WILD LIFE OF ORCHARD AND FIELD 



one, in her mouth, to a place of safety under a 

 rock, where perhaps was their home. A lion could 

 not have shown more clean courage and indif- 

 ference to danger than that small mink mother. 



A relative of mine, a preacher and truthful, re- 

 lates that he was sitting in an upper room of his 

 house at Easthampton, Massachusetts, one after- 

 noon, when he saw a weasel come up the stairs, 

 enter the room and saunter about, examining every- 

 thing within reach of his nose, including the par- 

 son's square-toed boots, with careful attention. 

 Having completed this survey, he quietly with- 

 drew, pattered softly down-stairs, and the dominie 

 went on with his sermon. Whether his visitor 

 also went to hear the sermon I do not know; and 

 it is a pity, for then, perhaps, we should learn 

 whether it really were possible to " catch a weasel 

 asleep." 



Ferocity marks all that the weasel does. He 

 constantly kills more than he can eat, seemingly 

 just for the joy of seizing and killing, and a pair 

 that make their residence near a poultry-yard will 

 destroy the flock in a short time if not prevented. 

 They are the terror of the wild birds one of the 

 worst of their daylight foes, especially for the 

 ground-keeping birds ; and here again they arouse 



2? 



