58 
Quadrupeds. 
rats, but unfortunately they often commit great havoc 
among poultry. 
The mode in which the Ichneumon seizes a serpent is 
thus described by Lucan in his PharsaUa : — 
" Thus oft the Ichneumon, on the hanks of Nile, 
Invades the deadly a^pic by a wile ; 
While artfully his slender tail is ployed, 
The serpent darts upon the dancing shade, 
Then turning on the foe with swift surprite, 
Full on the throat the nimble traitor flies, 
And in his grasp the panting serpent dies." 
THE WEASEL. (Mustela vulgaris.) 
The animals belonging to this genus, notwithstanding 
their small size, are all carnivorous, and from their slen- 
der and lengthened bodies, short legs, and the very free 
motion in every direction, permitted by the loose articu- 
lations of the spine, are well formed for pursuing their 
prey into the deepest recesses. Constituted by nature 
to subsist on animals, many of which have great strength 
and courage, they possess an undaunted and ferocious 
disposition. The Weasel has a long and thin body; its 
length, with its tail, is ten inches, and its height not 
more than an inch and a half. In the northern parts of 
