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nantii, or Pennant's weasel. This must have been the " weasel " 

 mentioned by President D wight in 1796, and said by him to weigh 

 twelve pounds. Our ancestors sometimes called it black-cat, 

 black-marten, and pekan ; the latter probably Indian. But the 

 Indians also called the fisher a " wolaneag ; " a name which they 

 also applied to a class of their fabulous evil spirits. If this be not 

 the animal which our earliest (but not most accurate nor truthful) 

 historian, (Rev. Samuel Peters,) so amusingly described under the 

 name of "cuba" I am puzzled to know what one he means. 



The fisher wore fine fur, was arboreal in its habits, and is 

 said to have sought its fish food in the baited traps of hunters, 

 rather than in watery element. It still may be found in northern 

 New England. 



The pine-marten (or American sable) is not found nearer to 

 us to-day, probably, than in the Adirondack region. Its fur was 

 too light colored to be entitled to the name of sable. The word 

 marten is an old-world name of Germanic origin. 



The mink, Mustela (or Putorius) vison, is common hereabouts. 

 I have observed one in the water of Park river, and on its banks, 

 opposite to the Hotel Heublein, within a few years. Although I 

 kept the matter a secret, and would have had him remain, I fear 

 his disappearance is final. His abode was under the roots of an 

 overhanging tree, now blocked up by a retaining wall. 



This creature seems to be the one described by the aforesaid 

 Peters, very interestingly, if not accurately, under the name of 

 " whapperknocker." I find neither this word nor his "cuba "in 

 any dictionary. 



The wolverene, or glutton {Gulo luscus), is the largest member 

 of the weasel family. It is also called the carcajou and skunk-bear; 

 but carcajou is also a name given to the puma and the larger lynx. 

 This odious creature is classed with the quadrupeds of Connecticut 

 on the ground of strong probability. It is known to have been an 

 inhabitant of New York and Massachusetts. 



There was a smaller mink, whose pelage was black and nearly 

 as valuable as that of the Russian sable. Prof. Baird is inclined 

 to class it as a variety, and not a distinct species. It is still found, 

 I believe, in Massachusetts. 



Another weasel, still found even in Hartford, is Mephitis me- 

 phiiica, a name which indicates strongly pestilential qualities. 

 The French Canadians called it enfant du Diable (Devil's child); 

 and the Indians called it seganku, whence comes our own word, 

 skunk. Ladies are acquainted with its fur under the trade name 

 of Alaska sable and black-marten. This creature haunts our far- 

 mer's poultry yards, and, notwithstanding its predatory habits and 

 its bad name, is not without its usefulness. It is a voracious 



