Part 4

_This animal is found in woods and forests of the northern parts of Europe, of Asia, and America, where it climbs with facility into the loftiest trees._

There is a trade in the _skins_ of lynxes, and other animals, betwixt Russia and China. These skins constitute a thick and soft fur, and, when of pale or whitish colour, with the spots tolerably distinct, they are very valuable. The further north the animals are caught, the whiter and better are the skins; those that are most elegant are taken near lake Balkash in Usbec Tartary. They are sold at a rate of from fifteen shillings to five or six pounds sterling each, exclusive of the fore feet, which are so valuable as to be sold separately, and at high prices.

50. _The ICHNEUMON_ (Viverra ichneumon) _is a quadruped somewhat more than three feet in length, of which the tail, which is thick at the base, and tapering and tufted at the extremity, measures nearly half: the hair is hard, coarse, and of reddish gray colour, and the great toes are remote from the others._

_It is found in Egypt, and particularly in the parts of that country which are adjacent to the banks of the Nile. It is also found throughout nearly all the southern parts of Asia._

To the inhabitants of Egypt the ichneumon is an animal of great importance. Being a natural enemy of the whole serpent race, and of other noxious reptiles which infest that country, it unsparingly attacks and destroys them. It combats, without dread, even the most venomous serpents; and the address with which it seizes them by the throat, in such manner as to avoid receiving any injury itself, is very remarkable. It digs the eggs of crocodiles out of the sand; and even kills and devours great numbers of the young ones of those tremendous and dreaded creatures. Both in India and Egypt the ichneumon is domesticated and kept in houses, where it is found more serviceable than a cat, in destroying rats and mice. It is easily tamed, and very active, and springs with great agility on its prey. For its various services, but more especially in the destroying of crocodiles, it was ranked by the ancient Egyptians amongst their deities, and received the honours of divine worship.

51. _The STRIATED WEASEL, or SKUNK_ (Viverra putorius), _is an animal of the ichneumon tribe, which has the upper parts of its body striped with black and while, the neck and legs very short, and the tail is clad towards its extremity with long whitish hair._

_This animal is about eighteen inches in length exclusive of the tail, which measures about fourteen inches. It is an inhabitant of several parts of America._

The mode in which the skunk is protected from the attack of enemies more powerful than itself, is by emitting an odour so fetid and abominable that few creatures are able long to continue within its influence. Cattle are said to be so much alarmed by it as to utter the most dreadful bellowings. Clothes that are infected with this smell retain it for many weeks; no washing can render them sweet, and they must be for some time buried in the fresh soil before they are thoroughly cleansed. Notwithstanding this, the American Indians frequently eat the _flesh_ of the skunk; but great care is requisite in killing it, to prevent any ill effect which would arise from its noxious vapour. As soon as the animals are dead, the glands, from which this vapour issues, are cut away, and the flesh, then untainted, is said nearly to resemble that of a young pig. The _skins_ of these quadrupeds, which are sweet, and well clad with hair, are much in request by furriers. The inhabitants of Chili are very partial to them as coverlids for their beds, and for other useful purposes. The Indians also make purses of them, which they hold in great esteem.

52. _The CIVET_ (Viverra civetta) _is an animal of the ichneumon tribe, distinguished by having coarse hair of yellowish ash-colour, marked with large blackish or dusky spots and stripes; a sort of upright mane on the neck and back, and the tail spotted above, and brown towards the tip._

_The whole length of the civet is generally about two feet. It is a native of several parts both of Africa and India._

The drug or _perfume_ called civet is the production of this animal. It is formed in a large bag or receptacle situated at a little distance beneath the tail, and the creature often spontaneously presses it out through an external orifice. This substance is a fatty secretion about the consistence of soft pomatum, of lively white colour when fresh, but darker when it has been some time kept. Its perfume is so strong, that it infects every part of the animal's body. The skin and hair are so entirely impregnated with it, that they retain their original smell long after they have been taken from the body; and if a person be shut up in the same apartment with one of these quadrupeds, the odour is almost insupportable.

Civet was formerly much employed in medicine; but it is now seldom used, except as a perfume. It communicates some smell both to watery and spirituous liquors; hence a small portion of it is often added to odoriferous waters and spirits. The Italians make it an ingredient in perfumed oils, and in this manner obtain the whole of its scent; for oils dissolve the entire substance of the civet. When genuine, its value is from thirty to fifty shillings per ounce.

Although the animals which produce this drug are inhabitants of hot climates, they are kept in great numbers, and with a commercial view, at Amsterdam. They are fed with boiled meat, eggs, birds, small quadrupeds, and fish; and, as soon as the receptacle of any of them is supposed to be nearly full, the animal is put into a long cage, so narrow that it is unable to turn round. This cage has a door behind, through which a small spoon or spatula is introduced into the pouch. This is carefully scraped, and its contents are deposited in a proper vessel. The operation is usually performed twice or thrice a week.

