50 THE BADGER 



monograph already mentioned. His captives 

 were not killed but released elsewhere. 



In Scotland this method is seldom very 

 practicable, as our badgers are usually found in 

 rocky ground or in cairns ; or else in earths on 

 a hillside where digging would be too much 

 like railway-tunnelling to be feasible. 



In Germany the Dachshund or ' badger 

 hound' takes the place of our terriers. The 

 German writers speak of the flesh as eatable ; 

 and the fat had, both there and here, a great 

 reputation as a cure for rheumatism. There 

 used to be, and may yet be, a very general 

 custom in South Germany of hanging a badger- 

 skin as an ornament on the harness or collar of 

 farm horses. 



Our ancestors had a quaint belief that the 

 badger's legs were shorter on one side than on 

 the other, the better to run along a hill-side ! 

 The difficulty of the return journey does not 

 seem to have occurred to them. This story 

 probably had its origin in the shambling, rolling 

 gait of the animal. 



The name badger is said to be derived from 

 Latin bladarius, a corn-dealer (cf. French 

 blaireau), from a supposed habit of storing up 

 corn for winter supply. Sir Herbert Maxwell * 



1 Memories of the Months. 



