98 MAMMALIA—MOUSE. 
his body. After a while a small shed was built for him in the corner of the 
yard, and filled with straw; but the animal would not quit its former situa- 
tion unti. it was covered with a stone. He then took possession of the 
shed, and every morning carried leaves from a distant part of the border, to 
stop its mouth. His principal food was raw meat and mice. Of the latter, 
he would eat six at a time, but never more; and although these were 
thrown to him dead, he bit them all in the neck before he began to eat any. 
He would also eat snails with their shells; but would leave any thing for 
milk, which he lapped exceedingly slow. To this, even if set six or eight 
yards distant from his shed, he would almost always come out half an hour 
before his usual time. If the person who usually fed him neglected to do 
so, he would follow him along the yard; and if the door was open he would 
go into the house. If meat was put near the mouth of his shed in the day 
time, he would sometimes pull it in and eat it. As the weather became 
colder, he carried more leaves into his shed; and sometimes he would not 
come out for two or three days successively. About the end of November 
he died; from want of food, as was supposed, but most probably from the 
severity of the weather.” 
THE SHREW MOUSE! 
Is smaller than the domestic mouse: it has a strong smell, which is peculiar 
to itself, and so offensive to cats, that, though they will cheerfully chase and 
kill the shrew mouse, yet they will not eat its flesh, like that of the domes- 
tic mouse. It is evidently this noisome odor, this aversion of the cat to it, 
that gave rise to the notion, that the shrew mouse is a venomous animal, 
and that its bite isso dangerous to cattle of all sorts, and particularly to 
horses. The truth, however, is, that it is neither venomous nor capable 
of biting ; for it cannot open its mouth sufficiently wide to seize the double 
thickness of the skin, which is absolutely necessary, in order to bite. The 
distemper among horses, it is farther to be observed, which the vulgar attri- 
bute to the tooth of the shrew mouse, is a swelling which proceeds from an 
internal cause, and has no connection with any bite, or rather scratch, that 
this little animal may give. 
In winter, especially, the shrew mouse generally fixes its residence in 
some hay-loft, stable, or barn, where it feeds on grain, insects, and putrified 

1 Sorea arancus, Lin. The genus Sorex has two upper and two lower incisors; six o1 
eight upper and four lower spurious canines, or lateral incisors; eight upper and six lower. 
true molars; upper middle incisors hooked and dentated at base; molars crowned with 
points; head much elongated; nose prolonged and moveable; ears short, rounded; eyes 
small, but perceptible ; tail more or less long, often angular; feet with weak toes, sepa- 
rated, furnished with crooked nails; teats six or eight; sebaceous glands on the sides. 
