372 THE RATEL. 
with its teeth. It never bit with sufficient force to cause pain, so that its ferocious 
onslaught on the lemur would not have been expected from an animal of so gentle a 
nature. It was possessed of a very retentive memory, and could recognise its friends by 
the touch of their fingers, without needing to see their owners. 
It is a peculiarly impertinent creature in its demeanour, and has a curious habit of 
rearing its long neck, and bearing its head in a very snake-lke fashion. When it assumes 
this attitude, its bright little black eyes have a curiously pert air, as they look out from 
under the white, hood-like, hairy covering with which the head is furnished. All its 
movements are brisk and cheerful, and while running about its cage it continually 
utters a faint, grasshopper-like chirp. 
The colour of the Grison is very peculiar, and is remarkable as being of lighter colour 
on the back than on the under portions of the body. This divergence from the usual rule 
is very uncommon, and is only seen in one or two animals. The muzzle, the under part 
of the neck, the abdomen, and legs, are of a dullish black colour; while the entire upper 
surface of the body, from the space between the eyes to the tail, is covered with a pale 
GRISON.—Grisonia vittata. 
grey fur, each hair being diversified with black and white. The tinting of this lighter fur 
is rather variable ; in some individuals it is nearly white, while in others it has a decided 
tinge of yellow. 
The ears of this species are very small, and the tongue is rough. The hairs which 
give the distinctive colouring to the upper parts of the body are longer than those which 
cover the remaining portions of the body and the limbs. In total length it measures 
about two feet, the tail being rather more than six inches in length. 
The odour which proceeds from the scent-elands of the Grison is peculiarly disgusting, 
and oftends human nostrils even more than that of the stoat and polecat. 
In the clumsy-looking animal which is called the RATEL, a beautiful adaptation of 
nature is manifested. Covered from the tip of the nose to the insertion of the claws 
with thick, coarse, and rough fur, and provided, moreover, with a skin that lies very 
loosely on the body, the Ratel is marvellously adapted to the peculiar life which it 
leads. 
Although the Ratel is in all probability indebted for its food to various sources, the 
diet which it best loves is composed of the combs and young of the honey-bee. So 
celebrated is the animal for its predilection for this sweet dainty, that it has earned for 
itself the title of Honey Ratel, or Honey Weasel. ‘The reason for its extremely thick 
