142 FAMILIAR LIFE IN FIELD AND FOBEST. 



a considerable space of time ; then, in a tumultuous 

 scramble, he reappeared in the kitchen in a desperate 

 encounter with several rodents, and surprising as it 

 may seem, exhausted and torn by the violence of the 

 conflict. The rats were too many for him; he was 

 worsted ; and in two minutes more he was " as dead 

 as a doornail," with a significant and appropriate sur- 

 rounding of disjecta Tnennbra. 



Dr. Merriam remarks that the weasel is ever vic- 

 torious ; but here is an instance of something quite 

 the contrary, and although one's sympathies are not 

 often enlisted on the rat's side, one can not help feel- 

 ing like complimenting the old rodents which on this 

 occasion broke the record. 



The weasel, as a rule, does not eat the flesh of his 

 victim when game is plenty ; instead, he devours the 

 brains, sucks the blood, and, when finished, goes for 

 the next and the next victim, until, after a most ter- 

 rific slaughter, he stops through sheer exhaustion. 

 Relying on his strong, muscular jaws he springs upon 

 his game, and " brains " it with a single bite. Hunt- 

 ing day and night, climbing trees ^vith perfect ease, 

 and entering the burrows of the rodents, he is a ter- 

 ror to all animal creation. Even the do2 does not 

 get the best of him without a tough tussle, for he will 

 grab his nose if he gets a chance and hold on with 

 the grip of a vise. Fortunately, he does not very 



