THIS animal is a native of Siberia, Kamtschatka, and Asiatic Russia, and

it frequents the banks of rivers, and the thickest parts of the woods.

It lives in holes under the ground, and especially under the roots of

trees; but sometimes makes its nest, like the squirrel, in the hollows

of trees. The skin of the Sable is more valuable than that of any other

animal of equal size. One of these skins, not more than four inches

broad, has sometimes been valued at as high a rate as fifteen pounds;

but the general price is from one to ten pounds, according to the

quality. The Sable’s fur is different from all others, its peculiarity

being, that the hair turns with equal ease either way; on which account

fur dealers sometimes blow the fur of any article they may be selling,

to show that it is really Sable. The tails are sold by the hundred, at

from four to eight pounds.

The AMERICAN SABLE (_M. leucopus_) is considered to be a distinct

species.

[Illustration: BEECH MARTIN]

The common, or BEECH MARTEN, (_Mustela Martes_ or _Martes foina_,) like

the Sable, boasts the honour of adorning with his fur the rich and the

beautiful; as princes, ladies, and opulent people of all nations, pride

themselves in wearing his spoils. He is about as big as a cat, but his

body is much longer proportionately, and the legs shorter. His skin is

of a light brown, with white under the throat. The fur of the Marten

fetches a good price, and is much used in European countries, though

very far inferior to that of the Sable: the best, which is called Stone

Marten fur by the furriers, is imported from Sweden and Russia.

[Illustration: YELLOW-BREASTED MARTEN]

The Pine, or YELLOW-BREASTED MARTEN (_M. Abietum_), is another species,

the fur of which is nearly equal to that of the Sable, though it is much

cheaper.

THE OTTER. (_Lutra vulgaris._)

“Forth from his den the Otter drew,--

Grayling and trout their tyrant knew,

As between reed and sedge he peers,

With fierce round snout and sharpened ears,

Or, prowling by the moonbeam cool,

Watches the stream or swims the pool.”

SCOTT.

AS the Otter lives principally on fish, the formation of his body is

such as will enable him to swim with the greatest facility. His body is

flattened horizontally; his tail is flat and broad; his legs are short,

and his toes webbed. His teeth are very strong and sharp; and his body,

besides its fur, has an outer covering of coarse shining hair. The Otter

is a perfect epicure in his food; he seldom eats an entire fish, but

beginning at the head, eats that, and about half the body, always

rejecting the tail. When the rivers and ponds are frozen so that the

Otter can get no fish, he will visit the neighbouring farm-yards, where

he will attack the poultry, sucking-pigs, and even lambs. An Otter may

be tamed, and taught to catch fish enough to sustain not only himself,

but a whole family. Goldsmith states, that he saw an Otter go to a

gentleman’s pond at the word of command, drive the fish into a corner,

and seize upon the largest of the whole, bring it off, and give it to

his master.

Bewick, in his History of Quadrupeds, states, that a person of the name

of Collins, who lived at Kilmerston, near Wooler, in Northumberland, had

a tame Otter, which followed him wherever he went. He frequently took it

to fish in the river; and, when satiated, it never failed to return to

him. One day, in the absence of Collins, the Otter, being taken out to

fish by his son, instead of returning as usual, refused to come at the

accustomed call, and was lost. The father tried every means in his power

to recover the animal; and, after several days’ search, being near the

place where his son had lost it, and calling it by name, to his

inexpressible joy it came creeping to his feet, and showed many marks of

affection and attachment.

[Illustration]

The female Otter produces four or five young ones at a birth, and these

in the spring of the year. Where there have been ponds near a

gentleman’s house, instances have occurred of their littering in cellars

or drains. The male utters no noise when taken, but the females

sometimes emit a shrill squeak.

Otters are generally caught in traps placed near their landing-places,

and carefully concealed in the sand. When hunted by dogs, the old ones

defend themselves with great obstinacy. They bite severely, and do not

readily quit their hold. Otter-hunting is a favourite sport in many

parts of Great Britain; particularly in the midland counties of England,

and in Wales.

[Illustration: THE SEA OTTER. (_Lutra_ or _Enhdyralutris_.)]

THE common Otter sometimes takes to the sea; but, on the eastern coasts

of Northern Asia and the opposite shores of North America, true Sea

Otters are met with, chiefly about the numerous rocky islands which

fringe those coasts. The Sea Otter in its habits resembles the seals

more than the common species; it is about three feet long without the

tail, and is covered with a thick, rich, dark brown, or nearly black

fur, which is so highly prized that single fine skins have been known to

sell for a sum equivalent to twenty pounds, and the animals have, in

consequence, been pursued with such avidity, that their numbers are

greatly reduced.

[Illustration: THE COMMON SEAL. (_Phoca vitulina._)]

THE amphibious flesh-eating animals, though nearly allied to the otter

in their habits, are very different in the construction of their bodies.

Their feet are so short and so enveloped in skin, that they are of

scarcely any use in assisting the animal on dry land; so that the Seal’s

progress on solid ground is only effected by a sort of half tumbling,

jumping, and shuffling motion, excessively ridiculous to a looker-on.

The feet, however, which are furnished with strong claws, are of use in

enabling the animal to climb out of the water over a rocky shore. For

swimming, the Seal is admirably adapted; its long flexible body is

shaped like that of a fish, tapering to the tail; and it is furnished

with strong webs between the toes, so as to make the fore feet act as

oars, and the hind feet, which the animal generally drags behind it like

a tail, to serve as a rudder. The Common Seal lives generally in the

water, and feeds entirely on fish; only coming to shore occasionally to

bask on the sands, and to lie there to suckle its young. The usual

length of a Seal is four or five feet. The head is large and round; the

neck small and short; and on each side of the mouth there are several

strong bristles. From the shoulders the body tapers to the tail, which

is very short. The eyes are large: there are no external ears; and the

tongue is cleft or forked at the end. The body is covered with short

thick-set hair, which in the common species is generally grey, but

sometimes brown or blackish. There are, however, several species; and

one of them, which is called the sea-leopard, has the fur spotted with

white or yellow.

Seals are hunted by the Greenlanders for the sake of their oil, and also

for their skins, which are used for making waistcoats and other articles

of clothing, and are much prized by the fishermen for their great

warmth. The oil, of which a full grown specimen yields four or five

gallons, is very clear and transparent, and destitute of the unpleasant

odour and taste of whale-oil. When attacked, they fight with great fury;

but when taken young, are capable of being tamed; they will follow their

master like a dog, and come to him when called by the name given to

them. Some years ago a young Seal was thus domesticated. It was taken at

a little distance from the sea, and was generally kept in a vessel full

of salt water: but sometimes it was allowed to crawl about the house,

and even to approach the fire. Its natural food was regularly procured

for it; and it was carried to the sea every day, and thrown in from a

boat. It used to swim after the boat, and always allowed itself to be

taken back. It lived thus for several weeks, and probably would have

lived much longer, had it not been sometimes too roughly handled. The

females in this climate bring forth in winter, and rear their young upon

some sand-bank, rock, or desolate island, at some distance from the main

land. When they suckle their young, they sit up on their hinder legs,

while the little Seals, which are at first white, with woolly hair,

cling to the teats, which are four in number. In this manner the young

continue in the place where they are brought forth for twelve or fifteen

days; after which the dam brings them down to the water, and accustoms

them to swim and get their food by their own industry.

In Newfoundland the Seal-fishery forms an important source of wealth,

and numerous ships are sent out every season among the ice in search of

Seals. One ship has been known to catch five thousand Seals, but about

half that number is the usual quantity taken. As soon as the Seal is

killed, it is skinned, and the pelt, as the skin and blubber together is

called, being preserved, the body of the Seal is either eaten by the

sailors, or left on the ice for the polar bears.

The aboriginal inhabitants of the northern regions have several strange

superstitions about Seals. They believe that Seals delight in

thunder-storms; and say, that during these times they will sit on the

rocks, and contemplate, with apparent pleasure and gratification, the

convulsion of the elements. The Icelanders, in particular, are said to

believe that these animals are the offspring of _Pharaoh_ and his host,

who were converted into Seals when they were overwhelmed in the _Red

Sea_.

Several species of Seals are distinguished by curious appendages to the

head, sometimes in the form of a hood, sometimes in that of a projection

from the nose. One of the most singular is the Sea Elephant (_Morunga

proboscidea_), an inhabitant of the shores of the numerous islands

scattered over the great Southern Ocean. In this curious animal, which

often measures twenty-four feet in length, the nose of the male forms a

proboscis about a foot long and capable of considerable distension. The

female has no such appendage. The young of the Sea Elephant, when just

born, is said to be as large as a full grown seal of the common species.

The skin in the old animals is very thick, and forms an excellent

leather for harness.

[Illustration: THE WALRUS, MORSE, OR SEA-COW.

(_Trichechus Rosmarus._)]

THIS very curious animal is nearly allied to the Seal, but is of much

greater size, being frequently eighteen feet in length, and from ten to

twelve feet in girth. The head is round, the eyes are small and

brilliant, and the upper lip, which is enormously thick, is covered with

pellucid bristles, as large as a straw. The nostrils are very large, and

there are no external ears. The most remarkable part of the Walrus is,

however, his two large tusks in the upper jaw; they are inverted, the

points nearly uniting, and sometimes exceed twenty-four inches in

length! the use which the animal makes of them is not easily explained,

unless they help him to climb up the rocks and mountains of ice among

which he takes up his abode, as the parrot employs his beak to get upon

his perch. The tusks of the Walrus are superior in durability and

whiteness to those of the elephant, and, as they keep their colour much

longer, are preferred by dentists to any other substance for making

artificial teeth.

The Walrus is common in some of the northern seas, and will sometimes

attack a boat full of men. They are gregarious animals, usually found in

herds of from fifty to one hundred or more, sleeping and snoring on the

icy shores; but when alarmed they precipitate themselves into the water

with great bustle and trepidation, and swim with such rapidity, that it

is difficult to overtake them with a boat. One of their number always

keeps watch while the others sleep. They feed on shell-fish and

sea-weeds, and yield an oil equal in goodness to that of the whale. The

white bear is their greatest enemy. In the combats between these

animals, the Walrus is said to be generally victorious, on account of

the desperate wounds it inflicts with its tusks. The females have only

one young one at a time, which, when born, resembles a good-sized pig.

[Illustration]

§ II. _Insectivorous, or Insect-eating Animals._

[Illustration: THE HEDGEHOG. (_Erinaceus Europæus._)]

THIS animal is something like a porcupine in miniature, and is covered

all over with strong and sharp spines or prickles, which he erects when

irritated. His common food consists of worms, slugs, and snails; and

thus, far from being a noxious animal in a garden, he is a very useful

one, as he feeds upon all the insects he can find. Hedgehogs inhabit

most parts of Europe. Notwithstanding its formidable appearance, it is

one of the most harmless animals in the world. While other creatures

trust to their force, their cunning, or their swiftness, this quadruped,

destitute of all, has but one expedient for safety, and from this alone

it generally finds protection. The instant it perceives an enemy, it

withdraws all its vulnerable parts, rolls itself into a ball, and

presents nothing to view but a round mass of spines, impervious on every

side. When the Hedgehog is thus rolled up, the cat, the weasel, the

ferret, and the marten, after wounding themselves with the prickles,

quickly decline the combat; and the dog himself generally spends his

time in empty menaces rather than in effectual efforts, while the little

animal waits patiently till its enemy, by retiring, affords an

opportunity for retreat.

The female produces from two to four young ones at a birth. When first

born they are blind, and their spines white and soft, but they become

hard in a few days. The Hedgehog is said to suck the milk from cows;

but this is impossible, as the mouth of the Hedgehog would not admit the

teat of the cow. The Hedgehog, however, sometimes destroys eggs, and has

been known to attack frogs, mice, and even toads, when pressed by

hunger; it will also occasionally eat the tuberous roots of plants,

boring under the root, so as to devour it, and yet leave the stem and

leaves untouched. The Hedgehog makes himself a nest of leaves and soft

wool for the winter, in the hollow trunk of an old tree, or in a hole in

a rock or bank; and here, having coiled himself up, he passes the winter

in one long unbroken sleep. Hedgehogs may easily be tamed, and are

sometimes kept in the kitchens in London houses to destroy the

black-beetles. The flesh of the Hedgehog is sometimes eaten; especially

by gipsies, who appear to consider it a delicacy. It is said to be

well-tasted, and to have abundance of yellow fat.

In times when insect food is scarce he will also regale himself upon

apples and pears which have fallen from the trees, but a glance at the

structure of the creature ought to be sufficient to convince any one

that the charges often brought against him of climbing trees to detach

the fruit which he is said afterwards to carry off by the ingenious

expedient of throwing himself down upon it from the branches so as to

attach it to his spines, are totally without foundation.

[Illustration]

[Illustration: THE MOLE. (_Talpa Europæa._)]

THE MOLE is a curious, awkwardly-shaped animal, with a long flexible

snout, very small eyes, and hand-like fore feet, armed with very strong

claws, with which it scrapes its way through the ground, when it is

forming the subterranean passages in which it takes up its abode. The

Mole, though it is supposed not to possess the advantage of sight, has

the senses of hearing and feeling in great perfection; and its fur,

which is short and thick, is set erect from its skin, so as not to

impede its progress whether it goes forward or backwards along its runs.

These runs are very curiously constructed: they cross each other at

different points, but all lead to a nest in the centre, which the Mole

makes his castle, or place of abode. The passages are made by the Mole

in his search after the earth-worms and grubs, on which he lives; and

the molehills are formed by the earth he scrapes out of his runs. These

molehills do a great deal of mischief to grass lands, as they render the

ground very difficult to mow; and on this account mole-catchers are

employed to fix traps in the ground, so that when the mole is running

through one of his passages, he passes through the trap, which instantly

springs up out of the ground with the poor Mole in it. The female Mole

makes her nest at a distance from the male’s castle. She has young only

once a year, but she has four or five at a time.

