7M7'.S AXn MICE 



339 



"Now you must iuui[) from a mouse a little over three 

 inches long to the great Cotton Mat, who is as big as a 

 Chipmunk and equally mischievous. Fortunately we 

 do not have him liere, but he is common from Virginia 

 southward. His body is about six inches long, with a 

 medium tail. He has round ears, and wears a rusty 

 brown coat and gray vest. Though he usually is kind 



Cotton Rat. 



enough to keep out of gardens, he riddles fields and 

 meadows Avith his underground galleries, and you can 

 see his footpaths winding through bi'ush lots and woods. 

 He does much harm by sucking the eggs of game birds, 

 besides eating grass and vegetables. This is one of the 

 nuisance animals that the Gray Fox helps to keep down, 

 and it should be remembered to his credit. The Cotton 

 Rat was so named because he was the familiar species 

 of cotton fields, and was supposed always to line his nest 



