152 FAMILIAR LIFE IN FIELD AND FOREST. 



" It is the most execrable smell with which my nos- 

 trils have as yet been offended ; in some individuals 

 it is only more powerful and offensive than it is in 

 others." 



According to my experience, the close-set, bristly 

 fur is never without some remnant of the bad smell 

 in spite of all proper precautions in curing it. In wet, 

 winter weather, and in contact with the natural mois- 

 ture and heat of one's neck, the " minky " smell is in 

 strong evidence. To me the odor of the creature is far 

 more unpleasant than that of the skunk ; yet Elliott 

 Coues does not seem to think it is distressingly bad. 

 He says : " No animal of this country, except the skunk, 

 possesses so powerful, penetrating, and lasting an 

 effluN'ium. ... It belongs to the class of musky (!) 

 odors, which in minute quantities are not disagree- 

 able to most persons. 



Of course, <le gKstibvs non dhimtandnm ; I can- 

 didly admit that I can not quite agree with Elliott 

 Coues either with regard to the musky quality or the 

 mild offensiveness of the perfume. Perhaps I expe- 

 rienced too much of it on a particular occasion long 

 since. 



The nest of the mink is made of dried leaves piled 

 together about the thickness of an inch or more, and 

 rounded in a snug hollow lined with fur and feathers. 

 It is generally found in either a hollow log or a bur- 