The following curious fact respecting a Mole is related by Mr. Bruce.

“In visiting the Loch of Clunie, I observed in it a small island, at the

distance of a hundred and eighty yards from the land. Upon this island

Lord Airlie, the proprietor, had a castle and small shrubbery. I

observed frequently the appearance of fresh molehills; but for some time

took it to be the water mouse, and one day I asked the gardener if it

was so. He replied it was the Mole, and that he had caught one or two

lately; but that five or six years ago he had caught two in traps, and

for two years after this he had observed none. But about four years

since, coming ashore one summer’s evening in the dusk, he and Lord

Airlie’s butler saw, at a small distance upon the smooth water, an

animal paddling to and not far distant from the island; they soon closed

with the feeble passenger, and found it to be the Common Mole, led by a

most astonishing instinct from the nearest point of land, (the

castle-hill,) to take possession of this island. It was at this time,

for about the space of two years, quite free from any subterraneous

inhabitant; but the Mole has, for more than a year past, made its

appearance again.”

The Mole is very pugnacious, and sometimes two of the males will fight

furiously till one of them is killed.

[Illustration]

[Illustration: THE SHREW. (_Sorex araneus._)]

THIS curious little animal closely resembles a mouse, except in its

snout, which is long and pointed, to enable it to grub in the ground for

its food, which consists of earthworms, and the grubs of beetles. The

Shrew, like the mole, is very fond of fighting; and when two are seen

together, they are generally engaged in a furious battle. Like the

hedgehog, it has been much scandalized by false reports, as will be seen

by the following extract from that most amusing and interesting work,

_White’s Selborne_: “At the south corner of the area, near the church,

there stood, about twenty years ago, a very old, grotesque, hollow

pollard-ash, which for ages had been looked upon with no small

veneration as a shrew-ash. Now a shrew-ash is an ash whose twigs and

branches, when applied to the limbs of cattle, will immediately relieve

the pains which a beast suffers from the running of a Shrew-mouse over

the part affected; for it is supposed that a Shrew-mouse is of so

baneful and deleterious a nature, that whenever it creeps over a beast,

be it a horse, or cow, or sheep, the suffering animal is afflicted with

cruel anguish, and threatened with the loss of the use of the limb.

Against this accident, to which they were continually liable, our

provident forefathers always kept a shrew-ash at hand, which, when once

medicated, would maintain its virtue for ever. A shrew-ash was made

thus:--into the body of the tree a deep hole was bored with an auger,

and a poor devoted Shrew mouse was thrust in alive, and plugged in.” The

cruelty of this, and many other practices of our ancestors, ought to

make us thankful that we live in more enlightened days.

The body of the Shrew exhales a rank musky odour, which renders the

animal so offensive to cats, that though they will readily kill them,

they will not eat their flesh. This noisome odour probably gave rise to

the notion that the Shrew-mouse is a venomous animal, and its bite

dangerous to cattle, particularly horses. It is, however, neither

venomous nor capable of biting, as its mouth is not sufficiently wide to

seize the double thickness of the skin, which is absolutely necessary in

order to bite.

The female Shrew makes her nest in a bank, or if on the ground, she

covers it at the top, always entering on the side; and she has generally

from five to seven young ones at a time.

The Water Shrew (_Sorex fodiens_,) is a beautiful little creature, with

somewhat differently formed feet and tail, to enable it to paddle

through the water, in which it dives and swims with great agility. When

floating “on the calm surface of a quiet brook,” or diving after its

food, its black velvety coat becomes silvered over with the innumerable

bubbles of air that cover it when submerged; though when it rises again,

the fur is observed to be perfectly dry, repelling the water as

completely as the feathers of a water-fowl.

§ III. _Cheiropterous Animals._

[Illustration: THE BAT. (_Vespertilio Noctula._)]

THE BAT has the body of a mouse, and the wings of a bird. It has an

enormous mouth, and large ears, which are of a kind of membrane, thin

and almost transparent. The pinions of its wings are furnished with

hooks, by which it hangs to trees or the crevices in old walls during

the day, a great number of them together, as they only fly at night. The

wings of the Bat are very large; those of the Great Bat measuring

fifteen inches across. It feeds on insects of various kinds,

particularly on cockchafers and other winged beetles, part of which,

however, it always throws away. A female Bat that was caught, and kept

in a cage, ate meat when it was given to her in little bits, and lapped

water like a cat. She was very particular in keeping herself clean,

using her hind feet like a comb, and parting her fur so as to make a

straight line down the back. Her wings she cleaned by thrusting her nose

into the folds, and shaking them. She had a young one born in the cage.

It was blind, and quite destitute of hair, and its mother wrapped it in

the membrane of her wing, pressing it so closely to her breast, that no

one could see her suckle it. The next day the poor mother died, and the

little one was found alive, hanging to her breast. It was fed with milk

from a sponge, but only lived about a week.

[Illustration: THE PIPISTRELLE. (_Vespertilio Pipistrellus._)]

THIS little creature, which is only an inch and a half in length,

appears to be the commonest of all Bats in most parts of Britain. It

usually resides in cracks and cavities in old brick walls and in

sheltered corners about houses, and at the approach of evening quits its

retreat, and flies about capturing the gnats and other small

twilight-loving insects on which it feeds.

[Illustration: THE LONG-EARED BAT.

(_Vespertilio_ or _Plecotus auritus_.)]

THE LONG-EARED BAT, which is not uncommon in many parts of our country,

is remarkable for the large size of its ears, which are nearly as long

as its little mouse-like body, and composed of a membrane so delicate as

to be almost transparent. In front of the concave part of each of these

enormous ears there is a slender, pointed membrane, which gives the

little creature a most singular appearance when reposing; for the great

membranous ears are then folded up, and carefully stowed away under the

wings, whilst these pointed lobes, being of a stronger substance, still

project from the head, and look like a pair of little horns. The

Long-eared Bat seems to be one of the most interesting and amiable

species of its tribe; it may be easily tamed, and, indeed, exhibits

great confidence from the first moment of its capture. When several are

kept together they will play in an awkward manner, which is very

diverting, and will soon learn to take their insect food not only from

the hand, but even from the lips of their owner.

[Illustration: THE VAMPYRE BAT. (_Phyllostoma Spectrum._)]

THE VAMPYRE BAT, which is a large species, is notorious for its very bad

habit of sucking the blood of men and cattle. In making its attacks on

man it exercises the greatest caution, alighting close to the feet of

its intended victim during his slumbers, and fanning him with its broad

wings to keep him cool and comfortable during the subsequent operations.

Having made the proper arrangements, the Vampyre proceeds to bite a

little piece out of the great toe of the slumberer, and although the

wound thus caused is so small that it would not receive the head of a

pin, it is deep enough to cause a free flow of blood, which the Vampyre

sucks until it can suck no longer. Cattle are generally bitten in the

ear. Although there seems to be some exaggeration in many of the

accounts given by travellers of the ferocity and sanguinary disposition

of the Vampyre, there would appear to be little doubt that the loss of

blood caused by its bite may occasionally prove fatal, the sucking being

continued, as Captain Stedman says, until the sufferer sleeps “from time

into eternity.”

[Illustration: THE KALONG BAT. (_Pteropus edulis._)]

THIS Bat, which is also called the Flying Fox, is a native of the Indian

Islands. It is a large species, measuring nearly two feet in length,

whilst its large leathery wings, resembling those seen in the popular

representations of flying demons, extend from tip to tip about five

feet. During the day the Kalongs indulge in sleep, for which purpose

they prefer an attitude which to our notions would seem very

uncomfortable; they suspend themselves by their hind feet to the

branches of trees, and thus hang with their heads downwards. They

associate in large numbers, and when seen sleeping in the position above

described, they look so little like animals that Dr. Horsfield tells us

they “are readily mistaken for a part of the tree, or for a fruit of

uncommon size suspended from its branches.” At the approach of evening,

however, a very different scene presents itself. One by one these

supposed fruits are seen to quit their hold upon the branches, and sail

away to the plantations of various kinds, to which they do incalculable

mischief by devouring every fruit that comes in their way.

§ IV. _The Marsupialia, or Pouch-bearing Animals._

[Illustration: THE KANGAROO. (_Macropus giganteus._)]

THIS remarkable animal was first discovered by the celebrated Captain

Cook, in New Holland: and as it was the only quadruped discovered on the

inland by the first settlers, they attempted to hunt it with greyhounds.

The astonishing leaps it took, however, quite puzzled the colonists, who

found it extremely difficult to catch. At first it was supposed that

there was only one kind of Kangaroo, but now many species have been

discovered, some of them not larger than a rat, and others as big as a

calf. Kangaroos live in herds; one, older and larger than the rest,

appearing to act as a kind of king. The ears of the Kangaroo are large,

and in almost constant motion; it has a hare-lip, and a very small head.

The fore legs, or rather paws, are short and weak, with five toes, each

ending in a strong curved claw. The hind legs, on the contrary, are very

large and strong, but the feet have only four toes, and much weaker

claws. The tail is very long and tapering; but is so thick and strong

near the body, that it forms a kind of third hind leg, and wonderfully

assists the animal in supporting itself in its ordinary upright

position. Its leaps are of extraordinary extent, being often from twenty

to thirty feet in length, and six or eight feet high. When the animal is

attacked, it uses its tail as a powerful instrument of defence, and also

scratches violently with its hind feet. It generally sits upright, but

brings its fore feet to the ground when it is grazing. It lives entirely

on vegetable substances. The most curious part of the Kangaroo is the

pouch which the female has in front for carrying her young. It is just

below her breast, and the young ones sit there to suck; and even when

they are old enough to leave the pouch, take refuge in it whenever they

are alarmed.

The Kangaroo is easily tamed, and there are many in a tame state in

England. In Australia, Kangaroo beef, as it is called, is eaten, and

found very nourishing; but it is hard and coarse. The female has

generally two young ones at a time, which do not attain their full

growth until they are a year old.

When a large Kangaroo is pursued by dogs, it generally takes refuge in a

pond, where, from the great length of its hind legs and tail, it can

stand with its body half out of the water, while the dogs are obliged to

swim. Thus the Kangaroo has a decided advantage; for, as each dog

approaches him, he seizes it with his fore paws, and holds it under

water, shaking it furiously till the dog is almost suffocated, and very

glad to sneak off as soon as the Kangaroo lets him go.

The female, when pursued and hard-pressed by the dogs, will, while

making her bounds, put her fore paws into her pouch, take a young one

from it, and throw it as far out of sight as she possibly can. But for

this manœuvre, her own life and that of her young one would be

sacrificed; whereas, she frequently contrives to escape, and returns

afterwards to seek for her offspring.

[Illustration: THE VIRGINIAN OPOSSUM.

(_Didelphis virginiana._)]

THIS creature, which is a native of North America, is about the size of

a cat, and its fur is of a dingy white, except the legs, which are

brown, and the nose and ears, which are yellowish. There is also a

brownish circle round each eye, and the ears are nearly black at the

base.

The Opossum generally lives in trees, suspending itself by the tail, by

means of which it swings from branch to branch. In this manner it

catches the insects and small birds, on which it generally feeds; but

sometimes it descends from the tree, and invades poultry-yards, where it

devours the eggs, and sometimes the young fowls. It resembles the

kangaroo in its pouch for carrying its young, but in no other

particular, as it walks on four feet, and its legs are uniform in

length; and it has a long flexible tail, which is of no use to it either

in leaping, or as a weapon of defence. The tail is, however, of singular

use to the young, as when they get too large to be carried in the pouch,

they fly to their mother when alarmed, and twisting their long slender

tails round hers, leap upon her back. The female Opossum may be

sometimes seen thus carrying four or five at once.

The Opossum may be easily tamed, but is an unpleasant inmate, from its

awkward figure and stupidity, and its very disagreeable smell. The

American Indians spin its hair and dye it red, and then weave it into

girdles and other articles of clothing. The flesh of these animals is

white and well tasted, and is preferred by the Indians to pork: that of

the young ones eats very much like the sucking-pig.

[Illustration: THE PHALANGER. (_Phalangista vulpina._)]

THIS animal, which is very common in Australia, has some resemblance in

its aspect and colour to a fox; but is much smaller. It has a long,

furred tail, very different from that of the opossum. The Phalanger

lives amongst the branches of the trees, on which it climbs about at

night with great agility; its food consists partly of fruits and partly

of small birds, which it easily captures during its nocturnal

excursions. It is called the Opossum by the colonists of Australia.

There are several kinds of Phalangers, some of which are known as

Flying Phalangers, from their having a broad loose fold of skin along

each side, which, when stretched out by means of the legs, serves to

support the little creature for a time in the air, and enables it to

leap to great distances.

§ V.--_Rodentia, or Gnawing Animals._

[Illustration: THE BEAVER. (_Castor Fiber._)]

THE BEAVER is about the size of the badger; his head short, his ears

round and small, his fore teeth long, sharp, and strong, and well

calculated for the part which Nature has allotted him: the tail is of an

oval form, and covered with a scaly skin.

Beavers are natives of North America, and more particularly the north of

Canada. They are also found in Europe, and were formerly abundant in

many places. Their houses are constructed with earth, stones, and

sticks, neatly arranged and worked together by their paws. The walls are

about two feet thick, and are surmounted by a kind of dome, which

generally rises about four feet above them. The entrance is on one side,

always at least three feet below the surface of the water, so as to

prevent it being frozen up. The number of Beavers in each house is from

two to four old ones, and about twice as many young. When Beavers form a

new settlement, they build their houses in the summer; and then lay in

their winter provisions, which consist principally of bark and the

tender branches of trees, cut into certain lengths, and piled in heaps

on the outside of their habitation, and always under the water; though

sometimes the heap is so large as to rise above the surface. One of

these heaps will occasionally contain more than a cart-load of bark,

young wood, and the roots of the water-lily.

