FERRETING. 19 



to fancy goods, nor do they consider the evil 

 smells that men have to tolerate under the 

 floors or from the bad drains. 



I could relate many interesting anecdotes 

 of what I have seen and heard about Eats, but 

 I fear its perusal might take up too much of 

 my readers' time. There is, however, one thing 



I will mention. I dare say you have heard of 

 Eats running about in "swarms" in the night. 

 Do not believe it. In my whole experience I 

 have never been so fortunate as to meet a 

 " swarm" of these, when I have had an 

 empty cage on my back, and an order for 12 

 dozen live Eats at 5s. per dozen. When 

 trapping at farms on a moonlight night I have 

 seen a train of Eats almost in single file going 

 from a barn to a pit or brook to drink, and 

 then I have simply run a long net all along 

 the barn very quickly, sent my dog round the 

 pit and caught all the Eats in the net when 

 they ran back to get in the barn. For in 

 these places you must be as cunning as the 

 Eats to catch them. The quickest way for a 

 farmer to get rid of Eats is to run a long trail 

 of good oatmeal outside his barn doors, and 

 .shoot them on a moonlight night. I have seen 



II killed at a shot in this way. They will stop 

 eating the oatmeal because they cannot carry 

 it away. At farms or out-houses you might 



