THE HONEY-WEESEL OR RATEL. 31/ 



v;hich flies on, by degrees, with a peculiar and al- 

 luring note, and guides him to the Bees'-nests. 



As the Ratel's hairs are stiff and harsh, so its 

 hide is tough, and the animal itself difficult to kill. 

 The Colonists and Hottentots both assert, that it is 

 almost impossible to kill this creature, without giv- 

 ing it a great number of violent blows on the nose ; 

 on which account they usually destroy it by shoot- 

 ing it, or by plunging a knife into its body. — The 

 shortness of his legs will not permit him to make 

 his escape by flight, when pursued by the Hounds. 

 He is able, however, sometimes to extricate himself 

 from their clutches, by biting and scratching them 

 in a most terrible manner: while, on the other hand, 

 he is perfectly well defended from the assaults of 

 their teeth by the toughness of his hide; for, when 

 a Hound endeavours to bite him, it can lay hold 

 only on this part, which instantly separates from the 

 creature's body or flesh, as it is reported to lie loose 

 from the skin, as within a sack ; so that, when any 

 one also catches hold of him by the hind part of 

 his neck, and that even pretty near his head, he 

 can turn round, as it were, in his skin, and bite the 

 arm that seizes him. It is a remarkable circum- 

 stance, that such a number of Hounds as are able 

 collectively to tear in pieces a Lion of moderate size, 

 are said to be sometimes obliged to leave the Ratel 

 dead in appearance only. Is it not, therefore, pro* 

 ble, that Nature, which seems to have destined th€i, 

 Ratel for the destruction of Bees, may have bestow- 

 ed on it a hide so much tongher than those she has 

 given to other animals of the Viverra kind, for the 



