Ground Vermin Wild Cats. 267 



in the uneducated peasant mind. The only instance we 

 have heard of the wild cat's occurrence of late years in 

 southern counties, was the shooting of one on Dartmoor 

 about nine years ago, and if the description given us 

 of a cat killed on the banks of the Dart four winters 

 since be correct, and we have no reason to doubt it, 

 then that was certainly also a wild cat, but as unfortunately 

 the animal's carcase was flung into the river by one of 

 the men who helped at its death, we can adduce no 

 further proof as to the correctness of our surmise. 



Although now so very scarce in England, it was till 

 about thirty or forty years back so common that it 

 was evidently a nuisance, and regarded as such, means 

 being taken to trap, shoot, or kill it at every avail- 

 able opportunity. Before this time, however, it was no 

 unimportant member of the beasts of chase, and was 

 hunted in a regular way with dogs, in much the same 

 manner as the otter at the present day, except the one 

 being on land and the other mostly in the water. At 

 this period, too, it was protected, or rather preserved, 

 as only the wealthy were allowed the privilege of using it 

 for sport, and we read that the fur was also of consider- 

 able market value, its employment being confined to certain 

 classes. 



Besides these, there is another class of vermin also 

 generally called wild cats, but which are mostly either 

 certain full grown domestic cats that have taken to the 

 woods and become wild, or else the progeny of some 

 sportively-inclined cat, which having deposited her young 

 in some plantation, wood, or copse, has left them as 



