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The Fur Traders

and

Fur Bearing Animals

BY

MARCUS PETERSEN

AUTHOR OF

'THE WEASEL FAMILY AND ITS ALLIES;" "SEALS— THEIR PRODUCTS,
HABITAT AND HABITS:" "SOME FUR BEARING ANIMALS"

FULLY ILLUSTRATED

I • > •

» o -> * *

> «« /. »

BUFFALO, N. Y.

THE HAMMOND PRESS

1914

Copyright 1914
By THE HAMMOND PRESS

All rights reserved

'4 <■ "^ , •

INTRODUCTION

How little we know and how much there is to learn.
Research and investigation along any given line
show how incomplete is our knowledge even of the
things with which we are most familiar. There is
nothing new under the sun, but there is always some-
thing we do not understand about the subjects to
which we have given the most thought and study.
The scientist who knows all about the origin of a
species, sometimes has the least knowledge as to how
it can best be conserved, or of its real worth to the
community, while the breeder who thoroughly under-
stands propagation problems, and the dealer who
can exactly estimate the value of the products of fur
bearing animals, often know little about their origin,
nature, habits and habitat.

The object of this volume is to bring within the
reach of each of these classes the information pos-
sessed by the others ; and to give to students of na-
tural history and the general public a synopsis of
everything of value that has been written by others
upon this subject, together with many facts that
heretofore have not been matters of general infor-
mation.

The author has not attempted to write a new his-
tory of any part of the Animal Kingdom, but to
present in condensed form and simple language
authentic information regarding the structural
formation, external appearance and distinguishing
features of the more important fur-bearing animals ;
and to show by comprehensive charts and tables the
proper grouping, and the relations and affinities each
to each, of the different species. Attention has also
been given to Fur Farming, and the commercial
value of the different skins; the quantities of each
used annually by furriers in pursuit of their calling ;

the processes and methods employed in dressing,
dyeing and improving the skins; and the rules by
which the experts determine their values.

Considerable time has been devoted to the prepara-
tion of a map showing where the finest specimens of
the North American mammals are obtained, and to
the compilation of a Lexicon giving the English,
French, German and Spanish names of the different
animals, and the trade designations applied to the
furs made from the various pelts.

Fanciful exaggerations have been carefully avoid-
ed; but the facts presented regarding the intelli-
gence and sagacity of some of the species add to
the interest of the book.

While it was impossible to tell the whole story in
the first paragraph, it has been told in as few words
as possible, so that this work is in reality a text
book, where the important facts about the fur-bear-
ing animals and their products are^ so arranged
that the reader can readily find the data that could
be obtained elsewhere only by long and patient re-
search through the works of many writers. Those
who may desire more detailed information are re-
ferred to the following authorities which have been
consulted, and in some cases freely quoted, by the
author of this volume.

Baron Cuvier's "Animal Kingdom;" Richard Ly-
decker's ''Royal Natural History;" John Sterling Kings-
ley's ''Riverside Natural History;" Henry Fairfield Os-
borne's "Age of Mammals;" Henry Poland's "Fur Bear-
ing Animals;" Captain Hiram Martin Chittenden's "Fur
Traders of the Far West;" Washington Irving's "As-
toria;" Sir Alexander McKenzie's "Voyages From Mon-
treal;" George Bryce's "History of The Hudson's Bay
Company;" Alexander Beggs' "History of the North
West;" P. L. Simmonds' "Animal Products;" the me-
moirs of Gabriel Franchere, Alexander Ross and F. A.
Laroche; the reports of the investigations made by D. G.
Elliott, Dr. E. Coues and Wilfred H. Osgood; the
writings of Linnaeus, Buifron, Lamarck, Bell, Darwin,

Professor Huxley, Henri LeCoiirt, W. T. Hornaday, Dr.
Theodore Gill, R. Ramsey Wright, W. H. Bhindell and
W. N. Lockington ; and the Government reports issued by
the United States Department of Agriculture, and the
Bureau of Fisheries of the Department of Commerce.

The helpful co-operation of my wife, the courtesies ex-
tended to me by Dr. Francis A. Crandall, Jr., curator of
the Buffalo Park Zoo, and many others whose names are
not mentioned, and the assistance given by my pub-
lisher, Mr. H. A. Hammond of Buffalo, are gratefully
acknowledged.

KNOWLEDGE IS POWER

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PART I.

The Fur Traders— Their work as Empire Builders.
First charter granted the Skinners Guild of
London in 1327— History of the Hudson's Bay
Company and the Great French Fur Merchants
—The Rise and Fall of the Northwest Com-
pany—The Struggle for the Mastery— Lewis
and Clark Expedition — John Jacob Astor's
attempt to control the Fur Trade of North
America— The Voyage of the Tonquin— The
Overland Journey to the Columbia — The Sur-
render of Astoria — Lord Strathcona — The
Passing of the Russian Traders— Under the
American Flag — The Fur Traders of Today. . 1-28

Fur Farming-— Its Past, Present and Future— Suc-
cessful Experiments — General Information —
Fox Raising on Prince Edward Island — What
can be done with other animals — Skunk Breed-
ing— The Possibilities of the Industry — Mink
Raising — The Obstacles to Success — Govern-
ment Experiments with the Persian Lamb 29-40

The Furriers — Relations to other Branches of the
Fur Trade— The Old New York Houses, Where
are they? — Old and New Methods of Merchan-
dising— Increase in Number of Small Factories
— The place of the Specialty Man — Fur Dealers
and Fur Fakirs 41-44

Fur Markets — Seal Sales at St. Louis — Leipzig Fur
Mart — The Fairs at Irbit and Nijni Novgorod
in Russia — New York as a Fur Market — The
London Sales — The Offerings — Moscow, Tien-
tsin and other Fur Centers 45-46

Dressing, Dyeing, Improving and Grading— The
Dressers — The Evolution of the Dyer's Art —
Plucking, Pulling and Machining — Imitations
and Substitutes — How to Remove the Skins
from the Carcasses — Stuffed Animals versus
Scientific Taxidermy 47-56

Size, Color and Quality — Largest Species near the
Poles — Females smaller than the Males — In-
breeding makes the stock become smaller —
Larger Animals produced by Crossing — Most
Powerful Animals on the Barren Wastes —
Predominating Color — White as a Mark of Dis-
tinction— The Influence of Cold on Color — Fur
becomes lighter with Age — When Fur has its
full Growth — Best at from One to Two Years
of Age — Finest Specimens found in High Lati-
tudes—The Effect of Climate 57-58

Quantities — Prices — Annual Supply— Upward of a
Million Skins — Increasing Quantities — Com-
parative Tables — Fluctuations in Value — Ship-
ments from Alaska in 1912 — Relative Dur-
ability of Different Furs — Influence of
Fashions on Quantities and Prices 59-68

The Tariff — Imports and Exports, Restrictions —
John Jacob Astor's Objections to the Tariff' of
1807— The Act of October 3, 1913— Imports
and Exports of Furs and Skins in 1912 —
Restrictions — Closed Seasons . 69-73

Fur Traders Lexicon — English, French, German
and Spanish Names of the Different Animals
and Furs 74-84

PART II.

Classification — The Animal Kingdom— The Verte-
brata — Orders of the Class Mammalia —
Genera and Families of each Order — Alpha-
betical List of Species — Charts and Tables. . . 85-110

The Mammals — Their Distinguishing Characteris-
tics— Dentition and Structural Peculiarities —
Nature, Habits and Habitats — Points of Simi-
larity of Different Orders — Lines of Demark-
ation — Carnivores 111-116

The Bear Family — Different from all other Car-
nivorous Animals — Allied to the Dog — Various
Species 117-122

The Cat Family— Most Powerfully Armed of all
Mammals — Domestic Cats — Various Species
of Wild Cats — Jaguarondi — Leopards and
Leopard Cats^ — The Lynx Tribe — The Lion —
Jaguar — Puma and Tiger 123-145

The Civet Family — Stand Between the Hyaena and
Cat Families — True Civets — Their Commercial
Value — The Genets — Fossa — Paradoxure —
Rasse — Ichneumon and Mungoose 146-150

The Dog Family — Its Origin — Domestic Species —
Wild Dogs— Types— Plates— The Foxes— Dif-
ferent Species and Varieties — Range of the
Red Fox and its Color Variations — Silver,
Arctic and Polar Foxes — Other Species — The
Jackal — The Wolves, and their Distribution. .151-170

The Hyaenas — Separate Family — Distinguished
from the Dog and Wolf — Different Species —
The Aard Wolf 171-172

The Weasel Family — Composed of Six Groups —
Widely Differing Genera and Species — Color-
ation— The Martens. Minks and Sables — The
Polecats— The Weasels— The Otter— The Bad-
ger—The Wolverine 173-202

The Raccoon Family — The Bassarisk-^JTlie Cioati^ ; ; '.'\\ \
—The Panda— The Kinkajou or ' Potto— The ' ^
Eaccoon or Raton 203-206

Aquatic Mammals^ — The Pinnipeds — Seal and Wal-
rus— Hair Seals or Sea Dogs — Fur Seals or Sea
Bears — Sea Lions or Eared Hair Seals — Dif-
ferent Species of True and Eared Seals — Hair
Seal Fisheries — Alaska Seal Rookeries — The
Hauling Grounds — The Breeding Season — Gov-
ernment Restrictions — Driving and Killing —
Different Varieties of Fur Seal — Selection of
Skins — Distinguishing Characteristics of Vari-
ous Species 207-244

Insectivora — Peculiarities and Dentition — The

Mole— The Desman 244-249

The Marsupials or Pouched Mammals — A Distinct
Class — Opossums — Australian Marsupials —
Bandicoot — Dasyure — Koala — The Common
Phalanger (Australian Opossum) — The Kan-
garoos— The Wallabies — Kangaroo Rats and
Hares 250-265

The Monotremata — ^Egg'-laying Mammals — Struc-
tural Peculiarities— The Platybus— Echidna . .266-267

The Primates — Bimana and Quadrumana — Blustra-
tions — Different Families — Apes — Baboons —
Monkeys — Marmosets — Lemurs — Common
Monkeys— The Aye-Aye and Tarsier 268-276

The Beaver — Largest and Most Interesting Rodent
— No Generic connection with other Mammals
— Ingenuity and Intelligence — Beaver Dams
and Their Construction — Beaver Lands — Com-
mercial Uses 277-283

The Chinchilla Family — Limitation of Range —
Qualities — Real Chinchillas — Bastards — Chin-
chillones — Viscachas 284-285

The Rodentia or Gnawers — Largest Order of the
Mammalia — Ilovr They are Characterized^ —
Habits and Coloration — The Hare Family
and the Rabbits^The Rat and Mouse Tribe —
Dormouse — Hamster — Lemming — Muskrat and
Nutria — The Squirrel Family; Tree Squirrels,
Flying Squirrels, Ground Squirrels, Chipmunk,
Spermophile, Marmot and Gopher 286-308

The Ungulata or Hoofed Mammals — True Rumin-
ants— The Buffallo — American Bison — Yak —
Musk Ox — Domestic Oxen — Rocky Mountain
Goat — Camels — Antelopes — The Deer Family
—The Goat Family— The Horse, Its Ancestors
and Kin — The Sheep Family and its Value
to Mankind 309-364

THE FUR TRADERS.

The use of skins for winter garments dates back to the
period when the groves were God's first temples, and a
man's wants were limited to his necessities. It is a long
call back to the time when the Patriarchs clothed them-
selves in the skins of the animals they had slain in the prim-
eval forests from the present day when furs are often
worn, like pearls and diamonds, for ornament rather than
the protection they afford the wearer, and in some cases
are so valuable that a fashionable woman's collection of
furs is often worth more than a king's ransom. All
through the intervening centuries peltries have formed an
important article of traffic, even though the ingenuity of
man, in inventing processes for the manufacture of other
materials from which to fashion his garments, has in many
cases caused the furs to become a subsidiary luxury in-
stead of a primary necessity.

One of the oldest guilds in the city of London is the
Skinners' Company which was originally a combination of
fur traders, but at a later period the "Upholders" and
''Tawas," as the furriers and skin dealers were then
respectively called were admitted to membership. There
are no documents from which the particulars of its origin,
or the date of its founding, can be traced; but it is inter-
esting to note that a charter granted the company on
March 1st, 1327, by King Edward III of England, contains
a provision that the members must not sell old fur for
new. A second charter granted by Henry VI, on February
24, 1437, gave the company authority to regulate the
exposure of furs for sale and the mixing of old and new
furs ; as well as the right to scrutinize the work, places of
business, and the wares offered for sale by the furriers
in London and other parts of the Kingdom. Evidently
even at that early day there were those who were bring-
ing reproach upon an honorable calling by taking advan-
tage of the opportunities for deception offered by the
fur trade.

Charles I, seized and confiscated the lands of the
Skinners' Company, but they were returned to them later.

(*■

' ' *> r 2' : >: ^ .'*::.. : /.\ .The Fur Traders.

On June 28, 1667, Charles II granted a new charter, which
again gave the company jurisdiction over the manufacture
of furs, muffs, and linings for fur garments; and the cut-
ting, clipping and dividing of the wool from the pelts. By
this charter they were also given authority to sue and
seize wares, and the power to search out offenders against
the law of the guild and to present them before the proper
authorities for punishment. Another provision of this
charter limited the time of service of apprentices to seven
years.

The Skinners' Company has. long since ceased to exer-
cise jurisdiction over the fur trade in England, but it still
has a corporate existence and owns property in London
and the north of Ireland.

The ancient name of this company was the ''Guild or
Fraternity of the Body of Christ, of the Skinners of
London."

The first fur traders on the North American continent
were the French and Russian companies; the former tak-
ing possession in Canada in 1535, and the latter establish-
ing their first station in the Northwest in 1^53. n
/ The West Indian Company, a Dutch organization which
[established headquarters in New York in 1621, shared for
'a time with the Plymouth Company of England a mon-
opoly of the business of exporting beaver skins from the
New World. The real history, however, of the development
of the fur trade on the North American continent is found
in the records of the Hudson's Bay Company, established
under the patronage of Prince Rupert, on May 2, 1670, and
those of the great French Merchants and the English and
Scotch Traders, who for more than a century refused to
recognize the rights of the Hudson's Bay Company to
exclusive trading privileges on the shores of the bay and
the rivers tributary to it, and who often contested their
claims by force of arms.

The original title of the Hudson's Bay Company was,
' ' The Governor and Company of Adventurers, Trading into
Hudson's Bay." Its origin was as follows: In 1659, two
^ French traders, Groeilliers and Radisson, made their way
"*• into the wilderness beyond Lake Superior, and having sat-
isfied themselves of the practicability of reaching Hudson
Bay by continuing overland to the north, returned to

The Fur Traders. 3

Montreal with a load of furs. While they were making
other journeys to the Northwest for exploration and profit,
the French Government gave to other parties a patent
conveying to them the exclusive right to trade in those
regions. Groeilliers returned to France to protest against
this action, and failing to obtain redress from his own
government he went to England and succeeded in inter-
esting Prince Rupert, under whose patronage he sailed for
Hudson Bay in 1668. The success of this trip resulted
in the granting of the charter which gave to the Hudson's
Bay Company privileges such as no other company ever
enjoyed before or since.

The trade of the company at first was small. The rec-
ords show that in 1672 it only purchased 200 fowling
pieces, 200 brass kettles, 12 gross of knives, and 900 hat-
chets; but the quantities of merchandise needed to
carry on the trade with the Indians increased every year
and other articles were steadily added. Fifteen years after
the founding of the company they had fifteen forts; one
at Albany River, two at Hayes River, three at Ruperts-
land, four at Port Nelson, and five at New Severn. In
1856, the company had forts in thirty-four districts, with
about ten thousand whites and half-breeds and about forty-
nine thousand Indians under their rule. The stock of the
company in 1890, was divided into one hundred thousand
shares, of a par value of fifteen pounds sterling each.

To convey a clear idea of the variety of articles in a
trading equipment in the early part of the nineteenth cen-
tury, as well as the prices they were rated at west of
the Rockies in 1826, we publish an extract from a bill of
sale by which on July 18, 1826, an outfit was transferred
in Utah.

' ' Gun powder of the first and second quality at one dollar
fifty per pound, lead at one dollar per pound, shot one dollar
twenty-five cents per pound, three point blankets at nine
dollars each, green ditto at eleven dollars each, scarlet cloth
at six dollars per yard, blue ditto common quality from
four to five dollars per yard, butcher knives at seventy-five
cents each, two and a half point blankets at seven dollars
each, North West fuzils at 'twenty-four dollars each, tin
kettles different sizes at two dollars per pound, sheet iron
kettles at two dollars twenty-five cents per pound, square

4 The Fur Traders.

axes at two dollars fifty cents each, beaver traps at nine
dollars each, sugar at one dollar per pound, coffee at one
dollar twenty-five cents a pound, raisins at one dollar
fifty cents per pound, grey cloth of common quality at five
dollars per yard, flannel common quality at one dollar fifty
cents per yard, calicoes assorted at one dollar per yard, dom-
estic cotton at one dollar twenty-five cents per yard, thread
assorted at three dollars per pound, worsted binding at fif-
teen dollars per gross, finger rings at five dollars per gross,
beads assorted at two dollars fifty cents per pound, Vermil-
lion at three dollars per pound, files assorted. at two dollars
fifty cents per pound, fourth proof rum reduced at thirteen
dollars fifty cents per gallon, bridles assorted at seven dol-
lars each, spurs at two dollars per pair, horse shoes and
nails at two dollars per pound, tin pans assorted at two
dollars per pound, handkerchiefs assorted at one dollar
fifty cents each, ribbons assorted at three dollars per bolt,
buttons at five dollars per gross, looking glasses at fifty
cents each, flints at fifty cents per dozen, moccasin awls at
twenty-five cents per dozen, tobacco at one dollar twenty-
five cents per pound, copper kettles at three dollars per
pound, iron buckles assorted at two dollars fifty cents per
pound, fire steels at two dollars per pound, dried fruit at
one dollar fifty cents -per pound, shaving soap at two
dollars per pound, first quality James River tobacco at one
dollar seventy-five cents per pound, steel bracelets at one
dollar fifty cents per pair, large brass wire at two dollars
per pound.*'

At that time the wages of a hunter were four hundred
dollars per year, and the common laborers about the
y* camp received tw^o hundred per year, Buffalo skins were

\ '^ worth three dollars each, beavers four dollars each, otters
three dollars each, raccoons twenty-five cents each, musk-
rats twenty cents each, and deer skins thirty-three cents
per pound.

In estimating the profits of the traders we cannot fig-
ure the difference between the value of skins received
and the factory cost of the merchandise exchanged for them ;
but must allow for an expense account, amounting to sev-
eral hundred per cent, on the goods. There is no doubt that
the net profit remaining was heavy for money seldom
changed hands in these transactions, and whether buying
from the Indians direct, or paying the trappers employed
by them on a salary, or dealing with the free white hunters
and trappers, the company settled nearly all its accounts
in merchandise.

The Fur Traders. . 5

Washington Irving said that two great commercial pur-
suits were the ''pioneer precursors of civilization on the
Western Hemisphere — the search for gold and the traffic
in peltries. The one led the Spaniards to explore the lands
scorched by the tropic sun, and the other caused by buoy-
ant Frenchman and the calculating Briton to penetrate the
trackless forests of the north. ' '

Every careful student of American history knows that
the call of the wild alone without any prospect of gain,
while it might have attracted men to the luxuriant tropics,
would hardly have induced them to push on into the frozen
northland until the way to the Arctic Circle was opened
up by their daring enterprise.

