^(Siseeal a-, porcmpiae, or even a mue^i larger aniinal. 
The ■ qpill Wjas,.. an .eig'hth of an incix into tlio.leg of 
the chair, and, if it had hit mine, with only thin 
linen trousers ©n, it would have gone in to the hone, 
Oiif great domestic pest used to. be rats : they nn- ■ 
■dermined the floors, got up over the ceiling cloth* 
where the rattling over-head frequently disturbs the 
night’s rest. I have actually been awakened of a night, 
by ra‘ s in bed, nibbling m y feet . On retiring to bed, 
my clothes, 'which lay on an adjoining chair, were fre- 
quently all nibbled and torn to pieces during the night, 
by rate tearing them up for their nests : in the morning 
a silk handkerchief would be found, all nibbled up 
into pieces, sticking out of a hole ; one sock would 
be gone, and the other have half of the foot nibbled away.. 
Then nothing v^oiild delight them more than tearing 
.and scratching at paper. I am awakened in the middle 
■of the night by a rustling, tearing sound. Oh horror ! they 
are at my accounts tho accounts made up ¥/ith so much 
trouble and dfficulty, and which were to be posted 
to-morrow. Rustle, rustle. I start out of bed, strike 
a light, and find a bundle of accounts half drawn 
into a hole in the wall : they ar^ rescued, but in 
such a state as to require to be copied over. Then 
I take to keeping papers ia table drawers, but it 
is no use; the rats eat a hole in the back, tear up all 
the papers, and actually make a nest in the corner 
of the drawer. This was done in one case where 
there were some important papers, and the drawer 
was always locked. After a long period, on opening 
it, nothing was visible but a rat’s nest ; the young 
progeny gone, and a hole in the hack of the drawer. 
This will never do : drawers are abandoned, and a 
good strong box put into use for papers and ac~ 
-counts. The rats are not to be beat : it is merely 
.a question of time ; they commence on the strong 
wooden box, gnawing and scraping at such a rate 
during the night, that sleep was impossible. Tb© 
best way was to burn a light at night, as like all 
evil-doers they prefer the dark. Our lamps were 
very simply constructed. A tumbler, half full of 
water, was filled up with oil, as much as you think will 
burn all night ; on the top of this oil was the floating 
wick, two small cross-sticks at right angles, supported 
at the ends by four pieces of cork, and at the centre of 
the cross-sticks the -wick is tied. You thus have a 
floating wick in a tumbler. This used to burn all 
night in my bed-room, lintil the rats began to attack 
the lamp for the sake of the oil: they would 
actually run across the floor into their holes with the 
lighted wick. This was dangerous and oot to be tolerat- 
ed we will circumvent the rats. They have n dislike 
