1778- THE PACIFIC OCEAN. 269 



criminately, when the skins were so mutilated as to 

 leave room for a doubt. But we got, at last, an en- 

 tire wolf's skin with the head on ; and it was grey. 

 Besides the common sort of martin, the pine-martin 

 is also here ; and another, whose skin is of a lighter 

 brown colour than either, with coarser hair ; but is 

 not so common, and is, perhaps, only a mere variety 

 arising from age, or some other accidental circum- 

 stance. The ermine is also found at this place, 

 but is rare and small ; nor is the hair remarkably fine, 

 though the animal appeared to be perfectly white, 

 and squirrels are of the common sort ; but the latter 

 is rather smaller than ours, and has a deeper rusty 

 colour running along the back. 



We were clear as to the existence of all the ani- 

 mals already mentioned ; but there are two others 

 besides, which we could not distinguish with suf- 

 ficient certainty. Of the first of these we saw none 

 of the skins, but what were dressed or tanned like 

 leather. The natives wear them on some occasions ; 

 and, from the size as well as thickness, they were 

 generally concluded to belong to the elk, or moose- 

 deer ; though some of them, perhaps, might belong 

 to the buffalo. The other animal, which seems by 

 no means rare, was guessed to be a species of the 

 wild cat or lynx. The length of the skins, without 

 the head, which none of them had, was about two 

 feet two inches. They are covered with a very fine 

 wool or fur, of a very light brown or whitish yellow 

 colour, intermixed with long hairs, which, on the 

 back, where they are shortest, are blackish ; on the 

 sides, where they are longer, of a silver white ; and 

 on the belly, where they are longest, of the colour 

 of the wool ; but the whitish, or silver hairs, are 

 often so predominant that the whole animal acquires 

 a cast of that kind. The tail is only three inches 

 long, and has a black tip. The whole .skin being by 

 the natives called wanshee ; that, most probably is 

 their name for this animal. Hogs, dogs, and goats, 



