184 THE BADGES. 



undisturbed by man it is still diurnal in its habits. 

 In this country, through sorrowful experience, it has 

 become solely nocturnal. It has retreated to the 

 depths of our deepest forests in the hope of finding 

 security from man, and every movement of its life 

 is characterised by the earnest desire to avoid 

 encounter with man and his dogs. Because the 

 badger is a brave and an able fighter, it has been used 

 as a means of trying out the mettle of beasts as 

 brave and able as itself, which, in the broad light 

 of things, savours of the barbarous, and of a spirit 

 hardly worthy of the lovers of cricket. 



DIMENSIONS AND WEIGHT. 



The measurements of an adult female killed in 

 Yorkshire were from the tip of the snout to the 

 root of the tail, 31 inches ; tail, about 7 inches. 



The only two badgers I have ever weighed were 

 evidently far below average; they were 16f Ib. 

 (female) and 14^ Ib. (male), both killed in the New 

 Forest. The average weight of the Cornish badger 

 is given as 30 Ib. ; and, according to Sir Harry 

 Johnston, the heaviest specimen known was killed 

 in Warwickshire, and scaled 43 Ib. 



