£U?Ui;- SURGEON GENERAL'S OFFICE LIBRARY. Section No. 113, W.D.s.G.O. tlBJX^ No. 3—613 e ys. V J- ? 3~flpl3 £,,r■.■'■'■ ■'.'■ terJCrss' A, m a sk tc. m ml TTiTAJUESlttAE.') n > ^ c v 1./ U rJ-i cy ^^jtjJ, J (r^ra;{jtra6c^l)i(r HL <•• CARET A: I. LEA, CHESTNIT STRKET. 1826. ^^>. s/^£*^ ^J*****?/!-- AMERICAN NATURAL HISTORY. ■....." iuiiw VOLUME I. PART I.—MASTOLOGY. BY JOHN D. RODMAN, M.D. PROFESSOR OF NATURAL HISTORY IN THE^RANKLIN INSTITUTE OF PENN- SYLVANIA; ONE OF THE PROFESSORS OF THE PHILADELPHIA MUSEUM; MEMBER OF THE AMERICAN PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY; OF THE PHILADEL- PHIA ACADEMY OF NATURAL SCIENCES, &C PHILADELPHIA: H. C. CAREY & I. LEA—CHESTNUT-STREET. R. WRIGHT, PRINTER, 1826. £587- Eastern District of Pennsylvania, to wit: **».***« BE IT REMEMBERED, That on the twenty-sixth day of lW,j. jgK June, in the fiftieth year of the Independence of the I^»*f?J United States of America, A. D. 1826, Robert Wright, of the said district, hath deposited in this office the title of a book, the right whereof he claims as proprietor, in the words following, to wit: " American Natural History. Volume I. Part I. Mastology. By John D. Godman, M. D. professor of Natural History in the Franklin Insti- tute of Pennsylvania; one of the Professors of the Philadelphia Mu- seum; Member of the American Philosophical Society, of the Phila- delphia Academy of Natural Sciences, &c. In conformity to the Act of the Congress of the United States, inti- tuled, " An Act for the encouragement of learning, by securing the copies of Maps, Charts, and Books, to the authors and proprietors of such copies, during the times therein mentioned"—And also to the Act entitled, An Act supplementary to an Act, entitled, An Act for the encouragement of learning, by securing the copies of Maps, Charts, and Books to the authors and proprietors of such copies, during the times therein mentioned, ancr* extending the benefits thereof to the arts of designing, engraving, and etching historical and other prints." D. CALDWELL, Clerk of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, ROBERT OLIVER, OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND, WHOSE NAME IS ONLY ANOTHER EXPRESSION FOR LIBERALITY AND MUNIFICENCE, THIS WORK IS RESPECTFULLY AND GRATEFULLY INSCRIBED, BY HIS FRIEND, THE AUTHOR. PREFACE. This work was begun in the spring of 1823, under a belief that the whole of the first part would be pub- lished within a year, or at farthest eighteen months from its commencement. Experience soon proved that the difficulties of this enterprize had not been correctly estimated, and that a vast labour remained to be performed after all the facts and observations were systematised, which remained to be gleaned from works that professedly or incidentally treated of American Natural History. How meagre and unsatisfactory the best of these books are, can only be imagined by those persons who have been obliged to examine them carefully; by them alone can an ade- quate idea be formed of the toil and disgust to be en- dured by whoever makes such search in hopes of collecting original observations, statements of facts worthy of repetition, or remarks properly illustrative of the manners and habits of our animals. To account for the delay which has inevitably oc- curred in the preparation of this work, it may be sufficient to state that it has been frequently neces- sary to suspend it for weeks and months, in order to procure certain animals, to observe their habits in captivity, or to make daily visits to the woods and fields for the sake of witnessing their actions in a VI PREFACE. state of nature. On other occasions we have under- taken considerable journies, in order to ascertain the correctness of statements, or to obtain sight of an individual subject of description. It would be far more agreeable thus to obtain materials for the whole work from nature, than to depend in the slightest degree upon books; but a long lifetime spent in this way on such a work, would not be too much to give it the requisite degree of perfection. Another cause of delay has been the necessity we have frequently been under of collecting materials for the second and third volumes, when very solicitous to expedite the first; but as similar opportunities might not again occur, it was imperatively necessary to profit by them. This retardation of the first will operate, however, in equal proportion to in- crease the value and hasten the publication of the second and third volumes, which will be completed with as much speed as is consistent with propriety. Our great aim in preparing this work has been to render it as useful and agreeable as possible, and to this end we have freely drawn upon all accessible authentic sources, with due acknowledgment for the benefits received. In addition to the references made in the body of the work, we shall give in the third volume an alphabetical catalogue of all the books whence we have derived assistance, or which we have consulted with advantage. This we do not only because we believe that there is no crime preface. Vll more despicable than an attempt to deprive another of the fruits of his intellectual exertions, but in or- der to facilitate the labours of those who may be de- sirous of extending their researches through the most authentic works. We should act with injustice to our own feelings if we omitted to avow the liberal and valuable as- sistance we have received from one whose name is sufficient to justify any encomiums on expanded views and zeal in the cause of scientific truth. The prince of Musignano, Charles L. Bonaparte, has at all times thrown open to our use his rich library and cabinets, and still farther enhanced this kindness by contributing in numerous instances the result of his own scientific observations. Similar liberality in the cause of science has long since secured to him the esteem and respect of those who are devoted to its cultivation, and the warm admiration of all who have the advantage of his acquaintance. To our distinguished countryman Say, we are indebted for numerous excellent suggestions and much interesting information. Mr. George Ord, the respected vice-president of the Academy of Natural Sciences, has on several occasions yielded the most acceptable assistance, and allowed us the use of his note-book, by which we have profited con- siderably. From Mr. Titian Peale, who in prac- tical acquaintance with the natural history of his country has few equals, we have received frequent Viii preface. aid. To our friend Robert Best, M. D. of Lexing- ton, who was formerly conservator of the Western Museum, we feel especially grateful for the commu- nication of his most interesting notes and observa- tions, made on the animals of the western country during a residence of twenty-five or thirty years in the state of Ohio. The kindness of the venerable librarian of the Philosophical Society, John Vaughan, Esq. has been amply exercised towards us in furnishing the freest opportunities of examining the admirable library of that respectable institution. Although he considers himself sufficiently repaid by the consciousness of having discharged what he is pleased to call his duty, we feel none the less grateful for his urbanity and the extent of his good will. We have also received manifold acts of kindness from all the respectable naturalists of our acquaint- ance, both in this city and New York. All of these have exhibited the most gratifying willingness to aid in the advancement of our undertaking, and we beg them to accept of our sincerest thanks for the spirit in which they have contributed to its success. The following circumstance, to be enumerated among the services rendered to this work, is one which we feel sure the reader will unite with us in considering as worthy of the highest commendation, and evincing a spirit which every generous mind must regard with unmingled pleasure. An American artist preface. ix had painted two original portraits of distinguished In- dian chieftains, which were regarded by all who saw them as admirable for their force and truth of charac- ter. He was repeatedly solicited to sell them at his own price, but uniformly refused; neither would he sell copies of them, although on one occasion they were sought by a foreign gentleman in or4er to be sent to Russia. On learning that an American work was about to be published, for which illustrations of abo- riginal physiognomy and costume were desirable, the artist presented both these pictures, rejecting every offer of compensation with a feeling truly American. These interesting specimens of the talents and libe- rality of Mr. John Neagle are given in this vo- lume, the full length being a likeness of Petale- sharoo,* son of the Knife-chief of the Pani-Loups, * " Almost from the beginning of this interesting fete our attention had been attracted to a young man who seemed to be the leader or partizan of the warriors. He was about twenty-three years of age, of the finest form, tall, muscular, exceedingly graceful, and of a most prepossessing counte- nance. His head-dress of war-eagles' feathers descended in a double series upon his back, like wings, down to his sad- dle croup; his shield was highly decorated, and his long lance was ornamented by a plaited casing of red and blue cloth. On inquiring of the interpreter, our admiration was aug- mented by learning that he was no other than Petalesha- roo, with whose name and character we were already familiar. He is the most intrepid warrior of the nation, eldest son of Latelesha, [the Knife-chief] destined as well by mental VOL. 1.--B X PREFACE. and the bust a portrait of Ongpatonga, or Big Elk, distinguished as the great chief and orator of the Omawhaws. The first was engraved by Maverick of New York, the second by Bridport of Phila- delphia. and physical qualifications as by his distinguished birth, te be the future leader of his people.—The name of Peta- lesharoo is connected with the abolition of a custom for- merly prevalent in this nation, at which humanity shudders. " An Ietan woman, brought captive into the village, was doomed to the Great Star by a warrior whose property she had become by the fate of war; she underwent the usual pre- parations, and on the appointed day was led to the cross amidst a great concourse of people, as eager perhaps as their civilized fellow men to witness the horrors of an execu- tion. The victim was bound to the cross with thongs of skin, and the usual ceremonies being performed, her dread of a more terrible death was about to be terminated by the tomahawk and arrow. At this critical juncture Peta- lesharoo stepped forward into the area, and in a hurried but firm manner declared that it was his father's wish to abolish this sacrifice; that he presented himself for the pur- pose of laying down his life upon the spot or of releasing the victim. He then cut the cords which bound her, car- ried her swiftly through the crowd to a horse which he pre- sented to her, and having mounted another himself, con- veyed her beyond the reach ot immediate pursuit.''—Long's Exped. to the Rocky Mountains, vol. i.p. 357. This distinguished man, (together with Ongpatonga and various other chiefs,) was in Philadelphia a few years since on his way to the city of Washington, accompanied bv PREFACE. XJ The vignette which ornaments our engraved title page is from an original design by James Peale, jr. an amateur who unites to the correct execution of a professed artist the happiest talent for perceiving and delineating the picturesque and beautiful. In relation to the animals described in this work, it has been our constant aim to give none but such as certainly belong to this country, being much more desirous of presenting a faithful account of those known to inhabit it, than to produce an imposing catalogue of " new species," which at best might be little better than a string of barbarous new names applied to old and well known things.* In our third volume we shall give a complete synopsis of the mammalia inhabiting this country, with distinc- tive specific phrases, drawn up by the distinguished author of the recent splendid work on American Major O'Fallon. Through the friendship of that gentle- man Mr. Neagle enjoyed the most excellent opportunities of obtaining the portraits which adorn this volume. * In consequence of having mislaid the manuscript con- taining the description of the wild cat or bay lynx, (Felis Rufa,) that species was accidentally omitted, and the inad- vertence not perceived until it was too late to rectify it at the proper place. As this species will be fully described in the appendix, and we give a good figure of it on the same plate with the Canada lynx, (Felis Canadensis,) which it closely re- sembles in habits and manners, the omission will not be productive of inconvenien-ce or injury to the reader. Xll preface. Ornithology. In this synopsis all the doubtful and ridiculous species hitherto proposed as inhabitants of this country will be noted and rejected. Although we are conscious of having used every exertion to render this book correct, we are far from believing that it is free from error; it has been pre- pared under too many disadvantages to allow us for a moment to hope that it will not be obnoxious to some censure. We regard it rather as a ground- work upon which we hope hereafter to erect a more perfect superstructure, having determined hence- forth zealously to continue our efforts to obtain the materials necessary to give it the degree of perma- nence and beauty of which the subject tis in every respect worthy; we shall therefore thankfully receive every suggestion made by candid critics for its im- provement. INTRODUCTION. In this work the systematic arrangements of Linne and Cuvier are principally followed; the Linnean names of the orders, genera, &c. have uniformly been retained whenever they are entitled to such prefer- ence by right of priority. As long as every succeed- ing writer is at liberty to overturn systems and change names according to his own views or ca- price, the most serious injury will result to natural science, and her votaries be effectually deterred from engaging in studies to which every avenue is barricaded by aggregations of learned lumber. We are happy already to have an excellent precedent in this country for adhering to original nomencla- ture; Say in all his scientific writings has evinced the same determination to give credit to whom credit is due, regardless of all arbitrary changes. We have introduced the dental systems from F. Cuvier, with the view of enabling the reader more fully to appreciate the true importance of this part of animal organization, which indicates the relations in point of regimen existing between animals, not their places in a system of classification. The pe- culiarities of the teeth have immediate reference to the food upon which animals subsist, and by conse- xiv introduction. quence to the general character of their digestive organs; by comparing different genera we trace their degree of relationship in this respect, and form a better idea of their natural affinities. But if we arrange animals according to their prox- imity of dentition and regimen, we adopt a method (and there may be as many methods as organs) which will separate to great and unnatural distances ani- mals whose striking similarity in all other respects would render such separation absurd.* Beginners of the study of natural history are generally liable to form erroneous conclusions, among which none is more common and prejudicial than that of mistaking the system of classification for the subjects classed, or in other words, the arrangement of the names for the things themselves; nomenclature for natural history. The best system of classifica- * According to the dentition, F. Cuvier properly places the cat first and the bear last of the carnivorous animals* the walrus after the ruminant animals, and the beaver among the last of the gnawers instead of the first. Various genera, well separated by other characters, are by their den- tition reduced to mere species or varieties of the same ge- nus. Thus, while the system of Cuvier arranges animals according to the closeness of their approach to the structure of the human body, which determines their comparative per- fection, the method of his brother, having merely reference to their dentition, throws them into situations both curious and unnatural, because dependant upon the comparison of a single set of organs.. introduction. XV tion in the nature of things must be in a great degree arbitrary and imperfect, and so far from being natu- ral history, is but a summary of distinctive epithets and characters to aid in the arrangement of know- ledge, which can only be derived from a proper ob- servation of natural objects. Had these obvious truths been attended to, we should never have had so great a number and such a farrago of new systems as have been offered to the world, neither would the study of natural history have been so long regarded by the mass of mankind as the study of any thing rather than the study of nature. A good system is an invaluable assistant; an imper- fect one is infinitely preferable to the entire absence of such an aid. The system, however, should always be secondary to the science, whose object is to teach the general and individual characters of living beings from an actual observation of their peculiarities of form and modes of living. The mistake above pointed out is continually urging many who would be esteemed naturalists to the formation of new genera and species, founded on trivial, accidental, or imperfectly noted differences between creatures which, to all rational observers, appear the same.— This retards science, and misleads individuals as to the character and objects of natural history, which, judged by the conduct of some who are regarded as authorities, would appear to be the science of mag- nifying trifles and bewildering the understanding. XVi INTRODUCTION. In natural history, as in other departments of hu man knowledge, none but sciolists are pedants; such persons struggle to impart to their implements the dignity and importance that should belong to the work alone, and " in self adoring pride securely mailed" seek but to glorify themselves, considering the interests of science as nothing when weighed against the gratification of their own vanity.* * " New nominal species perplex the student, increase the labours of the critical naturalist, and render the study of natural history tedious and difficult. If it was generally understood that it is more meritorious to extinguish a single nominal species than to establish a dozen new ones, it would effectually check the present mania for making new species often on slight foundations. This also leads to an over- weening anxiety to secure priority; and hence descriptions are liable to be drawn up in a crude and hasty manner, without reference to the co-ordinate characters." De Kay's address to the New York Lycseum, p. 76. errata. Page 33, first line, for " are desirous," read—or art desirous. " 35, next to last line of second paragraph, for " occasions"—read occasion. " 46, in the foot note, for " order"—read family. " 49, third line from top, for " quantity"—read number. [Page 80, the figure of the third species of shrew to have been marked thus, * could not be procured.] " 117, second line, second paragraph, for " Missouri"—read Missis- sipi. " 129, fourth line, second paragraph, for " strgggle"—read strug- gle. " 255, note, fourth line from bottom, for " neminiunquam"—read nemim unquam. Same line, for " speiem"—read speciem. " 291, fifth line from top, for " which are so circumstanced"—read they being so circumstanced. AMERICAN NATURAL HISTORY. CHAPTER I. - CLASS I.—MAMMALIA. Ord-er I. Primates.—Family I. Bimana. Genus I. Man; Homo; L.—Species I. H. Sapiens; L. Varieties, a. Caucasian; fair or white, originally from Eu- rope. b. Mongolian; Esquimaux; dark olive or swarthy, from the north of Asia. c. American; red, indigenous? d. Ethiopian; black, from Africa. SECTION I. Origin of the America?! Variety. America, although undiscovered until near the conclusion of the fifteenth century of the christian era, must have been for ages previous the residence of an extensive and increasing population, since great numbers of native inhabitants were found on the southern portions of this continent by the adventur- ous voyagers who, under the guidance of Ciustoforo Colombo,* first visited these shores. What must * Latinized, Columbus. VOL. I.—C 18 ON THE ORIGIN OF THE have been the mutual surprise of the inhabitants of the old and new worlds at this first meeting? The Europeans, astonished to encounter a numerous and eager crowd where they had anticipated one vast solitude—and the aborigines, lost in amazement at the unimagined spectacle of a huge body which had slowly risen before their eyes from the remotest verge of ocean, and borne to their soil a strange assemblage of men differing from them in colour, language and apparel. The origin of the North American Indians has justly attracted the attention of philosophers, and produced many interesting researches, as well as fruitless speculations. So long as those engaged in this investigation were content with mere theory without established data, or speculation without fact, no result was obtained except the useless multiplica- tion of words; but, when the geography of the country, the nature of the climate, and the history, manners and polity of the various tribes were studied, the mystery involving the subject gradually lessened; so that at present, without much difficulty or error, we may come to a satisfactory conclusion relative to the manner in which this continent was peopled. Preliminary to our investigation we must refer to the fact, that the laws of nature, governing the con- tinuance of different races of animals profusely mul- tiplied over the earth, are fixed and immutable, and what we observe of Nature's regular modes of operat- ing at one period, is unquestionably true of all preced- ing times. Animals which are of different kinds, or generically distinct, are incapable of producing off- spring together, but animals of the same hind, though AMERICAN, OR RED VARIETY. 19 of different species, may and do produce offspring re- sembling both parents, by their union; yet this confusion ceases with the first product, inasmuch as these hybrids, or mules, are universally sterile, or incapable of propagating their similitude. This circumstance furnishes the most satisfactory and une- quivocal means of deciding whether any beings we examine are specifically distinct or not, since, if they are merely varieties of the same species, they are capable of producing offspring in illimitable progres- sion; but, if they are of'different species, the first offspring terminates the race. By the application of this test, we are able to pro- nounce with certainty, that the human race, wherever found, or however different in colour, are merely varieties of the same species, and evidently descended from the same parents. In all countries the marri- age of Europeans with the natives, whether Asiatics, Africans, or Indians, is followed by children more or less resembling their parents, and this offspring is perfectly capable of continuing the race. If there be any mode of accounting for the arrival of even a single male and female on this continent, we shall find no difficulty in understanding how so many nations became distributed over this vast region, nor can we, on an unprejudiced view of the whole subject, find any difficulty in believing that the myri- ads of human beings, that have lived from the begin- ning of time to the present hour, have all descend- ed from two individuals. The history of the world, as presented to us by the most authentic records, or by the voice of universal tradition, leads us inevitably to conclude that from some point on the Eastern con- 20 OX THE ORIGIN OF THE tinent the human race originated, and gradually ex- tended in various directions, subject to the influence of all accidents, of place, climate, disease, and facility or difficulty of procuring food: hence, notwithstand- ing that the connexion of many nations with the parent stock is entirely lost, there is not the slightest evidence that such nations are derived from any But the source we have stated; neither, when philosophi- cally considered, is there any necessity that they should have originated in a different manner, since the cause is perfectly adequate to the effect; and where one sufficient cause is given no other should be sought. Under the operation of different motives we find the scattered members of the human family removing by degrees from the centre towards the extremes of the old continent, and subsisting in such remote situations until the-disposition or ability to return was entirely lost, and they became inured to the climate, however dreadfully inclement. Though the human race always remains specifically unchanged in every condition, yet the action of ex- ternal causes is capable of producing considerable variations in the appearance of individuals or tribes exposed to their influence. Thus we find those who reside in uniformly warm and spontaneously pro- ductive countries, of a slender frame, a relaxed and delicate habit, and of a sallow or tawny complexion. The natives of Africa, who are exposed to the most intense heat of the sun, are full framed, robust and vigorous, being endowed with short, crisped and coarse hair, and a skin whose colour shields them from the destructive fierceness of the solar rays. In the AMERICAN, OR RED VARIETY. 21 middle latitudes, where the means of subsistence are readily procured, and the vicissitudes of season are never remarkably severe, we find the human frame in every variety of development, and distinguished by fairness and delicacy of complexion. But on leaving these favoured regions behind us, and visit- ing the far northern portions of the earth, we see man, like most of the other productions of nature, stunted and dwarfish, displaying little or no mental energy, barely capable of securing the scanty sub- sistence allowed him by the rigours of his situation, and maintaining an existence scarcely superior to that of the whale or seal, the hunting of which constitutes his highest ambition, as their flesh and oil are his greatest luxuries. Since it is not only possible, but unquestionable, that the whole human race are varieties of the same species, most probably descended from one male and female, it remains for us to show in what manner the descend- ants of this stock may have reached America, and whether our observations can be supported by argu- ments drawn from the condition of the new world. A reference to a map of the globe will show us that imme- diately within the arctic circle, the eastern extremity of the old continent is separated from the new by a strait which is but thirty-nine miles across, and this is solidly frozen over during the severities of winter. Kamtschatka, the extremity of Asia, situated "between the fortieth and fiftieth degree of "north latitude, is peopled by natives wrho are thoroughly accustomed to endure all the rigours of this climate, and is provided with many animals equally capable of existing through all its inclemencies. Under such circumstances we 22 ON THE ORIGIN OF THE can see no difficulty in concluding, that from the eastern extremity of Asia, both men and animals have passed to America, and subsequently been mul- tiplied over the whole continent. In regard to man, it is not necessary to insist that he passed to the American shore during winter, since the dis- tance is not too great for us to believe that even the rudest navigators, when driven by stress of weather from their own coast, (as often happens to the Eski- maux,) could, with little difficulty, reach this conti- nent, where they would be compelled to remain by necessity, or induced by a disposition either to extend their acquaintance with a strange land, or to seek for a more agreeable place of abode. The Aleutian islands, which are very numerous, and form an almost perfectly continuous chain, beginning with Behring's island, and extending from opposite to Kamtschatka, in about the fifty-fifth degree of north latitude, to Alyaska, the same parallel in America, may- have afforded a much easier and more certain approach, and that without appearing at all extraordinary to the voyagers themselves, who might pass from one isle to another without having any idea of the land to which they were going. These islands are in the same paral- lels of latitude as the greater part of Labrador, Hud- son's bay, &c. where even Europeans are able to en- dure the climate during the severest seasons. There is, in fact, the most irrefragable testimony to prove that the rein-deer cross oyer in vast herds on the ice, subsisting on the moss found in these islands during their passage. In strictness of reasoning we have nothing to make it absolutely necessary that we should refer the peo- AMERICAN, OR RED VARIETY. 23 pling of America to so recent a period as the separa- tion of the old and new continents by Behring's strait. There is neither extravagance nor impropriety in the opinion that the two continents were originally one, and being continuous, the only difficulty is remov- ed that could be urged against the approach of popu- lation from the extremity of Asia. But, in addition to all the reasons that can be urged in support of the doctrine, we maintain it should not be forgotten that there are strong evidences derived from astrono- mical and geological observations, proving the axis and poles of our globe to be not now precisely where they originally stood. It is therefore very unfair to decide against the probability of peopling Ame- rica from the extremity of Asia, if we reason from the existing climate of the countries adjacent to East cape, or cape Prince of Wales, the two nearest points of Asia and America. The greatest difficulty thrown in the way of this opinion, was thought to be the striking difference be- tween the Eskimaux and the common Indian, seeming to prove that they were derived from different races or kinds. We are informed in Crantz's History of Greenland, that the Moravian missionaries who vi- sited the countries inhabited by the Eskimaux, were much surprised to find that they were in all respects similar to the Greenlanders, and made use of the same language; showing that the Eskimaux had sprung from the same race, and had gradually reached their present residence from the extreme northern parts of Europe. This fact, now rendered undeniable by more recent researches, entirely invalidates the con- clusion that the Eskimaux were derived from another 42 ON THE ORIGIN OF THE species The resemblance existing between these peo- ple and the Siberians, .Kamischadales, Tunguse, &c. is manifest, and notwithstanding they differ in many respects from other inhabitants of the new world, they are undeniably descended from the same pa- rent stock, coming from different parts of the globe. The copper-coloured natives of America, who are the most numerous of the aborigines, approach more closely to the Asiatic Tartars in colour and stature, and this because they are descendants of that race arriving in America from the extremity of Asia. The land animals common to the old and new world doubtless reached America by the same route with the human race; but, the species which are pe- culiar to America were originally placed on this soil, as we find no traces of their existence in Asia or elsewhere. The first inference is drawn because the community of species renders it necessary: the second is a fair and natural induction from the ex- clusive existence of certain species in this country, as we see no reason why animals may not have been from the beginning peculiar to America, as that creatures of a singular construction should be found exclusively pertaining to New Holland. This last named country, differing from all others in its animal and vegetable productions, is peopled by human be- ings, degraded and abject it is true, but still a va- riety of the common stock whence all mankind have sprung. Those who endeavour to dispute the correct- ness of the doctrine we support, state that if Ame- rica were peopled from the shores of Asia, many AMERICAN, OR RED VARIETY. 25 thousand years must have elapsed subsequent to the creation, before the population of the old world could have become sufficiently numerous to ex- tend to its remote borders, and thence attain the American continent. It is also repugnant to their ideas that so large a part of the globe should have remained during u so long a time" unpeopled, or only tenanted by inferior animals. This is truly a convenient mode of objecting, but unfortunately for the theorist, duration of time is a very immaterial circumstance in the great 'operations of nature. If we may credit the testimony of our senses, and rely on our reason when guided by the clearest lights of geological science, many ages elapsed af- ter the creation of our globe, and numerous races of inferior animals, previous to the existence of man. In very ancient strata, forming the crust of the earth, or- ganic remains of various animals are preserved, but not a single relic of the human kind has yet been obtained from similar situations. He certainly forms a poor idea of Deity who attempts to measure his power or works by notions drawn from human art, or supposes, because one part of the globe must have remained even ten thousand years " in one vast uninhabited solitude," that it is therefore repugnant to all the operations of the wonderful system of nature. With as much correctness might he conclude that the time required by the planet Herschell to describe his orbit around the sun should be reduced to the same dura- tion as that necessary for the Earth, or Mars, or Venus—because to his comprehension the orbit of Herschell is almost unimaginable. Another objection, founded on a similar mode of VOL. i.—D 26 ON THE ORIGIN OF THE viewing the subject, has led Mr. Jefferson and others to believe that the number of different language? spoken in North and South America is incompati- ble with the idea of so recent an arrival on this con- tinent as even three or four thousand years. " How many ages," says Mr. J, " have elapsed since the English, the Dutch, the Germans, the Swiss, the Norwegians, Danes and Swedes, have separated from their common stock, and yet how many more must elapse before the proofs of their common origin will disappear? A separation ihto dialects may be the work of a few ages, but for two dialects to recede from each other until they have lost all vestiges of their common origin, must require an immense course of time, perhaps not less than many people give to the age of the world."* Granting, as we are perfectly willing to do, the great lapse of time which would be requisite for the production of such radical changes, we do not think the objection derived from the languages more solid than those heretofore mentioned. As far as the re- searches of philologers have extended, we do not find that there is so much difference in the dialects of our aborigines as the arguments of these objectors would imply. Throughout a large mass of this native popu- lation a very perceptible connexion of language is ap- parent, and the relation to a parent stock is fairlv evident. Even allowing that the amount of difference is as great as could be desired by our opponents the comparison of the aboriginal dLects wlhThose of European nations is by no means a correct mode of de- * Notes on Virginia, p. 148. AMERICAN, OR RED VARIETY. 27 ciding the point. If, according to our idea, people reached this country at different times from the ex- treme north of Europe or the north-east of Asia, the immense extent of country they were gradually to be scattered over, the new situations they were placed in, the new objects by which they were surrounded and the new modes of life they assumed, would all con- spire to produce a change in their language in a much shorter time than could take place on the old conti- nent, where their wanderings must have been, not only comparatively circumscribed, but their modes of living subject to very few variations. A reference to well authenticated and recently observed facts, will show how great an influence is exerted over language by these causes. Indian nations, which have com- menced their migrations in the northern and eastern parts of this continent, and journeyed to the western regions, have on their route detached various colonies from their main body, and these, in many instances, now differ so much in language from their parent stock, as to exhibit none but faint traces of relation- ship. If changes of this kind can be produced under such circumstances, what difficulty is there in be- lieving, that still greater could occur, when the whole extent of this vast continent was before the original adventurers, and the last comers might not only be separated from the first by thousands of miles, but live under other skies, and be surrounded by natural ob • jects of a totally dissimilar character. In the present condition of Our knowledge, we have no right to state that the traces of affinity between the American dialects are entirely obliterated; it would be far more correct to say. that we do not 28 ON THE OKIG1N OF THE possess the means of making the necessary inquiries and decisions; our knowledge of their languages is confined to a few meagre vocabularies, frequently derived from persons whose statements cannot be implicitly relied on, however correct their inten- tions may have been, to say nothing of the almost insuperable difficulty of writing such languages from the hearer's idea of their pronunciation. We may with sufficient correctness trace the descent of words in our own language from the Hebrew, Sanscrit, &c. because we have established signs to indicate the ideas, and we have no doubt but that the same could be done to nearly an equal extent with our aboriginal tongues, provided we enjoyed a similar advantage of written characters, a proper knowledge of their languages, and a better acquaintance with the natural and other objects most frequently the subjects of their conversation. Considering all the essential circumstances which are entirely wanting in this inquiry, we can place very little reliance on inferences from the aboririnal languages, more especially such as were drawn bv a late writer, respecting the affinities of dialect between some of our Indians, and that of the Yo- lofs, the blackest of the African tribes. We must believe that these affinities were either totally acci- dental, or founded in misconception, arising from the nature of the subject, or rather from want tf ne cessary mtimacy with the languages examined. It mav be taken as a very safe rule of judgment, that a man whose knowledge of any language is derived exclu' sively from books, however perfectly he may Ye Me to judge of its philosophy or grammar, can have bu AMERICAN, OR RED VARIETY. 29 few and faint ideas of the nice shades of distinction in the value and application of a very large propor- tion of words in such tongue, and by consequence, is very little qualified to do more than conjecture their affinities with words used by a people living under totally different circumstances. The learned Pennant, in treating of this subject, expresses his belief that the inhabitants of the Ameri- can continent were originally derived from Eastern Asia, and supports this conclusion by an exami- nation of the customs common to the inhabitants of both continents. " The custom of scalping, says he, was a barba- rism in use with the Scythians, who carried about them at all times this savage mark of triumph: they cut a circle round the neck, and stripped off the skin, as they would that of an ox.* A little image, found among the Kalmucs of a Tartarian deity, mounted on a horse, and sitting on a'human skin, with scalps pendent from the breast, fully illustrates the custom of the Scythian progenitors, as described by the Greek historian. This usage, as the Europeans know by horrid experience, is continued to this day in America. The ferocity of the Scythians to their prisoners, extended to the remotest part of Asia. The Kamtschadales, even at the time of their dis- covery by the Russians,! put their prisoners to death by the most lingering and excruciating inventions; a * Herodotus, lib. iy.—Compare the account given by the historian with the Tartarian icunculus in Dr. Pallas' Travels, i, tab. x. a. t Hist. Kamtschat. 57. 30 ON THE ORIGIN OF THE practice in full force to this very day among the abo- riginal Americans. A race of the Scythians were styled Anthropophagi* from their feeding on human flesh. The people of Nootka Sound still make a re- past of their fellow creatures,! but what is more wonderful, the savage allies of the British army have been known to throw the mangled limbs of the French prisoners into the horrible cauldron, and devour them with the same relish as those of a quadruped.:{: " The Scythians were said, for a certain time, an- nually to transform themselves into wolves, and again to resume the human shape. §> The new discovered Americans about Nootka Sound disguise themselves in dresses made of the skins of wolves and other wild beasts, and wear even the heads fitted to their own.|| These habits they use in the chase to circumvent the animals of the field. But would not ignorance or su- perstition ascribe to a supernatural metamorphosis these temporary expedients to deceive the brute crea- tion? In their march the Kamtschadales never went abreast, but followed one another in the same track, f The same custom is exactly observed by the Ame- ricans. "The Tungusi, the most numerous nation resident m Siberia, prick their faces with small punctures. Mela, lib. ii. c. i. t Voyage ii. X Colden's Five Nations, i, 155. § Herodotus, lib. iv. II Voyage ii, 311, 329.-A very curiotts head of a wolf, fit- v. Hist. Kamtsch. 61. AMERICAN, OR RED VARIETY. 31 with a needle, in various shapes; then rub charcoal into them, so that the marks become indelible.* This custom is still observed in several parts of America. The Indians on the back of the Hudson's Bay to this day perform the operation exactly in the same man- ner, and puncture the skin into various figures, as the natives of New Zealand do at present, and as the ancient Britons did with the herb glastum, or woad,f and the Virginians, on the first discovery of that country by the English. J Herodian delivers down to us this custom of the Britons:—He says that they painted their bodies with figures of all sorts of ani- mals, and wore no clothes lest they should hide what was probably intended to render themselves more terrible to their enemies. " The Tungusi use canoes made of birch bark, dis- tended over ribs of wood and nicely sewed together. §> The Canadian and many other American nations use no other sort of boats. The paddles of the Tungusi are broad at each end; those of the people near Cook's river and of Oonalaska are of the same form. " In burying of the dead many of the American nations place the corpse at full length, after preparing it according to their customs; others place it in a sit- ing posture, and lay by it the most valuable cloth- ing, wampum, and other matters. The Tartars did the same, and both people agree in covering the whole with earth, so as to form a tumulus, barrow, * Bell's Travels, i. 240, 8vo. t Herodian in Vita Severi. X De Bry, Virginia, tab. iii. 111. § Isbrandt Ides in Harris' Coll. ii. 919. 32 ON THE ORIGIN OF TUT. or carnedd.* In respect to the features and form of the human body, almost every tribe found along the western coast has some similitude to the Tartar nations, and still retain the little eyes, small noses, high cheeks, and broad faces. They vary in size from the lusty Calmucs to the little Nogaians. The internal Americans, such as the Five Indian Nations, who are tall of body, robust in make, and of oblong faces, are derived from a variety among the Tartars themselves. The fine race [tribe] of Tschutski seem to be the stock from which those Americans are derived. The Tschutski again from that fine race of Tartars, the Kabardinski, or inhabitants of Kabarda.'?f Independent of all other arguments in favour of the Asiatic origin of the aboriginals of America, the cir- cumstance of but one species of the human race exist- ing throughout the world is suflicient to reduce us to the necessity of acknowledging that mankind have de- scended from one parent stock, however their ex- ternal appearance may have been modified by ac- cident, disease, or situation. We are aware that some persons talk of the possibility of there having been various centres of creation to the human race as among inferior animals; but we consider it very un- philosophical to suppose the existence of various cen- tres of creation for the same species. Occasionally we hear still more ridiculous opinions advanced by per- sons who have not been at the trouble of examining the facts which have been collected on the subject, * Compare Colden, i. 17, Lafitau, i. 416, and Archaeologia, n. 252, tab. xiv. 5 ' t Pennant's Introduction to the Arctic Zoology, p. 260. AMERICAN, OR RED VARIETY. 33 are desirous of rendering themselves notorious by supporting any opinion, however absurd. Thus far we have paid a deference to those who are unwilling to suppose that this continent was peo- pled from the old, and we have bestowed on their arguments a sufficient degree of attention.* But, as we have already hinted, all this discussion, re- lative to the human inhabitants of this continent, may be dispensed with; first, because the human race, from the equator to the poles, are one. and the same, without presenting a single specific difference; and, in the second place, because a very adequate and perfectly natural means of approach is given, by which all the results desired could be readily produced. We have shown that limitation of time relates merely to our own narrow conceptions of its dura- tion, and has reference neither to the Deity nor to the order of nature; nor is it rendered necessary by any knowledge we possess relative to the creation of the world. Even allowing a most immense lapse of ages to have intervened from the creation to the peo- * The theory of Clavigero, Avhich supposes that a country fifteen hundred miles in length, and of an unknown breadth, was sunk between America and the old continent, and that by this land the human race anciently passed to this country, is too extravagant and Unfounded to require more than a pass- ing notice. Instead of having islands or regions sunk in the neighbourhood of the American shores, they are continually forming and increasing with great rapidity, being almost uni- formly founded by the labours of the coral molluscae, and after being built up by them from great depths to the surface of the ocean, collect weeds, sand, and other matters, for the com- mencement of a soil. VOL. I.