102 NORTHERN HARE. 



it are only sources of perplexity, and additional difficulties in the way of 

 the naturalist of the present daj-. Strange mistakes were committed by 

 some of those ■who wrote on the subject, from Pennant down to Harlan, 

 GoDMAN, and others still later : and one error appears to have led to another, 

 until even the identity of the species meant to be described by different 

 authors, •vvas finally involved in an almost inextricable 'web of em- 

 barrassment. 



As far as we have been able to ascertain, the Northern Hare was 

 first noticed by Sagard Theodat, (Hist.de Canada,) in 1636. Kalm, (who 

 travelled in America from 1748 to 1751, and whose work was published in 

 the Swedish language, and soon after translated into German and English,) 

 speaks of this species as follows : — " Hares are likewise said to be plen- 

 tiful even in Hudson's Bay, and they are abundant in Canada, where 

 I have often seen, and found them perfectly corresponding w^ith our 

 Swedish hares. In summer they have a brownish-gra}% and in winter a 

 snowj'-white colour, as ■with us." (Kalm's Travels, &c., vol. ii., p. 45. 

 English translation.) 



This judicious and intelligent traveller, undoubtedly here referred to the 

 Northern Hare. He supposed it to be identical with the Alpine, or vari- 

 able Hare, (Lepus variabilis,) which is found in Sweden and other North- 

 ern countries of Europe. That species is a little larger than the North- 

 ern Hare, and the tips of its ears are black ; but although it is a distinct 

 species, it so nearly resembles the latter, that several authors, Godman not 

 excepted, were induced to regard these two species as identical. Kalm, 

 (see vol. i., p. 105, Eng. trans.,) whilst he was in the vicinity of Philadel- 

 phia, where the Northern Hare never existed, gave a correct account of 

 another species, the American gray rabbit, which we will notice more 

 in detail when we describe that animal. It is very evident that in these 

 two notices of American hares, Kalm had reference to two distinct spe- 

 cies, and that he pointed out those distinctive marks by ^vhich they are 

 separated. If subsequent authors confounded the two species, and created 

 confusion, their errors evidently cannot be owing to any fault of the emi- 

 nent Swedish traveller. 



The first specmiens of the Northern Hare that appeared in Europe, 

 were sent by the servants of the Hudson's Bay Company to England, in 

 1771, (see Phil. Trans., vol. Ixii., p. 13.) There were four specimens in 

 the collection, exhibiting the various gradations of colour. In addition to 

 these, a living animal of the same species was received about the same 

 time, probably by the same ship. It was brought to the notice of the 

 Philosophical Society, in a letter from the Hon. Daines Barrington, read 

 16th January, 1772. This letter is interesting, since it gives us some idea 



