ORDER OF RODENTIA. 
461 
approach. They are hunted for the sake of their fur, of which 
the natives make caps. 
After the Chinchillas comes a group of Bodents analogous to 
Bats with regard to their shape and size, hut distinguished from 
the latter by their dental system and the texture of their hair. 
While Bats have only three pairs of grinders in each jaw, these 
animals possess four, added to which, their coat is generally more 
or less sprinkled with diminutive quills. This last characteristic, 
however, is not a constant attribute. We shall, notwithstanding, 
apply the denomination of Prickly-haired Bats to all the animals 
Fig. 194. — Ctenomys. 
which compose this group, for we shall by this means avoid enter- 
ing into details of a nomenclature which is both barbarous and 
difficult to remember. 
These Bodents are exclusively natives of the New World, and 
chiefly belong to South America. They feed on vegetable sub- 
stances obtained on the surface of the soil. Their tail is long, 
generally scaly, and sometimes furnished with short hair. Natu- 
ralists call them the Ctenomys (Fig. 194). 
Beside these Bodents are ranked the Capromys, which have 
the same habits, but are as large as Babbits. The Capromys are 
inhabitants of Cuba ; they can climb with ease, and will readily 
ascend trees. Their food consists of leguminous fruits and aromatic 
