9708 Sucklers. 



alarmed his voice, was a pretty loud and extveraelj shrill squeal?, not 

 unlike that of his relatives the bats and shrews. 



'He seemed in good health up to the afternoon of the 15th of July, 

 on the morning of which day he ate sixteen white slugs, which had 

 been caught for his benefit. In the evening he was observed to be 

 gasping for breath and unable to run about, and soon after he expired. 

 Dissection not affording any clue to the cause of death, I am inclined 

 to attribute it to the want of proper protection from the heavy rains 

 which fell about that time, and wliich saturated his little heap of earth. 

 In a state of nature these animals probably burrow deep into the earth 

 in wet weather. If any of your readers are inclined to keep a pet 

 mole I would recommend them to protect it from the rain, and to give 

 it plenty of raw meat and water, and an occasional supply of worms, 

 snails, &c. To feed so voracious a little brute entirely on earthworms 

 would be difficult, for as many as can be obtained in an hour's digging 

 are disposed of at a single meal. | 



Diseases of Jials and Mice. — Mr. Gunn mentions a curious case of 

 a rat suffering from some extraordinary skin disease (Zool. 90 15) ; 

 these animals seem to be very subject to such comjilaints, and espe- 

 cially to tumours, of which Mr. Buckland has met with very many 

 cases ('Curiosities of Natural History,' first series). A few years ago 

 (in the s])riug of ISfiO, I think) a skin disease was epidemic amongst 

 the house mice in Glasgow, and was fatal in many cases ; it attracted 

 a good deal of attention at the time from a fear that it might be com- 

 municated to human beings. Last September I examined a wood 

 mouse [Mus si/lraticiis), which had a fatty tumour as large as a pea 

 lying under the skin ; and, three years ago, a friend of mine killed a 

 mole in Germany with a large abcess on its back. 



Edward R. Alston. 

 Stockbriggs, Lesmahagow, August 1, 1865. 



Ornithological Notes from Lauarkshire. 

 By Edward R. Alston, Esq. 



(Continued from page 9681.) 



" July, 1865. 



Gray Wagtail. — On the 6th of July I observed a pair of gray wag- 

 tails sitting on a rail ; they were springing into the air at flies and 

 returning to the same perch again, exactly like the spotted flycatcher. 