''It was because the early French adventurers who set-
tled on the banks of the St. Lawrence River found that in
the rich peltries of that territory they had sources of
wealth that would rival the mines of Mexico and Peru,"
that they pressed ever further into the unexplored regions
of the interior, establishing along the line of their progress
the trading posts and supply stations which gradually
evolved into the great commercial centers of Canada. When
the rapid growth of the settlement at Montreal compelled
the Indians to extend the circle of their hunting operations,
many of the fur traders accompanied them in their expe-
ditions to more distant regions, and in that way became
acquainted with the best hunting grounds and the more
remote tribes, and by trading direct with the Indians in
their own country diverted much business from Montreal
and the other places where the large organized companies
had their stores.

As the Indians at that time had no real knowledge of
values, and bartered the most precious furs for worthless
trinkets and cheap commodities, the profits of these wan-
dering traders were enormous; and on the rare occasions
when they returned to Montreal to dispose of their collec-
tions and purchase new supplies they startled the settlers
with their display of reckless prodigality.

It is not within the province of this work to follow the
fortunes of these Couriers-des-bois or rangers of the
woods, or to relate how their example corrupted the sim-
ple natives, among whom they spent most of their

6 The Fur Traders.

lives and of whom they took every unfair advan-
tage, until the French Government issued an order pro-
hibiting all persons from trading in the interior without
a license in writing from the Grovernor-G^neral under
penalty of death. The facts stated have simpl}^ been men-
tioned to show how large and important a part the fur
traders had in the development of the Northwest. They
were for many years, lawless as some of them were, the
only civilized beings in the country in which they operated ;
and but for the French voyageurs, and the English and
Scotch adventurers and explorers working under the
authority of the Hudson's Bay and the Northwest Com-
panies, New Caledonia or British Columbia might never
have been discovered, and Canada might still be shut out
from access to the Pacific Ocean. It was the erection of
fur trading posts by the French that aroused the jealousy
of England and was the primary cause of the French and
Indian War, which resulted in the overthrow of the French
dominion in Canada. The Treaty of Paris, signed May 2,
1762, left England undisputed sovereign of North America,
except to the west and southwest of the Mississippi and on
the Pacific coast, and "marked the passing of the great
French merphants who for generations had lived the lives
of commercial patriarchs at their trading posts, in easy fa-
miliarity with their retainers and the train of Indians and
canoe men of all nations always hanging about their estab-
lishments and eating and drinking at their expense." It
also put a stop to the feuds and contests arising from the
infringements of territorial limits, and the acts of violence
and bloodshed that up to that time had been of frequent
occurrence between the factors of the Hudson 's Bay Com-
pany and the agents of the French merchants in Canada.
There was a period of depression after the Treaty of
Paris. The Hudson's Bay Company when it found itself in
control of the situation decided to trade only wtih the
Indians direct as the surest way to prevent the extermina-
tion of the fur-bearing animals; and the Scotch merchants
of Montreal, the natural successors to the French traders
in the upper lake country, being uncertain as to territorial
rights were for a time inactive. When they did begin
operations they were at first ignorant of the country
and distrustful of the natives ; and the couriers-des-bois and

The Fur Traders. 7

other adventurers whom they tried to enlist in their serv-
ice missed the indulgent freedom of the old trading houses,
and did not take kindly to the haughty reserve and exacting
methods of the British traders. With the revival of trade
in 1766, came new rivalries and jealousies, until business
was again injured by the efforts of the various individuals
engaged in the traffic to outbid and undermine one another.
The Indians were debauched by the sale of spirituous
liquors which had been prohibited under the French rule,
and once more scenes of drunkenness and brawls were fre-
quent in the Indian villages and around the trading posts ;
while bloody conflicts often resulted when rival trading
parties met ^'in the lawless depths of the wilderness."

It was to put an end to these conditions that the famous c^>-
Northwest Company was organized in 1783 by the Montreal y^
merchants under the directorship of Sir Alexander
McKenzie ; so that, instead of scattering their energies along
a dozen or more individual lines of endeavor, the opposing
forces might present a united front in their competition
with the Hudson's Bay Company. The only organization
whose rivalry the new company had cause to fear, Pond, .
Pangman & Co., was absorbed in 1787 ; and from that time
on ''the Northwest Company held lordly sway over the
lakes and boundless forests of the Canadas" until it in
turn was absorbed by the Hudson's Bay Company, in 1821.
For nearly tw^o generations the McTavishes, McGillivrays,
McKenzies and Frobishers, who were the resident agents
of the Northwest Company at Montreal and Quebec, formed
a commercial aristocracy at those places, while the part-
ners in charge of the interior stations, each with his score
or more of retainers at his command, lived like Highland
chieftains in their wilderness fastnesses. The headquarters
of the Northwest Company were at Montreal, and its prin-
cipal depot was at Grand Portage. Its operations ex-
tended into the Northwest between the Hudson Bay terri-
tory on the one side and Louisiana on the other. When a
survey showed that the headquarters were on United
States territory a new post was built further north and
named Fort William. It was here that the annual dinners
of the company were held. Irving says : '' At these meetings
the house swarmed with traders and voyageurs. The coun-

1

8 The Fur Traders.

cils were held in great state, for every member of the com-
pany felt as if he were sitting in Parliament, and every
dependent looked up to the assemblage with awe, as to the
House of Lords.

* ' In the banquet hall, the tables groaned under the weight
of delicacies and there was no stint of wine for this was
a hard drinking period. While the chiefs thus reveled in
the hall, and made the rafters ring with bursts of elo-
quence and song, their merriment was echoed and prolong-
ed by the legions of white adventurers, half-breeds, Indian
hunters, and vagabonds of every class, who feasted sump-
tuously outside on the crumbs that fell from the great
men 's tables. ' '

The glory and wonderful success of the Northwest Com-
pany stimulated further enterprise in this ''open, and ap-
parently boundless, sea of profit ; ' ' and in 1795, a combina-
tion was formed by several partners who had retired from
the Northwest Company because they were dissatisfied
with the part allotted to them in the management of its af-
fairs, and Forsyth, Richardson & Company, an independ-
ent Montreal firm that for a number of years had main-
tained a trade around Lake Superior, which resulted in the
organization of a New Northwest Company or as it was
more generally known, the X. Y. Company. This organiza-
tion continued in existence until 1804. Another British
company which was founded after the Northwest Com-
pany had started on its prosperous career was the Mack-
inaw Company, so named because its principal station was
at Machilimackinac. It operated mainly wdthin the terri-
tories of the United States upon the shores of Lake Michi-
gan and westward to the Mississippi, and in Canadian
territory east of Lake Erie.

Up to this period the fur trade in the United States had
not been organized along any regular line ; for while skins
were casually collected by traders in their dealing with
the Indians and white hunters, the main supply of furs
used in the United States came from the Canadian com-
panies.

''The Government of the United States had for some time
viewed with apprehension the growing power of these for-
eign combinations among the native tribes upon its bor
ders;" and in an effort to counteract their influence had

The Fur Traders. 9

as early as 1796, established rival trading posts on the
American side of the frontier to secure the trade of the
Indians within its own territory. The experiment was not
successful. Then, as has proved to be the case so many times
since, "the keen activity of private enterprise was more
than a match for lethargic government patronage." The
Government could not resort to the methods pursued by its
competitors. Its representatives could not meet misrepresen-
tation with misrepresentation, or secure the favor of the
Indians by supplying them with liquor; the importance
of this last fact will be realized by those who know how
violent is the attachment of the Indian for liquor, and that
he who gave the most of it was almost sure to obtain the
furs. The Government was also bound to patronize only
home industries, and this made it impossible for its agents
always to give the natives the best article of its kind in
exchange for their peltries; a fact upon which the private
trader always enlarged to his advantage. Then, too, the
Government was not permitted to extend credit to the In-
dians, while the private trader advanced the incompetent
natives outfits on credit, and made sure of his payment by
accompanying them on their hunting expeditions.

The ''factory system" of 1796, was right in theory; but
it failed in practice, because, as Captain Hiram Martin Chit-
tenden says, in The American Fur Trade of the Far
West, "the Government lacked the courage of its con-
victions. It should have taken the field to itself, just as it
does in the carrying of mails, coining of money, and the
making of war. Instead of doing this it granted trading
licenses to private parties, and thus degraded itself to the
level of a competing trader among a herd of irresponsible
and frequently lawless rivals."

We may rail against "monopoly," protest against the
"centralization of power" and talk wildly of the "rights of
the individual," but the exercise of judicious authority in
restraint of trade is often a benefit to the consumer as
well as the producer — the buyer as well as the seller. When
liberty degenerates into license it always becomes the worst
kind of slavery. It certainly would have been better
for the Indian to have taken his furs to the "factories"
where he could get his goods at prices that would

10 The Fur Traders.

simply make the system self-sustaining, instead of dealing
with traders who, in spite of their presents and plausible
representations, were taking every advantage of his ignor-
ance, and at the same time slandering one another to such
a degree that the disgusted Indian finally became hostile
to all Americans and traded entirely with the British
agents who lived near the boundary. The overthrow of the
factory system in March, 1822, as the result of this "open
competition" of individual traders with the Government,
robbed responsible American merchants of their main out-
let for Indian supplies, and demonstrated that in a field
**free for all" there is bound to be a commercial rivalry, in
which it is not always the strongest or even the fittest, but
very often the most unscrupulous who survive. Under
such conditions even a monopoly is better than unrestrained
competition.

What the Government failed to do was accomplished later
by a private individual. John Jacob Astor, who was born
at Waldorf, near Heidelberg, Germany, on July 17, 1763,
had settled in New York in 1783; and after profitably
disposing of the stock of musical merchandise which he had
brought over with him from London, had followed the ad-
vice given him by a traveling companion and invested his
capital in peltries, which he bought at Montreal and ship-
ped to London and China. When the treaty of 1795 ceded
to the United States, the military posts formerly occupied
by the British, at Oswego, Niagara, Detroit, Machilimack-
inac, and other points on the American side of the Great
Lakes," Mr. Astor, who had been very successful in his
trading operations, saw an opportunity to gratify a long-
cherished ambition to secure a monopoly of the fur trade
in the United States. He began establishing trading posts
of his own at the points mentioned, and along the Missouri
and Nebraska Rivers into the country where the Missouri
Company was operating. The situation then confront-
ing Mr. Astor was this: The Hudson's Baj^ and North-
j w^est Companies, who w^ere struggling for supremacy in
J the country northwest from Lake Superior, had extended
I their southern line of operations well into the United
States territory. The Mackinaw Company with other
traders controlled the territory about the upper lakes,
and westward to the Mississippi. The trade along the

The Fur Traders. 11

Missouri and to the south Avas largely in the hands of the

Missouri Company. Finding the power of these competing

companies too great to be combatted by him individually

he offered, if given aid and protection by the Government,

to turn the whole fur trade of the continent into American

channels. In 1809, being assured of Government support,

he secured from the Legislature of the State of New York / ^ f ^

a charter incorporating the American Fur Company with/ ^

a capital of one million dollars all of which was furnished

by himself.

The Canadian companies still continued their rivalry;
and Mr. Astor, feeling that the fur trade would not advan-
tageously admit of this foreign competition because of the
advantage which the restrictions placed by the United
States Government upon its citizens in their dealings with
the Indiajis gave to their competitors, who had a free hand
in regard to the sale of liquor and other articles, made a
new arrangement by which, in conjunction with certain .
partners of the Northwest Company, he bought out the [
Mackinaw Company. With the sanction of the United)
States Government he merged the Mackinaw Company and/
the American Company into a new corporation known aW
The South West Company. By this combination he cam^
into immediate possession of half of the posts and goods
belonging to the Mackinaw Company in the United States,
with the understanding that the balance would be conveyed
to the South AVest Company at the end of five years, if
during that time no attempt was made by the American
Company to trade within the British dominion. This
merger was suspended by the War of 1812, and was finally
entirely dissolved by an act of Congress prohibiting Brit-
ish fur companies from prosecuting their operations within
the territory of the United States.

While the companies we have mentioned w^ere pushing
their various enterprises in the east; Captain Cook and
others reported that vast quantities of sea otter were to be
found along the Pacific coast, and that the skins of these
animals were bringing fabulous prices in China. ''It was
as if a new gold field had been discovered. There was a
rush of adventurers from all sections to join in this traffic,
and, in 1792, twenty-one vessels, under different flags, but
most of them owned by Boston merchants, were trading

12 The Fur Traders.

along the Pacific coast." These vessels would run in near
the shore and anchor and wait for the natives to come off
in their canoes with their peltries; and when trade was
exhausted in one place, would sail on to another. Having
collected a sufficient cargo of skins they would make their
way to China, where they would sell their furs and lay in
a stock of teas, nankeens, and other merchandise to carry
back to Boston on their return, after an absence of from
two to three years.

The Russians, instead of making casual trips, established
regular trading stations in the high latitudes along the
Northwest Coast of America and on the Aleutian Islands,
under the control of a company incorporated by the Rus-
sian government, with a capital of $250,000 and exclusive
trading privileges. The Russian crown at this time claimed
sovereignty over all the territory in which its traders were
operating, on the plea that the land had been discovered
and occupied by its subjects. The company referred to was
called the Russian Fur Company, and succeeded sixty or
more smaller organizations that, up to that time, had
divided the Pacific coast traffic among them. The head-
quarters of the company were at Sitka. It was dissolved
in 1867, after the sale of Alaska to the United States.

As China was the great market for furs collected in this
quarter the Russians had another great advantage over all
their competitors, as they did not have to take their peltries
to Canton for distribution through the empire, but were
able to carry them on their own vessels by a shorter jour-
ney direct to those parts of the Chinese Empire where they
were chiefly consumed, at a considerable saving in time and
cost of transportation.

The Columbia commanded by Captain Gray of Boston
was one of the American ships trading along the north-
west coast in 1792. At latitude 40° 19' north, she entered
the mouth of a large river, and anchored in a beautiful bay.
The river, which was later named the Columbia, was after-
wards explored by Vancouver, to whom Captain Gray had
spoken of his discovery.

The French in Canada began to dream of a northwest
passage to the Pacific as early as 1670, but the first attempt
to find an overland route across the continent was made
by Captain Jonathan Carver, in 1763, with the sanction of

The Fur Traders. 13

the British Government. He failed to accomplish his pur-
pose ; but in 1792 an expedition conducted by Sir Alexander
McKenzie succeeded in reaching latitude 52° 20' 48".'
McKenzie at once realized the possibility of linking together |
the trade on both sides of the continent; and upon his
return to Montreal he suggested that to prevent conflict-
ing interests from interfering with the prosecution of this
great scheme, the Hudson's Bay Company, claiming much
of the territory by charter rights, and the Northwest Com-
pany, holding by right of possession, should join issues in
the undertaking ; but the jealousies of these two companies
were too great to permit them to get together.

The Lewis and Clark expedition fitted out in 1804 by the
United States Government, succeeded where Carver had
failed in 1763. The expedition ascended the Missouri,
crossed the Rocky Mountains never before visited by white
'men and discovered the hitherto unexplored source of the
Columbia River, which they followed down to its mouth
where Captain Gray had anchored twelve years before.

It was at this time that Mr. Astor conceived the planj
' ' of grasping with his individual hand, the great enterprise,
which had been doubtfully contemplated by powerful asso- 1
ciations and paternal governments. ' ' Where they had feared
to venture he pushed boldly forward. He planned to
establish a line of fortified trading posts extending from the
Great Lakes, along the Ohio, Missouri and Columbia Rivers,
with a supply depot at the mouth of the latter from which
to furnish supplies to the trading posts of the far west, and
to the coasting vessels with which he proposed to trade
along the northwest coast. A ship was also to be built to
carry supplies from New York to the depot on the Col-
umbia and take the collections of skins from there to China ;
bringing back on the return voyage, cargoes of oriental
merchandise.

To prevent hostile rivalry on the part of the Russian Fur
Company this ship was to stop regularly at the stations of
that company with supplies ; so that the Russian company
would no longer be dependent upon transient trading ves-
sels owned by private adventurers, who, actuated only
by motives of present gain, supplied the natives with liquor
and firearms, making them troublesome and dangerous
neighbors for the Russians, and causing the American Gov-

14 The Fur Traders.

ernment much anxiety lest the acts of these American
buccaneer traders should give offense to Russia, at that time
the only great power friendly to the New Republic, It will
be seen from this that not only was Mr. Astor's project
of great commercial importance to himself, but it was also
of vital interest to two great nations, to say nothing of its
effect upon the colonization of the Northwest.

The Northwest Company looked with unfriendly eyes
upon Mr. Astor's scheme. They had already established
an advance trading post beyond the Rockies in New Cale-
donia, as the strip of land discovered by McKenzie between
the territory of the United States and Russia was called.
They refused an offer of a third interest in his enter-

I prise, and secretly sent out a party under Mr. David
V (Thompson to establish a post at the mouth of the Colum-

I bia River before any expedition that might be fitted out

j by Mr. Astor could reach there. When Mr. Thompson
with nine of his party, the rest having deserted before the
expedition crossed the mountains, reached the mouth of
the Columbia, in July, 1811, he found that the Pacific Fur
Company was already in possession.

Some of the retired partners and clerks of the Northwest

/company however looked with favor upon proposals made
\Jto them by Mr. Astor, and on June 23, 1810, joined him
in the formation of the Pacific Fur Company. These men
were Alexander McKay, who had accompanied Sir Alex-
ander McKenzie on both of his expeditions to the North-
west Coast ; and Duncan McDougal, Donald McKenzie, and
Robert Stewart, who were also men of large experience in
the business of the Northwest Company. In addition to
these the partners in the new company were, Mr. William
Price Hunt, of Trenton, N. J., who was- to act as Mr.
Astor's personal representative and manager on the Pacific
Coast while Mr. Astor remained in charge of the head-
quarters of the company in New York, and four other
Americans — Ramsey Crooks, Joseph Miller, Robert McLel-
lan, and John Clark. , The capital stock of the company
was two hundred thousand dollars, divided into one hundred
shares, of a par value of two thousand dollars each. Mr.
Astor was assigned fifty shares, Mr. Hunt five shares, and
the remaining partners four shares each. The balance of
the stock being held for division among the clerks at the
end of five years, if the enterprise proved successful.

The Fur Traders. 15

Mr. Astor covenanted to bear all the losses that might
be incurred during the first five years, after vrhich the ex-
penses were to be shared by the partners in proportion to
their respective interests. As he also furnished all the
capital it will be seen that, as in the case of the South
West Company, all the financial responsibility was assumed
by Mr. Astor, and the controlling power was vested in him.
The object of incorporation simply being to give a higher
standing to the enterprise, and to bind his associates to
him by giving them an interest in any profits that should
result from the successful prosecution of his enterprise.

Mr. Astor 's plans called for two expeditions to the mouth/_X
of the Columbia River; one by water around Cape Horn,
and the other overland along the route taken by the Lewis
and Clark Expedition, in 1804.

The sea-going expedition sailed from New York, Septem-
ber 8, 1810, on the Tonquin, a bark of 290 tons burden,
manned by a crew of twenty-two sailors, and carrying ten
guns. The captain was Jonathan Thorn, a lieutenant in
the United States Navy, on leave of absence. He was an
honest man and capable navigator, but unfortunately his
harsh and arbitrary treatment of his passengers was a cause
of constant irritation during the long journey. This expe-
dition was in charge of Duncan McDougal, who was accom-.
panied by Alexander McKay, David Stewart and his
nephew Robert, partners in the enterprise, and a force of
fifty-three clerks, mechanics and canoe-men.

