106 ANIMALS Or THE 



covering the manner of preparing ambergrise ; 

 and even this is now disused, for the less power- 

 ful vegetable kinds of fragrance, spirits of laven- 

 der, or ottar of roses. 



As to the rest, the civet is said to be a wild 

 fierce animal ; and although sometimes tamed, is 

 never thoroughly familiar. Its teeth are strong 

 and cutting, although its claws be feeble and 

 flexible. It is light and active, and lives by prey, 

 as the rest of its kind, pursuing birds and other 

 small animals that it is able to overcome. They 

 are sometimes seen stealing into the yards and 

 out-houses, to seize upon the poultry : their eyes 

 shine in the night, and it is very probable that 

 they see better in the dark than by day. When 

 they fail of animal food, they are found to subsist 

 upon roots and fruits, and very seldom drink ; 

 for which reason they are never found near great 

 waters. They breed very fast in their native 

 climates, where the heat seems to conduce to 

 their propagation ; but in our temperate latitudes, 

 although they furnish their perfume in great 

 quantities, yet they are not found to multiply ; 

 a proof that their perfume has no analogy with 

 their appetite for generation. 



THE GLUTTON. 



I WILL add but one animal more to this nume- 

 rous class of the weasel kind, namely, the Glut- 

 ton, which, for several reasons, seems to belong 