Beavers are hunted for the sake of their skins, which are covered with

long hairs, and a short thick fur beneath, which is used in making hats,

after the long hairs have been destroyed.

A great many stories have long been believed respecting the Beaver, on

the authority of a French gentleman who had resided a long time in North

America; but it is now ascertained that the greater part of them are

false. The house of the Beaver is not divided into rooms, but consists

of only one apartment; and the animals do not use their tails either as

a trowel or a sledge, but only as an assistance in swimming. Some years

ago a Beaver was brought to this country from America, that had been

quite tamed by the sailors, and was called Bunney. When he arrived in

England, he was made quite a pet of, and used to lie on the hearth-rug

in his master’s library. One day he found out the housemaid’s closet,

and his building propensities began immediately to display themselves.

He seized a large sweeping brush, and dragged it along with his teeth to

a room where he found the door open: he afterwards laid hold of a

warming-pan in the same manner; and having laid the handles across, he

filled up the walls of the angle made by the brushes with the wall, with

hand-brushes, baskets, boots, books, towels, and anything he could lay

hold of. As his walls grew high, he would often sit propped up by his

tail (with which he supported himself admirably), to look at what he had

done; and if the disposition of any of his building materials did not

satisfy him, he would pull part of his work down, and lay it again more

evenly. It was astonishing how well he managed to arrange the

incongruous materials he had chosen, and how cleverly he contrived to

remove them, sometimes carrying them between his right fore-paw and his

chin, sometimes dragging them with his teeth, and sometimes pushing them

along with his chin. When he had built his walls, he made himself a nest

in the centre, and sat up in it, combing his hair with the nails of his

hind feet.

[Illustration: THE MUSK RAT, (_Fiber Zibethicus_,)]

IS a native of Canada, and resembles the beaver in many of his habits.

He has a fine musky scent, and makes his holes in marshes and by the

waterside, with two or three ways to get in or go out, and several

distinct apartments: he is said to contrive one entrance to his hole

always below the water, that he may not be frozen out by the ice. This

animal is called the Musquash in America, and its fur is used, like that

of the beaver, in the manufacture of hats, four or five hundred thousand

skins being said to be sent to Europe every year for that purpose. Musk

Rats are always seen in pairs; and though watchful, are not timid, as

they will often approach quite close to a boat or other vessel. In

spring they feed on pieces of wood, which they peel carefully; and they

are particularly fond of the roots of the sweet flag (_Acorus Calamus_).

In Canada this animal is called the Ondatra.

[Illustration: THE HARE. (_Lepus timidus._)]

THIS small quadruped is well known at our tables as affording a

favourite food, notwithstanding the dark colour of its flesh. Its

swiftness cannot save it from the search of its enemies, among whom man

is the most inveterate. Unarmed and fearful, the Hare appears almost to

sleep with open eyes, so easily is it alarmed. Its hind legs are longer

than its fore ones, to enable it to run up hills; its eyes are so

prominently placed, that they can encompass at once the whole horizon of

the plain where it has chosen its form, for so its seat or bed is

called; and its ears so long, that the least noise cannot escape it. It

seldom outlives its seventh year, and breeds plentifully. Naturally wild

and timorous, the Hare may, however, be occasionally tamed. The

following is from the entertaining account given by Cowper, of three

Hares that he brought up tame in his house; the names he gave them were

Puss, Tiney, and Bess. Tiney was a reserved and surly Hare; Bess, who

was a Hare of great humour and drollery, died young. “Puss grew

presently familiar, would leap into my lap, raise himself upon his

hinder feet, and bite the hair from my temples. He would suffer me to

take him up and carry him about in my arms, and has more than once

fallen fast asleep upon my knee. He was ill three days, during which

time I nursed him, kept him apart from his fellows that they might not

molest him, (for, like many other wild animals, they persecute one of

their own species that is sick,) and by constant care, and trying him

with a variety of herbs, restored him to perfect health. No creature

could be more grateful than my patient after his recovery, a sentiment

which he most significantly expressed by licking my hand, first the back

of it, then the palm, then every finger separately, then between all the

fingers, as if anxious to leave no part of it unsaluted; a ceremony

which he never performed but once again upon a similar occasion.

“Finding him extremely tractable, I made it my custom to carry him

always after breakfast into the garden, where he hid himself generally

under the leaves of a cucumber vine, sleeping or chewing the cud, till

evening; in the leaves also of that vine he found a favourite repast. I

had not long habituated him to this taste of liberty, before he began to

be impatient for the return of the time when he might enjoy it. He would

invite me to the garden by drumming upon my knee, and by a look of such

expression as it was not possible to misinterpret. If this rhetoric did

not immediately succeed, he would take the skirt of my coat between his

teeth, and pull at it with all his force. Thus Puss might be said to be

perfectly tamed, the shyness of his nature was done away, and, on the

whole, it was visible, by many symptoms, which I have not room to

enumerate, that he was happier in human society than when shut up with

his natural companions.”

Hares are included in the list of animals called game, and are hunted

with greyhounds, which is called coursing; and also by packs of dogs

called harriers and beagles. There are white Hares in the northern

regions, the change in colour being the effect of cold.

[Illustration: THE RABBIT. (_Lepus cuniculus._)]

THIS animal, in a wild state, resembles the hare in all its principal

characters, but is distinguished from it by its smaller size, the

comparative shortness of the head and hinder legs, the grey colour of

the body, the absence of the black tip to the ears, and the brown colour

of the upper part of the tail. Its habits, however, are very different,

as being from its organization unable to outstrip its enemies in the

chase, it seeks its safety and shelter by burrowing in the ground; and

instead of leading a solitary life, its manners are eminently social.

Its flesh is white and good, though not so much prized as that of the

hare.

The female begins to breed when she is about twelve months old, and

bears at least seven times a year, generally eight at each time; now

supposing this to happen regularly, a couple of Rabbits at the end of

four years might see a progeny of almost a million and a half!

Fortunately their destruction by various enemies is in proportion to

their fecundity, or we might justly apprehend being overstocked by them.

The young are born blind, and almost destitute of hair; while those of

the hare can see, and are covered with hair.

[Illustration: THE DOMESTIC RABBIT.]

THE DOMESTIC RABBIT is larger than the wild species, owing to its taking

more nourishment and less exercise (our example, however, is drawn

disproportionately large). Like pigeons, they have their regular

fanciers, and are bred of various colours--grey, reddish brown, black

more or less mixed with white, or perfectly white. The ears are

considered to constitute a principal feature of their beauty, and the

animal is most valued when both ears hang down by the side of the head;

the animal is then called a double lop; when only one ear drops, it is

called a single or horn lop, and when both stretch out horizontally, an

oar-lop.

[Illustration: THE SQUIRREL. (_Sciurus vulgaris._)]

ELEGANCE of shape, spiritedness, and agility to leap from bough to bough

in the forest, are the principal characteristics of this pretty animal.

The Squirrel is of a deep reddish brown colour, his breast and belly

white. He is lively, sagacious, docile, and nimble: he lives upon nuts,

and has been seen so tame as to dive into the pocket of his mistress,

and search after an almond or a lump of sugar. In the woods he leaps

from tree to tree with surprising agility, living a most frolicsome

life, surrounded with abundance, and having but few enemies. His time,

however, is not entirely devoted to idle enjoyment, for in the luxuriant

season of autumn he gathers provisions for the approaching winter, as if

conscious that the forest would then be stripped of its fruits and

foliage. His tail serves him as a parasol to defend him from the rays of

the sun, as a parachute to secure him from dangerous falls when leaping

from tree to tree, and, some say, as a sail in crossing the water, which

he sometimes does in Lapland on a bit of ice or bark inverted in the

manner of a boat.

The American Flying Squirrel (_Pteromys volucella_) has a large membrane

proceeding from the fore feet to the hind legs, which answers the same

purpose as the Squirrel’s tail, and enables him to give surprising leaps

that almost resemble flying. In the act of leaping, the loose skin is

stretched out by the feet, whereby the surface of the body is augmented,

its fall is retarded, and it appears to sail or fly from one place to

another. Where numbers of them are seen at a time leaping, they appear

like leaves blown off by the wind. There are many other kinds of

Squirrels in various parts of the world; most of the Flying Squirrels

are found in the eastern islands.

[Illustration: THE DORMOUSE, OR SLEEPER.

(_Myoxus avellanarius._)]

THESE animals build their nests either in the hollow parts of trees, or

near the bottom of thick shrubs, and line them most industriously with

moss, soft lichens, and dead leaves. Conscious of the length of time

they have to pass in their solitary cells, Dormice are very particular

in the choice of the materials they employ to build and furnish them;

and generally lay up a store of food, consisting of nuts, beans, and

acorns; and on the approach of cold weather roll themselves in balls,

their tail curled up over their head between the ears, and in a state of

apparent lethargy pass the greatest part of the winter, till the warmth

of the sun, pervading the whole atmosphere, kindles their congealed

blood, and calls them back again to the enjoyment of life. Except in the

time of breeding and bringing up its young, the Dormouse is generally

found alone in its cell. This animal is remarkable for the very small

degree of heat its body possesses during its torpid state, when it

appears actually frozen with the cold, and it may be tossed or rolled

about without being roused, though it may be quickly revived by the

application of gentle heat, such as that of the hands. If a torpid

Dormouse, however, be placed before a large fire, the sudden change will

kill it.

THE AMERICAN DORMOUSE, or GROUND SQUIRREL, is a very beautiful animal,

striped down the back, and resembling the squirrel in its habits, except

that instead of living in trees it burrows in the ground.

[Illustration: THE MARMOT, OR ALPINE RAT.

(_Arctomys Marmotta._)]

THIS is a harmless, inoffensive animal, and seems to bear enmity to no

creature but the dog. He is caught in Savoy, and carried about in

several countries for the amusement of the mob. When taken young, he is

easily tamed, and possesses great muscular power and agility. He will

often walk on his hinder legs, and uses his fore paws to feed himself,

like the squirrel. The Marmot makes his hole very deep, and in the form

of the letter Y, one of the branches serving as an avenue to the

innermost apartment, and the other sloping downwards, as a kind of sink

or drain; in this safe retreat he sleeps throughout the winter, and if

discovered may be killed without appearing to undergo any great pain.

These animals produce but once a year, and bring forth three or four at

a time. They grow very fast, and the extent of their lives is not above

nine or ten years. They are about the size of a rabbit, but much more

corpulent. When a number of Marmots are feeding together, one of them

stands sentinel upon an elevated position; and on the first appearance

of a man, a dog, an eagle, or any dangerous animal, utters a loud and

shrill cry, as a signal for immediate retreat. The Marmot inhabits the

highest regions of the Alps; other species are found in Poland, Russia,

Siberia, and Canada.

[Illustration: THE GUINEAPIG. (_Cavia Cobaya._)]

THIS animal is generally white, variegated with red and black. It is a

native of the Brazils, but now domesticated in most parts of Europe, and

is about the size of a large rat, though more stoutly made, and without

any tail; and its legs and neck are so short, that the former are

scarcely seen, and the latter seems stuck upon its shoulders.

Guineapigs, though they have a disagreeable smell, are extremely

cleanly, and the male and female may be often seen alternately employed

in smoothing each other’s skins, disposing their hair, and improving its

gloss. They sleep like the hare with their eyes half open, and continue

watchful if they apprehend any danger. They are very fond of dark

retreats; previously to their quitting which, they look round, and seem

to listen attentively; then, if the road be clear, they sally forth in

quest of food, but run back on the slightest alarm. They utter a sound

like the snore of a young pig. The female begins to produce young when

only two months old, and as she does so every two or three months, and

has sometimes as many as twelve at a time, a thousand might be raised

from a single pair in the course of a year. They are naturally gentle

and tame; as incapable of mischief as they seem to be of good, although

rats are said to avoid their locality. The upper lip is only half

divided; it has two cutting teeth in each jaw, and large and broad ears.

They feed on bread, grain, and vegetables.

[Illustration: THE MOUSE. (_Mus musculus._)]

THIS is a lively, active animal, and the most timid in nature, except

the hare, and a few other defenceless species. Although timid, he eats

in the trap as soon as he is caught; yet he never can be thoroughly

tamed, nor does he betray any affection for his assiduous keeper. He is

beset by a number of enemies, among which are the cat, the hawk, and

owl, the snake, and weasel, and the rat himself, though not unlike the

mouse in his habits and shape. The mouse is one of the most prolific of

animals, sometimes producing seventeen at a birth; but it is supposed

that the life of this small inmate of our habitations does not extend

much further than three years. This creature is known all over the

world, and breeds wherever it finds food and tranquillity. There are

Mice of various colours, but the most common kind is of a dark,

cinereous hue: white mice are not uncommon, particularly in Savoy and

some parts of France.

A remarkable instance of sagacity in a long-tailed Field Mouse (_Mus

sylvaticus_) occurred to the Rev. Mr. White, as his people were pulling

off the lining of a hotbed, in order to add some fresh dung. From the

side of this bed something leaped with great agility, that made a most

grotesque appearance, and was not caught without much difficulty. It

proved to be a large Field Mouse, with three or four young ones clinging

to her teats by their mouths and feet. It was amazing that the variousand rapid motions of the dam did not oblige her litter to quit their

hold, especially when it appeared that they were so young as to be both

naked and blind. Mr. White appears to be the first to describe and

accurately examine that diminutive creature the Harvest Mouse (_Mus

messorius_) the least of all the British quadrupeds. He measured some of

them, and found that from the nose to the tail they were two inches and

a quarter long. Two of them in a scale only weighed down one copper

halfpenny, about the third of an ounce avoirdupoise! Their nest is a

great curiosity, being made in the form of a ball, and either suspended

between the stems of rushes and other tall slender plants, or placed

amongst the leaves of some large thistle.