It is interesting to note here that the clerks were bound
to service in the company for five years, at the rate of
$100.00 a year payable at the expiration of the term of
service, and an annual equipment of clothing to the amount
of $40.00. In case of misconduct or neglect of duty they
were liable to dismissal and the forfeiture of any wages
that might be due them; but as on the other hand they
were offered promotions and partnerships as a reward for
faithful service, it must be admitted that if Mr. Astor is to
be charged with having been the originator of the business
merger, he must also be given credit for introducing the
co-operative system into the business relations of the
employer and employee.

The Tonquin rounded Cape Horn in December; and after
making stops of some length at Hawaii, and the Sandwich

16 The Fur Traders.

Islands where fifteen islanders were added to the force of
the company, arrived at the mouth of the Columbia River,
on March 22, 1811. After spending three days and losing
four of the passengers and three of the crew in efforts to
sound the channel with small boats, the Tonquin finally
crossed the bar on March 25, 1811, and anchored in
Bakers Bay, as the estuary formed by the points of land
terminating in Cape Adama and Cape Disappointment is
called. Some time was spent in exploring the shores of the
bay for a suitable site before Mr. McDougal debarked
with forty-two of the company, all but four of whom were
British subjects, at a point about twelve miles from the
mouth of the river. Here a slightly elevated position had
^been selected where on May 16th, the foundations of
Fort Astoria were laid. The Tonquin, with three of the
passengers, eight of the islanders, and the sixteen remaining
members of her crew, sailed on June 1st, on a trading voy-
age along the northwest coast. About three weeks later when
they were anchored off Woody Point on Vancouver's Is-
land, a large party of Indians who had been exasperated
by the insults offered to their chief by the Captain on a pre-
vious visit returned, and after some time spent in trading
at a given signal suddenly fell upon the ship's company.
Taken entirely unawares the crew and the passengers made
a desperate resistance, but the Captain, Mr. McKay, and all
but five of the party who had escaped to the cabin were
quickly killed by the savages. The five in the cabin
finally succeeded in clearing the ship by firing through
the skylights and companionway. During the night four of
them left the vessel in the long boat, hoping to make their
way back to the river. The other survivor, who was
wounded, refused to accompany them, and the following
morning invited the Indians who had gathered on the shore
in large numbei-s to come on board. When the deck
was crowded with the natives he fired the magazine and
blew up the vessel, killing all who were on it. Three or
four days later the men in the boat were driven ashore in
a storm, and being captured by the Indians while trying
to make their way inland were put to a cruel death. The
Indians who committed this outrage were members of the
Wake-a-ninishes tribe. When the report of this disaster
reached Astoria late in the fall it had a depressing effect

The Fur Traders. 17

on the little company there; and as the months passed by
without bringing any tidings of Mr. Hunt and his overland
party it was feared that they too had been destroyed.

Mr. Hunt accompanied by Donald McKenzie had
reached Montreal in June, 1810. McKenzie who was ex-
perienced in the ways of the traders and voyageurs fa-
vored securing all the men needed for the expedition before
leaving Montreal; but Hunt, who was distrustful of the
ever-changing character of the French voyageurs, decided
to wait and try to secure the services of American adven-
turers at Mackinaw and St. Louis, and they left Montreal
with only a dozen French voyageurs to man the canoes. At
Mackinaw, which at that time was the great outfitting post
of the south and was frequented by all the adventurers
who operated along the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers,
they were joined by Mr. Ramsey Crooks one of the Ameri-
can partners in the enterprise. They were unable to secure
suitable men for their purpose here as the place seemed
to be a perfect bedlam of dissipation ''where men were
drinking in the morning, drunk at noon and dead drunk at
night." To add to their troubles the agents of the North-
west and Mackinaw companies were doing everything they
could in anj^ underhanded way to prevent them from se-
curing recruits. At St. Louis, they encountered the same
hidden opposition; and it was the 21st of October before
they were able to secure a sufficient number of men of an
inferior class to warrant their continuing the journey up
the Missouri and on to Fort Nadowa, where they arrived
on November 16th, and went into winter quarters. At St.
Louis, they had been joined by Mr. James Miller, who like
Mr. Crooks had formerly traded along the Missouri; and
at Fort Nadowa, Mr. Robert McLellan, the last of. the part-
ners to join the expedition, met them. The start from Fort
Nadowa for the long journey to the coast was made on
April 22, 1811. On September 14th they crossed the divide,
and commenced the descent of the western slope. At Pilot
Knob or Fort Henry, near the source of the Snake or
Lewis River, the great southern branch of the Columbia,
they left their horses; and without any conception of the
difficulties before them embarked in fifteen frail canoes,
hastily constructed, expecting to complete their journey by
following the river. After proceeding three hundred and

18 The Fur Traders.

fifty miles they became convinced of the impracticability of
navigating the dangerous waters of the torrential mountain
stream and gave up the attempt.

Considerable time was spent in exploration, and in vain
efforts to fall in with friendly Indians from whom they
might obtain new supplies of food, before they finally
decided to divide into four bands, each of which, under
command of one of the partners, was to make its way
independently to the mouth of the Columbia. The parties
under IMcLellan and McKenzie followed the right bank of
the river, and those under Hunt and Crooks continued
along the left bank.

McKenzie 's party suffered many hardships; and after
they entered the narrow and rugged defiles of the Blue
Mountain were at one time without food for five days be-
fore they caught a beaver on whose flesh they subsisted
three days ; but at length they reached the main waters of
the Columbia and finally on January 10, 1812, McKenzie,
McLellan and Reed, gaunt and haggard, with eight others,
some of them scarcely able to drag themselves along,
reached Astoria. The thirty-four people with ^Ir. Hunt had
an easier time, but 'as they spent some daj's resting with
friendly Indians they did not reach the station until Febru-
ary 15, having made the latter part of the journey in canoes.

Crooks and Day, who with four Canadians had lost
Hunt^s trail at the Grande Ronde and remained in that
vicinity during the winter, arrived alone on May 10, 1812.
Three of the Canadians had abandoned them in Febru-
ary preferring to remain with the Indians rather than to
continue the journey, and the other Canadian was left
with a band of Shoshone Indians because he was unable
to travel further. Seven other members of the party
who had been detached at various points along the
route reached Astoria neacly a year later, on January 15,
1813. The party with Mr. Hunt therefore consumed
340 days in making the trip from St. Louis to Astoria ; 140
days being spent in camp at various points along the route.
Mr. Hunt 's estimate of the distance covered was 3500 miles.
The most direct railroad route at the present time makes
the distance 2300 miles.

There has always been a disposition to criticize Mr. Aster
for entrusting so much of the management of this enter-

The Fur Traders. 19

prise to English and Scotch partners. He claimed that as
Oregon at that time was disputed territorj^, it was the part
of w^isdom to disarm the suspicions of the British Govern-
ment, and keep them from active interference with his
plans, by letting it be known that his company was largely
made up of British subjects. From a careful consideration
of all the facts it appears however as if the chances for suc-
cess would have been better if the positions of responsibility
had been held by men who were not so closely connected
with those in control of the Northwest Company ; for when
David Thompson appeared at Astoria on July 15, 1811, with
a party from Spokane, he was received with great cor-
diality by Mr. McDougal who in the absence of Mr. Hunt
was in charge of the station, although there was a sus-
picion on the part of the Americans in the settlement that
Thompson had only come to spy upon them in the interests
of the Northwest Company, and to discourage them with
tales of the dangers and hardships before them if they re-
mained at the station. During the weary months when
the little company were trying to maintain their position
at Astoria there were other instances of disloyalty to the
new organization on the part of some of the former mem-
bers of the Northwest Company, and it was McDougal
again who made the agreement with John Laroche and John
George McTavish in October, 1813, under which a month
later all the furs and merchandise in the country belong-
ing to Mr. Astor were conveyed to the Northwest Company
for about one-third of their actual value. There has been
some controversy as to whether McDougal was acting in
good faith when he entered into this contract, and it is a
significant fact that within a few months after this deal
was made he was given a lucrative position by the North-
west Company.

As Captain Chittenden in his ' ' History of the American
Fur Trade, ' ' says : " It is no flight of fancy, but rather a
sober and legitimate conclusion, to say that if the Astorian
enterprise had succeeded the course of Empire on the .
American continent would have been entirely different ^
from what it has been. With the valley of the Columbia
and the neighboring shores of the Pacific occupied by
American citizens instead of British subjects during the
period of controversy over the Oregon question, no part

20 The Fur Traders.

of the Pacific coast line would now belong to Great
Britain."

Washington Irving in his '' Astoria" enters fully into
the details of the struggle of the Pacific Fur Company to
hold the advantages it had gained on the Pacific Coast;
but it is sufficient for our purpose to note the circumstances
of its organization and failure ; and it only remains for us
to say that on December 12th, 1813, Captain Black of the
British sloop-of-war Raccoon raised the British standard
over the fort, and took possession of the establishment and
the country in the name of his sovereign, changing the
name of Astoria to Fort George.

I From that time the Northwest Company reigned supreme
west of the Rocky Mountains until 1821, when it was ab-
sorbed by the Hudson 's Bay Company, .which thus became
the representative of all previous fur companies, and after
entering into an agreement with Russia for the lease of
Alaska, in 1839, established trading posts from the Bering
Sea to San Francisco ; remaining in full and undisturbed
possession of the fur trade of the Northwest until it was
obliged to relinquish its exclusive rights by the treaty of
1846. It was not until i860, however that the Hudson's
Bay Company finally abandoned its various establish-
ments in Oregon and Washington, and transferred all its
movable property not disposed of to Fort Victoria on
Vancouver Island.

In 1863, the old shareholders, alive to the signs of the
times, allowed themselves to be persuaded to sell out to a
"New Company of Proprietors," who later sold their rights
— real and imaginery — ^to the Dominion of Canada, for three
hundred thousand pounds. Since that time, though they
still continue to exist as a powerful merchant company
exerting a dominating influence on the fur trade, the Hud-
son 's Bay Company have been * ' lords of the soil ' ' only over
an area of a mile around each one of their forts ; and even
the district of which Edmonton is the center and in which
for many years they held exclusive trading privileges is
''open country," where other large firms have established
trading posts or agencies, and where individual collectors
travel from point to point purchasing the catch of trap-
pers who do not come to the posts. Every year the number
of skins passing directly from the hands of the collectors

The Fur Traders. 21

into those of the manufacturers and skin dealers is in-
creasing, but the final values are still, to a large degree,
determined by the prices obtained at the Fur-Marts, or fairs,
held at stated times in various parts of Europe, and which
form the subject of another chapter.

"The organization of the Hudson's Bay and Northwest
companies, their internal regulations, method of dealing
with the Indians, and policy in preserving the fur-bearing
animals from extinction, were the outgrowth of long ex-
perience, and embodied the highest wisdom in the man-
agement of their extensive affairjs. The experience of each
of the rivals was added to that of the other in the
amalgamated company after 1821, and formed one of the
most perfect commercial organizations of which the world
has any knowledge. The systems of service and pro-
motion protected the company from incompetent servants.
To gain high position in the service one must begin at the
bottom and work up. All must work for the company's
interest, and none were allowed to engage in any private
trade. Employes were frequently changed in station to
break up any irregular practices which might grow up
with long residence in one place, and this rotation was
taken advantage* of to reward faithful service and punish
the reverse. The company's officers had power to try and
punish offenders. Military duty was exacted whenever
necessary, and a regular uniform was provided. The
whole organization, from the governor down through fac-
tors, traders and clerks, to the lowest local manager,
was based upon the principle of perfect discipline, absolute
subordination of individual interest to that of the com-
pany, and a regular promotion based upon merit. Long
experience had perfected all parts of this intricate
machine, and not even the greatest of modern railway
systems can excel it in thoroughness of detail and or-
ganization. ' '

''In its dealings with the Indians the same wise policy
was apparent. Where not necessary to meet competition
the sale of liquor to the natives was not generally indulged
in. All trade was upon a fixed, though just, basis, and the
Indians knew exactly what to expect. The traders were
men of experience with the natives, and were well
acquainted with the Indian character. Intermarriage with

22 The Fur Traders.

native women was common from the chief officers down
to the ranks, and thus bonds of mutual intf.'rest were
created. Although this company did not always escape
difficulties with the Indians, it was generally on terms of
peace with them, and its hold upon them as against irregu-
lar traders was w^ell-nigh absolute. It may readily be seen
how powerless must have been a private trader and even
a strong company against this embodiment of powder,
w^ealth and organization."

We have only outlined the operations of some of the
most important companies of fur traders ; for the story of
the Hudson's Bay Company alone w^ould fill many volumes,
if told in detail from the date of its romantic formation
down to the present day w^hen it is devoting much of its
time and resources to the more prosaic work of opening up
a chain of mammoth department stores in Galgary, Edmon-
ton, Victoria, and other growing commercial centers in
British Columbia. As George Bryce says: "For full
two centuries the Hudson's Bay Company, under its
original charter, undertook financial enterprises of the
greatest magnitude, promoted exploration and discovery^
at one time held governing powers over an empire com-
prising nearly one-half of North America, and preserved
to the British Empire the w^ide territory handed over to
Canada in 1870 ; and for more than two generations since
that time, it has carried on a successful trade in competi-
tion with many rivals, and still shows all the vigor of
youth. Whatever ground there may be for criticism of
some of the earlier methods of this great organization, the
wonder is that with the extensive powders it has enjoyed,
it should bear after its long career, over such an extended
area of operations, and under so many different conditions,
so honorable a record."

The Hudson's Bay Company has it is true always been
a keen trader, as its motto "Pro Pelle Cutem" — skin for
skin — implies ; but with this surely no fault can be found.
One of the greatest testimonials in its favor is that when
after two centuries it voluntarily gave up except as a
purely trading companj^ its power in Canada, its influence
over the Avidespread Indian population of Rupertsland w^as
so great that it was asked by the Canadian government to
retain one-twentieth of the land of that wide domain, as

The Fur Traders. 23

a guarantee of its assistance in transferring power from
the old to the new regime. What better proof can we ask
that on the whole those in control of the operations of
the Hudson's Bay Company have borne their honors
meekly, and exercised their great power for the good of
the people in general as well as for the best interests of
the company they served.

That John Jacob Astor, in organizing The South West
Company, and the Pacific Fur Company, was also animated
by a higher motive than the mere promptings of a personal
ambition, is evidenced by the following extract from a
letter written to his partner, Mr. Hunt, at the time when
the treachery of associates, the chances of war, and the
machinations of the Northwest Company were threaten-
ing disaster to his enterprise on the Pacific coast. He
says: ''Were I on the spot I should defy them all; but
as it is everything depends on you and the friends about
you. Our enterprise is grand and deserves success, and I
hope in God it will meet it. If my object was merelj^ gain
of money I should say, save what you can and abandon
the place; but under the conditions the very idea is a
dagger to my heart." If anything further is needed, to
prove that he thought at least as much of the effect that
the failure of his plans would have upon other interests,
public and private, as of any personal loss it would bring
to him, it is furnished in the words with which he received
the news of the sale of his Pacific coast properties to. the
Northwest Company by McDougal, ''I had rather lost all
by capture while trying to defend the fort."

No one who has carefully read the history of the de-"
velopment of the fur trade as it is related by Washington
Irving, George Bryce and Captain Chittenden, will ques-
tion the statement — that the men who formed, and con-
trolled the policies of the companies who laid the
foundations of this great commercial enterprise, were not
only captains of industry, but empire builders of the
highest order. No better illustration of this can be found
than the following brief sketch of Lord Strathcona's life,
and his connection with the Hudson's Bay Company.

24 The Fur Traders.

Rt. Hon. Sir Donald Alexander Smith, Lord Strathcona
and Mount Royal, was born at Torres, Moryshire, in the
north of Scotland, August 6th, 1821. He was given a good
English and classical education, and in 1838 entered the
service of the Hudson's Bay Company. He was first sent
to Mingen, Labrador, a desolate region, where he remained
thirteen years before he was given a post in the great
Northwest in whose history and development he took such
an important part. During his stay on the Labrador coast
he was attacked with color blindness, and apprehensive of
losing his sight decided to go to Montreal to consult a good
oculist. The journey at that time was a perilous one, but
accompanied by two half-breed guides he finally reached
his destination. When he presented himself at the head-
quarters of the company he was censured for leaving his
post without authority, and commanded to return without
delay. Discouraged and disgusted at the reception given
him he was on the point of throwing up his position, but
upon consideration wisely decided to return to Mingen
and remain in the company 's service. 'His trip to Montreal,
however proved a benefit in the end, as it helped to show
those in authority the kind of material he was made of,
and he was promoted step by step until he became a chief
factor. Later he was named resident Governor and Chief
Commissioner of the Company in Canada, a position which
he held until 1870, when he presided at the last meeting
of the Council of Officers held at Norway House before the
reorganization of the Company. Subsequently he was ap-
pointed Governor of the Board in London ; and in 1886 he
was created a Knight Commander of the orders of St.
Michael and St. George for his services to the government
in Red River rebellion in 1869 and on other occasions.

''The officers who had charge of the various districts in
the Northwest annually met in a Council for the regula-
tion of the affairs of business for the ensuing year. Look-
ing upon themselves as partners of the Company, they felt
that they were entitled to participate with the shareholders
in any amount which might be received for the cession of
the territorial rights of the Company. When therefore the
Company had come to an agreement with the Colonial
Office for a transfer to the Canadian Government of its

The Fur Traders. 25

territorial rights upon the payment of three hundred
thousand pounds, the officers of the company felt that they
should receive a share of that amount. In 1870 the Council
of Officers already referred to was held at Norway House
on Lake Winnipeg and it was decided to present the
claims of the officers to the Company in England. With
this object Mr. Smith, who as Governor at Fort Garry was
present at the Council, was unanimously appointed as rep-
resentative of the officers, and undertook the task of pre-
senting their*claims. The result of his mission was that
compensation was given to the officers for the relinquish-
ment of their claims, the sum of one hundred and seven
thousand pounds being divided amongst them, and a new
agreement, called the Deed Poll of 1871, was entered into.

'^The officers felt that to the judgment and discretion of
Mr. Donald A. Smith was due the just recognition of their
claims, and when he returned in the following year they
presented him with a valuable testimonial of their esteem.
Mr. Smith was appointed Chief Commissioner of the Com-
pany under the new Deed Poll and assumed control of
affairs at Winnipeg. In 1874, Mr. Smith owing to his par-
liamentary and other duties gave up the position of Chief
Commissioner, so far as the control of trade matters was
concerned. In this position he was succeeded by Mr. James
A. Grahame, although he still retained the management and
control of the Company 's land affairs and continued to take
the deepest interest in its welfare.

''The affairs of the Company continued with varying
success and in accordance with the condition of the times,
but with no occurrence of public importance, until in 1879,
Mr. Donald A. Smith resigned his official connection with
the Company. The committee in accepting his resignation,
referred to the many important arrangements in which he
had taken a part, and expressed their gratitude for the
fidelity which he had displayed to the general interests of
all concerned. ''

Mr. Smith had served his country as faithfully as the com-
pany he represented, and after he retired from business life
devoted all his time and energies to the public service, hold-
ing high administrative positions in Canada and being con-
sulted by the Home Office on all important questions relat-
ing to that territory. He well merited the honors and
titles later bestowed upon him by his Sovereign.

