THE PINE-MARTEN. 143 



prominent naturalist, for it is easily conceivable 

 that a brace of these picturesque little cut-throats, 

 enjoying the liberty of, say, Hyde Park, would 

 establish a highly successful business among the 

 duck community for so long as it was permitted 

 to last. 



DESCRIPTION. 



The pine -marten is a beautiful tree -weasel, 

 possessing the gifts of all the musk-bearing fra- 

 ternity to which it belongs, together with several 

 unique accomplishments of its own. It does not, 

 however, secrete musk ; in fact, while a weasel in 

 spirit, and of the pukka fighting breed, it seems 

 to have been shorn by nature of the repulsive 

 features most conspicuous in the land-weasels 

 the polecat, the skunk, the mink, the fisher, and 

 the two smaller members of the family resident in 

 this country. It is so large and formidable a beast 

 that it has no wild enemies on British soil ; while 

 all, excepting the fox, the badger, and the otter, 

 probably come within the scope of its destructive 

 powers. Even wild deer enjoy no immunity from 

 the marten cat, for the tiny mottled fawn, lying 

 among the leaves, has been known to fall to it. 

 It will, moreover, dispute the right-of-way with 

 any wildling of our woods, and has been known 

 vigorously to pursue a fox out of its home-range. 



The exquisite sable is a marten, though in this 

 country the marten's fur is not of great value. In 

 general colour the creature is chocolate-brown, 

 the longer hairs being richly glistened with sepia 

 and umber. The under-fur is squirrel-red ; the 

 paws are generally black ; and the tail is long and 

 bushy. The hall-mark of the marten is, however, 

 its flaming orange breast, touched with lighter 



