Jerboa

“ The best known, the common jerboa, is about as big as a small rat, and has a tail about eight inches long. In color it is so much like the sand that from a few yards away it is almost impossible to see it, even when it is skipping about. ”

“ What rodents can you remember, Ernest?'
`I do not know them all, but there are the mouse, the marmot, the squirrel, the hare, the beaver, the jerboa—'
`The jerboa!' I exclaimed, `The jerboa! Now we shall have it. This is really very like a jerboa, only far larger. It must be a kangaroo, one of the class of animals which has a pouch or purse beneath the body, in which its young can take refuge. They were discovered in New Holland, by the great Captain Cook, and I congratulate you on being the first to obtain a specimen in New Switzerland!' I added, laughing, as I extemporised the name. ”

“ Then the jerboa raises himself to his full height and playfully measures his cage by one bound from corner to corner. Soon after, the fresh food receives due attention, the animal either jumping toward it in rabbit fashion or crawling slowly on all fours. When it has reached its goal it again assumes the upright position, in which it is evidently most comfortable, and begins to eat it in his own peculiar way ”

“ When standing "at ease" the Jerboa uses its tail as a kind of third leg, this tripod arrangement recalling similar habits practised by other mammals widely differing from the Jerboa—such as Kangaroos or Wallabies, and perhaps also the huge extinct Megatherium of South America. The Jerboa presses its tiny fore legs close to the chest, and the body projects forwards. When moving this little animal employs one of two gaits: (1) a quick run, each leg being moved alternately ”

“ In the Egyptian jerboa the length of the body is 8 in., and that of the tail, which is long, cylindrical and covered with short hair terminated by a tuft, 10 in. The five-toed front limbs are extremely short, while the hind pair are six times as long. ”

“ I got them dressed in Syria and in Greece, and sewed together, making use of the tail as in ermine for the lining of a cloak, and they had a very good effect; the longer they wore, the glossier and finer appearance the skins made. The Jerboa is very fat and well-coloured; the buttocks, thighs, and part of the back, are roasted and ate by the Arabs. I have eaten them; they are not distinguishable from a young rabbit either in colour or taste; they have not even the strong taste the rabbit has. ”

“ The formation of the bodies of the different members of the family varies according to their needs. The jerboa is the largest member of the family. Very little is known of his life when free; it being known only that the jerboas are widely spread over the whole of southern Africa, and are nocturnal burrowers of the steppes. ”

“ Neither is the difference of size any greater proof of their being two different species; possibly Edwards and Hasselquist have only described young jerboas, and M. Gmelin, an old alagtaga. There are only two things which create any doubt in my mind, viz. the difference in the size of their tails, and the variety in the climates they inhabit, for the jerboa is common in Circassia, Egypt, Barbary, and Arabia; and the alagtaga, in Tartary, along the Wolga, and as far as Siberia. It is seldom that the same kind of animal inhabits such different climates ”

“ They are the sole representatives in North America of the Old World jerboas and are themselves represented elsewhere by a single species occurring in the interior of China. The jerboa family contains in addition many larger and curiously diverse species distributed over a large part of Asia, Africa, and southern Europe. Many Old World jerboas are desert animals, some of them exact reproductions in shape and color of the kangaroo rats of arid regions in the Western and Southwestern States and Mexico, although they are in no way related to those animals. ”

“ Although probably, like the Giraffe, the Eland, and the Gemsbok, the Jerboa has often, in its own African deserts, to go without water for long periods, it drinks freely when it has the opportunity, and I have frequently seen my own animals drink, scooping up the water with the fore paws, and conveying it to the mouth so quickly that at first glance the animal seems to be lapping the water like a Dog.
Jerboas are very playful: if their cage is carpeted with sand, they will stretch themselves on it with great glee, and attempt to burrow in it, ploughing up the sand with their muzzles. ”