26 The Fur Traders.

The Missonri Fur Company was the first to operate from
St. Louis westward. It had nearly run its course before
either of its principal competitors was well established.
Like that of many other great institutions, the history of
this company is practically the history of one man —
Manuel Lisa, who was born at New Orleans, September
8, 1772. About the year 1800, he secured from the Spanish
government the exclusive right to trade with the Osage
Indians. In 1808 he was the leading spirit in the or-
ganization of the St. Louis Missouri Fur (Company, and
became still more prominent in its management after its
reorganization in 1811. The other members of the com-
pany were : Benjamin Wilkinson, Pierre Chouteau, Sr.,
Auguste Chouteau, Jr., Reuben Lewis, "William Clark,
Sylvester Labadie, all of St. Louis; Pierre Menard
and William Morrison, of Kaskaskia, Illinois; Andrew
Henry, of Louisiana, and Dennis FitzHugh, of Louis-
ville, Kentucky. The company included some of the
best traders in the west, but owing to a series of unfor-
tunate circumstances beyond their control the expecta-
tions of its founders w^ere never fully realized. Another
reorganization took place in 1819 and, with the exception
of Manuel Lisa, not one of the names of the founders of
the old company appeared on the new charter; which
shows that the members were : Manuel Lisa, president ;
Thomas Hempstead, Joshua Pilcher, Joseph Perkins,
Andrew Woods, Moses Carson, John B. Zenoni, Andrew
Drips, and Robert Jones. The company continued in
existence until about 1830, when its affairs were finally
wound up.

! The great mistake of the Missouri Fur Compan}^ was
their unwillingness to permit Mr. Astor to have any share
in the business, as he was probably the only man who
could have carried them through their initial misfortunes
to ultimate success.

Mention has been made of the incorporation of the
American Fur Company by Mr. Astor, April 6, 1808. As
was then stated Mr. Astor was the company, and the
incorporation was merely a fiction to broaden and facili-
tate his operations.

When Congress by its action suspended the operations
of the South West Company, and the Pacific coast enter-

The Fur Traders. 27

prise also ended in failure; Mr. Astor soon regained the
ground he had lost, by taking advantage of the Act of
April 29, 1816, by which the Northwest Company, as well
as the South West Company, was compelled to relinquish
its interests on American territory. He secured control of
the American business of both of these conjpanies by
establishing a new coast to coast connection through the
operations of the Pacific Fur Company, and the western
department of the American Fur Company at St. Louis,
which at that time was the starting point for all expedi-
tions to the far west, and the transfer point for freight
shipped into the remote regions from the east, as well as
the merchandise and skins sent from the Pacific slope, the
Great Lakes, and the mountain country to the eastern
market.

Among the articles of trade that were exchanged for
the furs of the Indians liquor was at all times by far the
most important. It is impossible to exaggerate its im-
portance at that time, and it is only by understanding the
conditions of the business that one can account for the
almost frantic appeals that were continually pouring into
the office of the American Fur Company at St. Louis for
more liquor. ''Liquor we must have, or we might as well
give lip" is a sample of the complaints that burdened the
correspondence of the traders. Chittenden says, ''It was
impossible to conduct the trade without it if one's oppo-
nent was provided with it, the only alternative being to
retire from the field.

"The Act of July 9, 1832, prohibiting absolutely the
introduction of liquor into the Indian country, was there-
fore simply appalling to Mr. McKenzie, who was in charge
of the company's trading interests. He had no confidence
that the small traders would be held to the law by the in-
spectors, and he knew that if they were, they would
smuggle liqvior by them. He had learned from experience
that the great commerce of the American Fur Company
made such clandestine work impossible, especially as they
were operating in the enemy's country where there was
a spy at every turn, McKenzie 's first move was to go to
Washington and New York and see if he could not affect
some modification of the i"egulation for enforcing the
liquor law. He was entirely unsuccessful in ;his mission,
and returned to St. Louis with gloomy forebodings for the

28 The Fur Traders.

future. There was no course now open, apart from exten-
sive smuggling which was an extremely perilous business
for the company at that time, except to carry out an
ingenious and radical measure which for some time had
been developing in McKenzie's mind. This was nothing
less than to open up a distillery at Fort William and com-
mence the manufacture of liquor on his own account. He
would be within the law he reasoned, because that forbade
only the importation of liquor into the Indian country.
To such feeble subterfuges did the exigencies of the fur
trade drive men of real and unquestioned ability. The
house in St. Louis took legal advice in the matter and
astonishing as it may seem succeeded in getting an opinion
in favor of the project; and in 1833, in spite of strong
opposition on the part of some of the members of the com-
pany, the distillery was set up and put in operation at Fort
William.

''There is abundant evidence that the experiment was a
complete success. McKenzie was greatly elated over the
results for it placed him on a footing of independence and
unquestioned superiority over his rivals. In writing to
Crooks he said : ' I have a good corn mill, a respectable dis-
tillery, and can produce as fine liquor as need be drunk.
I believe no law of the United States is broken by us, though
perhaps one may be made to break up my distillery; but
liquor I must have or quit any pretension to trade in these
parts.' But alas, at the very moment that McKenzie was
writing his exultant letter to his chief in St. Louis the
latter was agitated with very different emotions, for he
had but lately experienced in a forcible way the proof of
the adage that 'The way of the transgressor is hard.'

' ' The distillery business had been reported to the United
States government and mischief was to pay. The gov-
ernment authorities were highly incensed at this obvious
contempt of law. The company had a life and death strug-
gle and it was only by a dangerously narrow margin that
it saved its life."

Mr. Astor retired from the American Fur Company on
the first of June, 1834, when the Northern Department re-
taining the name of the American Fur Company, was sold
to a company of which Ramsey Crooks was the principal
partner, and the Western Department to Pratt, Chouteau
& Co., of St. Louis.

29

FUR FARMING.

Fur Farming is only in its infancy, but the success which
has rewarded the efforts of those who have faithfully and
intelligently labored to rear foxes, skunks, minks and other
species of fur-bearing animals in captivity, demonstrates
the possibilities of the industry when properly conducted
under right conditions. Fur Farming has little to offer to
those who engage in it as a ''get rich quick" scheme, but
for the man who is willing to accept a reasonable com-
pensation for his time and the money invested in the
enterprise while working for the full development of his
plans, it promises larger returns than any other business in
which he could engage with the same amount of capital.

The Hon. Charles Dalton, after twenty years of successful
operation, sold his fox ranch on Prince Edward Island for
six hundred thousand dollars, and Mr. Tuplin received two
hundred and fifty thousand dollars for his farm ; but these
men made a study of the animals they were raising and
conducted their operations along scientific lines, at all times
giving the best that was in them to the work in hand, and
looking to the future rather than to the immediate present
for results. What they succeeded in doing with foxes, and
others have accomplished with skunks, can also be done with
minks, raccoons, opossums, muskrats, and possibly bears
and lynxes, although it does not appear probable that
martens, fishers, weasels, wild cats or wolves can be profit-
ably domesticated.

The Fur Farmer will find that unless the animals have
plenty of runway they will not fur properly. If they are
kept in restricted quarters, or penned up in a small
enck)sure, the pelt or hide will be thick and the fur thin;
the reason for the thick, silky, glossy fur on skins that come
from some of the ranches is that the animals have plenty of
room and an abundant varied diet ; skunks for instance that
are fed principally on meat, to the exclusion of vegetables
and fruit, will not present as fine an appearance as those
that are raised on a mixed diet. The thing to strive for
is to duplicate as far as possible the natural conditions
under which the animal is at its best. It is impossible to
improve on nature.

30 Fur Farming.

Another thing to be considered is the natural nervousness
of wild animals when placed in restraint, and subjected to
unusual sights and surroundings ; great care should be taken
to avoid anything that might startle them or cause them to
take alarm. The young at least if properly protected will
soon become tame, and instead of worrying the fat off their
bodies, and the hairs off their hides, will grow sleek, and
develop a fine pelage.

When the killing time comes care should be taken not to
frighten the animals that are to be kept for breeding
purposes. The animals to be slaughtered should be driven
into a separate enclosure and out of sight of the others
before being killed.

FOX RAISING.

Benjamin L. Raynor of Alberton, P. E. I., Canada, and
Jj Walter Jones of Washington, D. C, have made a careful
study of the fox-breeding industry on Prince Edward
Island. The report of their investigations first appeared in
the ' * American Breeders Magazine./ ' It was republished by
the ''Fur Trade Review" in November, 1912, and is the
source of much of the information this chapter contains
relative to ''fox farming" in the Dominion of Canada^

Foxes that have been kept as pets and in zoological
gardens have never been known to rear their young. The
reason for this seems to be the extreme nervousness of the-
females, who have been known to go about for days with
their young in their mouths, putting them first in one place
and then carrying them to another, until finally the pups
have died from the effects of exposure and handling.
Keepers often watch by the pens day and night for weeks
^t a time, to prevent the mothers from injuring themselves
or their young. The females are so wild during the breed-
ing season that the ranchers make it a rule to close the
ranches in January, and allow no one but the keepers to go
near the pens between that time and June when the young
are out and playing about. It is stated that during the
period that the pups are with the mother the keepers always
wear the same clothes, lest a change in their appearance
should worry the sensitive animals.
• The behavior of a mother fox on a ranch in Ontario, is
referred to as illustrating how little it takes at certain

Fur Farming, 31

times to cause trouble. The rauch owner whose home could
be plainly seen from the pen, made a contract to have his
house painted. When the painters started to work, the
sight of a stranger or the smell of the paint so excited the
mother fox that she brought out her young and killed them.

In their wild state the males are monogamous and forage
for their young. On the ranches, where all the food is
provided, there is danger of two parents killing the pups
by over attention, so the males are separated from the rest
of the family in March, and kept apart until the young are
able to take care of themselves. The period of gestation is
exactly fifty-one days. The young arrive in March, April
or early May. Litters of from one to as many as eight have
been recorded, but the average is about four pups. The
price of one thousand dollars was refused for a female fox
that had reared eighteen young in three years. Foxes
mature for fur or breeding in eight months and they are
fertile for nine or ten years. The custom appears to be
growing among breeders to mate one male w^ith two or more
agreeable females. It is plain that by this method a
selection of sire can be made, and quicker improvement in
quality achieved.

During the productive period of about nine years, the
average production of a pair of foxes will be about thirty
young. If these are of the best stock the pelts will be worth
$1,500 each at the present market prices, so the yearly
profits from a pair should be about $5,000. Every joint
stock company that is formed and hires a manager can-
not however expect to procure such results. Efficient
managers are very hard to find and the best management
will not prevent occasional escapes and thefts. The in-
dustry is best prosecuted on a diversified farm where
w^aste food material, quiet, and the personal interest of
the owmers, will go farther toward assuring success than
any skilled management that capital can purchase. The
business can be very profitably prosecuted by neighbors
w^ho wdll unite in the feeding, care and protection of the
stock from thieves, and in the hunting and trapping of
escaped animals.

. In any well settled country there is always enough cheap
food to provide for hundreds of foxes. A healthy old
horse or cow^ ; livers, heads, feet and other refuse ; calves,

32 Fur Farming.

fish, bread, milk, eggs, rabbits, and even poultry, make
the best kind of Fox food. A nursing mother Fox should
get plenty of eggs, milk and porridge. On the average, in a
province like Prince Edward Island settled with fifty peo-
ple to the square mile it costs from two to three cents per
day to feed a Fox. Some of the ranches have great num-
bers of rabbits inside the outer fence, which gives the
Foxes a chance for an occasional chase and an opportunity
to secure familiar food in the natural way.

Soil, climate and location must always be considered
when choosing a farm for breeding purposes. A lime-
stone or alkaline soil will decrease the value of the fur
by making it harsh and brittle. A cold climate is a prime
necessity for the production of high class fur, and the
Fox pens must be secluded from the intrusion or even ob-
servation of strange men and animals. A forest covering,
preferably of spruce, fir, pine or cedar, is very desirable.

A farmer while hunting some straying cows in the
woods in 1888, found a male and a female Silver Fox pup
in the hollow of a log. He carried them home and traded
them to a neighbor for a coav and a few extra dollars.
The neighbor experimented for several years with various
kinds of pens and treatment, but finally becoming dis-
couraged sold the Foxes to another neighbor for eighty
dollars. This party was no more successful than the pre-
vious owner, and soon sold the Foxes to a ranch owner
who lived on an island in Cascumpec Bay. The quiet of
the new place, the increasing tameness of the Foxes, and
the new owner's knowledge of the requirements, produced
conditions that relieved the nervous mother's apprehen-
sion for the safety of her young, and three pups were
reared to maturity in three seasons. This success, al-
though the result of eight years of experimentation,
caused six men who thoroughly understood the science
of rearing Foxes in captivity to engage in the industry of
raising Foxes for breeding purposes, but they jealously
and successfully guarded their secret until 1910. Up to
that time, with the exception of some light Silvers sent to
distant places, no live Foxes had been sold by them. The
surplus stock was always killed and the pelts marketed
in London. A dark silver pelt sold in 1901 brought £580
($2,718) at a London auction and in 1910 the prices of

Fur Farming. 33

£540 and £480 were received for two skins, these being-
the highest prices ever paid for Silver Fox skins.

At the present time there are about eighty ranches on
Prince Edward Island, stocked with about two hundred
fine dark Silver Foxes, about three hundred Silver Greys^
and something like four hundred very light Silver, Crossed
and Red Foxes. The total skin value of these animals is
about five hundred and fifty thousand dollars, and for
breeding stock they are worth at least three times that
amount; but it is safe to say that the industry could not
be purchased outright for three million dollars today.

The ranchers who obtain the best results have only
descendents of the stock originally caught on Prince Ed-
ward Island. All the high priced pelts that have been
referred to were from Foxes of this strain. If an ordinary
Red Fox of Prince Edward Island is bred to a black, and
the resulting young are bred to a black for four or five
generations, a good Silver Fox will result. The first cross
produces what is designated a ''Cross" or ''Patched"
Fox, the next mating produces a cross of a better quality
with hardly any reddish tinge in the hair, and with silver
patches on the back. The third mating w^ll produce a
light Silver Fox worth probably five hundred dollars, and
the result of the fourth mating will be a Dark Silver worth
upwards of one thousand dollars. Many farmers of small
means thus breed up their stock by the use of only one
high priced animal.

Where indiscriminate crossing of the colors takes place
under natural conditions Foxes occur in about the fol-
lowing proportion, and pelts bring the trapper or breeder
approximately the prices named : One hundred thousand
Red Foxes valued at five dollars each ; ten thousand Cross
Foxes valued at fifteen dollars each; one thousand light
Silver Foxes valued at two hundred dollars each, one hun-
dred dark Silver Foxes valued at a thousand dollars each.
It will be seen that the price is in inverse ratio to the num-
ber produced. Scarcity may influence the present price
of dark Silver Foxes, but there is no question of the great
intrinsic value of their pelts. They are marvels of rich-
ness and beauty, and even if produced in as great numbers
as the red ones would still be many times their value.
The price of dark Silver Foxes has always been high, and

34 Fur Farming.

always will be because that fur will be as popular with
royalty in the future as it has been in the past, and the
existing demand Avill be increased rather than diminished.
The enormous decrease in many costly furs, and the vastly
increased number of people demanding them, have brought
about a situation very encouraging for the domestication
of many animals, because of the great profits to be de-
rived from the industry.

There can be no question as to the possibilities of "fur
farming" when carried on by competent individuals.
The reports show that the Silver Fox industrj^ will bring
to the ranchers on Prince Edward Island over six million
dollars in 1913, and that orders have been placed there
for a large number of pairs of a particular breed at an
average price of ten thousand dollars per pair. In addi-
tion to the hundreds of private partnerships w^ith an ag-
gregate capital of one million five hundred thousand dol-
lars, there are over fifty registered companies with a total
investment of upwards of four million and a half; every-
one of any importance on the island seems to be interested
in this enterprise which is developing more millionaires
to the square mile on Prince Edward Island than are to
be found in any province in Canada.

The pioneer "Fox Farmer" on the island was Hon. Chas.
Dalton, a farmer of Irish descent, who after many experi-
ments and as many failures finally succeeded with the
help of his partner Mr. R. T. Oulton in raising near Al-
berton the first breed of Foxes reared in captivity. This
was twenty years ago, and as before stated up to 1910
the business was confined to the owners of the Dalton-
Oulton ranch, Mr. Robert Tuplin, Mr. Frank Tuplin, Mr.
Harry Lewis and a few others who were in the secret ; and
even now all the stock used on the many farms being
operated on the island comes from the Dalton and Oulton
original breed.

The Russian Government and the New Zealand authori-
ties gave an impetus to the industry when they sent ex-
perts to investigate, and upon their report invested one
hundred thousand dollars in young stock. Since that time
existing ranches have had more orders than they can fill,
even at a price of twelve thousand five hundred dollars
for a pair of Silver Black Foxes.

Fur Farming. 35

There need be no doubt as to the permanency of the
''fur farming" industry, for when the demand for one
species slackens there will be an increased market for
other animals; and there will always be a profitable sale
for valuable skins, even when there is no call for animals
themselves for breeding purposes.

If an animal as sensitive as the Fox can be successfully
reared in captivity, it is safe to assume that any species of
wild life can be propagated on fur farms established under
proper conditions.

The Kussian Sable is nearly as valuable as the dark
Silver Fox, coats of this fur often costing as high as
twenty-five or thirty thousand dollars and upward. The
writer years ago sold tAvo Black Fox skins for forty-five
hundred dollars, and a set of natural Black Fox fur worn
at the last New York Horse Show is said to have cost
the owner sixteen thousand dollars, although only four
skins were used in its manufacture. The writers referred
to at the beginning of this article justly claim that unless
immediate steps are taken to increase the number of Foxes,
Siberian and other Martens, Otter, Beaver and Mink and
some of the other valuable fur-bearing animals which are
capable of being domesticated; none but the very rich will
be able to buy furs. The fact that the Silver Fox has been
successfully domesticated by the efforts of a few men with-
out any encouragement of the government, and with no
financial backing except meager incomes from farming
and trapping, should inspire extensive governmental ex-
periments, to determine the feasibility of extending the
number of domesticated fur producing animals. With an
estimated yearly expenditure of from two to three hun-
dred million dollars for the skins of American reared ani-
mals alone, "why are the woods being depleted of our
handsome wild animals by such a cruel method as trap-
ping? Why are not the trappers converted into animal
husbandman 1 ' '

A Fox ranch may be from half an acre to five acres in
extent, and should be enclosed with a stockade fence ten
feet high with an inner wire fence of the same height, and
so constructed that the Foxes cannot escape by burrowing
underneath or climbing over the top. The kennels on the
inside — one for each pair — should be large and roomy,

36 Fur Farming. *

and contain dens where the Foxes can sleep and make
their nests.

Originally the cost of maintaining a pair of Foxes on
Prince Edward Island did not exceed seven dollars a year,
but with the growth of the industry the price of food stuffs
has advanced, so that the cost now is about twenty-five
dollars per annum.

SKUNK RAISING.

The Skunk has received more consideration from fur
farmers than any other animal, and where proper care and
judgment have been exercised skunk raising has always
proved a profitable investment for the time and money de-
voted to it. The few failures that have resulted have
been among the larger operators, whose knowledge of the
nature and habits of the animal, and the requirements of
the industry, were theoretical rather than experimental.
The people w^ho have started in on a small scale were for
the most part either trappers or others who had enjoyed
opportunities to study the animals and their wants, and
were in a position to give to the venture that personal and
comprehensive attention upon which the success of every
enterprise depends. This does not mean that those with-
out practical experience with the animals must necessarily
make a failure of fur farming. The point we wish to em-
phasize is, that the successful breeders of fur bearing ani-
mals are those who make a special study of the species they
are propagating, and who take the same interest in them
that they would in any strain of domestic cattle they were
trying to develope. The men who fail in fur farming are
those who neglect to study the habits of the animals, and
consequently know nothing about caring for them when in
captivity. In Silver Fox farming, where a pair of breed-
ing Foxes cost from six to twelve thousand dollars, capital
as well as knowledge is required to begin business unless
the breeder is in position to capture his own stock; but in
Skunk-raising, where a man can start with a half dozen
males and a couple of dozen females at an expense of a few
hundred dollars, the only essential element of success is
knowledge and faithful work.

