738 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, Vol XI. 



battles royal together, with so much squealing and scuffling that one really 

 felt surprised at the end of the fray to find that ueither seemed a penny the 

 worse, and that the famous story of the Kilkenny cats had not been repeated; 

 but no, bushy tails and. all appeared absolutely intact. All, however, was 

 not war, many were the frolics and gambols in which the two indulged, they 

 were as lively as kittens, and a dangling string or a fluttering piece of paper 

 would afford endless amusement to them as well as to the on-lookers. "With 

 leaps and bounds, headlong rushes and much scurrying of pattering feet, the 

 curving tails arched in the air, they would enact the maddest of revels till, 

 wearied out, they would curl themselves up and fall asleep from sheer exhaus- 

 tion. Their greatest enjoyment, however, was in digging burrows for them- 

 selves in the garden, in and out of which they would play with never-failing 

 delight. Directly they were let loose from the bungalow they scampered 

 straight for their holes, which were side by side in a bank about 15 yards from 

 the verandah. Often both polecats darted into the same hole, whereupon 

 tremendous scuffling ensued, and the vanquished one would then make a 

 hasty exit and seek refuge next door. Their digging powers are great, as they 

 have strong paws with long serviceable claws, and they excavate deep, roomy 

 burrows. On hearing any unusual sound, they would rush to the mouth of 

 the hole and there raise themselves on their hind legs, remaining erect for a 

 remarkably long time, turning their heads on every side to discover what was 

 happening. They were most fearless little animals, and would face a dog or 

 a man with calm self-possession, even moving close to the stranger to obtain 

 a better view. Some time later a third polecat, a male, came into my posses- 

 sion. He was larger than the other two, but the marking and colouring in 

 each case were almost identical. This last one is exceedingly gentle, and 

 allows himself to be picked up and petted, and never growls or attempts to 

 bite. Unfortunately, No. 2 broke her string one night and made her escape, 

 and all search for her proved fruitless. The two others are still flourishing, 

 and lead a happy, though uneventful, existence. They each have their own 

 particular whims, which it is amusing to watch. No, 1, for instance, insists 

 on wrapping herself up in a cloth every night, which is put down for her to 

 sleep on. She will spend 5 or 10 minutes sometimes before she can arrange 

 it to her satisfaction. She first creeps under it, and then carefully pulls in 

 all the ed^es by the aid of her teeth and claws until she has gathered them 

 round her and completely packed herself into a tight bundle. No. 3, the male, 

 never does this. He, however, has a fancy for an empty basket, into which 

 he climbs and there goes to sleep contentedly. They are fed on raw meat 

 chopped finely, and milk. 



They are allowed to run loose in a room for part of the day and enjoy a 

 romp, playing hide-and-seek with each other or with a little Persian mongoose, 

 their stable companions. Shoes, or better still, long riding boots, in and 

 out of which they can dive and chase each other, are among their favourite 



