish spotted, some are white, about 

 fifteen inches in circumference one way, by twelve the other; 

 shells more thin and brittle than those of the Ostrich. Found in 

 the eastern parts of Asia towards the south, and the Molucca 

 Islands ; never met with out of the torrid zone. 



The Nova Hollandice, New-Holland-Cassowary, Emm of 

 New South Wales, Southern Cassowary, or Emeu, is nearly as tall 



