276 'November 1748. 



fo foon. A certain man of rank who had 

 by accident been wetted by the polecat, 

 ftunk fo ill, that on going into a houfe, 

 the people either ran away, or on his open- 

 ing the door, rudely denied him entrance. 

 Dogs that have hunted a polecat are fo 

 offcnfive for fome days afterwards, that they 

 cannot be borne in the houfe. At Phila- 

 delphia I once faw a great number of people 

 on a market day throwing at a dog that 

 was fo unfortunate as to have been engaged 

 with a polecat juft before, and to carry 

 iabout him the tokens of its difpleafure. Per- 

 fons when travelling through ^a foreft are 

 often troubled with the flink which this 

 creature makes ; and fometimes the air is 

 fo much infedted that it is neceffary to hold 

 ones nofe. If the wind blows from the 

 place where the polecat has been, or if it 

 be quite calm, as at night, the fmell is^ 

 more ftrong and difagreeable. 



In the winter of 1749, a polecat tempt- 

 ed by a dead lamb, came one night near' 

 the farm houfe where I then llept. Being 

 immediately purfued by fome dogs, it had 

 recourfe to its ufual expedient in order ttf 

 get rid of them. The attempt fucceeded, 

 the dogs not chooling to continue the 

 purfuit : the flink was fo extremely great 

 that, though I was at fome diftance it 

 siffcded me in the fame manner as if I 



had 



