84 Department of Conservation of Louisiana 



shorter, his paws long and his toes armed with claws ; 

 his tail almost without hair and made to hook, because 

 when taken by this place he winds himself at once 

 around the finger. His hair is grey and although fine 

 is never smooth. The Indian women spin this and 

 make garters of it which they dye red. 



"They hunt fowl aL night and suck their blood but 

 never eat them. Ordinarily no animal is seen to walk 

 so slowly, and I took one often walking at my usual 

 pace. When he sees he is about to be caught, his in- 

 stinct leads him to play off dead, and it is so well car- 

 ried on that if you were to kill him and cook him he 

 would not move or show sign of life. It is only when 

 at a great distance, or well hidden, that he starts off 

 to quickly hide in some corner or among some brush- 

 wood. 



"I have always been surprised at the great numbers 

 of this animal seen everywhere, when everything 

 seems to conspire to their destruction, for this animal 

 is of an extraordinary slowness, defenseless, and even 

 though able to climb well, his little ones are born on 

 the ground. It is believed that no other animal fights 

 him. 



"When the female is about to give birth to the 

 young, she, in company with the male, go in search 

 of fine dry grass. After accumulating what is neces- 

 sary, the female lies on her back, the male puts the 

 grass between her paws and drags her by the tail to 

 her nest. She never leaves her young after they are 

 born and takes them with her wherever she goes. Na- 

 ture provides her with a pocket or double skin, under 

 her stomach, and stretches from the stomach to the 

 thighs. This skin covers her udders and is split its 

 full length, but the two ends are joined so well that it 

 would be impossible to discover this split if not ac- 

 quainted with this fact, and it can only be opened by 

 tearing it, so fine and tight is this skin. It is in this 

 pocket that she conceals her young when she leaves her 

 nest, and she transports these without harm in this 