---E 34 GENERAL CHARACTER OF pling of this continent, we should rather discover in il a proof of the correctness of our position, than a cir- cumstance repugnant to the plan of nature. Had a race of men been created on this continent simultaneous with that established in the old world, the vast increase of population would have long since required more than the ordinary devastation of human life, by pesti lence, famine, and murderous war. An idea of creation, more consonant with enlighten- ed intelligence than the one recently glanced at, is that which considers the Eternal as having given ex- istence to a few laws, or rules of action, which, through his omniscience,comprise all subsidiary operations, and by their influence the whole admirable system becom- ing in due succession developed and perfected—each joined to each in proper corelation, and all approach- ing his immediate presence by a point too ineffably distant to be appreciated by finite comprehension. Such an evaluation of the plan of divine providence or creative power, would shame us out of theories in which we attempt to reduce infinitude to our own standard, and mete out the operations of the mighty system of nature by our-own miserable span of three score and ten years! SECTION 11. General Character of the American Indian. In various situations the North American Indians* exhibit very considerable differences in stature, co- lour, and physiognomy; their medium height may be stated to correspond with that of the Europeans. ■iil|ii# ' %. fassaSSftSi BigElk Engraved by Hugh lindpnrt from, an original fainting iy J..Ve thou*h bea-* * ^ resemblance to a quadruped, a great part of his life of the bat. 53 is spent in the air like a bird. Yet it is only in the latter circumstance that he can be compared with the feathered tribes, being not only destitute of beak, plumes and talons, but suspending himself in air by means of a velvet or leather-like membrane. When the gray and dusky twilight succeeds the departing glories of the sun, myriads of insects, warmed into life and activity by his heat, take wing in search of their females, to increase the innumerable hosts of their own race. At the same moment the Bats, which have shrouded themselves during the glare of daylight, emerging from subterraneous re- cesses, or the gloomy vaults of time-worn ruins, speed with rapid flight along, glutting a voracious appe- tite on insects, which, but for their exertions, con- joined with those of other creatures, would soon swarm so profusely as to render the earth loathsome or uninhabitable. The advantages of the Bat's peculiar structure are now seen—his soft and velvet wings, though plied with vigorous celerity, stir the air, but make no sound; their peculiarly delicate sensibility enables him to feel the proximity of every object, and uner- ringly directs his flight; his large ears catch every hum produced by the motions of his destined prey, and he noiselessly flits through the gloom, gathering a plenteous meal, and destroying great numbers of insects. His strong sharp teeth and powerful jaws are employed in seizing and crushing his prey with slight effort, nor does he relinquish the chase until the night is far advanced and the cravings of hunger are entirely satisfied. The Batflies with a tremulous flickering movement 54 i;e>eral history of its membranous wings, and its progression is ir- regular, now rising with swiftness, then suddenly darting downwards, or to one side, with apparent ca- priciousness, though it is engaged in seizing its prey, which it distinguishes with great quickness. This dis- position to dart at any object seen in the air is often employed for the destruction of Bats, as they are shot or struck down with a long switch or whip at the moment they descend to examine objects thrown into the air. In general the Bat flies at no great distance from the earth, though it occasionally ascends above the tops of trees or houses, and even much higher. During the time of feeding it appears to be continu- ally in motion, searching for food with much dili- gence, as if conscious that the opportunity of pro- curing it would soon pass by. When on the ground, it is very evident that the Bat is a quadruped, and what are commonly called wings are entirely analogous to the members of other four footed animals, though varying greatly from the original type. " The elbow is found near the knee; the fore arm is very long, and obliquely extended from above downwards, and from behind forwards, as far as the nose of the animal. The wrist is placed against the ground, and there is but one finger on the anterior extremity, which is the thumb. The knee is raised as high as the lower part of the rump, and the five toes of the hind feet are of equal length, and turned outwards. The arm is extended hori- zontally from the front to the back part, and the thigh vertically from above downwards; the arm is concealed behind the fore arm, and the thigh behind the leg; they are moreover enveloped in the mem- 0E THE BAT. 55 branes which conceal the tail and all the hinder parts of the body. Besides the thumb seen on the ante- rior extremities, there are four other very long fin- gers, extending from the fore-arm, enveloped in the membrane, and folded near the elbow by their extre- mity."* From these singularly lengthened extremities, the animal derives little or no assistance while on the ground, as it rests on the breast and belly, rather propped up than standing. In this situation the motions of the Bat are slow and heavy, more resem- bling, the dragging along of the body and limbs than a fair and regular act of progression. It is by no means easy for the Bat to take wing, and some of the species cannot readily escape if placed on the ground; but it is an error to suppose that it is impossible for them to take to flight, while in this situation. Their mode of alighting or resting is, by fixing the hook of their hind feet to the projections of caves or old buildings, with their wings folded on their bo- dies, and their heads hanging down, until forced by hunger to resume their flight. This singular inverted position, is one which enables them to take wing with ease, inasmuch as they can launch themselves in air with great facility, merely by letting go their hold. In order to void its ex- crement, which is very frequently found in vast heaps in caves much frequented by them, they bend their bodies upwards, and extend the wing until they can lay hold of a projection with the hook on D'aubenton. 36 GENERAL HISTORY the thumb. When this is accomplished they re- linquish their hold with the posterior claws, and thus perform their evacuations, resuming their ori- ginal inverted position, by renewing their hold with the claws of the hind feet: The Bat is entitled to the place it holds in our systematic arrangements, from the circumstance of having paps or teats placed on the chest, analogous to those of the human race. They suckle their young, who remain firmly attached to the teat during the flight of the parent, until they attain a considera- ble size. These creatures are not deficient in those affec- tions, which, in other animals, are supposed to de- note mueh sensibility, and always excite the sym- pathies of mankind. The Bat has been known to exhibit the most devoted attachment to her young, and forego all efforts at self-preservation, in order to be near when she could not release her captive pro- geny. The following circumstance made known by that enterprising naturalist, my friend Titian Peale, will show to what an extent they may evince this feeling: " In June 1823, the son of Mr. Gillespie, keeper of the city square,, caught a young red Bat, (Vesper- tilio Nov-Eboracensis, L.) which he took home with him. Three hours afterwards, in the evening, as he was conveying it to the Museum in his hand, while passing near the place where it was caught, the mo- ther made her appearance, followed the boy for two squares, flying around him, and finally alighted on his breast, such was her anxiety to save her offspring Both were brought to the Museum, the young one OF THE BAT. 57 firmly adhering to its mother's teat. This faithful creature lived two days in the Museum, and then died of injuries received from her captor. The young one, being but half grown, was still too young to take care of itself, and died shortly after." We have already glanced at the singular fact, that Bats have the power of directing their flight with perfect correctness, even when deprived of their sight. In 1793, Spallanzani put out the eyes of a Bat, and observed that it appeared to fly with as much ease as before, and without striking against objects in its way, following the curve of a ceiling, and avoiding, with accuracy, every thing against which it was expected to strike. Not only were blinded Bats capable of avoiding such objects, as parts of a building, but they shunned, with equal address, the most delicate obstacles, even, silken threads, stretched in such a manner as to leave just space enough for them to pass with their wings expanded. When these threads were placed closer together, the Bats contracted their wings, in order to pass between them without touching. They also passed with the same security between branches of trees placed to inter- cept them, and suspended themselves by the wall, &c. with as much ease as if they could see distinctly. Similar experiments were made by Jurine of Gene- va, who attempted to account for the fact by attribu- ting it to the delicacy of the nerves expanded about the muzzle, ears, &c. Mr. Carlisle, who experiment- ed in England with the large-eared Bat (V. Auritus) concluded that this faculty was owing to extreme acuteness of hearing, as the Bat, when its ears were covered, flew against objects, as if unconscious of vol. i.—H 58 general history their presence; it is probable, however, that there was some unobserved source of fallacy in this experiment. A much more satisfactory and philosophical mode of explaining this curious circumstance was offered by the celebrated Cuvier, who sheds light wherever he directs his attention. In a paper read May, 1796, this naturalist referred it to the exquisite sense of touch resident in the membranous skin forming the wings, ears, &c. as had been previously hinted at by Odier. During the flight of the blinded Bat, when- ever it approaches any object, the air set in motion by its wings reacts against their surface with a great- er or less degree of force, and being in this manner warned of the proximity of the object, it avoids injury by changing its course. Immediately preceding thunder-storms, Bats have been known to take shelter. in dwelling-houses in great numbers; no less than thirty were recently captured in the house of a friend, where they had thus entered for refuge against an approaching gust. The Bat brings forth in the month of June and July? generally from one to three young at a birth, which are carefully suckled by the parent until they grow to a considerable size. As soon as the cold weather approaches, the Bal retires to places of security, and frequently gathers in large clusters, apparently for the sake of warmth. They gradually become perfectly torpid, and in this state the circulation of the blood and other functions of the animal economy seem to be entirely sus- pended. With the return of the warm season they slowly acquire the ability to move, and when their torpor has entirely passed away, they again sally OF THE BAT. 59 forth to renew their wonted destruction of the insect tribe. The singular structure and habits of the Bat have long since afforded the poets an emblem of darkness and terror, and induced them to consecrate this crea- ture to Proserpine, their queen of Hades. iEsop, with his usual shrewdness of observation, has turned the Bat to good account in his fable of the war be- tween the birds and beasts, in which he severely re- proves those who in important affairs are disposed to belong to no party. He represents the Bat as un- willing to declare for either host, but to hover be- tween both during the fight, in consequence of which it was no longer considered either as bird or beast, and was obliged to avoid appearing abroad until other animals had gone to repose; The fact, as has already been shown, is, that the Bat is one of a large number of animals whose struc- ture is adapted for activity and usefulness only when the light is feeble, and food is to be obtained.—How- ever amusing it may be in poetry or apologue to consider such creatures as choosing night for their appearance from a desire of concealment, it is by no means allowable for students of natural history to forget that all beings must live in conformity to the laws of their organization, that the perfection of every species is relative to the situation in which it exists, and that our notions of beauty and deformity are neither true tests of the excellence nor impor- tance of any inferior animal. 60 GENERAL HISTORY SECTION II. Sometime after the preceding observations were written, I received a paper on Bats, by the distin- guished Geoffroy St. Hilaire, published in the French Dictionary of Natural Sciences. As this learned man has devoted a great deal of time to the study of these creatures—as he has had the fullest opportunities of making observations—and as he may be relied on, I shall, for the benefit of my readers, introduce some of his remarks from the paper just mentioned.* " The writings of naturalists attest the ignorance which formerly existed relative to Bats. Aristo- tle defined them as birds with skinny wings; he was not positive they were volatile, on account of their feet; but on the other hand, he could not resolve to view them as quadrupeds, since they were not pro- vided with four distinct feet. His reflections on their want of tail and rump led him to theoretical notions, which were not based on any positive observation. " Pliny speaks of Bats only to remark, that they are birds which bring forth their young alive, and suckle them. "At the restoration of learning in Europe, natu- ralists confined themselves to copying the ancients. * We anticipate, with great satisfaction, a paper on the subject of the bats of this country from that indefatigable and distinguished naturalist Capt. J Le Conte, who, during ma- ny years past, has been engaged in making the necessary ob- servations. We understand that he has many new and very interesting species. OF THE BAT. 6J Aldrovandus first began to advance farther in rela- tion to Bats: yielding uniformly to the prejudices of his time, he placed them in the same family with the ostrich, and the reason he gives is, that these two species of birds partake equally of the nature of quadrupeds/ " Scaliger makes out the Bat to be a perfectly mar- vellous being; he finds in it two and four feet; it walks without paws, and flies without wings—sees when there is no light, and becomes sightless when the dawn appears. It is, adds he, the most singular of all birds, because it has teeth, and is without a beak. " The Bat has, like all viviparous quadrupeds, a double heart,* cellular lungs, suspended and sur- rounded by the pleura, a muscular diaphragm, in- terposed between the cavity of the chest and that of the belly, an ample and solid brain, and a skull composed of the usual number of pieces, joined to each other by sutures. " They have the same sentient system, and the same organs of digestion and secretion. Their teeth are also of three sorts; their bodies equally covered with hair, and, as was long since known, without lead- ing to the proper conclusion, their young are brought forth alive, and suckled at their teats, exactly as in all viviparous quadrupeds. Such is the degree of resemblance, that the smallest details of their or- ganization suffice alone, and separately, to show that * That is, with two auricles and two ventricles: the right auricle and ventricle to throw the blood through the lun^s. the left, through the general circulation of the body. 62 GENERAL HISTOR\ they are true mammalia,* and must be classed with them. " The Bat, though accustomed to move in the air like birds, nevertheless is sustained by very differ- ent instruments; hence all the anomalies observed in its structure are derived from the mammalious type. " The parts which in birds answer to the fingers of the human body are almost effaced; they only exist in a rudimental form, attenuated and solidified with each other, whence it results that the hand of birds is nothing but a stump. The.wing exists beyond this, supported and adjusted on the extremity of the member, and consisting of long terminal quills, that is to say, on a fair analysis, the most useful portion is actually composed of shoots or elements belonging to the epidermal or scarf-skin system. " In the Bat, on the contrary, it is the fore-limbs themselves, and principally the hands, which are enlarged. If we can imagine the hand of an ape drawn out (as if through a wire-drawer's plate) and spreading from the wrist like rays through the seg- ment of a circle, we shall have a clear notion of the construction of a Bat's hand. " The thumb alone does not suffer the same modifi- cations: it remains short, free from all connexions, and capable of very various movements; in this it resembles the thumb of monkeys, since it is not employed as an organ of flight; that it may preserve - Or animals giving suck. It is to be regretted that we cannot express this term in English without circumlocution: the Germans have a word « saeugthiere" which conveys the true iu£ct, OF THE BAT. 63 its ordinary function, and remain a finger as to use, it is maintained in its integrity—that is to say, it is provided with a last phalanx and nail. (i The four fingers, on the contrary, which by their excessive length change to instruments of flight, passing to so strange an employment, are no longer susceptible of the accustomed action; it is with much trouble and fatigue that the Bat occasion- ally is merely able to use them for the purpose of dragging itself along a horizontal plane, or to secure its young. "Another anomaly renders these four fingers par- cularly worthy of attention; they are not complete, being destitute of nails, and, what is remarkable, the terminal phalanx, which in all other instances is formed to suit the nail, is wanting also. " These long finger-bones of the Bat answer the same end in their wings that the sticks of a parachute do to that instrument, that is, they are supports de- signed to enable a material to resist the air. This material in the Bat is a prolongation of the skin of the flanks: the back and the belly each furnish a layer, as we may ascertain by separating in two equal thicknesses the membrane of the wings. Not- withstanding that this membrane is formed thus, it always appears to us as a thin, transparent and slight network. " As the bones of the hand diminish in thickness in proportion as they are increased iii length, the in- teguments are, in like manner, thinned in propor- tion to their extension. It is, moreover, remarkable that this, which is here an effect of a general law of 64 GENERAL HISTORY organization, wonderfully completes the means of flight in the Bat, since more compact bones, or a thicker and denser membrane, especially at so great a distance from the moving power, would have in- creased the weight of the animal so much as to ren- der its flight impossible. " We may judge how much the anterior extremi- ties are enlarged, by comparing them with the poste- rior, which are of ordinary dimensions. These are only partially included in the lateral membrane, the feet being free. The membrane has its last attach- ments on the tarsus, or instep, the little bones of which, projecting in front, in form of a spine, give the interfemoral membranes a firm hold. " The toes of the hind feet are small, compressed, equal in length, and always five in number. They are all terminated by claws, or small horny plates, making a quarter circle, very sharp at the points, and remarkable for their equality and parallelism. " The whole of the functions ordinarily performed by fingers seem concentrated in the hinder toes of the Bat, which are invariable in their forms, or they are, in reality, the only fingers possessed by this genus. We have heretofore shown that only one is found on the anterior extremities, the rest being vir- tually nothing but solid supports to extend or fold the membranous wings. " When the Bat is not on the wing, we could scarcely imagine how it would use its limbs, in order to move on the ground; yet, when it is necessary, they employ them advantageously for the purpose. The folded wmgs then become fore-legs; they are sustain- OF THE BAT. 65 ed on four feet; they advance, and draw themselves along with sufficient quickness to justify us in saying that they run fast. "To effect this, how much trouble, how many ef- forts, and how many different actions are necessary! At first, they reach forward, and slightly to one side, the-extremity or stump of the wing, fastening the claw of the thumb on the ground; retaining thus a strong hold, they draw up the hind legs under the belly, and to start from this crouching position they raise themselves on their hinder parts, and tumble the whole body forwards. But as they only take hold of the ground with the claw of one wing, they advance diagonally, throwing themselves towards the fixed point; to make the next step, they use the other wing, and tumbling in the contrary direction, in spite of these alternate deviations, they move for- wards in a right line. As this exercise is very fa- tiguing, they do not attempt it unless when in per- fect security,, or else when they have accidentally fallen on a level surface. " In the latter condition, the Bat makes an effort to escape from it as speedily as possible, because, while thus situated, it is almost impossible to raise itself in the air. The wings are too extensive, and the strug- gles made, in general, merely produce a new fall; if, on the contrary, it can gain a high place, a tree, or a stump, it speedily makes its escape."* Professor Jacob Green has kindly furnished us with the following note of his observations, made on * See Diet, des Sciences Naturelles, Art. Cheiropteres. VOL. I.—I bb GENERAL HISTORY the Bat. in a cavern explored by him on the 1st of November, 1816. " I this day visited an extensive cavern, about twelve miles south of Albany, N. Y. I did not mea- sure its extent into the mountain, but it was at least three or four hundred feet. There was nothing re- markable in this cave, except the vast multitudes of Bats which had selected this unfrequented place, to pass the winter. They did not appear to be much disturbed by the light of the torches carried by our party, but, upon being touched with sticks, they instantly recovered animation and activity, and flew into the dark passages of the cavern. As the cave was, for the most part, not more than six or seven feet in height, they could very easily be removed from the places to which they were suspended, and some of the party, who were behind me, disturbed some hundreds of them at once, when they swept by me in swarms to more remote, darker, and safer places of retreat. In flying through the caves they made little or no noise; sometimes upon being dis- turbed in one place they flew but a few yards, and then instantly settled in another, in a state of torpor apparently as profound as before. These Bats, in hi- bernating, suspended themselves by the hinder claws, from the roof or upper part of the cave; in no in- stance did I observe one along the sides. They were not promiscuously scattered, but were collected into groups or clusters, of some hundreds, all in close contact. On holding a candle within a few inches of one of these groups, they were not in the least troubled by it: their eyes continued closed, and I could perceive no signs of respiration. On opening OF THE BAT. 67 the stomach of one of these Bats, it was found en- tirely empty; the species, I believe, was the V. Nov- eboracensis. "While makingsome experiments irtmy laboratory at Princeton, in a cold dark afternoon in December, a good fire being in the stove, and the room being warm, a small reddish coloured Bat, (probably the V. Noveboracensis,) which had secreted itself behind some of the cases which held the philosophical appa- ratus, made its appearance. It flew a short time about the room, and then retired; I saw it, how- ever, once or twice afterwards, in the course of the winter." Species I.—Carolina Bat. Vespertilio Carolinensis.-—Geoff. The essential characters of this species are the following:—the ears are oblong and of the length of the head; and partly velvet-like. The auricle or projecting portion of the ear, is half-heart shaped. The pelage is chesnut brown coloured above, and yellowish below. This Bat is most like the common or murine Bat of Europe, (V. Murinus, L.) The ears are of mid- dling size, showing no folds on their internal larger edge, and having the first half of their external sur- face covered with fine hairs. The auricle is almost heart-shaped; the tail is altogether enveloped by the interfemoral membrane, excepting a small point of its extremity, which is free. The hair is. at base, of a blackish ash colour. 6a GENERAL HISTORY As the name implies, this Bat is a native of Caro- lina, where it is found in the vicinity of Charleston. The first specimens were sent to Europe by Mr. Bosc, and described by Geoffroy, in the eighth volume of the Annals of the Museum of Natural His* tory. Species II.—New York Bat. Vespertilio Noveboracensis. L. Red Bat of Pennsylvania, figured in Volume VI. of Wilson's Orni- thology. Essential characters. The ears are short, broad, and rounded, and the whole of the tail is comprised in the interfemoral membrane. The nose of this species is short, and rather point- ed; the interfemoral membrane, which completely includes the tail, is velvet-like above, and of the same reddish brown colour as the back and upper part of the neck. The belly is of a paler colour, and there is a white spot at the origin of the wings. The hair covering the body is soft and furry. This species is found in the state of New York Pennsylvania, New Jersey, on the Missouri, &c. ' Species III—Hoary Bat. Vespertilio Pruinosus.—Say. Long', Expedition to the Rocky Mountains, Vol. i. p. 168< The ears of this species are large and short not equalling the length of the head, and are hairj on OF THE BAT. 69, their outside, for more than half their length. The tragus* is very obtuse at tip, and arcuated or bow- shaped. The nostrils open at a distance from each other; the canine teeth are large and prominent; there is but one distinct cutting tooth on each side, placed very near the canine, and almost on a line witji it; it is of a conical form, and furnished with a tu- bercle on its exterior base. The brachial membrane. is densely hairy on the anterior margin beneath, and the interfemoral membrane is covered with fur. The fur of the back is long, and of a black brown colour at base, then of a pale brownish yellow, then blackish, and then white; towards the rump dark ferruginous takes the place of the brownish yellow. The colours beneath, are similar to those of the back, but on the anterior portion of the breast the fur is not tipped with white, and on the throat it is of a dull yellowish white, and is dusky at base. This Bat is nearly four and a-half inches long, and was common in the vicinity of Engineer Cantonment, where the expedition to the Rocky Mountains win- tered. Mr. Thomas Nuttall, the justly distin- guished botanist, observed it also at Council Bluffs. A specimen captured near Philadelphia, was present- ed to the Philadelphia museum, by the late professor Barton. * That part of the external ear, which corresponds to the projection on the human ear, situated immediately next the face, over the joint of the jaw-bone; the antitragus is imme- diately opposite, and a little lower down, on the outer portion of cartilage, leaving, between the two, the little gutter directlv above the lobule or fleshy part of the ear. 70 GENERAL HISTORY This fine large species, remarkable for its variously coloured fur, was first scientifically described by Say, in the work above quoted, and we are indebted to him for all we have said relative to it. He states it to have much affinity with the New York Bat, before described, but is of twice the size, and dis- tinguished from that species by various minor charac- ters. Species IV.—Arcuated Bat. Vespertilio Arcuatus.—Say. Long's Expedition to the Rocky Mountains, Vol. i. p. 168. The head of this species is large, and the ears, rather shorter than the head, are wide, rounded at tip and hairy at base. The posterior edge has two slight and very obtuse emarginations: the anterior base is distant from the eye. The tragus is arcuated, and obtuse at tip; the interfemoral membrane is naked, including all the tail, except one half of the joint next the last. The total length of this species is five inches; the tail being one inch and a-hall long. In expansion it is more than thirteen inches. The upper cutting teeth, like those of vari- ous species of our Bats, are not prominent, but much inclined forwards, not rising at their tips above the intervening callosity. Mr Say remarks, that "this Bat might readi- GEo^Twh 1 ^ ^"n01^ ^ {V' ^olinensl, t I be1: V TmbleS.in C°l0Ur' but d^rs from it m being of a larger size, the ears broader and proportionally shorter, and an arcuated t^ci^! OF THE BAT. 71 ing in an almost uniform manner towards the ante- rior portion of the ear, like that of the V. Serotinus, Daub. Geoff, though not so broad." This Bat was obtained from the same vicinity as the preceding. Species V.—Subulate Bat. Vespertilio Subulatus.—-Say. Long's Expedition to the Rocky Mountains, Vol. ii. p. 63. The ears are longer than they are broad, and nearly as long as the head; the half nearest the head is hairy, a little ventricose on the anterior edge, and extending near to the eye. The tragus is elongated and subulate. The hair above is blackish at base, and at tip dull cinereous; the interfemoral mem- brane hairy at base, the hair of one colour; a few are also scattered over its surface, and along its edge, as well as that of the brachial membrane. Beneath, the hair is black, the tip yellowish white. The hind feet are rather long, a few bristles extending over the nails; only a minute portion of the tail protrudes beyond the membrane. The total length of this species is two inches and nine-tenths; the tail being one inch and one-fifth long. On this species Mr. Say makes the following re- marks, " It appears to be an immature specimen, as the molars are remarkably long and acute; the ca- nines are very much incurved, and the right one is 72 GENERAL HISTORY singularly bifid at tip, the division resembling short bristles. This species is, beyond a doubt, distinct from the Carolina Bat, (V. Carolinensis, Geoff.) with which the ears are in proportion equally elongated, and, as in that Bat, a little ventricose on the anterior edge, so as almost to extend over the eye; but the tragus is much longer, narrower, and more acute, re- sembling that of the Emarginatus, Geoff., as well in form as in proportion to the length of the ear."* '* The Prince of Musignano has several new species of American Bats, the descriptions of which he at present defers publishing, in order to gain more information relative to them. Should he publish his descriptions in time, we shall insert them in our appendix. i.2. I an ^/.ft/ 3 .'//, ''/ '' /> Of/A } ^^^S^W***^^ Ri 1 \ (which may be considered as -=2 j 20 Upper -< o Conical, < K • Jc , , , ,, , -£ J n 1 g Molar c canine, or false molar teeth.) r j f 4 Incisor 2 SO Lower < 10 Conical, (as above) ^J 1 6 Molar. In the upper jaw there are six anomalous cutting teeth, situated in the premaxillary bones; the two in- termediate are very large, contiguous, and ranged along the whole border of the jaw, hollowed in the form of a spoon, having a slightly oblique cutting edge, and the angle by which they touch more salient externally than internally. The next cutting-tooth on each side touches the intermediary, and resembles a very long canine tooth, being conical and slightly triangular at its base, where it has two very small tubercles, the one before and the other behind. The external or lateral incisor, the smallest of all the teeth in this jaw, is simply conic, a little compressed, slightly curved forwards at its point, and placed at some distance from the incisor, in the manner of a canine tooth. There are seven molars on the right and left, the three first of which are smaller than the posterior, separated from each other, all three moderately large, and furnished with a small pointed lobe at the front of their base, and another behind. The four last molars are larger than the an- terior ones, and each of them composed of two folds of enamel, forming two acute tubercles on the inner side, and obliquely hollowed to a gutter on the out- ride: there is a projection hollowed to a cupola at OF THE STAR-NOSE MOLE. 99 the internal bases of these teeth. The most anterior of these four last molars, and the smallest, are placed on a level with the commissure of the lips; the fol- lowing one is higher, the third still more so, and the last smaller than the third. In the lower jaw, which is very delicate, there are four flattened cutting teeth, reclined in the form of a spoon or ear-pick, the lateral ones in part hori- zontally inclined on the intermediary, and rising slightly at their external edge. Five teeth, with many lobes, then follow on each side, and may be considered as false molars, as much separated from each other as those of the upper jaw, the first being much larger than the others, and in this alone resembling a canine, having three lobes, the principal of which is inter- mediate, the second very much effaced, and the third slightly salient. The second is nearly similar, but shorter and more compressed, having the posterior lobe more apparent than in the preceding. The third has four lobes, the anterior of which is the least, the second the largest and most apparent of all, and two small posterior ones; the fourth is nearly similar to the third, with this difference, that the first pos- terior lobe is more internal, and this tooth conse- quently thicker: the fifth only differs from the fourth by its greater width, and is almost equal to the first true molar. There are only three molars in this jaw, presenting, like those of the upper jaw, two folds of enamel, forming a point; but these folds are inverted, the points being external instead of internal; the grooves, on the contrary, are internal, and the lower part of the tooth, instead of exhibiting the whole 100 GENERAL HISTORY projection, presents a perpendicular wall, and has two depressions at its summit, each of these depressions corresponding to the groove that descends from one of the two points.* Species I.—Star-nose Mole. Condylura Cristataj Illigeu. Taupe dwCanada; Delafaille, Ess. sur L'hist. Nat. de la Taupe, fig. 1769. Sorex Cristatus,- Linn. Erx. Radiated Mole,- Penn. Syn. Quad. Condylure a Museau Etoile,- Desm. Mam. p. 157. The Star-nose mole frequents the banks of rivulets, and the soft soil of adjacent meadows, where their burrows are most numerous, and apparently inter- minable; in many places it is scarcely possible to advance a step without breaking down their galle- ries, by which the surface is thrown into ridges, and the surface of the green sward in no slight degree disfigured. The excavations which are most con- tinuous, and appear to be most frequented, are placed at a short distance below the grass roots, on the banks of small streams; these are to be traced along their margins, following every inflexion, and making fre- quent circuits in order to pass large stones or roots of trees, to regain their usual proximity to the surface nearest the water. * This dental system is from Desmarest. See his ex- cellent note on the genus Condylura, in the Journal de Phy- sique for September, 1819. -> N* 3: ^ *s OF THE STAR-NOSE MOLE. 101 The form of the burrow does not perceptibly dif- fer from that made by the shrew-mole; but very few hills are to be found in the localities inhabited by the star-nose. The chamber-cell resembles that described in the last chapter, being a space of several inches dug out of some spot where the clay is tenacious, and the cell least exposed to injury from the weather or other accidents. The system of dentition peculiar to this genus, would lead to the inference that the quality of its food must in some respects differ from that used by the shrew-mole; but on this point it is not easy to say more, than that as the star-nose prefers moist and low situations, and the shrew-mole is most frequently found in dry and rather elevated spots, they feed on the larvae and insects proper to such places, which are doubtless of dissimilar kinds. In a state of cap- tivity both animals feed readily on flesh, either raw or cooked, and neither seem to show any fondness for, or willingness to eat, vegetable matter. The star-nose mole is about four inches in length, and of a blackish-gray colour; its pelage being short and very fine. Its head is much elongated, and the snout is distinguished by a remarkable disk, or naked cartilaginous fringe, which surrounds the nostrils. This disk has about twenty points or rays, the two superior and the four inferior intermediate of which are united at their bases, and are situated on a plane slightly in advance of the others: the surface of these fringes is granulated, and somewhat of a rose colour. The neck is not distinguishable in consequence of the position and great size of the muscles that are destined to move the anterior extremities, which are 102 GENERAL HISTORY very short, broad, covered with scales, and provided with large straight nails, the shortest of which is on the finger corresponding to the thumb; the second, third, and fourth are successively and proportionally longer than each other: the nail on the superior or little finger is exactly of the same size as that of the second or index finger: all the fingers are united as far as the second phalanx. The hind feet are a third longer than the fore ones, being slender, delicate, and weak; the phalanges are separated from each other throughout, and have small, curved, and sharp nails. The situation of the eyes is marked by three or four equal hairs, which may be readily discovered, and are not so stiff or large as those of the whiskers, the direction of which is not horizontal and lateral, like most other mammiferous animals, but raised nearly parallel, and turned towards the snout. Se- ven transverse wrinkles occupy the space in the palate between the cutting teeth and the first three molars. There are several very interesting external cha- racters peculiar to the star-nose, which have been much overlooked by those who have hitherto writ- ten on this subject; we will introduce them in this place, as they may be serviceable in enabling us to compare the present genus with some others. The star-nose is destitute of an auricle projecting above the level of the skin, but, nevertheless, has a large auricular orifice. This meatus externus is half an inch long, having a distinctly marked tra- gus and anti-tragus, and is situated at a short dis- tance from the shoulder, in the broad triangular fold OF THE STAR-NOSE MOLE. 103 of integument connecting the fore-arm and head. From the meatus, the course of the cartilaginous tube is obliquely downwards, forwards, and inwards, until it terminates in a delicate bony tube, previous to reaching the tympanum, which is large and com- posed of a very delicate membrane. The scales on the anterior and posterior extremi- ties have been mentioned in general terms by several writers, especially by Desmarest, who gave the first correct description of this animal. But these scales are so peculiar and uniform in their position, that a naturalist should not pass over the particulars of their arrangement in silence. On the anterior extremities, the superior or ulnar edge of the hand has on its anterior surface, (regard- ing the position of the animal) a row of corneous scales, about nine in number, which are broadest mid- way from the carpus to the first phalanx of the fifth finger. Another row of scales commences on the inferior part of the little finger, becoming broader and of a semilunar figure as they extend towards the metacarpus; between these two a much smaller row is placed. The fourth finger has a single row of small scales on its upper posterior side, and a large one extending along the back of the finger to the metacarpus; the middle finger has a small central row, which is just distinguishable; that on the fore finger is still more faint; the thumb has none but very small ones on its central posterior part, but on its inferior posterior part, or radial edge, it has one scale of con- siderable size on the phalanx, and four or five be- tween this part and the carpus; the two nearest the scale on the phalanx are largest. 104 LLNERAL HISTORY The surface of the palm of the hand is covered with small circular scales, extending most numerous- ly, and of a darker colour, from opposite the root of the thumb, obliquely outward to the basis of the lit- tle finger. On the inferior extremities, the whole of the su- perior surface of the foot is covered with minute, blackish, circular scales, which increase slightly in size as they approach the toes. On the anterior part of the fourth toe is a large central row of black scales, and on the fifth a rather smaller one; hence these toes have a very considerable resemblance to the toes of a bird. The other toes of the hind foot being applied with their anterior surfaces to the ground, have the scales very minute and almost co- lourless. The colour of the scales varies on different parts of the hand. On so much of the back of the hand as is formed by the fourth and little fingers, the scales are a very dark blue, approaching to black, in the living animal; hence to the large scales of the thumb the colour changes to a faint purplish blue, which is little more than distinguishable.. Two other excellent characters belonging to the palm of the hand have been neglected; the first is the enlargement of the carpal edge of the palm by an elongation of the integuments; this, in addition to the row of bristles that margins all the rest of the palm, has two distinct bristly hairs at its superior and inferior edge, more than one-eighth of an inch long. The second character is still more striking; it is a process of the palmar cuticle on the superior edge of the thumb and three succeeding fingers. OF THE STAR-NOSE MOLE. 105 Tnese processes are separated and directed obliquely upwards and outwards; the serrations on the thumb being two, and on the three succeeding fingers three in number. On the soles of the (posterior) feet another cha- racter is found, which consists of five circular, dis- tinct spots, so arranged that the two nearest the body are parallel with each other, opposite the commence- ment of the first toe, counting, as in the human sub- ject, from the one nearest the median line of the body; the superior spot is nearly in a line with the fourth toe, and larger and darker coloured than the inferior; the two succeeding spots (nearer the ex- tremity of the toes) are also parallel with each other; the exterior one is the largest of all these plantar scales, and placed nearly over the extremity of the metatarsal of the fourth toe; the fifth, or single scale, is placed in advance of all the rest, and is situated immediately over the centre, and behind the separa- tion of the third and fourth toes. A very analogous arrangement may be observed in the soles of the feet of the Sigmodon Hispidum; Ord. By comparing the condylura with the scalops, we are led to several interesting observations. We have seen that the condylura has a remarkable and large external ear, though it is destitute of a projecting auricle. The scalops has no auricle, and but an ex- tremely small meatus externus opening on the side of the head near the shoulder. The hand of the scalops is peculiar for its great breadth and strength: the extraordinary breadth is produced by an additional metacarpal bone, inferior or external to the thumb, articulated with the car- VOL. T.--O 106 GENERAL HISTORY, &C. pus, and having a tendon for moving it from the com- mon flexor of the fingers.* On the superior or ulnar edge of the hand, there is a cartilaginous additament, connected with the little finger by a tendon. The condylura has the additional metacarpal bone, but rather like a rudiment, and has not the cartilaginous additament at the superior edge of the hand; hence the very great difference in breadth in the hands of the two genera. The scalops has a slight process or elongation, not at the carpal extremity of the palm, but on the inferior or outer edge of the supplemen- tary bone. * This structure resembles that of the Talpa Europea, 01 common mole of Europe, which has recently been asserted to inhabit Pennsylvania, on the authority of the MS. notes of the justly celebrated William Bartram. These notes having been made long before the genera Scalops and Condy- lura were established, can have no weight, unless along with the name Talpa Americana, Bartram had given such a de- scription as to convince us that it was not the scalops he ob- served, of which we have little doubt. However this may be, we shall continue to discredit the existence of Talpa Europea in this country, until more positive testimony is adduced. CHAPTER VI. Family III.