STOATS AND WEASELS 281 



The common stoat the true ermine is still toler- 

 ably plentiful with us ; but south of the Tweed it 

 seldom, or at least irregularly, assumes its beautiful 

 snowy winter jacket. Ermine fur was so highly 

 esteemed in the heyday of chivalry that its use was 

 restricted by a statute of the Plantagenets to mem- 

 bers of the royal family. 



It would be an exceedingly interesting experiment 

 for the owner of a deer-forest to enclose a piece of 

 hillside for rearing sables, martens, ermines, and 

 even silver foxes. Stalkers and gillies have plenty of 

 spare time, except during two months in the year ; 

 the animals, if securely fenced (which would be the 

 chief difficulty and expense), would require to be 

 regularly fed with rabbits and blue hares, but would 

 need little other attention, till they had multiplied 

 sufficiently to be killed and skinned ; and the enter- 

 prise might turn out in the end to be an exceedingly 

 lucrative one. 



TiXXXV 



The misdeeds of the stoat have damaged the char- 

 acter of its relative, the weasel, and it gtoatg and 

 would be vain to try and persuade the Weasels 

 average gamekeeper that this active little animal is, in 



