280 



THE FERRET. 



although it may not be able to eat the twentieth part of its victims. It seems to be very fond 

 of sucking the blood of the animals which it destroys, and appears to commence its repast by 

 eating the brains. If several victims should come in its way, it will kill them all, suck their 

 blood, and eat the brains, leaving the remainder of the body untouched. 



EVEN those unpromising animals, the weasels, can be subjected to the wondrous super- 

 eminence of the human intellect. The FERRET is well known as the constant companion of 

 the rat-catcher and the rabbit-hunter, being employed for the purpose of following its prey 

 into their deepest recesses, and of driving them from their strongholds into the open air, 

 when the pursuit is taken up by its master. The mode in which the Ferret is employed will 

 be presently related. 



Some writers have thought the Ferret to be identical in species with the polecat, and have 

 strengthened this opinion by the well-known fact that a mixed breed between these two ani- 

 mals is often employed by those who study the development and the powers of the Ferret. 



THE POLECAT.- Putorius fattdus. 



However, the most generally received opinion of the present day considers the Ferret to 

 be a distinct species. Mr. Bell, in his work on the British Quadrupeds, remarks that the dif- 

 ferent geographical range which is inhabited by these creatures is one of the most striking 

 arguments in favor of the distinction of the species. The polecat is found in the northern 

 parts of Europe, bearing the severest cold with impunity, and able to track its prey for many 

 miles over the snow. But the Ferret is originally a native of Africa, and is most sensitive to 

 cold, often perishing if it be exposed to the frosts of winter. When the Ferret is kept in a 

 state of domestication, the box or hutch in which it resides must be amply supplied with hay, 

 wool, or other warm substances, or the creature will soon pine away and die. 



It sometimes happens that a Ferret escapes from its owners, and making its way into the 

 nearest wood or warren, remains in its new quarters until the end of autumn, living quite at its 

 ease, and killing rabbits and game at its leisure. But when the cold weather draws near, and 

 the frosty nights of autumn begin to herald the frosty days of winter, the Ferret will do its 

 best to return to its captivity and its warmer bed, or, failing in its attempt, will die. That a 

 Ferret should escape is by no means an unlikly circumstance, for the creature is so active of 

 limb and so serpentine of body that it can avail itself of the very smallest opening, and, when 

 once at liberty, can conceal itself with such address that it is very rarely recovered. 