—Carnivora; Flesh-Eaters. The animals belonging to this family are certain- ly not the only ones which feed on flesh, since all others provided with claws, and the three sorts of teeth, in different degrees feed on animal matter. The creatures now about to become the subject of our attention, are fairly and fully entitled to the ap- pellation of carnivorous, as nature has endowed them with sanguinary appetites and ferocious dispositions, and supplied the strength and weapons necessary to their gratification. They have four large and long canine teeth, which are separated in each jaw by six incisors, the second of which, in the lower jaw, is always more deeply set than the others. The jaw-teeth are uniformly either entirely trenchant, or partly supplied with blunt tu- bercles, and never with conical points. The ante- rior molars of these animals are the most trenchant; to these succeed a larger molar, wrhich commonly has an additional tuberculous point, varying in size; and behind this tooth we find one or two small entirely flat teeth. These small teeth at the back of the mouth, enable dogs to chew the grass which they oc- casionally eat. To these three sorts of teeth the fol- lowing names have been appropriated by Frederic Cuvier: the large molar in the upper and lower jaw 108 GENERAL HISTORY he calls carnivorous; the anterior pointed jaw-teeth, false molars, and the posterior blunt ones, tubercu- lous. We may readily and correctly decide on the degree of exclusiveness with which the animals of this family feed on flesh, by observing the proportion between the trenchant and tuberculous surfaces of their teeth. Many genera comprised in this family apply the whole sole of the foot to the ground while walking or standing erect, as may be perceived by the nakedness of the inferior surface of the hind feet. A much larger number walk on the tips of the toes; hence their speed is much greater, and their general habits are also very different. All of them are equally des- titute of clavicles, having in its stead nothing but a bony rudiment. Tribe I.—Plantigrada: Plantigrade Jlnimals." The individuals of this tribe have five toes on the fore and hind feet, and in walking they place the whole sole of the foot on the ground, which enables them to walk or stand erect better than any other beasts of prey. They are destitute of a caBcum; and partake of the sluggish gait and nocturnal habits of the insect-eaters. The greater part of those found in cold countries pass the winter in a state of tor- pidity. * Treading on the whole sole of the ioo^ CHAPTER VII. Genus VIII. Ursus, L; Bear. Gr. AgK-roo- Germ. Der Bar. Ital. Orso. Sp. Orso. Steed. Biorn. />. L'ours. GENERIC CHARACTERS. The head is large, the muzzle varying in length, and terminating in a moveable cartilage. The eyes and ears are small, and the tongue smooth. The body and limbs are large, powerful, and covered with a thick woolly hair. The teats are six in num- ber; four of them are placed on the chest, and two on the belly. The nails are incurved, very large and strong; the soles of the hind-feet are callous, and the tail is short. The Bear is an animal of great strength and fero- city of disposition; slow in his movements, and of sluggish habits. His teeth being most fitted for subsisting on fruits and vegetable matters, he does not frequently attack other animals, unless impelled by necessity. During winter bears generally pass a great portion of time in a state of inaction and tor- pidity. They are most generally found in the re- mote and mountainous districts of North America, and are gradually becoming more scarce as popula- tion increases. As we shall give a full account of 110 GENERAL HISTORY the species, we refer the reader to what is there said for a better understanding of the character and habits of this genus. Dental System. {6 Incisor f 2 Canine < 12 Molar. (_ {6 Incisor f 2 Canine < 14 Molar. (. 6 Incisor f 6 False Molars 2 Carnivorous ^ 4 Tuberculous. f 6 Incisor f 8 False Molars 22 Lower 4 2 Canine 4 9 Carnivorous 4 Tuberculous. In the upper jaw the two first incisors resemble those of the dog, but the middle lobe almost entirely effaces the lateral, both being very small. Internally they are divided into two parts by a transverse de- pression, and the internal, much less salient than the opposite part, is itself divided into two lobes by a de- pression which is perpendicular to the transverse furrow. The third incisor is divided into two parts by an oblique furrow, and its hooked form gives it some relation to the canine. The canine comes next, after a small unoccupied interval; it is conical, slightly hooked, and has longi- tudinally from before backwards a cutting edge. Im- mediately at the base of the canine is a rudimental false molar; then at a short distance we find a se- cond, which sometimes falls out with age; and after another gap there is a third at the base of the carni- vorous, very slightly developed, but sometimes pro- vided with two roots. The carnivorous is reduced to its smallest dimensions; exteriorly we may recognize the middle tubercle, proper to this species of tooth, and the posterior tubercle, but the anterior lobe is OF THE BEAR. Ill almost effaced; at its internal side we find posteriorly a tubercle much smaller than the preceding, which increases its thickness. This particular position of the internal tubercle, which we always find at the anterior part of the upper carnivorous, while at the same time it is at the posterior part that the false mo- lars become tuberculous, induces us to consider the tooth just described as only a false molar; but the upper carnivorous has entirely disappeared, and the only regular false molar existing, supplies its place. The next tooth has at its extreme edge the two principal tubercles of the first tuberculous teeth; at its internal edge there are two tubercles parallel to the two first, but separated from each other by a much smaller tubercle. This tooth is nearly twice as long as it is broad. The last molar is one-third larger than the preced- ing, but its proportions are the same in relation to length and breadth; it has on its external edge, at the anterior part, two tubercles, which seem analo- gous to those of the preceding tooth, but rather smaller. At the internal border of the same part, there is a crest divided in three, by two small grooves. The posterior part is a projection or spur, making nearly a third of the extent of the tooth, and bor- dered by a crest irregularly divided by three prin- cipal grooves; all the interior of the crown is cover- ed by small furrows and asperities, which are peculiar to the bears. In the lower jaw the incisors are bilobated like those of the dog, and the canine are shaped at the sides like those of the upper jaw. The false molars are two or three in number, and sometime^ 112 GENERAL history four; the first are at the base of the canine, the others are separated by an unoccupied interval, and have some relation to the true molars. The first is larger than the second, and remains in the adult animal; the second extremely small, falls out with age, and in these different relations the third resembles it; the fourth alone has the regular form. After this comes a tooth, narrow in proportion to its length, but not trenchant. We observe a tuber- cle on its anterior part, another on its external sur- face, and two smaller on its internal face, opposite the preceding. These four tubercles form nearly one-half of the tooth; to these succeed a deep groove, and the tooth terminates behind, a pair of tubercles. The next molar, which is the largest tooth of this jaw, is very irregular in relation to the disposition of its grooves, tubercles, and the hollows or depres- sions which separate them. We may distinguish, however, two principal tubercles at its anterior half, one on its internal, and the other on its exter- nal face, which are united by a transverse crest; but these tubercles are subdivided, especially the internal one, by small depressions which separate it into two or three others. We may say the same of the posterior part, and, in feet, the engraving alone can give a clear idea of it, because it is much more ir- regular than the other. The last tooth is still less sus- ceptible of a detailed description than the preceding; it is smaller, has an elliptic form, is bordered at its circumference by an irregularly notched crest, and is internally marked by still more irregular rugosities. In their reciprocal position, all these teeth are op- posed crown to crown, except the first lower molar. OF THE BEAR. 113 whose external edge, at its anterior part, is in re- lation with the internal edge of the superior carnivo- rous; these are the only teeth belonging to animals of this genus suited to the comminution of flesh, which, in fact, they can but imperfectly perform. [ The Brown Bear. Ursus Arctos: Lin. Erxleb. Bodd. Ours: Buff. torn. 8, pi. 31, Briss. Reg-. An. p. 258, Alpine Bear of Europe. This animal has so frequently been described as a native of this country, that persons unacquainted with the manner in which writers have copied each other, in relation to American natural history, may be surprised that we entirely reject the species as an inhabitant of the northern part of this continent. It is true that various travellers have made an oc- casional mention of "• brown bears," but there is abundant reason to believe that they have mistaken young or adult black bears, in a particular state of pelage, for them; this is rendered the more probable from the fact that no real " brown bear" has yet been seen by any of the expeditions which have traversed the vast forests, plains, and mountains of the western regions, where they would almost certainly have been encountered had they existed. Lewis and Clark, in several instances, speak of " Brown bears;" but these attentive observers expressly state, that they were uniformly found in the same districts, and were spe- cifically the same as the Grizzly, white or variegated vol. i.—p 114 THE BLACK BEAR. bear, which we shall hereafter describe. We have made many inquiries of persons who have resided in parts of the country where the brown bear would most probably be found, if it were a native, but have not yet met with an individual who has seen any other species than the common black, or American bear, and the great grizzly bear of the West. Taking all circumstances into consideration, we feel authorised to believe that the Ursus Arctos is not found in America, and in this belief we shall re- main, at least until there is unequivocal testimony adduced to establish the contrary.] Species I.—American, or Black Bear, Ursus Americanus.—Pallas. Ours D'Amerique: Cev. Men. du Mus. Ours Gulaire: Geoff. Coll. du Mus. This bear is found throughout North America, from the shores of the Arctic Sea, to its most south- ern extremity. That they must have existed in vast numbers throughout this great extent of country, pre- vious to its settlement by Europeans, we may readily conceive, from the immense number of skins of this animal which are procured even at the present day. From the year 1798 to 1802, one hundred and nine- ty-two thousand four hundred and ninety-seven bear skins were exported from Quebec, and in the year 1822, the Hudson's Bay company alone exported three thousand skins of the black bear. THE BLACK BEAR. 115 Captains Lewis and Clark observed black bears on the wooded portions of the rocky mountains, and subsequently found them on the great plains of Co- lumbia^ and in the tract of country lying between these plains and the Pacific Ocean. They are occa- sionally found throughout the territories of the Uni- ted States, in the wooded- and mountainous regions, and in unsettled districts, where their skins are of great value to the inhabitants as a substitute for blankets and other manufactured woollens. The black bear, under ordinary circumstances, is not remarkably ferocious, nor is he in the habit of at- tacking man without provocation. But when wound- ed, he turns on the aggressor with great fury, and defends himself desperately. This disposition is more fully manifested during the coupling season, because the males are then highly excited, and are not so inert and clumsy as in the autumn, when they are exceedingly fat. If taken When young, this bear is readily domes- ticated, and taught numerous tricks; we see him fre- quently exhibited by itinerant showmen, as a "learn- ed" bear, though it requires a long continuance of severe and cruel discipline to bring him to this state of i( improvement." ' In captivity they are always remarkable for the persevering manner in which they keep moving backward and forward at the extremity of their chain, thus expressing their impatience of confinement, or rather, as if solicitous to take exercise. This feeling of the necessity for exercise is mani- fested in an especial manner when the animal is con- fined in a very small cage, where he has not room 116 THE BLACK BEAR. even to turn entirely round. Under such circum- stances he perseveringly moves himself in every direction that his narrow limits will allow, stepping with his fore feet first to one side and then to the other, and finally, by raising and depressing his body quickly, as if jumping from the ground, he gives his whole frame a degree of exercise, which must tend to the preservation of his health and strength. When the winters are severe at the north, and they find a difficulty of procuring food, they travel to the southern regions in considerable bodies. Dr. Libley states, in his report to the secretary of war, relative to the territory bordering on Red River, that from all the information he could gain, immense and almost incredible numbers of these animals descend- ed the mountains, and passed southwardly into the timbered country. The sight and hearing appear to be the most acute of the senses in this bear, as well as in those hereafter to be described. Although he kills many small ani- mals, yet he does not follow them by the smell. When he walks, his gait is heavy and apparently awkward, and when running is not much less so, but his strength of body enables him to move with considerable celeri- ty, and for a long time. The femfiles bring forth their young in the winter time, and exhibit for them a degree of attachment which nothing can surpass. They usually have two cubs,.which are suckled until they are well grown. The fondness existing between, the mother and cubs seems to be mutual, and no danger can separate her from them, nor any thing, short of death itself, in- duce her to forsake them. THE BLACK BEAR. 117 " Near the old village of Catharine, in the state of New York, a young man of seventeen passing through the woods early in the morning, met with a young cub, which he pursued and caught, and seiz- ing by the heels, swung it against a log repeatedly, to kill it. The noise it made alarmed the dam, -and the lad, lifting his eyes, saw a large bear muking. to- wards him with great fury. Dropping the cub, he seized his gun in time to discharge the contents, which only wounded her, when instantly clubbing the mus- ket, he belaboured her on the sides, snout, head, &c. till the stock of the gun was shivered, and the bar- rel wrenched and twisted in an extraordinary man- ner. After a sustained combat, in which the bear tore his clothes to pieces and scratched him severely, he took an opportunity (when, from the bleeding of her wounds and weakness, she began to flag,) to run away for assistance. On returning with his master they killed the old bear and both her cubs."* A friend of the author's, while traversing a wood near Fort Snelling, on the Missouri, saw a she-bear accompanied by two cubs, (about the size of puppies at a month old) a short distance before him. The cubs immediately ascended a tree, and the dam,, rais- ing herself on her hind legs, sat erect at its foot in order to protect them: the rifle, discharged with a fatal aim, laid the parent lifeless on the earth. The hunter then approached and stirred the body with the butt of his gun, on which the little cubs hastily descended the tree and attacked him with great ear- * Vide, Cyclop. Am. Ed. vol. iv. 118 THE BLACK BEAR nestness, attempting to bite his legs and feet, which their youth and want of strength prevented them from injuring. When he retired to a short distance, they returned to the dead body of their dam, and by various caresses and playful movements endeav- oured to rouse her from that sleep which "knows no waking." Black bears are still numerous in the wooded and thinly settled parts of Pennsylvania, as well as in most of the other states of the' Union, and where their favourite food is plenteous they grow to a great size, and afford a large quantity of oil. Bartram relates that he was present at the cutting up of one which weighed five or six hundred pounds, and his hide was apparently as large as that of an ox of six or seven hundred weight. ■ The food of this animal is principally grapes, plums, whortle- berries, persimmons, bramble and other berries; they are also particularly fond of the acorns of the live oak, on which they grow* exces- sively fat in Florida, &c. In attempting to procure these acorns they subject themselves to great perils, for after climbing these enormous oak-trees, they push* themselves along the limbs towards the ex- treme branches, and with their fore-paws bend the twigs within reach, thus exposing themselves to se- vere and even fatal accidents in case of a fall. They are also very fond of the different kinds of nuts and esculent roots, and often ramble to great distances from their dens in search of whortle-berries, mul- berries, and indeed all sweet flavoured and spicy fruits; birds, small quadrupeds, insects, and eggs, are also devoured by them whenever they can lie THE BLACK BEAR. 119 obtained. They are occasionally very injurious to the frontier settlers, by their incursions in search of potatoes and young corn, both of which are favourite articles of food; their claws enable them to do great mischief in potato grounds, as they can dig up a large number in a very short time, and where the bears are numerous their ravages are occasionally very ex- tensive. In the north, the flesh of the black bear is fittest for the table after the middle of July, when the ber- ries begin to ripen, though some berries impart a very disagreeable flavour to their flesh. They re- main in good condition until the following January or February; late in the spring they are much ema- ciated, and their flesh is dry and disagreeable in con- sequence of their long fasting through the season of their torpidity. Their flesh is also rendered rank and disagreeable by feeding on herring spawn, which they seek and devour with greediness, whenever it is to be obtained. The southern Indians kill great num- bers of these bears at all seasons of the year, but no inducement can be offered to prevent them from singeing off the hair of all that are in good condition for eating, as the flesh of the bear is as much spoiled by skinning as pork would be; the skins these peo- ple bring the traders are consequently only such as are obtained from bears that are too poor to be eaten. In the vicinity of Hudson's Bay the black bear has been observed to feed entirely on water-insects during the month of June, when the berries are not ripe. These insects, of different species, are found in astonishing quantities in some of the lakes, where, 120 THE BLACK BEAR. being driven by gales of wind in the bays, and press- ed together in vast multitudes, they die, and cause an intolerable stench by their putrefaction, as they lie in some places two or three feet deep.* The bear swims with his mouth open, and thus gathers the insects on the surface of the water: when the stomach of the animal is opened, at this season, it is found to be filled with them, and emits a very disa- greeable stench. They are even believed to feed on those which die and are washed on shore. The flesh of the animal is spoiled by this diet, though in- dividuals killed at a distance from the water are agreeably flavored at the same time of year. The black bear is in fact very indiscriminate in his feeding; and though suited by nature for the almost exclusive consumption of vegetable food, yet re- fuses scarcely any thing when pressed by hunger. He is moreover voracious as well as indiscriminate in satisfying his appetite, and frequently gorges until his stomach loathes and rejects its contents. He seeks, with great assiduity, for the larvae or grub-worms of various insects, and exerts a sur- prising degree of strength in turning over large trunks of fallen trees, which, whenever sufficiently decayed to admit of it, he tears to pieces in search of worms. During the season when .the logger-head turtles land m vast multitudes from the lagoons at the south, for the purpose of laying, the black bears come in droves to feast on their eggs, which they dig out of * See Hearnes' Journey, p. 371, 8vo. ed. THE BLACK BEAR. 121 the sand very expeditiously, and they are so atten- tive to their business, that the turtle has seldom left the place for a quarter of an hour, before the bear arrives to feast on her eggs. While Major Long's party were passing through the country west of the Missouri, they often saw black bears, which they observed most commonly to feed on grapes, plumbs, dog-wood berries, &c; but they were also frequently seen disputing with the wolves and buzzards for a share of the carcasses of animals abandoned by the hunters, or of such as had perished by disease. When the bear seizes a living animal, he does not, as most other beasts do, first put it to death, but tears it to pieces and de- vours it, without being delayed by its screams or struggles, and may be actually said to swallow it alive. Dupratz, who has been properly considered an intelligent and veracious historian, relates the fol- lowing circumstance, in his History of Louisiana, to prove that the black bear is by no means carnivorous. We must in this case believe that he was misinformed, or mistaken, since this bear is well known to feed on flesh, even where the provocation is much less than that he relates. " The black bears," says he, 6( appeared in Lou- isiana during the winter, being driven from the northern regions by the snow which covered the earth, and prevented them from obtaining their food. They fed on fruits, acorns, and roots, and were most fond of honey and milk, which, when obtained, they would sooner be killed than relinquish. In spite of the prejudice which supposes this bear to be carni- vol. i.—Q 122 THE BLACK BEAR. vorous, I maintain, with all the inhabitants of this province and the surrounding country, that this is not the fact. It has never happened that they have devoured a man, notwithstanding their numbers and the extreme hunger they sometimes suffer; they even do not eat flesh when it is thrown in their way. During the time that I resided at Natchez, there was a very severe winter in the northern regions, and the black bears came south in great numbers; they were so numerous that they were all starving and very poor. Their great hunger drove them out of the woods bordering the river; they were seen at night entering yards which were not well closed, and where fresh meat was exposed, yet they left it untouched, and ate nothing but such grain as they could find. It was certainly on such occasions that their carnivorous disposition should have been dis- played. They never killed animals to devour them, and so little carnivorous are they, that they abandon the snow-covered countries, where they could kill men and animals at pleasure, to wander so far to the south, in search of fruits and roots that a carnivo- rous animal would not touch." Sweet creatures!— either the Abbe Dupratz was sadly misinformed, or the disposition of the black bear has astonishingly deteriorated since the year 1755, as those of the present day, so far from refusing meat left in their way, will break into enclosures in search of it, and if opportunity offers, when pressed by hunger, they do not scruple to kill pork for their own use. The following instance occurred in the western part of the state of New York, in the year 1824. The back window of a farm-house was forced open THE BLACK BEAR. 123 one night, and a considerable quantity of pork car- ried off. The proprietor, without suspecting the na- ture of the plunderer, placed a loaded musket op- posite the window, having a string so adjusted that the gun would be discharged by any thing attempt- ing to enter the room through the window. During the night the report of the gun was heard, and in the morning the body of a large black bear was found at a short distance from the spot where he had received his death wound. The usual residence of the black bear is in the most remote and secluded parts of the forest, where his den is either in the hollow of some decayed tree, or in a cavern formed among the rocks. To this place he retires when his hunger is appeased, and in the winter he lies coiled up, there during the long period of his torpidity. The female of the black bear, during the period of gestation, which commences in the month of October, and continues for about one hundred and twelve days, leads a re- tired and concealed life,—for we have not a single instance on record of" a pregnant bear being killed either by white men or Indians, though the mother and very young cubs are frequently destroyed. Dur- ing an extremely hard winter the inhabitants of the borders of James' river, Virginia, killed several hun- dred bears, among which two only were females, and those not with young. In the northern parts of this continent, the sub- terraneous retreats of the black bear may be readily discovered by the mist which uniformly hangs about the entrance of the den, as the animal's heat and breathing prevent the mouth of the cave from be- 124 THE BLACK BEAR. ing entirely closed, however deep the snow may be. As the black bear usually retires to his winter quar- ters before any quantity of snow has fallen, and does not again venture abroad, if undisturbed, until the end of March or beginning of April, he must con- sequently spend at least four months in a state of tor- pidity, and without obtaining food. It is there- fore not surprising that, although the bear goes into his winter quarters in a state of excessive fatness, he should come out in the spring of the year ex- tremely emaciated. The northern Indians occasionally destroy the bear by blocking up the mouth of the cave with logs of wood, and then, breaking open the top of it, kill the animal with a spear or gun; yet this method is considered both cowardly and wasteful, as the bear can neither escape nor offer, the slightest injury to his disturbers. Sometimes they throw a noose round his neck, draw him up to the top of the hole, and kill him with a hatchet. The black bear is occasionally captured in large and strong steel-traps, well secured by a chain to a neighbouring tree, and laid in a path over which a freshly-killed carcass has been drawn along,—or he is taken in a noose suspended from a strong sapling. A common mode of hunting this animal is to follow him with two or three well trained dogs. When he finds that he is pursued, he generally pushes directly forward for eight or ten miles, or farther, if not over- taken; as the dogs come up with him their repeated attacks cause him to turn for the purpose of striking at them, and if they do not dexterously avoid his blows they will be killed, as he strikes with very THE BLACK BEAR. 125 great force. To avoid the vexation produced by the dogs, he mounts a tree, ascending for twenty or thirty feet, but is allowed very little rest, for the hunter now approaching, he throws himself to the earth, and hurries onwards, being still pursued and worried by the dogs. Again he is obliged to take re- fuge in a tree, and sometimes climbs as near as possi- ble to the top, endeavouring to conceal himself among the foliage. The hunter now strikes against the trunk of the tree, as if engaged in cutting it down; the poor bear soon betrays his hiding place, and slip- ping to the end of the longest branch, gathers his body up, and drops from a vast height to the ground, whence he often appears to rebound for several feet, and then runs off as actively as he can. At length, worn out by frequently repeated exertions to escape, he is finally shot, while attempting to screen himself by aid of the trunk of a tree, or while em- ployed in resisting the attacks of the dogs. Among other modes of killing the black bear the Indians employ a trap composed of logs, which, when the animal attempts to remove the bait, either falls on his body and kills him outright, or secures him until he is put to death by the proprietor of the snare. Our enterprisingcountryman, Schoolcraft, relates an instance of his having seen one thus caught. " The animal sat up on his fore-paws facing us, the hinder paws being pressed to the ground by a heavy weight of logs, which had been arranged in such a manner as to allow the bear to creep under, and by seizing the bait he had sprung the trap and could not extricate himself, although with his fore-paws he had demolished a part of the works. After view- 126 1 HE BLACK BEAR. ing him for some time a ball was fired through his head, but it did not kill him. The bear kept his position and seemed to growl in defiance. A second ball was aimed at the heart, and took effect, but he did not resign the contest immediately, and was at last despatched with an axe. As soon as the bear fell, one of the Indians walked up, and addressing him by the name of muck-wah, shook him by the paw, with a smiling countenance, as if he had met with an old acquaintance, saying, in the Indian lan- guage, he was sorry they had been under the neces- sity of killing him, and hoped the offence would be forgiven, especially as the che-moek-o-men (white men) had fired one of the balls." The Indians consider this bear as one of the noblest objects of the chase, and they always manifest the highest degree of exultation when they are success- ful in killing one. Every part of the animal is valu- able to them, even to its intestines and claws; the latter are bored at the base and strung on deer sinews to be worn as ornaments. The flesh is considered most delicious food, and the fore-paws as an exquisite dainty. The fat of the bear is accumulated in different parts of the body to an excessive degree towards au- tumn, after the animal has been plentifully supplied with food; the oil obtained by liquefying it, is a well known popular remedy against baldness, as well as for rubbing stiff or rheumatic joints. The fat ob- tained from the paws is most highly prized, either because it is most difficult to procure in any quantity, or because it is really finer than that obtained from the body generally. It is very certain that few, or THE BLACK BEAR. 127 indeed perhaps none, of the animal oils are finer when properly prepared than that of the bear, and hence, in any case where the external application of oil is thought to be proper, bear's oil will be preferable to any other; but that it possesses many other virtues except those depending on its tenuity, we are not prepared to admit. The black bear, like all the species of this genus, is very tenacious of life, and seldom falls unless shot through the brain or heart. An experienced hunter never advances on a bear that has fallen, without first stopping to load his rifle, as the beast frequently re- covers to a considerable degree, and would then be a most dangerous adversary. The skull of the bear appears actually to be almost impenetrable, and a rifle- ball, fired at a distance of ninety six yards, has been flattened against it, without appearing to do any ma- terial injury to the bone. The best place to direct blows against the bear is upon his snout; when struck elsewhere, his dense woolly coat, thick hide, and ro- bust muscles, render manual violence almost entirely unavailing. When the bear is merely wounded, it is very dan- gerous to attempt to kill him with such a weapon as a knife or tomahawk, or indeed any thing which may bring one within his reach. In this way hunters and others have paid very dearly for their rashness, and barely escaped with their lives; the following instance may serve as an example of the danger of such an enterprise: "Mr. Mayborne, who resides in Ovid township, Cayuga county, between the Seneca and Cayuga lakes, in the state of New York, went one afternoon 128 THE BLACK BEAK. through the woods in search of his horses, taking with him his rifle and the only load of ammunition he had in the house. On his return home, about an hour before dusk, he perceived a very large bear crossing the path, on which he instantly fired, and the bear fell, but immediately recovering his legs, made for a deep ravine a short way onwards. Here he tracked him awhile by the blood, but night coming on, and expecting to find him dead in the morning, he re- turned home. A little before day-break the next morning, taking a pitchfork and hatchet, and his son, a boy of ten or eleven years of age with him, he pro- ceeded to the place in quest of the animal. The glen or ravine into which he had disappeared the evening before, was eighty or ninety feet from the top of the bank to the brook below: down this preci- pice a stream of three or four yards in breadth is pitched in one unbroken sheet, and, forming a circu- lar basin or pool, winds away among the thick under- wood. After reconnoitering every probable place of retreat, he at length discovered the bear, who had made his way up the other side of the ravine, as far as the rocks would admit, and sat under a projecting cliff, stedfastly eyeing the motions of his enemy. Mayborne, desiring his boy to remain where he was, took the pitchfork, and descending to the bottom, de- termined from necessity to attack him from below. The bear kept his position until the man approached within six or seven feet, when on the instant, instead of being able to make a stab with the pitchfork, he found himself grappled by the bear, and both together rolled towards the pond, at least twenty or twenty- five feet, the bear biting on his left arm, and hug- THE BLACK BEAR. 129 ging him almost to suffocation. By great exertion he thrust his right arm partly down his throat, and in that manner endeavoured to strangle him, but was once more hurled headlong down through the bushes, a greater distance than before, into the water.— Here, finding the bear gaining on him, he made one desperate effort and drew the animal's head partly under water, and repeating his exertions, at last weak- ened him so much, that calling to his boy, who stood on the other side in a state little short of distraction for the fate of his father, to bring him the hatchet, he sunk the edge of it by repeated blows into the brain of the bear. This man, although robust and muscular, was scarcely able to crawl home, where he lay for nearly three weeks, the flesh of his arm being much crushed, and his breast severely mangled. The bear weighed upwards of four hundred pounds." The black bear, in common with other species of the genus, endeavours to suffocate an adversary by violently hugging and compressing its chest. A man might end such a strgggle in a few instants, if one hand be sufficiently at liberty to grasp the throat of the animal with the thumb and fingers, externally, just at the root of the tongue, as a slight degree of compression there will generally suffice to produce a spasm of the glottis, that will soon suffocate it beyond the power of offering resistance or doing injury. The black bear differs from other species of the genus by having the nose and forehead nearly on the same line, though the forehead is slightly pro- minent. This" projection of the front is less at the vol. i.—R 130 THE BLACK BEAR. upper part than in the brown bear of Europe.* The palms of the hands and soles of the feet are very short, and the whole body is covered with long, shining, straight black hair, which is by no means harsh to the touch. The sides of the face are marked with fawn colour, and a small spot of the same exists in some individuals in front of the eye; others have the muzzle of a clear light yellow, with a white line commencing on the root of the nose and reaching to each side of the angle of the mouth. This con- tinues over the cheek to a large white space, mixed with a slight fawn colour, covering the whole of the throat, whence a narrow line descends upon the breast. It was this variety which Geoffroy called Ow*s Gulaire. The yellow bear of Carolina is also a variety of the black or American bear. Capt. Franklin saw adults of this species in the vicinity of Cumberland house which were red, and remark- ed that the cubs of these red bears were black; while the cubs of the black individuals wrere as frequently of a red colour. * We are informed by Capt. J. Le Conte, who, as a natu- ralist, ranks deservedly high, that the black bear is distin- guished with still greater certainty from the brown or Eu- ropean bear by having one more molar tooth thar that ani mal. "^'suturJJ't F.Kte**! L.///W /Hr,tr . in pursuit of the more distant fugitives. Mr. Dougherty, the hunter before mentioned, relates the following instance of the great muscular strength of the grizzly bear: Having killed a Bison, and left the carcass for the purpose of procuring as- 140 the grizzly bear. sistance to skin and cut it up, he was very much surprised on his return to find that it had been drag- ed off, whole, to a considerable distance, by a grizzly bear, and was then placed in a pit, which the animal had dug with his claws for its reception. This bear strikes a very violent blow with its fore- paws, and the claws inflict dreadful wOunds. One of the cubs before mentioned as belonging to the Philadelphia Museum, struck the other a blow over part of its back and shoulder, which, produced a large wound like a sabre cut. It is stated in Long's Expedition, that a hunter received a blow from the fore-paw of a grizzly bear, which destroyed his eye and crushed his cheek bone. The grizzly bear is unable to climb trees like other bears; he is much more intimidated by the voice than the aspect of man, and on some occasions, when advancing to attack an individual, he has turn- ed and retired merely in consequence of the screams extorted by fear. The degree of ferocity exhibit- ed by the grizzly bear appears to be considerably influenced by the plenty or scarcity of food in the region it inhabits. Anterior to the time of Lewis and Clark's expedi- tion, nothing very satisfactory was known relative to this bear, and it was not until the publication of the journal of Long's Expedition to the Rocky Moun- tains, that a correct scientific description was given by that distinguished naturalist, Say. It may be with certainty distinguished from all the known species of this genus, by its elongated claws, and the rectilinear or slightly arched figure of its facial profile. Its general appearance may be com- the grizzly bear. 141 pared with the Alpine bear of Eufope, (U. Arctos) especially with the Norwegian variety. The Alpine bear has not the elongated claws, and the facial space is deeply indented between the eyes.—This bear is also a climber; the grizzly bear is not. On the front of the grizzly bear the hair is short, and between and anterior to the eyes it is very much so. On the rest of the body it is long and very thick- ly set, being 'blacker and coarser on the legs, feet, shoulders, throat, behind the thighs, and beneath the belly; on the snout it is paler. The ears are short and rounded, the forehead somewhat convex or ar- cuated, and the line of the profile continues on the snout without any indentation between the eyes. The eyes are quite small, and have no remarkable supplemental lid. The iris is of a light reddish brown, or burnt Sienna colour. The muffle of the nostrils is black, and the sinus very distinct and profound. The lips are capable of being extended anteriorly, especially the upper one, which has on it a few more rigid hairs or bristles than the lower lip. The tail which is very short, is concealed by the hair. The length of the hair gradually diminishes on the legs, but is still ample in quantity on the upper part of the foot. The claws on the fore-feet are slender and elon- gated, and the fingers have five sub-oval naked tu- bercles, separated from the palm, each other, and the base of the claws, by dense hair. The anterior half of the palm is naked, and is of an oval figure trans- versely—the base of the palm has a rounded naked tubercle encircled by hair. The soles of the (hind) feet are naked, and the 142 the grizzly bear. nails are more curved and not so long as those on the fore-paws. The nails are not in the least dimin- ished at tip, but they grow sharper at that part only by lessening from beneath.* The colour of the grizzly bear varies very con- siderably, according to age and its particular state of pelage. Hence they have been described as brown, white, and variegated, by Lewis and Clark, although evidently of the same species, judging by all the other characters. The colour of the young animal approaches more nearly to the brown bear of Eu- rope than any other; in advanced life the colour is that peculiar mixture of white, brown, and black, which has procured for this bear the appropriate designation of " Grizzly." The following are the dimensions of the specimens preserved in the Philadelphia Museum, as given by Say. Length from the tip of the nose to the origin of the tail, - - 5ft . 2 in. The tail exclusive of the hair at tip, 1! From the anterior base of the ear to the tip of the nose, 6 Orbit of the eye, - 1 Between the eyes, - 4f Ears from their superior base, - 3 Longest claw of the fore-foot, 4* Shortest, - - 2| Longest claw of the hind-foot, - - 3 Shortest,..... - n * Ursi Horribilis testes saccis duobus distinctis, etiam ad quatuor pollicum segregatis, pendunt CJ-LetuenrDel FKearny. Sc i/timr,/ <'Un. 2. .cMn /#«'> I i.//>W// .l/^tn. 2. M>/,/r Mftn the polar bear. 143 Hair at the tip of the tail, - - 4§ in. Length of the hair on the top. of the head, - - - - Hto2 Beneath the ears, - - - 21 to 3J On the neck above, . . - 3 On the shoulders above, - - 4| On the throat, ... - 4 On the belly and behind the fore legs the longest hairs are - - - .6 These measurements are taken from two individu- als which were by no means full grown, as may be perceived by comparing them with the measure- ments heretofore cited from Lewis and Clark.— They will serve, however, to give a fairer idea of the proportions of this animal than any which have been previously given, as they are so much more detailed and very carefully made. Species III.—The Polar Bear. Ursus Maritimus.—Lin. Ursus Albus; Baiss. Rigne Anim. p. 260. Sp. 2. Ours Blanc,- Buff. Supp. torn. 3. pi. 34. Ours Blanc,- Desm. Mam. p. 16. Sp. 257. The Polar Bear; Pen. Syn. quad. p. 192. tab. 20. fig. 1. Pallas, spl- cil. Zool. XIV. tab. 1. In the desolate regions of the north, where unre- lenting winter reigns in full appanage of horrors during the greater part of the year, and even the stormy ocean itself is long imprisoned by «thick ribbed ice," the Polar Bear finds his most congenial abode. There, prowling over the frozen wastes, he 144 THE POLAR BEAR. satiates his hunger on the carcasses of whales desert- ed by the adventurous fishermen, or seizes on such marine animals as come up to bask in open air; and when occasion calls, he fearlessly plunges into the sea in pursuit of his prey, as if the deep were his native and familiar element. To most other animals extreme cold is distressing and injurious; to him it is welcome and delightful: to him the glistening ice- bank or snow-wreathed shore, canopied by louring and tempestuous clouds, are far more inviting and agreeable, than verdant hills or sunny skies. Being endowed with extremely acute senses, great strength, and a savagely ferocious disposition withal, it is not surprising that this animal is dreaded as the most formidable quadruped of the region he inhab- its. Notwithstanding his great size and apparent heaviness, he is very active, and though his ordinary gait may appear clumsy, when excited by rage or hunger, his speed on the ice far exceeds that of the swiftest man. When on an extensive ice-field, the polar bear is often observed to ascend the knobs or hummocks, for the purpose of reconnoitering, or he stands with head erect to snuff the tainted air, which informs him where to find the whale carrion at astonishing dis- tances. This substance, so unpleasant and disgusting to human sense, is a luxurious banquet to the bear, and a piece of it thrown on a fire will allure him from a distance of several miles. A considerable part of the Polar bear's food is supplied by seals, but very probably he suffers long fasts and extreme hunger, owing to the peculiar vigi- lance of these creatures; occasionally he is much THE POLAR BEAR. 146 reduced by being carried out to sea on a small island of ice, where he may be forced to remain for a week or more without an opportunity of procuring food. In this situation they have been seen on ice-islands two hundred miles distant from land, and sometimes they are drifted to the shores of Iceland, or Norway, where they are so ravenous as to destroy all the animals they find.. Most commonly such invaders are-soon destroy- • ed, as the natives collect in large numbers and com- mence an immediate pursuit, but frequently do not succeed in killing them, before many of their flocks are thinned. An individual polar bear has occasion- ally been carried on the ice as far south as Newfound- land^ but this circumstance very rarely occurs. This animal swims excellently, and advances at the rate of three miles an hour. During the summer season he principally resides on the ice-islands, and leaves one to visit another, however great be the distance. If interrupted while in the water, he dives and changes his course; but he neither dives very of- ten, nor does he remain under water for a long time. Captain Ross saw a polar bear swimming midway in Melville Sound, where the shores were full forty miles apart, and no ice was in sight large enough for him to .have rested on. The best time for attacking him is when he is in the water; on ice or land he has so many advantages that the aggressor is always in danger. Even in the water he has frequently proved a formidable antagonist, has boarded and taken possession of a small boat, forcing the occupants to seek safety by leaping overboard. Instances are related in which this animal has climbed up the sides vol. i.