only give us the form and conftru&ion, but leave us' in
other refpeös -to conje&ure, many o f them requiring
further obfervations relative to their (economy. A hegled
in procuring this information has left us, almofi: to this
day, very ignorant of that part o f the Natural Hi dory of
animals which is the moft interefting. The -Qpoffum is
a remarkable inftance of this. There is fomething in the
mode of propagation in this animal that deviates from all
others; and although known in fome degree to bè;extraordinary,
yet it has never been attempted, where opportunity
-offered, to complete the inveftigation. I have, often endeavoured
to breed them in England; I have-bought.a'great
many, and my friends have affifted me by bringing them or
lending them alive, yet never could get' ‘them to brééd;
.and although poffeffed of a great many'fads refpeding
them, T do not believe my information is fu'fficient to
-complete the fyftem of propagation in this . dais. In
•collecting animals, even the name given by the natives,
*if póilible, fhould be known ;. for a name, to a Naturalid,
dhould mean nothing but that to which it is annexed, having
mo allufion to any thing e lfe;’- for when it has, it divides the
idea. This obfervation applies particularly to! the animals
which
which have eomefrom New Holland; they are, upon the
wjfomyïvlike no other that we yet know of ; but as they have
parts in (ome'refped ffmifar to'others, names will naturally
Tbe‘ given to them expreffive of thofe fimilarities; which has
already taken place: for indanee, one is called the Kangaroo
Rat, but which fhoüld not be called either Kangaroo or
Rat; l 'Kâlve -therefor^ adopted fuch names as can only be
appropriated to r^ ck ^particular animal, conveying no-
other idea-. ’
" Animaîls admit o f beingL divided into great claffes ; but
will not fo diftindly admit -of I fubdivifion/ without interfering
with'each other.- Thus the clafs called Quadruped:
is fo well marked, that even the whole is juftly placed
in the fame ekfs. Birds the. fame; Amphibia- (as they-
'?àrécâllëd) the. fame; and fo of fiflv&b: ; but when we are
fubdividing thefe great claffes into their different ; tribes,
genera, and fpecies, -then we find a mixture of properties;:
ibnie fpecies of one tribe partaking of fimilar properties with,
a fpecies o f another tribe..
Of