[Illustration: THE RAT. (_Mus decumanus._)]

THE RAT is about four times as large as the mouse, but of a dusky

colour, with white under the body; his head is longer, his neck shorter,

and his eyes comparatively larger. These animals are so attached to our

dwellings, that it is almost impossible to destroy the breed, when they

have once taken a liking to any particular place. Their produce is

enormous, as they have from ten to twenty young ones at a litter, and

this thrice a year. Thus their increase is such, that it is possible for

a single pair (supposing food to be sufficiently plentiful, and that

they had no enemies to lessen their numbers) to amount at the end of two

years to upwards of a million; but an insatiable appetite impels them to

destroy each other; the weaker always fall a prey to the stronger; and

the large male Rat, which usually lives by itself, is dreaded by those

of its own species as their most formidable enemy. The Rat is a bold and

fierce little animal, and when closely pursued, will turn and fasten on

its assailant. Its bite is keen, and the wound it inflicts is painful

and difficult to heal, owing to the form of its teeth, which are long,

sharp, and of an irregular form.

It digs with great facility and vigour, making its way with rapidity

beneath the floors of our houses, between the stones and bricks of

walls, and often excavating the foundations of a dwelling to a dangerous

extent. There are many instances of their totally undermining the most

solid mason-work, or burrowing through dams which had for ages served to

confine the waters of rivers and canals.

A gentleman, some time ago, travelling through Mecklenburgh, was witness

to a very singular circumstance respecting one of these animals, in the

post-house at New Hargarel. After dinner, the landlord placed on the

floor a large dish of soup, and gave a loud whistle. Immediately there

came into the room a mastiff, an Angora cat, an old raven, and a large

Rat with a bell about its neck. They all four went to the dish, and

without disturbing each other, fed together; after which, the dog, cat,

and Rat lay before the fire, while the raven hopped about the room. The

landlord, after accounting for the familiarity which existed among these

animals, informed his guest that the Rat was the most useful of the

four; for that the noise he made had completely freed the house from the

Rats and mice with which it had been before infested.

[Illustration: THE WATER RAT, (_Arvicola amphibia_,)]

INHABITS the banks of rivers and ponds, where he digs holes, always

above the water-mark, and feeds on roots and aquatic plants.

This animal is nearly as large as the brown Rat, but has a larger head,

a blunter nose, and smaller eyes; its ears are very short, and almost

hidden in the fur, and the tip of its tail is whitish; the cutting-teeth

are of a deep yellow colour in front, very strong, and much resembling

those of the beaver. Its head and back are covered with long black hair,

and its belly with iron gray. Tail more than half the length of the

body, covered with hairs. Fur thick and shining; of a rich reddish

brown, mixed with gray above, yellowish gray beneath. The female

produces a brood of five or six young ones once (and sometimes twice) a

year.

THE LEMMING, _(Myodes Lemmus_,)

WHICH is a near relation of the water-rat, and of about the same size,

is covered with fur of a yellowish colour variegated with black. This

animal resides in the mountains of Norway and Sweden, and is remarkable

for performing extraordinary migrations in vast bodies at the approach

of a severe winter, and making their appearance so suddenly and

unexpectedly that people formerly asserted they had fallen from the

clouds. Notwithstanding their supposed celestial origin, they are,

however, very unwelcome visitors, as they devour everything eatable that

comes in their way, and commit devastations almost as serious as those

of the locusts.

THE SHORT-TAILED FIELD-MOUSE, OR FIELD-VOLE.

THIS little animal has most wonderful powers of reproduction, and, as it

is extremely voracious, it often causes an amount of destruction quite

out of proportion to its size and insignificant appearance. It burrows

in the ground, like the lemming and water-rat; and as it gnaws through

the roots of trees that lie in its way, it has been known to cause very

serious loss of property. In the year 1813 such immense numbers of these

creatures were collected in some of the forests of the South of England,

that it was feared all the young trees would be destroyed, and it was

found necessary to organise a war of extermination against the invaders.

It is said that in New Forest alone not less than eighty or a hundred

thousand mice were killed in one season, and the slaughter in other

places was quite as great.

The Field-Vole’s favourite food is the bark of trees and roots, but, if

pressed by hunger, it will attack and devour its own kind.

[Illustration: THE JERBOA. (_Dipus ægyptius._)]

THE principal peculiarity of this animal consists in its having very

short fore legs, and very long hinder ones: a bird divested of its

feathers and wings, and jumping upon its legs, would give us the nearest

resemblance to the figure of a Jerboa when pursued. It uses, however,

all its four feet upon ordinary occasions, and it is only when pursued

that it presses its fore feet close to its body, and leaps on its hind

ones. The ancients called it the two-footed rat. This creature is about

the size of a rat; the head resembles that of a rabbit, with long

whiskers; the tail is ten inches long, and terminated by a tuft of black

hair. The fur of the body is tawny, except the breast and throat, and

part of the belly, which are white. The Jerboa is very active and

lively, and jumps and springs, when pursued, six or seven feet from the

ground, with the assistance of its tail; but if this useful member be in

any manner injured, the activity of the Jerboa is proportionately

diminished; and one which had been accidentally deprived of its tail,

was found unable to leap at all. It burrows like the rabbit, and feeds

like the squirrel: it is a native of Egypt and the adjacent countries,

and is also found in eastern Europe.

[Illustration: THE CHINCHILLA. (_Chinchilla lanigera._)]

THE CHINCHILLA is a native of America, and its coat produces the

beautiful fur known by its name. The length of the body of this little

animal is about nine inches, and its tail nearly five; its limbs are

comparatively short, the hind legs being much the longest. The fur is of

a remarkably close and fine texture, somewhat crisped, and entangled

together; of a grayish or ash colour above, and paler beneath. It is

used for muffs, tippets, and linings of cloaks, and is perhaps prettier

than the Sable, although less durable, and less valuable in commerce,

excepting when fashion rules. The form of the head resembles that of the

rabbit; the eyes are full, large, and black; and the ears broad, naked,

round at the tips, and nearly as long as the head. 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. The temper

of the Chinchilla is mild and tractable. It dwells in burrows under

ground, and produces young twice a year, bringing forth five or six at a

time. It feeds upon the roots of bulbous plants.

[Illustration: THE PORCUPINE. (_Hystrix cristata._)]

WHEN full grown this animal measures about two feet in length, and his

body is covered with hair and sharp quills, from ten to fourteen inches

long, and bent backwards. When he is irritated, they stand erect; but

the story that the Porcupine can shoot them at his enemies, is only one

of the many fables formerly related as facts in Natural History. The

female has only one young one at a time. It is reported to live from

twelve to fifteen years. The Porcupine is dull, fretful, and

inoffensive; it feeds upon fruits, roots, and vegetables; and inhabits

the south of Europe, and almost every part of Africa, particularly

Barbary.

THE COUENDOU, (_Hystrix_, or _Synetheres prehensilis_,)

WHICH is also called the Brazilian Porcupine, is chiefly found in

Guiana, and differs from the common Porcupine, not only in the shortness

of its spines, but also in the great length of its tail. This organ,

which is a mere stump in the common species, and only of use to him by

producing a rattling of its spines when shaken, in which he seems to

take great delight, is nearly as long as the body in the Couendou, and

as its extremity is nearly naked, and can be curled up very tightly, the

animal makes use of it to cling to the branches of trees, amongst which

he is fond of climbing.

§ VI.--_Edentata, or Toothless Animals._

[Illustration: THE SLOTH. (_Bradypus tridactylus._)]

THIS animal, which is sometimes also called the Ai, in reference to a

noise it makes when caught, and frequently when moving through the

forest, is most curiously formed. The arms or fore legs are nearly twice

as long as the hind legs: the claws also are larger than the foot, and

bent inwardly, so as to prevent the animal from placing the ball of its

foot on the ground. From these peculiarities in its construction the

progress of the Sloth on land is extremely slow and laborious, for being

incapable of supporting himself on his feet, he is compelled to take

advantage of every little inequality in the ground to drag himself

along; but he is not intended to be a terrestrial animal. He lives in

trees, always hanging below the branch, with its back to the ground; and

for a life of this kind, its long arms and hooked claws are admirably

adapted. Mr. Waterton, whose long residence in the wilds of South

America, and whose habits of close observation, render him an excellent

authority, observes, that when the Sloth travels from branch to branch

of the tree which it inhabits, particularly in windy weather, it moves

with such rapidity as to make it quite a misnomer to call it a Sloth.

“The Sloth,” says Mr. Waterton, “in its wild state, spends its whole

life in the trees, and never leaves them, but through force or accident;

and what is more extraordinary, not _upon_ the branches, like the

squirrel and monkey, _but under them_. He moves suspended from the

branch, he rests suspended from the branch, and he sleeps suspended from

the branch. Hence his seemingly bungled composition is at once accounted

for; and in lieu of the Sloth leading a painful life, and entailing a

melancholy existence upon its progeny, it is but fair to conclude, that

it enjoys life just as much as any other animal, and that its

extraordinary formation and singular habits are but further proofs to

engage us to admire the wonderful works of Omnipotence.”

The common Sloth has always three toes; but there is another kind,

called the Unau, which has only two toes, and much shorter fore legs.

The female Sloth has only one young one at a time, which hangs to her

breast, and makes a kind of cradle of her body, during her journeys from

branch to branch; in fact, it appears never to quit her, till it is able

to provide for itself. When hanging from the branch, she hides her young

one in her thick, matted hair, which resembles in texture and appearance

dry withered grass, and, indeed, is so like the rough bark and moss on

old trees, as to render the animal scarcely distinguishable. It was

formerly asserted, when the Sloth has got possession of a tree, it will

not descend while a leaf or bud is remaining; and, that in order to

obviate the necessity of a slow and laborious descent, it suffers itself

to fall to the ground; the toughness of its skin and the thickness of

its hair securing it from any unpleasant consequences. This, however,

like many other statements regarding this much maligned animal, is

erroneous; in the dense tropical forests which he inhabits the Sloth has

rarely any occasion to descend to the earth; but he takes advantage of a

windy night, when the branches of the trees become interlaced, to make

his way with great ease from one place to another.

[Illustration: THE ARMADILLO. (_Dasypus sexcinctus._)]

NATURE seems to have been singularly careful in the preservation of this

animal, for she has surrounded it with a strong coat of armour to

protect it from its enemies. When closely pursued, it assumes the shape

of a ball; and, if near a precipice, rolls from one rock to another, and

escapes without receiving any injury. The shell, which covers the whole

of the body, is composed of numerous bony plates, very hard, and of a

square shape, united by a kind of cartilaginous substance, which gives

flexibility to the whole. The Armadillo lives principally on roots,

carrion, and ants; and in a wild state resides in subterranean burrows,

like the rabbit. It is a native of South America. There are several

species differing chiefly in the number of their bands. When naturalists

wish to obtain a specimen of the Armadillo in its native country, they

are obliged to employ an Indian to dig one out of its hole; and as the

holes are almost innumerable, only a few of them containing Armadillos,

the Indians try them first by putting a stick down, when, if a number of

musquitos rise, the Indians know the hole contains an Armadillo, as, if

there were none, there would be no musquitos.

[Illustration: THE GREAT ANT-EATER. (_Myrmecophaga jubata._)]

THE body of the Great Ant-eater is covered with exceedingly coarse and

shaggy hair. Its head is very long and slender, and the mouth but just

large enough to admit its tongue, which is cylindrical, nearly two feet

in length, and lies folded double within it. The tail is of enormous

size, and covered with long black hair, somewhat like the tail of a

horse. The whole length of the animal, from the end of the snout to the

tip of the tail, is sometimes seven or eight feet. Its food consists

principally of ants, which it obtains in the following manner:--When it

comes to an ant-hill, it scratches it up with its long claws, and then

unfolds its slender tongue, which much resembles an enormously long

worm. This being covered with a glutinous matter or saliva, the ants

adhere to it in great numbers: these it swallows alive, repeating the

operation till no more are to be caught.

He also tears up the nests of wood-lice, which it in like manner

discovers; but should it meet with little success in its pursuit of

food, it is able to fast for a considerable time without inconvenience.

The motions of the Ant-eater are in general very slow. It swims,

however, over great rivers with ease; and, on these occasions, its tail

is always thrown over its back. With this extraordinary member, when

asleep, or during heavy showers of rain, the animal is also said to

cover its back; but at other times he carries it extended behind him.

The Ant-eater is a native of South America.

[Illustration: THE DUCK-BILLED PLATYPUS, OR WATER MOLE.

(_Ornithorhynchus paradoxus._)]

THIS extraordinary creature has the bill and webbed feet of a duck,

united to the body of a mole. It is a native of Australia, where it is

found on the banks of rivers, in the sides of which it burrows and forms

its nest. It feeds on aquatic insects and small molluscous animals,

always, however, rejecting the shells of the latter, after crushing them

in its mouth, so as to extract the body. A number of these animals are

always found together; but it is very difficult to watch their habits,

as their sense of hearing is so acute, that they disappear at the

slightest noise, plunging into the water, in which they swim so low,

that they only look like a mass of weeds floating on the surface.

When the animal feeds, he plunges his beak into the mud, just like a

duck; and appears to be equally at home on land and in water. Two young

ones that were kept for some time at Sydney, by Mr. Bennet, were very

fond of rolling themselves up like a hedgehog, in the form of balls.

