170 
GENUS CBJPTUULS. 
branches of the trees, seeking safely from the nu- 
merous carnivorous animals which hunt their prey 
during night, and delight in the varied game of these 
wilds. During day they skulk about the long her- 
bage, and even when assailed by men, allow them- 
selves to be killed with sticks, rather than exert iheir 
little powers of flight. The wings and tail are both 
short and without power, the latter almost wanting; 
but tbeir feet arc more fitted for running in the 
marshy grounds, and the disincumbrance of the tail 
enables them to thread an easy passage through a 
tangled herbage. The next Plate represents 