In many parts of the Levant and the East Indies, civets are reared and fed, as domestic animals are with us: but as, in the Levant particularly, they are few in number, and brought from a great distance, the perfume is increased by introducing into the bag a small quantity of butter or other fat. The people then shake the animal violently, and, by beating, irritate and enrage it as much as possible. This accelerates the secretion; and the fat, after having imbibed a great portion of the perfume, is used in place of the genuine drug. Civet is adulterated by mixing it with storax and other balsamic and odoriferous substances. That which is procured from Amsterdam is said to be less adulterated, and consequently is held in higher estimation than the civet which is imported from the Levant and the East Indies; but, notwithstanding the apparent care to sell it genuine, as would appear by the sealed bottles in which it is purchased, there is reason to suppose that very little indeed of it is free from adulteration.

It must be remarked, that the drug called civet is not only produced by this animal, but by some others of the same tribe, though in smaller quantity, and of less value. Civet is more pleasant than musk (65), to which it has some resemblance, and with which, by ignorant persons, it is sometimes confounded.

53. _The GENET_ (Viverra genetta) _is a quadruped belonging to the ichneumon tribe, and nearly allied to the civet, but is distinguished by its tail having seven or eight black rings, and the body being of tawny red colour, spotted with black._

_It is an inhabitant of some parts of Asia, and is also found in France and Spain. Its length is about seventeen inches._

Like the civet (52) this animal produces, and in similar manner, an agreeable _perfume_. It is not, however, so powerful as that of the civet, and its scent much sooner evaporates. The _skin_ of the genet is capable of being made into a light and handsome fur. This was formerly a fashionable substance for muffs, particularly on the Continent; and, as the animals are by no means numerous, was sold at high prices. After a while, however, the art of counterfeiting it, by staining the skins of grey rabbits with black spots, having been discovered, its value gradually abated, and, at length, it has ceased to be in request.

54. _The MARTIN_ (Mustela foina) _is a quadruped belonging to the weasel tribe, with greatly lengthened body and short legs, and the body of blackish tawny colour above, brown on the belly, and white on the throat._

_This animal is about eighteen inches in length, exclusive of the tail, and is not uncommon in woods near farm-yards, in the southern districts of Great Britain and Ireland. It is also found in several parts both of the Old and New Continent._

In some countries the martin is an object of eager pursuit, on account of its _skin_, which makes a valuable fur. This is in great request in Europe for lining and trimming the robes of magistrates, and for several other purposes. In Turkey, where furs of all kinds are in much esteem, those of the martin are particularly admired; and they are exported thither chiefly from France and Sicily. They form a considerable article of commerce betwixt this country and the northern parts of America; more than 12,000 skins being annually imported from Hudson's Bay, and more than 30,000 from Canada. The most valuable part of the skin is that which extends along the middle of the back. In England these skins are sold for about seven shillings each; and the best and darkest of them are sometimes imposed upon the purchaser for sables' skins (55). In some countries the flesh of the martin is eaten; but from its musky flavour, it is not very palatable even to persons who are accustomed to partake of it.

55. _The SABLE_ (Mustela zibellina, Fig. 4) _is an animal of the weasel tribe, which in its general shape and size has a great resemblance to the martin (54), and is of a deep glossy brown colour._

_It is a native of some of the northern parts of America and Europe, as well as of Siberia and Kamschatka, and is usually about eighteen inches in length._

The _fur_ of the sable is peculiarly valuable. Some of the darkest and best skins, though not more than four inches in breadth, have been sold at sums equal to twelve or fifteen pounds sterling each. Sables' skins are chiefly imported from Russia, and the greatest number of them was formerly obtained in Siberia, by persons banished thither from Russia: or sent for the purpose of collecting them. These were compelled by the government to furnish annually a certain number of skins by way of tax.

Sables are chased only during the winter, betwixt the months of November and January; for at that time the skins are in the highest perfection. Such animals as are caught at any other season have their skins full of short hairs, which render them less valuable. The sable hunters frequently assemble in companies of thirty or forty, and proceed along the great rivers in boats, taking with them provisions for three or four months. They have a chief, who, when they are arrived at the place of their rendezvous, assigns to each division of his men the quarter to which they are to go. In the places which are frequented by these animals the hunters remove the snow, on particular spots, and place snares there, each hunter being able to place about twenty snares in a day. They also pitch upon small places near trees; these they surround with pointed stakes of a certain height, covering them with boards to prevent the snow from falling in, and leaving a narrow entrance, above which is placed a beam supported only by a small and light piece of wood. As soon as a sable touches this to seize the piece of meat or fish which is placed for a bait, the beam falls and kills it.

