BROWN RAT. 311 



having first cautiously, and with as little noise as possible, 

 stopped up all the holes, he got together several of his 

 workmen, each having a torch in one hand and a stick 

 in the other. Having entered the yard and closed the 

 door behind them, they commenced a general massacre. 

 It was not necessary to take any aim, for no matter how 

 the blow was directed, it was sure to immolate a Rat ; 

 and those which endeavoured to escape by climbing up 

 the walls were quickly knocked down. By a recurrence 

 of this experiment at intervals of a few days, he killed in 

 the space of a month 16,050 Rats. After one night's 

 massacre the dead amounted to 2,650 ; and the result of 

 four hunts was 9,101. Even this can give but an imper- 

 fect idea of the number of these vermin ; for the enclosure 

 in which they were thus killed contains not above the 

 twentieth part of the space over which the dead bodies of 

 Horses are spread, and which, it is but fair to suppose, 

 must equally attract the Rats upon all points. These 

 animals have made burrows for themselves, like Rabbits, 

 in the adjoining fields, and hollowed out into catacombs 

 all the surrounding eminences and that to such an extent, 

 that it is not unusual to see the latter crumble away at 

 the base, and leave these subterraneous works exposed. 

 So great is the number of these animals, that they have 

 not all been able to lodge themselves in the immediate 

 vicinity of the slaughter-houses ; for paths may be dis- 

 tinctly traced leading across the fields from the enclosures 

 in which the Horses are killed, to a burrow about 500 

 paces distant."* 



The following remarkable instance of the ferocity of 

 this animal, when driven by hunger, was related to us 

 by the late Robert Stephenson, Esq., M.P., the distin- 

 * See Jesse's Gleanings, Second Series, p. 311. 



