AustLit

'When the first men became animals, the country was so thickly populated birds, lizards, and snakes, that it became impossible to live together in peace. There was not enough food, so the weaker ones died of starvation if they did not meet a sudden death. While birds preyed on reptiles, reptiles on animals, and animals on birds, not one of them was safe. To drop off to sleep was to run the danger of never waking again, or to feel the bite of sharp teeth, the spearlike thrust of a beak, or the poison fang of a snake before life ebbed quickly away.' (Introduction)