188 



holes, and set up a cry, sounding like blab, biab. 

 If a house stands in their way, they never come into 

 it, but stop there till they die. But they will cat 

 their way through a stack of corn or hay. When 

 they march through a meadow, they eat the roots of 

 the grass : and if they encamp there by day, they 

 utterly spoil it, and make it look just as if it had been 

 burnt. They are exceeding fruitful ; but their breed- 

 ing does not hinder their march. For some of them 

 have been observed to carry one young in their 

 mouth, arid another upon their bark. In winter they 

 live under the snow, having their breathing-holes, as 

 hares and other creatures have. 



I would mention only two creatures more > very ex. 

 traordinary, and yet but little known. 



The Glutton is frequent in the forests of Germany. 

 It is rarely seen twice of the same figure. It is of the 

 \veasel-kind, and is in its middle state, about the size 

 of a turn-spit dog. Its body is Iong 3 its legs short, 

 Its colour is brown, with a reddish tinge; but its 

 breast and belly are white, The tail is long and 

 bushy : the head small and sharp at the nose. The 

 teeth are exceeding sharp, and the claws sharper than, 

 almost in any creature. 



This is the most hungry animal in the world, but is 

 ill provided for catching its prey. Most creatures can 

 out-run it, and itself can scarce run away from any 

 thing. But what he wants in swiftness, he has in 

 climbing, which he performs to admiration : its sharp 

 claws enabling it to run up a tree as fast as on the 

 ground. Its usual place is some large and spreading 

 oak, chose both for safety and for catching its prey, 

 lie- squats all day on some large branch ; and if 

 nothing offers below, he preys in the night on what- 

 ever creatures he can find on the tree above. Many 

 birds roost on such trees, which he climbs softly to, 

 and devours. But his favourite food is larger animals. 

 He will lie many days on a slanting bough \ and 