They often slept in this position, and “awful little growls” issued from

them when disturbed. They were fed with worms, and bread and milk; but

captivity did not seem to agree with them, and they soon died. They

dressed their fur by combing it with their feet, and pecking at it with

their beaks, seeming to take great delight in keeping it smooth and

clean.

The shape of this animal is so extraordinary, that when a specimen was

first sent to Europe, it was supposed to have been manufactured, by

fixing the beak of a duck into the head of some small quadruped, with

the intention to deceive. Subsequent experience has proved, beyond the

possibility of a doubt, the existence of the animal, without in the

smallest degree diminishing the wonder excited by its first appearance,

as it seems to partake, in almost equal parts, of the nature of

quadrupeds, birds, and reptiles.

The Australian Hedgehog (_Echidna hystrix_), has a long and very slender

muzzle, at the end of which is a very small mouth, containing a long

tongue, which the creature can extend at pleasure. The body is short and

rounded: it is covered with strong sharp spines mixed with hair; and its

tail is so short that it was at first doubted whether it had one. The

male has a spur upon each hind leg, which was long supposed, but it

seems erroneously, to possess venomous properties. Both the Platypus and

the Australian Hedgehog, although arranged here with the toothless

quadrupeds, are generally considered by zoologists to be most closely

related to the Marsupials, or Pouched Mammalia.

§ VII.--_Pachydermata, or Thick-skinned Animals._

[Illustration: THE ELEPHANT. (_Elephas indicus._)]

PROVIDENCE, always impartial in the distribution of its gifts, has given

this bulky quadruped a quick instinct nearly approaching to reason, in

compensation for the uncouthness of his body. The Ceylon Elephant is

about ten or twelve feet high, and is much the largest of all living

quadrupeds. His skin is in general a mouse colour, but is sometimes

white and sometimes black. His eyes are rather small for the size of his

head, and his ears, which are very expanded and of a peculiar shape,

have the flaps hanging down, instead of standing up, as in most

quadrupeds. The Elephant is a gregarious animal in his wild state, and

when domesticated is susceptible of attachment and gratitude, as well as

of anger and revenge. Several anecdotes are related of his quick

apprehension, and particularly of his vindictive treatment of those who

have either scoffed at or abused him. To disappoint him is dangerous, as

he seldom fails to be revenged. The following instance is given as a

fact, and deserves to be recorded:--An Elephant, disappointed of his

reward, out of revenge, killed his governor. The poor man’s wife, who

beheld the dreadful scene, took her two children and thrust them towards

the enraged animal, saying, “Since you have slain my husband, take my

life also, as well as those of my children!” The Elephant instantly

stopped, relented, and, as if stung with remorse, took the eldest boy in

his trunk, placed him on his neck, adopted him for his governor, and

would never afterwards allow any other person to mount him.

The Elephant’s mouth is armed with broad and strong grinding teeth, and

two large tusks, which measure sometimes nine or ten feet, and from

which the finest ivory is produced. The ivory from the tusks of the

female is thought the best, as the tooth, being smaller, admits less

porosity in the cellular part of the mass.

Becoming tame under the mild treatment of a good master, the Elephant is

not only a most useful servant, for the purposes of state or war, but is

also of great assistance in taming the wild ones that have been recently

caught. Indian superstition has paid great honours to the white race of

this quadruped; and the island of Ceylon is supposed to breed the finest

of the kind. This immense beast, by the wisdom of Providence, has not

been placed among the carnivorous animals: and vegetable food being much

more abundant than animal, he is destined to live on grass and the

tender shoots of trees. This noble creature bears in state on his back

the potentates of the East, and seems to delight in pompous pageantry:

in war he carries a tower filled with archers; and in peace lends his

assistance in domestic operations. The female is said to go a year with

young, and to bring forth one at a time. The Elephant lives a hundred

and twenty or a hundred and thirty years, though they have been known to

live to the great age of four hundred. When Alexander the Great had

conquered Porus, King of India, he took a large Elephant which had

fought very valiantly for the king, and naming him Ajax, dedicated him

to the sun, and then let him loose with this inscription:--“Alexander,

the son of Jupiter, hath dedicated Ajax to the sun.” This Elephant was

found with this inscription 350 years after.

The greatest wonder the Elephant presents to the admiration of the

intelligent observer of nature is his _proboscis_, or trunk, which

attains a length of six or eight feet, and is so flexible that he uses

it almost as dexterously as a man does his hand. It was erroneously

said, that the Elephant could receive nourishment through his trunk;

this sort of pipe is nothing but a prolongation of the snout, for the

purpose of breathing, into which the animal can by the strength of his

lungs draw up a great quantity of water or other liquid, which he spouts

out again, or brings back to his mouth by inverting and shortening his

proboscis for this purpose.

Captain Marryat, in his very entertaining work called _Masterman Ready_,

relates a curious instance of the sagacity of an Elephant in India,

which had fallen into a deep tank. The tank was so deep that it was

impossible to hoist the Elephant up, but when the people threw down

several bundles of faggots, the sagacious animal laid one bundle above

another, always standing on each tier as he arranged it, till at last he

raised the pile high enough to allow him to walk out of the tank. But

instances of the sagacity of this noble creature might be cited _ad

infinitum_. In the East, where they are made available in the service of

man, they will load a boat with singular dexterity, carefully keeping

every article dry, and disposing and balancing the cargo with the utmost

precision.

Its strength is proportionate to its bulk: it will carry three or four

thousand pounds weight on its back, and upwards of a thousand pounds on

its tusks.

The African Elephant is a distinct species (_E. africanus_) readily

distinguished from his Asiatic brother, by the enormous size of his

flapping ears. He is abundant in the southern part of Africa and is

killed annually in great numbers for the sake of his tusks.

[Illustration: THE HIPPOPOTAMUS, OR RIVER-HORSE.

(_Hippopotamus amphibius._)]

THIS animal lives as well on land as in water, and yields in size to

none but the elephant: he weighs sometimes more than fifteen hundred

pounds. His skin is naked, and of a blackish brown colour, tinged with

red about the muzzle and on the lower surface of the body. The head is

flattish on the top, about four feet long and nine in circumference; the

lips are large, the jaws open about two feet wide, and the

cutting-teeth, of which it has four in each jaw, are nearly a foot long;

he has broad ears, and large eyes, a thick neck, and a short tail,

tapering like that of a hog. He grazes and eats the leaves and young

branches of trees on shore, but retires to the water if pursued, and

will sink down to the bottom, where he can remain five or six minutes at

a time. When he rises to the surface and remains with his head out of

the water, he makes a bellowing noise which may be heard at a great

distance. The female brings forth her young upon land, and it is

supposed that she seldom produces more than one at a time. The calf at

the instant that it comes into the world, flies to the water for

shelter, if pursued; a circumstance which has been noticed as a

remarkable instance of pure instinct. Fine specimens of this remarkable

animal are to be seen in the Zoological Gardens in London; and in Paris

they have been known to breed twice, but on both occasions the mother

destroyed her offspring, either intentionally or by accident. The

Hippopotamus is supposed to be the Behemoth of the Scripture. See Job,

chap. xl.

[Illustration: THE INDIAN RHINOCEROS, (_Rhinoceros unicornis_,)]

SO called because of the horn on his nose, is bred in India, is of a

dark slate-colour, and nearly as large as the elephant, as he measures

about twelve feet in length, but has short legs. His skin, which is not

penetrable by any ordinary weapon, is folded upon his body, in the

manner represented in the figure above; his eyes are small and half

closed, and the horn on his nose is attached to the skin only. In

confinement he often wears it to a mere stump, by rubbing it against his

crib. He is perfectly indocile and untractable; a natural enemy to the

elephant, to whom he often gives battle, and is said never to go out of

his way, but to endeavour to destroy whatever obstacles present

themselves, rather than turn about. He lives on the coarsest vegetables,

and frequents the banks of rivers, and marshy grounds; his hoofs are

divided into four, and he grunts like a hog, which he resembles in many

other particulars. The female produces but one at a time, and during the

first month her young are not bigger than a large dog. The Rhinoceros is

supposed by some to be the Unicorn of holy writ, and possesses all the

properties ascribed to that animal,--rage, untamableness, great

swiftness, and immense strength. It was known to the Romans in very

early times. Augustus introduced one into the shows, on his triumph over

Cleopatra. Some Rhinoceroses have two horns.

[Illustration: THE COMMON OR DOMESTIC HOG, (_Sus scrofa_,)]

DIFFERS chiefly from the wild animal in having smaller tusks, and large

and pendant ears. Of all domestic quadrupeds this is the most filthy

and impure. Its form is clumsy and unsightly, and its appetite

gluttonous and excessive. Nature, however, has fitted its stomach to

receive nutriment from a variety of things that would be otherwise

wasted, as the refuse of the field, the garden, and the kitchen, afford

it a luxurious repast. The Hog is naturally stupid, inactive, and

drowsy; much inclined to increase in fat, which is disposed in a

different manner from that of other animals, forming a thick, distinct,

and regular layer between the flesh and skin. Their flesh, Linnæus

observes, is a wholesome food for those that use much exercise, but

improper for such as lead a sedentary life. It is of great importance to

this country, as a naval and commercial nation, for it salts better than

any other flesh, and is capable of being longer preserved.

The domestic Sow brings forth twice a year, producing from ten to twenty

at a litter. She goes four months with young, and brings forth in the

fifth. At that time she must be carefully watched, to prevent her from

devouring her young. Still greater attention is necessary to keep off

the male, as he would destroy the whole litter. Jews and Mahommetans not

only abstain from the flesh of swine from a religious principle, but

consider themselves defiled by even touching it.

[Illustration]

[Illustration: THE WILD BOAR, (_Sus scrofa_,)]

INHABITS, for the most part, marshes and woods, and is of a black or

brown colour: his flesh is very tender and good for food. The Wild Boar

has tusks, which are sometimes nearly a foot in length, and have often

proved dangerous to men, as well as to dogs in the chase. His life is

confined to about thirty years; his food consists of vegetables; but

when pressed by hunger, he devours animal flesh. This creature is strong

and fierce, and undauntedly turns against his pursuers. To hunt him is

one of the principal amusements of the grandees in those countries where

he is to be found. The dogs provided for this sport are of the slow,

heavy kind. Those used for hunting the stag, or the roebuck, would be

very improper, as they would too soon come up with their prey, and,

instead of a chase, would only furnish an engagement. Small mastiffs are

therefore chosen; nor do the hunters much regard the goodness of their

nose, as the Wild Boar leaves so strong a scent that it is impossible

for them to mistake his course. They never hunt any but the largest and

the oldest, which are known by their tusks. When the boar is _reared_,

as is the expression for driving him from his covert, he goes slowly and

sullenly forward, without any indication of fear, not very far before

his pursuers. At the end of every half-mile, or thereabouts, he turns

round, stops till the hounds come up, and offers to attack them. These,

on the other hand, knowing their danger, keep off and bay him at a

distance. After they have for a while gazed upon each other, with mutual

animosity, the Boar again slowly goes on his course, and the dogs renew

the pursuit. In this manner the charge is sustained, and the chase

continues, till the Boar is quite tired, and refuses to go any further.

The dogs then attempt to close in upon him from behind; those which are

young, fierce, and unaccustomed to the chase, are generally the

foremost, and often lose their lives by their ardour. Those which are

older, and better trained, are content to wait until the hunters come

up, who despatch him with their spears.

In former times, the Wild Boar was a native of Britain, as appears from

the laws of the Welsh prince, Howell the Good, who permitted his grand

huntsman to chase that animal from the middle of November to the

beginning of December; and in the reign of William the Conqueror, those

who were convicted of killing the Wild Boars, in any of the royal

forests, were punished with the loss of their eyes. Our domestic pigs

are descended from the wild race; but the tame Boar has two tusks,

smaller than those of the wild ones, and the sow has none.

[Illustration]

[Illustration: THE BABIROUSSA, (_Babirussa alfurus_,)]

IS a singular species of hog, which dwells in many of the islands of the

eastern Archipelago. His four tusks are of enormous size, especially

those of the upper jaw, which are turned completely upwards and bent

back, like horns, towards the forehead, which they sometimes even touch.

These singular tusks are only found in the male; they do not seem, from

their construction, to be of much use to him as weapons; and it was

formerly supposed that he employed them as hooks to hang himself up to

the branch of a tree for his night’s rest.

THE PECCARY. (_Dicotyles labiatus._)

THIS is a little species of pig, of a brown colour, with pale lips,

which is found in great troops in the forests of South America. These

bands of Peccaries are said to travel from place to place under the

guidance of a sort of chief, who places himself at the head of his troop

and marches forward in a direct line, swimming boldly over the rivers,

and often devastating the plantations. When one of these troops meets

with any unusual object, they all stop to examine it, making a dreadful

clattering with their teeth, which they are quite ready to use in their

own defence, and will soon tear an assailant to pieces, unless he can

succeed in climbing up into a tree.

[Illustration: THE TAPIR. (_Tapirus americanus._)]

THIS animal bears considerable resemblance to the wild boar, but is

without tusks, and has its snout prolonged into a small fleshy

proboscis, or trunk. This trunk, however, has not the flexibility of

that of the elephant, and is incapable of holding anything. The colour

of the Tapir is of a deep brown, and the male has a small mane on the

upper part of his neck. It stands about three feet and a half high, and

measures nearly six feet in length. It lies in thickets, the thorny

branches of which cannot affect it from the thickness of its skin, while

they lacerate the skins of its pursuers. Its favourite food is the

water-melon. It is generally found alone, and always roams in search of

food at night; and it is easily tamed if taken young. It possesses the

same power of remaining under water as the hippopotamus, and when it

enters a pond, can descend to the bottom, and remain there five or six

minutes.

