THE ICHNEUMON. 



Generic Characters. 

 Six cutting and two canine teeth in each jaw. 

 Nofe £harp ; body flender. 

 Five toes before, five behind. 



Synonims. 



fx^v^uv, Ariji. Hift. An. lib. ix. c. 6. 



Ichneumon, Plin. lib. viii. c. 24. Brijfon Quad. 181. 



Meles Ichneumon, Hajfelquiji Itin. 1Q1. 



Viverra Ichneumon, Linn. Syjl. 63. 



Mustela ^Egyptiaca, Klein Quad. 04. 



Vulpecula Zeilanica, Seba. Muf. i. p. GO. tab. xli. fig. f. 



Mus Pharaonis, Profp. Alpin. i. 234. Brijfon Quad. 181. 



QuiL, VEL QuiRPELE, GO-VC. ATOM. 214. 



THIS beautiful little animal is the handfomeft of the genus to which it 

 belongs. It is fo mild and gentle in its manners, that, in Egypt, it is 

 domefiicated like a Cat, and much efteemed for keeping the houfes clear of 

 Rats, Mice, and Serpents. 



The individuals differ greatly in their fize and length, being found from 

 twenty-four to forty-two inches, including the tail, which is nearly as long 

 as the body. The domefticated ones are generally larger than thofe which 

 are wild ; their colours are, likewife, more beautifully variegated. It is, in 

 general, about the fize of the common Cat, but the body is thinner and 

 longer, and the legs fhorter than thofe of that animal. Its general figure is like 

 that of the Polecat, but its fur is much more beautiful and elegant, confifling 



