DOMESTIC MOUSE. 253 



found toward the base traversed by its tortuous runs. 

 The ground beneath is also filled with them, and on 

 removing a stack, numbers almost incredible are 

 sometimes met with. Besides Man ? and his allies 

 the Cat, the Dog, and the Ferret, the Mouse has 

 many powerful enemies, as the Weasel, Owls OT 

 various species, the Kestrel and other Hawks, all oi 

 which, however, are unable to extirpate it, for it 

 litters many times in the year, producing from five 

 to seven at a birth, and thus in favourable localities 

 soon increases to a great extent. Its nest is com- 

 posed of straw, hay, woollen cloth, linen, and other 

 substances, generally gnawed into small fragments ; 

 and the young are at first blind and naked, but grow 

 so rapidly that in a fortnight they are able to shift 

 for themselves. 



This species is generally distributed, occurring 

 in human habitations, and their vicinity, in the 

 most remote and thinly peopled districts. But it 

 appears to be entirely .dependant on Man, and is not 

 found to form colonies remote from his dwellings, 

 like the other species. It is said to occur in all 

 parts of the world, but its native country is unknown, 

 for with us it appears to be a naturalized and not a 

 naturally indigenous animal 