Sables are also caught by a kind of snares that are usually laid for grouse and hares, being peculiarly partial to the seeds that are employed as bait for these animals. Nets are sometimes used. When the hunter has discovered the trace of a sable in the snow, he pursues it till he arrives at the burrow of the animal, over the mouth of which he places his net, and then by smoke compels the animal to come out, when he is secured in the net. If fire-arms are used, they are loaded only with single balls, that the skins may be as little injured as possible. Sometimes, in place of fire-arms, cross-bows with very small or with blunt-headed arrows are adopted.

All the sables, as they are caught, are either delivered to the chief hunter, or concealed in holes of trees, lest the Tonguses, or other tribes inhabiting the adjacent country, should steal and carry them away. When the time appropriated to the chase is over, the hunters all assemble at the place of rendezvous, and return home.

The hardships, fatigue, and perils with which these expeditions are attended, may well be conceived when we consider the nature of the country, the season of the year, and the intense cold which the hunters have to endure. Frequently do they penetrate into the depths of immense and trackless woods, from which, they have no other mode of securing a retreat, than by marking the trees as they advance; and, if these marks should be obliterated and fail them, they must inevitably be lost; often have they to sustain the extremes of cold and hunger. Some instances have been mentioned of sable hunters, when their provisions have failed, being reduced to the necessity of tying thin boards tight to their stomachs to prevent the cravings of appetite. To all these must be added the constant peril, under which they labour, of being overwhelmed and lost in the snow.

The fur of the sable is short, and generally of glossy and beautiful blackish brown colour: some animals, however, are of lighter colour, some have yellowish spots on the neck, and others have been found entirely white; but the skins of these are of little further value than as curiosities.

There is a mode of dyeing the light-coloured furs darker, and also of dyeing other furs to imitate sables; but these are easily discovered by their having neither the smoothness nor the gloss of furs in a natural state.

Sables are very sprightly and active little animals. They form holes or burrows under ground in forests, and the banks of rivers, and subsist on small quadrupeds, birds, eggs, and other animal substances of different kinds.

56. _The FERRET_ (Mustela furo) _is a species of weasel, which, in shape, somewhat resembles the martin (54); but it has a strong and more shaggy fur, of dingy yellowish colour, and red eyes._

_It is found wild in the northern parts of Africa._

The principal use to which this quadruped is applied is in rabbit warrens, for driving those animals out of their burrows into the nets or traps of the warreners. Though naturally of savage disposition, ferrets are easily tamed, and rendered sufficiently docile for all the services that are required of them. They should be kept in tubs or chests, and well supplied with clean straw, as otherwise they would become excessively fetid and offensive.

When about to be used, they should be kept, for a little while, without food, and have their mouths securely muzzled. The former, lest they should become indolent and not hunt: and the latter, lest they should satiate themselves on the rabbits, and consequently be disinclined to return from the burrows. Some warreners are so cruel as to sew up the mouths of ferrets instead of muzzling them.

When put into a burrow it is customary to tie a bell round the neck of the ferret, and purse-nets are fastened over all the holes that are supposed to communicate with that in which he is placed. The use of the bell is to ascertain the situation of the ferret, and prevent his being lost. The best time for setting the nets is at day-break, and they are generally suffered to remain till half an hour before sun-rise: and they are set again from half an hour before sun-set until it is dark. If it be required to take half-grown rabbits from holes that are known to have few angles, and not to extend far below the surface of the ground, it is sometimes customary to use the ferret unmuzzled, and with a line round him; and as soon as he is supposed to have seized the rabbit, he is drawn gently back with the animal in his mouth.

Ferrets are frequently kept by farmers and other persons for killing rats; and so eager and active are they in this pursuit that few are able to escape them. Even a young ferret, after he has seized a rat, will so perseveringly retain his hold, as to suffer himself to be dragged to a considerable distance before he can kill it, but he seldom fails in doing this at last.

As the unmixed breed of ferrets is supposed to degenerate, and lose, in some degree, their native ferocity, it is usual with some warreners to cross the breed with our native wild animal the polecat.

57. _The ERMINE is a species of weasel, of white colour, except the tip of the tail, which is black. This is, however, only the winter colour of the animal in the northern parts of Europe; in the summer it becomes brown instead of white, and in this state has the name of stoat._

_This animal, which, in its brown state, is well known in all parts of England, is usually about ten inches in length, exclusive of the tail._

The skins of ermines are a valuable article of commerce in several parts of the Continent, and particularly betwixt the Russians and Chinese. In some countries, as in Norway, Lapland, and Finland, the animals are found in prodigious numbers. They are generally caught in traps, but are sometimes shot with blunt arrows. Their skins are employed for ornamenting robes of state, and in various parts of female dress; and, for these purposes, they have been used during many centuries past, as is evident from ancient paintings, sculpture, and other authorities. The black tips of the tails are considered peculiarly valuable.

