MOORLAND IDYLLS. 



gamekeepers. Even externally, however, it 

 differs much from mice in its long pointed 

 snout a marked insectivorous feature 

 as well as in its square and abruptly 

 cut-off tail, where the mouse's is rounded, 

 tapering, and slender. When you come 

 to the teeth and internal anatomy, however, 

 the creature is an insectivore, displaying at 

 once quite a separate character. 



Mice, as everybody knows, feed mainly 

 on seeds and grains, though they are fairly 

 omnivorous, and do not despise either bees 

 or beetles. But the shrew, less promiscuous, 

 eschews all vegetable foods ; he makes his 

 diet entirely of insects, worms, and slugs, 

 of which he devours an incredible number. 

 Hence he haunts for the most part dry 

 fields and gardens, where such prey is 

 abundant. His preference is also for a 

 soft sandy or light loamy soil, in which he 

 can burrow with ease with the muzzle 

 alone, for his slender feet are ill adapted 

 for digging through hard earth or clay. A 

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