288 THE BOOK OF A NATURALIST 
tickles the sense of the ludicrous, and it is good to 
laugh. His staring eyes, spasmodic gestures, and 
barking exclamations are almost painful, they are 
so genuine; for what an unearthly-looking monster 
one must seem to him! He is a gnome who 
has somehow stumbled out of his subterranean 
abode, and, like the young mole in Lessing’s 
fable, is overwhelmed with astonishment at every- 
thing he sees in this upper world. Then there is 
the agouti, with pointed head, beautifully arched 
back, and legs slender, proportionally, as the 
gazelle’s; its resemblance in form to the small 
musk deer has been remarked—a rodent moulded 
in the great Artist-Mother’s happiest mood. The 
colour of its coat, relieved only by its pink ears 
and a broad shining black stripe on the back, is 
red Venetian gold, the hue which the old Italian 
masters gave to the tresses of their angelic women. 
A mild-tempered animal, which may be taken from 
its native woods and made tame in a few days. 
Many of the smaller rodents might also be men- 
tioned, such as the quaint, bird-like jerboa, and 
the variegated loucheres; and so on down even 
to the minute harvest-mouse. Forms and sizes to 
suit all tastes; for why should we all have alike? 
Let fashion in pets go out with the canines. 
To go back to the other extreme, from low ta 
high, there are the wild cats inhabiting all desert 
places on the globe. Tigers and leopards made 
small; clouded, or with a clear golden ground- 
colour, pale or red gold or grey, and black-striped, 
