6 THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST 



off short at 14 mm. from the head, the left at 16 mm. 

 In each case there were distinct traces of a jagged fracture 

 where the bone had been broken. 



The history of the Stoat is therefore tolerably clear. 

 At some period its fore-limbs had been amputated close 

 to the body, and the obvious supposition is that the limbs 

 had been caught simultaneously in a trap. But this amputa- 

 tion was an old story, for there was no sign of a recent wound ; 

 indeed, externally, there was only the faintest indication 

 of a wound at all, so that the wounds must have healed 

 and the skin have completely overgrown the hurt surfaces 

 some considerable time previous to the death of the animal. 



The question therefore arises : How had the Stoat fared 

 in the meantime, lacking limbs, which one would have 

 supposed were necessary for its progress, or at any rate 

 for its successful catching of prey? It is difficult to answer 

 the question satisfactorily in the absence of direct evidence 

 of its habits, but it is clear that by some extraordinary 

 power of adaptability to a new situation it contrived to 

 move and fend for itself with success. We have the game- 

 keeper's testimony, quoted by the Marquess of Linlithgow 

 in a letter, that " it seemed to progress in an ordinary way 

 and to be quite as active, and to travel as fast as an ordinary 

 Stoat." But even more telling witness to its success was 

 afforded by the body of the Stoat itself: it was well nourished 

 and showed no deficiency of growth, its length from tip 

 of nose to tip of tail was i ft. 4fy in., its head and body 

 measured lOyV in., its tail 6 in., and its weight in the flesh 

 was Sh oz. Regarding the measurements of normal indi- 

 viduals, J. G. Millais says: "Adult males measure in length 

 15 to 26 in., tail from 5 to 6|- in., . . . weight of males 5 to 

 10 oz. {^Mainiiials of Great Britain and Ireland, vol. ii., 

 p. 108). In all these respects, then, the crippled Stoat com- 

 pares favourably with a normal individual. 



How did it actually progress ? Had stumps of the limbs 

 remained one could have imagined that they might have 

 afforded a certain aid in propulsion. But in such a case 

 surely some part of the coat on the under surface would 

 have shown signs of rubbing. There were no such signs; 