—t 146 THE POLAR BEAR. of small vessels, and been with difficulty repelled from the deck. Generally the polar bear retreats from man; but when pursued and attacked he always resents the aggression, and turns furiously on his enemy. When struck at with a lance, he is very apt to seize and bite the staff in two, or wrest it from the hands. Should a ball be fired at him, without taking effect in the head or heart, his rage is increased, and he. seeks revenge with augmented fury. It has been remarked that, when wounded and able to make .his escape, he applies snow to the wound, as if aware that cold would check the flow of blood. A great majority of the fatal accidents follow- ing engagements with the polar bear, have resulted from imprudently attacking the animal on the ice. Scoresby, in his interesting narrative Of a voyage to Greenland, relates an instance of this kind. " A few years ago, when one of the Davis's Strait whalers was closely beset among the ice at the 6 south west,' or on the coast of Labrador, a bear that had been for some time seen near the ship, at length became so bold as to approach alongside, probably tempted by the offal of the provision thrown overboard by the cook. At this time the people were all at din- ner, no one being required to keep the deck in the then immoveable condition of the ship. A hardy fellow who first looked out, perceiving the bear so near, imprudently jumped'upon the ice, armed only with a handspike, with a view, it is supposed, of gain- ing all the honour of the exploit of securing so fierce a visitor by himself. But the bear, regardless of such weapons, and sharpened probably by hunger, disarm- THE POLAR BEAR. 147 ed his antagonist, and seizing him by the.back with his powerful jaws, carried him off with such celerity, that on his dismayed comrades rising from their meal and looking abroad, he was so far beyond their reach as to defy their pursuit." " A circumstance, communicated to me by Capt. Munroe of the Neptune, of rather a humorous na- ture as to the result, arose out of an equally impru- dent attack made on a bear, in the Greenland fishery of 1820, by a seaman employed in one of the Hull whalers. The ship was moored to a piece of ice, on which, at a considerable distance, a large bear was observed prowling about for prey. One of the ship's company, emboldened by an artificial courage, deriv- ed from the free use of rum, which in his economy he had stored for special occasions, undertook to pursue and attack the bear that was within view. Armed only with a whale-lance, he resolutely, and against all persuasion, set out on his adventurous exploit. A fatiguing journey of about half a league, over a yielding surface of snow and rugged hummocks, brought him within a few yards of the enemy, which, to his surprise, undauntedly faced him, and seemed to invite him to the combat. His courage being by this time greatly subdued, partly by evaporation of the stimulus, and partly by the undismayed and even threatening aspect of the bear, he levelled his lance, in an attitude suited either for offensive or defensive action, and stopped. The bear also stood still; in vain the adventurer • tried to rally courage to make the attack; his enemy was too formidable, and his ap- pearance too imposing. In vain also he shouted, advanced his lance, and made feints of attack; the 148 1 HE POLAR BEAR. enemy, either not understanding or despising such unmanliness, obstinately stood his ground. Already the limbs of the sailor began to quiver; but the fear of ridicule from his messmates had its influence, and he yet scarcely dared to retreat. Bruin, however, possessing less reflection, or being regardless of con- sequences, began, with audacious boldness, to ad- vance. His nigh approach andunshaken step sub- dued the spark of bravery and that dread of ridi- cule that had hitherto upheld our adventurer; he turned and fled. But now was the time of danger; the sailors flight encouraged the bear in turn to pur- sue, and being better practised in snow-travelling, and better provided for it, he rapidly gained upon the fugitive. The whale-lance, his oniy defence, en- cumbering him in his retreat, he threw it down, and kept on. This fortunately excited the bear's at- tention; he stopped, pawed it, bit it, and then re- newed the chase. Again he was at the heels of the panting seaman, who, conscious of the favourable ef- fects of the lance, dropped one of. his mittens; the stratagem succeeded, and while Bruin again stopped to examine it, the fugitive, improving the interval, made considerable progress a-head. Still the bear resumed the pursuit with a most provoking perse- verance, except when arrested by another mitten, and, finally, by a hat, which he tore to shreds between his fore-teeth and paws, and would, no doubt, soon have made the incautious adventurer his victim, who was now rapidly losing strength, but for the prompt and well-timed assistance of his shipmates—who, ob serving that the affair had assumed a dangerous as- pect, sallied out to his rescue. The little phalanx THE POLAR BEAR. 149 opened him a passage, and then closed to receive the bold assailant. Though now beyond the reach of his adversary, the dismayed fugitive continued onwards, impelled by his fears, and never relaxed his exertions, until he fairly reached the shelter of his ship. The bear once more came to a stand, and for a moment seemed to survey his enemies with all the consideration of an experienced general; when, finding them too numerous for a hope of success, he very wisely wheeled about, and succeeded in making a safe and honourable retreat.*" The polar bear is stated to be generally four or five feet high, from seven to eight feet long, and nearly the same in circumference. Individuals have frequently been met with of much greater size; Ba- pentz killed one in .Cherie Island, whose skin mea- sured thirteen feet.f The weight is generally from six to eight hundred pounds. The hair of the body is long, and of a yellowish white colour, and is very shaggy about the inside of the legs. The paws are seven inches or more in breadth, with claws two inches long. In some individuals, the canine teeth * Scoresby's Greenland Voyage. t Desmarest states in a note that the largest individuals of this species which have been observed, are not more than six feel seven inches long. This does not agree with the accounts given by many northern voyagers: we have selected Captain Ross's measurements, (not because the individual from which they were taken is the largest that has been seen, but) because his scientific character is so generally and advantageously known. It would have beeu very easy to have selected measurements of larger specimens, from othoi sources. 150 THE POLAR BEAR. have been found an inch and a-half long, exclusive of the portion imbedded in the jaw: the strength of the jaws is very great, and enables the animal to in- flict dreadful injury when he bites. The following measurements are from an indi- vidual, killed during Capt. Ross's voyage, in the vicinity of Prince William's Sound:— Length, from the snout to the tail, 6 ft. 8 in. to the shoulder-blade, 2 10 Circumference near the fore-legs, 6 of the neck, - - 3 2 Breadth of the fore-paw, -, - 10 of the hind-foot, - - 8| Circumference of the hind-leg, 1 10 of the fore-leg, 1 8 of the snout, before- the eyes, - 1 8 Length of the snout to the occiput, 1 6 Height to the fore-shoulder, - 4 Fore-claws, - 2i Hind-claws, .... j| Tail,......4 .. Weight of the animal, after losing thirty pounds of blood, 1131| pounds. We have stated that the polar bear preys on seals, fish, and the carcasses of whales; it also preys on birds, and their eggs, and not unfrequently destroys young whales and walruses: it is also said to disinter human bodies, and devour them with great greedi- ness. Occasionally they break into the huts of the Greenlanders, attracted by the smell of seal's flesh, on which these people almost exclusively subsist. Yet we are credibly informed, that, when their ar- THE POLAR BEAU. 151 customed food is to be obtained in sufficient quantity, they neither show much disposition to attack men; nor cattle, however accessible these may be. In the morse or walrus, this bear has an enemy of great power and fierceness, with which he has at times dreadful combats, most generally terminating in the defeat of the bear, as the walrus is armed with long tusks, capable of giving deadly wounds. The whale is also a perpetual enemy of the polar bear, chasing him from the waters it frequents, and killing him by blows with its tail. Notwithstanding, the bear succeeds in catching and feasting on many of the young whales. The dwelling place of the polar bear on shore, is by no means well ascertained, but is. most probably in caves, or in some well concealed situation; it has been stated, that they reside, during winter, in exca- vations made in the permanent ice,—but Fabricius, from personal observation, declares the statement to be incorrect. Certainly this animal does not often go to any great distance from the sea, on which he is almost exclusively dependent for food. . Hence the flesh «tf the polar bear is generally fishy and rank, though it is said to be whitish, and similar to mut- ton. Captain Cook's, people always preferred it to the flesh of the walrus or morse, yet they never con- sidered it a very desirable food, except when none other was to be obtained. The fat resembles tallow, becoming as clear as whale-oil after liquefaction, and free from disagreeable smell; the oil obtained from the feet has been, used medicinally, but except in fineness, has no qualities which the* oil of other, parts does not possess. 152 1HE POLAR BEAR. One of the most singular facts relative to the po- lar bear is, that its liver is to a great degree poison- ous, a circumstance unknown in almost every other animal. Three of Barentz's sailors were very much injured by eating of it; and Capt. Ross, in his late Arctic voyage, verified the observation by experi- ment. The principle, which imparts this noxious quality to the liver, is as yet undiscovered; we know of no article of diet used by the animal, to which it can be attributed, and even if we did, this would not account for the deleteriousness of the liver, while all other parts of the body remain free from any in- jurious property. The skin of the polar bear, dressed with the hair on, forms very substantial mats for carriages, or hall floors. The Greenlanders sometimes take it off with- out ripping up, and inverting the skin, form a very warm sack, which serves the purpose of a bed, the person getting into it in order to sleep comfortably. It cannot well be dressed at any other than the winter season, on account of its great greasiness when freshly removed from the animal. The nations residing in the vicinity of Hudson's Bay dress it in the following manner: they first stretch it out on a smooth patch of snow, and stake it down, where it soon becomes stiffly frozen. While in this condition the women scrape off all the fat till they come to the very roots of the hair. It is occasionally permitted to remain in that situation for a considerable time, and when taken up it is suspended in the open air. When the frost is very intense, it dries most perfectly; with a little more, scraping it becomes entirely dry and supple, both skin and hair "being beautifully white. Not- THE POLAR BEAR. 153 withstanding that this bear is so large and powerful, his skin is both light and spongy. The time of the year at which the sexes seek each other is not positively known, but it is most proba- bly in the month of July, or of August Hearne, who is an excellent authority, relates that he has seen them killed during this season, when the males exhibited an extreme degree of attachment to their companions. After a female was killed, the malt placed his fore paws over her, and allowed himself to be shot rather than relinquish her dead body. The pregnant females during winter seek shelter near the skirt of the woods, were they excavate dens in the deepest snow-drifts, and remain there in a state of torpid inaction, without food, from the latter part of December or January till about the end of March; then they relinquish their dens to seek food on the sea shore, accompanied by their cubs, which are usually two in number. The size of the cubs is very small; when they first leave the cave with the mother they are not larger than rab- bits; yet we have seen that the weight of the full- grown animal sometimes exceeds a thousand pounds. Hearne states that he has seen them not larger than a white fox, and their foot-prints on the snow not larger than a crown piece, when the impression of their dam's foot measured upwards of fourteen inches long by nine in breadth. This length and breadth appear excessive, and were probably rather more than the actual size of the foot itself, as the impression of the hair projecting over the feet would give an appearance in the snow which might lead to an incorrect notion of the size of the animal VOL. i,_u 154 the polar bear. The enterprising observer above mentioned is of opinion that these animals breed when very young, or at least when half grown, as he has killed young females " not larger than a London calf," having milk in their teats; i{ whereas one of the full-grown ones are heavier than the largest of our common oxen. Indeed, I was once at the killing of one, when one of its hind feet, being cut off at the ancle, weighed fifty-four pounds." The female polar bear is as rugged in her appear- ance, and as savagely ferocious in disposition, as her mate; yet to her offspring she displays a tender- ness of affection which strongly contrasts with her fierce and sanguinary temper. When her cubs are exposed, danger has no existence to her, and nothing but death can compel her to desist from struggling desperately to defend or save them. The death of her offspring is with great difficulty acknowledged by the parent; when they are shot by her side the poor beast solicits their attention by every fond arti- fice, and endeavours to awaken them from then- unnatural sleep: she offers them food, licks their wounds, caresses and moans over them in such a manner as to evince a degree of feeling which could scarcely be anticipated from so rude and terrible a quadruped. Numerous instances of this fondness of attachment have been observed, and some of them attended with most singular displays of sagacity on the part of the mother. The following circumstance is related in Scoresby's account of the Arctic Regions, and is entitled to the fullest credence, because coming from so competent and excellent an observer: the polar bear. 155 " A she-bear, with her two cubs, were pursued on the ice by some of the men, and were so closely ap proached, as to alarm the mother for the safety of her offspring. Finding that they could not advance with the desired speed, she used various artifices to urge them forward, but without success. Deter- mined to save them, if possible, she ran to one of the cubs, placed her nose under it, and threw it for- ward as far as possible; then going to the other, she performed the same action, and repeated it fre- quently, until she had thus conveyed them to a con- siderable distance. The young bears seemed per- fectly conscious of their mother's intention, for as soon as they recovered their feet, after being thrown forward, they immediately ran on in the proper di- rection, and when the mother came up to renew the effort, the little rogues uniformly placed themselves across her path, that they might receive the full advantage of the force exerted for their safety." The most affecting instance on record of the ma- ternal affection exhibited by this bear, is related in one of the Polar Voyages; it conveys so excel- lent an idea of this creature's strong feeling of pa- rental love, that we should deem the history of the animal imperfect, were such an illustration omitted. " Early in the morning, the man at the mast-head gave notice that three bears were making their way very fast over the ice, and directing their course towards the ship. They had probably been invited by the blubber of a sea-horse, which the men had set on fire, and which was burning on the ice at the time of their approach. They proved to be a she- bear and her two cubs; but the cubs were nearly as large as the dam. They ran eagerly to the fire, and 156 THE POLAR BEAR. drew out from the flames part of the flesh of the sea-horse, which remained unconsumed, and ate it voraciously. The crew from the ship threw great pieces of the flesh, which they had still left, upon the ice, which the old bear carried away singly, laid every piece before her cubs, and dividing them, gave each a share, reserving but a small portion to herself. As she was carrying away the last piece, they levelled their muskets at the cubs, and shot them both dead; and in her retreat, they wounded the dam, but not mortally. " It would have drawn tears of pity from any but unfeeling minds, to have marked the affectionate concern manifested by this poor beast, in the last moments of her expiring young. Though she was sorely wounded, and could but just crawl to the place where they lay, she carried the lump of flesh she had fetched away, as she had done the others before, tore it in pieces, and laid it down before them; and when she saw they refused to eat, she laid her paws first upon one, and then upon the other, and endeavoured to raise them up. All this while it was piteous to hear her moan. When she found she could not stir them, she went off; and when at some distance, looked back and moaned; and that not availing to entice them away, she returned, and smelling around them, began to lick their wounds. She went off a second time, as before; and having crawled a few paces looked again behind her, and for some time stood moaning. But still her cubs not rising to follow her, she returned to them again, and with signs of inexpressible fondness, went round first one and then the other, pawing them, and moan ing. Finding at last that they were cold and lifeles?. THE POLAR BEAR. 157 she raised her head towards the ship, and growled her resentment at the murderers; which they re- turned with a volley of musket balls. She fell be- tween her cubs, and died licking their wounds." The sagacity of the polar bear is well known to the whale fishers, who often find all their ingenuity insufficient to entrap him, as the following instance may serve to show. A noose, baited with a piece of " kreng," or whale carcass, was placed at a proper distance from the ship, which soon attracted the at- tention of a large bear. In attempting to secure the bait, the animal by some movement drew the noose, so as to catch him by one of his fore-paws. Appa- rently unconcerned by this circumstance, and con- scious of knowing how to free himself from restraint, he quietly loosened the slip-knot with the other paw, and leisurely walked off to enjoy his morsel. The trap was again baited, and the bear once more ap- proached to obtain his favourite food, but, grown wise by experience, he carefully avoided the rope, and carried off the bait, to the mortification of the captain, who wished to obtain his skin. The whaler, resolved to baffle the address of the bear, re-ar- ranged his noose once more, carefully burying the rope at a considerable depth in the snow: but his precautions were unavailing; the bear cautiously ex- amined the vicinity, scented the ground with atten- tion, detected the situation of the rope, dug it up and threw it out of his way; then securing his prize, he once more triumphantly withdrew to enjoy it.* * SeeScoresby's Arctic Regions, vol. i. whence several of these anecdote* are sketched. 158 HIE POLAR BEAR. Captain Scoresby shot a she-bear and took her two cubs alive, as they did not offer to leave the body of their mother, and he kept them on board of his ship, until they were tame enough to be al lowed to go about the deck. On one occasion a cub, tied by the neck with a long rope, was allowed to go out of the ship, when he immediately swam to the ice, and as soon as he attained it, made a violent effort to break the rope by running at full speed until he put the rope as suddenly on the stretch as possible. Failing in his first attempt, he went back far enough to slacken the cord, and again renewed his race, in order, if possible, to break it. Con- vinced by these experiments, that it was a hopeless attempt, he lay down, sullenly growling his vexa- tion. Another artifice resorted to by this animal was still more singular; passing a chasm or fissure in the ice, about eighteen inches or two feet wide, and three or four feet deep, the slack (or bight) of his rope dropped into it; young Bruin returned, and going down head foremost into the chasm, he hung by the edges, holding on with one hind-foot on each side of it, and tried with both his fore-paws to loosen the rope and slip it off his head, as if he was aware that in this position he would be assisted by the weight of the portion which had dropped lower into the cavity. The polar bear, like the other species of this ge- nus, is able to live exclusively on vegetable food, as has been repeatedly proved by experiment on those brought to Europe. One which was exhibited in France, ate six pounds of bread a-day, and was alto- gether fed with this substance. It appears that the carnivorous habits of this animal, are greatly de The polar bear. 159 pendent on the circumstances of its situation, for being placed where vegetation is exceedingly scanty, if it even exists at all, and surrounded by seals, fish, &c. there can be no choice; notwithstanding, the animal is provided by nature with proper organs for the mastication and digestion of vegetable food. The polar bear in captivity seems to suffer much from heat, which renders his confinement very un- comfortable, as is expressed by his restlessness and roaring. This is in some degree quieted by re- peatedly throwing buckets of cold water over his body, which is always grateful and refreshing. As far north as navigators have yet advanced, polar bears have been found, but their numbers evi- dently diminish where seals are scarce, while they are very numerous where seals are found in great- est abundance.—Near the east coast of Greenland they have been seen in large flocks, at a distance resembling sheep more than beasts of prey. On the shores of the Arctic Ocean, Spitzbergen, Green- land, and Nova Zembla, from the river Ob in Si- beria, to the mouths of the Jenesei and Lena, and in the vicinity of Hudson's Bay, they are found in various degrees of abundance. The polar bear is peculiarly distinguished from other species of this genus by the length of the body, compared with its height, by the length of the neck, the smallness of the external ears, and length of the soles of the feet; which, according to Cuvier, are one-sixth of the whole length of the animal. In the fineness and length of its pelage it also differs materially from the other species. The forehead and muzzle of the polar bear are nearly 160 THE POLAR BEAR. on the same line, or flat; while in the European or brown bear, they are separated by a deep depres- sion. In the black, or American bear, the profile is rather an arched line, and in the grizzly bear it is slightly convex between the eyes. The forehead of the polar bear is flat; the European bear has it rounded. The polar bear has the head narrow and the muzzle large; the brown bear has the head large and the muzzle narrow.* * The following measurements of the polar bear are given by Capt. Lyon, in the excellent and interesting narrative of his Arctic Voyage in company with Captain Parry. Length—From the snout to the insertion of the tail, 8 ft. 7\ in.—the head only 1 ft. 6 in^—-from the eye to the ear, 10 in.—from the nose to the centre of the eye, 8 in.— of the ear alone, 4| in.—the tail from root to tip, 5 in.—fore claws, 5£ in.—hinder claws, I5 in.—canine teeth, 2£ in. Girth—Round the body, 7 ft. 11 in___neck, 3 ft. 4£ in.— fore leg, 2 ft. 3 in.—hind leg, 3 ft. 3 in.—round the snout. 1 ft. 9s in.—round the forehead, 2 ft 1 inch. Breadth—Paws 10 in.—between the ears, 1 ft, 3 in.— ca nine teeth, Sin.—[Weight, 1600/6.] Capt. Lyon, in consequence of having seen a polar bear prowling about during the coldest part of the year, infers that naturalists are mistaken in thinking that this animal be- comes torpid during winter. We do not feel authorised to draw a similar conclusion from Capt. L.'s observation; es- pecially as the habits of the genus in this respect are well known, and because the usual food of the polar bear must be extremely difficult to obtain, if it be at all accessible to the animal, during the severest part of the winter. CHAPTER VIII. Genus IX. Raccoon; Procyon, Storr. C. Germ. Waschthier. Fr. Raton. GENERIC CHARACTERS. The head is short and triangular, having the nose to project beyond the lower jaw. The tongue is smooth; the eyes not large; the ears short and oval; the body short and rather slender. The teats are six in number, and situated on the belly. The feet are five-toed, and provided with large and strong nails: the soles of the (posterior) feet are naked, but the animal does not always place their whole length on the ground in walking. The tail is long and pointed, but not prehensile. The habits of the genus are given with the description of the species belonging to it. Dental System. If 6 Incisor f 6 False Molar 20 Upper < 2 Canine 4 2 Carnivorous ^12 Molar. (^ 4 Tuberculous. H | f 6 Incisor f 8 False Molar © | 20 Lower < 2 Canine < 2 Carnivorous J {12 Molar. (. 2 Tuberculous. In the upper jaw we find three incisors, the two central being smaller than the external, which is slightly separated from them, longer and more coni- vol. i.—x 162 THE RACCOON. cal. The canine tooth is more slender and tren- chant than that of the dog. There are three false molars; the first touching the canine is rudimental, the second is regular, but smaller and more delicate than the third, and remarkable by the thickness of its base, and the rudiment of a tubercle. The car- nivorous tooth, on its exterior surface, still presents the three characteristic divisions peculiar to this as- pect of all carnivorous teeth in the upper jaw, but the internal and anterior tubercle has a considerable development, and a second tubercle arises behind this on the posterior edge, which changes it into a true tuberculous tooth. The tuberculous tooth which succeeds to the carnivorous, also presents on its ex- ternal face two divisions, or the two tubercles which are observed in the analogous tooth of dogs; but like the carnivorous, it is thickened, and has on its in- terior (after the two external tubercles) three other tubercles placed on the same line, and separated from the first by a deep depression; in short, a fourth tuber- cle shows itself on the internal border of this tooth, at its posterior part, so as apparently to be a mere division of the third internal tubercle. The last up- per tuberculous tooth, one-third smaller than the foregoing, and much smaller on its internal than on its external surface, seems to present the same num- ber of tubercles, but those of the middle of the crown, instead of standing on the same line, are placed in a triangle on account of the narrowing of the part they occupy. In the lower jaw the incisors are all similar to each other, and the external closely approaches the canine tooth. The latter is long, inclining forwards, and slightly recurved at the point; its posterior face THE raccoon. 163 being concave. The false molars are four in num- ber; the first, placed at the base of the canine, is rudimental; the three others increase progressively to the last, which is thickened and extended at its posterior part. The carnivorous tooth, at its ante- rior part, is composed of three principal tubercles, disposed in triangles, and a small point is seen at the base of the first tubercle, and its posterior part is composed of two thick and blunt tubercles. The tuberculous tooth, nearly as large as the carnivorous, appears to be nothing but the latter reversed; that is, it has anteriorly two tubercles, one on its external and another on its internal edge, and posteriorly three tubercles disposed in a triangle. In their reciprocal position, the relations of these teeth consist in the interlocking of their tubercles, with the intervals left between those of the other jaw. Species I.—The Raccoon. Procyon Lotor.—L.* Ursus Lotor; Lis. Ekxl. Bodd. Vulpes Americana,- Charletoit. Le Raton,- Bvvt. Hist. Nat. 8, pi. 45. Mapach, etc. Mexicanorum. There are few parts of the American continent m which the Raccoon has not, at some period, been * The specific name "Lotor" was given by Linne" The removal of this species from the genus Ursus, by Stohh to form his genus Procyon, will not justify the appropriation ot the species to the latter naturalist. 164 THE RACCOON. found native, from the borders of Nootka Sound to the forests of Mexico, and still more southern re- gions. Yet the Count de Buffon asserts, that this animal was originally from South America, and is most numerous in hot climates, without giving any fact on which his opinion is founded, or supporting his declaration by the observations of other natu- ralists. Sonnini properly observes, that neither Frezier, Ulloa, nor Molina, who have given descrip- tions of the animals of Peru, Brazil and Chili, make any mention of the raccoon; and, in his own long and numerous journeys in Guiana, he never found one among the great number of quadrupeds which hold undisturbed possession of the vast forests, by which that interesting region is overshadowed. But the most positive proofs of their existence, in the northern parts of this continent, are to be found in the journals of the most respectable ob- servers. By Dampier, they were seen near the southern point of California, in the 22° of N. lati- tude; Bartram found them on the isle of St. Simon, near the coast of Georgia, in 30° of N. latitude; and the celebrated Capt. Cook saw them in con- siderable numbers at Nootka and Prince William's Sound. Most probably, had this enterprising voya- ger landed still farther north, he would have dis- covered the raccoon there, as the natives of Prince William's Sound were in a great degree, clothed with skins of this animal. Were we to form an opinion of this animal's cha- racter solely from external appearances, the mingled expression of sagacity and innocence exhibited in his aspect, his personal neatness and gentle move- THE RACCOON. 165 ments, might all incline us to believe that he possessed a guileless and placable disposition. But in this, as in most other cases, where judgments are formed without sufficient examination, we should be in error, and find, that to the capricious mischievousness of the monkey, the raccoon adds a blood-thirsty and vindictive spirit, peculiarly his own. In the wild state, this sanguinary appetite frequently leads to his own destruction, which his nocturnal habits might otherwise avert; but as he slaughters the tenants of the poultry-yard with indiscriminate ferocity, the vengeance of the plundered farmer speedily re- taliates on him the death so liberally dealt among the feathered victims. This destructive propensity of the raccoon is more remarkable, when we observe that his teeth are not unsuited for eating fruits. When he destroys wild or domesticated birds, he puts to death a great number, without consuming any part of them, except the head, or the blood which is sucked from the neck. Being peculiarly fond of sweet substances, the rac- coon is occasionally very destructive to plantations of sugar-cane,* and of Indian corn. While the ear of the Indian corn is still young, soft and tender, or " in the milk," it is very sweet, and is then eagerly sought by the raccoons; troops of them frequently enter fields of maize, and in one night commit ex- tensive depredations, both by the quantity of grain they consume, and from the number of stalks'thev break down by their weight. Hans Sloane; Natural History of Jamaica. 166 THE RACCOON. The raccoon is an excellent climber, and his strong sharp claws effectually secure him from being shaken off the branches of trees. In fact, so tenaciously does this animal hold to any surface upon which it can make an impression with its claws, that it re- quires a considerable exertion of a man's strength to drag him off; and as long as even a single foot re- mains attached, he continues to cling with great force. I have had frequent occasion to pull a rac- coon from the top of a board-fence, where there was no projection which he could seize by; yet, such was the power and obstinacy with which the points of his claws were stuck into the board, as repeatedly to oblige me to desist for fear of tear- ing his skin, or otherwise doing him injury by the violence necessary to detach his hold. The conical form of the head, and the very point- ed and flexible character of the muzzle or snout, are of great importance in aiding the raccoon to examine every vacuity and crevice to which he gains access; nor does he neglect any opportunity of using his natu- ral advantages, but explores every nook and cranny, with the most persevering diligence and attention, greedily feeding on spiders, worms, or other insects which are discovered by the scrutiny. Where the opening is too small to give admittance to his nose, he employs his fore-paws, and shifts his position or turns his paws sidewise, in order to facilitate their introduction and effect his purpose. This disposition to feed on the grubs or larvae of insects must ren- der this animal of considerable utility in forest lands, in consequence of the great numbers of injurious and destructive insects he consumes. He is also said to THE RACCOON. 167 catch frogs with considerable address, by slily creep- ing up, and then springing on them, so as to grasp them with both paws. The circumstance which has procured for the rac- coon the specific name of " Lotor," or the Washer, is very remarkable and interesting: this is, the habit of plunging its food into water, as if for the pur- pose of soaking or cleansing it. To account for this disposition, some naturalists have supposed that the raccoon is not as liberally supplied with salivary or- gans as other animals, and is therefore obliged to prepare its food by softening it in water. The rac- coon, however, does not invariably wait to subject his food to this preparation, but frequently devours it in the condition he receives it, although it may be nothing but dry bread, and clean water be within a few steps of where he stands. Water seems to be essential to their comfort, if not of absolute necessity for the preparation of their food. I have had for some time, and at the moment of writing this have yet, a male and female raccoon in the yard. Their greatest delight appears to be dabbling in water, of which a large tub is al- ways kept nearly full for their use. They are fre- quently seen sitting on the edge of this tub, very busily engaged in playing with a piece of broken china, glass, or a small cake of ice. When they have any substance which sinks, they both paddle with their fore-feet with great eagerness, until it is caught, and then it is held by one, with both paws, and rubbed between them; or a struggle en- sues for the possession of it, and when it is dropped 168 THE RACCOON. the same sport is renewed. The coldest weather in winter does not in the least deter them from thus dabbling in the water for amusement; nor has this action much reference to their feeding, as it is per- formed at any time, even directly after feeding till satiated. I have frequently broken the ice on the surface of their tub, late at night, in the very cold- est winter weather, and they have both left their sleeping place with much alacrity, to stand paddling the fragments of ice about, with their fore-legs in the water nearly up to the breast. Indeed, these ani- mals have never evinced the slightest dislike to cold, or suffered in any degree therefrom; they have in all weathers slept in a flour-barrel thrown on its side, with one end entirely open, and without any material of which to make a bed. They show no repugnance to being sprinkled or dashed with water* and volun- tarily remain exposed to the rain or snow, which wets them thoroughly, notwithstanding their long hair, which being almost erect, is not well suit- ed to turn the rain. These raccoons are very fond of each other, and express the greatest delight on meeting after having been separated for a short time, by various movements, and by hugging and rolling one another about on the ground. My raccoons are, at the time of writing this, more than a year old, and have been in captivity for six or eight months. They are very frolicsome and amus- ing, and show no disposition to bite or injure any one, except when accidentally trodden on. They are equally free from any disposition to injure children, as has been observed of other individuals. We fre- THE RACCOON. 169 quently turn them loose in the parlour and they ap- pear to be highly delighted, romping with each other and the children, without doing any injury even to the youngest. Their alleged disposition to hurt children especially, may probably be fairly explain- ed by the fact above mentioned, that they always attempt to bite when suddenly hurt, and few chil- dren touch animals without pinching or hurting them. They exhibit this spirit of retaliation, not only to man, but when they accidentally hurt them- selves against an inanimate body; I have many times been amused to observe the expression of spite with which one of them has sprung at and bit the leg of a chair or table, after knocking himself against it so as to hurt some part of his body. These animals may be tamed while young, but as they grow to maturity most generally become fierce and even dangerous! I have had one so tame as to follow a servant about through the house or streets, though entirely at liberty; this was quite young when obtained, and grew so fond of human society as to complain very loudly, by a sort of chirping or whin- ing noise, when left alone. Nothing can possibly ex- ceed the domesticated raccoon in restless and mis- chievous curiosity, if suffered to go about the house. Every chink is ransacked, every article of furniture explored, and the neglect of servants to secure closet- doors, is sure to be followed by extensive mischief, the evil being almost uniformly augmented by the alarm caused to the author of it, whose ill directed efforts to escape from supposed peril, increase at the same time the noise and the destruction. To complete the history of the raccoon in a state vol 1.—Y 170 THE RACCOON. of captivity, we shall insert here the greater part of a letter written by Mr. Blanquart de Salines to Count de Buffon, on the correctness of which full reliance may be placed. (e My raccoon was always kept chained before he came into my possession, and in this captivity he seemed sufficiently gentle, though not caressing; all the inmates of the house paid him the same atten- tion, but he received them differently; treatment he would submit to from one person, invariably offend- ed him when offered by another. When his chain was occasionally broken, liberty rendered him inso- lent; he took possession of his apartment, suffering no one to approach him, and was, with difficulty, again confined. During his stay with me, his con- finement was frequently suspended; without losing sight of him, I allowed him to walk about with his chain on, and he expressed his gratitude by various movements. It was otherwise when he escaped by his own efforts: he would then ramble for three or four days together over the neighbouring roofs, and only descend at night into the yards, enter the hen- roosts and destroy the poultry, especially the Guinea- fowls, eating nothing but their heads. His chain did not render him less sanguinary, though it made him more circumspect; he then employed stratagem, allowing the poultry to familiarize themselves with him by partaking of his food, nor was it until he had induced them to feel in perfect security that he would seize a fowl and tear it to pieces: he also killed kittens in the same manner. " If the raccoon be not very grateful for favours received, he is singularly sensible of bad treatment: THE RACCOON. 171 a servant one day struck him some blows with a stick, and often afterwards vainly endeavoured to con- ciliate him, by offering eggs and shrimps, of which the animal was very fond. At the approach of this servant he became enraged, and with sparkling eyes would spring towards him, making violent outcries; under such circumstances he would accept of no- thing until his enemy had withdrawn. The voice of the raccoon, when enraged, is very singular, some- times resembling the whistling of a curlew, and at others the hoarse barking of an old dog. When struck by any one, or attacked by an animal stronger than himself, he offered no resistance; like the hedge- hog, he hid his head and paws, by rolling his body in form of a ball, and would have suffered death in that position. I have observed that he never left hay nor straw in his bed, preferring to sleep on the boards; when litter was given, he threw it away im- mediately. He did not seem very sensible to cold, and passed two out of three winters exposed to all the rigours of the season, and did well, notwithstand- ing he was frequently covered with snow. I do not think he was solicitous to receive warmth; during some frosts I gave him separately warm water and water almost frozen, to soak his food in, and he al- ways preferred the latter. He was at liberty to sleep in the stable, but often preferred passing the night in the open yard." Captivity and domestication produce great changes in the habits of this animal, as he learns to spend nearly the whole of the daytime in active exercise, and sleeps during the greater part of the night.— When inclined to sleep, the raccoon forms itself into 172 THE RACCOON. a sort of ball, by sitting on its hind legs and doubling the head under the body, so as to apply the fore- head to the ground; the tail is then brought forward so as to conceal the feet and face on one side, and the true figure of the animal is no longer discerni- ble. In this position the raccoon sleeps profoundly, and is not startled readily, nor by slight sounds. The size of the raccoon varies with the age and sex of the individual. A full grown male may be stated to have the body a foot, or a few inches more, in length; the highest part of the back is about a foot from the ground, while the highest part of the shoulder is ten inches. The head is about five, and the tail rather more than eight inches long. The female is larger than the male in every respect, at least such is the fact in relation to the raccoons now in my possession, which, however, have not yet at- tained their full growth. They are of the same age, and the female is strongly distinguished from the male by the black markings on all parts of the body being more purely black, and the fur and hair longer, thicker, and more glossy than that of the male; these peculiarities, in addition to her greater size, uniform- ly lead strangers to suppose this individual to be the male, instead of the female. The pelage of the male is not only less purely black at the extremities of the hairs, but there is a much greater intermixture of fawn-coloured hair than in the female, giving more of a rusty appearance to the whole surface of his body. A young raccoon of thirty days old is about the size of a common cat of a year old, though the greater length of its legs, and the bushiness of it? pelage, make it at first sight appear much larger. THE RACCOON. 173 The general colour of the body is a blackish gray, which is paler on the under part of the body, and has over considerable part of the neck, back and sides, some fawn or light rust-coloured hair inter- mixed. The general gray colour is owing to the manner in which the hairs are alternately ringed with black and dingy white. The tail is very thickly covered with hair, and is marked by five or six black rings around it, on a yellowish white ground. The head, which is about five inches long, is very triangular, and from its pointed snout reminds us of the aspect of the fox: the snout terminates in a smooth and shining black membrane, through which the nostrils open, having the slit to rise slightly at the sides. The nose is prolonged considerably beyond the upper jaw, and this, together with its great flexibility, gives the animal great advantages in ex- ploring little crevices and crannies for insects, &c. The pupils of the eyes are round; the ears are oval, or rather elliptic, and of a yellowish white colour on their extremities and anterior edges. The face is whitish in front, but there is a black patch surround- ing the eye, that descends entirely to the lower jaw, over the posterior part of which it is diffused, and a black line running from the top of the head down the middle of the face, ending below the eyes. The rest of the hair between the eyes, the ears, and eye- brows, is almost entirely white, and directed down- wards. The hair on the muzzle is usually very short; on the feet also, and on one half of the legs; the short hair of the feet and legs is of a dirty whitish colour. The whiskers on the upper lip are long and strong. 174 THE RACCOON. All the feet have five toes each, terminated by strong curved and pointed claws; and each foot is furnished with five thick and very elastic tubercles beneath. The first toe or thumb of the fore-foot is the shortest of all; the little or external finger is next in length, and then the fore-finger: the remain- ing two are equal. The first tubercle, which is a very strong one, is situated near the wrist; the second is at the base of the little finger; the third at the root of the inner finger or thumb; the fourth opposite the second digit, and the fifth opposite the two longest. The hind feet are throughout similar, except that the first tubercle is farther distant from the heel. The raccoon has a gland on each side of the anus, which secretes a strong scented fluid; but this does not impart an unpleasant smell to the animal. Its liver has five lobes, and is provided with a large gall-bladder; the bowels have no ccecum, and the stomach, which is situated entirely on the left side, is elongated and small, compared with the size of the animal. The pelage of the raccoon is subject to considera- ble variations of colour at different periods of life, and in different individuals. The rings on the tail and the patches around the eyes are, however, uni- form and constant. The tail of the raccoon is not affected by the coldest weather; hence this quadruped is never known to gnaw his tail, as has been ob- served of animals closely allied to it in configuration and habits.* *This is especially the case with the coali or coatamundi of South America, and it has been considered very wonder- THE RACCOON. 175 The fur of the raccoon forms an article of consi- derable value in commerce, as it is largely employed in the fabrication of hats. Vast numbers of raccoon skins are collected by the different fur companies; and we occasionally see in our furrier shops, skins which must have belonged to individuals of much larger size than those from which the measurements have been hitherto taken. Raccoons are found throughout the whole of North America, and they still continue to be numerous in many of the well peopled parts of the United States. Occasionally their numbers are so much increased as to render them very troublesome to the farmers in the low and wooded parts of Maryland, border- ing on the Chesapeake Bay. Their season of sexual intercourse begins in the first week of March: the female usually produces two or three cubs at a litter; her den is then made in some hollow tree or very secure situation.