: Kangaroo.]

Kangaroo

The Kangaroo is the largest native animal in Australia. He is about 5
feet high when he sits up, he has a head somewhat like a rabbit's,
his hands or fore feet are small but his hind feet are large, and he
has a very thick tail. He can kick and tear with his sharp hind claws
in a very dangerous manner. He frequently kills dogs with his claws,
but, when he is chased by dogs, if he is near water he makes for it
and often drowns the dogs if they come into the water after him. He
leaps or hops about 15 feet at a time and goes very fast. The mother
carries her young in a pouch, as seen in the picture, and when the
baby kangaroos are frightened they run at once into their mother's
pouch for safety, like any other babies running to their mother.

[Illustration: Native Cat.]

Australian Native Cat

It is a wild Cat, generally brown or black with many large and small
white spots on it. It lives on small animals, including birds and
their eggs, and is a great pest to farmers, killing their poultry.

[Illustration: Emu and Chicks.]

Emu

The Emu lives upon vegetable food such as fruits, roots, and grass.
It has a great curiosity and is easily tamed. It is very inoffensive
except when violently attacked; then it kicks like a horse. It is
said that its kick will break a man's leg. Its flesh is eaten by the
natives and is said to look and taste like beef. It can run very
fast. It lays from 6 to 12 dark green coloured eggs and its young are
pretty little striped things as in the above picture. It is, next to
the Ostrich, the largest bird in the world, being 5 or 6 feet high,
its colour is a mixture of grey and brown, and its voice has a low
booming sound. It is generally coupled with the Kangaroo in the
Australian Arms.

[Illustration: Platypus.]

Platypus

The Platypus is sometimes called the Water Mole. It is, perhaps, the
most wonderful animal in the world in its combination, being part
bird, part beast, part fish. It has a bill like a duck; five toes
with claws and webbed feet; it is covered with thick glossy fur like
a seal; it has cheek pouches like a monkey to keep it's food in; it
lays two eggs, its voice resembles that of a young puppy, and the
young platypuses play like puppies; it lives in rivers and makes
burrows often 20 or 30 feet long; it feeds upon water insects, shell
fish, etc.

[Page 149--Funny Australian Natives]

Funny Australian Natives

[