Eileen Poshedley, age 12, of Shreveport, La., 7or her question;'­

How big is a kangaroo when he is born?

The Australians call him a Joey. At birth, he is not recognizable as a young kangaroo. But no one sees him then. For the first few weeks of life are spent hidden away inside Mamas fur‑lined pouch. Most mammal babies are quite well developed at birth. New born kittens resemble cats and newborn piglets resemble pigs. But Joey could not take the time to develop this far. He was in too great a hurry to get born into the world. As a result, when he arrived he was too undeveloped to cope with things. All he could do was to scramble through mothers fur and hide himself in her pouch. There he stays, feeding and growing for many weeks.

There are dozens of different kinds of kangaroo in Australia. All the youngsters are born in a hurry and depend on Mamas pouch to finish developing. Joey, the son of the Big Grey Kangaroo is only one inch long at birth. The children of his smaller relatives are born even smaller.

Compared with his 200 pound Papa, newborn Joey is less than a toe. What's more, he does not resemble either of his parents. He is blind and without fur, a wormy looking fellow. He has four limbs and a little tail. But his arms are bigger and stronger than his legs. His hands are quite big and strong and he uses them to climb into the pouch and cling onto his mother's fur. This must change if Joey is to grow into a Kangaroo. For Mama and Papa have small hands and arms and big powerful legs and tail.

Joey is an only child and he makes the best of his cozy pouch nursery. At first he is too weak even to feed himself. So mama uses her tummy muscles to force milk down his tiny throat. As he develops, the back legs begin to outgrow the front legs. Joey gets a pair of long ears and a fur coat of tawny brown, He begins to open a pair of big brown eyes, He now has a sizeable tail and begins to look very much like a small copy of his parents,

In spite of his great hurry to get born, Joey is in no hurry to leave home and cope with the world. In fact, he is about four months old before he takes his he takes his first peek at the world. For sometime he is content to gaze at the outdoors, He is especially interested in Mama's feedings When she leans down to graze, he pokes out his head and nibbles a bit of grass. When she stands up to browze, he pokes out a hand and gathers a few leaves to sample.

After several weeks of this peek‑a‑boo at the world, Joey is ready to venture forth. He leaves the pouch and tries his kangaroo legs with a few hops. Then back home he scoots until next time. Soon he is taking sizeable walks, but he still returns to the nursery to sleep and maybe for an extra sip of milk.

Mrs. Kangaroo is a tender and splendid mother. She teaches Joey all she knows and protects him until he is more than half grown. Kangaroos are hunted with dogs and Mama instructs Joey in the art of the chase. At first he is so light that she does not notice him when she outruns the dogs. Later, his extra weight slows her down. In such a case a Mama Kangaroo has been known to pull a clever trick. She tosses her half grown Joey into the bushes and takes of at 40 miles an hour to lead the hunt in another direction. She returns to pick up her frightened darling when the weary dogs have given up the chase and gone home.