THE BADGER 



done with a few beagles or harriers on a moon- 

 Hght night, when, finding him in the open, 

 they will give a merry chase and fine cry, 

 and a run of several miles without a check. 

 If his earths are stopped, and he finds no 

 other refuge, he will be brought to bay. In 

 some districts I have known sacks put into 

 the mouths of the most used holes of a set, 

 the open end of each sack having a running 

 noose pegged into the ground, thus providing 

 an astonishing reception on his return as he 

 charges in, disturbed or pursued in his mid- 

 night ramble. By this means he is taken 

 alive and unhurt, being bagged and secured 

 in his attempt to enter. At other times of 

 the year, when the days are short and the 

 nights longer, he comes out later in the 

 evening, waits for a moment at the mouth 

 of his earth, takes a preliminary sniff round, 

 and then rushes off at the top speed into the 

 covert. 



The badger is easily domesticated if 

 brought up by hand, and proves an inter- 

 esting and charming companion. I had at 

 one time two that I could do anything with, 



57 



