122 WILD BEASTS OF THE WORLD 



the time, thus insuring that no one else can enjoy it ; for it is said that 

 no other creature but the Glutton itself, however famished, can eat food 

 that has been thus tainted. 



The Glutton will treat in this way a cache made by the trappers, 

 into which it has failed to make an entrance ; ana if it does get in, it 

 creates lamentable havoc, for it destroys everything which is not edible, 

 or carries the objects away, if small enough, and hides them, out of pure 

 mischief, apparently. In a similar spirit it hunts up the traps set for the 

 fur-bearing animals, such as Martens, eats the bait, and springs the trap, 

 taking good care not to get caught itself. The Martens themselves it 

 does not usually care to eat; but, in pursuance of its usual policy, it 

 mauls and spoils them, and hides them in the snow or up in a tree. 



It is not surprising that an animal with these characteristics is cor- 

 dially detested by trappers ; indeed, " Indian Devil " is one of the names 

 commonly applied to it in the fur-countries of North America, where 

 the animal is best known, and where the above characteristics have been 

 especially noted. When it comes to trapping the Glutton itself, the task 

 is one of the greatest difficulty ; the beast is so cunning that it has been 

 known, when a spring-gun was set for it, to gnaw through the cord 

 communicating with the trigger, and so appropriate the bait in safety. 

 Like so many other cunning people, however, the Glutton sometimes 

 over-reaches himself, and accordingly it is found that the best plan for 

 catching him is to bury the trap, bait and all, as if one did not wish 

 him to find it, in which case there is a considerable chance of his 

 wariness being discounted by his desire to unravel the mystery. When 

 captured, the animal is of some use as furnishing a valuable fur, 

 but not very many skins come into the trade. The female Glutton 

 deposits her young in a burrow ; they are born about midsummer, and 

 number four or five. At first they are very much lighter than the 

 adult, being only cream-colour, and the mother displays the most 

 desperate courage in defence of them ; indeed, the Indians say they 

 would rather meet a she-bear with her young than a Glutton. 



The Glutton can be kept in captivity, and is generally on view at the 

 London Zoological Gardens. When taken old, however, it is usually 