The Malayan Tapir (_T. malayanus_), is very similar to the American

species in form; but is larger and has no mane. It is very remarkable

for the distribution of its colours, the anterior part and the legs

being deep black, and the rump, back, and sides, white. This animal is

found chiefly in Sumatra and Borneo.

[Illustration: THE HORSE. (_Equus caballus._)]

THE noblest conquest that man ever made over the brute creation was the

taming of the Horse, and adapting him to his service. He lessens the

labours of man and adds to his pleasures: shares, with equal docility

and cheerfulness, the fatigues of hunting or the dangers of war; and

draws with appropriate strength, rapidity, or grace, the heavy ploughs

and carts of the husbandman, the light vehicles of the fashionable, and

the stately carriages of the aristocratic.

The Horse is now bred in most parts of the world: those of Arabia,

Turkey, and Persia are accounted better proportioned than many others;

but the English Race-Horse may justly claim the precedence over all the

other European breeds, and is not inferior to any in strength and

symmetry.

The beautiful Horses produced in Arabia are in general of a brown

colour; their mane and tail are very short, with the hair black and

tufted. The Arabs, for the most part, use the Mares in their ordinary

excursions; experience having taught them that they are less vicious

than the males, and more capable of sustaining abstinence and fatigue.

As the Arabs have no other residence than a tent, this also serves for

a stable; the husband, the wife, the child, the mare, and the foal, lie

together indiscriminately, and the younger branches of the family may be

often seen embracing the neck, or reposing on the body of the Mare,

without any idea of fear or danger.

Of the remarkable attachment which the Arabs have to these animals, St.

Pierre has given an affecting instance in his Studies of Nature.--“The

whole stock of a poor Arabian of the desert consisted of a beautiful

Mare: this the French consul at Said offered to purchase, with an

intention to send her to Louis XIV. The Arab, pressed by want, hesitated

a long time, but at length consented, on condition of receiving a very

considerable sum of money, which he named. The consul wrote to France

for permission to close the bargain; and having obtained it, sent the

information to the Arab. The man, so indigent as to possess only a

miserable covering for his body, arrived with his magnificent courser:

he dismounted, and first looking at the gold, then steadfastly at his

Mare, heaved a sigh, ‘To whom is it,’ exclaimed he, ‘that I am going to

yield thee up? To Europeans? who will tie thee close, who will beat

thee, who will render thee miserable! Return with me, my beauty, my

jewel! and rejoice the hearts of my children:’ as he pronounced the last

words, he sprung upon her back, and was out of sight almost in a

moment.”

The intelligence of the Horse is next to that of the elephant, and he

obeys his rider with so much punctuality and understanding, that the

Americans, who had never seen a man on horseback, thought, at first,

that the Spaniards were a kind of centaurs, half men and half horses.

The Horse, in a domestic state seldom lives longer than twenty years;

but it is supposed that in a wild state he attains a much greater age.

The Mare is as elegant in her shape as the Horse; and her young is

called a foal. The age of the Horse is known from his teeth; and his

colour, which varies from black to white, and from the darkest brown to

a light hazel tint, has been reckoned a criterion by which to judge of

his strength.

The Horse feeds upon grass, either fresh or dry, and corn: he is liable

to many diseases, and often dies suddenly. In the state of nature, he is

a gregarious animal, and even when domesticated, his debased situation

of slavery has not entirely destroyed his love of society and

friendship; for Horses have been known to pine at the loss of their

masters, their stable fellows, and even at the death of a dog which had

been bred near the manger. Virgil, in his beautiful description of this

noble animal, seems to have imitated Job:

“The fiery courser, when he hears from far

The sprightly trumpets, and the shouts of war,

Pricks up his ears, and trembling with delight,

Shifts place, and paws, and hopes the promised fight.

On his right shoulder his thick mane reclined,

Ruffles at speed, and dances in the wind.

His horny hoofs are jetty black and round,

His chine is double; starting with a bound,

He turns the turf and shakes the solid ground.

Fire from his eyes, clouds from his nostrils flow;

He bears his rider headlong on the foe.”

[Illustration]

[Illustration: THE ASS. (_Equus Asinus._)]

THE Ass is a beast of burden, and extremely serviceable to man. Of

greater strength than most animals of his size, he bears fatigue with

patience, and hunger with apparent cheerfulness. A bundle of dried

herbs, or a thistle on the road, is sufficient for his daily meal, and

he is content with the clear and pure water of a neighbouring brook (in

the choice of which he is particularly nice) in the absence of better

fare. It is probable that the Ass was originally a native of Arabia, and

other parts of the East: the deserts of Libya and Numidia, and many

parts of the Archipelago, contain vast herds of wild Asses, which run

with such amazing swiftness, that even the fleetest horses of the

country can hardly overtake them. At present, perhaps, the best breed in

Europe is the Spanish; and very valuable Asses are still to be had in

the southern continent of America, where, during the existence of the

Spanish dominion, the breed was very carefully attended to. In the time

of Elizabeth, we are informed, there were no Asses in this country. Our

treatment of this very useful animal is both wanton and cruel, and most

ungrateful, considering the great services he renders us at so little

expense. The ears of the Ass are of an uncommon length; and he is of a

greyish or dun colour, with a black cross on his back and shoulders.

When very young, the Ass is sprightly, and even tolerably handsome; but

he soon loses these qualifications, either by age or ill-treatment, and

becomes slow, sullen, and headstrong. The female is passionately fond of

her young one; and it is said she will even cross fire and water to

protect or rejoin it. The Ass is also sometimes greatly attached to its

owner, whom he scents at a distance, and plainly distinguishes from

others in a crowd.

The female goes with young eleven months, and seldom produces more than

one foal at a time: the teeth follow the same order of appearance and

renewal as those of the horse. Asses’ milk has long been celebrated for

its sanative qualities; invalids suffering from debility of the

digestive and assimilative functions make use of it with great

advantage; and to those also who are consumptive it is very generally

recommended.

An old man who, a few years ago, sold vegetables in London, used in his

employment an Ass, which conveyed his baskets from door to door.

Frequently he gave the poor industrious creature a handful of hay, or

some pieces of bread, or greens, by way of refreshment or reward. The

old man had no need of any goad for the animal, and seldom, indeed, had

he to lift up his hand to drive it on. His kind treatment was one day

remarked to him, and he was asked if his beast was apt to be stubborn?

“Ah! master,” replied he, “it is of no use to be cruel, and as for

stubbornness, I cannot complain; for he is ready to do anything and go

anywhere. I bred him myself. He is sometimes skittish and playful, and

once ran away from me; you will hardly believe it, but there were more

than fifty people after him, attempting in vain to stop him; yet he

turned back of himself, and he never stopped till he ran his head

kindly into my bosom.”

The ancients had a great regard for this animal. The Romans had a breed

which they held in such high estimation, that Pliny mentions one of the

males selling for a price greater than three thousand pounds of our

money; and he says that in Celtiberia, a province in Spain, a she Ass

had colts that were bought for nearly the same sum. The Ass lives nearly

to the same age as the horse. From the general resemblance between the

Ass and the horse, it might naturally be supposed that they were closely

allied, and that one had degenerated; they are, however, perfectly

distinct. There is that inseparable barrier placed between them which

nature provides for the protection and preservation of her productions;

their mutual offspring, the mule, being incapable of reproducing its

kind.

[Illustration]

[Illustration: THE MULE.]

THIS useful and hardy animal is the offspring of the horse and the ass,

and partakes of the good qualities of both. The common Mule is very

healthy, and will live above thirty years. The size and strength of our

breed have been much improved by the importation of Spanish male asses;

and it is much to be wished that the useful qualities of this animal

were more attended to; for, by proper care in its breaking, its natural

obstinacy would in a great measure be corrected; and it might be formed

with success for the saddle, the draught, or the burden. People of the

first quality are drawn by Mules in Spain, where fifty and sixty guineas

is no uncommon price for them; nor is it surprising, when we consider

how far they excel the horse in travelling in a mountainous country, the

Mule being able to tread securely where the former can hardly stand. It

is much less dainty in its food than the horse, and not so liable to

disease; and has been known to go a distance of eighty or a hundred

miles in one day, with a heavy weight on its back, without much

fatigue.

[Illustration: THE KIANG. (_Equus Hemionus._)]

THE Kiang, which is also called the Djiggetai, is a kind of wild ass,

found in small herds on the great plains of Central Asia. It is a good

deal larger than the common ass, and its fur is of a peculiar pale

reddish chestnut tint, except on the legs and muzzle, which are nearly

white. The ears are not so long as in the ass, and there is a black

streak down the middle of the back.

[Illustration: THE ZEBRA. (_Equus Zebra._)]

THIS is one of the most elegantly marked quadrupeds in nature. He is

striped all over with the most pleasing regularity; in size he resembles

the mule, being smaller than the horse, and larger than the ass. The

hair of his skin is uncommonly smooth, and he looks at a distance like

an animal that some fanciful hand has surrounded with ribbons of white

or buff, and jet black. He is a native of Southern Africa--chiefly of

the Cape of Good Hope, where he resides amongst the mountains. In these

solitudes the Zebra has nothing to restrain his liberty. He is too shy

to be caught in traps, and therefore seldom taken alive. Were the Zebra

inured to our climate, there is little doubt but he might be soon

domesticated. The black cross which the ass bears on his back and

shoulders indicates the affinity between these two animals. The Zebra

feeds in the same manner as the horse, ass, and mule; and seems to

delight in having clean straw and dried leaves to sleep upon. His voice

can hardly be described; it is thought by some persons to have a

distinct resemblance to the sound of a post-horn, and is more frequently

exerted when the animal is alone than at other times. In former times,

Zebras were often sent as presents to the oriental princes. A governor

of Batavia is said to have given one to the emperor of Japan, for which

he received as an equivalent a present to the value of sixty thousand

crowns; and Teller informs us, that the Great Mogul gave two thousand

ducats for one of these animals. It is usual with the African

ambassadors to the court of Constantinople to bring Zebras with them as

presents for the Grand Seignior. In a wild state they live in herds, and

can only be tamed when taken young, or bred in captivity.

Another kind of Zebra (_Equus Burchellii_) inhabits the plains of

Southern Africa; it is known as the Zebra of the plains, and is also

called Burchell’s Zebra, after the distinguished African traveller. This

Zebra is less beautifully marked than the mountain species.

Instinct having taught these beautiful animals that in union consists

their strength, they combine in a compact body when menaced by an attack

either from man or beast; and if overtaken by the foe, they unite for

mutual defence, with their heads together in a close circular band,

presenting their heels to the enemy, and dealing out kicks in equal

force and abundance. Beset on all sides, or partially crippled, they

rear on their hinder legs, fly at their adversary with jaws distended,

and use both teeth and heels with the greatest freedom.

The _Quagga_ is also a native of Southern Africa. It is more wild than

the Zebra, and less beautifully marked; the stripes, indeed, do not

extend over the whole body, but only over the head and neck. The colour

is a reddish brown above and white beneath. The Quagga is less than the

Zebra, and not so elegantly formed, the hind quarters being higher than

the shoulders. The ears are also much shorter. The Quagga bears the

reputation of being naturally vicious, and so treacherous that it is

said that, like a cat, it will bite the hand that feeds and caresses

it.

§ VIII.--_Ruminating Animals._

[Illustration: THE BULL. (_Bos Taurus._)]

THERE are, perhaps, no animals more generally useful to mankind than the

race of oxen, in all their states of existence. They are called

ruminating animals; that is, after they have eaten their food they

possess the power of returning it from the first stomach into the mouth,

to be again masticated before it is finally digested. This is called

chewing the cud; and as the animal generally lies down, and looks very

thoughtful while the operation is performing, it is said to be

ruminating.

The Bull is a very fierce creature, and when enraged, runs about,

tossing up his tail, and roaring most fearfully. When attacked by men or

dogs, he tears up the ground with his feet, and then gallops after his

assailants, endeavouring to toss them with his horns; and very often

pursues in this manner any one he sees, particularly if they appear

frightened. When in danger of being attacked by a Bull, the best course

is to stand still, and open an umbrella, or flap a shawl, or something

of that kind, in the Bull’s face; as with all his fierceness he is a

great coward, and only pursues those who fly from him.

The Ox, or Bullock, is used in some parts of the country for drawing

carts and waggons, and ploughing; and its flesh is called beef. The skin

is tanned and made into leather; the hair is mixed with mortar; the

bones are used for knife-handles, chess-men, counters, and other things,

as a substitute for ivory; from its horns are made combs, and various

other articles; the fat is used in making candles; the blood in refining

sugar: and, in short, every part has some important use.

The common charge of stupidity urged against the Ox is wholly unfounded,

as the following anecdote, recorded by Mr. Bell, will show. A cow,

feeding in a pasture, the gate of which was open, was much annoyed by a

mischievous boy, who amused himself by throwing stones at her. The

peaceful animal, after enduring this patiently for some time, went up to

him, and hooking the end of her horn into his clothes, carried him out

of the field and laid him down in the road. She then returned calmly to

her pasture, leaving him quit for a severe fright and a torn garment.

[Illustration]

[Illustration: THE COW.]

THE COW is the female of the ox tribe, and her young is called a calf. A

young Cow, when under two years old, is called a heifer. The Cow is as

useful to mankind as the ox, except in ploughing and drawing; but to

make amends, she supplies us with milk, from which butter and cheese are

made. The Cow gives from six to twenty quarts of milk in a day: and the

faculty of giving it in such abundance, and with so much ease, is a

striking peculiarity, for this animal differs in this part of its

organization from most others, having a large udder, and longer and

thicker teats, than the largest animal we know of; it has likewise four

teats, whilst all other animals of the same nature have but two; it also

yields the milk freely to the hand, whilst all other animals, at least

those that do not ruminate in the same manner, refuse it, unless their

young, or some adopted animal, be allowed to partake it. The age of the

Cow is known by her horns; at four a ring is formed at their roots, and

every succeeding year another ring is added. Thus, by allowing three

years before their appearance, and then reckoning the number of rings,

the creature’s age may be exactly known.