Skunks breed well in captivity and will eat almost any
kind of food from carrion down to mice and insects ; they

Fur Farming. 37

are also partial to corn, sweet potatoes, melons and fruit.
In captivity they should be fed at regular intervals, and
given as far as possible a mixed diet — part animal and
part vegetable. Bread and milk should be fed them oc-
casionally, and if the farm is near a slaughter house the
offal can be made to take the place of carrion. As it is
lack of food that causes the older animals to eat their
young, breeders should see to it that they have plenty of
the right kind of food during the spring and summer sea-
sons, and thus prevent one of the great causes of loss.

Skunks mate in February or early in March, the period
of gestation is about nine weeks, and the young are usu-
ally produced in May, though occasionally some are born
in April. The number of young to a litter is from four to
ten, and sometimes even more. The interior of the en-
closure should be so constructed that there will be separ-
ate compartments for the males, and the females and their
young, the larger space being given to the latter. Some
breeders have small yards to accommodate two or three
families after the young are born, but this is not necessary,
the main object being to keep the males apart from the
rest of the family until the young are able to take care of
themselves. Of course when the number of animals in-
creases, it is advisable to have separate breeding yards
large enough for say a dozen females.

Great care should be exercised in the selection of males
for breeding purposes. Only large healthy animals of good
color should be used, the rest of the males being killed and
their skins marketed. One male Skunk will serve ten
females, and should be left in their company several days.
To make sure of results another male should be installed
for a few days after the first has been removed, but two
males should never be allowed with a party of females at
the same time or a fight will ensue. Fresh breeding stock
should be secured each year from other localities, as the
results will be disastrous if related animals are allowed
to inbreed for a few years. The animals do not always
breed strictly to color, but the white markings can be re-
duced and the stock improved by selected breeding. A
full black mated with a long stripe should produce shorter
stripe animals, and these if mated with full blacks should
give still better results. The color of Skunks can be bred

38 Fur Farming.

up as well as that of the Foxes. The best animals should
always be kept for breeding purposes. The fur farmer who
kills off his finest specimens to compete for the prizes of-
fered for the finest skins makes a fatal mistake. It is the
man who always breeds up to the best who has the finest
average skins to market.

As Skunks are found in all parts of the United States,
Skunk farms can be operated successfully anywhere that
the climate is cold enough in winter to cause the growth
of thick soft fur, but up to the present time this industry
has been largely confined to Ohio and Pennsylvania. A.
R. Harding in his book on Fur Farming, in writing about
enclosures, says :

''There should be a spring on, or a small stream crossing
the ground to be inclosed, but at the same time the ground
must not be wet ; in fact, it should be of rather dry nature
so that there will not be too much dampness in the dens.
There should be banks of earth for the animals to den in,
and the ground should have a gradual slope so that it will
drain readily. If it is of a sandy nature it will be all the
better. Some who have tried Skunk farming have located
the yards on the shore of a small lake or pond and have
included a portion of the pond in the enclosure. This is
a good idea and it will not be necessary to extend the
fence very deep into the water, as the Skunk is not a
water animal and will not dive under; where the fence
crosses a stream of running water however the fence
should reach to the bed of the stream as the water will
fall considerably during dry weather."

"The enclosures should be large. When the animals
are enclosed in small yards or pens they become infested
with fleas, ticks, etc., and they do not thrive. Small
enclosures will answer for a short time, but as soon as
possible the Skunks should be placed in a large roomy yard.
For fencing material galvanized wire netting of one-inch
mesh is advised, as the young animals will escape through
a two-inch mesh. The fence should be seven feet in height.
Under ordinary conditions the Skunk will not escape over
a four-foot fence, but there is danger in winter from drift-
ing snow, and dogs and other animals must be kept out
at all times, and therefore the fence should be of a height
mentioned and it must be turned in at the top or a sheet

Fur Farming. 39

of tin placed along the edge to prevent the animals from
climbing out."

''In each compartment ^ number of dens should be
made by digging a trench and covering afterwards. AVhile
the animals will dig dens if necessary, they prefer, even
while in a wild state, to use dens already made. Boxes,
barrels or pens with board floors should not be used.
Some of the successful breeders claim that this has a ten-
dency to cause a thick pelt and thin fur and say that it is
absolutely necessary that they have natural dens in the
ground. The dens should be made quite deep so that
there will be no danger from frost in winter."

MINK RAISING.

It is hardly possible to tame the adult wild Mink, but
the young submit to handling and can be easily domes-
ticated. Mr. Boughton says that the time to secure them
is in May or June when they begin to run with their dams
and can easily be tracked to their nests and dug out or
taken as they leave the hole. Owners of Mink breeding
stock ask very high prices, but in this w^ay a start can be
made in Mink raising at a trifling expense.

Minks are by nature solitary, wandering animals, and
it is impossible to rear them successfully in captivity if
large numbers are kept together, so their enclosure should
be a large one, and so arranged that the male and female
can be together frequently from the middle of February
to the middle of March, but kept separate at all other
times.

The season for mating is the first two weeks in March,
and the young are born six weeks later, four to six to the
litter. The young are blind five or six weeks, and are
weaned when from eight to ten weeks old. When four
weeks old the mother begins to feed them meat and con-
tinues to supply them with food until they are about
four months old. The young soon separate when left to
shift for themselves and do not pair, the male being a
rover. Minks are very cleanly, and as soon as the nest is
foul the mother moves the young to another nest.

Minks are strictly carnivorous animals and always pre-
fer fresh food, and therefore are not so easy to supply
with food as the Skunk or Muskrat; but as they are fond

40 Fur Farming.

of fish feeding will be comparatively easy if the enclosure
is near a place where fish can be obtained.

When the animals become tame enough, dens should be
provided for them similar to those used in their wild state ;
these can be made by burying tile in the ground, or by
making other artificial burrows. A few hollow logs
placed in the enclosure will be enjoyed by the animals.

If properly watered and fed, and given houses like
those they were accustomed to in their natural state, there
need be no fear that Minks will not fur properly in cap-
tivity; but as in the case of stock, and all species of fur-
bearing animals, it will not be the man who goes into Mink
raising only to secure a fortune who will obtain the best
results, but the breeder who loves the animals and studies
their needs and provides for their comfort.

Space will not permit us to describe as fully as we wish

some of the Mink enclosures the writer has seen, but in

the near future he hopes to publish a comprehensive

volume upon the subject of fur-farming which will deal

^ fully with this interesting subject.

41

THE FURRIERS.

At the present time the dividing lines between the dif-
ferent branches of the industry are not drawn as closely as
in the early days. Even the Hudson's Bay Company has
stores for the sale of manufactured furs, and some of the
large manufacturers have their own trading posts and
supply stations in the remote regions and are Skin Dealers
as well as Furriers.

Fifty years ago, the business of selling manufactured
furs in America w^as entirely in the hands of the fur
manufacturers themselves, and the wholesale and retail
hatters most of whom had a good general knowledge of fur
values and qualities.

About 1870, some of the New York manufacturers, in
an effort to increase the outlet for their products, induced
some of the wholesale dry-goods houses and larger
department stores to engage in the business of selling
furs; and ever since that time there has been a steady
rush of people, in all lines of business, to get a share of
a trade which they evidently believed still yielded to
those engaged in it as large a percentage of profit, as
was secured by the Traders who two centuries; ago swapped
beads and jack knives for skins with the unsophisticated
savages.

Many to their sorrow soon discovered that if honestly con-
ducted the fur business, like any other commercial pur-
suit, pays the dealer only a fair margin ; and that success
there as elsewhere depends upon a thorough knowledge
of the business. Where one has dropped out however
a poorer and wdser man, two have always been waiting
for a chance to risk the money gained in pursuits with
the possibilities of which they were familiar, in an uncer-
tain experiment along lines of endeavor of the inner
workings of which they knew little or nothing. The
natural result is that where two generations ago there
were a dozen responsible Fur ^lerchants, there are today
thousands of dealers handling furs with varying
degrees of success; and there has been a corresponding
increase in the number of so-called fur ''factories."

42 The Furriers.

Take Greater New York as an illustration. In 1870,
the fur business there was conducted along legitimate
lines b}^ John Ruszits, D. Greenfield, James Brodie, A.
Jacobson and Brother, L. Zechiel, G. Lowerre, Mischo and
Mueller, Frederick Booss, C. G. Gunther, Geo. C.
Treadwell, H. M. Silverman, M. Konvalinka, Charles
Herpich, Philip Weinberg, Nichols, Burtnett and Co.,
Harris and Russak, Duncan, Ash and Jaeckle, Balch and
Price, and a few other equally well known furriers.

Today the number of fur manufacturers, of differing
degrees of responsibility, who are competing for trade
in New York City runs way up into the thousands.
Many of them are worthy successors of the men who
in earlier days made New York the fur market of the
Western Hemisphere; but w^hether on the whole the
change from the old conditions to the new has been a
benefit to the trade, or the public, is a question for serious
consideration.

We all believe in the day of small things, and in the
fur business as in other lines of endeavor some of the
greatest successes have resulted from the smallest begin-
nings; but we can have too much of even a good thing,
and what seems to be needed just now in the fur indus-
try is more concentration, rather than a further division
of interests.

The small dealer who thoroughly understands the
details of the business in which he is engaged, and who
has a proper sense of responsibility, and an ambition
to establish a reputation for honorable competition and
fair dealing with customers, is always an influence for
good in the commercial life of his community; but the
class who rush into any line of business without any
knowledge of the value of the goods they offer for sale,
and with no other object than to divert to themselves
a share of some one else's profits, demoralize the trade
into which they inject themselves; and too often, when
they find they cannot make the expected enormous pro-
fits by the sale of legitimate goods, rob the public by
misrepresentation, and the substitution of inferior grades.

Many of the people selling furs today are neither Fur
Traders, Furriers, nor Skin Dealers as the men who sup-
ply the manufacturers with dressed skins are called.

The Furriers. 43

They are simply Dealers in Fur who have no experience
in manufacturing or technical knowledge of the value or
quality of skins. They handle only the products of other
makers, and are obliged to depend entirely upon the
representations of the manufacturers who supply them
with goods. The Furrier is the man upon whom the fur
buying public must depend for a square deal, whether they
purchase from him direct or from one of the dealers he
supplies.

The necessity of considering the responsibility of the
dealer when purchasing furs must be apparent to all who
remember what a large trade is carried on in what may
be termed artificial products. The common and cheaper
furs are often so prepared as to resemble rarer and
costlier articles. The skill with which piecing is done is
somewhat marvelous. All the clippings and cuttings of
furs have their uses, and pass into different hands for
various purposes. The life of a fur also depends largely
upon the method of dressing and the quality of the dye
used in coloring. The average purchaser cannot possibly
have the knowledge that will protect him from being
imposed upon by unscrupulous dealers. There are how-
ever so many responsible Furriers and Fur Dealers
large and small, that no one except those who are look-
ing for "something for nothing" need ever be the victim
of fraud or deception.

The story of the Furriers is not so full of dramatic
interest as the history of the Fur Traders, but they are
**the men behind the guns" without whose prosaic efforts
to make furs fashionable, and to stimulate the demand
at various times for different species by the creation of
new styles, peltries never would have become valuable
enough to cause the Fur Traders to leave their homes and
risk their lives in the pursuit of their calling.

To trace the origin of the trade in manufactured furs,
we would have to go back, almost, to the origin of man
himself. The writer finds as a matter of record that in
1251, in the account of the Master of Robes to Louis
IX of France, there is a charge for an ermine lining for
a surcoat ; in which three hundred and forty ermines were
used for the body of the garment, sixty for the sleeves and
waist band, and 336 for the frock. "tVe might mention, in

44 The Furriers.

passing, that the man who made that coat was not by any
means the first furrier; there were many others before
him. The heraldic furs of that age were the sable, the
ermine, the vair or blue squirrel, and the grison or badger,
which are as popular today as they were then; but the
furriers of that time had probably never heard of many
of the animals whose skins are being used today, and
would be as much surprised at the names under which
some of the animals with which they w^ere familiar are
being sold, as they would be startled at the business
methods of the present generation.

No one would care to go back to the time when farmers
swapped pumpkins over the fence, and the storekeeper's
principal business was trading merchandise with those
who were handling other lines of goods. Every reliable
furrier, however, is looking forward to the time when a
judicious regulation of credits, and the stringent enforce-
ment of laws against false representations, will prevent
the dishonest competition that for years has demoralized
an industry whose history for centuries has been a record
of great and honorable achievements.

In every line of industry standards will continue to be
lowered, and honest merchants will be at a disadvantage,
until fake advertising is made a states prison offense.
The man who secures a hundred dollars in cash by strain-
ing the truth is a criminal in the eyes of the law, but the
dealer who, by direct lies as to the quality of his wares,
obtains two hundred dollars for fifty dollars worth of
merchandise is a shrewd business man, in the opinion of
everybody, except the few who in some way find out that
they have been imposed on. The reputable furrier is the
greatest sufferer from this evil, because the purchasing
public know less about furs than they do about other
articles of merchandise, and a great many of the people
will buy any old thing, if they can be persuaded that they
are getting it for less than it is worth.

45

FUR MARKETS.

In the early days, St. Louis was the fur market of the
United States, as it was the starting point of all the expe-
ditions to the Far West, and the place where the skins
received from the Pacific Coast and the interior trading
stations along the old overland route, were either offered
for sale or reshipped to New York and Boston. Naturally
all the large fur companies had headquarters there, and
it was the Mecca alike of the trappers and fur traders who
had peltries to dispose of, and the furriers who were look-
ing for supplies. For a number of years, however. New
York, owing to the advantages it enjoys as the commercial
center of the country and the principal port of entry for
foreign merchandise, has been the place to which manufac-
turers and fur dealers from all parts of the United States
have gone for their skins, and manufactured furs. It was,
therefore somewiiat of a surprise when it was announced,
after the government had taken control of the fur industry
on the Pribilov Islands, that the first annual sale of seal
and fox skins by the representatives of the government
would be held at St. Louis on December 16th, 1913.

Heretofore, the skins of these animals were sent by the
leasees of the islands to London, to be sold at auction ; and
the December sales there attracted buyers from all parts
of this country, Europe and Canada ; so the action of the
authorities in designating St. Louis as the place for the
government fur sales will do much to restore that city to
its former important position in the fur trade, although
the facts do not warrant the statement made by the Asso-
ciated Press that the auction was awarded to St. Louis, bc"-
cause it was the largest fur market in the United States.

Tens of thousands of Russian sables, hundreds of thous-
ands of ermines, millions of squirrels and large quantities
of other Russian skins are sold annually at the fairs held
in Irbit and Nijni Novgorod, but Moscow is the fur center
of Russia, where a large part of the world's supply of
Russian Squirrels^ Ermines, Persians, Ponies, Marmots and
Foxes are originally marketed.

46 Fur Markets.

The Chinese traders are the principal purchasers at the
fair held annually at Kratka on the Chinese border; but
most of the Dog skins and mats, Goat skins and rugs, Thibet
lamb skins and crosses, and other Chinese furs, are exported
direct from Harbin, Mukden, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Peking^
Tientsen and the other points where they are collected.

Leipzig is an important fur center, and the price of
Astrachan and Persian lamb skins is largely determined at
the sales held at the fair which opens there each year the
first Monday after Easter.

Fairs are also held in Leipzig at New Year's and in Sep-
tember, but the chief mart for the sale of furs is the
Easter fair which lasts for two weeks from jtlhe first
Monday after Easter, and is attended by merchants from
all the large fur centers in the world. Some American
furs are sold at these fairs, but the principal offerings
are Cats, Squirrels, Persian Lambs and other Asiatic
furs.

The Irbit Fair on the Siberian side of the boundary
line between the two continents, is the mart for Russian
furs like Squirrel, Ermine, Fox, Beaver, Kolinsky, Rus-
sian Fitch, Sables, etc. The Nijni fair is more impor-
tant than the preceding, and large quantities of Persian^
Shiraz and Astrachan lambs, Squirrel skins. Ermine,
Bear, Mongolian Goat, White Fox, Wolf and Dog Skins
are sold there.

The great fur events of the year however are the sales
held in January, March, June and October of each year in
the city of London. The January offerings often consist
principally of muskrats, beavers and opossums. It is at the
March sales that the choicest collection of the Hudson's
Bay Company, and the finest consignments shipped to C. M.
Lampson and Company and other London ' brokers are
sold at auction to bidders from all garts of the world. Com-
paratively few buyers attend the June and October sales,,
when the offerings consist of the less desirable late catches
and of unsold lots remaining from the former sales. The
reports of the sales made by C. M. Lampson & Company,
A. & W. Nesbitt, Ltd., Anning & Cobb, Flack Chandler,
Goad, Rigg and Co., Culverwell, Brooks and Cotton,.
Dyster Haider, Henry Kiver, Barker and Co., Thorp and
Welby and Frederick Huth & Co., and the Hudson's Bay
Co. in 1913, will give an idea of the magnitude of the
different London sales at the present time.

47

DRESSING, DYEING AND IMPROVING.

At one time the Red Indian was undoubtedly the best
dresser of the skins of the Buffalo and other American
animals, and the present art of tanning was largely bor-
rowed from the savages. The skins are first placed in an
alkali bath, and when the pelt has become soft they are
taken out and tubbed; after this they are shaved by
passing them over a knife placed in an upright position.
Next they are buttered and put into a tub of sawdust, where
they are tread by half-naked men until the leather has
become soft and supple from the heat of the bodies of the
workmen. The skins are then taken out and cleaned and
finished. Generally speaking American skin dressers are
the best in the world, but in the dressing of squirrel skins
the dressers of Weissenfels, in Saxony, surpass all others.
This success is probably largely due to the nature of
clay and salt deposits available near the towm, but how-
ever this may be, nearly the whole community of Weissen-
fels thrives upon this one industry, in which hundreds of
men are employed to dress the skins, which are afterwards
sorted, matched, and sewed by thousands of women and
children into lining plates, that are acknowledged the world
over as being vastly superior to the products of their chief
competitors in this branch — the Russians.

P. L. Simmonds, writing on this subject, says:
''The ancients detached the flesh from the skins with
sharpened stones and dried them in the sun ; after which
they were, energetically rubbed with oil and grease
extracted from the intestines of the slaughtered animals,
and a polish was added to the skins by rubbing them with
porous stones. The hides of bullocks, horses and other
large animals were used to make the tents which sheltered
the early Patriarchs, and the skins of the leopards, tigers
and smaller animals supplied the wearing apparel with
which they were able to glorify themselves before their fel-
lowmen.

