IMPERTINENCE OF A WEASEL. 41 



young pheasant Perhaps to the destruction of the 

 latter creature the farmer would have no great 

 objection. 



The weasel is a notable hunter, using eyes and 

 nose in the pursuit of its game, which it tracks 

 through every winding, and which it seldom fails to 

 secure. Should it lose the scent, it quarters the 

 ground like a well-trained dog, and occasionally aids 

 itself by sitting upright. -^ 



Very impertinent looks has the weasel when it 

 thus sits up, and it has a way of crossing its fore- 

 paws over its nose that is almost insulting. At least 

 I thought so on one occasion, when I was out with 

 a gun, ready to shoot anything — more shame to me ! 

 There was a stir at the bottom of a hedge, some 

 thirty yards distant, and catching a glimpse of some 

 reddish animal glancing among the leaves, I straight- 

 way fired at it. 



Out ran a weasel, and, instead of trying to hide, 

 went into the very middle of a footpath on which I 

 was walking, sat upright, crossed its paws over its 

 nose, and contemplated me steadily. It was a most 

 humiliating affair. 



The weasel has been tamed, and, strange to say, 

 was found to be a delightful little animal in every 

 way but one. The single exception was the evil 

 odour which exudes from the weasel tribe in general; 

 and which advances from merely being unpleasant, 

 as in our English weasels, to the quintessence ol 



