Newport daily independent., 1903-04-11

the line of the equator runs directly through it.
 On Charles and Chatham islands thousands of pussy cats, every one of them entirely black, live in the crev- ices of lava near the shore, and get living by hunting for crabs and fishes, but the most remarkable in- habitants are giant land tortoises, some of which have been known to weigh more than 500 pounds. The group is 600 miles west of Ecuador, to which country it belongs, but some day Uncle Sam is likely to buy it for a coaling station.
 Recently there was captured in New Zealand the fourth specimen ever seen, so far as science has recorded, of fightless bird called a notornis. It looks somewhat like a goose, and has curious kind of bill, with a small red comb above it that stands cross wise. Though it cannot fly at all, its feathers being too soft and yielding, it is a frst-rate runner, and one of its odd traits is a weakness for thieving, it's special passion being to steal every thing it can lay it's beak on.
 The first two specimens killed were sold to the British museum, where they are now preserved. The third brought $50 in Dresden, and $1,500 is said to have been refused for the fourth, just mentioned.
 New Zealand has always been the great headquarters of tlightless birds. It was separated from the mainland | some time before the first mammals made their appearance upon the earth, and consequently there were no man. mals there whatever, except few | bats, until man arrived in the coun- | try. For birds, therefore, it was a | veritable paradise. without four legged enemy to fear, and many spe- cies found so little use for their wings that those appendages almost disap- | peared. One of these was tke notor- his, which was supposed to be entirely extinct until the fourth specimen turned up the other day. Quite pos sibly there are others still surviving.
 Another flightless bird of New Zea- land is the well-known apteryx, which is not a bit like any other feathered creature in the world.
 There were several species of moa the largest of them attaining height of 14 feet and weight of fully 500 pounds. It was a harmless creature and even helpless, being without pow CT of flight, and slow and clumsy in all its movements. Besides, it was extremely stupid. It was remark able for it's enormous legs and feet, which were so heavy that it could not run fast, and its eXtermination was a question of only a very short time when man had arrived on the scene.
 The bird that is not flyer stands a poor chance for survival in these days. It is now just about 60 years since the great auk became extinct, and an egg of this species is worth to-day $1,500. There are about 72 of the eggs in ex- istence. and the last one sold was dis posed of at auction in London in 1901 for $1,26O. In 1900 a perfect egg brought $1,67S.
 Funk lSldHu IS d loilSlJ AoNA o~ miles out at sea off the coast of New foundland. The early settlers of that country depended to large extent upon the flesh and eggs of the great ank for food, and were accustomed to make trips for the purpose of obtain ino the birds, at regular intervals, and often at great risk, to the far off ;elet which was the principal breeding nlace and last retreat of the species. Sometimes the unhappy fowls were berded together, in corrals, built by sattino stone slabs on edge, and were lent confined in this manner until they were wanted. They were so fat that it is said they were sometimes used as fnel for cooking. The final destruc' tion of the great aux, however, was 'due 10 the demand for its feathers, and when at length it succumbed, it's extinction came so suddenly as to take naturalists unawsres. Thus it came about that there exist to-day only g very few skins and eggs, preserved iS museums. Kansas City Star.