THE WHITE ERMINE 273 



protects it from fox and lynx and wolverine. Its size 

 admits it to the tiniest of hiding-places. All that the 

 ermine can do to hunt down a victim, it can do to hide 

 from an enemy. These qualities make it almost in 

 vincible to other beasts of the chase. Two joints in 

 the armour of its defence has the little ermine. Its 

 black tail-tip moving across snow betrays it to ene 

 mies in winter: the very intentncss on prey, its ex 

 cess of self-confidence, leads it into danger; for in 

 stance, little ermine is royally contemptuous of man s 

 tracks. If the man does not molest it, it will follow a 

 scent and quarter and circle under his feet; so the man 

 has no difficulty in taking the little beast whose fur is 

 second only to that of the silver fox. So bold are the 

 little creatures that the man may discover their bur 

 rows under brush, in rock, in sand holes, and take the 

 whole litter before the game mother will attempt to 

 escape. Indeed, the plucky little ermine will follow 

 the captor of her brood. Steel rat traps, tiny dead 

 falls, frosted bits of iron smeared with grease to tempt 

 the ermine s tongue which the frost will hold like a 

 vice till the trapper comes, and, mo^t common of all, 

 twine snares such as entrap the rabbit, are the means 

 by which the ermine comes to his appointed end at the 

 hands of men. 



The quality of the pelt shows as wide variety as 

 the skin of the fox; and for as mysterious reasons. 

 Why an ermine a year old should have a coat like sul 

 phur and another of the same age a coat like swan s- 

 down, neither trapper nor scientist has yet discovered. 

 The price of the perfect ermine-pelt is higher than any 

 other of the rare furs taken in North America except 

 silver fox; but it no longer commands the fabulous 

 19 



