84 
natural history 
DORMOUSE. 
Of all the rat species, the Dormouse is the 
least ugly. Its eyes are sparkling, its tail is 
tufted, and its hair is rather fair than red. It 
is seldom to be found in gardens, but chiefly 
frequents woods, where it finds a shelter in 
the hollow of some old tree. The species is 
by no means numerous, though they are 
found in Italy, and in the northern climutes. 
The Dormouse becomes torpid by the cold, 
and rolls itself up in a ball: it revives in 
mild weather, and hoards up nuts and other 
dry fruits for future sustenance. It forms its 
nest in u tree, like the squirrel, though gene- 
rally in a lower situation, as among the 
branches of a nut-tree, in a bush, &c. The 
nest is composed of herbs interwoven — has 
no aperture but at the top, and contains three 
or four young ones. 
