264 THE OTTER. 



Others depart yet farther, as the seal and the morse, by 

 having the hind feet stuck to the body like fins ; and 

 others, as the lamentin, almost entirely resemble fishes, by 

 having no hind feet whatsoever. Such are the gradations 

 of the amphibious tribe. They all, however, get their liv- 

 ing in the water, either by habit or conformation ; they all 

 continue a long time under wafer ; they all consider that 

 element as their proper abode ; whenever pressed by dan- 

 ger they fly to the water for security ; and, when upon 

 land, appear watchful, timorous, and unwieldy. 



In the first step of the progression from land to am- 

 phibious animals, we find the Otter, resembling those of 

 the terrestrial kind in shape, hair, and internal conforma- 

 tion ; resembling the aquatic tribes in its manner of living, 

 and in having membranes between the toes to assist it in 

 swimming. From this peculiar make of its feet, which 

 are very short, it swims even faster than it runs, and can 

 overtake fishes in their own element. The color of this 

 animal is brown ; and it is somewhat of the shape of an 

 overgrown weasel, being long, slender, and soft-skinned. 

 However, if we examine its figure in detail, we shall find 

 it unlike any other animal hitherto described, and of such 

 a shape as words can but weakly convey. Its usual 

 length is about two feet long, from the tip of the nose to the 

 insertion of the tail ; the head and nose are broad and flat ; 

 the mouth bears some similitude to that of a fish ; the neck 

 is short, and equal in thickness to the head ; the body 

 long ; the tail broad at the insertion, but tapering off to a 

 point at the end ; the eyes are very small, and placed 

 nearer the nose than usual in quadrupeds. The legs are 

 very short, but remarkably strong, broad, and muscular. 

 The joints are articulated so loosely, that the animal is ca- 

 pable of turning them quite back, and bringing them on 

 line with the body, so as to perform the office of fins. 

 Each foot is furnished with five toes, connected by strong, 

 broad webs, like those of water-fowl. Thus nature, in 