* ful that the animal should eat its own tail, which certainly appears to be the fact. The extreme length of its tail, in which the blood circulates but feebly, exposes it to the in- fluence of the cold or frost; and the exceedingly tormenting irritation produced thereby, leads the animal to gnaw and scratch the tail to relieve the excessive itching. The disease spreads, and the anguish induces the coatamundi to gnaw more furiously, and eventually his life is destroyed by the extension of the inflammation and irritation to the spine, &c. * Os peni inest, leviter versus glandem curvatumj testi- culi et caput penis, tempore amoris incipiente, notabiliora pendentioraque deveniunt. Fceminam contra terram vel aliquod durum, frequentissime genitalia fricare notavi; pro- fecto et marem aliquando, simili modo, sese diligenter agitare vidi. CHAPTER IX. Genus X. Badger; Meles, Briss.x Gr. uthn. Fr. Blaireau. Lat. Taxus, Meles. Sp. Tassugo, Texon. Ital. Tasso. Ger. Tachs, Dachs, Dar. Swed. Graf-Svin. Scot. Brock, Tod, Pate, &c. GENERIC CHARACTERS. The head is conical and the muzzle elongated; the ears are rounded and the eyes small. The body is robust and the limbs comparatively short, the di- gits being all covered by the integuments, as far as to the roots of the claws, which on the fore-feet are long, and admirably adapted for burrowing. The teats are six in number, two of them are placed on the lower part of the chest, two on the belly, and * Desmarest has incorrectly quoted Linne as having ap- propriated the name "Tim/s" to this genus. In this, as in almost every other inaccuracy, the French naturalist has been servilely copied in this country. Linne made Taxus a species of his genus Ursus, [see ed. 6, genus 10, sp. 1.] and it occupies a place in the same ge- nus in Gmelin's edition of the Systema Naturae, p. 102, vol. i. The term Taxus is preoccupied in Botanyj we have adopt- ed the name given to this genus by Brisson, which has the advantage of being the same as that used by Varro and other Latin writers for the only species of badger then known. This name of the genus, in some of the books, is inaccurately attri- buted to Storr: [See Ranzani, Elem. di Zoologia, ii. p. 249.]] i < A/ictvt'ti 2 » '(/lurtcaii .V>ii yA/t? ///■//.»?/. * See Sabine, p. 653. / 3 $~--4~ u: w. Wool du i KjaMe . 2 'A/y/jcA , 3 < A//e ///■('A . * THE PINE MARTEN. 201 tained, and the numbers of the pine marten may be fairly inferred from the vast amount of skins annually collected. In the year 1743 the Hudson's Bay company sold 12,370 good, and 2,367 damaged skins of the pine marten; in the same year the French sent from Canada 30,325; if to these be added the numbers consumed in America, and those rejected by the traders when finally arranging their pack- ages, we must believe that this species is one of the most numerous belonging to our continent. The pine marten very closely resembles the com- mon European marten, (M. Foina,) and the two spe- cies may be readily mistaken for each other when inattentively observed. But they may be distin- guished with facility by remarking that the head of the pine marten is not so long as that of the Eu- ropean, neither is its body as large. The pine mar- ten has longer legs, finer, thicker and more glossy fur, and the throat is marked by a broad yellow or orange coloured spot, while the same part in the European marten is white. The pine marten resembles the ermine weasel in habits and disposition, destroying great numbers of small quadrupeds and birds, but shows no disposi- tion to approach the habitations of man. The pine marten frequently has its den in the hollows of trees, but very commonly takes possession of the nest of some industrious squirrel, which it enlarges to suit its own convenience, after putting the builder to death. It is said to feed occasionally on fruits, berries, honey, &c, but, with the exception of the last substance, we should have strong doubts of the statement; when very much pressed by hunger, this vol. i.—c c 202 THE PINE MARTEN. marten may feed on " fruits, berries, &c." but it is too exclusively carnivorous to use such food if ani- mal matter is to be obtained. The pine marten is of a brilliant fulvous brown colour over the whole of the body, with the ex- ception of the throat and anterior part of the breast, which are of a yellow or orange hue, varying in depth in different individuals. The general colour of the fur is owing to the intermixture of two sorts of hair, one of which is longer and coarser, of an ash colour near the body, then of a clear fawn co- lour, and ending at the tip with a brown mixed with bright red: the other is a soft, fine, downy hair: slightly coloured with white and pale brownish yel- low. The end of the snout is of a blackish brown co- lour, and the legs and tail are of the same, having little or none of the yellow brown. The margins and in- ternal surface of the ears are covered by a whitish yellow fur. The pine marten is most frequently obtained in its summer pelage, which is neither so brilliant, nor of the silky fineness which it possesses in winter. The colour becomes paler, particularly about the head; the yellowness on the throat cannot be easily distinguished from that on the rest of the body, as it changes to a dingy white, which runs into and be- comes blended with the lighter brown of the sur- rounding parts.* The fur of this marten is exten- sively used in the manufacture of hats, and is most generally preferred for ornamenting and increasing the warmth of winter dresses. * Sabine. PENNANT'S MARTEN. 203 The length of the body of this animal is about eighteen, and that of the tail about ten inches.— There is a very marked difference in the size of the sexes, the male being one-third larger than the female. Their season of sexual intercourse, ac- cording to Linne, is the month of February, and in December the female brings forth seven or eight young; hence there is not much probability of the species being speedily extinguished, notwithstanding the vast numbers annually killed for the sake of their skins. A little care* on the part of the hun- ters to avoid destroying animals during their breed- ing seasons, would in all cases tend to secure the per- manence of their sources of profit.* Species III.—Pennant's Marten. (Commonly called the Fisher. ) Mustela Pennanti; Erxl. Mustela Pennanti; Ehxi.. Syst. Mam. p. 470, sp. 10. Mustela Melanorrhynca; Bodd. Elench. an. p. 88, sp. 13. Mustela Piscator; of various authors. Fisher Weesel; Pewit. Hist. Quad. Ed. 3. p. 50. No. 246. Arct. Zool i. p. 94. Fisher; Sabine, App. to Franklin's Exped. p. 652. Wejack; Hearse, Journey, &c. 8vo. ed. p. 378. The impropriety of giving to animals names that may mislead the inexperienced, is clearly shown in the case of the present species. As it is commonly * The names of northern Indian girls are chiefly taken from some part or property of a marten,- such as the white marten, the black marten, the summer marten, the marten's 204 PENNANT'S MARTEN. called the fisher, most persons directly infer that the animal subsists on fish, and hence resembles the otter and other quadrupeds in its fondness for an aquatic mode of life. Neither of these conclusions is correct. Like the pine marten and various kindred species, this animal subsists by preying on various small quad- rupeds, birds, eggs, &c. and so far from being ad- dicted to the water, Hearne states that it mani- fests as much repugnance to that fluid as a domes- tic cat. That it will eat fish when they are thrown on shore there is'little doubt,- as almost all the carnivorous animals are delighted with such food; but we have no proof that this marten is in the habit of fishing for itself. Since the common name is injudicious, by inducing erroneous notions of the habits and manners of the animal, and has no connexion with any distinctive character, we have preferred a translation of the scientific name given to this species by Erxleben, which, if equally inexpressive of any peculiarity, does not produce any false or incorrect opinions. Pennant's marten is found in various parts of North America, from the state of Pennsylvania to as far north as the Great Slave Lake, where it was seen by Capt. Franklin. Its habits are stated to be very similar to those of the pine marten, climbing trees, catching mice, rabbits, and partridges, with as much head, the marten's foot, the marten's heart, the marten's tail, &c. Matonabbee had eight wives, and they were all called Martens. Hearne, p. 94. This variety of names may serve to remind the reader of Dandie Dinmont's celebrated family of Pepper and Mustard terriers. PENNANT'S MARTEN. 205 facility as that animal. Hearne informs us that this species is easily domesticated, becomes fond of tea- leaves, is very playful, and has a pleasant musky smell. We may correctly infer that this species is not very scarce or uncommon, if we remark the numbers of them which are collected by the fur traders. Pennant says that five hundred and eighty skins were sent in one year from the states of New York and Pennsylvania, and Sabine remarks that the Hudson's Bay company sent eighteen hundred skins to England in one year. The length of this marten is from twenty-four to thirty inches without the tail, which is from thirteen to seventeen inches long. The snout is pointed, and the fur near the nose is brown, in some individuals approaching to black: the ears are broad, short, and rounded, having a dusky fur on the outside, which appears lighter on their tips; the throat is brown, with a few white tipped hairs; the belly and legs are of a dark brown. The feet are very broad and covered with hair, which conceals the sharp, strong, white claws. All the fur on the superior part of the body is dark at the base, yellowish above, then tipped with black. The fur on the head is short, but gradu- ally increases in length towards the tail, and its co- lour changes, losing much of the yellowish, and as- suming a chestnut hue. The tail is full, bushy, black and lustrous, being smallest at the end.* * Penis hujus, P. Lotori simillimum est. 206 THE MINK. Species IV.—The Mink. Mustela Lutreola; L. Viverra Lutreola; Pallas. Spicil. Zool. xiv. p. 46. t. Hi. p. 462. Lutra Minor.- Erxl. Mamm. p. 451, No. 3. Scbreb. Saeugth, iii. p. 462. Lesser Otter-, Penn. Quad. ii. p. 51. No. 249, Arct. Zool. i. p. 89. No. 28. ^ Jackash of the fur traders; Hearne. Journey, Sic. 8vo. ed. p. 377. Masnk, of the Swedish colonists in America. This animal is found throughout a great extent of country from Carolina to Hudson's Bay, and in its habits and appearance so much resembles the otter, as to have acquired the common name above quoted from Pennant. The favourite haunts of this species are the banks of streams, especially in the vicinity of mill-seats or farm-houses, where it inhabits holes near the wa- ter, or in the ruins of old walls, &c. Its food in a great degree consists of frogs and fish, but it fre- quently invades the poultry yards and commits as extensive ravages as any of its kindred species, cutting off the heads and sucking the blood of the fowls in a similar manner. Rats, mice, and other small animals, also fall victims to the mink, and when this animal takes up its residence about wharves or bridges, it does great service by the destruction of such vermin. Lawson, in his history of Carolina, says that the mink is very destructive to the tortoise, scraping their eggs out of the sand and destroying them, and adds that it feeds upon the fresh water muscles, the shells of which are often found in con- siderable quantity about the mouth of its hole. THE MINK. 207 The mink is an excellent swimmer and diver, and can remain much longer under water than the musk rat. When provoked this animal ejects from-its anal glands a fetid liquor, which is exceedingly un- pleasant. Hearne states that like the larger otter they are frequently found in winter several miles from any water, and are often caught in traps set for mar- tens. They are supposed to prey on mice and par- tridges like the marten; but when near the rivers and creeks they generally feed on fish. They vary very much in size and colour. ii They are very easily domesticated, and in a short time become so familiar that it is scarcely possible to keep them from climbing up one's legs and. body, and never feel themselves happier than when sitting on the shoul- der of their master. They sleep very much during the day, but prowl about and feed in the night; they are very fierce when at their meals, not suffering those to whom they are most attached to take it from them. I have kept several of them, but their over- fondness made them troublesome, as they were al- ways in the way, and their so frequently emitting a disagreeable smell rendered them quite disgust- ing.*" In addition to the latter circumstances, it may be suggested that an animal naturally so much addicted to destruction and so blood-thirsty, might be a dan- gerous pet in case it were not regularly supplied with food, especially in a house in which there might be small children to tease or excite its anger. * Octavo edition, p. 377-8. 208 THE SABLE. This animal is about twenty inches in length from head to tail, and the tail is four inches long. The ears are rounded, the top of the head in some indi- viduals hoary, in others tawny; the hair of the body is of two sorts, the short being of a tawny colour and the longer of a dusky hue. The feet are broad, webbed, and covered with hair. The tail is dusky and ends in a point. The fur is principally used by the hatters.* Species V.—-The Sable. Mustela Zibellina; L. Martes Zibellina,- Bbiss. Quad. p. 248. Zibeline,- Buff. Hist. Nat. xii. p. 309. Sable Weesel; Pexn. Quad. ii. p. 43, Arct. Zool. 1, p. 90. A specimen in winter pelage in the Philadelphia Museum. In Siberia, Kamtschatka, and the Kurile islands, this species is very common, wThile in North Ame- rica it is almost unknown; more we believe because * From a careful comparison of the descriptions given by the systematic writers, and an examination of numerous skins of the animals, we are inclined to believe that the Pekan, (M. Canadensis,) and Vison, {M. Vison,) are both nothing: more than mere varieties of the Mustela Lutreola, which we have seen having all the markings by which they would distinguish the species above mentioned. Nothing but a reference to living nature can decide the doubt, and this reference is not at present in our power. A new spe- cies has been proposed on no better foundation than an over- stuffed and faded skin of the common mink, belonging to the Philadelphia Museum. THE SABLE. 209 the northern parts of this continent have not been sufficiently explored, than owing to the absence of the animal. Pennant, in his Arctic Zoology, states, on the authority of Pallas, that this animal '< ex- tends across the whole continent, the skins being fre- quently found among the furs which the Americans traffic with among the inhabitants of the Tschutscki noss." The skin from which the first named author described the species was from Canada, and u was of the bleached or worst kind." Captains Lewis and Clark, while on their expedi- tion, obtained one of these sables, and the specimen was prepared and mounted for the Philadelphia Mu- seum, in which it may now be seen. It is in that state of pelage which Pennant speaks of above, the fur being u bleached," or rather the individual is in its winter dress, the colour being of a dingy white, or white so tipped with brownish red as to give some- thing of a faintly reddish hue to the whole animal, ex- cept the tail, which is distinctly brownish, becoming darker towards the extremity. The person who pre- pared this individual was led to believe it an albino from the colour of the fur, and hence has inaccurately given it pink-coloured or albino eyes, but, with this exception, the specimen is still in good condi- tion. The habits of the sable very closely resemble those of the martens we have before described, but we have so little positive information relative to the species as it exists on this continent, that we do not feel at liberty to enter into any details merely in- ferred from what is known of the European species. The skins of sables are esteemed among the most vol. l.—d d 210 THE SABLE. precious peltries, and yield large sums annually to the Russian government. The length of the animal from the nose to the tail is about twenty inches; the tail, including the hair at the extremity, is eight inches long, half of which length is due to the hair. The general colour, when in winter dress, is an obscure fulvous or tawny hue. The head and ears are whitish and broad, somewhat triangular in shape, and rather pointed at top. The feet are very large and covered with hair on the upper and under surfaces, which conceal the nails. CHAPTER XII. Genus XIII. Mephitis; C. Skunk. Fr. Chinche; Enfant du diable Bete puante. Germ. Stinkthier. GENERIC CHARACTERS. The head is conical and small,, having a somewhat blunt snout, and small rounded ears. The feet have five toes, those on the fore-feet being large, strong, and suited for burrowing. Dental System. C f 6 Incisive f 2 False Molars 'si J 14 Upper < 2 Canine < 2 Carnivorous |>J L 6 Molar. (_2 Tuberculous. {6 Incisive f 6 False Molars 2 Canine -j 2 Carnivorous 10 Molar. [ 2 Tuberculous. 18 Lower In the upper jaw the incisors and canines are exactly similar to those of the martens. There are two false molars, one of which is very small and ru- dimental, and the other regular, with two roots and one point. The carnivorous tooth is remarkable for the great developement of the internal tubercle, which adds much to its thickness, and gives it a tri- angular form; and the tuberculous tooth is also pe- culiar in its dimensions, which are nearly the same from the anterior to the posterior edge as from the internal to the external. In the martens this tooth 212 THE SKUNK. is only extended in the latter direction, and its slightly salient and rounded tubercles are not dis- tinctly marked. In the present genus these tuber- cles are very strong and angular, which makes this really a triturating tooth; there are four principal tubercles separated by depressions of some depth, but their extremely irregular figure sets description at defiance. In the lower jaw the incisors and canines are si- milar to those of the martens, without exception, and the same is the fact relative to the three false molars: the first is much smaller than the other, which has the form and proportions of the regular false molar. The carnivorous is divided into two nearly equal parts by a rather deep cavity: the anterior is formed by three pointed tubercles arranged triangularly, and the posterior by a spur ending in two sharp and rather slender tubercles, separated by a deep de- pression. The tuberculous tooth is similar to that of the martens. In their reciprocal position, the peculiar cha- racters of the carnivorous and tuberculous teeth cause the only difference between the relations of these teeth and those we have remarked to exist in the martens. The great internal tubercle of the upper carnivorous tooth, fills the space between the three triangularly ranged tubercles of that be- longing to the lower jaw, and the spur of the lat- ter is in relation with the anterior half of the great superior tuberculous tooth, the posterior part of which corresponds with the inferior tubercle. The genus mephitis is therefore much less car- nivorous than the marten and wolverene, on account Jh-iom by XV. Jh-mtrn hv U'AV.M.d i .'/'/« „/• 2 <'-rw<*f 3 ' //ttt/ .mc^ivviicu, mm in one instant the con- Jh-mrn bv W.lirit',:./ , , fa'/■„„A * ("»»<>" 3 ' ^'"S- THE SKUNK. 213 of the thickening of the cutting teeth, and more frugivorous in consequence of the enlargement of the tuberculous teeth. Species I.—The Skunk. Mephitis Americana; Desm. Viverra Mephitis,- Gmel. [L.] Syst. Nat. p. 88, No. 13, Chinche,- Buff. Hist. Nat. torn. 33, pi. xx. fig1. 2. Enfant du diable,- Charley. Nouv. France v. 196. Skunk Weesel. Penn. Quad. ii. p. 65, No. 263. Pedestrians, called by business or pleasure to ram- ble through the country during the morning or evening twilight, occasionally see a small and pretty animal a short distance before them in the path, scampering forward without appearing much alarm- ed, and advancing in a zig-zag or somewhat ser- pentine direction. Experienced persons generally delay long enough to allow this unwelcome fellow- traveller to withdraw from the path: but it often happens that a view of the animal arouses the ar- dour of the observer, who in his fondness for sport thinks not of any result but that of securing a prize. It would be more prudent to rest content with pelting this quadruped from a safe distance, or to drive it away by shouting loudly; but almost all inexperienced persons, the first time such an opportunity occurs, rush forward with intent to run the animal down. This appears to be an easy task; in a few moments it is almost overtaken; a few more strides and the vic- tim may be grasped by its long and waving tail—but that tail is now suddenly curled over the back, its pace is slackened, and in one instant the con- 214 THE SKUNK. dition of things is entirely reversed;—the lately triumphant pursuer is eagerly flying from his in- tended prize, involved in an atmosphere of stench, gasping for breath, or blinded and smarting with pain, if his approach were sufficiently close to allow of his being struck in the eyes by the pestilent fluid of the skunk. Should the attack on this creature be led by a dog, and he be close at hand when the disgusting discharge is made, he runs with tail between his legs howling away, and by thrusting his nose into the soil as he retreats, tries to escape from the horrible effluvium which renders the air in the immediate vicinity of the skunk too stifling to be endured. Thus is an animal, possessed of very trifling strength and no peculiar sagacity, pro- tected by the hand of nature against the most power- ful and destructive enemies. A few glands secrete a most noisome and intolerably stinking fluid, and this scattered with peculiar force upon the body of its enemies, or even in the air, is sufficient to disarm the violence of most quadrupeds, and induce man himself rather to avoid than to seek an encounter. The organs by which this fluid is formed are placed near the termination of the digestive tube, and the ducts from the glands open into the rectum, by the aid of whose muscles the fluid is ejected with astonishing force, and is aimed with great accuracy, rarely missing the object if discharged while within the proper distance. The faculty this animal pos- sesses of annoying its enemies by the discharge of the fluid just mentioned, causes it rather to be shun- ned than hunted, which the value of its skin would otherwise be sure to occasion. THE SKUNK. 215 The skunk inhabits the whole of North America, and is also found throughout a considerable part of the southern portion of this continent. As the co- loured markings vary exceedingly in different indi- viduals, it is not surprising that naturalists have made several species of this animal, though without any foundation in nature. Of several specimens in the Philadelphia Museum there is not one corresponding with the other in colour; neither have we ever seen two exactly alike. Sometimes they are of a uniform dark brown colour, having a white spot on the top of the head; sometimes they have two white stripes, commencing from a white patch on the back of the head and neck, passing outwards as far as the middle of the back, while only the tip of the tail is pure white; again, other individuals are found with white and black rays on the back and sides, and the tail in great part white, as the skunk is represented in the ordinary figures. All the species proposed by systematic writers are reducible to one, the sub- ject of this article, Mephitis Americana, or Ameri- can skunk. The fetor produced by the skunk is especially characterized by all who have experienced it as suf- focating or stifling, which is owing to its peculiar concentration. The predominant odour is that of muskiness, but in so condensed and aggravated a form as to render it almost insupportable, even at a considerable distance from the spot where it is first discharged. A very good idea may be formed of this stench by breaking and smelling a leaf or stalk of the plant called skunk cabbage, (the Dracontium fetidum, or pothos fetidum) resembling it in every 216 THE SKUNK. respect except in strength, which perhaps no arti- ficial accumulation of this vile scent could ever equal. The fluid ejected by the skunk is not merely offen- sive by its stench, but also in consequence of its highly stimulating and acrimonious qualities. When any of it is thrown into the eyes, it is productive of very violent and dangerous inflammation; we must sup- pose that this peculiar acrimony, rather than any mere offensiveness of odour, is the cause of the marked repugnance evinced by dogs, as these animals show not the slightest sign of uneasiness from the presence of the most nauseous and putrid effluvia from animal or vegetable substances, yet run howl- ing and trying to thrust their noses into the ground after having been exposed to this pungent perfume from the skunk. In its extreme volatility it bears a considerable resemblance to true musk. The smallest drop is sufficient to render a garment detestable to the wearer and his companions for a great duration of time, and without any perceptible diminution of intensity. Washing, smoking, baking and burying articles of dress, and in fact every effort short of destroying the materials of which they are made, seem to be equally inefficient for its removal.— This scent is not only thus enduring when the fluid is sprinkled upon clothing, but the spot where the animal is killed, or where the matter was ejected, retains it for a great lapse of time. " When I was at Cumberland House, (says Hearne, p. 378) in the fall of 1774, some Indians that were tenting on the plantation killed two of these animals, and made THE SKUNK. 217 a feast of them, when the spot where they were singed and gutted was so impregnated with the nauseous smell which they emit, that after a whole winter had elapsed, and the snow had thawed away in the spring, the smell was still intolerable." A friend informed the author of this work, that he had plainly perceived the odour of the fluid ejected by this animal from across the Hudson river, near Al- bany; we have no doubt of its being possible to smell it at a much greater distance when the wind blows from the spot where the effluvium is thrown out.* However singular the fancy may appear, we are assured by Catesby that he has seen one of these animals tamed as a pet, and following its owner like a little dog, without offering to offend any one by its peculiar odour, which it has the power of dispensing at will. When it is recollected that on any provo- cation or threatened injury, the skunk immediately fires upon his disturber, it will be conceded that such * Professor Kalm gives the following anecdotes in his travels:—"In 1749 one of these animals came near the farm-house in which I lodged; it was winter, and during the night the dogs were aroused and pursued it; in a moment so fetid an odour was diffused, that, being in bed, I thought I should have been suffocated. About the end of the same year, another slipped into our cellar, but did not make the least unpleasant smell, because it only diffuses this when hunted or disturbed. A woman who discovered it at night by its shining eyes killed it, and at the instant it filled the cellar with such a stench, that not only was the woman sick during several days, but the bread, meat and other provi- sions kept in that cellar were so infected as to be entirely spoiled, and required to be thrown away.''1 vol I.—E e 218 THE SKUNK. a pet must require a very cautious management, for to startle it suddenly, or injure it accidentally, would expose both friends and enemies to a shower of "li- quid sweets," which all " the odours from the spicy shore of Araby the blest" could not correct. If the skunk be killed while unsuspicious of the approach of danger, or before time has been allowed for the discharge of his artillery of perfume, the animal is not in any way disagreeable, and may be approached closely, or even eaten without the least unpleasantness, if the glands be carefully taken out. Its flesh, when the odorous parts have been carefully removed, is said to be well flavoured, and resembles that of a pig considerably. It is eaten by the In- dians, and occasionally by hunters, with much relish. The skunk is most generally found in the forests or their immediate vicinity, having its den either in the hollow of an old tree or stump, or an excava- tion in the ground. It feeds upon the young and eggs of birds, and on small quadrupeds, wild fruits, &c. Occasionally the skunk gains access to the poultry- yard, where it does much mischief by breaking and sucking the eggs, or by killing the fowls. When resident in the vicinity of farm-houses, it remains for a long time without giving notice of its presence by emitting its offensive fluid, which proves how ridiculous is the notion that the urine of this animal is the source of its disgusting fetor; for, as Hearne justly observes, were this the fact, the whole country it inhabits would be rendered almost insupportable to every other creature. We have already stated that the colour of the hair is very various in different individuals of this THE SKUNK. 219 species at different seasons and periods of life. Very commonly it is of a blackish brown over the whole of the body, except on the top of the head, or im- mediately between the ears, where there is a white spot, and the tip of the tail, also, is white. Some individuals have a slight white mark on the breast. The hairs of the tail are long and bushy, and, with the exception of their tips, are of a dark brown colour. But, as heretofore stated, scarcely two of them are coloured precisely in the same way. The length of a full grown skunk is about eighteen inches, and the tail about seven, the long hair at the extremity making nearly one-half of this length.* * For a very long time the offensive fluid of this animal was almost universally believed to be its urine, with which it was said first to wet its bushy tail, and then, by a vigorous flourish, to scatter the perfume far and wide against its dis- turbers. It is not surprising that common observers should mistake the action intended to withdraw the tail from the course of the discharge for the manner in which the fluid is scattered* We are informed by our friend, Mr. T. Kearney, that on one occasion, while going to visit a trap before day-light, he disturbed a skunk which was running along the path at some distance in advance of him, and was much surprised to observe that the course of the fluid discharged was ren- dered perfectly visible by a distinct phosphorescent light; the odour left no doubt of the animal whence it proceeded. CHAPTER XIII. Genus XIV. Otter; Lutra, Briss. Ger. Fischotter; Flussotter; Fischdieb, 8cc. ltal. Lontra. Fr. Loutre. Swed. Utter. GENERIC CHARACTERS. The animals belonging to this genus are charac- terized by a broad and flat head, which terminates in a blunt snout; small eyes and very short rounded ears. The whiskers are large; the tongue, though not very rough, is papillous. The body is larger in proportion than that of the marten. The very short legs are ter- minated by five toes, which have their phalanges united by a web or membrane, and are armed with sharp, not retractile claws. The pelage is composed of two sorts of hair, one of which is silky, soft, thick and short, the other long, scattered and rather bristly. The teats are placed upon the belly; on each side of the anus is situated an orifice leading to a small sack containing a fetid matter. These animals are excellent swimmers, reside in holes along the banks of fresh water streams, and feed almost entirely upon fish. Dental System. C. f 6 Incisive f 6 False Molars J= 18 Upper < 2 Canine < 2 Carnivorous t J (.10 Molar. (_ 2 Tuberculous. H i f 6 Incisive f 6 False Molars 5 I 18 Lower < 2 Canine < 2 Carnivorous I L10 Molar. I 2 Tuberculous THE OTTER. 221 In the upper jaw the incisor and canine teeth are exactly similar to what we have seen in the mar- ten, the glutton and skunk. The false molars are three in number, the first is very small and rudi- mental, the second slightly larger than the first, but much smaller than the third, is regularly con- formed like all normal false molars. The carni- vorous tooth is principally remarkable for the ex- tent and form of its internal tubercle. It is no longer a salient point reposing upon a very large base as in the skunk, but a broad surface terminated at the inner side by a circular line, and bordered at this part by a continuous and salient spine. The tuberculous tooth has the dimensions and form of the same tooth in the marten; it is also more extended from the out to the inside than from before back- ward, and the inequalities which divide its surface differ in nothing from what we have observed in the animal just referred to. In the lower jaw the incisors and canines have nothing to distinguish them from the dental system of the skunk; and the same is true of the false mo- lar, the carnivorous and tuberculous teeth. In their reciprocal position it results from the differences we have pointed out between the skunk and otter, that in the latter no tubercle fills the space left by the tubercles arranged in a triangle on the inferior carnivorous tooth. The first of these tu- bercles is at the anterior part of the tooth, and opposed to the hollowed centre of the broad sur- face, bordered by a spine which replaces in these animals the tubercle found in the same tooth of the skunk. The two other tubercles fill the void re- 222 THE AMERICAN OTTER. maining between the carnivorous and opposite tuber- culous tooth, and this last presents almost the whole of its crown to the posterior spur of the lower carnivo- rous tooth. Nothing is opposed to the inferior tuber- culous tooth but the posterior edge of the analogous tooth of the upper jaw. It is well known that the otters subsist principally upon fish; they also may be fed with flesh, and may be accustomed without difficulty to use vegeta- ble food. Nevertheless, it would be difficult to de- termine by the teeth, whether they are more car- nivorous than the skunk; because, while they appear to have carnivorous teeth which separate them farther from the marten than the carnivorous teeth of the skunk remove that animal, they have, on the other hand, less extensive tuberculous teeth than those of the latter genus. Species I.—The American Otter. Lutra Brasiliensis; Ray. Mustela Lutra Brasiliensis: Gmel. L. p. 93. Lutra Brasiliensis: Rat. Syn. Quad. p. 91. Lutra Brasiliensis: Briss. Quad. p. 278. Saricovienne de la Guyane: Buff. Supp. 6. p. 287. Loutre d'Amerique: C. R6g. Anim. i. p. 151. torn. iv. fig. 3. Lutra Canadensis; Sabine, App. to Franklin's Exp. p. 654. Though the Brasilian Otter has long been regard- ed as a distinct species, the North American or Ca- nadian Otter was almost uniformly confounded with its European analogue, until the distinctive charac- ters were accurately pointed out by Sabine in the work above quoted. Cuvier considered the North THE AMERICAN OTTER. 223 American as identical with the Brasilian species, and in this correct opinion he has been followed by most of the naturalists. This otter inhabits South, as well as various parts of North America, along the fresh water streams and lakes, as far north as to the Copper Mine river. In the southern, middle and eastern states of the Union, they are comparatively scarce, but in the western states they are in many places still found in considerable numbers. On the tributaries of the Missouri they are very common; but it is in the Hudson's Bay possessions that these animals are ob- tained in the greatest abundance, and supply the traders with the largest number of their valuable skins. Seventeen thousand three hundred otter skins have been sent to England in one year by the Hudson's Bay company. Nature appears to have intended the otter for one among her efficient checks upon the increase of the finny tribes, and every peculiarity of its conformation seems to have this great object in view. The length of body, short and flat head, abbreviated ears, dense and close fur, flattened tail, and disproportionately short legs with webbed feet, all conspire to facilitate the otter's movements through the water. In the crystal depths of the river, few fish can elude this swiftly moving and destructive animal, which unites to the qualities enabling him to swim with fish-like celerity and ease, the peculiar sagaciousness of a class of beings far superior in the intellectual scale to the proper ten- ants of the flood. In vain does the pike scud before this pursuer, and spring into the air in eagerness 224 THE AMERICAN OTTER. to escape; or the trout dart with the velocity of thought from shelter to shelter; in vain does the strong and supple eel seek the protection of the shelving bank or the tangled ooze in the bed of the stream; the otter supplies by perseverance what may be wanting in swiftness, and by cunning what may be deficient in strength, and his affrighted victims, though they may for a short time delay, cannot avert their fate. When once his prey is seized, a single effort of his powerful jaws is sufficient to render its struggles unavailing; one crush with his teeth breaks the spine of the fish behind the dorsal fin, and de- prives it of the ability to direct its motions, even if it still retain the least power to move. The residence of the otter is a burrow or excava- tion in the bank of a stream or river, and the en- trance to this retreat is under water; at some distance from the river an air-hole is generally to be found opening in the midst of a bush or other place of concealment. The burrow is frequently to be traced for a considerable distance, and in numerous instances leads to the widely spreading roots of large trees, un- derneath which the otter finds a secure and com- fortable abode. The winter residence is generally chosen in the vicinity of falls or rapids where the water is least liable to be closed from the severity of the cold, and where the otter may find the readiest access to the fish upon which his subsistence de- pends. Otters have been seen during the coldest parts of winter at very considerable distances from their usual haunts, or from any known open water, as well as upon the ice of large lakes, a circumstance that appears the more singular as this animal is not THE AMERICAN OTTER. 225 known to kill game on land at this season. When the otter is in the woods where the snow is light and deep, it dives if pursued, and moves with con- siderable rapidity under the snow. But its route is always betrayed by the rising of the superin- cumbent mass, and numbers of them are occasionally killed with clubs by the Indians, while thus endeav- ouring to make their escape. The old otters, how- ever, are often able to disappoint their pursuers by force, if not by address, for they turn upon them with great fury and ferocity, and so desperate are the wounds inflicted by their teeth, that few in- dividuals are willing to encounter the severity of their bite. The Indians have various methods of kill- ing the otter, one of which is that of concealing them- selves near the haunts of the animal on moon-light nights, and shooting them when they come forth for the purpose of feeding or sporting. A common mode of taking them is by sinking a steel-trap near the mouth of their burrow, over which the animal must pass in entering or leaving the den. We have alluded to the sporting of the otter, and may now remark that its disposition in this respect is singular and interesting. Their favourite sport is sliding, and for this purpose in winter the high- est ridge of snow is selected, to the top of which the otters scramble, where, lying on the belly, with the fore-feet bent backwards, they give themselves an impulse with their hind-legs, and swiftly glide head-foremost down the declivity, sometimes for the distance of twenty yards. This sport they continue, apparently with the keenest enjoyment, until fatigue or hunger induces them to desist. vol. i.—f f 226 I HE A.MERICA.N Oll'EK, In the summer this amusement is obtained by se- lecting a spot where the river-bank is sloping, has a clayey soil, and the water at its base is of a considera- ble depth. The otters then remove from the surface, for the breadth of several feet, the sticks, roots, stones and other obstructions, and render the surface as level as possible. They climb up the bank at a less precipitous spot, and starting from the top slip with velocity over the inclining ground, and plump into the water to a depth proportioned to their weight and rapidity of motion. After a few slides and plunges the surface of the clay becomes very smooth and slippery, and the rapid succession of the sliders show how much these animals are delighted by the game, as well as how capable they are of performing actions, which have no other object than that of pleasure or diversion. This amusement is so congenial to the frolic spirit of boyhood, that in vicinities where otter slides are found, youngsters while bathing sometimes take possession of one, and sitting at the top glide thence with great glee into the water, in imitation of the disports of the otter.* But not recollecting that the skin of the otter is protected by a thick and fine fur against the * " We had an opportunity of seeing on the ice of Boyer Creek a considerable number of the tracks or paths of otters; they were the more readily distinguishable from there being snow of but little depth on the ice, and they appear- ed as if the animal was accustomed to slide in his move- ments on the ice, as there were in the first place the impres- sions of two feet, then a long mark clear of snow for the distance of a yard or more, then the impressions of the feet of the animal, after which the sliding mark, and so on alter- nately. These paths were numerous, and passed between THE AMERICAN OTTER 227 effects of friction, the poor lads find, on relinquish- ing their play, that, notwithstanding the apparent smoothness of the slide, the fine sand mingled with the clay has robbed them of a broad surface of cuticle, the loss of which experimentally convinces them, before they can limp home, that an otter slide, in the end, is not altogether well suited for the re- creation of human bathers. The American otter is about five feet in length, including the tail, the length of which is eighteen inches. The colour of the whole of the body, (ex- cept the chin and throat, which are dusky white) is a glossy brown. The fur throughout is dense and fine. The differences between this species and the Eu- ropean otter are thus pointed out by Capt. Sabine. " The neck of the American otter is elongated, not short, and the head narrow and long in comparison with the short broad visage of the European species; the ears are consequently much closer together than in the latter animal. The tail is more pointed and shorter, being considerably less than one half of the length of the body, whilst the tail of the European otter is more than half the length of its body." The fur of the otter is much valued by the hat ters and other consumers of peltries, and as the ani- mal is hunted at all times without any regard to the preservation or increase of the species, it must ulti- mately become as rare in North America as the kindred species has long since become in Europe. the bank and a situation where a hole had been in the ice, now frozen over.''—Long's Exped. to the Rocky Mountain?. vol. i. p. 455. ' 228 THE SEA OTTER. Species II.— The Sea Otter. Lutra Marina; Erxl. Lutra Marina, Kalan: Nov. Com. Petrop. ii. p. 367. Castor Marin.- Hist. Kamtschatka, p. 444. Mustela Lutris: L. Gmei. p. 92. See Biber, oder Sec Otter: Stelleh, Kamtschatka. This animal is very interesting on account of its habits and manners, the peculiar beauty, fineness and value of its fur, and from the singular circum- stance of the comparatively narrow limits within which the species is restricted. The sea otter spends the greater part of its life in the ocean, where it is abundantly supplied with food, and to all appearance there is nothing to prevent it from roving wherever inclination or curiosity invites; yet the species is ex- clusively resident within the 49th and 60th degrees of north latitude, and from the 126th degree west longitude to the 150th east from London, on the north-eastern coasts and seas of North America, and on the shores of Kamtschatka and of the islands lying between the two continents. The sea otter when full grown is about the size of a large mastiff, and weighs from seventy to eighty pounds. In general appearance there is a considera- ble degree of resemblance between this animal and the seal, especially in the flat and webbed feet of the hinder extremities. It is always found on the coast, or in the immediate vicinity of the salt water, and in tempestuous weather seeks shelter among the weeds which are collected in great quantities in many parts of the seas it inhabits. Its food is vari- 1 ' /<'^ THE COMMON WOLF. 255 is an invaluable servant. Of his peculiar sagacity numerous instances are on record, and almost every one has made observations enough in relation to this dog, to render any repetition of such instances un- necessary in this place. He breeds with all the known varieties of the domestic dog, and also with the common wolf.* Species II.— The Common Wolf. Canis Lupus; L. When the aboriginal Americans first gave place to European adventurers, and the forests which had flourished for ages undisturbed, began to fall before the unsparing axe, the vicinity of the set- tler's lonely cabin resounded with the nightly howl- ing of wolves, attracted by the refuse provision usually to be found there, or by a disposition to prey upon the domestic animals. During winter, when food was most difficult to be procured, packs of these famished and ferocious creatures were ever * Scientia naturali multum versato et fide digno viro Sa- bine, se canem Terras-novae cumlupa coire frequenter vidisse dictum est; ex quo nobis ejusdem speciei esse ambos, minime dubitare licet. Tamen, si sciolo aliquo, canem sue etiam coire aliquando tentare, objectum sit; respondendum est, ne- miniunquam visum cognitumve canem vere copulari, aut spe- iem vel suam, vel abnormem ex sue procreare. Genitalia lupi canisque nullo modo inter sese differunt: dentes, viscera, victus, vivendique modus eadem sunt; alter ex altero ca- tulos gignere potest. 