New Jerfey, Raccoon, §j 



them Difmans Rat tor *, and the French, 

 Rats mufques. Linnaus calls this animal 

 Cafior Zibet.bicus. Their food is chiefly the 

 mufcles which ly at the bottom of lakes 

 and rivers ; you fee a number of fuch fhells 

 near the entrance of their holes. I am told 

 they likewife eat feveral kinds of roots and 

 plants. They differ from the European 

 Mujk-rat ^ or hinnceuss Ca/Ior Mofchatus, 

 The teeth are the fame in both ; the tail of 

 the American is comprefTed on the fides fo, 

 that one marp edge goes upwards and the 

 other downwards: the hind feet are not 

 palmated, or joined by a moveable fkin, but 

 are peculiar for having on both fides of the 

 feet, long, white, clofe, pectinated, off- 

 ftanding hair, befides the fhort hair with 

 which the feet are quite covered. Such 

 hairs are on both fides of the toes, and do 

 the fame fervice in fwimming as a web. 

 Their fize is that of a little cat, or to be 

 more accurate, the length of the body is 

 about ten inches, and the tail of the fame 

 length : the colour of the head, neck, back, 

 fides, and of the outfide of the thighs, is 

 blackim brown ; the hairs are foft and (hin- 



* Defm fignifies mujk in the S-^ediJb, and in fome pro- 

 vincial dialects of the German language ; confequently 

 Dcfman rat is nothing but Mujk-rat, and from hence Mr. 

 de B'tffon has formed his D?fman or Ruffian Mujk-rat. F. 



