Vermin of the Farm. 
231 
Nor does their taste for variety end here. They may be said to 
be really omnivorous ; for, besides the vegetable food already 
mentioned, they will devour, when opportunity serves them, 
both eggs and young birds. The eggs chiefly taken are those 
of such birds as nest in the holes of trees (as starlings, jackdaws, 
and stockdoves), for the reason that they are more easily reached. 
Smaller eggs placed in delicate nests at the extremities of 
boughs are comparatively safe, for the weight and motion of an 
approaching squirrel would prevent the animal from reaching 
them properly, or would jerk the eggs out of the nest. As to 
young birds being preyed on by squirrels, there is ample evi- 
dence. Two instances may be cited : — 
In May, 1879, Mr. Thomas Bagnall, of Milton Ernest Hall, 
Bedford, saw a squirrel in his avenue carry off, kill, and partially 
eat a full-fledged young starling, the remains of which he 
succeeded in recovering. 
In August, 1891, Mr. T, W. Finder, of Barrowby Old Hall, 
Grantham, saw a squirrel in a thorn-tree in which were a 
number of sparrows. It made a dash and caught one, the 
others screaming and fluttering away in great excitement. It 
held the bird in its forepaws, and killed it by biting the skull, 
and then commenced to eat it. 
Thus the carnivorous propensities of the squirrel, if not 
habitual, are at least shown to have been exhibited on various 
occasions, and are probably indulged in more frequently than 
they are observed. 
As to the strictly carnivorous vermin of the farm, such as 
stoats and polecats, and the so-called “ winged vermin,” some 
account of them may be reserved for a future occasion. 
J. E. Harting, 
EDITORIAL NOTE. 
The plague of fleld mice (voles) has excited so much public 
interest that it seems desirable to add a note of all that, up to 
the time of going to press, can be gleaned upon the subject. 
The field-vole is found in most parts of Europe and in 
many parts of Asia. More than a century ago a statement was 
published ^ to the effect that at Volhynia, Poland, “mice have 
destroyed the new-sown grain in such a manner as to leave no 
hope of a future crop ; the mice have been carried into the 
‘ Gentleman’s Magazine, 1774, vol. 44, p. 5,40, 