At a later period the adhering particles of flesh remain-
ing on the skin when it was wrenched from the animal
were removed with bone,, stone and iron instruments, and

48 Dressing and Improving.

the skins were washed so as to open the pores and
cleanse them from dust and dirt. After this was done they
were exposed to the frost. Later still it was discovered
that the skins w^ould be greatly improved by plunging
them into water containing a solution of alum, and then
putting them into vinegar. These baths protected the skins
from rotting. After they had been dried in the shade the
skins were moistened again and beaten, stretched and
otherwise manipulated until they were supple, clean, and
free from disagreeable odors. The Indians had a way of
loosening the skin from the smaller animals that was
cleaner than any other process. They would puncture the
skin in two or three places, where no injudy would be
done by the cut, and insert a quill. By blowing through
the quill the air would be forced betw^een the flesh and the
skin, which could then be stripped off without a knife. ' '

Catlin, in his "North American Indians," said: "The
Indians dress buffalo and other skins by leaving them
in a lye of water and ashes until the hair can be removed ;
then they strain them on a frame, or upon the ground
with stakes and pins driven through the edges into the
'earth. After they have been in this position for several
days with the brains of the buffalo or elk spread over
them, the squaws dry and soften the skin by scraping
the fleshy side with a bone sharpened at the edge upon
which they bear the total weight of their bodies.

As before stated, the Germans surpass all others in
dressing squirrel skins, and they have few equals in
dressing cats and beavers, the only objection to their
method being that it leaves the pelt of large skins
rather thick.

- The English specialties are chinchilla, marten, sable,
skunk and fox, the only objection to their processes
being that in cold climates the moisture in English
dressed skins is apt to freeze and cause them to become
hard. This never happens to Russian dressed skins, but
they have an unpleasant smell which it is hard to eradi-
cate. This is also true of the Chinese method, which
leaves a very unpleasant smelling powder on the skins, but
the Chinese are successful in dressing sea otters and tigers.

Fur Dyeing. 49

The dyeing of fur skins is an ancient art, but the pres-
ent generation has brought it to such a state of perfection
that, in many cases, no one but an expert can tell when
skins have been touched to deepen or change their color.
The English have long excelled in dyeing seal skins. They
first use a mordant of lime; and then, after the ground
color has been trodden in with booted feet, a dye com-
posed of copper dust, antimony, camphor, verdigris, and
roasted gall nuts is applied to the top of the fur with a
brush. Formerly twelve to fourteen coats of this dye were
applied, but at present the same results are obtained with
fewer applications, and some dyers now heat the dye and
dip the skins into the mixture. In fact the art of dyeing
with the brush has been largely superseded by the dipping
process, especially where vegetable dyes that will not injure
the leather are used. The Germans are unsurpassed in
dyeing black. Leipzig-dyed Persian, Astrachan and Ukrainer
lamb and Lynx skins have a brilliancy of color and
pliability of pelt that cannot be found in others. Whether
this is due to the nature of the water and the climate, or
the ingredients used and methods employed, is a disputed
question ; but American dyers are so rapidly improving in
seal and black dyeing that they will doubtless soon obtain
in these, as they have in so many other cases, results equal
to the best foreign products.

The art of imitating, changing and improving furs, is
carried on with very great success. By means of certain
operations and dyes, the leopard skin is imitated ; muskrats,
susliks and marmots are striped like mink ; wolves are made
to appear like foxes; martens, minks and sables are dark-
ened ; raccoons, opossums and white skunks are dyed black
or natural skunk color; silver foxes are successfully imi-
tated by dyeing the red fox skins and pointing them with
badger hairs; off color white foxes have the top hair dyed
so they look like the natural blue foxes ; and this year, we
even have bright yellow, sky blue and pink Belgian hares.

The seals, otters, beavers, conies, muskrats, and a number
of other animals have a soft, thick under fur, which is bet-
ter adapted for the purposes of the furrier's art when the
long stiff hairs which form the top skin have been removed.
These skins were formerly sheared, and later the long top
hairs were plucked out by hand; now the desired result is

50 Fur Dyeing.

accomplished by shaving a layer off the under side of the
pelt when these stiff hairs, which come further through
the leather than the under fur, are loosened so they can
easily be plucked from the fur side with blunt knives.
Many short hairs however elude this plucking process,
and these are removed by a machine which divides the soft
fur bj^ a current of air, and leaves the stiff hairs standing
alone so they can be sheared off close to the skin without
injury to the under fur.

English dyes are celebrated for their brilliancy,
but are said to reduce the quality of the skin.
The French dyers plunge the skins into a large vat
filled with logwood dyes. Owing to the vegetable nature
of their dye they do not reduce the quality of the skins
as much as the English dyes, but they are not as perma-
nent. Belgian dyed skins are not as desirable as the
French as cheap madder dyes are used in coloring them.
Strange as it may seem, the Chinaman, with all his
ingenuity, is a very poor dyer of furs.

SKINNING AND CASING.

The commercial value of a skin depends as much upon
the way it is removed from the animal and stretched by
the trapper, as upon the skill of the dresser. Otte^-s, foxes,
martens, minks, opossums, civets and skunks should be
cased ; that is, taken off whole. Beavers and raccoons should
be skinned open ; that is, ripped up the belly from the vent
to the chin, and the skin removed by flaying.

Where skins are to be cased a cut should be made up the
center of one hind leg and around the vent and down the
other leg; then if the tail is worth preserving, the skin
should be carefully stripped from the caudal bone without
cutting the skin, except in the case of skunks and otters,
whose tails should be split, spread and tacked on a board.
The skin should then be drawn back ovet the body, pelt
side out and fur in, the same as in skinning an eel or draw-
ing off a glove. It will peel oft' easily if a few ligaments
are cut. Care should be taken not to cut too closely around
the nose, ears and lips.

Fur Dyeing. 51

Cased skins should be stretched on boards, tapering from
four and one-half inches in width down to three inches for
mink, and from six to five inches for foxes. The boards
for the mink skins should be three feet long and those for
foxes four feet. Stretching boards should be rounded at
the small end, smooth and even on the edges, and not more
than three-eights of an inch thick; and the boards for the
mink should taper slightly dow^n to within four or five
inches of the point, and the fox boards to within eight
inches of the rounded end. Stretching boards for other
animals should be made in proportion, according to the
size and shape of the animal.

All the fat and flesh should always be removed from the
skin immediately after the skin is on the board. If a skin
is wet when taken from the animal it should be drawn
lightly on a board, flesh side in, until the fur is quite dry,
then the skin should be turned flesh side out and stretched.
Skins should never be dried in smoke or at a fire, nor in
the sun, as they are liable to become scorched or hard,
when they will not dress properly and are of no value.
They should be dried in a well covered shed or tent where
there is a free circulation of air ; and no preparation such
as alum and salt should be used, as it only injures them for
the market. The noses must never be stretched out long,
as fur buyers and dealers are inclined to class long-nosed
skins as ' ' southern ' ' and to pay a small price for them, as
all southern skins are much lighter in fur than those of
the north.

Foxes of the various kinds should be cased and put on
boards, fur side in, for a few days, or until dry. As the
pelt is thin, they dry soon, when they must be taken off
and turned fur side out. In shipping, care should be taken
that they are not packed against furs with the flesh side out.

Skunks should be cased fur side in. and stretched on
boards for several days. If the white stripe is cut out or
blackened it reduces the value of the skins.

Minks should be cased fur side in and stretched on
boards for several days, or until dry, and left with the fur
side in when removed from the board.

52 Taxidermy.

Muskrats should be stretched fur side. in for a few days,
and left fur side in when removed from the board. The
tails may as well be cut off when skinning, as they are
worthless.

Opossums are also best if stretched on boards fur side
in and left in that condition after removing the boards.
The tails should be cut off when skinning — they have no
value.

Raccoons should be stretched open ; that is, nailed flat on
boards, or the inside of a building. Some dealers allow as
much for coons cased, from any section, while others
prefer only southern coon cased.

Otters should be cased and stretched fur side in. The
pelt being thick and heavy they take several days to dry
properly. They should be shipped flesh side out.

Beavers should be split, but stretched round and left in
the hoop or stretcher for several days.

TAXIDERMY.

The old method of stuffing animals is as different from
scientific taxidermy as the skin covering of the aborigine
is from the finished fur garment of the fashionable society
woman. The taxidermist of today carefully molds a form
according to accurate measurements and photographed out-
lines, and after he has constructed a perfect model of the
animal the skin is stretched over it, the result being a re-
production as near to nature as it is possible to secure,
the effect in some cases being so life-like as to be startling.

Formerly the skins were wired or otherwise fixed on
an internal framework, and cotton, tow or any other
available material was introduced until the form was
stuffed to the desired shape; later a solid mass of tow
was shaped into something like the semblance of the
animal and introduced into the skin, which was then
molded upon this artificial body, but neither of these
processes produced the results obtained by the scientific
methods now" employed.

53

GRADING.

Beaver — Ten dollars is the present quotation for
"Large" raw Beaver skins; seven to eight dollars for the
''Medium;" five dollars for the ''Small," and three dol-
lars for the "Cubs." The best American skins come from
Canada, Maine and Nova Scotia.

The "Civet Cat" skins from the Northern portion of
the habitat of the Little Striped Skunk are worth about
ten cents more than those from the central and southwest-
ern states. These skins are graded as "Large," "Me-
dium" and "Small;" the relative values of the different
grades being seventy-five, fifty and thirty-five cents.

Domestic or House Cats are graded as "Black," Spot-
ted" and "Small;" the price for black being fifty cents,
for the spotted twenty cents, and for the small five cents.

Fishers are graded as "Dark," "Brown" and "Me-
dium," and the price is also influenced by the size and
quality; prime skins being worth from twelve to thirty
dollars and upwards.

Foxes — The finest Red Foxes come from Labrador,
Nova Scotia and Eastern Canada, and are worth raw
from four to twelve dollars each and upwards, according
to size, color and quality; Maine, Massachusetts, Vermont
and Ontario skins are worth a dollar less than the fore-
going, and a dollar more than New York, Northern Michi-
gan and Connecticut Foxes. Southern and Southwestern
skins are the poorest, and are worth less than half what
is paid for those secured in Maine and New York. The in-
termediate grades are obtained from the Central and West-
em States. No. 1 and No. 2 Foxes are also graded accord-
ing to size, "Large," "Medium" and "Small;" the No.
3 and No. 4 are all small.

The New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Michigan,
West Virginia and Northern Indiana and Ohio Grey Fox
skins are worth from ten to fifty cents more than those
from Virginia, Delaware, Maryland and North Carolina;
which in turn grade somewhat higher than the Southern
Ohio and Indiana, Kentucky, Missouri and Oklahoma
skins.

54 Grading.

Silver Foxes bring from one thousand to twenty-five
hundred dollars, according to size, quality and color.

The best American Lynx skins come from Canada,
Maine and Nova Scotia, and are graded as No. 1 — Large,
Medium and Small ; No. 2 — Large, Medium and Small ; No.
3, and No. 4; the prices ranging from three dollars to
twenty-five dollars and upward each.

Minks are graded closer than any other skins ; first they
are sorted with reference to locality, then they are graded
according to quality and color into dark and brown and
No. 1, No. 2, No. 3 and No. 4 skins, after which the No. 1
and No. 2 skins are again sorted into Large, Me-
dium and Small before a valuation is placed on them;
No. 3 skins are out of season skins of little value, and those
finally graded as No. 4 are small and stagy, or damaged
to such an extent that they are comparatively worthless.

Maine, Labrador, Nova Scotia and Eastern Canada
skins are known as ''North Eastern" Mink; those from
Northern New York and New England are called ''Eastern
Minks ; ' ' the Central and Southern New York and Michi-
gan, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Indiana, Ohio, Illinois,
West Virginia, North Carolina, Virginia, Northern Ken-
tucky, Delaware and Maryland Minks grade between the
*" Eastern" and the "Western" Minks, as the skins from
Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma and Nebraska are called.
"Southern" and "South Western" Minks are the lightest
in color and poorest in quality; but the "North Western"
skins from Wisconsin, Northern Michigan, Minnesota and
the regions beyond, are of good color, and while the fur
is not as soft or rich as that on the "Eastern" Minks, the
skins are so much larger that they often bring almost as
high prices as the "Eastern" skins although the general
average is considerably less.

Muskrats — Raw skin buyers pay from five to fifteen
cents more for "Large Winter" than they do for "Large
Fall" rats, and the "Small" skins are worth from fifteen
to twenty-five cents less than the large ones of the same
grade; when the price for perfect "Large Winter" skins
is fifty-five cents, "Kitts" are valued at about eight cents.

New York State, New England, Canada, New Bruns-
wick, Northern Pennsylvania, Northern New Jersey, Ohio,
Indiana, Michigan and Illinois Muskrats are worth from

Grading. 55

five to ten cents more than those from Delaware, Kansas,
W. Virginia, Virginia, Central Pennsylvania, Southern
Ohio, Southern New York, North Carolina, Kentucky,
Maryland, and Missouri. The poorest skins come from
Texas and Louisiana, and bring about half of the price
paid for the New York State skins, and about ten cents
less than Tennessee, Georgia and Alabama rats.

Black muskrats are more numerous in the Delaware,
Maryland and Virginia District than elsewhere, and are
worth about fifty per cent, more than the regular brown
variety; the comparatively small number of black skins
secured from the New York, New England and Canada
district bring about five cents more than the southern skins
of this variety.

Opossums are graded according to size and quality as
No. 1 — Large, Small and Medium; No. 2 — Large, Small
and Medium ; No. 3, and No. 4. The best skins come from
the Eastern and Central States; next in quality are the
skins from the old ''Border States," and the poorest skins
come from the South and Southwest; prices for No. 1 —
Large, range from sixty-five cents to ninety cents and up-
ward.

The finest American Otters come from Maine, Nova
Scotia, Labrador and Eastern Canada ; next in quality are
the skins from Northern New York, New England, West-
ern Canada and Northern Michigan; Pennsylvania, New
Jersey, Delaware, West Virginia, Mississippi, Northern
Kentucky, Illinois, Kansas, Virginia and North Carolina
skins are lighter in fur and color than either of the fore-
going, and the skins from the extreme southern states are
only worth about half the price paid for Canada and Maine
skins. Otter skins are graded No. 1, No. 2, No. 3 and
No. 4, according to color and quality, and then regraded
according to size as ''Large," "Small" and "Medium."

Raccoons — New York, New England, Canada, Northern
Pennsylvania and Michigan Raccoons are the finest; but
Central Pennsylvania and Michigan, Northern Ohio, Illi-
nois and New Jersey skins almost equal them in quality.
Central and Southern Ohio, Indiana, Kansas and Northern
Kentucky and Missouri skins are considerably lighter in fur
and color; and the skins from further south are still less

56 Grading,

valuable, those from Georgia and Florida being worth only
about one-third the price asked for skins from the New
York and New England district. Raccoons are graded
as ''Large," ''Medium" and "Small," according to size;
and as No. 1, No. 2, No. 3 and No. 4, according to quality
and color. A large No. 1 New York skin is worth from
three dollars and fifty cents upwards, the extra dark and
black skins bringing as high as seven dollars and fifty
cents.

H. B. Sable — "Dark" Eastern and Canada Martens are
worth from fifteen to eighteen dollars and upwards, some
bringing as high as ninety dollars ; the ' ' Brown ' ' skins are
worth about forty per cent, less, and the "Pale" skins
some fifty per cent less than the price asked for dark skins
of the same size and quality.

Skunks are graded as "Black," "Short Stripe," "Nar-
row^ Stripe" and "Broad Stripe;" the relative values of
the different grades being four dollars, three dollars, one
dollar and sixty cents, and seventy-five cents. The best
skunks come from New York, Northern Ohio, Northern
Pennsylvania, Michigan, Massachusetts, Connecticut,
Maine, Vermont and Canada ; but they are almost equalled
in quality by those from New Jersey, Central Pennsyl-
vania, West Virginia, Ohio, Illinois, Kansas, Nebraska and
Oklahoma. The skins from Indiana, Maryland, Virginia,
Southern Ohio, Northern Kentucky and North Carolina
are less desirable; and those from the other southern
states are poorer still.

Wild Cat skins are graded as "Large," "Medium" and
"Small," and the heaviest furred come from Canada and
Maine. Those from the Central States are of medium qual-
ity, and Southern and Southwestern skins are very poor.
Wild Cats, .quality for quality, are worth about one-third
the price of Lynx skins.

57

SIZE, COLOR AND QUALITY.

Wild animals, like human beings, seem to develop best
where they are obliged to put forth some effort to procure
the means for subsistence. The largest and most powerful
representatives of any species are not found in the fertile
valleys but on the barren mountains, and where the range
of a species extends through different latitudes the animals
increase in size as they move away from the equator and
approach the poles. The males of any species are larger than
the females. Inbreeding makes the stock become more
symmetrical but smaller, while crossing the various strains
produces larger animals.

With the exception of the beaver and Alaska red fox the
darkest hued representatives of every species are those liv-
ing nearest the equator. Cold seems to cause the fur of all
animals to become lighter in color, and white mammals as
a race are found only in the arctic regions. The fur also
becomes lighter with age, the new growth with a few not-
able exceptions always being darker than the old coat.
White, black, brown, and grey are the predominating colors;
but red and yellow mammals are quite numerous, and a
few species even show a blue tinge.

White has always been considered a mark of distinction
in fur. The North American Indian set a high value on a
white "Buffalo "and would give several horses in exchange
for it. The Alaska Indians would give five otters or foxes
for a single white marten. White elephants are regarded
with reverence in Siam. The sacred ox of India is white,
and the coronation robes of royalty have always been made
of white ermine.

The beaver attains its greatest depth of color in certain
districts of Canada, and the Alaska Red Fox is much
darker than the more southern representatives of the
species, but with very few exceptions there is a decrease
in pigment as animals move away from the equator and
approach the poles. The tropical mammals have been
known to become lighter haired when they have been
kept in captivity in colder climates.

58 Size, Color and Quality.

With the exception of the Badger, Hamster, Panda and
Ratel which are darker on the under than the upper parts,
all fur bearing animals have darker fur on the back than
on the sides and belly.

Albino specimens of different animals are occasionally
seen, but they are undoubtedly freaks rather than distinct
species of their genus.

The finest specimens of any species are found in the high-
est latitudes. On all animals the quality of the fur
improves with cold, being poorest on those whose habitat
is in the torrid zone unless they live at a sufficiently high
latitude to secure for them a low temperature. In the
temperate zone the quality of the fur depends upon the
severity of the winter. In all climates the fur of animals
found in the dense forests is deeper, silkier, and glossier
than that of mammals whose range is on the open steppes
or prairies; and animals living on the shores of lakes and
rivers have a finer, softer coat than those who are exposed
to the sea winds on the coast. The fur on all animals is at
its best when it is from one to two years old. On older
animals the hair is coarse and scraggy, while the pelt of so-
called baby skins is very tender and the fur on them is too
soft to be servicable. The fur on any animal usually reaches
its full growth in mid-winter, and only skins taken be-
tween that time and early spring are in fine condition;
before that time the hair is short and stagy, and later the
animal begins to shed its old coat for a new one and the
hairs of skins taken at that time will continue to fall out,
even after the skins have been dressed.

The sexes of cattle and sheep are about equal in num-
ber, and the same is true of dogs and seals the only
other animals of which we have any reliable statistics.
Naturalists generally claim that the number of females
in most species exceeds the males, but it is difficult to
understand upon what they base their calculations. If
it is upon the polygamous nature of most mammals the
seals are a positive proof to the contrary.

Size, Color and Quality.

59

RELATIVE DURABILITY AND WEIGHT.

The life of furs can now be so prolonged by dry cold
storage, which not only protects them from moths but
prevents the change of color and the deterioration that
formerly resulted from the evaporation in high tempera-
tures and hot atmospheres of the natural oils in the skin
and hairs, that the durability of the fur must be consid-
ered as well as the cost in determining its real value.

