12 Studies in Rat Catching. [ch. 1. 



discretion the better part of valour. How 

 ever this will not be found to be an invariable 

 rule. I have known old ferrets that would 

 have faced a lion and seemed to care nothing 

 about being badly bitten ; whereas I have 

 known a young ferret turn out good-for- 

 nothing from having one sharp nip from a 

 rat. Such beasts had better be parted with, 

 for a bad, slow, or cowardly ferret is vexation 

 of spirit and not profitable. 



If I am buying brown ferrets I always 

 pick the darkest, as I fancy they have most 

 dash. This may be only fancy, or it may 

 be the original ferret was white and that the 

 brown is the cross between it and the pole- 

 cat, and that therefore the darker the ferret, 

 the more like it is in temper as well as colour 

 to its big, strong, wild ancestor. Anyhow I 

 buy the dark ones. 



If I am buying female ferrets, I like big 

 long ones, as a small ferret has not weight 



