MUSTELID&. 139 
Dr. Anderson obtained a specimen of this species at an elevation of 
5000 feet, at Teng-yue-chow in Yunnan. 
MUSTELIDA—MARTENS AND WEASELS.- 
In India the members of this family are restricted to the Weasels and 
Martens, but in other countries are included the Grisons, Zorillas,. 
Skunks, &c. They are small animals of elongated form, with short 
legs, commonly expressed as vermiform; where the head of a weasel 
will go his body will follow—at least that was my experience in my 
boyish days, when I was particularly interested in vermin, and the 
gamekeeper was my first instructor in natural history. The face is. 
rounded like a cat, but the skull behind the eye is very long and pear- 
shaped when viewed from above; in proportion to a cat’s skull the 
brain case is a fourth longer. ‘They are most sanguinary in their habits, 
and their agility is great, so on the whole they are most formidable to 
many animals, not only smaller, but in many cases four times their own 
size. The ferocity of the common weasel (Puforius vulgaris) ought to 
be as proverbial as its watchfulness. A case has been known of a kite 
carrying off one of these animals, but falling dead after a time with the 
large blood-vessels under the wing cut through by the savage little 
prisoner, who, on reaching ‘evra firma, escaped apparently unhurt. I 
think in Wolff’s admirable ‘ Illustrations of Natural History’ this fact, 
related by Bell, is made the subject of a picture called ‘‘ Catching a 
Tartar.” 
Most of the animals of this group are eagerly sought for on account 
of their fur. In Northern India the skin of one species, probably a 
variety of Wartes abietum, is sold in the bazaars at Peshawur and Lahore. 
In 1868 I bought sufficient to line a large overcoat, which proved most 
comfortable in travelling in the cold weather in the Punjab, as well as 
in subsequent wanderings on the European continent in winter. 
Dr. E. Coues, in his monograph on the North American Mustelide, 
gives the following interesting information regarding the number of 
skins of various species sold by the Hudson’s Bay Company in London 
during the century 1769-1868 :— = 
Sables, 1,240,511; otters, 674,027; wolverenes, 68,694; minks, 
1,507,240 ; skunks, 218,653 ; badgers, 275,302 ; sea Otters, 5349. 
In 1868, which appears to have been a prosperous year, the Company 
sold : Sables, 106,254; otters, 14,966; wolverenes, 1104; minks, 
73,473; skunks, 6298; badgers, 1551; sea otters, 123.” 
When one considers the number of those whose skins are damaged. 
* In the same year were sold by other firms, 22,000 otter skins and 4500 sables. 
See Appendix C for further statistics. 