Calves, when quite young, are helpless creatures, from the great length

and weakness of their legs. Sometimes they are killed when young, and

their flesh is then called veal. The stomach of the calf, when it is

killed, is taken out, and cleaned and salted; it is then hung up to dry,

and is called rennet. In making cheese, a bit of rennet is soaked in

water, which when poured into milk, turns it to curd. The curd is then

separated from the whey, and put into a press, when it becomes cheese.

[Illustration: THE WILD BULL.]

IN the Duke of Hamilton’s park in Scotland, Lord Tankerville’s at

Chillingham, in Northumberland, and some other places, there is a breed

of wild cattle, possibly the last remains of those which at one period

overran this island. The colour is white, with muzzle and ears black, or

very dark red.

At the first appearance of any person near them, these animals set off

at full gallop; and at the distance of two or three hundred yards wheel

round and come boldly up again, tossing their heads in a menacing

manner. On a sudden they make a full stop at the distance of forty or

fifty yards, and look wildly at the object of their surprise; but on the

least motion they all turn round, and gallop off again with equal speed,

but not to the same distance, forming a smaller circle; and again

returning, with a bolder and more threatening aspect than before, they

approach much nearer, when they make another stand, and again gallop

off. This they do several times, shortening their distance, and

advancing nearer till they come within a few yards, when most persons

consider it prudent to leave them, not choosing to provoke them further,

as it is probable that in a few turns more they would make an attack.

The mode of killing these animals, as was practised a few years ago, was

the only remnant of the ancient mode of hunting that existed in this

country. On notice being given that a Wild Bull would be killed on a

certain day, the inhabitants of the neighbourhood assembled, sometimes

to the number of a hundred horsemen, and four or five hundred foot, all

armed with guns or other weapons. Those on foot stood upon the walls, or

climbed into trees, while the horsemen separated a Bull from the rest of

the herd, and chased him until he stood at bay, when they dismounted and

fired. At some of these huntings, twenty or thirty shots have been

discharged before the animal was subdued. On such occasions the bleeding

victim grew desperately furious from the smarting of his wounds, and the

shouts of savage joy echoing from every side.

When the Cows calve, they hide their young ones for a week or ten days

in some sequestered retreat, and go to suckle them two or three times in

a day. If any person comes near one of the calves it crouches close upon

the ground, and endeavours to hide itself, a proof of the native

wildness of the animals. In one instance where a calf was disturbed, it

pawed the ground like an old Bull, and attempted to butt with its head,

till it fell from weakness. It had done enough, however, to raise an

alarm, and the whole herd came to its rescue, compelling the intruder to

decamp: for the dams will allow no one to touch their young without

attacking him with impetuosity. In the Duke of Hamilton’s park, in the

summer of 1841, a calf, which was disturbed by the passing of a carriage

near it, bellowed so fearfully as to rouse the whole herd, though they

were at a considerable distance.

[Illustration: THE AFRICAN BUFFALO (_Bubalus Caffer._)]

IN its general form the Buffalo has a great resemblance to the ox; but

it differs from that animal in its horns, and in some particulars of its

internal structure. It is larger than the ox; the head is also bigger in

proportion, the forehead higher, and the muzzle longer. The horns are

large, and of a compressed form, with the exterior edge sharp; they are

straight for a considerable length from their base, and then bend

slightly upward. The general colour of the animal is blackish, except

the forehead and the tip of the tail, which are of a dusky white. The

hunch is not, as many have supposed it, a large fleshy lump, but is

occasioned by the bones that form the withers being continued, to a

greater length than in most other animals. Buffaloes are found in most

parts of the torrid zone, and of almost all warm climates; always

dwelling in moist and marshy places, where they delight to roll in the

mire. In a wild state, the Buffalo is exceedingly fierce; but in some of

the tropical countries he is perfectly domestic, and very useful for

many purposes, being an animal of patience and great strength. When

employed in the labours of agriculture, he has a brass ring put through

his nose, by which means he is led at pleasure. Buffaloes are common in

the Pontine Marshes near Rome, where they were brought from India in the

sixth century. In India they constitute the riches and food of the poor,

who employ them in their fields, and make butter and cheese from their

milk. They are much valued for their hides; of which, in several

countries, and especially in England, military belts, boots, and other

implements of war are made. There are various species of Buffaloes, of

which the Cape Buffalo, from South Africa, is the best known, and most

valuable.

Buffaloes, in their native country, fight so fiercely with each other,

that African travellers have remarked that they are seldom found without

torn ears, and scars of various kinds on the neck and body. And they are

no less treacherous than ferocious, lurking among the trees in

concealment until some unfortunate passenger passes. The animal will

then suddenly rush upon him, and there is little chance of the victim

escaping unless a tree be at hand. The furious beast, not contented with

throwing him down and killing him, stands over him for a long time,

trampling on and tearing the body to pieces; he then strips off the skin

with his rough and prickly tongue. Even after all this he repeatedly

returns to the body to gratify afresh his savage disposition.

[Illustration]

[Illustration: THE BISON. (_Bos or Bison Bonasus._)]

THERE are two kinds of Bison; one a native of Europe, and the other of

America. The European Bison, or Bonasus, is as large as a bull or ox;

maned about the back and neck like a lion; and his hair hanging down

under his chin, or nether jaw, like a large beard. The fore parts of his

body are thick and strong, but the hinder parts are comparatively

slender. He has a little ridge along his face from his forehead down to

his nose, which is very hairy; his horns are large, very sharp, and

turning towards his back, like those of a wild goat. The American Bison

(_B. Americanus_), attains a size far superior to that of the largest

breeds of our common oxen, and is met with throughout nearly the whole

of the uninhabited parts of North America, from Hudson’s Bay to

Louisiana and the frontiers of Mexico. Captains Lewis and Clarke, and

Dr. James, bear frequent testimony to the almost incredible numbers in

which these animals assemble on the banks of the Missouri. “Such was

their multitude,” say the first-named travellers, “that, although the

river, including an island over which they passed, was a mile in

breadth, the herd stretched, as thick as they could swim, completely

from one side to the other.” And again they say: “If it be not

impossible to calculate the moving multitude which darkened the whole

plains, we are convinced that twenty thousand would be no exaggerated

number.” Dr. James tells us that, “in the middle of the day countless

thousands of them were seen coming in from every quarter to the stagnant

pools;” their paths, as he informs us elsewhere, being “as frequent, and

almost as conspicuous, as the roads in the most populous parts of the

United States.”

These wild cattle defend themselves from the wolves in the most

admirable manner. When they hear their savage enemies approaching they

form themselves adroitly into a circle. The weakest are left in the

middle, whilst the strongest are on the outside, and present to their

foes an impenetrable phalanx of horns. The vignette is an illustration

of this subject.

Exciting stories of the buffalo hunt, both American and African, will be

seen in Catlin’s North American Indians, and Harris’s Wild Animals and

Sports of Southern Africa.

[Illustration]

[Illustration: THE ZEBU, OR BRAHMIN BULL. (_Bos Indicus._)]

PENNANT describes the Zebu, or Indian Ox, as sometimes surpassing in

size the largest of the European breeds, and the hunch on his shoulders

as weighing frequently fifty pounds. There are many varieties, with and

without horns, differing in size from that above-named, down to the

dimensions of an ordinary hog. They are spread over the whole of

Southern Asia, and also in Africa. In all these countries the Zebu

supplies the place of the Ox, both as a beast of burden and as an

article of food. By the Hindoos they are treated with great veneration,

and it is held sinful to deprive them of life, or eat their flesh. A

select number are exempted from all labour, and allowed to wander about,

and subsist on the voluntary and pious contributions of the devotees of

their faith.

Emboldened by the toleration they experience, they make free with every

vegetable to which they take a fancy, no one daring to resist or drive

them away; often they lie down in the street; no one must disturb them:

every one must give place to the sacred Ox of Brahma; thus they are

frequently nuisances, which superstition alone would endure.

[Illustration: THE SHEEP. (_Ovis Aries._)]

THE Sheep has been so long subjected to the empire of man that it is not

known with certainty from what race our domestic species has been

derived. It is supposed, however, to be from the Mouflon, or Musmon, of

Sardinia and Crete. This animal is one of the most useful ever bestowed

on us by a bountiful Providence; and in patriarchal times the number of

Sheep constituted the riches of kings and princes. It is universally

known, its flesh being one of the chief kinds of human food, and its

wool being of great use for clothing. Although of a moderate size, and

well covered, it does not live more than nine or ten years. The Ewe has

one or two young at a time, and the young one, which is called a lamb,

has always been an emblem of innocence.

In its domestic state it is too well known to require a detail of its

peculiar habits, or of the methods which have been adopted to improve

the breed. No country produces finer Sheep than England, either with

larger fleeces or better adapted for the business of clothing. Those of

Spain have confessedly finer wool, some of which we generally require to

work up with our own, but the weight of a Spanish fleece is much

inferior to one of Lincoln or Tees Water. Merino, or Spanish Sheep, have

of late years been introduced with some success into our English

pastures, and the wool of the hybrids, raised between the Merino Sheep

and the South Down Sheep, is thought nearly equal to that of Spain.

In stormy weather, these animals generally hide themselves in caves from

the fury of the elements; but if such retreats are not to be found, they

collect themselves together, and, during a fall of snow, place their

heads near each other, with their muzzles inclined to the ground. In

this situation they sometimes remain till hunger compels them to gnaw

each other’s wool, which forms into hard balls in the stomach and

destroys them. But in general they are sought out and extricated soon

after the storm has subsided.

“The Sheep,” Mr. Bell observes, “is one of the most interesting of all

animals as regards its historical relations with man. It was the subject

of the first sacrifices, and was used in its typical character as an

offering of atonement; and the relation which existed between the

patriarchal shepherds and their flock was of so intimate and even

affectionate a nature as to have afforded the subject of many beautiful

passages in the Holy Scriptures.”

[Illustration]

[Illustration: THE RAM]

IS the male Sheep, and is so strong and fierce that he will boldly

attack a dog, and often comes off victorious: he has even been known,

regardless of danger, to engage a bull; and his forehead being much

harder than that of any other animal, he seldom fails to conquer. He

overcomes the bull, who, by lowering his head, receives the stroke of

the Ram between his eyes, which usually brings him to the ground.

[Illustration: THE WALLACHIAN RAM.]

THE singular conformation of the horns, which adorn the head of this

breed of Sheep, has induced us to insert a figure of the animal in this

work, though it is only a variety of the common species. The horns of

the Ewe are twisted also, but not so much as those of the Ram, which

form, near the head, a spiral line. The wool is much longer than that of

the common Sheep, and resembles the hair of the goat. A fine Ram of this

species was presented some years since to the Zoological Gardens in the

Regent’s park, by Dr. Bowring. It is there called the Parnassian Sheep,

having been brought from Mount Parnassus.

THE ARGALI, OR WILD SHEEP OF ASIA,

in figure somewhat resembles a ram, but his wool is rather like the hair

of a goat. His horns are large and bent backwards, and his tail is

short. He is of the size of a small deer, active, swift, wild, and found

in flocks in the rocky, dry deserts of Asia. His flesh and fat are

delicious. He is called also the Siberian Sheep or Goat, and is

considered by some to be the parent stock of the domestic Sheep.

[Illustration: THE GOAT. (_Capra hircus._)]

THE Goat, next to the cow and the sheep, has been always reckoned,

especially in ancient and patriarchal times, the most useful domestic

animal. Its milk is sweet, nourishing, and medicinal, and better adapted

for persons of weak digestion than that of the cow, as it is not so apt

to curdle on the stomach. The female has generally two young ones at a

time, which are called kids. This animal is admirably adapted for living

in wild places; it delights in climbing precipices, and is often seen

reposing in peaceful security on rocks overhanging the sea. Nature

indeed has in some measure fitted it for traversing these eminences; the

hoof being hollow underneath, with sharp edges, so that it can walk as

securely on the ridge of a house as on the level ground. The flesh of

the goat is seldom eaten; but that of the kid is esteemed a very

delicate food, and is frequently eaten on the Continent. In the East,

the long soft hair of the goat is used in making the beautiful Cashmere

shawls; and from the skin is manufactured morocco leather. The skin of

the kid is well known for its use in making gloves.

[Illustration: THE IBEX, OR BOQUETIN, (_Capra Ibex_,)]

IS a Wild Goat, which inhabits the Pyrenean mountains, the Alps, and the

highest mountains of Greece. He is of an admirable swiftness; his head

is armed with two long, knotted horns, inclining backwards; his hair is

rough, and of a deep brown colour. The male only has a beard, and the

female is less than the male. This animal skips from rock to rock, and

often, when pursued, leaps down enormous precipices, and is said to bend

his head between his fore legs while springing, so as to break his fall,

by alighting partly on his horns. The Ibex has been known to turn on the

incautious huntsman, and tumble him down the precipice, unless he has

time to lie down, and let the animal pass over him.

[Illustration: THE ANTELOPE. (_Antilope cervicapra._)]

THESE beautiful inhabitants of the temperate regions of Africa, and

southern Asia, possess swiftness and elegance of shape in an eminent

degree. They are timid, inoffensive, and gregarious. The males have

horns like those of the goat, and never shed them; they are smooth,

long, twisted spirally, and annulated. The general colour of the hair is

brown, and, in some species, a beautiful yellow. The eyes are

exceedingly bright, and have often been compared to those of a beautiful

nymph by Persian and other poets. Enjoying perfect liberty, they range

in herds through the deserts of Arabia, and bound from rock to rock with

wonderful agility. Their long and slender legs are peculiarly suited to

their habits and manners of life, and are, in some of the species, so

slender and brittle as to snap with a very trifling blow. The Arabs,

taking advantage of this circumstance, catch them by throwing sticks at

them, by which their legs are broken.

