THE ERMINE. 



175 



on the head, neck, and along the spine. His tail, in propor- 

 tion to the size of his body, is shorter than that of the 

 common raccoon, and is 

 marked with six black " 

 rings, upon a blackish- 

 yellow ground. 



THE ERMINE. 



When we see the 

 judge seated in his richly 

 trimmed robe of ermine 

 — emblem of purity — 

 or call to mind the regal 

 robes of a proud mon- 

 arch, we are apt to for- 

 get that the fur which 

 we so much admire is 

 but that of the detested 

 stoat, turned white dar- 

 ing his abode amid the 

 winter's snow of a 

 northern clime. He is 

 not unlike the weasel, 

 especially when clothed 

 in his darker summer 

 dress, but with a less 

 ruddy hue. The edges 

 of the ears and the toes 

 always remain white. THE a oouara fishing. 



He is considerably larger than the weasel, measuring up- 

 wards of fourteen inches, including the tail — which is about 



