Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume I.djvu/643

 APTERYX APULIA 607 and there is a large amount of fat between it and the muscles, especially on the back, abdo- men, and root of neck ; the head is broad and but slightly depressed. The genus apteryx was established by Shaw in 1812 from a stuffed skin, and was at that time supposed to have be- come extinct like the dodo; but in 1833-'8 other specimens arrived, which are described by Mr. Yarrell in vol. i. of the " Transactions of the Zoological Society of London," and by Prof. Owen in vols. ii. and Hi. of the same work. Apteryx australis. Three species are described. A. australis (Shaw) is about 30 inches long from tip of bill to end of toes, 19 inches to end of coccyx, and weighs about 3 Ibs. ; the bill varies in length from 4- to 6f- inches, the longest belonging to the fe- males, another anomaly in this bird ; the bill is 1 inch wide at the gape and 7 lines high; the color is grayish brown, darkest on the back. A. Mantelli (Bartlett), described in 1850, is about 23 inches long, with a bill of 4 inches ; the color is dark rufous brown, darkest on the back. A. Oweni (Gould), described in 1847, is the largest species, and is said to be about 3 feet high ; the upper parts are trans- versely barred with blackish brown and ful- vous, and the plumage is exceedingly dense and hair-like, resembling more the covering of a mammal than a bird ; the bill is an inch short- er, more slender, and curved; the wings are exceedingly rudimentary. The large size of the unhatched young, and the possession within the egg of the remarkable characters of feet, wings, and beak of the adult, show that the young apteryx must be able to pro vide for itself very soon if not immediately after leaving the egg. The bill of the apteryx is moderately strong, as the bird is said to be in the habit of resting the head upon it against the ground, and to thrust it into the soil in search of food ; it is struthious in structure, and grallatorial only in its length and slenderness. There is no trace of extension of air cells, as in birds of flight, into the interspaces of the abdominal viscera, and the diaphragm is well developed and pierced only for the oesophagus and ves- sels ; the lungs are bird-like, and also the or- gans of circulation, except in the more mem- branous character of the right auriculo-ven- tricular valve ; the larynx and trachea are struthious. The bones are not perforated for the admission of air. These birds are found in New Zealand, particularly in regions covered with extensive and thick beds of ferns, in which they hide when alarmed. They are nocturnal in their habits, feeding upon snails, insects, worms, and the large soft-bodied lepi- dopterous larvae ; they run swiftly and defend themselves vigorously with the feet. The nest is made either at the base of a hollow tree or in deep holes which they excavate in the ground. The natives pursue them for their skins, which from their strength are highly valued for making dresses. Though a living specimen has been seen at the zoological gar- dens in London, the apteryx is probably nearly extinct ; the sepyornis is supposed to be extinct, though some believe that it may yet exist in Madagascar ; the dodo has been lost within the memory of man; and the dinornis doubtless antedated the historic period. APULEIUS, or Appnleins, a Roman satirist, born at Medaura in Africa about A. D. 130. By his mother he was a descendant of Plutarch. After studying at Carthage, he began to travel for the purpose of learning philosophy and re- ligion. Coming to Rome, he was obliged to sell his clothes in order to obtain the sum necessary for his initiation into the service of Osiris. He soon repaired his fortune by mar- riage with a rich widow in Africa, whose rela- tions instituted legal proceedings against him, alleging that he had used magic to win her property and affections. But in his defence Apuleius satisfied the judges that a widow of 14 years' standing needed not the constraint of magic in taking a husband younger than her- self. The most celebrated of the numerous works of Apuleius is the " Metamorphoses, or the Golden Ass," a philosophical romance, written, according to Warburton, to ridicule Christianity. But the more probable design of the author was to show, under the guise of allegory, that a voluptuous life leads to besti- ality, from which a man can be lifted only by cultivating virtue and religion. The justly famous tale of Cupid and Psyche forms an epi- sode in this work. His writings on ethics and metaphysics are a good epitome of the works of Plato ; but the development of that philos- opher's more profound doctrines was reserved for subsequent inquirers. The best edition of Apuleius is by Hildebrand (Leipsic, 1842). An English version appeared in London in 1853. " The Golden Ass " has also been trans- lated by T. Taylor (London, 1822) and Sir G, Head (London, 1851). APULIA, a division of ancient Italy, com- prising nearly all that territory now included in the provinces of Capitanata and Terra di Bari, near the S. E. extremity of the peninsula, bounded by the Adriatic, Messapia or Calabria (Terra d'Otranto), the gulf of Tarentum, Luca- nia, and Samnium. At a remote period the Greeks called the whole southeastern part of Italy, including both these divisions and other