118 WILD BEASTS OF THE WORLD 



all events, where the rivers so swarm with fish that fish-dinners 

 are the order of the day with carnivora of all sorts, it will partake of 

 this kind of food ; and, in spite of its appetite for blood, it does not 

 disdain vegetable diet, but feeds readily on berries when they are in 

 season. 



The Sable makes its den in a hole in a tree, and here is sometimes 

 scented out by the dogs of the hunters ; in such a retreat, also, the 

 female deposits her young, which are generally born in April, and 

 number four or five. 



The Martens generally display very similar habits to those described, 

 but the Pine Marten in our country has been forced through long- 

 continued persecution to leave its woodland haunts and live chiefly 

 in barren stony places, a habit more natural for the Beech or Stone 

 Marten (M.foina), which is a common animal on the Continent. 



The Stone Marten has a white breast, whereas in the Pine Marten 

 this is yellow at any rate, in youth. It has a more southern range 

 than the Pine Marten, but nevertheless ranges into Turkestan, where it 

 shows a much finer coat, approaching the Sable type. 



Especial interest attaches to the Stone Marten, on account of 

 its having been domesticated by the ancient Greeks, and kept in the 

 houses to fulfil the duties of our Cats ; indeed, the word (galf) often 

 translated "Cat," really means this animal, although Herodotus made 

 acquaintance with the real Cat (ailouros) in Egypt. 



This Marten indeed is inclined to cultivate the society of man, from 

 motives of its own, to inconvenient extent, for it is commonly found 

 near human habitations on the Continent, and is an all-round pest, 

 not only destroying poultry and stealing eggs wholesale, but devouring 

 fruit in the orchards. It is even yet not difficult to tame, and makes 

 a pretty and amusing pet, like other Martens. The Martens generally 

 are northern animals, though one, the Indian Marten (M. flavigula), a 

 short-coated but most elegant and richly-coloured animal, is found even 

 as far south as Sumatra, while it ranges in the west to Kashmir. 



The most distinct of them, as well as the largest, is the Pekan 

 or Fisher (M. pennantt], which is about as big as a Cat, and nearly all 