Taking the Otter at 100 as the standard the relative
durability of some of the best-known furs is shown in
the following table, which also gives the weight per square
foot of the skins mentioned :

Ounces.

Astrachan-Moire 10 — 3

Beaver-Natural 90 — 4

-Plucked 85—3%

Bear-Black or Brown. 94 — 7

Chinchilla 15 — 1%

Civet Cat 40—2%

Cony 20—3

Ermine 25 — l^i

Fox-Natural 40 — 3

-Dyed Black 25—3

-Blue 20—3

Genet 35 — 2%

Goat 15—41/8

Hare 5— 2l^

Jackal 27 — 414

Koala 12 — 4

Kolinsky 25 — 3

Krimmer 60 — 3

Leopard 75 — 4

Lynx 25—2%

Marmot-Dyed 20 — 3

Marten-Baum 65^2%

- '' Blended 45—2%
-Stone 45—2%

- " Dyed... 35—278
Mink-Natural 70— 3^^

-Dyed 35—314

-Japan 20 — 3

Ounces.

Mole 7—1%

Muskrat-Natural .... 45 — 314

-Seal 33—3^

Nutria-Plucked 25—314

Otter-Natural 100—4%

-Plucked 95—3%

-Sea 100—41/2

Opossum-Natural .... 37 — 3

-Dyed 20—3

-Australian.. 40 — 31^

Persian 65—3^

Pony-Eussian 35 — 3%

Rabbit 5—2^

Eaccoon-Natural 65 — 4i^

-Dyed 50— 4i^

Sable-Natural 60 — 2i^

-Blended 45— 21/2

Skunk-Natural 70—2%

-Tipped 50—2%

Seal- (Hair) 80—3

- '' -Dyed 75-3^4

-(Fur) 80—31/2

- '* -Dyed .... 70—31/8
Squirrel-Back 25 — 1%

- " Blended. 20—1%

Wolf -Natural 50— 6 1/2

-Dyed 30—6%

Wolverine 100 — 7

60 Annual Supply.

The foregoing figures refer to skins worked up into
muffs, neckpieces, caps, gloves and garments with the fur
outside. In estimating the wearing quality of linings for
women's wraps the Sable Gills, which weigh 2% ounces
to the square foot and have less than forty per cent, of
the strength of unplucked Otter fur, are taken as the
standard at 100. The relative durability and weight^ of
other linings is as follows :

Ounces, Ounces.

Coney 40—3 Sable-Skin 85—2%

Ermine 57— 1 Vo -Head 65—1%

Fox-White 50—3 Squirrel-Back 50—1%

Hamster 10— l^A -Belly 20—1^

Kit Eat 60—3 -Head 35— 2yo

ANNUAL SUPPLY.

All estimates as to the number of Fur-Bearing Animals
killed annually are largely speculative. It is true that the
sales reports from London, Leipzic and the Russian Fur
Markets show how many skins are sold each year at the
regular fur sales, but they do not tell how many of the
offerings were skins held over from previous years or re-
sold for former purchasers; and there is positively no way
of finding out how many skins pass directly from the hands
of the trappers and collectors into those of the manufac-
turers, nor how many are kept by the hunters for their
own personal use.

The following figures are based upon information
received from a number of sources, and while necessarily
only tentative give the reader an approximate idea of the
quantities of the various skins marketed each year, and
positive information as to the localities from which the
different kinds are obtained:

Annual Quantities.

61

America Europe

Asia

Africa and
Australia

Astrachan

Broadtail

Badger

Bassarisk

Bear-Black

-Brown

-Grizzly

-Polar

Beaver

Cat-Domestic

-Lynx

-Tiger

-Wild

Chinchilla (Peru) . .

-Bastard (Chili)

'' (Bolivia)

Chinchillones (Bolivia

and Peru)

Civet

"Civet Cat"

Coney (Rabbit) ....

Dog-Chinese, etc

Ermine

Fisher

Fitch (Pole Cat)....

Fox-Blue

-Cross

-Grey

-Kitt

" (Brazil)...
-(Patagonia) ...

-Red

-Silver

-White

Goats-Chinese

" Kids...

Guanaco (S. A.) . . . .

Hamster-Germany . .

-Austro-Hun-

gary

Jackals

Jaguar (S. A.)

Kolinsky

Kangaroo

Krimmer

Leopard

-Clouded ....

-Snow

Leopard Cats

100,000

30,000

100,000

30,000

25,000*

40,000

20,000

1,000

2,000

2,000

7,000

. . . .'. .

1,000

350

250

400

80,000

1,000

75,000

700,000

150,000

40,000

20,000

10,000

5,000

10,000

30,000

....;..

1,000

20,000

10,000

15,000

......

30,000

150,000

50,000,000

400,000

15,000,000*

150,000

10,000

750,000

......

12,000

150,000

200,000

5,000

700

2,500

15,000

10,000

50,000

150,000

10,000

40,000

60,000

......

10,000

200,000

700,000

200,000

50,000*

5,000

1,000

30,000

10,000

25,000
400,000
800,000

20,000

1,500,000
500,000

10,000

15,000

300

200,000
400,000

50,000*

5,000

6.000

250

750

5,000

62 Annual Quantities.

Africa and

America Europe Asia Australia

Lions 200

Lynx 50,000 10,000

Marmot 25,000 500,000 3,000,000

Marten-Baum 150,000

-Stone 250,000

Mink 500,000 500 20,000

-China (Weasel) 300,000

-Japan 200,000

-Kussian 20,000

Mole 1,000,000

Monkey 10,000

Moufflon 200,000

Muskrat 5,000,000 5,000

Musk Ox 500

Nutria (S. A.) 500,000 10,000*

Opossum 1,000,000 2,500,000*

Otter 30,000 20,000 40,000

-(S. A.) 5,000

-Sea 350

Palmi 80,000

Perwitsky 3,000 50,000

Persian Lamb 100 1,500,000

Poney 50,000 150,000

Eaccoon ; 500,000

Baccoon-Dog 300,000

Ringtails 50,000*

Sable-Russian 75,000

-H. B 100,000

-Japan 5,000

-Chinese 10,000

Skunk 1,200,000 10,000

-(S. A.) 5,000

Slink Lamb 100,000

-(S. A.) 350,000

Shiras Lamb 150,000

Squirrel 7,000,000 6,000,000

Susliki 500,000

Tiger 500

Vicuna (S. A.) 15,000

White Weasel ..... 200,000

Wallaby 750,000*

Wolf -Prairie 40,000

-Timber 8,000 5,000 15,000

Wolverine 3,000 1,000 4,000

Wombat 200,000*

Items marked * are Australian products exclusively.
The Japanese skins have been included in the Asiatic
estimates.

Annual Quantities. 63

The present yearly catch of Hair Seals is about 250,000.
Under the existing agreement between the maritime pow-
ers there will be no North West Coast Fur Seals for the
next five years, the killing of Alaska Seals on the Pribilof
Islands will be limited to about 3,000 a year and the
supply of Copper Island Skins will be less than 5,000 per
year. From the South Sea Islands about 5,000 skins are
received annually, and the same number of Cape Horn
Skins come into the market each year, together with 3,000
Cape of Good Hope Skins, and about 10,000 Lobos Island
Skins from the South Atlantic.

About one million of the European Rabbit skins come
from Russia, a half a million come from Germany, twenty
million from Belgium and the balance from France.

Holland supplies two hundred thousand of the Euro-
pean Cat Skins, Germany one hundred thousand, Russia
three hundred thousand, and the rest come from different
parts of the Continent.

Germany is credited with two hundred and fifty thou-
sand of the European Red Foxes, Russia with one hundred
and fifty thousand, and Norway with twenty-five thousand.
Of the Asiatic supply about sixty thousand come from
Siberia, and fifty thousand from China and Japan.

Most of the Tanucki or Raccoon-Dog skins are shipped
from Japan; but China furnishes about one hundred and
fifty thousand of the skins, and Korea about thirty thou
sand.

More than one-third of the European Pole Cats come
from Germany. The skins from the eastern provinces of
European Russia are so much like the Siberian variety
that they are included with the latter in the Asiatic
estimate.

Of the Baum-martens, fifty thousand come from Ger-
many, fifty thousand from Russia and twenty thousand
from Norway and Sweden.

Germany contributes one hundred thousand of the
Stone Martens, Bosnia and Turkey fifty thousand, and
Russia an equal quantity.

Of the Asiatic Marmots China and Manchuria supply
five hundred thousand. The balance come from Siberia.

64 Increasing Quantities.

^ith the exception of a few hundred thousand skins
from China and a small number from Japan, all the
Asiatic Squirrels come from Siberia. Six million of the
squirrel skins credited to Europe come from Kasan and
other Russian provinces.

INCREASING QUANTITIES.

In 1875, P. L. Simmonds said: ''It must be remembered
that fur bearing animals like human beings and cattle
are liable to periodical failures of food, or periodical inroads
of disease. Experience shows that their abundance runs in
cycles. The failure one year of an insignificant class of
animals may cause the decrease the next year of a far
more valuable beast which feeds on the former. The whole
chain of animal life is more or less linked together, and
the different species as they depend on each other fall off
or increase again, according as the supply of food and the
vigor of each class may be more or less abundant.

' ' In spite of the fact that some species have been extermin-
ated and others decimated by indiscriminate and Avanton
slaughter, on the whole the quantity of skins of wild
animals seems to be increasing yearly. We drive animals
back at some points, but for the last two centuries the grand
total of skins collected annually has been steadily increas-
ing; and it does not seem as if the globe was sufficiently
peopled yet for man to arrest the production of animal
life. In fact, agriculture increases the production of some
fur bearing animals by augmenting their food supplies;
and the changes in fashion give the species that is threat-
ened with extermination one year, an opportunity to
recover lost ground in the next while a new favorite is
being hunted. ' '

Some people may be disposed to question the truth of
the statement that upwards of a hundred million fur pro-
ducing animals are killed every year, but a careful con-
sideration of the statistics available shows that the actual
total for the past few years has far exceeded that figure;

Increasing Quantities. 65

and that some of the animals that are most hunted are
showing an increase in numbers instead of falling off, so it
appears that the contention of Mr. Simmonds is as true to-
day as it was nearly forty years ago. It is a fact that some of
the larger wild animals are, and have been for some time
past, steadily decreasing, but on the other hand there are
species that could be mentioned which are increasing in
numerical strength every year in spite of vast numbers that
are slaughtered to supply the demands of commerce.

The following figures showing the shipments of the Hud-
son's Bay Company in 1856 and 1875, were given by Mr.
Simmonds in support of his contention. The reader will be
interested in a comparison of these figures, with the reports
that show the quantities offered at the London sales by C.
M. Lampson & Co. in 1913.

1856 1875

Badger ' 1,105 2,001

Bear 9,255 5,898

Beaver 74,482 100,721

Fisher 5,182 2,186

Fox, cross 1,951 1,961

Fox, kitt 3,370 2,699

Fox, red 7,371 7,644

Fox, silver 613 603

Fox, white 10,292 4,333

Lynx and Lynx Cat 11,634 15,661

Marten 179,275 61,782

Mink 61,516 62,760

Musquash 258,791 503,948

Otter 13,740 9,825

Sea Otter 290 11

Porpoise, half skins 483 131

Rabbit 90,937 48,291

Raccoon 1,798 1,632

Seal, fur 36 1,427

Seal, hair 5,263 3,743

Skunk 11,319 2,331

Wolf 7,576 1,608

Wolverine 1,142 1,052

Total 757,431 842,248

66 Increasing Quantities.

C. M. LAMPSON & CO. REPORT, 1913.

January March June October

Badger 1,887 3,529 4,438 2,904

-Japanese ... 1,254 1,935 978 1,092

Bear 3,150 5,294 3,966 5,098

Beaver 7,575 7,498 3,417 4,580

Cat-Civet 37,102 37,349 19,894 13,823

-House 14,561 35,239 23,450 24,427

-Wild 8,942 6,594 5,797 13,977

Chinchilla-Bastard

-Real 3,624 12,300 1,731 2,339

Ermine 58,747 79,718 70,315 43,252

Fisher 433 1,042 448 499

Fitch 4,050 6,777 10,043 8,145

Fox-Blue 248 2,388 88 787

• -Cross 539 2,030 502 1,041

-Grey • 5,720 13,418 7,291 6,593

-Kitt 17,806 5,893 8,146 31,443

-Japanese 4,474 3,106 1,679 6,058

-Red 15,393 17,889 26,254 36,859

-Red Australian.. 45,695 19,995 10,560 49,457

-Silver 77 553 113 213

-White 5,196 2,279 1,018 4,250

Kangaroo 4,022 4,295 695 16,682

Kolinsky 18,646 22,900 15,326 86,945

Lynx .\ 1,571 717 2,651 3,161

Marten 6,428 8,879 5,997 6,257

-Baum 541 471 977 1,093

-Japanese .... 5,453 550 683 2,369

-Stone 1,033 2,596 1,939 2,052

Mink 32,620 51,125 12,203 24,671

Mole 203,985 312,449 447,164 491,526

Muskrat 1,635,768 826,394 784,575 614,273

-Black 10,870 17,060 36,105 12,729

Opossum-American . . 272,068 323,393 165,552 54,581

-Australian . 90,155 87,500 20,498 77,447

-Ringtail... 61,641 33,234 3,741 193,426

Otter 5,003 4,426 2,403 2,571

Raccoon 70,914 140,611 54,966 36,229

Sable-Japanese 57 170

-Russian 1,670 8,294 59 1,487

Prices. 67

January March

Seal-Dry Hair 1,229 207

-Dry Fur 204

-Salted Fur 5,570 1,795

Sea Otter 81

Skunk 314,783 334,379

Squirrel 212,790 123,197

-Sacs & Plates 7,919 4,932

Wallaby 331,017 171,117

Wolf 18,036 20,380

Wolverine . 250 692

Wombat 1.106 252

June

October

87

17

34

570

7,010

155,038

59,438

141,658

150,532

4,314

5,906

152,702

225,654

8,312

6,487

190

609

1,622

1,696

PRICES.

The prices of skins are regulated by the condition of the
pelt as well as the quality of the fur. If they have been
torn in the trap or riddled with shot or otherwise mutil-
ated they cannot be graded as No. 1 skins, no matter how
fine the quality of the fur. The skins that have been well
stretched and dyed bring better prices than those of the
same quality that have been carelessly handled. Collectors
always prefer minks, muskrats, otters, fishers, opossums and
skunks when they are ''cased"; that is, not cut open on
the belly. Experts are able to judge the quality of cased
skins by the appearance of the pelt. The veiny skins are
generally poor in quality; and half-seasoned skins have a
dark bluish stripe down the back or side. The pelt of stagy
skins is quite dark, having a uniform blue hue.

The question of locality is also an important factor in
determining the value of skins; for instance, the finest
skunks are found in Ohio, while the best minks come from
northern New York, Maine, and Nova Scotia. As a gen-
eral rule the furs of the eastern are better than those of
the western provinces of Siberia; but the ermine near the
Rivers Irkutz, Oby and Ishin form a notable exception,
being worth three times more than those found beyond
the Lena River.

68 Prices.

An idea of how the prices of certain skins have advanced
can be formed by a comparison of the fibres quoted in
1875, and the prices ruling today :

1875

Beaver $1.00 per lb.

Bear— Black 5.00— 8.00

Bear — Brown 7.50

Ermine .50

Fisher 5.00

Fox— Black 100.00

Fox— Blue

Fox — Cross

Fox — Grey

Fox— Red

Fox— Silver 50.00

Fox— White

Fur Seal 10.00

Lynx 3.00

Marten 5.00—10.00

Mink 2.00

Muskrat .20

Marmot (Siffleur) .50

Otter — Common 5.00

Otter— Sea 50.00—80.00

Squirrel .12

Wolf 2.50

Wolverine 1.00

Wild Cat .75

During the period from 1882 to 1910 Black Foxes ad-
vanced 400% in price, Red Foxes 500%, Sea Otters 300%,
Lynes 800%^, Persians 300%, Chinchillas 1,400%, Skunks
250%, Minks 800%, Muskrats 500%?,, Marmots 500%,
Stone Martens 450%, Sables 400 %?, Japanese Mink 500%,
Japanese Marten 1,000%, Japanese Fox 500%, Chinese
Weasels 500%, Australian Opossum 1,200%, Kangaroos
1,200%, Native Cats 1,200%, Wallabies 1,600%,, and
Wombats 600%.

The following table shows the number of skins shipped
from Alaska during the year 1913 and the prices at which
they were billed to the consignees :

1913

Each.

8.00—

25.00

8.00—

50.00

15.00—

30.00

1.50

5.00

15.00

50.00

500.00 1800.00

35.00—

100.00

20.00—

100.00

3.00—

7.00

5.00—

20.00

125.00 1200.00

20.00

50.00

30.00—

125.00

12.50—

50.00

10.00

50.00

2.50

20.00

.40—

1.00

1.00

2.00

10.00

60.00

250.00 1800.00

.40

.75

2.00—

12.00

12.00

30.00

1.50—

10.00

Prices. 69

Average Total

Species Number Value Value

Bear, black 698 $ 7.50 $ 5,212.50

Bear, brown 19 9.00 171.00

Bear, glacier 5 15.00 75.00

Bear, polar 9 40.00 360.00

Beaver Sd 10.00 890.00

Ermine 7,957 1.36 10,821.52

Pox, black 3 600.00 1,800.00

Fox, blue 502 45.00 22,590.00

Pox, blue, Pribilof Islands 384 56.53 21,708.48

Pox, cross 603 17.00 10,251.00

Pox, red 8,018 8.50 68,153.00

Pox, silver gray 142 250.00 35,500.00

Pox, white 3.108 12.50 38,850.00

Pox, white, Pribilof Islands 29 17.29 501.43

Hare, Arctic 55 40 22.00

Lynx 2,720 21.50 58,480.00

Marten 12,999 12.50 162,487.50

Mink 31,363 4.50 141,133.50

Muskrat 123,925 .40 49,570.00

Otter, land 1,480 14.00 20,720.00

Otter, sea 1 200.00 200.00

Reindeer, fawn 4 1.00 4.00

Seal, fur 3,764 37.50 141,290.32

Seal, hair 333 1.50 499.50

Squirrel 611 .08 48.88

Wolf 103 9.00 927.00

Wolverine 189 10.00 1,890.00

Total $794,156.63

TARIFF.

Long before General Hancock said, "The tariff is a
local issue, '^ John Jacob Astor proved by the representa-
tions he made to the government on two different occasions
that what the American business man really wants is pro-
tection for the product he is selling, and an open market
for the goods he is compelled to buy. In 1807, when he felt
that the Mackinaw Company and other competing traders
were interfering with the profits of his business, Mr. Astor

70 Tariff.

asked the government to aid and protect him in a scheme
that would secure to him a virtual monopoly of the fur
trade of America. In 1829 he addressed the following letter
to Senator Bentley with reference to duties imposed on ar-
ticles that he traded to the Indians : ' ' It is known that none
of the woolen goods fit for the Indian trade such as Indian
blankets, strouds, and cloths of particular descriptions are
as yet manufactured in this country. We are therefore
obliged to import them from England, and it so happens
that those are just the articles paying the heaviest duty.
The English traders have theirs free of duty which enables
them to bring their goods sixty per cent and over cheaper
than we pay, and they are thereby enabled to undersell
us. Their furs and skins cost them a little more than half
what we have to pay for ours, but this is not all. They
are by these same means enabled to sell their furs here
in New York, and actually do come and undersell the
American traders. It is unaccountable that they should
be permitted to bring their furs here free of duty, while
we if we send any to the British Dominion are obliged to
pay fifteen per cent duty."

