SHREWS 



little fury. His teeth were too small to hurt, 

 though sometimes he managed to pinch fairly 

 well, but if he did no harm it was not from 

 want of the will to do it ! 



If lions and tigers were as fierce, active, and 

 fearless in proportion to their size, as shrews 

 and moles are in comparison with their little 

 bodies, what awful creatures they would be ! It 

 is only by watching these small animals that one 

 can gain any idea of their untiring energy, 

 intense vitality, and their great pugnaciousness. 

 They are perhaps the most quarrelsome crea- 

 tures in the world ! With strangers it is a case 

 of ' war to the death.' For instance, a second 

 shrew was caught one day, and, as I did not 

 know at that time the trouble which would 

 certainly follow, I popped it into the ' Atom's ' 

 cage. In great excitement the ' Mighty Atom ' 

 rushed out, followed the newcomer round the 

 cage, and then under the moss. The stranger 

 was an old shrew clad in dark fur, and when I 

 heard a great deal of squeaking going on under- 

 ground I was afraid lest the ' Atom ' should 

 be getting into trouble. All the day the 

 squeaking continued, only stopping towards 

 evening. After that all was peace, and I 

 hoped they were settling down nicely, but 



F 81 