“ There can be little doubt that this is the creature alluded to by the Hebrew legislator when he said, "Whatsoever goeth upon its paws, among all manner of beasts that go on all four, those are unclean unto you." Hasselquist tells us that the jerboa, or leaping-rat, as he calls it, moves only by leaps and jumps. When he stops he brings his feet close under his belly, and rests on the juncture of his leg. He uses, when eating, his fore-paws, like other animals of his kind. He sleeps by day, and is in motion during the night. ”

“ Some commentators on the Old Testament translate the word Akbar as jerboa. Now, although the jerboa is common in Syria, it is not nearly so plentiful as other rodent animals, and would scarcely be selected as the means by which a terrible disaster is made to befall a whole country. The student of Scripture is well aware that, in those exceptional occurrences which are called miracles, a needless development of the wonder-working power is never employed. ”

“ The whiskers are plentiful and strong, the longest being twice as long as the head, some of them black, others white. Four short toes, with an appearance of a thumb, terminate the fore feet; the hinder have the same number of toes, but have less the appearance of hands: on all the claws are short, and nearly hidden by tufts of bristly hairs. The tail is about half the length of the body, of equal thickness throughout, and covered with long bushy hairs. It resembles in some degree the jerboa, and takes its food, like that animal, in its fore paws, sitting on its haunches. ”

“ These animals are Old World in range, belonging to the three regions of that part of the world. There are a large number of species in the genus, over thirty. They have a Jerboa-like form, with rather long hind-limbs and a long and hairy tail. But the hind- as well as the fore-feet are five-toed. The molar teeth have no trace of tubercles, but only transverse lamellae of enamel. The incisors are orange; they are white in Dipus. Gerbillus pyramidum is 90 mm. long, with a tail of 125 mm. The ears are long, 13 mm. The tail has longer hairs at the tip. ”

“ It is rather a destructive animal, its sharp and powerful teeth enabling it to bite its way through obstacles which would effectually stop an ordinary Mouse. That the Jerboa may be one of the Akbarim is rendered likely by the prohibition in Lev. xi. 29, forbidding the Mouse to be eaten. It would be 96 scarcely probable that such a command need have been issued against eating the common Mouse, whereas the Jerboa, a much larger and palatable animal, is always eaten by the Arabs. The Hamster is at the present day eaten in Northern Syria. ”

“ Africa and Asia are the head-quarters of these quadrupeds—the most noted species being the Jerboas of Egypt, and the Leaping Hare of the Cape. They dwell in sandy deserts—burrowing in communities like the marmots. In America there are no true jerboas: they are there represented by the Jumping Mice of Labrador and the Hudson’s Bay Territory; which resemble the jerboas in almost everything except size, the jumping mice being much smaller animals. ”

“ White patterns abound on aerial passerines in general, but even white wing bars are lacking from such as keep so close to the ground that no enemy sees them against the sky. And among small rodents none has top-white unless, like the jerboa, he jumps high enough to be seen by his pursuer against the sky. ”

“ The bird died in about 13 minutes, though it was apparently affected in 50 seconds; and we cannot think this was a fair trial, because a very few minutes before, it had bit the man, and so discharged part of its virus, and it was made to scratch the pelican by force, without any irritation or action of its own.
The Cerastes inhabits the greatest part of the eastern continent, especially the desert sandy parts of it. It abounds in Syria, in the three Arabias, and in Africa. I never saw so many of them as in the Cyrenaicum, where the Jerboa is frequent in proportion. He is a great lover of heat ”

“ When it is leaping about it stretches this tail out behind it, and seems to find it of very great use in keeping its balance.
Jerboas are very common in Egypt and other parts of North Africa, and live in burrows which they dig in the sandy soil. In order to enable them to obtain a firm foothold on the slippery sand, the soles of their feet are covered with long hairs, which also prevent them from being scorched by contact with the heated ground. But as a rule they do not come out of their burrows until the evening, when the sun is not so powerful as it is during the middle of the day. ”

“ They are much like the guinea-pig, but of a sandy colour, and very soft and fine, like a young hare. The jerboahs in the neighbourhood of Tunis are certainly more like the rat. The other day, near the south-west gates, we fell in with a whole colony of them—which, however, were the lesser animal, or Jerd species—who occupied an entire eminence to themselves, the sovereignty of which seemed to have been conceded to them by the Bey of Tunis. ”

