THE RAT KIND. 



367 



branches. Towards the approach of the cold 

 season, they form a little magazine of nuts, 

 beans, or acorns ; and having laid in their 

 hoard, shut themselves up with it for the winter. 

 As soon as they feel the first advances of the 

 cold, they prepare to lessen its effect, by rolling 

 themselves up in a ball, and thus exposing the 

 smallest surface to the weather. But it often 

 happens that the warmth of a sunny day, or 

 an accidental change from cold to heat, thaws 

 their nearly stagnant fluids, and they revive. 

 On such occasions they have their provisions 

 laid in, and they have not far to seek for their 

 support. In this manner they continue usually 

 asleep, but sometimes waking, for about five 

 months in the year, seldom venturing from 

 their retreats, and, consequently, but rarely 

 seen. Their nests are lined with moss, grass, 

 and dead leaves; they usually bring forth three 

 or four young at a time, and that but once a 

 year, in the spring. 



THE MUSK RAT. 



OF these animals of the rat kind, but with 

 a musky smell, there are also three distinctions, 

 as of the former ; the ONDATRA, the DESMAN, 

 and the PILORI. The ondatra is a native of 

 Canada, the desman of Lapland, and the pilori 

 of the West India Islands. The ondatra 

 differs from all others of its kind, in having the 

 tail flatted and carried edge-v/ays. The des- 

 man has a long extended snout, like the shrew- 

 mouse ; and the pilori a short tail, as thick at 

 one end as the other. They all resemble each 

 other in being fond of the water, but particu- 

 larly in that musky odour from whence they 

 have taken their name. 



Of these, the ONDATRA is the most remark- 

 able, and has been the most minutely describ- 

 ed. 1 This animal is about the size of a small 

 rabbit, but has the hair, the colour, and the 

 tail of a rat, except that it is flatted on the 

 sides, as mentioned above. But \t is still more 

 extraordinary upon other accounts, and differ- 

 ent from all other animals whatever. It is so 

 formed that it can contract and enlarge its 

 body at pleasure. It has a muscle like that of 

 horses, by which they move their hides, lying 

 immediately under the skin, and that furnish- 



Bufibn, vol. xx. p. 4. 



ed wkh such a power of contraction, together 

 with such an elasticity in the false ribs, that 

 this animal can creep into a hole where others, 

 seemingly much less, cannot follow. The fe- 

 male is remarkable also for two distinct aper- 

 tures, one for urine, the other for propagation. 

 The male is equally observable for a peculi- 

 arity of conformation ; the musky smell is 

 much stronger at one particular season of the 

 year than any other ; and the marks of the sex 

 seem to appear and disappear in the same 

 manner. 



The ondatra in some measure resembles the 

 beaver in its nature and disposition. They 

 both live in society during winter ; they both 

 form houses of two feet and a half wide, in 

 which they reside several families together. 

 In these they do not assemble to sleep as the 

 marmout, but purely to shelter themselves from 

 the rigour of the season. However, they do not 

 lay up magazines of provision like the beaver; 

 they only form a kind of covert-way to and 

 round their dwelling, from \vhence thev issue 

 to procure water and roots, upon which they 

 subsist. During winter their houses are cover- 

 ed under a depth of eight or ten feet of snow ; 

 so that they must lead but a cold, gloomy, and 

 necessitous life, during its continance. During 

 summer they separate two by two, and feed 

 upon the variety of roots and vegetables that 

 the season offers. They then become ex- 

 tremely fat, and are much sought after, as well 

 for their flesh as their skins, which are very 

 valuable. They then also acquire a very 

 strong scent of musk, so pleasing to an Euro- 

 pean, but which the savages of Canada can- 

 not abide. What we admire as a perfume, 

 they consider as a most abominable stench, 

 and call one of their rivers, on the banks of 

 which this animal is seen to burrow in num- 

 bers, by the name of the stinking river, as well 

 as the rat itself, which is denominated by them 

 the stinkard. This is a strange diversity 

 among mankind; and, perhaps, may be ascrib- 

 ed to the different kinds of food among differ- 

 ent nations. Such as chiefly feed upon rancid 

 oils, and putrid flesh, will often mistake the 

 nature of scents ; and, having been long used 

 to ill smells, will, by habit, consider them as 

 perfumes. Be this as it will, although these 

 nations of northern savages consider the musk 

 rat as intolerably foetid, they nevertheless re- 

 gard it as very good eating, and, indeed, in 



