370 Fretp Museum or Naturat History — Zoé zoey, Vor. XI. 
and carried it to the nest. Upon cutting open this log, five young 
weasels were found, and the remains of a large number of mice, doubt- 
less conveyed there as food. Pleased to learn that his supposed enemy 
was in fact a friend, and his poultry being at considerable distance, the 
farmer spared the young ones, intending to continue his observations; 
but upon examination the next morning, they had disappeared, having 
probably been carried by the mother to a more secure retreat. I have 
frequently found the half-eaten remains of meadow-mice in their own 
burrows, or under corn-stacks, which had doubtless been destroyed by 
this weasel, or perhaps the smaller one (Putorius cicognanii). It is 
surprising that an animal so large as this should be able to force its 
way into the burrow of meadow-mice; and yet it appears to do so without 
difficulty. 
“Stacks and barnfuls of grain are often over-run with rats and mice; 
but let a weasel take up his residence there, and soon the pests will 
disappear. A weasel will, occasionally, remain for some time in a barn, 
feeding on these vermin, without disturbing the fowls. But it is never 
safe to trust one near the poultry-yard, for, when once an attack is 
made, there is no limit to the destruction. When the animal has entered 
stacks or barns, it has the curious habit of collecting in a particular 
place the bodies of all the rats and mice it has slain; thus, sometimes, a 
pile of a hundred or more of their victims may be seen which have been 
killed in the course of two or three nights. 
“The weasel preys largely upon the grey rabbit, pursuing it to its 
hole, and killing it there. Like the mink, too, it tracks its prey by the 
scent, so that the rabbit is lost if once he seeks refuge in a burrow or 
hollow tree. It also captures many ground-squirrels by following them 
into their holes, and frequently succeeds in killing quails, and sometimes 
birds as large as the grouse. Insects are doubtless its principal food. 
Numerous experiments are said to have proved that this species can be 
used in the manner of the European ferret for driving rabbits from their 
haunts; and it is probable that it would be found serviceable in a state 
of domestication for destroying rats and mice. It is readily tamed and 
kept, making pleasant as ‘well as useful pets when due care is exercised 
to prevent its attacking poultry. It would probably soon free houses 
of the troublesome Norway rat, as it could pass through every hol 
entered thereby. 
“Like all the family, the weasel is nocturnal, though in some in- 
stances it is seen hunting by day. It is very active, and one may 
sometimes be tracked in the snow through a journey of two or three 
miles, made in a single night. It is, however, more attached to a per- 
manent residence than the mink. It is not at all aquatic, nor does it, 
