78 
THE RAT. 
profitable flock of geese. One evening he penned them 
safely up with the old ones, and having several large dogs 
about, they were considered perfectly safe from thieves. 
But when he opened the pen in the morning he found, to 
his unutterable surprise, that there were only five young 
ones. He could scarce believe his own eyes ; but on re- 
covering himself a little, and making a casual survey, the 
mystery was soon dispelled, by discovering an aperture which 
the rats had made in the night. They had entered the pen, 
and in despite of the old geese had succeeded in destroying 
thirteen goslings out of the eighteen, carrying twelve away, 
leaving one dead and five living behind them. And it is 
believed that had they not been disturbed by the domestics 
rising early to their occupations, they would have succeeded 
in carrying away the whole eighteen. 
This gentleman has a great number of ducks, and a very 
valuable collection of Malay fowls, over which he is very 
choice; so much so that he declines letting any one have 
their eggs for sitting. These fowls are very valuable ; for in 
London, I have often been asked from ten shillings to two 
guineas apiece for them, and at the moment I am writing I 
should be most happy to give any one ten shillings for ten 
pure Malay eggs for sitting. But this gentleman informed 
me that one summer the rats robbed him of above two 
hundred of these valuable chickens, besides a host of ducklings. 
Now the losses he has sustained by rats are truly alarming. 
He has plenty of fine meadow-land for the fowls to run and 
feed upon, and the great question is, whether these chickens 
which the rats destroyed would not have more than paid his 
rent. I believe they would, taxes and all. Only think of 
this j it is worth the gravest consideration. 
In concluding this portion of my subject, I shall proceed 
to notice the omnivorous character of the rat ; for I believe 
there are facts enough already quoted to satisfy even the 
most scrupulous inquirer as to their predatory and destruc- 
tive habits among poultry and game. 
Mr. Jesse, in speaking of the Cape geese, which are kept 
in the large ponds in Richmond Park, says they used to 
build their nests on the island in one of those ponds. In 
consequence, however, of their eggs having been so frequently 
