New Jerfey, Raccoon. 59 



holes of the Mujk-rats by digging till they 

 came to their nefts, where they killed them 

 all. Nobody here eats their flefh; I do 

 not know whether the Indians eat it, for 

 they are commonly not over nice in the 

 choice of meat. The mufk-bag is put be- 

 tween the cloaths in order to preferve them 

 againft worms. It is very difficult to extir- 

 pate thefe Rats when they are once fettled 

 in a bank. A Swede, however, told me, 

 that he had freed his bank, or piece of dyke 

 along the river, from them ii> the following 

 manner : He fought for all their holes, 

 flopped them all up with earth, excepting 

 one, on that fide from whence the wind 

 came. He put a quantity of fulphur into 

 the open entrance, fet fire to it, &nd then 

 clofed the hole, leaving but a fmall one for 

 the wind to pafs through. The fmoke of 

 the fulphur then entered their moft remote 

 nefts, and ftifled all the animals. As foon as 

 the fulphur was burnt, he was obliged to 

 dig up part of the ground in the bank, 

 where they had their nefts ; and he found 

 them lie dead by heaps. He fold the ikins, 

 and they paid his trouble, not to mention 

 the advantage he got by clearing his bank 

 of the Miifk-rats* 



BEAVERS were formerly abundant in 

 New Sweden, as all the old Swedes here 



told 



