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NEW ENGLAND FARSIER. 



Oct. 



THE HARVEST MOUSE. 



Tn the agricultural books and papers of 

 England this mouse is often mentioned, but 

 we are not aware that it is found in this 

 country. It is only two and a quarter inch- 

 es long from end of nose to root of tail, 

 which measures about two inches more. The 

 back is of a bright ruddy hue and the abdo- 

 men white. The ears are shorter in propor- 

 tion than those of the ordinary mouse ; the 

 head is larger and more slender, and the 

 eyes less projecting. Their food consists 

 greatly of insects, flies being especial favorites, 

 in the capture of which their remarkable 

 agility is most pleasingly illustrated. These 

 beautiful little creatures make their nests, as 

 represented in the cut, among standing wheat, 

 or other grain, or in thistles and other weeds, 

 at some distance from the ground. The nest 

 is a curiosity. According to the description 

 in the book called "Homes without Hands," 

 the nest is made of very "narrow grasses, and 

 woven so carefully as to form a hollow globe, 

 rather larger than a cricket-ball, and very 



nearly as round. How the little creature con- 

 trives to form so complicated an object as a 

 hollow sphere with thin walls is still a problem. 

 It is another problem how the young are 

 placed in it, and another how they are fed. 

 The walls are so thin that an object inside the 

 nest can be easily seen from any part of the 

 exterior ; there is no opening whatever, and 

 when the young are in the nest they are 

 packed so tightly that their bodies press 

 against the wall in every direction. As there 

 is no defined opening, and as the walls are so 

 loosely woven, it is probable that the mother 

 is able to push her way between the meshes, 

 and so to arrange or feed her young." 



In this airy cradle may sometimes be seen 

 as many as eight young mice, all packed to- 

 gether like herrings in a box. Being very 

 expert climbers, these mice move among the 

 straws of grain as readily as monkeys do 

 among the boughs of trees. These mice are 

 often carried in sheaves from the field to the 

 barn, where they live and multiply. 



