THE MOUSE. 689 



Prussia in 1750; in Paris in 1753 ; but did not reach Denmark and Switz- 

 erland till 1809. In 1760, it is said that the town of Jaik in Siberia was 

 taken by storm by an innumerable army of rats. In 1755 the Brown Rat 

 arrived in North America. 



The Brown Rat is a fierce animal, and possesses great power of com- 

 bination. A number of them have been known to kill a cat, and a large 

 body would make short work of a man. It is exceedingly voracious, 

 and has no scruple about devouring its companions if they are sick or 

 wounded. They will enter a stable and nibble the horn of the horses' 

 hoofs ; they will creep among sleeping dogs and gnaw their feet. They 

 have been known to attack children in the cradle. Yet they are not 

 without their uses ; they act as scavengers, and consume an immense 

 quantity of refuse which otherwise would breed disease. They are 

 cleanly in their personal habits, and spend much time in washing them- 

 selves. They have repeatedly been tamed by prisoners who have made 

 their acquaintance in solitary confinement. They are subject to a very 

 peculiar disease. The tails of several rats grow together and form what 

 is called in Germany a " King-rat." In 1822, at Dollstedt, two miles 

 from Gotha, two King-rats were captured ; one of these groups con- 

 sisted of twenty-eight, the other of fourteen rats ; they were over a year 

 old, and seemed in good health, but very hungry, as of course they had 

 to live on the alms of other rats. 



The Mouse, Mus musculus (Plate LIII) is a pretty little creature 

 with black bead-like eyes, velvety fur, and squirrel-like paws. Its back 

 is a brownish-gray, its throat and abdomen a light-gray color. They 

 are odd little creatures, full of curiosity, and easily tamed. White Mice 

 (Plate LIII) are not uncommon; they are true albinos, and have red 

 eyes. The common mouse is much more docile than the white variety. 

 Mice make their nests in any quiet spot, and from any soft substance, 

 and, like the rats, multiply rapidly. 



The Harvest Mouse, Mus minutus (Plate LIII), is about five inches 

 in length, including the tail. The abdomen is white, the back reddish- 

 brown. It builds a pretty nest, which is thus described : " It was built 

 upon a scaffolding of four of the rank grass-stems that are generally 

 found on the sides of ditches, and was situated at some ten or eleven 

 inches from the ground. In form it was globular, rather larger than a 

 cricket-ball, and was quite empty, having probably been hardly com- 

 pleted when the remorseless scythe struck down the scaffolding and 

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