In Russia ermines' skins of good quality are sold at the rate of about a shilling each. They are usually sewed in lengths of three Russian ells, and these parcels are estimated, according to their quality, at from two to five guineas each. Many deceptions, however, have been practised respecting ermines' skins, which have tended to depreciate their value; the principal of these is to conceal and sew small bits of lead in the feet, to increase their weight.

Ermines, like all other animals of the same tribe, are carnivorous, and very destructive to such quadrupeds as they are able either openly to attack, or to seize by stratagem. They are chiefly found amongst woods, in hedge-banks, hollow trees, heaps of stones, and the banks of rivers.

It is a remarkable circumstance, and one that affords a very pleasing proof of the wisdom of Providence, that, at the commencement of winter, these and other defenceless animals change their brown summer coat to one similar in colour to the snows of that inclement season. By such means they are able to elude the sight of many of their enemies, to the attacks of which they would otherwise be peculiarly exposed.

58. _The COMMON OTTER_ (Lutra vulgaris) _is a large quadruped of dark brown colour, with short and thick legs, the hind feet naked, and the tail about half the length of the body._

_This animal is about two feet in length, exclusive of the tail. It has a short head and broad muzzle; the eyes are situated towards the front of the face; the ears are rounded and, short; and the tail is very thick, particularly towards its origin._

_The otter inhabits the banks of fresh-water rivers and streams, in many of the British counties; in other parts of Europe, in North America, and Asia, as far as Persia._

The depredations committed in rivers and fish ponds by this voracious animal, are not compensated by the value of its _skin_, which however affords a fine fur of deep brown colour, particularly if the animal be killed in the winter; for then its shade is darker than at any other season of the year. Otters are generally either caught in traps, or chased by dogs, and men armed with long spears.

Their _flesh_ is allowed by the canons of the Romish church to be eaten on maigre days, from its supposed resemblance to fish, on which otters almost wholly subsist. In the kitchen of the Carthusian convent near Dijon, Mr. Pennant saw the servants preparing an otter for the dinner of the religious of that rigid order, who, by their rules, are prohibited, during their whole lives, the eating of flesh.

It is possible so far to tame and educate these animals as to render them serviceable in catching fish. Many instances of this have been mentioned. An inhabitant of Christianstadt in Sweden had an otter which daily procured for him as much fish as served for the use of his family. Dr. Goldsmith speaks of having himself seen an otter plunge into a gentleman's pond at the word of command, drive the fish into a corner, and, seizing one of the largest, bring it off to his master; and in Bewick's History of Quadrupeds two instances of this proficiency are noted. In one of these it is stated that the otter would sometimes catch for his master as many as eight or ten salmon in a day. As soon as one was brought to the shore and taken from its mouth, it dived in pursuit of another; and when tired would refuse to fish any longer, after which it was rewarded with as much as it could devour.

The otter always hunts for his prey against the stream; and usually destroys several fish at a time, seldom devouring more than the upper part of their bodies. These animals fish in the sea as well as in fresh water; and their habitation is a den or burrow, which they form or find near the banks of rivers or other water, from which they can take food.

59. _The SEA-OTTER_ (Lutra marina) _is chiefly distinguishable from the common species by its hind feet being hairy, and the tail being only one fourth part as long as the body._

_Its length, exclusive of the tail, is about three feet; and its fur extremely soft, and of deep glossy black or dark brown, colour. The hind legs somewhat resemble those of a seal (23)._

_These animals are found on the sea-coast of Kamtschatka and the adjacent islands, as well as on most parts of the opposite coast of America._

A considerable trade in sea-otters' _skins_ is carried on betwixt Russia and other nations. The Kamtschadales, on whose coasts the animals are chiefly killed, barter them with the Cossacks, and they with the Russian merchants. So little do the Kamtschadales value these skins, that they exchange them freely for an equal number of foxes' or sables' skins, which are much indeed inferior to them in value. The Chinese are the principal purchasers of them from the Russians; and they pay for them at the rate of from seventy to a hundred rubles each. This great price, and the distance from which they are brought, are the principal causes of their being seldom seen in Europe.

The best skins are those of such animals as are killed betwixt the months of March and May. The fur of the sea-otter is, in some respects, inconvenient as cloathing, on account of its being very thick and heavy, otherwise (independently of its greater size) it would be superior in value to the fur of the sable. Its colour is generally black, but sometimes brown like the fur of the common otter. The skins of the females are easily distinguished from those of the males, by being smaller, more black, and having the hair longest under the belly. It was the trade for these and other furs, at Nootka Sound, on the north-western coast of America, which, in 1788, had nearly occasioned a rupture betwixt this country and Spain.

The _flesh_ of the young sea-otters is said to be an extremely delicate food, and scarcely to be distinguishable from that of lamb.