CHAP. XVIII.] 



THE FIFTH DAT. 



295 



this nation; and also of fish-ponds, and the ordering of 

 them : and do it, I pray, good master, for I love any dis- 

 course of rivers, and fish and fishing, the time spent in such 

 discourse passes away very pleasantly. 





Laud and "Water Shrews. 



[These little creatures have a very rank musky smell, which has given 

 them the reputation of being venomous, but this is not the case. Our 

 forefathers thought that if the Shrew ran over the bodies of cattle, its touch 

 was fatal, unless cured by an application of the Shrew-ash ; which it was 

 customary to "medicate" by burying the animal alive in a hole made in the 

 body of the tree. They feed generally by the sides of rivers, on worms and 

 the grubs of beetles,' and having a very small mouth, cannot, as has been 

 supposed, do any harm by their bite. That beautiful little creature, the 

 WATER-SHREW, has its tail and feet adapted to paddling in the water, in 

 which it swims and dives with great agility, its black velvety fur repelling 

 the water like the feathers of a water-fowl. They renew their coats both 

 in spring and autumn, and in a somewhat peculiar manner, beginning the 

 change at the head and proceeding by degrees to the tail, showing the 

 successive progress by a strong line of demarcation. H. Gr. B.] 



