28 
THE KAT. 
previous night had actually, with the fore paw which was at 
liberty, and probably with the assistance of the hind feet, 
contrived to scrape together a quantity of the neighbouring 
grass, and formed the nest, — thus providing for the warmth 
and comfort of her young, although she was tortured with 
iron teeth, and almost disabled by her position in the trap. 
Of the unqualified affection of a rat for her young, I 
was witness to a most interesting and curious instance. I 
had a sort of compound collection, half aviary and half 
menagerie. My stock was composed of rabbits, pigeons, 
ferrets, fowls, cats, dogs, white mice, hedgehogs, guinea- 
pigs, and canaries. Besides these there was a host of 
native song-birds and a cock pheasant. I did not keep 
them like the happy family, all together, but in separate 
departments. Among these I had an enormous polecat fer- 
ret, blind in one eye. He was perhaps the largest ferret I 
ever saw, and was so tame and attached, that he would fol- 
low me in the streets, or anywhere else, like a little dog. In 
the fields I often used to amuse myself by running away, and 
giving him the trouble to find me out ; still I never was 
afraid of losing him, because he always wore a small collar 
round his neck, with a little bell attached to it. However, 
we were out together one summer's evening, in a meadow, 
which on one end and side is skirted by a river, and on the 
other by thick hedges. I was lounging carelessly on, when I 
heard the ferret make an extraordinary loud chattering noise, 
something between a cackle and a bark, or rather just such 
a noise as a monkey will make, when some mischievous boys 
have his tail through the cage, and are tying it tight in a 
knot — I instantly ran back, and found him in the ditch, in 
a state of perfect confusion, and bleeding terribly from the 
nose. I fancied I saw something disappear, but what I could 
not tell ; yet seeing him bleed so profusely, I imagined he 
must have run a spike into his nose, having recently seen 
some set in a game-preserve for the purpose of killing dogs as 
they jumped through the gaps in the hedges. I paused for a 
moment, and soon found by his action that there was some 
game at hand. Presently he snified about, and made his way 
carefully to a bundle of dried grass, leaves, &c., in the hedge- 
bottom at the root of a bush. When, quick as lightning, out 
dashed a rat at him, and as quickly disappeared. But what 
