98 THE WEASEL AND THE STOAT (THE ERMINE). 



domain uses such sanctuaries at its pleasure, and 

 moulds each and every one to the murderous desires 

 of its will. Barring the fox, the badger, and the 

 otter, no creature of our fields and hedgerows is 

 safe from a surprise attack by weasels. They 

 are the most dreaded and the most destructive of 

 all four-footed things, and were their numbers to 

 multiply greatly it would be to the extermination 

 of every bird in the trees and hedgerows, and every 

 warm-blooded, fur-covered denizen of the earth. 



NUMBERS. 



But the weasel population does not multiply 

 beyond certain limits prescribed by nature. If an 

 area of country were left undisturbed for a number 

 of years and no weasels or stoats were killed, 

 they would not become unduly common not so 

 common, indeed, as they are to-day in certain 

 well-stocked coverts where, owing to the abundance 

 of food, every passing weasel is tempted to dally. 

 At first thought this may seem strange, but if 

 we have due regard to the weasel's life-habits, the 

 reason is not obscure. 



Finding conditions suitable, a weasel takes unto 

 himself a certain hunting -range, and any other 

 weasel trespassing on that range has either to 

 fight or to fly. Being a weasel, he probably fights, 

 and a weasel-fight is generally a fight to a finish. 

 By the time the conquered one begins to realise 

 he is getting the worse of it if a weasel ever 

 does realise such a thing he is probably too badly 

 knocked about to escape from his opponent, who, 

 knowing he has the upper hand, goes all out to bring 

 the combat to a conclusion. The more plentiful 

 weasels are, the more commonly these meetings 

 occur, and thus we have nature's prevention of 