256 THE COMMON WOLF. at hand, to run down and destroy any domestic ani- mal found wandering beyond the enclosures, which their individual or combined efforts could overcome, and the boldest house-dog could not venture far from the door of his master without incurring the risk of being killed and devoured. The common wolf was then to be found in considerable numbers throughout a great extent, if not the whole of North America; at present it is only known as a resident of the re- mote wooded and mountainous districts where man has not fixed his abode, nor laid bare the bosom of the earth to the enlivening radiance of the sun. The common wolf of America is considered to be the same species as the wolf of Europe, and in re- gard to habits and manners gives every evidence of such an identity. Like all the wild animals of the dog kind, they unite in packs to hunt down animals which individually they could not master, and during their sexual season, engage in the most furious com- bats with each other for the possession of the females. The common wolf is possessed of great strength and fierceness, and is what is generally called a cruel animal, tearing the throat of his victim, drinking its blood, and rending it open for the purpose of de- vouring its entrails. The great strength of its jaws enables the wolf to carry off with facility an animal nearly as large as itself, and makes its bite exceed- ingly severe and dangerous. Aged or wounded in- dividuals, as well as the hinds and fawns of the deer, sheep, lambs, calves and pigs, are killed by these wolves, and the horse is said to be the only domestic animal which can resist them with success. They gorge with much greediness upon all sorts of carrion life iJpNSI Jiff ■^sEBMiff''. V # M9KI^ ^SK■- tap llErli ~^£Wfo* mi ^-^^^RjWtp^jtf^^SI »I^«^^^^^3R ^HijSf; "iS^Tlif^PRs 'i ^Wl • ~s8$$wffi&!w^TMi ,» t« sK«§* 4) v., p rmixed with long hairs either of a black or white colour, 276 1HE RED FOX. degree owing to its urine, as well as to a peculiar glandular secretion. After having satisfied its hun- ger, it hides the remainder of the food, and when disturbed, expresses its anger by growling like a dog. A comparison of the American black fox with the black fox of Europe, may hereafter show differ- ences sufficient to authorize it to be considered as distinct from that species. But until better oppor- tunities of examination are afforded we shall hazard no opinion on the subject. The black fox is found throughout the northern parts of America, and is also obtained in the north of Asia, where it is con- sidered among the richest and most valuable of furs.* Species VIII.— The Red Fox. Canis Fulvus; Desm. Renard de Virginia: De Beatjvois, Bullet, de Soc. Philoro. Red Fox.- Lewis 8s. Clark, vol. ii. p. 159. Canis Fulvus: Sabi>e, Zool. App. p. 656. This beautiful fox is found throughout North America, and is the species which frequently has at the lower part and invariably white at the tip, forming a most beautiful silver gray." Lewis & Clark, ii. p. 169. The black fox of Lewis & Clark is Pennant's marten. (37. Pennanti,) improperly called fisher, described at p. 203 of this work. * Colle pelli si fanno pelliccie bellissime, e ricercatissime ordinariamente il valore di una pelle corrisponde a tanti scudi, quanti ne pub la medesima contenere. Le piu belle fra le teste indicate pellicie si pagano a Costantinopoli sino 50 mila piastre. Ranzani, tomo 2°, parte 2°. THE RED FOX. 277 been thought identical with the common fox of Eu- rope, to which it bears a resemblance sufficiently striking to mislead an incidental observer. But by the fineness of its fur, the liveliness of colour, length of limbs and slenderness of body, as well as the form of its skull, it is obviously distinguished. Red foxes are very numerous in the middle and southern states of the Union, and are every where notorious depredators on the poultry-yards. Their haunts are most commonly in exceedingly dense thickets of young pine, where they can scarcely be followed even by dogs. Like all his kindred species, the red fox is distin- guished by the possession of keen senses and great sagacity or craftiness, which enables him almost to bid defiance to traps, while his strength and swiftness of foot render it extremely difficult to capture him in the chase. Once fairly roused by the hounds, this animal dashes off with great speed, and soon far out- strips pursuit, and did he not lose the advantage of his celerity by remitting his efforts, might soon ren- der the exertions of the sportsman nugatory. But the persevering hounds again and again drive him to his utmost speed, and eventually wear him down, though not until a wide extent of country has been traversed, and huntsmen, horses and dogs have suf- fered severely from fatigue. The general colour of this fox when in full sum- mer pelage is bright ferruginous on the head, back and sides, but less brilliant towards the tail. Beneath the chin it is white, while the throat and neck are a dark gray, which colour is continued along the an- terior part of the belly in a narrower stripe that 278 THE RED FOX. passes along the breast. The under parts of the body towards the tail are very pale red; and the an- terior parts of the fore legs and feet, as well as the fronts of the inferior part of the hind legs, are black. The tail is very bushy but less ferruginous i han the body, the hairs being mostly terminated with black, which is more obvious towards the extremity than at the origin of the member, giving the whole a dark appearance. A few of the hairs are lighter at the end of the tail, but not sufficiently to allow us to state that it is tipped with white. In summer the fur of the red fox is long, fine, brilliant in colour, and lustrous over the whole body. In winter its length and denseness is considerably increased. The red fox is nearly two feet long and about eighteen inches high: the tail is about sixteen inches long. The peltry is of considerable value, and employed in various ways by the manufac- turers.* • We subjoin in this note a description of the Canis De- cussatus, Geoff, given by Sabine in the work above quoted, as the species is entirely doubtful, and may prove to be a variety of the black fox, (C. Argentatus) or a mule produced between the fox last named and the red fox. " The cross fox, in comparison with the red, is shorter on its legs, and has a larger and longer body, being altogether a stronger animal. The front of the head is gray, composed of black and white hairs, the latter predominating on the forehead; the ears are large, covered with short, soft, black fur behind, and within by long yellowish hairs; the back of the neck and shoulders are pale, ferruginous, crossed with dark stripes, one extend- ing from the head to the back, the other passing the first at right angles. The rest of the back is gray, composed of black fur tipped with white? the feet are white beneath the THE RED FOX. 279 The red fox when caugnt young may be domes- ticated to a considerable degree, but it is render- ed extremely unpleasant by the fetor of its urine, which very strongly resembles the abominable odour of the skunk, {Mephitis Americana.) We have lately had the pleasure of seeing a female red fox in the possession of Dr. Betto.v, of Germantown; this animal is very interesting by its playfulness and vi- vacity. It lives in the same cage, and in perfect harmony with a raccoon, {Procyon Lotor;) shows no fear nor enmity towards the dogs of the farm, but always exhibits the greatest delight on being allowed to play with them. All the gestures and movements of this fox are exceedingly similar to those of a small dog, but are performed with remarkable quickness. A very young whelp of this fox was some time ago brought to the Philadelphia Museum in company with its foster mother, a common cat, which had adopted and appeared to be very fond of it. She continued to nurse the little fox for several weeks, expressing much affectionate solicitude when he under part of the tail, and the adjacent parts of the body are pale yellow; the gray character of the back extends to the upper part of the tail, at the commencement; the rest of the tail is dark above and lighter beneath, being tipped with white. The character of the fur is thick and long. The specimen when set up will stand about fourteen inches high; it is two feet four inches in length, and the tail, which is thick and bushy, is sixteen inches long." The colours are very variable in different individuals, some being very nearly of the colour of the red fox, while others more closely ap- proach the black or silver fox. 280 THE GRAY FOX. wandered from her, notwithstanding the frequent ungrateful bites inflicted by her vicious foundling. How long this singular relation might have continu- ed, or to what result it would have led, is unknown. The fox strayed too far from his cautious nurse, fell from the platform of a tall staircase to the ground, and was killed: the poor cat evinced as much sorrow for her loss as if it had been really her own off- spring. Species IX.—The Gray Fox. Canis Cinereo-Argentatus; Gmel. Renard Gris: Briss. Quad. p. 41. Agourachay.- Azara, Quad, du Paraguay, i. p. 317. Canis Cinereo-Argentatus: Sabine, Zool. App. p. 657. Fulvous Necked Fox.- Shaw, Zool. Miscel. The gray fox is very common throughout this country, and is found more immediately in the vi- cinity of human habitations than either of the other species. It is pursued by our sportsmen with more pleasure than the red fox, because it does not imme- diately forsake its haunts and run for miles in one direction, but, after various doublings, is generally killed near the place whence it first started. The gray fox, like all the species we describe, exhibits considerable differences of colour at dif- ferent ages and in different states of pelage. The length of the head and body is about twenty-four. and of the tail eleven inches. The general co- lour of the animal is grizzly, becoming gradually darker from the fore shoulders to the posterior A' 280 rfllT^ ^TJAV T»/w / „r.-» < A Lcs»'u THE gray fox. 281 parts of the back, produced by the intermixture of fulvous hairs with those constituting the mass of the pelage, which are thus coloured; near the body the hair is rather plumbeous, then yellowish, then white, and then uniformly tipped with lus- trous black. The front, from the top of the head to the edge of the orbits, is gray, while the rest of the face, from the internal angle of the eye to within half an inch of the extremity of the snout, is blackish; at the extremity on each side of the granulated black tip of the nose it is of a yellowish white. A fine line of black tipped hairs extends upwards and outwards, from half an inch below the internal angle of the eyes until it is intersected by a similar black line about half an inch beyond the external angle of the eye, thus forming a very acute triangle, whose basis is on the side of the face. This blackish gray triangle, joined to the peculiar sharp- ness of the face, and the line produced by the black whiskers on the sides of the nose, singularly increase the appearance of slyness and cunning expressed in the physiognomy of this animal. The face below this triangle is white, and the latter colour is con* tinued semicircularly upon the upper part of the throat. The under jaw is blackish, this colour extending along the line of the mouth, and passing about half an inch beyond the junction of the lips at the angle. The inner surface of the ears is clothed with short light yellowish hair; their tips on the outside are blackish gray, and the whole of the rest of their posterior surface is yellow, which colour descends encircling the neck, and is the only colour on the vol. 1.—n n 282 THE SWIFT FOX. anterior parts, with the exception of a white spot on the breast. The inferior parts of the body are white, tinted slightly in some individuals with faint reddish brown. The tail is thick and bushy, and the fur on the upper side is pale yellow, slightly tipped with black; the under part is rust coloured, and the end entirely black. Species X.—The Swift Fox.* Canis Velox; Say. Murrmvina Fox- I/ewis & Clark, ii. p. 351. Canis Vefox: Sat, Long's Exp. to the Rocky Mountains, i. p. 486. This interesting species inhabits the open plains which exteud from the base of the Rocky Mountains towards the Missouri River, and forms its dwelling by burrowing in the soil. It is smaller than any other fox we have described, and is not known to frequent forest countries. The most remarkable circumstance peculiar to this fox is its extraordinary swiftness, which all who have seen it agree in declaring to surpass that of any other animal with which we are at present ac- quainted. The fleetest antelope or deer, when run- ning at full speed, is passed by this little fox with * We prefer to translate Say's specific name for the tri- vival appellation of this fox, rather than adopt the common name of burrowing fox, since all the foxes burrow more or less, and the surpassing swiftness of this animal is a much more distinctive attribute of the species. THE SWIFT FOX. 283 the greatest ease, and such is the celerity of its motion that it is compared by the celebrated tra- vellers above quoted to the flight of a bird along the ground, rather than the course of a quad- ruped. Other observers have stated that when in full speed over the plain, the effect produced on the eye makes the animal resemble a line drawn rapidly along the surface, so impossible is it to distinguish any of the parts of its body on account of the sur- prising velocity of its motion. Unfortunately for us the notes taken by Say of the external characters of this animal were lost, and he was obliged to make known the species from nothing but the head and part of the neck of one individual, and the cranium of another. He gives a full account of the peculiarities of the skull of this animal in order to prove its specific distinc- tion from the red fox, (C. Fulvus) which we do not think it necessary to repeat in detail, but shall append to this slight notice of the animal his de- scription of the head and skull which were pre- served. " The entire length, from the insertion of the su- perior incisors to the tip of the occipital crest, is rather more than four inches and three-tenths; the least distance between the orbital cavities nine-tenths of an inch; between the tips of the orbital processes less than one inch and a-tenth; between the inser- tions of the lateral muscles at the junction of the frontal and parietal bones, half an inch. The greatest breadth of this space on the parietal bones thirteen- twentieths of an inch. 284 THE SWIFT FOX. " The hair is fine, dense and soft. The head above is fulvous, verging on ferruginous intermixed with gray, the fur being of the first mentioned colour, and the hair whitish at base, then black, then gray, then brown. The ridge of the nose is somewhat paler, and a more brownish line passes from the eye to the nostrils, (as in the C. Corsac.) The mar- gin of the upper lip is white; the orbits are gray; the ears behind are paler than the top of the head, intermixed with black hairs, and the margin, except- ing at tip, white; the inner side is broadly margined with white hairs; the space behind the ears is desti- tute of the intermixture of hairs; the neck above has longer hairs, of which the black and gray portions are more conspicuous; beneath the head is pure white. The body is slender and the tail rather long, cylindrical and black." / CHAPTER XV. Genus XVI. Cat; Felis, L. Gr. Aiy»ve«cr. Lat. Felis, Catus, Cattus. Ger. Katze. Ital. Gatto; Span. Gato. Fr. Chat. Russ. Kot; fern. Kotscha. GENERIC CHARACTERS. The head is rounded, having a short face and large eyes, of which the pupils open either circu- larly or vertically. The tongue is covered with horny prickles or papillae, which have their points turned backwards. The body is long, compared with the length of the legs; the teats are either four in number, and situated on the belly, or three or four on the chest and four on the belly. The anterior feet have five toes, not joined by an intervening membrane; the toes on the posterior feet are gene- rally four in number; all the toes are armed with sharp hooked claws, which the animals have the power of projecting or retracting at will. The tail varies in length according to the species. Dental System. 16 Uppe {6 Incisive f 4 False Molar 2 Canine -j 2 Carnivorous 8 Molar. (^ 2 Tuberculous {6 Incisive C 4 False Molar 2 Canine -j 2 Carnivorous 6 Molar. I 0 Tuberculous. 286 GENERAL HISTORY In the upper jaw the incisors are ranged side by side in a straight line. The two first are of equal size, wedge-shaped and transversely grooved on their internal face; the third is twice as large as these two, pointed and grooved on its internal face. A vacant space separates the last incisor from the canine, which is very large, conical, slightly hooked, rounded on its internal and external face, and angular at its anterior and posterior edges. The first false molar succeeds the canine, and is a small, very ob- tuse tooth, with a single root. A vacant space sepa- rates that tooth from the succeeding one, or second false molar, which we regard as having the regular form; it is very broad, has several roots, broad from before backwards, compressed from within outwards, trenchant, and presenting nearly the form of a right angle; its edges are divided by two grooves, or rather by two serrations, which augment the trenchant power. The carnivorous, which has at least three roots, succeeds the false molar immediately; it is a third larger than that tooth from before backwards, and is in this direction divided into three parts; the first is a small tubercle with cutting edges; the second or middle one presents a large tubercle trenchant on its edges, of a right angled figure; the third is ter- minated by a nearly straight line, only a little in- flected in its middle, and with cutting edges. At the internal face of this tooth, and at the base of the small obtuse tubercle, is a still smaller tubercle, which is connected by a salient point to the middle tubercle. Finally, the tuberculous molar is a very small tooth, very narrow from before backward, broader from the external to the internal side. OF THE CAT. 287 rounded, and having one or two roots; this tooth con- cealed at the base of the carnivorous tooth is entirely rudimental. In the lower jaw the first incisive is some- what smaller than the second, and this than the third; they are shaped like blunt wedges, and show a slight groove from before backwards, narrower on the side next to the canine than to the opposite side. The canine, which immediately follows the incisors, is strong, conical, and more hooked than that of the opposite jaw, rounded on its anterior and exterior, and angular at its internal face and exterior edge. A large vacancy separates this tooth from the first false molar, which is broad from before backward, slender from the inner to the outside, with trenchant edges, and having the right angled figure, whose edges are divided by a groove as in the upper jaw. The succeeding false molar does not differ except in being larger and having an addi- tional groove on its posterior edge; both of these teeth are normal. The carnivorous tooth is, like the preceding, compressed from within outwards, having cutting edges; but it is divided into two nearly equal parts by a deep groove in its middle, still more evident on its internal than its external face. In their reciprocal position the incisors are op- posed crown to crown, whence in old animals the grooves of which we have spoken wear away, and as these teeth are alternate, that is, the middle of these teeth in one jaw corresponds with the interval which separates the two opposite incisors, they wear unequally and become pointed instead of remaining 288 GENERAL HISTORY in a straight line. The anterior edge of the upper canine is in relation with the posterior and exterior edge of the lower canine. The superior false mo- lar only fills the void between the canine and the first inferior false molar. The posterior edge of the last named tooth acts against the anterior edge of the opposite false molar; the latter, by its posterior edge, acts upon the internal and anterior face and internal tubercle of the opposite carnivorous tooth. The whole breadth of this tooth is opposed to the external face of the lower carnivorous, which only touches the tuberculous tooth by its basis, or by that part of it which at its posterior part is nearest to the roots. It will be seen by the number, form and disposition of these teeth, that the jaws of the cat are very short, and that the teeth being situated near the power which moves the jaws, they can act with great force, more especially as the points of articulation of the jaws, or condyles, are on a line with the teeth. The cat is absolutely carnivorous, eating nothing but flesh, and preferring much that of animals re- cently killed; they do not eat bones, except such as are not very hard, or when strongly pressed b\ hunger. Nature having destined the animals of this genus to subsist exclusively on the flesh of other creatures, has endowed them with insatiably blood-thirsty dis positions, and furnished them with the most effective means of destruction. Their muscular strength, especially that moving the jaw, is exceedingly great, and gives their keen lacerating teeth, and strong. OF THE CAT. 289 sharp edged, pointed clawrs, terrific efficacy in the infliction of wounds, while their peculiarly flexi- ble bodies and agility of motion enables them to spring with vast force upon their destined victims. They are sly, insidious and ferocious, approaching their prey by stealth or stratagem, and secure it by a sudden bound, or, failing in their first attempt, sneak off as if ashamed, but in reality because they are not well adapted to succeed in running it' down. Most of them climb with great facility, the larger species especially bounding with a few efforts into the tops of lofty trees; all of them (with the ex- ception of one species not found in this country) have their horrid claws entirely concealed in a sheath, and protected from wearing or becoming blunted, unless protruded at the will of the animal when about to strike its prey, or to aid in ascending trees, &c. Few creatures exist which are destitute of pecu- liar beauties, either of adaptation or ornament, and it may appear singular to such as examine but slightly, that nature should have been lavish of adornment to a race of animals so generally injuri- ous and hateful, or that the species most remarkable for invincible ferocity and destructive habits should be most eminently beautiful. From the dread mo- narch of the desert, whose limbs combine every attribute of vigour, and whose tawny mane adds ter- rific grandeur to his aspect of savage defiance, down to the domestic cat, whose smooth glossy fur and demure countenance might induce a belief in her peculiar innocence, we may observe every degree of beauty connected with fine proportions, graceful vol. i.—o o 290 GENERAL HISTORY, &C. forms and agile movements, clothed with skins most richly variegated; an unequivocal evidence that ex- ternal ornament is no test of disposition, and that mere beauty should not persuade us that the pos- sessor is therefore excellent. All these animals are called cruel, and their dis- position to destroy the lives and drink the blood of other creatures growing out of a physical necessity, has been termed cruelty. Such expressions applied to animals are entirely incorrect, because it implies a power of discrimination which we do not believe them to possess. It would be exceedingly cruel in a human being to play with the terrors of an animal about to be put to death, and allow it to make nume- rous fruitless efforts to escape; yet this act is perfectly natural to the cat, and not more cruel than the most ordinary movement, inasmuch as the cat can have no idea of the suffering inflicted. We must not rashly conclude that these animals are an evil unattended by any utility or good. They are designed by nature to occupy regions where animal life is most likely to increase in undue pro- portion, and it is their province to keep this in- crease from becoming excessive. It is in the sultry deserts of Africa and the vast plains of Asia, that the gaunt lion raises his hollow roar, threatening destruction; it is in the jungles of India that the untameable tiger lurks for his prey, and in the dense and remote forests of our own country that the fierce and vindictive cougar utters his startling scream. In all cases their haunts are in the vicinity of numerous herds of animals, whose superabundant increase they are engaged in restraining. They live far retired from the habitations of man, are princi- THE COUGAR. 291 pally solitary and nocturnal, and appear to diminish in direct proportion to the advances of the human race, and the extension of cultivation. Hence we find that nature has not in these animals entailed a curse on mankind, which are so circumstanced, that their number may be diminished and their race even finally extinguished, as their services become less re- quired.* Species I.— The Cougar. {Improperly called Panther.t) Felis Concolor; L. Felis Concolor et discolor,- L. Gmel. Syst. Nat. i. p. 79, Sp. 9-12. Le Cougar; Buff. Quad. vol. 9, tab. 59; Cougar de Pennsylvanie et Cougar Noir; Buff. Supp. 3. p. 41, 42. Pouma; Garcilasso, liv. 8. chap. 18. Gouzara; De Azzara, Quad, du Paraguay, vol. i. p. 133. Felis Concolor et discolor"; Temminck, Monog. de Mam. livrais 4, p. 134. The Cougar is the largest animal of the cat kind found in North America, and has occasionally re- * For the gratification of our leaders, we subjoin a note on this genus in the words of Linne, not only the most learned, but one of the most eloquent naturalists whose writings we possess. " Felis genus sobrium, scandit facile arbores, cursu celer, noctu potissimum speculatur, casu delabitur in pedes contu- sioni vix obnoxium; glans penis, ipsis muricatus retrorsum; retractis unguibus acutissimis incedunt, iisque saeviuntj in- hiando sanguinem hauriunt; visa praeda caudam movent; ve- getabilibus ultro non vescunt." t There is a great deal of confusion in the books relative to the true panther, which Temminck has decided to be the 292 THE COUGAH. ceived the name of American lion, from the simi larity of its proportions and colour to the lion of the old world. It is very little inferior in size, and not at all in the qualities of magnanimity, clemency, and generosity which have been so lavishly yet so falsely attributed to the " king of beasts," whom we might believe to have been distinguished as royal in derision of some of the human species, who des- potically rule over their fellow creatures by virtue of the " right divine" of power.* The cougar Felis Pa.rd.us of Linne. The name employed by our coun- try people generally, is " Painter," evidently a corruption of Panther. We have deemed it advisable to use the term cougar for a trivial name, to avoid the confusion which would be occasioned by that of panther, more especially as the for- mer is more generally known and used than that of puma, applied by some European naturalists to this animal. * The " lordly lion" conceals himself near the places where deer and other animals come to drink, and springs upon them from his ambush, like the veriest tom-cat; having feeble sight, and being unfit for the chase, he follows the wild dogs and chacals, which run down buffaloes, antelopes, &c. and when they have succeeded, drives them off and gorges to repletion: as he relinquishes the carcass when satiated he is called generous; as he does not attack and devour men—when not hungry, he is considered magnanimous; he retires slowly, facing his enemies, being unable to run with speed, and is celebrated for his noble spirit, and as he does not kill the wild dogs and other small animals be- cause—it is not in his power to catch them, he is then called clement; while in virtue of his great strength, dreadful claws, horrid teeth and awful roar, he is considered as altogether royal. Yet this king of quadrupeds has not half the moral excellence of a poodle dog, nor a thousandth part of the dignity of character possessed by the elephant. He is, THE COUGAR. 293 may be stated to be about one-third less in size than the lion, and has no mane nor tuft at the extremity of the tail, which is about half the length of the body and head. The skin of this animal is clothed with a soft and close hair over the limbs and body, of a brownish yellow colour, or a mixture of red and blackish, with occasional patches of a rather deep reddish tint, which are only remarkable in certain lights, and disappear entirely with the advancing age of the individual. A dark red is spread over all the upper parts, produced by the tips of the hair, which is black at base, and this colour is deeper upon the back, the head and upper part of the tail, than upon the sides. The belly is pale red; the breast, inside of the thighs and legs, are of a reddish white, and the lower jaw and throat entirely white. The ear is whitish internally and black externally, with the exception of the small external lobule, which is red- dish gray. The head has a great many gray hairs upon it; the whiskers are white and rise in a black- ish space; the end of the tail is black. The round spots varying in size, are more or less distinct ac- cording to the age of the individual, and are found in greatest number on the thighs, where they are not moreover, no match for the great tiger of Asia, which, in ferocity, savage daring, audacious destructiveness, uncon- querable and inappeasable hatred to mankind, is infinitely more royal, and a more consistent emblem of a great num- ber of human kings who have aided in various ages and countries to retard the progress of improvement and the march of mind. 294 THE COUGAR. so close together. The sexes are not distinguishable by the colour of the pelage.* The cougar was at an early period distributed in considerable number over the whole of the warm and temperate regions of this continent, and is still found, though by no means abundantly, in the south- ern, middle and north-western parts of the Union, becoming, however, gradually more rare as the popu- lation increases and cultivation is extended. It is a savage and destructive animal, yet timid and cau- tious: in ferocity it is quite equal to most of its kin- dred species, and kills numbers of small animals for the sake of drinking their blood, and when pressed by hunger attacks large quadrupeds, though not al- ways with success. When the cougar seizes a sheep or calf, it is by the throat, and then flinging the vic- tim over its back it dashes off with great ease and celerity to devour at leisure; deer, hogs, sheep and calves, are destroyed by the cougar whenever they are within reach, and occasionally one or two of these animals have committed extensive ravages among the stock of the frontier settlers. They climb or rather spring up large trees with surprising facility and vigour, and in that way are enabled, by dropping * We have chosen to draw up this description from the excellent monography of Temminck, on account of the ad- mirable opportunities he has enjoyed and profited by, of visiting all the rich collections of Europe, especially of Paris, where there is a full series of cougars preserved in the mu- seum. In this city there are very few specimens, and of these a still smaller number fit to furnish materials for a de- scription^ extensive application. THE COUGAR. 295 suddenly upon deer and other quadrupeds, to secure prey which it would be impossible for them to overtake. In the day time the cougar is seldom seen, but its peculiar cry frequently thrills the experienced tra- veller with horror, while camping in the forest at night, or he is startled to hear the cautious ap- proaches of the animal, stealing step by step to- wards him over the crackling brush and leaves, in expectation of springing on an unguarded or sleep- ing victim, whom nothing but a rapid flight can save. That the cougar will attack animals of large size and great strength is well known to those who have resided where this beast is found, in proof of which we may here insert a letter received from a scientific friend, who, during twenty-five or thirty years, has resided in the state of Ohio, and made the study of natural history his chief amusement. Lexington, Ky. March 26, 1826. Dear Friend,—About the first of December, 1819, I visited Shane's prairie with the view of procuring specimens of every quadruped to be ob- tained in that district of country. I made early inquiry of Shane* as to what animals might be * " We travelled for twelve miles,over a swampy country through which the St. Mary flows, after which we struck a dry plain, known by the name of Shane's prairie, and at eighteen miles from Fort St. Mary, we crossed the river at a settlement called Shaneville; both the prairie and the settlement, (which consists of but one family) owe their ap pellation to an interpreter, who is a half bred Indian; his 296 THE COUGAR. collected, and whether it was possible a cougar could be found. On the subject of the cougar he expressed some doubt, but believed that one was still lurking somewhere between Shane's crossing of St. Mary's river and Fort Wayne. This individual, he was of opinion, was the only one which for many years past had resided within his vicinity. He related various anecdotes of the alarm caused to travellers by this animal, especially at the twelve mile swamp, then a common camping ground on the Fort Wayne road. The following is the most interesting: About the close of the late war, a merchant of Piqua named Herse, received a considerable sum of money in small bills, which made it appear of still greater magnitude to several suspicious looking persons who were present when it was received. Mr. Herse being unarmed, was apprehensive that an attempt would be made to rob him at the camping ground, and expressed his apprehensions to a single father was a Canadian and his motlier an Ottawa. He was employed as an interpreter and spy by General Harrison during his western campaigns, and is considered as having acquitted himself ol his duties faithfully; on the conclusion of the war he was rewarded by the grant of half a section of land, (320 acres) which he has divided into town lots; he resides within a short distance of Shancsville on part of his grant. No man is better known in this part of the coun- try than Shane; his influence among the Indians is great, and he enjoys a high degree of popularity among the whites, founded upon the uniformly good character which he m m- tained during the war, and upon the unbounded confidence reposed in him, by General Harrison.—Long's Expedition to the Source of St. Peters' River. By W. H. Keating, A. M. vol. i. p. 76. THE COUGAR. 297 fellow traveller who was also unprovided with arms. In consequence, they resolved not to go to the camp- ing ground, but to pass the night in the woods with- out fire; there, turning their horses loose, they lay down in their blankets on the leaves. In the night they were aroused by hearing the horses snort, as they are apt to do on the approach of Indians, and shortly after they were heard to make several bounds through the woods, as if some one had un- successfully attempted to catch them. After some time had elapsed they both distinctly heard what they supposed to be a man crawling towards them on his hands and feet, as they could hear first one hand cautiously extended and pressed very gently on the leaves, to avoid making a noise, then the other, and finally the other limbs in like manner and with equal care. When they believed that this felonious visitor was within about ten feet of them, they touched each other, sprang up simultaneously, and rushed to some distance through the woods, where they crouched and remained without further disturbance. A short time after they heard the horses snorting and bounding furiously through the woods, but they did not venture to arise until broad day-light, being still ignorant of the character of their enemy. When sufficiently light to see, by climbing a sap- ling they discovered the horses at a considerable distance on the prairie. On approaching them it was at once evident that their disturber had been nothing less than a cougar. It had sprung upon the horses, and so lacerated with its. claws and teeth their flanks and buttocks, that with the greatest dif- ficulty were they able to drive the poor creatures VOL. i.—p p 298 THE COUGAR. 4 before them to Shane's. Several other instances of annoyance to travellers had happened at the same place, and Shane believed by the same cougar. I now offered, through Shane, a reward often dol- lars to any of the Indians who would bring in this animal, and a few evenings after, on returning from a day's hunting, I found an Indian waiting with the body of the cougar, which he had killed about two hours before. This Indian found its track about fourteen miles from Shane's, and tracked it to within about two miles of Shane's house, where he was on the point of abandoning the chase. At this moment he heard the bushes rustle, and turning he saw the beast, which had sprung against the body of a tree to observe its pursuer. He instantly fired, and shot him through the heart, as I found on dissecting the animal. The Indian dragged the body about a quar- ter of a mile on the snow, but finding it too heavy, came to Shane's and obtained a sledge, on which he brought it in. The following measurements were made by my- self on the spot:—Length from the tip of the nose to the root of the tail, 4 feet 5 inches.—Length of the tail, 2 feet 4 inches.—Height before and behind, (toes extended) 2 feet 7 inches.—Circumference im- mediately before the fore legs, 2 feet 7 inches.— Around the body just before the hind legs, 2 feet 6 inches.—Of the neck, close to the head, 1 foot 5 inches.—Of the wrist, 7\ inches.—Length of the fore leg to the body, 11 \ inches.—Of the hind leg in the same way, 20 inches.—Of the head, just be- fore the ears, 20| inches.—The eyes were brown. ROBERT BEST, M. D. THE COUGAR. 299 This fine specimen was carefully prepared, and is now in the Western Museum at Cincinnati, Ohio. We have been furnished with a drawing of this animal from the pencil of Mr. C. Corwine, a respectable and promising artist, resident in that city, through the kindness of Daniel Drake, M. D. a gentleman who is not less distinguished by his profound ac- quaintance with his profession, than for the zeal and liberality with which he devotes himself to the ad- vancement of natural science. In the remote and thinly settled parts of Penn- sylvania the cougar is still occasionally found, and the following relation of the manner in which two of these animals were recently killed, will be read with interest from the singularity of the attendant cir- cumstances. We have the account through our friend Isaac Hays, M. D. direct from Mr. John Mitchell, the respectable gentleman who killed them, and presented their skins and heads to the Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences. About five miles from Philipsburg, Centre County, Mr. Mitchell, on the 8th of December, 1825, shot at a buck {Cervus Virginianus) and wounded him in the shoulder. He followed the animal for some time, and at length perceived him at the distance of about forty yards, lying with his heels upwards, and a cougar holding him by the throat. The hunter discharged his rifle at the cougar and shot him through the heart, when this animal relinquished the buck, advanced four or five yards, and fell life- less. Having again charged his rifle, and believing the panther to be dead, Mr. Mitchell, turning to- 300 lHE COUGAR. wards the wounded buck, was surprised to see an- other cougar in the act of pulling down the head, and as it now appeared, the buck had been held down by the throat by both cougars at the moment the first was killed. The body of the buck was be- tween the hunter and the second cougar, nothing but the head of which was visible. At this Mr. Mitchell levelled his rifle, and the ball entered it at the angle of the eye. The beast remained still for a few minutes, and then, for the first time, relinquished his hold of the buck and walked over it towards the hunter, who fired his rifle a second time and shot him through in the neighbourhood of the heart. At this moment the buck recovered his legs, stumbled over the body of the cougar, finally extricated himself, and ran off. A third discharge of the rifle pierced the cougar with another ball, yet he still remained on his feet, and it was not until the rifle was again charged and a fourth ball driven through the back part of the under jaw, that the animal fell and expired. What is most singular, is that the male should not have relinquished his hold of the buck when the female was killed, but continued in the same position until the ball entered his own head near the eye.* The buck ran near a mile before * " Major Smith witnessed an extraordinary instance of the abstracted ferocity of this animal, when engaged with its food. A puma [cougar] which had been taken and con- fined, was ordered to be shot, which was done immediately after the animal had received its food. The first ball went through its body, and the only notice he took of it was by THE COUGAR. 301 he was finally overtaken and killed. During his walk home, loaded with the trophies of his success, Mr. Mitchell killed another buck, having, during an absence of four days, killed two cougars and four bucks. The following account of the destruction of a large cougar, which is still preserved in the New York Mu- seum, was given by the late Mr. Scudder. Two hun- ters, accompanied by two dogs, went out in quest of game near the Kaatskill mountains. At the foot of a large hill, they agreed to go round it in opposite directions, and when either discharged his rifle the other was to hasten towards him to aid in securing the game. Soon after parting, the report of a rifle was heard by one of them, who, hastening towards the spot, after some search, found nothing but the dog, dreadfully lacerated and dead. He now be- came much alarmed for the fate of his companion, and while anxiously looking around, was horror struck by the harsh growl of a cougar, which he perceived on a large limb of a tree, crouching upon the body of his friend, and apparently meditating an attack on himself. Instantly he levelled his rifle at the beast, and was so fortunate as to wound it mortally, when it fell to the ground along with the body of his slaugh- tered companion. His dog then rushed upon the wounded cougar, which with one blow of its paw laid the poor animal dead by its side. The surviving a shrill growl, doubling his efforts to devour his food, which he actually continued to swallow with quantities of his own blood till he fe\\."—Griffith's Translation of Cuvier, p. 438. 302 THE NORTHERN LYNX. hunter now left the spot, and quickly returned with several other persons, when they found the lifeless cougar extended near the dead bodies of the hunter and the faithful dogs.* Species II.—The JYorthern Lynx. Felis Canadensis; Geoff. Felis Lynx.- L. Syst. Nat. p. 83. Le Lynx du Canada.- Bcff. Hist. Nat. Suppl. iii. p. 44. Lynx du Canada: C. Ossem. Fossiles, Nouv. ed. iv. p. 443. Gatto Lince.- Ranza.ni, ii. p. 309. sp. 8. Felis Canadensis: Geoff. Catal. des Mammif. p. 120. Felis Canadensis: Sabine, Zool. App. to Franklin's Exped. p. 659. Felts Borealis: Temminck, Monog. de Mammal, livr. 4e. p. 111. [Loup-Cervier; Lynx de Suede of the Furriers.] The researches of the justly distinguished Tem- minck have reduced the catalogue of lynxes or wild cats inhabiting North America to two species, of which one is common to both continents, and one proper to the American. The species now to be de- scribed is found only in the northern regions of both continents. * These incidents may remind many of our readers of the spirited and highly interesting account given in Cooper's " Pioneers of the Susquehanna,'"' of a combat between a fe- male cougar and a mastiff, which may be referred to with pleasure and advantage, on account of its verisimilitude; a merit by no means common in such works, and more especi- ally in relation to American animals. Nothing can well be productive of deeper disgust to one who has any knowledge of natural history, than the inappropriate and ridiculous re- X \ THE NORTHERN LYNX. 303 The northern lynx* is a fierce and subtle creature, exhibiting most of the traits of character which dis- tinguish animals of the cat kind. To the smaller quadrupeds, such as rabbits, hares, lemmings, &c. it is exceedingly destructive, never leaving the vi- cinities they frequent until their numbers are alto- gether destroyed, or exceedingly thinned. But the ravages of the northern lynx are not con- fined to such small game; it drops from the branches of trees on the necks of deer, and clinging firmly with its sharp hooked claws, ceases not to tear at the throat and drink the blood of the animal until it sinks exhausted and expires. It attacks sheep and calves in the same manner, and preys upon wild turkies and other birds, which it is capable of sur- prising, even on the tops of the highest trees. The northern lynx is found in great abundance in the country south-west of the Hudson's Bay settle- ments, but it is scarce to the north of Churchill ri- ver. Large packages of the skins of this species are exported by the Hudson's Bay company to Eu- rope annually; in one year nine thousand were sent. The fur is highly esteemed by the dealers in peltry. The northern lynx is fearful of man, offers very little resistance when attacked, and is easily killed by a smart blow over the back. This animal is lations of the habits and appearance of animals frequently introduced into popular books; when given correctly or con- sistently with the true character of the animals, references to nature always impart pleasure, and add to the durability of the work they are intended to adorn. * The description of the Felis Rufa, bay lynx, or wild cat, will be given in the appendix. 