“ These African jerboas are exceedingly odd in [Pg 163] appearance, and they are two-legged in their habits of walk, and never go on all-fours. They walk by placing one hind foot alternately before the other; and they run in the same way. They can leap an extraordinary distance. ”

“ For the first time in an hour Kerœcia caught sight of his face. It was pale, set and resolute, and she saw that the strain was telling on him.
“The parrot shall cry thee aim, and must remain unharmed. Thou mayst kill the blue or the black bird, but thou must only release the peaceful dove. Wilt thou remember the conditions?”
Satisfying this demand from the judges, Yermah came within range, and waited a favorable opportunity. By a sudden jerk of a cord extending down the side of the pole, the ball and crossbar began to revolve, and the birds were on the wing. ”

“ Bears, hyænas, gazelles, ibexes, besides hares, jerboas, and other small rodents, are said, with much probability, to abound. It is wonderful how these wild animals manage to conceal themselves from the eye of man. ”

“ Yermah, Beloved of the Brotherhood: Follow the way marked out before thee.
When one bird hovers in the air while the other sits on a rock with cactus flowering at its base, halt thou and receive thy future task from him who was appointed to aid thee.
Go willingly. Thou hast no further mission in Tlamco. Fear not.
I have been before thee—and am with thee even unto the end of time.
Akaza. The eagles led them southward by sea for many days after leaving Monterey Bay, but on coming ashore they traveled inland until they reached the pueblos of the Colorado. ”

“ Yermah, too, had passed a sleepless night. He spent the day on the water, floating and drifting with the ebb and flow of the tide, struggling to reconcile himself with the conditions confronting him. At night he came back to Iaqua, but purposely avoided meeting Orondo. Love made him humble, and he did not for a moment doubt the result of Orondo’s wooing. He knew that his countryman was a lovable man, and he could not find it in his heart to blame Kerœcia for accepting him. No—Orondo had asked his consent and blessing; he must be willing to give it with all his heart. ”

“ AKAZA KEEPS HIS VOW AND IS FINALLY FREE As he passed out of the temple, Akaza turned again to look at Yermah whose face was illumined, serene and calm. With his hands clasped before him, the Dorado stood as if in a dream, taking into the inner recesses of his heart the comforting assurance of immortality and of final union with the Divine, in which Kerœcia was a part.
“Farewell, beloved!” said the old man, as his eyes filled. “Thou hast passed the Gates of Light, and art come into thine own. Amenti, thou unknown, receive thy son! Amrah, King of the Brotherhood, give back my vow! ”

“ Alcamayn and Orondo shared Yermah’s consternation; but, like Setos, they never expected to return to Atlantis, and therefore their interest was not so personal and keen.
Yermah still seemed stupefied, but he roused himself by a mighty effort of will.
“Call all the people together in the Temple of Saturn, on the proper day, and let the four intervening suns rise on a fasting and contrite nation. Let every house and roadway be swept for purification. Let the anointing and ablution be thorough, and let them come to the temple laden with flowers; because where flowers grow, love has been. ”

“ From his breast Yermah drew the locket containing Kerœcia’s ring. Taking Alcyesta’s hand, he silently slipped it on her finger, while unchecked tears coursed down her cheeks.
Turning to Ildiko, he handed her the locket. Facing them all, he said:
“Be of good cheer! A long era of peace and prosperity is for thee and thine. Thou art saved from the floods for a divine purpose. Let this knowledge be thy secret refuge, lest thou be tempted to depart from the way.” ”

“ By a nod he beckoned to the warrior-priests waiting, to bring forward a palanquin, which they had gone into the temple to procure. Gently as a woman could have done, he seated the Dorado and motioned the attendants to go on.
Yermah’s look of gratitude made his strong chin tremble, and brought the old haunted expression back to his face. A cold, clammy perspiration stood out on Yermah’s lips and brow as he sank back utterly exhausted. When he closed his eyes, Orondo said to himself: “He will never be paler in death. Poor heart-broken soul!” ”