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LETTER XXXlll. 



its fur displays a mixture of tints, white,T>rown, fawn 

 colour, and silver grey. The domestic is larger than 

 the wild kind, and its colours are more variegated- Its 

 eyes are small and sparkling: its claws arc long. 

 When it goes to sleep it rolls itself up 'like a ball, and 

 sleeps very sound. It frequently sits up like a squir- 

 rel, catches any thing that is thrown to it, and will 

 often lie as if dead until its prey come within its 

 reach. 



This remarkable animal possesses all the strength 

 and agility of the cat, with a greater propensity to 

 carnage. It attacks the most deadly serpents, and 

 preys on every noxious reptile; it darts with the ve- 

 locity of an arrow on its object, and seizes it with in- 

 evitable certainty. To the crocodile it is a formida- 

 ble enemy, as it destroys the, eggs of that dreadful 

 reptile, and often kills great numbers of the young 

 immediately after their production. 



.M. de Obsonville tells us of an ichneumon which 1 

 he had reared, and which was tamer than a cat, and 

 followed him wherever he went. One day he brought 

 to it a .small water serpent, being desirous of knowing 

 how far instinct would carry it against a creature with 

 which it was entirely unacquainted. Its first emotion 

 seemed to be a mixture of astonishment -and anger. 

 Its hair immediately stood erect: in an instant it slipr 

 peel behind the reptile, and with extraordinary agility 

 leaped upon its head, seized and crushed it with its 

 teeth. This first essay awakened its natural appetite 

 ibr blood. It became formidable to' the poultry, 

 which it took every opportunity to destroy : it sucked 

 their blood, and ate only a part of their flesh. 



Another tribe of this race, is distinguished by the 

 agreeableness of their perfume. So prolific is nature, 

 and so various her operations, that imagination itself 

 cannot keep pace with the infinite diversity of her 

 productions. All th'fs variety is ordained for some 

 wise end, which, in a great measure, lies beyond the 

 reach of our investigation. Human research has dis- 

 covered and explained many of the wonders of na- 

 ture : future enquiries into her secrets will lead to new 



