224 



Handbook of Nature-Study 



The house mouse feeds tipon almost anything -which people like to eat. 



THE HOUSE MOUSE 

 Teacher's Story 



Somewhere in the darkness a clock strikes two; 

 And there is no sound in the sad old house, 

 Biit the lone, veranda dripping with dew, 

 And in the wainscot — a mouse. — Bret Harte. 



ERE mouse-gray a less inconspicuous color, there 

 would be fewer mice; when a mouse is running 

 along the floor, it is hardly discernible, it looks so 

 like a flitting shadow; if it were black or white or 

 any other color, it would be more often seen and 

 destroyed. Undoubtedly, it is owing to the fact 

 that its soft fur has this shadowy color, that this 

 species has been able to spread over the world. 

 At first glance one wonders what possible use a mouse can make of a 

 tail which is as long as its body, but a little careful observation will 

 reveal the secret. The tail is covered with transverse ridges and is bare 

 save for sparse hairs, except toward the tip. Dr. Ida Reveley first called 

 my attention to the fact that the house mouse uses its tail in climbing. I 

 verified this interesting observation, ^and found that my mouse used the 

 tail for aid when climbing a string. He would go up the string, hand over 

 hand, like a sailor, then in trying to stretch to the edge of his jar, he 

 invariably wound his tail about the string two or three times, and hanging 

 to the string with the hind feet and tail, would reach far out with his head 

 and front feet. Also, when clinging to the edge of the cover of the jar, he 

 invariably used his tail as a brace against the side of the glass, so that it 

 pressed hard for more than half its length. Undoubtedly the tail is of 

 great service when climbing up the sides of walls. 



