travels in North yhnerJca. ft 



France, and have a finer Fur.' They keep generally in the mldÈ: 

 of the Woods, out of which they never come but once in two or 

 three Years ; but they always come out in great Troops. The 

 Savages believe that the Year when they fee them come out, will 

 be good for Hunting; that is to /ay, that there will be a deep Snow. 

 The Martens Skins are adlualiy fold here at a Crown a-piece, 

 I mean the common ones, for thofe that are brown fetch up to 

 twenty-four Livres, and more. The Pitoi or Stote differs no- 

 thing from the Pole-Cat, but in that the Fur is blacker, longer, 

 and thicker. Thefe two Animals make War with the Birds, 

 even with thelargeft, and make great Ravages in Hen-RooHs and 

 Dove-Houfes. The Field Rat is twice as big as ours, and kas 

 an hairy Tail, and its Fur is of a very fine Silver grey. There 

 are fome which are entirely white, and a very beautiful White. 

 The Female has a Purfe under the Belly, which.opens and ihuts 

 when fhe will. She puts her young ones in it when fne is purfued, 

 and faves them with herfelf. As to the Squirrels, they give 

 them very little Difturbance here, fo fhat there are a prodigious 

 Number in this Country. They diftinguiih them into three 

 Sorts ; the red, which does not diifer from ours, the S^ifs^ 

 which are a little fmaller, and are fo called becaufe their Fur is 

 flriped lengthwife with red, black, and white, much like the 

 S^i/s of the Pope's Guard ; and the flying Squirrels, of muck 

 the fame Size as the S^zjs, whofe Fur is a dark grey. They 

 call them flying, not becaufe they really fly, but becaufe they 

 leap from one Tree to another, the Diftance of forty Paces at 

 leafl:. When they leap from a high Place to a lower, thoy leap 

 twice as far. What enables them to make fuch Leaps, are two 

 Skins which they have on their Sides, between the fore and hind 

 Feet, and which ftretch to tlie Breadth of two Inches. They 

 are very thin, and only covered with Down. This little Animal 

 foon grows familiar ; it is very lively when it does not fleep ; 

 but it often fleeps in any Place it can creep into, as a Pocket, 

 Sleeve, or Mufi-'. It foon grows fond of its Mailer, and will 

 find him out amongft twenty Perfons. The Porcupine of Canada 

 is as thick as a middling Dog, but fliorter, and not fo high ; its 

 Quills are about four Inches long, about the Thicknefs of a 

 fmall Straw, white, hollow, and very flrong, particularly on the 

 Back. Thefe are its Arms, both ofl^enfive and defenfive. It 

 darts them diredly at thofe who attempt its Life, and if it enters 

 ever fo little in the Flefli, it mull be drawn out inilantly, or elfe 

 it finks in entirely. Its for this Reafon, that they are very 

 careful to hinder their Dogs from approaching thefe Animals. 

 Their Flefli is good eating. A roafted Porcupine, is as good 

 as a fucking Pig. The Hares and Rabbits here are like thofe of 

 Europe^ excepting that their hind Legs are longer. Their Skins 



are 



