TFIE WEASEL KIND 



343 



very just idea can be formed of its figure ; 

 and, indeed, some naturalists, among whom 

 was Ray, entirely doubted of its existence. 

 From the best accounts, however, we have of 

 it, the body is thick and long, the legs short ; 

 it is black along the back, and of a reddish 

 brown on the sides ; its fur is held in the high- 

 est estimation, for its softness and beautiful 

 gloss; the tail is bushy, like that of the wea- 

 sel, but rather shorter; and its legs and claws 

 are better h'tted for climbing trees, than for 

 running along the ground. Thus far it en- 

 tirely resembles the weasel; and its manner 

 of taking its prey is also by surprise, and not 

 by pursuit. 



Scarce any of the animals with short legs 

 and long bodies pursue their prey; but, 

 knowing their own incapacity to overtake it 

 by swiftness, either creep upon it in its re- 

 treats, or wait in ambush and seize it with a 

 bound. The glutton, from the make of its 

 legs, and the length of its body, must be par- 

 ticularly slow: and, consequently, its only re- 

 source is in taking its prey by surprise. All 

 the rest of the weasel kind, from the small- 

 ness of their size, are better fitted for a life 

 of insidious rapine than this ; they can pur- 

 sue their prey into its retreats, they can lurk 

 unseen among the branches of trees, and hide 

 themselves with ease under the leaves: but 

 the glutton is too large to follow small prey 

 into their retreats; nor would such, even if 

 obtained, be sufficient to sustain it. For 

 these reasons, therefore, this animal seems 

 naturally compelled to the life for which it 

 has long been remarkable. Its only resource 

 is to climb a tree, which it does with great 

 ease, and there it waits with patience until 

 some large animal passes underneath, upon 

 which it darts down with unerring certainty, 

 and destroys it. 



It is chiefly in North America that this vo- 

 racious creature is seen lurking among the 

 thick branches of trees, in order to surprise 

 the deer, with which the extensive forests of 

 that part of the world abound. Endued with 

 a degree of patience equal to its rapacity, 

 the glutton singles out such trees as it observes 

 marked by the teeth or the antlers of the 

 deer; and is known to remain there watch- 

 ing for several days together. If it has fixed 

 upon a wrong tree, and finds that the deer 



have either left that part of the country, or 

 cautiously shun the place, it reluctantly de- 

 scends, pursues the beaver to its retreat, or 

 even ventures into the water, in pursuit of 

 fishes. But if it happens that, by long atten- 

 tion, and keeping close, at last the elk or the 

 rein-deer happens to pass that way, it at once 

 darts down upon them, sticks its claws be- 

 tween their shoulders, and remains there un- 

 alterably firm. It is in vain that the large 

 frighted animal increases its speed, or threat- 

 ens with its branching horns; the glutton ha- 

 ving taken possession of its post, nothing can 

 drive it off; its enormous prey drives rapidly 

 along amongst the thickest wood, rubs itself 

 against the largest trees, and tears down the 

 branches with its expanded horns; but still 

 its insatiable foe sticks Jbehind, eating its neck, 

 and digging its passage to the great blood- 

 vessels that lie in that part. Travellers who 

 wander through those deserts, often see pieces 

 of the glutton's skin sticking to the trees, 

 against which it was rubbed by the deer. 

 But the animal's voracity is greater than its 

 feelings, and it never seizes without bringing 

 down its prey. When, therefore, the deer, 

 wounded and feeble with the loss of blood, 

 falls, the glutton is seen to make up for its 

 former abstinence by its present voracity. 

 As it is not possessed of a feast of this kind 

 every day, it resolves to lay in a store to serve 

 it for a good while to come. It is, indeed, 

 amazing how much one of these animals can 

 eat at a time! That which was seen by Mr. 

 Klein, although without exercise or air, al- 

 though taken from its native climate, and en- 

 joying but an indifferent state of health, was 

 yet seen to eat thirteen pounds of flesh every 

 day, and yet remain unsatisfied. We may, 

 therefore, easily conceive how much more it 

 must devour at once, after a long fast, of a 

 food of its own procuring, and in the climate 

 most natural to its constitution. We are told, 

 accordingly, that from being a lank, thin ani- 

 mal, which it naturally is, it then gorges in 

 such quantities, that its belly is distended, and 

 its whole figure. seems to alter. Thus vora- 

 ciously it continues eating till, incapable of 

 any other animal function, it lies totally tor- 

 pid by the animal it has killed ; and in this 

 situation continues for two or three days. In 

 this loathsome and helpless state, it finds its 



