NATURAL HISTORY. 21.1 



They likewise receive him while they are pregnant, 

 and, bv a particular formation of their genitals, are 

 often found to have a super-foctation. 



The young ones are brought forth with their eyes 

 open : the dam suckles them for the space of twenty 

 days* after which they leave her, and provide for 

 themselves, they do not part far from each other ; yet 

 they live in solitude, and each composes for itself a 

 form, at a little distance. Thus when, we find a young 

 leveret in one place, we are almost sure of finding one 

 or two more in the neighbourhood : they feed more by 

 night than by day ; and their favourite articles of 

 food are herbs, roots, leaves, fruit, and grain ; but 

 particularly such plants as yield a milky juice : they 

 even eat the bark of trees in winter. When they are 

 reared at home, they are fed with lettuce and roots ; 

 but the flesh of these domestic hares has always a bad 

 flavour. 



Hares sleep much, but always with their eyes open: 

 they have no eye-lashes, and seem to have but bad 

 eyes : their hearing, however, is exceedingly acute, 

 and their ears are very large compared with the size 

 of their body. They move these long ears with great 

 ease, and use them as a helm, in order to direct their 

 course, which is so rapid, that they outstrip almost 

 every other animal. As their fore legs are much shorter 

 than their hind ones, they can more easily ascend than 

 descend ; for which reason, when they are pursued, 

 their first object is to gain, if possible, some mountain : 

 their motion in running is a kind of gallop : they pro- 

 ceed without making any noise, because their feet are 

 plentifully covered with hair; and they perhaps are 

 the only animals which have hair growing within their 

 mouths. 



