146 FAMILIAR LIFE IN FIELD AND FOREST. 



and frequently far below it. The larger weasel is by 

 no means rare in this part of the country, and there 

 is sufficient opportunity for a trapper to study his 

 change of coat in early winter. The nest of the little 

 animal will be found snugly tucked away in the hol- 

 low of some old stump, or in the sheltered nook be- 

 tween an old moss-covered log and a shelving rock. 

 In early May the female bears from four to six 

 young, which, it is said, remain in the vicinity of the 

 nest all summer'. 



The white fur of the ermine seems to have gone 

 out of fashion so completely that I can find no quota- 

 tion of its value in the American list. 