304 lllli NORTHERN LYNX. not often found to approach closely to the Euro- pean settlements, but frequents the plains and woods where the animals on which it subsists are obtained in greatest abundance. The flesh of this lynx is con- sidered good food by hunters, being fat, white, and flavoured like the hare, on which it principally feeds. The northern lynx has a large body and strong legs, and measures about three feet from the tip of its nose to the end of its tail, which is about six or seven inches long, and black for half its length towards the extremity. The head is thick and round, and the ears sharp and tipped with a tuft of black hair. There are four or five small undulating bands on the cheeks, and the labial whiskers are white. The animal is about sixteen inches high. The general colour of the northern lynx is deep reddish, marked on the flanks with small oblong spots of a reddish brown, With small round spots of the same colour on the limbs. The ears are black ex- ternally, but covered by an angular space of shining ash colour; the eyes are surrounded by a whitish circle to a black longitudinal mark above them, run- ning from each side towards the front. The back is never marked by a black band along its middle. In summer dress the pelage is short, the hair being brown at the base and of a bright red at the point. In winter the hairs are longer and all their points are whitish; the silky hairs, which are most numer- ous and long in winter, render the colour of the animal ash or whitish, which in summer gives place to the more decided red, marked with brown spots. " * Temminck, Monog. de Mammal, livr. 4e. p. 111. CHAPTER XVI. Family IV.—Carnivora Amphibia; Amphibious Flesh-Eaters. The peculiarities of conformation observable in these animals clearly demonstrate that they are des- tined to pass the greater part of their lives in the water. Their bodies are elongated, tapering from the anterior part of the chest to the posterior ex- tremities, very flexible and powerfully muscular. The members are so modified as to be enclosed by the skin of the body, allowing only their flexible extremities to project; the hind legs presenting backwards, and placed in such a manner as to cor- respond to the tail of a fish, both in use and posi- tion. The heads of these animals are either entire- ly destitute of projecting ears, and have a small slit, which is closed by muscular action to prevent the entrance of water, or they have very small triangu- lar ears, little more than perceptible. The nostrils are provided with a peculiar muscular apparatus, by wThich their orifices are perfectly closed at the will of the animal, effectually excluding water from the lungs during submersion. Their power of swim- ming is still further augmented by their coat of close smooth hair, which uniformly has the points present- ing towards the posterior extremities. The feet are very imperfectly adapted for walking. vol. l.—q q 306 general history Genus XVII. Seal; Phoca, C. Gr. Qo*i. Den. Soelhund, Socl Ger Robbe; Seehund. Swed. Sjal. Fr. Veau Marin, Phoque. Hal. Foca. Dutch, Rob; Zeehond. GENERIC CHARACTERS. The seals, like other mammiferous animals, are provided with four limbs, yet nothing but their ex- tremities appear externally, being closely covered up by the integument of the trunk of the body, the fore limbs to the wrist, the hinder to the heel. The digits of the fore feet are successively shorter from the thumb, which is the longest. The pos- terior feet have the lateral digits either longer than the intermediate, or the whole nearly of an equal length. On the upper lip are strong erectile whis- kers; the tongue is smooth and bifid at tip. The stomach is simple, the ccecum short, the digestive tube long and nearly equal in size. The nose is closed by the action of muscles at the extremity of the nostrils. The heart is formed in all respects analogous to terrestrial warm blooded animals, but their blood is very black and abundant. They have a large venous sinus in their liver, which (Cuvier thinks) may aid them in diving, by rendering res- piration less necessary to the circulation of their blood. Dental System. We have seen, in describing the dental systems of insectivorous and carnivorous animals, what strong resemblance exists between the molars of the former OF THE SEAL. 307 and the tuberculous molars of the latter, being alike in their forms and destinations, composed of the same tubercles, and arranged according to the same relations, but only a little more obtuse in the car- nivorous than in the insectivorous animal, and in all better suited for crushing than cutting. We shall now see in the seals of our first division all the molars assume the form of the regular false molars, varying in their degree of slenderness and trenchant character, with deeper or more numerous serrations on their edges, and having several roots; and in those of the second division, we shall find them take in thickening a more or less conical form, which seems so much the more to make the transition from these teeth to those of some cetaceous animals, as each of them appears to have but a sin- gle root. These are the only two general forms under which we find the molars of seals; but the divisions they characterize, and which may be considered as sub- orders or families, are divided into several groups by other considerations, and among these by the in- cisive teeth, which differ in number in different species. In this respect the seals, having teeth with several roots, form three divisions: 1st, those having six superior and four inferior incisors, among which we find the common seal:—2nd, with four superior and four inferior, (as in the P. Monachus):—3d, hav- ing four superior and two inferior, (the only exam- ple of which is the P. Mitrata.*) * Sent from New York to Paris, and thus named by Mr. Milbert. 308 GENERAL HISTORY Seals having several Roots to their Teeth. C f 6 Incisive j~ J 18 Upper < 2 Canine g J (.10 Molar. Hi f 4 Incisive ^| 16 Lower < 2 Canine w ^ (.10 Molar. In the upper jaw the first incisor is rather smaller than the second, and that, half the size of the third; all are hooked, terminating in a point re- sembling canine teeth in form, especially the last one. The canine follows after a vacant space; it is strong, uniformly rounded, except on its inner sur- face, where there are slight longitudinal ribs, sepa- rated at the base and united at their points. The first molar, situated at the base of the canine, is one- half smaller than the others, rounded, terminated by a point, around which are placed some other very small points irregularly disposed. The four which follow and resemble each other have the forms of false molars, but their posterior cutting edge is separated by two grooves into two serrations, the first very deep and the second slighter. These grooves are not so distinctly marked upon the last of these teeth. In the lower jaw the first incisor is much smaller than the second, and they both partake slightly of the canine form. The canines resemble those of the other jaw, as do the molars, except that there are one or two grooves, and by conse- quence one or two serrations on the anterior cutting edge of those in the lower jaw. of the seal. 309 In their reciprocal position the incisors and canine teeth of both jaws have the same relations as in the carnivorous animals, and the molars also resem- ble, in this respect, the false molars of these quadru- peds. They are alternate, and- do not pass each other so as to cut like scissor-blades, but the tren- chant surfaces of the opposite teeth are applied im- mediately against each other, dividing the food by direct compression. The common seal {Phoca Vitulina) furnished Mr. F. Cuvier with this type of dentition. A comparatively short time has elapsed sirice the animals of this genus served as fruitful themes to de- claiming theorists, and gave ample scope to their in- genuity in explaining the supposed relations' exist- ing between them and other parts of the animal kingdom. From the ponderous volumes of Aldro- vandus and Gesner, down to the fascinating eloquence of the inaccurate Buffon, these beings have been con- sidered as a sort of anomaly, bearing the same relation to fish as that in which the bat was supposed to stand to birds; they have been invested by ignorant observers with various imaginary attributes, which have been frequently perpetuated through the heedlessness and prejudices of the learned. Happily for us, the ab- surdities involving this part of our subject have gradually and finally disappeared before the increas- ing light of science, leaving no food for wondering credulity, but developing innumerable objects for enlightened admiration, in the study of the beauti- 310 GENERAL HISTORY ful modifications of structure by which the great Au thor of nature has enabled breathing and warm blood- ed quadrupeds to dwell in " the vasty deep" with- out in the slightest degree depriving them of the intelligence or other characteristics of their order. The natural history of the seal has been known during a great lapse of time, and what is more sin- gular, is as correctly given by Aristotle as by Buf- fon, with all his advantages. This difference may be readily accounted for by observing that Aristotle states the facts which he had ascertained, without endeavouring to suit them to any preconceived opi- nion. De Buffon, believing in the absurd notion that animals capable of living for a considerable time under water had an opening between the right and left auricles of the heart, insists upon the existence of such a communication in the seal, even in oppo- sition to positive demonstration. The prejudicial influence of error, when favoured by great men, is very clearly seen in the instance of the French natu- ralist, for the mere expression of his opinion was sufficient to induce M. La Verniere, who had dissect- ed a seal and disproved the existence of the opening in the heart, to discredit the testimony of his own senses,* a degree of complaisance which we may hope will meet with few imitators at the present day. * Je ne sais si le changement d'habitudes que cet animal avoit contractees auroit pu former une membrane de cette structure; mais?7?ne suffit, monsieur, que vous en affirmiez la possibility, pour etre de votre sentiment "—-Rep. de M. de la Verniere; Buff. 34. p. 47. OF THE SEAL. 311 Seals are found on tlie sea coasts throughout the world in various degrees of abundance, and some species are peculiar to certain latitudes. They are most numerous very far to the north, where they al- most exclusively furnish the Eskimaux resident in those chill regions with food, clothing, and imple- ments made from their bones, &c. Seals are viviparous, bringing forth and suckling their young on land; they are polygamous and gre- garious, living in large families together, and exhib- iting curious traits of character which will be de- scribed when treating of the species. They swim with admirable facility, remain for a considerable time under water, and derive their food entirely from the sea. They are very fond of sunning them- selves upon the sea-beach or on ice-banks, scram- bling upon them by aid of their flippers or fore feet. On land their movements are awkward and heavy, but not so slow as we might suppose from their ap- pearance: to this motion of the seal the term " wal- loping" has been aptly applied. They are vigilant, intelligent, and tenacious of life. It was from imper- fectly made observations on these animals, that the ancient fictions of sea-nymphs, mermaids, sirens and tritons were founded.* K We subjoin a translation of Aristotle's account of the seal, that the reader may judge of the accuracy of this verj ancient and truly illustrious naturalist, who flourished up- wards of three hundred years before the christian era. The parts of his statement which are incorrect or doubtful are italicised. "The seal is an amphibious animal j it does not inhale 312 GENERAL HISTORY, &C. De Buffon proposed to divide this genus into two parts or subgenera, founded on a character which to him appeared very striking and natural, the absence or presence of external ears.* This division was subsequently adopted by Pekon, who formed his subgenera phoca and otaria for the reception of the species thus distinguished. The same arrangement is followed by Cuvier and Mr. Desmarest, but is rejected by Frederick Cuvier for the following rea- sons:—He thinks there is nothing sufficiently absolute in this character, and that the common seal, which is considered to belong to phoca and not to otaria, water, but on the contrary breathes the air; sleeps and brings forth its young on land as if it were a terrestrial ani- mal, but couples on the margin of the sea.» It passes the greater part of its life in the water, and there obtains its food; absolutely viviparous internally and externally, the female bringing forth living animals enveloped in a chorion; she has milk like a sheep. The young are one, two, or at most three in number. The teats are two in number, which the young suck like other quadrupeds. The seal brings forth like the human race at all seasons of the year; nevertheless most frequently in the season when the kids are dropped. When the young are about eleven days old the mother leads them several times a day to the sea, to accustom them gradu- ally thereto; but as their feet are not yet able to sustain them, they allow themselves to slide along without walking. The seal can easily draw up its body and double it on itself,1' because it is fleshy, supple, and the bones are cartilaginous. Its great quantity of flesh renders it difficult to kill, if it be not struck on the side of the head.t Its voice resembles that of the bull. * Buffon, par Sonnini, torn. 34e. p. 3. * This is entirely true of the neck of the seal. t "Av p.* t»s" -rxTctfy Trctpee, ran xpc-Tctp»y." Ke^. F 7 THE COMMON SEAL. 313 has nevertheless a perfectly formed though a very small external ear. According to his views, the character drawn from the incisor teeth, first employ- ed by Mr. Blainville for the divisions of an inferior order, is preferable to that commonly adopted, after Buffon and Peron.* Species I.— The Common Seal. Phoca Vitulina; L. Vitulus Oceani: Rond. 453. Kassigiak: Crantz, Hist, of Greenland, i. 123. Le Phoque Commun: Buff. p. 34. Our impressions relative to this animal will be very opposite, according as we see it for the first * " Sans examiner la valeur physiologique de ce caractere, ie ferai seulement remarquer qu'il n'a rien d'assez absolu, et que le phoque commun qui est considere comme un phoque et non point comme un otarie, a une conque externe tres petite il est vrai, mais tres nettement formee. Quoiqu'il en soit cette division a generalement ete suivie, et les der- niers travaux des zoologistes la reproduisent. Le point de vue sous lequel j'envisage les phoques, ne me permet pasde m'y conformer; je crois meme que les caracteres pris des incisives, et que M. Blainville a le premier employe pour les divisions d'un ordre inferieur, est preferable a celui qui est tire de l'oreille, quoiqu'il ne produise point encore de reu- nions naturelles d'especes comme nous aurons occasion de le faire remarquer. Ce sont done les divisions formees par les dents que je suivrai dans les details ou je vais entrer." —Des Dents Des Mammif. p. 117. vol. I.—R r 314 THE COMMON SEAL. time upon the land or in the water. Viewed while basking on shore, its peculiar form and seeming helplessness lead us to misjudge its strength and ac- tivity, while its motions are so clumsy and awkward that it excites a degree of compassion for its appa- rent deformity and imperfection. But, beheld in that fluid to w^iich every peculiarity of its confor- mation is so admirably adapted, we relinquish all ideas of its imperfectness, with surprise that we could for a moment have indulged in them. Its coun tenance enlivened by large, dark, and lustrous eyes, which vigilantly regard surrounding objects, is re- markably expressive of intelligence. All its actions indicate the exertion of great strength, which is every moment displayed in movements of most graceful activity, whether while surmounting with head erect the foaming crests of the billow, and cleaving the waves with wonderful swiftness in chase of the finny tenants of the deep, wheeling in easy circles by gentle flexures of the body while sporting with its frolicsome companions, or diving profoundly to elude the pursuit of an eager enemy. The common seal frequents the sea-coasts perhaps throughout the world, but is most numerous in high northern latitudes, and furnishes the inhabitants of those frigid regions with nearly all their necessaries and luxuries. In such situations, the Eskimaux are denied the opportunity of deriving their subsistence from animals which depend upon the vegetable king- dom for nutriment, but to compensate for this dis- advantage, the seas which wash their ice-bound shores are thronged with seals and walruses, supply- ing to them the place of flocks and herds, without THE COMMON SEAL. 315 requiring from those fed and clothed by them any provision for their maintenance. This seal has a round head, which at the fore part bears considerable resemblance to that of an otter, though the whole aspect is not unlike that of some varieties of the dog, whence the name of sea-dog, sea- wolf, &c. has been applied to different species of seal. The extremity of the snout or muzzle is flat and broad; the posterior part of the head is very large and without bony projections; the upper lip is peculiar, moveable and extensible, garnished with long, une- qually thick, strong whiskers, which are capable of being erected, or thrown forward by the action of a peculiar muscle. The seal has no external ear, but instead of it a very small tubercle on the anterior edge of the opening to the tympanum, which is placed considerably posterior to the orifice. Over the eyes, which are much nearer to the ears than the nose, there are seven or eight bristles similar to the whiskers, but smaller. The fore limbs are short, and the feet have five digits, joined together by a membrane, having thick, long, black nails project- ing from their extremities: these nails are longer on the hind than they are on the fore feet. The general colour of the seal is of a yellowish gray, varied or spotted with brown or blackish in different degrees, according to the age of the animal. On the head and back the colour is generally darkest, while on the flanks and belly it is pale. In advanced age the colour is generally whiter. The hair in this species differs remarkably from what we find in others, being close and not presenting entirely back- 316 THE COMMON SEAL. ward. The hairs are individually stiff, harsh, flat and pointed, yet slender, dry and shining; they are blackish brown until near the point, and then yel- lowish gray. From the organization of the common seal, as well as on account of the medium in which the greater part of its life is spent, we should not be induced to believe that any of its senses are remarkably acute. Its powers of vision appear to be considera- ble, though it sees much better in a moderate than in a strong light; its sense of smelling cannot be ex- ercised to much advantage while the animal is under water, as at that time the nostrils are perfectly closed by muscular action. From the manner in which the whole external surface excepting the end of the nose is covered with hair, the sense of touch would appear to be slight, and the small size of the ears, as well as the. manner in which they are gene- rally immersed, lead to a belief that this sense also is not very acute. Notwithstanding all these apparent defects, the seal is susceptible of a remarkable degree of educa- tion, learns to distinguish his feeder, to perform va- rious actions when commanded, both in the water and on land, and acquires fondness enough for the society of domestic animals kept with him to attempt follow- ing them, in spite of his awkward and disadvantage- ous movements. The brain of the seal is very large, when compared with that of various other quadrupeds of less remarkable intelligence, and it is fair to infer that to this circumstance its intellectual superiority is attributable. THE COMMON SEAL. 317 The manner in which the seal feeds is very inter- esting; when fish are thrown into a tub where seve- ral of these animals are kept together, they eagerly spring to a considerable distance in the air, raising half their bodies out of water and elongating their necks to the utmost. In most instances the fish is swallowed directly, without the slightest chewing, the swallowing being facilitated by the elevation of the head and straightening of the neck. If the fish be caught by the tail, it is immediately disabled by being crushed between the teeth, and is then turned head foremost and swallowed without chewing. When a fish too broad to be thus bolted is given, then the seal chews it, rather with a view of compressing it sufiiciently to allow of its passage into the stomach than for the purpose of comminution. While en- gaged in feeding, the aspect of the seal is very dif- ferent from what it is when the animal is quiescent. The upper lip is thickened and projected forwards, the bristles or whiskers fiercely erected, and the nos- trils dilated and closed with force. They also feed while under water and swallow with as much ease as in the air, but in a different manner. Under wa- ter it opens the mouth but partially, and lowers the under jaw, while it separates the lips at the extre- mity, apparently drawing in the prey by suction. It is not yet ascertained in what manner the animal avoids the ingurgitation of water at the moment of thus swallowing. In a state of captivity the seal expresses little or nothing of fearfulness, and does not avoid either man or animals, except when very closely approach- ed. They are not inclined to bite or injure persons 318 'THE COMMON SEAL. examining them, so long as no attempt is made to touch them with the hand, or otherwise disturb them, but if thus annoyed they snap fiercely, and also strike with their flippers or fore feet. Their characteristic vigilance never appear to forsake them a moment. Three of these animals, two adults and one nearly full grown, were exhibited in this city last season, in a large box or tub containing water. Though they appeared to be very sleepy at times, and unwilling to be disturbed, yet every half mi- nute the eyes were slowly opened, and it was almost impossible to succeed in touching them without their being first alarmed. These were caught in a bay on the coast of Massachusetts, by aid of a net; when first captured they fought desperately, and were with great difficulty secured. After being a few months in captivity they became quite harmless, and the younger one learned to perform several tricks, placing himself in different attitudes at the com- mand of the keeper. They all died during the winter, in consequence of too much exposure to cold, in a small quantity of nearly fresh water, to- gether with a suspension of all their natural habits. One of these animals occasionally made a noise re- sembling the loud snorting of a horse, and all of them were in the habit of drawing the head under water every few minutes, as if to moisten the eyes. Frederick Cuvier has published, in his splendid work on mammiferous animals, some very interest- ing observations on two young seals kept in the menagerie at Paris, from which we shall here intro- duce a sketch. These individuals showed no fear in the presence of men or other animals, never at- THE COMMON SEAL. 319 tempting to escape or withdraw themselves, unless to avoid being trodden on, and then merely remov- ing to a short distance. One of them would occa- sionally threaten with its voice and strike with its paw, but would never bite unless extremely pro- voked. They were very voracious, yet showed no ill temper when their food was taken from them, and some young dogs, to which one of the seals was at- tached, would snatch the fish from his mouth just as he was about to swallow it, without the seal showing any sign of anger. When both the seals were suf- fered to eat together, they usually fought with their paws, and the strongest drove the other away. One of these seals was at first very shy, and re- treated when any one attempted to caress him, yet in a few days he became quite tame and confident of the kindness of those who approached him.— When shut up with two little dogs that used to mount upon his back and playfully bark and bite at him, he soon entered into the spirit of their actions, and took pleasure in their frolics, striking them gently with his paw rather to encourage than repress them. When the dogs ran off he would follow them, though the ground was covered with stones and mud. Dur- ing cold weather he would lie in close company with the dogs for the sake of their mutual warmth. The other seal evinced a strong degree of attachment to the keeper, recognising him at a considerable dis- tance, and using many expressive gestures and looks to solicit his attention and obtain food, the idea of which was no doubt associated with the presence of the keeper. These seals barked commonly in the 320 THE COMMON SEAL. evening, or on a change of weather, though with a much feebler voice than that of the dog; their an- ger was exhibited by a kind of hissing noise.* The common seal brings forth two young in au- tumn, and suckles them on shore until they are six or seven weeks old, when they are gradually ac- customed by their parents to frequent the sea. At this period they are generally of a whitish or light fawn colour, covered with soft or woolly hair, and when in distress or hurt have a sort of whining voice. Seals are mostly associated in families con- sisting of a few males and a large number of fe- males and young ones.f They are fond of landing on the sea-beach, ledges of rocks or ice-banks, for the purpose of basking in the sun, and in fine weather prefer being on the ice to remaining in the water; * " A young seal, which was given by the master of a whaler to the officers of the Alexander, one of the ships on the former voyage, became so entirely domesticated and at- tached to the ship that it was frequently put into the sea and suffered to swim at perfect liberty, and when tired would return of itself to the boats and betaken in."—Sabine, p. 191. t The principal part of the materials used in preparing the rest of our account of the seals and walrus is obtained from the valuable writings of Crantz, Scoresby, Parry and Lyon. A very considerable number of other respectable authorities have been carefully examined, and their observations com- pared, with a view of correcting and enlarging the natural history of these useful and interesting animals. Much still remains to be desired to render this account complete; yet we may be allowed to hope that the reader will find a more am- ple collection of facts in the present instance than has yet been presented at any one view. THE COMMON SEAL. 321 sometimes indeed they are very averse to take to the water when they have been out of it long enough to become perfectly dry. When on their passage from one place to another they swim in very large flocks or shoals, and become visible to the mariner every few minutes, as they are obliged to come to the surface to breathe; this is generally done by the whole company nearly at the same time, when they spring up so as to raise their heads, necks, and even their whole bodies, out of the water. From the peculiar vivacity of their move- ments and general sportiveness of the company, such a shoal of these animals has obtained from the sailors the designation of a " seal's wredding." The seal is peculiarly vigilant, and whenever a herd of them visit the shore some are always on the look out, and a seal when alone is observed very frequently to raise its head for the purpose of dis- covering the approach of enemies. Should they be on a large field of ice, they are always careful to secure a retreat by lying near the edge of it, or keeping a hole in the ice always open before them. The old ones are exceedingly vigilant and distrust- ful, the largest crowd of them immediately disperse at the approach of a boat, and few or none of them are taken, while the young ones, which are not so cautious, frequently fall victims to their inexperience by suffering the hunters to approach. The food of the common seal is fish, crabs and birds, which last it contrives to secure by rising under them and seiz- ing their feet before they can be aware of its ap- proach. Feeding on much the same food as some whales, the latter are not found where seals are very vol. i.—s s 322 THE COMMON SEAL. numerous. In the spring of the year the seals are fattest, and yield several gallons of blubber, small ones affording four or five gallons of oil. In the high northern latitudes, during the winter season, the common seal is found many miles from any open water, and makes a very circular hole through the ice, even when it is several feet in thick- ness, and there comes up to breathe. This opening is continually kept clear, and allows the entrance of the seal's body, the top being permitted partially to freeze over. These breathing places bear a consid- erable resemblance to mole-hills, and have a small crack through their upper part. Since the whale fishery has in some degree de- clined in productiveness, seal hunting has risen in importance to Europeans and Americans, some ships being now sent almost expressly for the purpose of procuring the oil and skins of these animals, which are of extensive importance in commerce and manu- factures. We shall make mention of the methods used by the sealers to take these creatures, before we refer to the implements and hunting of the Es- kimaux, to whom the seal is more important than bread to other people, inasmuch as they depend on it almost for every thing. Seals are sometimes enticed to the surface by music, or the whistling of an individual who is prepared to shoot them, and this proves that they can hear far better when under water than we might be inclined to believe from a mere glance at their external ears. When they hear this sound they come to the surface, elongate their necks to the utmost extent, and ex- pose them fully to the aim of the hunter. They are THE COMMON SEAL. 325 wiost effectually secured however by firing duck or other shot, which blinds them, so that they may be approached and despatched; when killed at once by a single bullet they most commonly sink. Another mode of killing the seal is to go to the caves on shore, into which herds of seals occasionally enter. When the sealers are properly placed they raise a simul- taneous shout, at which the affrighted animals rush out in great confusion, and are despatched with won- derful quickness by a single blow on the nose, struck with a club. They are very tenacious of life when struck or wounded on any other part of the body. The best situation for sealing in the Arctic Seas is stated by Scoresby to be in the vicinity of Jan Mayen's Island, and the best season the months of March and April. When the boats arrive at the ice, the sealers immediately attack the animals with clubs and stun them by a single blow over the nose, which mode enables one person to destroy a large number of seals; when they are seen on pieces of drift-ice they are hunted by means of boats, each boat pursuing a different herd; should the seals at- tempt to leave the ice before the arrival of the boat, the sealers shout as loudly as possible, and produce such amazement in the seals by this uproar as to delay their flight till the boat arrives and the work of destruction is begun. Where the seals are very numerous the sealers stop not to flay those they have killed, but set off to another ice-field to kill more, merely leaving one man behind to take off the skins and fat. When the condition of the ice for- bids the use of boats, the hunter is obliged to pur 5«e the seals over it, jumping from piece to piece* 324 THE COMMON SEAL. until they succeed in taking one, which he then stops to flay and flense, or to remove the skin and fat. This sometimes is a horrible business, since many of the seals are merely stunned, and occasion- ally recover after they have been flayed and flensed. In this condition, too shockingly mangled for de- scription, they have been seen to make battle and even to swim off. The number of seals destroyed in a single season by the regular sealers may well excite surprise; one ship has been known to obtain a cargo of four or five thousand skins and upwards of a hundred tons of oil. Whale ships have accidentally fallen in with and se- cured two or three thousand of these animals during the month of April. The sealing business is, how- ever, very hazardous when conducted on the borders of the Spitzbergen ice. Many ships with all their crews are lost by the sudden and tremendous storms occurring in those seas, where the dangers are vastly multiplied by the driving of immense bodies of ice. In one storm that occurred in the year 1774 no less than five seal ships were destroyed in a few hours, and six hundred valuable seamen perished. Seal oil when properly prepared is pure and fine, and may be employed for all purposes to which whale oil is adapted. The skins of these animals are exten- sively consumed in various manufactures, especially in trunk making, saddlery, &c. The leather made from seal skin is perhaps the most pleasant material which can be worn in boots, on account of its light- ness, softness and pliability, but it is too porous to be worn during the winter season, or in wet weather. The Eskimaux hunt the seal in various modes, ac THE COMMON SEAL. 325 cording to circumstances. When the breathing place already described is discovered, the hunter raises near it a small wall about four feet high, of slabs of snow, to shelter himself from the wind, and sits under the lee of his snow shelter, having deposited his spear, lines and other implements upon several little forked sticks set up in the snow, in order to avoid making the slightest noise in moving them when wanted. The most curious precaution, taken with a similar inten- tion, is that of tying his own knees together with a thong to prevent any rustling of his dress, which would alarm the seal. In this situation the Eskimaux will frequently sit for many hours, when the ther- mometer is below zero, attentively listening to as- certain whether the animal is working below. When he thinks the hole is almost completed, he carefully raises his spear, to which the line is previously tied, and the moment the breathing of the seal is distinctly heard, the ice being then of course very thin, he strikes the spear into him with both hands, and cuts away the ice with his knife to repeat his blow. At other times, having enlarged the breathing place, he takes his position behind the shelter, and the animal, when he next comes to the hole, rises fearlessly out of the water, exposing his head and shoulders, and repeats this action with in- creased confidence. As he is not in haste to dive again, the hunter now starts up suddenly and drives his spear forcibly into him. Another method adopt- ed consists in covering the breathing hole with light snow, and making an opening through the top of it with the spear handle about as large as the mouth of a bottle. The hunter then withdraws the spear 326 THE COMMON SEAL. and takes his place behind his snow-screen, listening vigilantly until he hears the seal breathing beneath the snow, when he silently rises and plunges his wea- pon through the snow-covering into the body of the seal. The moment the seal is struck, the hunter en- deavours to catch the line behind one leg to act as a strong check; and as an additional security, a hitch is taken round the ring finger, which is sometimes either dreadfully lacerated or entirely torn off by the violent struggles of a large seal. The animal is then stabbed until dead; the hole being enlarged, it is drawn out on the ice where it speedily freezes and is in condition to be drawn home. When seals are seen on the edge of the ice next the open sea, the seal hunters dispose themselves in a single file, so as to conceal their number, and appear as few as possible when viewed from the point to- wards which they are moving. In this manner they creep cautiously towards the edge of the ice. When nearly close enough to throw the spear they all crouch low, and remain in this position for a quarter of an hour, during which time they get all their imple- ments in in readiness for immediate service. Then when the seals are intercepted from view, they creep forward, gaining a few paces at a time, until they approach close enough to throw the spear, which is done suddenly and with full force. This mode of hunting the seal is occasionally attended by fatal con- sequences to the poor Eskimaux, especially if the ice be of recent formation, as large cakes are at times de- tached by the force of the tide, and swept out to sea without allowing the slightest opportunity for escape. When a seal is observed to come up through a hole THE COMMON SEAL. 327 in the ice, a hunter sets off for the purpose of ap- proaching it by stratagem. He crawls through the snow on his hands and knees, taking care to remain stationary whenever the seal raises his head, and ad- vancing as soon as the animal allows it again to rest on the snow. When stationary as well as when mov- ing forward, the hunter imitates the actions of a seal with singular fidelity, and improves every opportu- nity of approaching, until he comes near enough to strike his spear into the body of his victim and se- cure his prize. The implements used by the Eskimaux in the vi- cinity of Winter Island in their seal hunting are prin- cipally the spear and the knife. The spear is called akliak or oonak, has an ivory point, which is not fastened to the handle, but attached to it by a line, and when struck into the animal is immediately liberated from the handle, which is provided with a float or bladder. A few of the spears are made of a single narwal's horn of solid ivory, about four feet long, well rounded and polished. The bone of whale ribs is used for spear handles, or wood, when it can be procured, but the ivory of the sea-unicorn or narwal is more easily procured at Igloolik or Winter Island than either of these substances. When engaged in sealing on the ice the spear and knife are generally the only weapons used. While hunting on the ice the Eskimaux use a long bone feeler, both for the purpose of sounding the cracks through which seals are thought to breathe, as well as for ascertaining the safety of the road. An instrument is occasionally used by them, when watch- ing a breathing hole, serving the same purpose as 328 THE COMMON SEAL. the float of a fishing line. This is an exceedingly delicate rod of ivory, about a foot long and as thick as a fine knitting needle, having a small knob at the lower end not larger than a pin's head, and a very fine piece of sinew to the upper extremity, by which it is loosely attached to the side of the hole. This small object is not observed by the seal on rising in the hole, and as he raises it with his nose, the watch- ful Eskimaux strikes the unsuspecting animal as he approaches the surface. Whenever the seal is se- cured, the orifices made by the spear and knife are carefully closed by small pins of bone or ivory, to pre- vent the loss of the blood, which is highly prized by the Eskimaux. The seal is generally very fat, as his supply of food is abundant, and the amount of blood contained in his body is far greater than would be inferred from comparing him with other animals. The flesh is of a very dark red colour, and rather soft; that of the young animal is thought to be quite good by Euro- peans, but the Eskimaux are extremely fond of it at every age and under all circumstances. The common seal or Neitiek is the only seal the women are allowed to cut up among the Eskimaux residing near Winter Island. Before the knife is used on the animal they pour into its mouth a little water as it lies on its back, and with a little lampblack and oil taken from the under part of the lamp they touch each flipper and the middle of the belly. The object of this ceremony is unknown, but from the seriousness with which it is performed, seems to be one of high importance. The first operation in the division of the seal consists in cutting the animal into THE COMMON SEAL. 329 two parts, laying open the cavity of the belly. The boys then come eagerly forward to have a small piece of membrane or bladder stuck upon their fore- heads, of which they are very proud, as it is to make them expert seal hunters. The intestines are then removed; next the blood is carefully collected and put into the cooking pot over the fire. The head and flippers are then separated from the carcass and the ribs divided. The loose scraps are then put into the pot for im- mediate use, except such as the lady butchers occa- sionally cram into their own mouths with great relish, or distribute to the bystanders, who are all eager to catch such precious favours. The little children, old enough to make their way between the legs of their friends, also present themselves to the attention of those who are engaged in this division of food, and are highly delighted when their efforts are rewarded by lumps of raw meat which are thrust into their mouths. The poor dogs seem to be the only visitants not allowed to participate at this preliminary banquet, as their attempts to subtract some small portion is always rewarded by heavy blows with the knife-han- dle. During the whole operation the surrounding friends are eagerly engaged in chewing portions of the raw intestines, which they sometimes allow to be- come frozen, and then snap off with the same kind of glee as is displayed by our youngsters in munching molasses-candy. One of the women from each of the different huts attends with her cooking pot to re- ceive her portion of the flesh. When nothing is left but the blubber attached to the skin, it is removed, vol. i.—t t 330 1'HE COMMON SEAL. and the two portions of the latter are rolled up and laid by with the store of flesh and blubber. Then the feasting may be truly said to begin, and the voracious Eskimaux seem determined to indem- nify themselves for all the privations to which they have ever been subjected. They gorge until they are absolutely stupified, and frequently are only saved from death by the occurrence of copious bleeding from the nose. One good trait, however, has been observed among them, and that is worthy of record; however hungry they may be, the children are sup- plied before any of the grown persons touch the food. The descriptions given by various eye-witnesses of their filthy feasts, are such as almost to turn the stomach of a reader, though several of these accounts are given with great spirit and truth. We shall here introduce Capt. Lyon's picture of one of these enter- tainments in his own words, referring those who may wish to form a more extended acquaintance with the habits of the Eskimaux to his highly entertaining volume. " On the 16th I was rejoiced to find the seal hun- ters had been successful; blood, blubber, entrails, skins and flesh, lying sociably intermixed in savoury heaps. Abundant smoking messes were in preparation, and even the dogs looked happy as they uninterruptedly licked the faces of the children, who were covered with blood and grease from the chin to the eyes. Universal merriment prevailed, and such men and children as could bear more food stood lounging round the women, who sat sucking their fingers and cooking as fast as possible. While the messes were preparing the children solaced themselves by eating THE COMMON SEAL. 331 such parts of the raw uncleaned entrails as their young teeth could tear, and those morsels which proved too tough were delivered over to their mothers, who soon reduced them to a proper size and consistency for their tender offspring. " At the distribution of the contents of one of the pots I was complimented with a fine piece of half stewed seal's flesh, from which the kind donor, a most unsavoury looking old lady, with the most obliging politeness, had first licked the gravy and dirt, and bit- ten it all round in order to ascertain the most ten- der part on which I should make the first attack. My refusal of this delicacy did not offend, and we had much laughing on the subject, particularly when the old woman, with well feigned disgust and many wry faces, contrived to finish it herself. In my ram- bles on this day of plenty I found, beyond a doubt, that the women do not eat with the men, but wait- ing till they are first satisfied, then enjoy a feast by themselves. In the meantime, however, the females who superintend the cooking have the privilege of licking the gravy from the lumps of meat as they arc taken out, and before they are presented to their husbands. Both sexes eat in the same manner, al- though not in equal proportions, the females very seldom, and the men very frequently stuffing until they become quite stupifiedi A lump of meat be- ing given to the nearest person, he first sucks it all round and then pushes as much as he can into his mouth, cutting it from the larger piece close to his lips, to the great danger of them and his nose. The meat then passes round until it is consumed, and We person before whom it stops is entitled to the 332 THE COMMON SEAL. first bite of the next morsel. In this manner a meal continues a long time, as each eats or rather bolts several pounds, and the pots are in consequence fre- quently replenished. In the intermediate time the convives suck their fingers or indulge in a few lumps of lelicate raw blubber. The swallows of the Eski- maux are of such a marvellous capacity that a piece of flesh of the size of an orange very rarely receives half a dozen bites before it is bolted, and that with- out any apparent exertion. The rich soup of the meat is handed round at the close of the repast, and each takes a sup in turn until it is finished, when the pot is passed to the good woman of the house, who licks it carefully clean and then prepares to make a mess for herself. On all occasions the children are stuffed almost to suffocation. The meals being finish- ed, every one scrapes the grease, &c. from his face into his mouth, and the fingers are then cleaned by sucking."'