THE CANADIAN PORCUPINE, OR URSON. 
■m 
“A large, ferocious, and exceedingly troublesome mastiff, belonging to the neighborhood, 
had been in the habit of digging a hole under the fence, and entering our garden. Early one 
morning we saw him making a dash at some object in the corner of the fence, which proved to 
be our Porcupine, which had, during the night, made its escape from the cage. 
4 £ The dog seemed regardless of all its threats, and probably supposing it to be an animal 
not more formidable than a cat, sprang upon it with open mouth. The Porcupine seemed to 
swell up in an instant to nearly double its size, and as the dog pounced upon it, it dealt him 
such a sidewise blow with its tail, as to cause the mastiff to relinquish his hold instantly, and 
set up a loud howl in an agony of pain. His mouth, tongue, and nose were full of Porcupine 
quills. He could not close his jaws, but hurried, open-mouthed, off the premises. It proved 
to him a lesson for life, as nothing could ever afterwards induce him to revisit a place where 
he had met with such an unneighborly reception. Although the servants immediately 
CANADIAN PORCUPINE. OR URSON . — Erethizon downturn,. 
extracted the spines from the mouth of the dog, we observed that his head was terribly swelled 
for several weeks afterwards, and it was months before he finally recovered.” 
The victorious Urson did not long survive the affray, for as the summer weather 
approached, it betrayed unmistakable signs of distress, and finally died of heat. A similar 
anecdote is recorded of an Urson, which took a sudden umbrage at the attentions of a person 
who was attempting to caress it, and unexpectedly dealt him such a blow with its tail that his 
offending right hand was instantly covered with wounds. 
The Urson is not so fully defended with spines as the two preceding animals, but is covered 
with long, coarse, blackish -brown hair, among which the short pointed quills are so deeply 
set, that, except in the head, tail, and hinder quarters, they are scarcely perceptible. These 
spines are largely used by the American Indians in the decoration of their hunting-pouches, 
moccasins, and other articles, and after the quills are extracted, the remainder of the fur is 
sufficiently soft to be used for clothing. The flesh of the Urson is considered eatable, and is 
said to bear some resemblance to flabby pork. 
The length of the Urson is not quite four feet, the head and body measuring rather more 
than three feet, and the tail about nine inches. The teeth are of a bright orange. 
The Canada Porcupine is, probably, much less known than the African species, which is 
figured very commonly in books. It is known as Hedgehog in the country, but the true 
Hedgehog is an European species of animal, entirely different ; belonging to another order, 
the Insectivora. The Canada Porcupine has been kept alive in Central Park. The tales con- 
cerning the throwing of the quills are fabulous. We had an opportunity to observe the 
