THE POLECAT. 289 



Merionethshire and Montgomeryshire he was able to follow the chase 

 mounted, as were also his whips ; but in Lancashire and the Lake country 

 this was impracticable, owing to the boggy nature of the moors and steepness 

 of the fells. To such perfection in nose and dash did he bring his hounds, 

 that it was impossible for any one, except himself and the best Lancashire 

 runners of the day, to keep at all on terms with them. He usually began 

 hunting at daybreak, casting on till a drag was struck of a Foulmart, that 

 had been travelling in the night. The length of the runs in the spring and 

 early summer were extraordinary — often ten, fifteen, and over twenty miles, 

 usually straight, and over a wild mountainous country. They generally ran 

 the Foulmart to ground, and would often have another long run the next 

 day, from the spot where they had marked and left him. To give an 

 instance or two of the length of runs with the Foulmart, I will quote the 

 following. In Wales they struck a drag on the left bank of Bala Lake, 

 opposite Bala, and ran him into the country above Nannai, Sir Bobert 

 Vaughan's place, near Dolgelly — a real wild mountain run, without a single 

 cast being made, and the distance at least twenty-two miles. In the Lake 

 country I remember a run wonderful in length and the roughness of the 

 country traversed. A drag was struck in the woods near Newby Bridge. 

 They ran him through Graythwaite and Hawkshead, over the Braythy river, 

 across Laughrigg Fell and the deep Rothay river, and killed him in the fells 

 above Ambleside. This run must have been from eighteen to twenty miles 

 in length. I could name several others, but space forbids. In conclusion, 

 I may state that Capt. Hopwood never hunted at night — a course which is 

 only taken for the purpose of killing the Foulmart, by hunting up to him 

 while still travelling, giving him little or no chance of escape. Nor were 

 the Foulmarts ever caught in traps, or turned out to hunt. The Captain 

 only hunted on the strictest principles of wild and fair sport, and his pack 

 will long be remembered in the counties over which he hunted." 



It will be inferred from the foregoing statements that Foumart 

 is the common name for the Polecat in the North of England, as 

 it is also in Scotland. In the South it is almost invariably called 

 Polecat, except perhaps by north country keepers who have moved 

 south, and who know it by its north country name. 



The word " Polecat," says Bell ('British Quadrupeds,' 2nd ed. 

 p. 206), is perhaps nothing more than " Polish cat." This I think 

 most improbable, for the name is used by Chaucer. Prof. Skeat 

 suggests " pool-cat," i. e. a cat living in a hole or burrow, since 

 the Gaelic poll and Cornish jiol signifies a hole or pit, as well as 

 a pool. 



The past and present distribution of the Polecat in Scotland 

 has been already so well traced by Mr. J. A. Harvie Brown (Zool. 