* The food of the Eskimaux is cooked by the aid of a lamp which is supplied with seal oil, the wick be- ing composed of moss. On this lamp are they also dependant for warmth in their huts, which at^ made of snow, as well as for their supply of water to drink, which, during a great part of the year, is only to be obtained by melting snow. A scarcity of seals, therefore, is accompanied by a series of ills, the hut is deprived of light and warmth, and the sufferings of famine are increased by the torment of thirst, against which they have no other resource under such cir- cumstances except to eat the snow, which affords but * Private Journal of Capt. G. F. Lyon, p. 141. THE COMMON SEAL. 333 a partial relief. In judging of the filth and voracity it these poor creatures, we must ever bear in mind the circumstances which during so much of the time ren- der water.almost unattainable, except to quench their thirst, as well as the frequent and severe starvation to which they are subjected. The Eskimaux apply the skins of seals to various purposes, amongst which the most important is the construction of their boats. The small boat to carry but one person is called kayak, and has been aptly compared in shape to a weaver's shuttle, having the head and stern equally sharp. There is an opening or hole in which the rower sits, having a rim or projection to which a part of the- dress may be fas- tened in such a manner as entirely to exclude the water. The weight of the whole does not exceed fifty or sixty pounds, so that the boat may be readily carried by the owner on his head, and from the pe- culiar form of the rim without applying his hands. The Eski ,aux are very proud of their boats; they place a warm skin in the bottom to sit upon, and the position of the paddler is with the legs extend- ed and the feet pointed forwards. Whenever any weight is to be raised, or the stowage of the boat to be changed, two kayaks lie together, and the paddles of each being laid across, a steady double boatis formed. When not paddling the occupant must preserve a very nice balance, and a tremulous motion is always to be observed in the boat. The Eskimaux in the vicinity of Winter Island have not the art of regain- ing the upright position when overturned by a dex- terous use of the paddle. An inflated seal bladder is a constant appendage to the canoe equipage; the 334 THE COMMON SEAL. weapons are kept in their places on the upper sur- face of the boats by small lines of whale-bone, tightly stretched across so as to receive the points or handles of the spears beneath them. The stem or stern of the boat is frequently stowed with flesh, birds or eggs; a seal, notwithstanding its roundness and lia- bility to roll, is so carefully balanced on the boat as seldom to require being tied on. When going before the wind while a smart swell is running, the kayak requires the nicest management, as the slightest inat- tention would expose the broadside to the sea and be followed by immediate peril to this frail vessel. The extreme velocity with which the kayak is im- pelled, and the dexterity with which it is turned and guided, render it a very interesting object.* The Eskimaux use another boat made of seal-skin, * " A flat piece of wood runs along each side of the frame, and is in fact the only piece of any strength in the kayak. Its depth in the centre is four or five inches, and its thick- ness'about three-fourths of an inch; it tapers to a point at the commencement of the stem and stern projections. Six- ty-four ribs are fastened to the gunwale piece, and seven slight rods run the whole length of the bottom and outside the ribs. The bottom is rounded and has no keel: twenty- two little beams, or cross pieces (made of ground-willow or small whale-bones) keep the frame on a stretch above; and one strong button runs along the centre from stem to stern, being of course discontinued at the seat part. " Length.— Body, 19 feet; stem projection, 3 feet 2 inches; stern projection, 2 feet 10 inches; total, 25 feet. Abaft the hole, 8 feet; before it, 9 feet 7 inches. Height.— Rim in front, 10 inches; behind, If inches;breadth at centre, 1 foot 9 inches; depth at the same place, 10 inches. Circumference .of the rim, 5 feet 1 inch."—Lyon's Private Journal, p. 321. THE COMMON SEAL. 335 which is larger and destined to carry luggage, or to transport their families. This is called umiak or oomiak, and is made nearly square at the head and stern. Its frame is made of whale-bone or wood, and the bottom is flat. The seal skins with which the frame is covered are deprived of the hair, and are at all times transparent, but especially so when wet. Each of these boats has five or six seats or thwarts, placed as in ours, and is moved by two very clumsy oars with flat blades, which are used by the women, and steered with a similar oar by another. They vary much in size, having the sides very flat and about three feet high. Sometimes they are as large as twenty-five feet in length by eight in breadth, and are capable of containing women, boys and small children, to the number of twenty-one persons. To those who wish to become well acquainted with the details of Eskimaux manners and ingenuity, the works of Crantz, Ross, Parry and Lyon, will afford a fund of the most satisfactory information, more es- pecially as in these works will be continually expe- rienced the force of that charm which always accom- panies statements made by zealous and well qualified observers.* * An interesting paper, by the celebrated Otho Fabricius, published in the fifth volume of the Royal Danish Society's Transactions, gives a complete account and representa- tion of the weapons and implements used by the Green- land Eskimaux in seal hunting. These implements are very similar to those used by the American Eskimaux, and what is more interesting, are called by the same names 336 THE HOODED SEAL. When Lewis and Clark wintered on the Colum- bia river they found the seals very abundant on the coast, and believed that several species frequent- ed the shores which they had no opportunity of ex- amining. The common seal was observed in the river as far up as the great falls.* Species II.— The Hooded Seal. Phoca Cristata; L. Phoca Leonina: Fabricius, Faun. Graenl. Klap-Myssen: Egede Greenl. p. 84. (Eng. trans.) Neitersoak; Klapmiitz.- Crantz, Green]. Hooded Seal: Pens. Syn. No. 268, p. 342. Phoca Cristata: De Kay, Ann. of the Lyceum of N. Y. vol. i. p. 94. The hooded seal is most commonly found on the shores of Greenland, of Davis's Strait, and occa- sionally of Newfoundland. Recently an individual of this species has been captured in a small creek emptying into Long Island Sound, at East Chester, about fourteen miles from the city of New York. The species is very obviously distinguished by the singular appendage it has on the head, formed by an extension of the skin of the front, which com- by both people. This identity of language we have heretofore referred to as being of the highest importance in aiding us to form an opinion as to the original peopling of this con- tinent. * Lewis and Clark, vol. ii. p. 172. THE HOODED SEAL. 337 municates with the nostrils, and can be inflated or elevated and depressed at the pleasure of the ani mal. The size of this hood, which extends from the end of the snout to five inches behind the eyes, is twelve inches, and its height nine. Through the anterior part of this hood the nostrils open, each two inches in diameter, and when the hood is undis- tended the cartilaginous partition of the nose may be felt from the outside, rising about six inches at its greatest elevation. Internally the hood is strongly muscular, with nu- merous muscular fibres surrounding the orifices of the nostrils, and most probably corresponding to the sphincters which close the nostrils of other seals to prevent the entrance of water. Externally it is covered with short, bright brown hairs, and is slightly sprinkled transversely in many places.— Where the skin of the hood joins the common in- teguments of the head a few strong hairs are found, which are considered to resemble those which in other animals of this genus pertain to the eye. Over the sides of this appendage, as well as the cheek, we find twenty-five or thirty strong bristly whiskers arranged in rows and converging for wards. These are black and small in the upper rows; whitish, flattened and very stout in the lower, being about five inches long, all directed down- wards, and when minutely examined appear to have a series of short alternate bevels on each edge, but no spiral turns. Such is the curious structure with which the head' of this seal is provided, and the question immedi- ately occurs, what can be the use of so peculiar a VOL. i.—u u 338 THE HOODED SEAL. contrivance? To this question no satisfactory answer has yet been given, nor have we any thing better than conjecture to offer. As it projects over the eyes at the inner angle when depressed, the opinion was long since advanced, that the hood was intended to protect those delicate organs from the sand and other substances thrown into the air by the vio- lent storms common on the shores frequented by the animal. But none of the other seals residing under circumstances of similar exposure, have any such protection, and their eyes are equally liable to in- jury from the same causes. The fishermen consider it a reservoir for air, to be used while the seal is under water. Dr. De Kay thinks that its great bulk when distended would prevent the animal from de- scending into or moving with facility beneath the water. If we compare the extent of this appen- dage when distended with the bulk and weight of the animal, which is estimated at about five or six hundred pounds, this objection does not appear to us sufficient to invalidate the probability of the last mentioned use of the hood. The opinion suggest- ed by Dr. De Kay is, that the hood is subsidiary to the sense of smell, which he concludes to be pe- culiarly necessary to this animal, nature having left it unprovided with efficient weapons of offence or defence. It would be a very easy matter to specu- late upon this subject, and remark that the use last suggested for the hood is by no means incom- patible with that generally attributed to it by the fishermen, and that the offensive and defensive wea- pons of this seal are as efficient as those possessed by most other species which have no such subsidiary THE HOODED SEAL. 339 appendage to the nose. To this might be added the probable correctness of what has been often stated, that this hood is a merely sexual distinction, &c. but we believe that all speculation not based on an ac- tual and frequently repeated examination of the ani- mal in its living state, and in its proper haunts, can lead to nothing better than multiplication of words. When the individual described by Dr. De Kay was attacked, he inflated the hood and uttered a bellow- ing noise, until killed by repeated discharges of a musket. The hooded seal is seven feet long from the centre of the chin, or symphysis of the lower jaw, to the root of the tail, which is six inches and a-half long, and three broad at its base. The body is cylindri- cal, gradually decreasing to the tail, which is flat and tapering to a point, the whole skin being cover- ed with flat hairs about an inch in length. The general colour is gray and dark brown, distributed in irregular patches, the grayish appearance arising from very short hairs beneath the white. The head, when the hood is undistended, appears small com- pared with the body, and the eyes are large, of a dull greenish hue, and distant six inches and a-half from the extremity of the upper jaw. The orifices of the ears are distinct, situated about two inches and a-half behind the eyes, without any rudiment of external cartilage or concha. The fore paws or flippers resemble those of the common seal, but appear small in proportion to the size of the animal, are of a uniform dark brown colour, except near the body, where they assume the common mottled appearance, and are twenty inches 340 THE HOODED SEAL. distant from the end of the jaw; their length is fifteen inches. Each digit is furnished with a strong, com- pressed channeled claw, the exterior of which is largest; at the base these are dark coloured; their tips are light horn colour. The hind paws are of the same length as the flippers, and lunated at their extremities, which are fifteen inches broad when expanded. They have five depressed claws or horny laminae, of which the external are largest, all placed at some distance within the webbed extremities. To the above description, which is drawn up from that given in Dr. De Kay's excellent paper quoted at the head of this article, we shall subjoin at full length his remarks on the peculiar dentition of this animal. (i Teeth, thirty in number; above, four incisors, two canine and ten jaw teeth; below, two incisors, two canine and ten jaw teeth. The incisors above are cylindrical and approximated; the two inner are small; the exterior much larger, and nearly half the size of the neighbouring canine. The canine are considerably larger than those of the lower jaw, and more incurved. The incisors of the lower jaw are very small and cylindrical; the jaw teeth above and below are small, distant, and have each a cutting edge; on the posterior part of this edge a notch or trans- verse indentation is visible. The first is placed at some distance from the canine, and is much smaller than the others. " In the foregoing description the remarkable peculiarities presented by the teeth cannot escape notice. The incisors resemble the canine so much in form that their actual position alone can serve to THE HOODED SEAL. 341 point out their nature. Pennant, in the Arctic Zo- ology, describes four above and four below, being led into this error by confounding the laniary teeth with the incisors. The molares, or what may with more propriety be designated as jaw teeth, are very small in proportion to the size of the animal, hardly exceeding those of a child of five years old. The whole number of teeth in this tribe varies from thirty to thirty-six. It is a curious coincidence that the different species distinguished by a great de- velopment of the hood, or appendage to the head, are equally remarkable for the same number of teeth. Thus the P. Leonina, Gm. {proboscidea, Peron.) and the P. Cristata, Gm. have but two incisors below, indicating a natural division in this partially known family."* We have mentioned (p. 307,) a seal sent to Paris by Mr. Milbert under the name of Phoca Mitrata, which corresponds, in relation to the teeth, very ex- actly with the above. On this Dr. De Kay remarks, " it is possible that this may have been brought here from the north by a whaling vessel; should this prove to be the case, I should incline to believe it abso- lutely identical with the Phoca Cristata described above." * Dr. De Kay's paper in the annals of the Lyceum, is followed by a very interesting detail of the appearances ob- served on dissection of this seal by Drs. Ludlow and King, which may be referred to by the reader with much ad vantage. 342 THE GREAT SEAL. Species III.—The Great Seal. Phoca Barbata; Mull. Vrksuk utsuk: Crantz, Greenl. (Eng. trans.) i. 125. Lukktuk: Hist. Kamtschatka, 420. Urskuk: E6f.de, Diet. Greenl. Hath. 1750. Ogiuke; Parry's Voyage; Oghioo.- Lyon's Journal, 830 Phoca Barbata: O. Fabricivs, Faun. Grznl. p. 16. Phoca Major: Parsons, Phil. Trans. 47. p. 121. Grand Phoque: Buff. p. 34. Great Seal: Penn. Arct. Zool. i. 185. Sp. 73. This seal, which grows to the size of ten or twelve feet, is found in the Greenland seas, and on the northern extremities of this continent. It most com- monly rests upon the floating ice, and when it conies up on the fixed ice it is through holes near the outer edge of the field. Its skin is about half an inch in thickness and co- vered with black hair, which in summer is almost entirely shed, leaving the animal bare. The whiskers of the great seal are long, pellucid and white, having the points softer than the other part, and curled. The middle digits of the fore-feet are longer than the others, which in relative length are like the fingers of the human hand. The great seal breeds in the month of March, hav- ing a single cub, usually upon the ice among the islands; it approaches the land more closely at that season than at any other. The great seal resembles the common seal in habits as well as in-general appearance, being distinguished from it readily by its great size and large beard-like whiskers. The adults of this species swim slowly; their peculiar timidity and watchfulness render it THE HARP SEAL. 343 difficult to approach them, so that very little has been observed relative to their peculiar habits. At some seasons the great seal is found to be re- markably fat, and its flesh is said to be very similar to veal. The Greenland Eskimaux cut its skins into thongs, and twist them into ropes, to be used in their whaling, and for various other purposes. Species IV.—The Harp Seal. Phoca Graenlandicaj Mull. Phoca Grscnlandica: O. Fab. Faun. Grsnl. p. 11 Svart-side.- Egede, Nat. Hist. Greenl. pi. 3. Attarsoak: Crantz, i. p. 124. (Eng. trans.) Harp Seal.- Pens. Arct. Zool. i. p. 190. Sp. 77. The harp seal measures from six to nine feet in length from the tip of the nose to the end of the tail, which is from five to seven inches long. In circumference at the thickest part of the body it is from four to six feet. It has a round head and high forehead, with a short nose, large black eyes, and whiskers disposed in ten rows of hairs. Crantz informs us that this seal when full grown is almost entirely of a white gray colour, having a black figure on its back like two half-moons, with their horns uniformly directed towards each other. No seal varies its colour so much as this, and the Greenland Eskimaux change its name with these variations of colour. The foetus, which is white and woolly, they call iblau; in the first year it is cream coloured and the name is attarak; in the second year it is gray and then called atteitsiak; in 344 THE hahp seal. the third year aglektok or painted; in the fourth milektok or spotted; and in the fifth year, when it has attained its adult age and the half-moon mark, it is called attarsoak. At this period the Russians call them krylatka or winged, on account of the half-moon marks. The harp seal is quite common in the Greenland seas, where it frequents the deep bays, migrates twice a year, going in the month of March and re- turning in May, and again in June to return in Sep- tember. It is also found near the shores of New- foundland. The breeding season begins in July, and the female has one cub near the end of March or the beginning of April, which she suckles on fragments of ice remote from land. The harp seal is very incautious, and shows much of the frisky or frolicsome disposition of the common seal. It is occasionally seen swimming in various attitudes, and whirling about as if for sport. This species lives in great herds that swim apparently under direction of a leader, who watches over the safety of the whole. They do not frequent the field or fixed ice, but the floes or large drifting ice. They are said greatly to dread the Physeter Microps, which forces them to seek safety on shore. The Greenlanders also drive them on shore by surround- ing and pursuing them with loud noises whenever they come to the surface to breathe. The harp seal has a large quantity of blubbei*. which yields a greater proportion of pure oil ^ is obtained from any other seal. Its skin istt^j by the Eskimaux to cover their tents and boats. The skins of the young make excellent boot-leather. THE SECOND VOLUME OF THE AMERICAN NATURAL HISTORY, BY JOHN D. GODMAN, M. D. Professor of Natural History in the Franklin Institute of Pennsylvania, Is now in press, and will be published in a short time, the plates being nearly all ready, and the text in great part printed off. It will contain an ample history of the following highly interesting animals:—Opos- sum; Beaver; Musk-rat; Field-mice; Jumping-mice; Rats; Marmots; Squirrels; Porcupine; Hares; Mastodon; Moose; Elk; Rein-deer; Virginia Deer; Antelope; Bighorn; Mountain Goat; &c. &c. 1 THE FETID SEAL. 346 Species Y.—The Fetid Seal. Phoca Fetida; Mull. Neitsek: Crantz, Greenland, i. p. 124. (Eng. trans.) Phoca Fetida: O. Fabr. Faun. Grsenl. p. 13. Phoca Hispida.- Sthbeb. Saeugth. tab. 86. Phoque Neitsoak: Buff, xxxiv. The fetid seal when full grown is about four feet and a-half long, and its skin is covered with a brown- ish or dingy white hair, spotted above and whitish beneath, composed of stiff bristles intermixed with a softer material. The hair does not lie smooth, but is rough and similar to that of a pig. The old animals are remarkably fetid, and this nauseous odour taints their flesh and fat equally. The head of the fetid seal is short and rounded* about a third of its length being formed by the snout. The whiskers are pale, pointed, and compressed, having all their border undulated; the smallest of them are black. The eyes are small, the iris brown. The feet, ears, tongue and tail are similar to those of the common seal. The heels of the hind feet are scarcely apparent on account of the fatness of the ani- mal.* The colouring varies very much according to the age. When the skins are wrought into clothing by the Greenlanders, the rough side is generally turn- ed inwards. The fetid seal frequents the fixed ice near frozen lands, and never relinquishes its haunts when old. It * Desmarest, Mammalogie, p. 246, VOL. I.--X X 346 THE URSINE SEAL. has holes in this ice for the purpose of fishing, and is solitary in its habits, pairs being rarely seen to- gether. It is not a timid animal, and is occasionally preyed upon by the eagle, being taken while asleep upon the surface. The flesh is not esteemed as food even by the Eskimaux, though they employ the dif- ferent parts of its body as they do those of other seals. Species VI.—The Ursine Seal. Phoca Ursina; L.* Ursus Marinus.- Steller, Nov. Com. Petropol. ii. 231. L'ours Marin: Briss. Quad. 166; Schreb. Saeugth. 122, Ours Marin: Buff, xxxiv. p. 94. (Ed. Sonnini.) Chat Marin: Kracheninikow, Hist, du Kamtschatka. Ursine Seal: Pens. Quad. ii. 281. No. 485. Otaria Ursina: Desk. Mammal. 240, Sp. 381. The ursine seal is a large animal, being when full grown eight feet in length by five in circumference, * This species belongs to Peron's subgenus otaria, and to F. Cuvier's second division, or seals having single roots to their teeth. The dental formula is the following: C 6 Incisive 20 Upper < 2 Canine 02 Molar. h | f 4 Incisive 16 Lower < 2 Canine (.10 Molar. These teeth interlock when the mouth is closed, and in their form and arrangement differ very considerably from those of the other seals. Their roots are remarkable for having a narrowing immediately below the crownj they then swell out strongly, and are elongated so as to form a cone THE URSINE SEAL. 347 and weighing about eight hundred pounds. The female is much smaller than the male, but otherwise they are "very similar to each other in appearance. The anterior part of the body is very thick, the posterior slender and tapering to the tail. The head is rounded, rising suddenly from the nose, which projects like that of a pug-dog; the eyes are large and prominent, and the ears conical and point- ed. The whiskers are very long and white, and the lips thick. The ursine seal differs very materially from most other seals in having the anterior limbs entirely at liberty, or not enveloped by the integument of the body. But the wrist, bones of the palm and digits, are covered with a naked skin, which is smooth on the superior and wrinkled on the inferior surface. The thumb is the longest of the digits, which de- crease successively to the external or little one. All of them have a small nail. The posterior extremi- ties are about twenty-two inches in length, articu- lated like those of other seals, but they can on account of their length be used by the animal to scratch the head. They have five toes, the internal of which is as long as the three next it, and the last is smallest of all. Each toe is united to the others by a broad web, which gives a breadth of twelve inches to the hinder feet when spread out. The general colour of the ursine seal is black, twice as long as the crown of the tooth. The same dental formula is applicable to the Phoca Jubata. See Dents de? Mammif. p. 22. 348 THE URSINE SEAL* which in old individuals becomes of a dull gray- The hair is long and stiff, having a soft down of a bay colour intermixed. The colour of the females differs as much from that of the male as her size. Sometimes they are ash coloured, and sometimes of a reddish brown. This species is principally found on the islands which lie between America and Kamtschatka, and like the sea otter are there only seen between the 50th and 60th degrees of latitude. Ursine seals have also been killed on the shores of New Zealand, Staten. Land, New Georgia and the Falkland islands. They arrive at the islands between America and Kamtschatka in th« month of June, and remain until September. When they first arrive they are exces- sively fat and lazy, moving very seldom, and some- times remaining for several days near one spot, without being at the trouble of seeking food.* They lie upon the shores in vast herds, but are separated into distinct families, each male having a seraglio of from eight to thirty or more females, over which he watches with incessant jealousy. The family, with the young and half grown individuals, sometimes amount to a hundred or more. * Tempus illis eoeundi, ad solis occasum est; mas femi- naque ad horam ante, se mare immergunt, leniter natant, unaque littus petunt. Femina prius ascendit, se resupinat et mari amore flagranti cedit. Ille tarn magno ardore, quam suo pondere, feminam in arena lutove praeter caput et pedes sepelit: tunc temporis, sic ad voluptatem intentus et sui obli- tus est, ut cuique,illum accedere et impune tangerc liccat. THE URSINE SEAL. 349 The old seals which are deserted by the females live by themselves, and are very fierce, irascible and quarrelsome, every intruder upon their resting places is immediately attacked, and. they will incur any danger rather than resign their accustomed seats. At the approach of a disturber of their own species they relinquish their indolence and attack him, and should the two in their struggles disturb another, this third mingles in the fray, and thus at times the war extends throughout the whole flock on shore. The younger males are excessively provoked at any attempt made by their neighbours to entice away one of their wives, and furious contests are the result of such interference with their families. After the battle, however, the females go quietly over to the conqueror, and become a part of his establishment. They inflict very severe wounds upon each other during their combats, and when they cease to fighl plunge into the sea, in order to wash off the blood with which they may be stained. The males are quite fond of their offspring, but cruelly tyrannical to the females. When any one attempts to catch one of their cubs the male opposes the aggressor, while the female tries to secure the cub by carrying it off in her mouth. But should she unfortunately drop it, the male attacks her and beats her dreadfully against the stones. When she recovers she crawls towards his feet with signs of great submission. Should the young be carried off the male then appears to be much afflicted. The female has commonly but one cub, which she brings 350 THE URSINE SEAL. forth in the month of January. The cubs are quite fierce, and bark and bite at the sailors passing them.* The ursine seal is a very swift swimmer, moving at the rate of seven or eight miles an hour, and is able to remain under water a much longer time than the common seal. It is very tenacious of life, and survives dreadful wounds for a considerable time. The old ones have a very disagreeable odour, which taints their flesh and fat. The flesh of the female and young is pleasant to the taste and similar to that of a lamb. * See Foster's Voyage, ii. 429, 514. CHAPTER XVII. Genus XVIII. Morse; Trichecus; L. These animals resemble the seals in their elon- gated and conical bodies, and the construction of their anterior extremities. They have a round head, no external ears, and small eyes. The orifices of the nostrils are far distant from the upper lips. The posterior feet are horizontally placed, have five di- gits, of which the two external are the longest, all being provided with small incurvated nails and united by a membrane. The most striking pecu- liarity of the genus is the tusks or prolonged ca- nine teeth, which descend from the superior maxil- lary bone and project far below the lower jaw, serving the animal as offensive weapons as well as instruments to aid in climbing on ice-banks, &c. Dental System. {4 Incisive 2 Canine 8 Molar. {0 Incisive 0 Canine 8 Molar. In the upper jaw the first incisor, (separated by a vacant space of some extent from its fellow in one species, and very close in another,) when it first emerges from the socket, is a very small, conical and Js ■+J o> 4> < O* C* 352 GENERAL HISTORY hooked tooth, and being rudimental is soon worn out and disappears. The second, which is much larger than the first, is cylindrical and obliquely cut from the outer to the inside of the jaw. The canine is a very large tusk which is directed downwards, being curved towards the body; it is rounded on its ex- ternal face, marked by a longitudinal groove on its internal surface, and rises from the maxillary bone as high as the nostril. The first molar, separated by a vacant space from the second incisive, and much larger than that tooth, is, like it, cut obliquely, but the oblique surface is slightly hollowed. The second molar, twice as large as the preceding) is cut in the same direction, but has two depressions or hollows at this part, one anterior and the other posterior, sepa- rated by an obtuse prominence, and narrow at its sum- mit; the third strongly resembles the second, and the fourth is merely a rudimental tooth which falls out by age. All these teeth have but one very strong coni- cal root, and they are formed entirely of a very hard compact substance analogous to that of the tusks. In the lower jaw it appears that in early life the first tooth falls out, for which reason we have not counted it among the others. The four molars appear to have the same form, and are more extended from before backwards than from right to left, and the surface of their crowns is slightly convex. The last is somewhat smaller than the others, which are of equal size. These teeth are of the same nature as those of the upper jaw. In their reciprocal position the first molars are opposed crown to crown; the second are alternate. These teeth are described from several heads, which OF THE MORSE, 353 appear to have belonged to two distinct species, judg- ing from the proportion of some of their parts, and not merely by the extent of the tusks. The differences observed in the latter led Shaw to conclude that there are two species of walrus, which, however, has not yet been ascertained.* * Introductory to this dental system F. Cuvier has the fol- lowing remarks:—" We have seen that the seals are related by their dental systems on the one hand to the terrestrial car- nivorous, and on the other to the cetaceous animals. The morse, whose organs of motion are very similar to those of the seal, is widely different from that animal in respect to the teeth. In this particular'the present genus has a system alto- gether singular, as it is not better adapted for bruising vegeta- ble than for cutting animal matter. We might say that the teeth of these amphibia are especially destined to crush hard materials, because by their structure and relation to each other they act like a pestle against a mortar. They form one of those insulated groups which break the necessarily conti- nuous series of classifications, and may be connected almost indifferently, according to the point of view under which we consider them, with either of the branches of the general sys- tem we admit. We should have placed them next to the seals, which would leave a large void between them and the frugivorous marsupial animals, but induced by certain analo- gies, which have also some foundation, we are led to treat of them after the ruminant quadrupeds. Furthermore, we should remark, that in these animals we begin to see the num- ber of teeth vary in the individuals, because those which are rudimental disappear according to the age of the animal We may say that these organs diminish in importance, and should be considered rather in relation to their number than to their form and structure." Fully assenting to the general correctness of the views of this distinguished naturalist, we do not deem the analogy above stated of sufficient force to authorize us to swerve vol. 1.—y y 354 THE WALRUS. Species I.—The Walrus. Fricheus Rosmarus; L. Auak: Crantz, i. 125. (Eng. transl.) tVallross: Marten's Spitzbergen, 78. Equus Marinus, &c: Ray, Quad. 191. Odobtnus: Bhiss. Quad. 48. Le Morse.- Buff, xxxiv. p. 158, Sonn. Aywek of the Eskimaux: Lyon's Journal, p. 329. This large and unwieldy creature bears a stronger resemblance to the seal than to any other quadruped, but is strikingly distinguished by the proportions of its body and its elephant-like tusks. Vast herds of this species formerly frequented the shores of the islands scattered between America and Asia, the coasts of Davis's Straits and those of Hudson's Bayr in latitude 62°. They have been found as far south as the Magdalen Islands in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, between latitude 47° and 48°. At present they are not met with in very great numbers, except on the icy shores of Spitzbergen and the remotest northern borders of this continent. The walrus attains the size of an ox, being when full grown from twelve to fifteen feet in length, and from eight to ten in circumference. The head is oval, short, small, and flat in front, having the eyes from the arrangement of his brother, which places the morse next to the seal. The resemblance of form, structure, modes of life and action, existing between these animals, ren- der it not only more useful but more natural, and therefore more correct to view them in succession, rather than to se- parate them to so great a distance as lias been done in the " Dents Des Mammiferes." THE WALRUS. 355 =set in deep sockets so as to be moved forwards or retracted at pleasure. The flat portion of the face is set with very strong bristles, which are pellucid., a span long, as thick as a straw, and twisted like a three plied rope. The orifices of the ears are very small, placed far back on the head and destitute of external cartilages. The nostrils open on the upper part of the snout; through these the walrus is accus- tomed to blow the water in a manner similar to that of the whale. The fore feet are from two to two and a-half feet long, and when extended are fifteen or eighteen inches broad, the digits being connected by a membrane forming a sort of webbed hand. The palms of old individuals have the cuticle on them a-quarter of an inch in thickness, in consequence of the friction to which they are subject in clambering up the rocks, &c. The hind feet are from two to two and a-half feet in length, and their breadth when fully extended is from two and a-half to three feet. Each toe is terminated by a small nail. The ivory tusks, or prolonged canine teeth mea- sure from ten to twenty inches, exclusive of the por- tion which is imbedded in the jaw, of seven inches and upwards in length. Tusks of the walrus have been seen thirty-six inches long, and weighing from five to ten pounds. The circumference of one twenty-seven inches in length is about eight inches at base. The inside is more compact and of finer grain than the ivory of the elephant; in the centre the colour is somewhat brownish, but otherwise it is pure white, though speedily growing yellow from. exposure to the air. They are slightly hollowed where they arise from the skull, are somewhat J56 THE WALRUS. notched, and not entirely round. At the base they are about three inches distant from each other, and at the point about nine inches. The skin of the walrus is generally about an inch thick, but is thicker on the neck than any other part of the body. The hair is short and of a yellowish brown colour, and the whole surface of the skin is marked by numerous chaps and wrinkles. This thick skin is used by the Eskimaux for vari- ous purposes, such as the fabrication of cordage and coverings for tents, &c. It is used by the whale- fishers instead of mats, for protecting the yards and rigging of ships from being injured by friction. By tanning it is converted into a thick porous or spongy- leather, by no means so serviceable as the raw hide. Previous to the establishment of the whale-fishery near Spitzbergen the walrus was considered of some importance, and voyages were made expressly to obtain them, for the sake of their ivory and oil. Since the whaling business has become so successful the walrus is allowed to escape unmolested, except by the Eskimaux, who feed upon its flesh with an eagerness only second to that with which they de- vour the seal. On land the walrus is a slow and clumsy animal, but in the water its motions are sufiiciently quick and easy. The head of a.young walrus without tusks, when observed from some distance above water, bears considerable resemblance to the human face, and has been occasionally mistaken by persons unaccus- tomed to their appearance for that of a man. The walrus is a fearless, but when undisturbed an inoffensive animal; it is monogamous, and displays THE WALRUS. 357 great attachment to its mate and young. The sea- son in which the sexes seek each other is about the month of June; the female brings forth her cub early in the spring. When attacked the walrus is both fierce and formidable, more especially if in company with its young. Under such circumstances they be- come very furious, attempting to destroy their ene- mies by rising and hooking their tusks over the sides of the boat, in order to sink it. Frequently the violence of their blows is sufficient to stave in the planks of small boats. In speaking of an instance in which an attack was made on a herd of walruses, Capt. Lyon remarks,—" Mr. Sherer described the fury of the wounded animals as being quite outrage- ous, but those which were unhurt quickly forsook their suffering companions. The beast which sank the boat struck his tusks repeatedly through her bottom, and she filled immediately. Had she been alone not a soul of her crew could have been saved, for there was no ice within three miles, and to swim would have been impossible in such cold water." The same author gives in another place the fol- lowing account of a battle with some of these ani- mals:—" On some stream-ice near us were several herds of walruses basking in the sun. They allowed us even to land on the pieces of ice on which they lay, before they commenced their cumbrous retreat, facing us with open mouth. We killed one, but he sunk before we couM get the boat to him, and wounded several others, when seeing the Fury's boat had been more successful, we went to assist in towing her. On our way we met a male and fe- male, attended by their cub, and soon wounded the 358 THE WALRUS. two old ones. They fought us, however, with des peration, and would not retreat. The female on being killed was secured alongside, but the male, even when shot in three places, and having two lances sticking in him, attacked us furiously, although each time he approached he received a bayonet to the socket. Having at last driven him near to the Fury's boat, our joint efforts despatched him, after about ten minutes struggle. This brave animal had repeatedly attempted to hook his tusks over the gunwale of the boat, had stove her slightly in three places, and left eight deep marks on her bow. The cub, which was black and without tusks, continued by its parents during the whole combat, and fre- quently endeavoured to mount on the back of which- ever first rose to the surface. To this may be at- tributed the more than usual fierceness of the old ones, whose fears for their offspring prevented their own escape. The female, on being hoisted in, was considered as rather small by those who were judges. On each side she had two teats almost con- cealed in the belly, but they could be pulled out to the size and length of those of a sow. The stomach contained only about three pounds of pebbles and a handful of sea-weed." It has been frequently- stated that the food of the walrus is sea-grass, shell fish, and not flesh.* Capt. Scoresby states that he has found, in addition to such substances, parts of young seals in the stomach of "the walrus. The flesh of the walrus is occasionally eaten by the • " Fucis, corallinis, testaceis, non carne victitant." Li> tyst. Nat. p. 59» THE WALRUS. 359 whale-fishers and other voyagers, but is not con- sidered to be a very desirable food, as it is dark coloured and very coarse grained. To the crews of ships which have been long at sea and confined to salted provisions, the use of this flesh at times proves very acceptable and serviceable. One of the Eskimaux modes of killing the walrus in summer is the following: Perceiving a large herd asleep on the floating ice, as is their custom, they paddle to some other piece near at hand which is small enough to be moved. On this they lift their canoes, and then bore holes, through which they fas- ten their lines. As soon as every thing is prepared they quietly paddle the cake of ice towards the herd, each hunter sitting by his own spear and line. When arrived at the place where the animals lie snoring, each man if so disposed strikes a different one, though two generally attack the same. The wounded and terrified walrus now tumbles into the water, but cannot escape from the ice to which the hunters have fastened their lines. As soon as his victim becomes tired, the hunter launches his canoe, and, lying at a safe distance, spears him to death. We have given Capt. Lyon's picture of Eskimaux feasting and gluttony when speaking of the common seal; in this place we shall introduce another sketch from the same masterly hand, which is inimitable of its kind:—" We found, on the 3d, that the party which had been adrift had killed two large walruses, which they had carried home during the early part of the night. No one therefore came to the ships, all remaining in the huts to gormandize. We found 360 THE WALRUS. the men lying under their deer-skins, and clouds of steam rising from their naked bodies. From Kooi- littuk I learnt a new Eskimaux luxury; he had eaten until he was drunk, and every moment fell asleep with a flushed and burning face and his mouth open. By his side sat Arnalooa, who was attending her cooking-pot, and at short intervals awakened her spouse, in order to cram as much as was possible of a large piece of half boiled flesh into his mouth with the assistance of her fore finger, and having filled it quite full, cut off the morsel close to his lips. This he slowly chewed, and as soon as a small vacancy became perceptible, this was filled by a lump of raw blubber. During this operation the happy man moved no part of him but his jaws, not even open- ing his eyes; but his extreme satisfaction was occa- sionally shown by a most expressive grunt whenever he enjoyed sufficient room for the passage of sound. The drippings of the savoury repast had so plenti- fully covered his face and neck, that I had no hesita- tion in determining that a man may look more like a beast by over-eating than by drinking to excess."* The fifty-fifth volume of the Philosophical Trans- actions,! contains the following account of the wal- rus, given by Lord Shuldham:—" The walrus, or sea-cow as it is called by the Americans, is a native of the Magdalen Islands, St. John's and Anticosti in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. They resort very early in the spring to the former of these places, * Private Journal, &c. p. 182. t Cited in Pennant's Arctic Zoology, vol. i. 173. THE walrus. 361 which seems peculiarly adapted to the nature of the animals, abounding with clams (escallops) of a very large size, and the most convenient landing places, called Echoueries. Here they crawl up in great numbers, and remain sometimes for four- teen days together without food when the weather is fair, but on the first appearance of rain they re- treat to the water with great precipitation. They are when out of the water very unwieldy, and move with great difficulty. They weigh from fifteen hun- dred to two thousand pounds, producing from one to two barrels of oil, which is boiled out of the fat lying between the skin and flesh. Immediately on their arrival the females calve, and engender in two months after, so that they carry their young about nine months. They never have more than two at a time, and seldom more than one. " The landing places are formed principally by nature, being a gradual slope of soft rock, with which the Magdalen Islands abound, about eighty or a hundred yards wide at the water side, and spreading so as to contain near the summit a very large number of these animals. Here they are suf- fered to come on shore and amuse themselves for a considerable time till they acquire a degree of bold- ness, being at their first landing so exceedingly timid as to make it impossible for any person to ap- proach them. " In a few weeks they assemble in great multi- tudes; formerly, when undisturbed by the Americans, to the amount of seven or eight thousand. The form of the landing place not allowing them to re- main contiguous to the water, the foremost are in- vol. i. —z z 362 THE walrus. sensibly pushed above the slope. When they are arrived at a convenient distance, the hunters, being provided with a spear, sharp on one side like a knife, with which they cut their throats, take advantage of a side-wind, or a breeze blowing obliquely upon the shore, to prevent the animals from smelling them, because they have that sense in great perfection. Having landed, the hunters, with the assistance of good dogs trained for that purpose, in the night- time endeavour to separate those which are most ad- vanced from the others, driving them different ways. This they call making a cut; it is generally looked upon to be a most dangerous process, it being impos- sible to drive them in any particular direction, and difficult to avoid them; but as the walruses which have advanced above the slope of the landing are deprived by the darkness of the night from every direction to the water, they are left wandering about and killed at leisure, those that are nearest the shore being the first victims. In this manner have been killed fifteen or sixteen hundred at a cut." Balls discharged from a musket are by no means very efficient in killing the walrus, unless aimed with care at vital parts. By shooting them with duck or other small shot, so as to blind them, they may be readily killed with lances or axes. When the walrus makes an attack upon a boat, endea- vouring to mount upon the gunwale, the most suc- cessful mode of repelling it is by throwing a hand- ful of sand into its eyes, which causes the animal to retire for a time, affording an opportunity to escape, or to make better preparations for defence. END OF VOLUME I. 1 k »^ 1 , !^i 7 *»* V FJ* ss 11 2 ■ ^ ^ r 3r h r J, ^£ £ **~ ' Cm * ' ^m9* . / m — ~t r ► » » . > ' > / J J > fr ■' Mi r ^ J 3 > KS 'fc &£} ^ V5il?1< -. -*,->« 3 :> ,-*J<. ■.i'..;--i-'fe$ ■^•.'*t.:..-;ii*i <^n' $■*& f#! iNii nAs- ■ S^2<^ *$5v ^