[Illustration: THE GAZELLE. (_Antilope Dorcas._)]

“The wild Gazelle, on Judah’s hills,

Exulting yet may bound,

And drink from all the living rills

That gush on holy ground.

Its airy step and glorious eye

May glance in tameless transport by.”--BYRON.

THE Gazelle is the most elegant of antelopes. The Arabian poets have

applied their choicest epithets to the beauty of this animal, and their

descriptions have been adopted into our own poetry. Byron, in speaking

of the dark eyes of an eastern beauty, says:

“Go look on those of the Gazelle.”

When the Persian describes his mistress, she is “an antelope in

beauty,”--“his Gazelle employs all his soul;” and thus, in their

figurative language, perfect beauty and Gazelle beauty are synonymous.

These animals are spread, in innumerable herds, from Arabia to the river

Senegal in Africa. Lions and panthers feed upon them; and man chases

them with the dog, the cheetah, and the falcon. The height of the

Gazelle is about twenty inches, the skin beautifully sleek, its body

extremely graceful, its head unusually light, its ears flexible, its

eyes most brilliant and glancing, and its legs as slender as a reed.

[Illustration: THE CHAMOIS. (_Antilope Rupicapra._)]

THE Chamois is about three feet in length and two in height; its horns

six or seven inches long, its ears small, and its head resembling that

of the goat. The body is covered with long brown hair, the hue of which

varies with the season.

The flesh is considered a savoury food, and the skin is wrought into a

soft pliable leather, well known in domestic economy.

The Chamois is found only in the mountainous regions of Europe, where

they herd together on lofty and almost inaccessible cliffs and

precipices. They are so acute and shy, that it is only by the greatest

patience and skill that the hunter can approach near enough to shoot

them; and they are so swift, and leap with such extraordinary sureness

of foot, that to overtake them is impossible.

“---- ---- ---- But beasts have reason too.

And that we know, we men that hunt the Chamois,

They never turn to feed--sagacious creatures--

Till they have placed a sentinel a-head,

Who pricks his ears whenever we approach,

And gives alarm with clear and piercing pipe.”

SCHILLER’S WILLIAM TELL.

[Illustration: THE NYL GHAU, OR BLUE OX. (_Antilope picta._)]

THIS is a large kind of antelope, found in India. In the wild state

these animals are very ferocious, but they may be domesticated, and in

that condition give frequent tokens of familiarity, and even of

gratitude, to those under whose care they are placed. The female, or

doe, is much smaller than the male, and of a yellowish colour, by which

she is easily distinguished from the buck, who is of a grey tint.

Its manner of fighting is very peculiar, and is thus described:--Two of

the males, at Lord Clive’s, being put into an enclosure, were observed,

while they were at some distance from each other, to prepare for the

attack, by falling down upon their knees; they then shuffled towards

each other, still keeping upon their knees; and, at the distance of a

few yards, they made a spring, and darted against each other with great

force.

The following anecdote will serve to show that these animals are

sometimes fierce and vicious, and not to be depended upon:--A labouring

man, without knowing that the animal was near him, went up to the

outside of the enclosure; the Nyl Ghau, with the quickness of lightning,

darted against the woodwork with such violence that he dashed it to

pieces, and broke one of his horns close to the root. The death of the

animal soon after was supposed to be owing to the injury he sustained by

the blow.

The Nyl Ghau usually keeps closely concealed in the jungle, but in the

night or early morning it sometimes passes into the open ground, to feed

in the corn-fields belonging to the neighbouring villages. This is the

moment chosen by the natives to attack it. A platform is erected near

the spot the Nyl Ghau is known to frequent, from which the hunters can

take aim with precision and safety.

[Illustration: THE GNU. (_Antilope Gnu._)]

THIS very singular animal is sometimes called a horned horse; as it has

the shape and mane of a horse, with the addition of a formidable pair of

horns, a kind of beard below the chin, and a fringe of hair below the

body, along the breastbone. The Gnus live together in herds, and when

alarmed, fling up their heels, and plunge and rear, tossing their heads

and tails, before they gallop off; which they do, the whole herd

following their leader singly, like a troop of soldiers. The Gnu

inhabits the sandy deserts of South Africa; and its flesh, which is said

to resemble beef, is sometimes eaten by the colonists near the Cape of

Good Hope. When caught young the Gnu may be tamed, but its disposition

is always uncertain, and when offended it throws itself on its knees,

like the nyl ghau, and then springing up, butts furiously with its

horns.

[Illustration: THE STAG. (_Cervus Elaphus._)]

THIS animal is the male of the red Deer, and is generally famed for long

life, though upon no certain authority. Naturalists agree, however, upon

this point, that his life may exceed forty years: but that his

existence, as it has been asserted, reaches to three centuries, is too

absurd to be believed. His horns are at first very small, but gradually

increase in size, as they are yearly shed and renewed, till the stag has

completed his fifth year, when they become very large and branching,

and remain so during the remainder of his life. The Stag is one of the

tallest of the deer kind, and is called a Hart after he has completed

his fifth year; the female, called the Hind, is without horns. Every

year, in the month of April, when the Stag has lost his horns, he

appears conscious of his temporary weakness, and hides himself till his

new ones have grown and are hardened. This is generally in about ten

weeks, even when the Stag is full grown; his horns at this age weigh

between twenty and thirty pounds. Little need be said of the pleasure

taken in hunting the Stag, the Hart, and the Roebuck, it being a matter

well known in this country, and in all parts of Europe. The following

fact, recorded in history, will serve to show that the Stag is possessed

of an extraordinary share of courage, when his personal safety is

concerned:--In the reign of George the Second, William, Duke of

Cumberland, caused a tiger and a Stag to be enclosed in the same area;

and the Stag made so bold a defence, that the tiger was at length

obliged to give up. The flesh of the Stag is accounted excellent food,

and his horns are useful to cutlers; even their shavings are used to

make ammonia, so much esteemed in medicine under the name of

_hartshorn_. The swiftness of the Stag has become proverbial, and the

diversion of hunting this creature has, for ages, been looked upon as a

royal amusement. In the time of William Rufus and Henry the First, it

was less criminal to destroy a human being than a full-grown Stag. This

animal, when fatigued in the chase, often throws himself into a pond of

water, or crosses a river; and, when caught, sheds tears like a child.

“To the which place a poor sequestered Stag,

That from the hunter’s aim had ta’en a hurt,

Did come to languish; and indeed, my lord,

The wretched animal heaved forth such groans

That their discharge did stretch his leathern coat

Almost to bursting; and the big round tears

Coursed one another down his innocent nose

In piteous chase.”

SHAKESPEARE.

[Illustration: THE WAPITI, (_Cervus Canadensis_,)]

IS a native of Canada and other northern parts of America, and is one of

the most gigantic of the Deer tribe, growing to the height of our

tallest oxen, and uniting great activity to strength of body and limbs.

His horns, which he sheds annually, are very large, branching in

serpentine curves, and measuring from tip to tip upwards of six feet.

These animals make a shrill noise, resembling the braying of an ass, and

are supposed to be the most stupid of the Deer kind. The flesh is

coarse, and little esteemed, but the hide, when made into leather, is

said not to become hard in drying after being wetted, a quality which

entitles it to a preference over almost every other kind. There are

several of these splendid animals in the collection of the Zoological

Society, in the Regent’s Park, where they continue to form objects of

singular interest and attraction. The male is, however, very fierce,

always endeavouring to attack those who approach him; and on one

occasion seriously injured one of the visitors to the gardens.

[Illustration: THE ROEBUCK, (_Cervus capreolus_,)]

IS one of the least of the Deer kind known in these climates, being not

above three feet in length, and two in height, and seldom lives more

than fifteen years. His horns are about nine inches long, round, and

divided into three small branches, and his colour is of a brown shade on

the back, his face partly black and partly ash-colour, the chest and

belly yellow, and the rump white; his tail is short. The Roebuck is more

graceful, more active, more cunning, and comparatively swifter than the

stag; his flesh is much esteemed. He is very delicate in the choice of

his food, and requires a larger tract of country, suited to the wildness

of his nature, which can never be thoroughly subdued. No arts can teach

him to be familiar with his keeper, nor in any degree attached to him.

These animals are easily terrified; and in their attempts to escape will

run with such force against the walls of their enclosure, as sometimes

to disable themselves: they are also subject to capricious fits of

fierceness; and, on these occasions, will strike furiously with their

horns and feet at the object of their dislike. The only parts of Great

Britain where they are now found are the Highlands of Scotland.

[Illustration: THE FALLOW DEER. (_Cervus dama._)]

THESE are the Deer now usually kept in our parks. The beautifully

spotted kind are said to have been brought from Bengal, and the very

deep brown from Norway by King James I. Their horns are broad and flat;

the male is called a buck, the female a doe, and the young one a fawn.

The buck casts his horns every spring, and they increase in size

annually till he has attained his fifth year. The venison of this Deer

is very far superior to that of the red deer, which is coarse and tough.

The buck-skin and doe-skin are well known, as furnishing a peculiarly

soft and warm leather, which is used for gloves, gaiters, &c. The horns

are used for the handles of knives, &c., like those of the stag; and the

refuse is, in the like manner, used in the manufacture of ammonia. The

buck stands about three feet high, and measures about five feet in

length; the doe is somewhat smaller. The tail is much longer than either

that of the stag or the roebuck, being nearly seven inches and a half

long.

[Illustration: THE ELK, (_Cervus Alces_,)]

IS the largest of all the Deer kind. The antlers, at first simple, and

then divided into narrow slips, assume in the fifth year the form of a

triangular blade, dentated on the external edge and very thick at the

base; they increase with age, till they weigh fifty or sixty pounds, and

have fourteen branches to each horn. The Elk lives in forests, feeding

upon branches and sprouts of trees, and inhabits Europe, Asia, and

America; in the last-named country he is known by the name of the Moose

Deer. There is very little difference between the European Elk and the

American Moose Deer, though they are larger in the New World than with

us, owing perhaps to the extensive forests in which they range. In all

places, however, they are timorous and gentle; content with their

pasture, and never willing to disturb any other animal. The pace of the

Elk is a high, shambling trot, but it runs with great swiftness.

Formerly these animals were made use of in Sweden to draw sledges, but

their swiftness gave criminals such means of escape, that this

employment of them was prohibited under great penalties. The female is

less than the male, and has no horns.

[Illustration: THE REIN-DEER, (_Cervus Tarandus_, or _Rangifer

Tarandus_,)]

IS found in most of the northern regions of Europe, Asia, and America,

and its general height is about four feet and a half. The colour is

brown above and white beneath; but as the animal advances in age, it

often becomes of a greyish white. The hoofs are long, large, and black.

Both sexes are furnished with horns, but those of the male are much the

largest. To the Laplanders this animal supplies the place of the horse,

the cow, the goat, and the sheep; it is their only wealth. The milk

affords them cheese; the flesh, food; the skin, clothing; of the tendons

they make bowstrings, and when split, thread; of the horns, glue; and of

the bones, spoons. During the winter, the Reindeer supplies the want of

a horse, and draws sledges with amazing swiftness over the frozen lakes

and rivers, or over the snow, which at that time covers the whole

country. Innumerable are the uses, the comforts, and advantages which

the poor inhabitants of this dreary climate derive from this animal. We

cannot sum them up better than in the beautiful language of the poet:

“Their Rein-deer form their riches. These their tents,

Their robes, their beds, and all their homely wealth Supply, their wholesome fare, and cheerful cups:

Obsequious at their call, the docile tribe

Yield to the sled their necks, and whirl them swift

O’er hill and dale, heaped into one expanse

Of marbled snow, as far as eye can sweep,

With a blue crest of ice unbounded glazed.”

The mode of hunting the wild Rein-deer by the Laplanders, the Esquimaux,

and the Indians of North America, has been accurately described by late

travellers. Captain Franklin gives the following interesting account of

the mode practised by the Dog-rib Indians, to kill these animals. “The

hunters go in pairs, the foremost man carrying in one hand the horns and

part of the skin of the head of a Deer, and in the other a small bundle

of twigs, against which he, from time to time, rubs the horns, imitating

the gestures peculiar to the animal. His comrade follows, treading

exactly in his footsteps, and holding the guns of both in a horizontal

position, so that the muzzles project under the arms of him who carries

the head. Both hunters have a fillet of white skin round their

foreheads, and the foremost has a strip of the same round his wrists.

They approach the herd by degrees, raising their legs very slowly, but

setting them down somewhat suddenly, after the manner of a Deer, and

always taking care to lift their right or left feet simultaneously. If

any of the herd leave off feeding to gaze upon this extraordinary

phenomenon, it instantly stops, and the head begins to play its part, by

licking its shoulders, and performing other necessary movements. In this

way the hunters attain the very centre of the herd without exciting

suspicion, and have leisure to single out the fattest. The hindmost man

then pushes forward his comrade’s gun, the head is dropped, and they

both fire nearly at the same instant. The Deer scamper off, the hunters

trot after them; in a short time the poor animals halt, to ascertain the

cause of their terror; their foes stop at the same moment, and having

loaded as they ran, greet the gazers with a second fatal discharge. The

consternation of the Deer increases; they run to and fro in the utmost

confusion; and sometimes a great part of the herd is destroyed within

the space of a few hundred yards.”

[Illustration: THE AXIS. (_Cervus Axis._)]