THE OTTER. 229 



A young otter nourished by a bitch. 



fish-pond, as the polecat in a hen-roost; for he 

 frequently kills more fish than he can eat, and 

 then carries off but one in his teeth. 



The female brings four or five young at a 

 time, about the month of June; as it frequents 

 ponds near gentlemen's houses, litters have been 

 found in cellars, sinks, and other drains. The 

 cubs have been known to have been suckled and 

 brought up bj' a bitch : near South Molton, in 

 Devonshire, this happened, and the young otter 

 followed his master with the dogs, but seemed 

 to have no inclination for the water. The } r oung 

 of animals are generally beautiful, but the young 

 otter is not so handsome as the old. 



In the northern parts of America, these ani- 

 mals change their colour in winter to white, like 

 most of the other Arctic animals ; and it is not 

 till very late in the spring that they resume their 

 brown summer dress. 



The hunting of the otter was formerly consi- 

 dered as excellent sport, and hounds were kept 

 solely for that purpose; the sportsmen went on. 

 each side the river, beating the banks and sedges 

 with the dogs; if an otter were in that quarter, 

 his seal was soon traced upon the mud, as the 

 water, wherever it would admit of it, (according 

 to the mode now pursued) was lowered as much 

 as possible, to expose the hollow banks, reed- 

 beds, and stubs, that might otherwise shelter 

 Liin ; each hunter had a spear to attack the otter 



