ORDER V. THE C.VRNIVORA. 1G5 



hemisphere. The ratel is about two feet in lengtli, resembling the badger 

 in form, of a gray color above, and black beneath, witli a whitish line sep- 

 arating the two colors, from ears to tail. Tiiis animal does not, however, 

 climb like the glutton, but is a remarkable miner, digging Jiis way into the 

 earth with his powerfid claws, forming long suliterrancan galleries which lead 

 to iiuman graves, for the purpose of preying on the putrid bodies. lie is 

 very fond of honey, and is said to watch the honey cuckoo, and follow him 

 to the bees' nest, and get a share of tiie plunder. 



Genus Gulo. The Glnflon. — The Glutton is a somewhat ferocious, 

 but very sagacious animal, rather heavy and slow in his movements, much 

 resemblintr the badirer in form. He inhabits the northern forests, and is 

 seldom found south of Canada on this, or of Sweden on the Old Continent. 

 His manner of hunting deer, and kindred animals, is very remarkable, and 

 his vicfhod would seem, necessarily, to be the result both of reflection and 

 observation. As in an open fight he could not hope to succeed with the 

 formidable stag or reindeer, he resorts to stratagem. Knowing that these 

 animals feed on a kind of moss, he gathers a quantity of it, and, carrying it 

 in his mouth, he ascends a tree, and crawling out on an extending In-anch, 

 drops it to the ground. lie then waits patiently and motionless till a deer 

 passes, and when the latter stoops to taste the lichen, thus uncovering his 

 neck from the protection of his horns, the glutton makes a sudden spring, 

 and alighting on the shoulders of his victim, pierces the flesh with his long 

 and trenchant claws, and seizing with his teeth the frreat blood vessels of the 

 neck, hangs there imtil the fated animal falls lifeless to the ground. If, 

 however, tiiere should be a river or lake near, the stag would instinctively 

 dash into it, and doing so, would escape, as the glutton has a singular fear 

 of water, and nothing can induce him to enter it. 



He has a keen sense of smelling, and easily detects food which hunters 

 sometimes bury very deep in the earth for preservation ; and often the jjoor 

 hunter returns, to find himself robbed of his whole store. A party of hunt- 

 ers in the employ of the Hudson's Bay Company was once plundered by this 

 animal. " The animal had for many weeks been lurking about their tent, 

 and committed many depredations on the game caught iu their traps and 

 snares, as well as eaten many of the foxes that were killed by guns set for 

 the purpose, l)ut he was too cunning to touch either gun or trap himself. 

 The people tJiought they had adopted the best method to secure their pro- 

 visions, ijy tying them in bundles, and laying them on the top of wood-piles. 

 To their astonishment, when they returned, they found the greatest part of 

 the pile thrown down, notwithstanding some of the trees with which it was 

 constructed were as much as two men could carry. Tiie wood was very 

 much scattered about; and it was supposed that, in the animal's attempting 