If the duty could have been taken off the woolen goods
and put on the furs Mr. Astor probably would have been
satisfied ; but how about the other fellow ?

The reader doubtless smiles at Mr. Astor 's inconsistency,
entirely oblivious of the fact that history repeats itself and
that we of today, sub-consciously perhaps, take the same
position. The furrier who worked to keep the duty at from
fifteen to fifty per cent, on manufactured furs cannot un-
derstand why the government compells him to "pay trib-
ute" to the sugar trust by keeping a tariff on that product
for the next three years ; and the man who feels that he has
been unfairly dealt with because the duty on wool was
reduced insists that he ought to have the right to buy his
furs where he can get them the cheapest. From all this
it seems as if the tariff is not even a local issue but simply
a question of individual profits, and that men uphold or
condemn the tariff legislation which from time to time

disturbs the commercial interests of the country according
to its effect on their personal interests.

Tariff. 71

The Tariff Act passed by the United States Congress
October 3, 1913, provides that raw skins shall be admitted
duty free, but that "furs dressed on the skin, not advanced
further than dyeing, shall be taxed 30 per centum ad val-
orem ; plates and mats of dog and goat skins, 10 per centum
ad valorem ; manufactures of furs, further advanced than
dressing and dyeing, when prepared for use as material,
joined or sewed together, including plates, linings, and
crosses, except plates and mats of dog and goat skins, and
articles manufactured from fur not specially provided for
in this section, 40 per centum ad valorem; articles of
wearing apparel of every description partly or wholly
manufactured, composed of, or of which hides or skins of
cattle of the bovine species, or of the dog or goat, are the
component material of chief value, 15 per centum ad valor-
em; articles of wearing. apparel of every description partly
or wholly manufactured, composed of or of which fur is
the component material of chief value, not specially provid-
ed for in this section, 50 per centum ad valorem ; furs not on
the skin prepared for hatters' use, including fur skins
carroted, 15 per centum ad valorem."

Because there is no duty collected by the British Gov-
ernment on dressed skins or manufactured furs shipped
into England, the impression is rather general that the
Canadian furriers are not obliged to pay a tax on the
dressed skins and furs imported by them from the Mother
Country. As a matter of fact the 'Canadian Government
imposes a duty of twenty-five per cent, on all manufactured
furs, and seventeen and one-half per cent on all dressed
skins brought into the Dominion from other parts of the
British Empire. The tax on dressed skins shipped into
Canada from foreign countries is twenty per cent, and on
manufactured furs it is thirty per cent. Raw skins are
admitted free. Germany, like England, admits manufac-
tured furs, and dressed as well as raw skins duty free,
but France and Russia now impose a tariff on dressed
skins and manufactured furs.

72 Imports, Exports and Restrictions.

IMPORTS AND EXPORTS.

The total value of the dressed skins and manufactures
thereof shipped into the United States from foreign ports
during the calendar year 1912 was $7,973,480, and the
value of the raw skins imported that year was $17,708,663.
The receipts from Germany, were valued at $8,863,9*91;
from England, at $4,652,687 ; from France, at $3,617,752 ;
from Belgium, at $2,486,246; and those from all other
countries at $6,051,358.

The value of the domestic furs and skins exported dur-
ing the same year was $16,297,938; fifty per cent of the
total going to England and her possessions, forty per cent
to Germany, and ten per cent to various other countries.

RESTRICTIONS.

Full particulars as to the restrictions placed upon the
slaughter of fur seals, and the introduction of fur seal
skins and garments into the United States from foreign
parts, appear in the chapter on Fur Seals. The govern-
ment also regulates the killing of arctic foxes on the
Islands in the Bering Sea, and from time to time has
established closed seasons for the protection of the beaver
and other animals to secure the conservation of some of
the valuable North American fur producers ; and a num-
ber of states have established closed seasons for different
animals.

The Russian government has recently declared a closed
season for Sables in! Siberia, the Chinchilla is being
protected in Bolivia, and restrictions have been placed
upon the slaughter of Sea Otters, and various other valu-
able fur producers in different parts of the world that
have been decreasing in numbers because of a steadily
increasing demand for their skins. On the other hand
the restrictions placed upon the killing of a number of
other animals have been removed because of the rapidity
with which the species have increased under a protective
policy.

The Canadian authorities were among the first to estab-
lish closed seasons for the conservation of fur bearing
animals that were threatened with extermination, and
Otter, Beaver, Fisher, Sable and Mink can only be taken
at certain seasons in most of the provinces of Canada.

Closed Seasons. 73

In Alaska south of 62° north latitude the Brown Bear
can be hunted only from October 1 to June 30.

In Iowa the open season for Beaver, Otter, Mink and
Muskrats is from November 1 to April 30, In Kentucky
the closed season for Otter, Beaver, Mink and Raccoon
is from March 1 to November 15.

In Maine, Mink, Sable and Fischer can be taken from
October 15 to April 30, but Muskrats are protected until
December 1.

The open season in Michigan for Otter, Fisher and
Sable is from April 30 to November 15, and for Mink,
Raccoon, Skunk and Muskrat from September 1 to Novem-
ber 1.

In Minnesota, Mink and Beaver can be taken only from
November 15 to April 15.

The closed season for Bear in Mississippi is from No-
vember 15 to March 1.

The catching or killing of Beaver and Otter is pro-
hibited in Nebraska, North and South Dakota, Utah and
Vermont.

Sable, Fisher and Otter can be hunted in New Hamp-
shire from October 15 to March 31.

No one is allowed to kill or capture Beaver in New
York state, and Mink, Skunk and Muskrats can be taken
in that state only from October 15 to April 30.

Pennsylvania has a closed season for Bears from
March 1 to October 1. and protects the Beaver at all
seasons.

In Wisconsin the closed season for Otter is from Feb-
ruary 15 to March 1 ; for Fisher, Sable and Mink from
March 1 to November 1; and for Beaver from May 1

74 Fur Traders Lexicon.

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™ ^ f^ to C ., ris

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CQ 00

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n

s .1 . g„ ! iiiiiiii.||gi bill- lis i

Flr Traders Lexicon. 75

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c

£2a. .- ^o^ So >S§

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^

rt

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76 Fur Traders Lexicon.

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t->

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Fur Traders Lexicon. 77

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3

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Fur Traders Lexicon.

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Fur Traders Lexicon. 79

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o -s ^ s ^ I ^ '^ - .s S -g g =g g ^ ?q ^-g rt 1^ s go SdO o 7^ B -g -^ £ -^ 3

3 " 53

£ 3 = g 3-S-g.S§o|£2 J'SS BMM = g .3

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lot
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80 Fur Traders Lexicon.

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-2

P

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FvR Traders Lexicon. 81

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82 Fur Traders Lexicon.

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■£ ^ - S N

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Fur Traders Lexicon. 83

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53

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34

Fur Traders Lexicon.

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85

CLASSIFICATION.

ALL the individuals of any particular kind constitute a Species;
closely allied species are assigned to a common Genus; nearly-
related genera are considered as being of the same Family;
families having a general similarity in external appearance are treated
as belonging to the same Order; orders that are alike in some impor-
tant character are placed together in a Class; and, finally, the three
classes of animals possessing a Vertebra are grouped in one Sui-
Kingdom of the Animal Kingdom; the other sub-kingdom being com-
posed of the seven classes of Invertebrates:

Protoza — Cell organisms, such as- microbes, parasites, etc.
Coelenterata — Sea Anemones, Medusas, Coral, Sponges, etc.
Echinodermata — Sea Urchins, Sea Eggs.
Vermes — Worms.

Molluscoidea — Brachiopods, like snails, etc.
Mollusks — Bivalves — Oysters, Clams, etc.

Anthropoda — Insects, Spiders, Scorpions, and Crustaceans like
Crabs, etc. This is the most advanced class of the Inver-
tebrata, and the largest class in the Animal Kingdom,
including over 200,000 species.
All fur-bearing animals belong to the class Mammalia, of the sub-
kingdom Vertebrata, which includes over 3,250 species, grouped under
1,000 genera, into 150 families, and eleven orders. The following
charts and tables show the proper grouping, and the relations and
affinities each to each, of the different species, which come within
the scope of this work.

In the Classification Chart and Alphabetical List of Species the
accepted technical designation of the type species alone is generally
given, but in some cases the number of different varieties, or acknowl-
edged sub-species, of the animal is indicated by the figures in
parenthesis. The alphabetical list gives the technical designation of
each variety of the different species of the bear, so that the reader
may understand the apparent confusion of terms, where one writer
refers to the Grizzly as Ursus-horribilis, and another speaks of the
varieties of that animal found in Alaska and Mexico as Ursus-
alacensis and Ursus-horriaeus respectively.

86

Classification Chart.

Sub-Kingdom

Class

Order

Vertebrata

r Sauropsida — Birds and Reptiles.
Ichthyopsida — Amphibians and Fish.

1. Primates — Man, and manlike mam-
mals, such as apes, baboons, lemurs,
monkeys, etc.; sometimes called
quadrumana because of their ability
to use both back and front feet as
hands.

2. Chioptera — Mammals possessing the
power of true flight — Bats.

3. Insectivora — Insect-eating m a m-
mals, like the Shrew, Mole, and
Hedgehog.

4. Carnivora — Mammals who subsist
entirely, or in part, on the flesh of
other Vertebrates. This order is
divided into two sub-orders; the
fin-footed water carnivore, the seals
and walruses, being known as Pin-
nipedia; and the land carnivore as
Fissipedia.

5. Ungulata — Hoofed mammals, nearly
all of whom are herbivorous rumi-
nants.

6. Sirenia — Purely aquatic mammals —
Manatis, Dugongs, Northern Sea
Cows.

7. Cetacea — Fish-like formed mammals
—Whales, Porpoises, and Dolphins.

8. RODENTIA — Mammals who gnaw their
food ; like Eats, Squirrels, Rabbits,
and Beavers.

9. Edentata — Mammals without front
teeth, and in some cases entirely
toothless; like Ant-Eaters, Sloths,
Pangolins, and Armadillos.

10. Marsupialia — Pouched Mammals,
Implacentals; like the Kangaroo
and Opossum.

11. Monotremata — Egg-laying Mammals,
like the Australian Duckbill and

[ Echidnos.

Mammalia

Classification Chart. 87

a
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poo coko^ 055 obwcboiiij

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f^f^ pHp^fi^ p^p^ p^ Pm Ps fk^ Pn

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88 Classification Chart.

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98 Alphabetical List of Species.

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Alphabetical List of Species. 99

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102 - 'Alphabetical List of Species.

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Alphabetical List of Species. 105

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106 Alphabetical List op Species.

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Alphabetical List of Species. 107

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108 Alphabetical List of Species.

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Ill

THE MAMMALIA.

All Fur Bearing animals suckle their young and con-
sequently belong to the class Mammalia, of which Cuvier
says:

"The Mammalia is placed at the head of the animal
kingdom, not only because it is the class to which man
himself belongs, but also because it is that which enjoys
the most numerous faculties, the most delicate sensations,
the most varied powers of motion; and in which all the
different qualities seem combined in order to produce a
more perfect degree of intelligence. It is also the most
fertile in resources, most susceptible of perfection, and
least the slave of instinct.

"As their quantity of respiration is moderate Mammals
are designed in general for walking on the earth with
vigorous and continued steps. The forms of the articu-
lations of their skeletons are consequently strictly defined.

"The upper jaw in all of these animals is fixed to the
cranium; the lower is formed of two pieces articu-
lated by a projecting condyle to a fixed temporal bone;
the neck consists of seven vertebrae, one single species
which has nine excepted ; the anterior ribs are attached be-
fore, by cartilage, to a sternum consisting of several ver-
tical pieces; their anterior extremity commences in a
shoulder-blade that is not articulated, but simply sus-
pended in the flesh, often resting on the sternum by means
of an intermediate bone, called a clavicle. This extremity
is continued by an arm, a fore-arm, and a hand, the latter
being composed of two ranges of small bones, called the
carpus, of another range called the metacarpus, and of
the fingers, each of which consists of two or three bones,
termed phalanges.

The hind limb, according to Lydecker, differs from the
fore-limb "in that the innominate or haunch-bones which
together form the pelvis, are connected by an immovable
bony union with the sacral region of the vertebral column.
The thigh-bone or femur, corresponding to the humerous
of the arm, articulates with a cavity in the innominate

112 The Mammals.

termed the acetabulum. The leg has two parallel bones
articulating with the lower end of the thigh-bone or
femur; of w^hich the larger or tibia, occupying the inner
side of the limb, corresponds to the radius of the fore-
arm, while the smaller outer bone or fibula, represents the
ulna. The ankle, or tarsus, corresponds to the carpus in
the fore-limb, and likewise consists of two transverse rows
of small bones. Two bones of the uppermost row, viz. the
calcaneum or heel-bone, and the astragalus or ankle-bone,
are specially modified. In the foot proper the bones cor-
respond with those of the hand; those representing the
metacarpals being, however, termed metatarsals.

''Most of the mammals have five fingers and toes, or
digits, on each foot or hand, but in some cases there is a
tendency to the reduction of the number of digits; cattle
and deer having only tw^o, corresponding to the third and
fourth of the typical series of five ; while in the horse only
a single digit remains, which in the fore-limb corresponds
to the middle or third finger of the human hand, and in
the hind-limb to the middle toe.

"Almost all Mammals) when adult have both jaws
provided w^ith a series of teeth varying greatly in num-
ber and structure in the dijfferent groups. These teeth
are almost invariably fixed in separate sockets; and while
the front teeth have but a single root or fang, the side or
cheek-teeth very generally have two or more such roots,
each of which occupies a separate division of the socket.
In all cases the teeth are fixed in their sockets merely by
the aid of soft tissues connected with the gum and are
never welded to the jaws by a deposit of bone. Very gen-
erally there is a sharply-marked line of division, termed
the neck, between the root, or portion of the tooth im-
planted in the jaw, and the crown or exposed portion.

"In most of those Mammals in which the teeth of dif-
ferent parts of the jaw differ in structure from one an-
other, there are two distinct sets of teeth developed dur-
ing life. The first of the two includes the milk or baby
teeth, which are generally shed at a comparatively early
age. They are of small size and few in number, and are
finally succeeded by the larger and more numerous perm-
anent set, which remain during the rest of life, unless
previously worn out.

The ^Mammals. 113

''Those Mammals in which the permanent teeth
differ from one another in form in different regions of the
jaw, we are enabled from their position, and also from
their relations to the temporary series of milk-teeth, to
divide into four distinct groups. Taking one side
of the upper jaw of the dog we find the front
bone, or premazilla, carrying a small number of simple
cutting teeth, termed incisors. Behind these teeth, from
which it is generally separated by a longer or shorter gap,
there is a tooth with a simple and often conical croAvn,
which, like the incisors, is inserted in the jaw by a single
root. This tooth, which is usually larger than the in-
cisors, is termed the tusk, or canine tooth, and in the wild
boar and most Carnivorous Mammals attains a very large
size. It can always be distinguished from the incisors by
the fact that it is implanted in the maxilla, or second bone
of the jaw, or at least on the line of junction between that
bone and the premaxilla. Behind the canine we have a
series of teeth, which may be as many as seven, with more
complicated crowns, and except the first, inserted in li:e
jaw by two or more roots. This series may be collectively
known as the cheek teeth; but they may be divided into
two minor groups according as to whether they are pre-
ceded by milk-teeth or not. In the dog the four teeth im-
mediately behind the canine, w^ith the exception of the
first, are the vertical successors of milk-teeth, and are
known as premolars ; while the two hindmost teeth v/hich
have no such temporary predecessors, are known as true
molars, or molars. In the lower jaw the tooth, u«;ually
larger than the others, which bites in front of the upper
canine is the lower canine. In advance of this tooth are
the incisors, and behind it the pre-molars and molarg, dis-
tinguished from one another in the same manner as are
the corresponding teeth of the upper jaw.

''With the exception of the Pouched Mammals, there
are in practically all the Mammals with teeth of different
kinds, never more than three incisors, one canine, four
premolars, and three molars on eithei side of each jaw;
80 that the total number of teeth on both sides of the two
jaws is not more than forty-four.

"In regard to the external covering, hairs are always
present on some portion of the body during some period

114 The Mammals.

of life. In the whales these hairs may, however, be re-
duced to a few bristles in the region of the mouth, which
disappear when the animal attains maturity. Mammals
never develop that modified kind of hair-structure known
as feathers, which are peculiar to Birds. The body may,
however, be covered with overlapping scales, like those
so common in Reptiles, but this occurs only in the pan-
golins, or scaly ant-eaters of India and Africa. The tail
of the common rat is an example of a part of the body
covered with scales, having their edges in opposition; but
in both these instances hairs are mingled with the scales.
Still rarer than scales are bony plates, developed in the
true skin. At the present day these structures are only
met with among the well-known armadillos of South
America, which are furnished with bucklers and trans-
verse bands of these bony plates, and are in some cases
able to roll themselves up into a ball, presenting on all
sides an impenetrable coat of mail. Between the plates
of the armour of the Armadillos hairs are always devel-
oped, and in one species these are so abundant as to com-
pletely hide the plates themselves, and render the gen-
eral appearance that of an ordinary hairy mammal.

"The use of hair is mainly to protect the body from
cold, and thus to aid in the maintenance of a uniform high
temperature; and when hairs are absent, we find this
function performed by a niore or less thick fatty layer
beneath the skin, which, when it is excessively developed,
as in the whales, is known as blubber. To compensate for
the difference between the temperature of winter and
summer. Mammals which inhabit the colder regions of
the globe develop a much thicker coat of hair in the
former than in the latter season, of which we have an ex-
cellent example in the horse. In some Mammals, such as
the hare and cat, the body is covered with only one kind
of hair ; but in other cases, as in the fur-seals, there is one
kind of long and somewhat coarse hair, which appears at
the surface, and another of a softer and finer nature, which
forms the thick and warm under-fur. This under-fur is
greatly developed in Mammals of all groups inhabiting
Tibet, where it is locally known as ''pashm"; and it is
this pashm of the goat of these regions which affords the
materials for the celebrated Kashmir shawls. Curiously

115

enough, too, animals which usually do not develop pashm
almost immediately tend to its production when taken to
the Tibetan region, as is notably the case with dogs. Less
frequently the hair of the body takes the form of stiff
bristles, as on the pig; and still more rarely this thicken-
ing is carried to such an extent as to produce spines, of
which we have the best instances in the porcupine and
hedgehog, belonging, it should.be borne in mind, to dis-
tinct orders.

"The solid horns of the rhinoceroses, and the hollow
horny sheaths of cattle and antelopes are very similar in
their nature to hairs, and may indeed be compared to
masses of hair welded together into solid structures.

** Mammals differ from Pish, Amphibeans and Eeptiles
in having warm blood which is propelled from a four
chambered heart through a double circulating system;
one part causing the blood to pass through the lungs to
take in a fresh supply of oxygen from the air, and the
other serving to supply the freshly oxygenized blood to
the various organs and members of the body; the blood
for the nourishment of the body being propelled from the
heart by a single vessel known as the aorta, which passes
over the left branch of the wind pipe.

"With the exception of the egg laying Monotremes,
Mammals are invariably born in a living condition, and
whether they live on the land or in the water breathe air
by means of lungs suspended in the chest. As a rule they
have the two pair of limbs characteristic of vertebrates,
but occasionally, as in the whales, the hinder pair may be
wanting. In some cases, like the kangaroos and jumping
m.ice, the hind limbs are enormously elongated and pro-
gression is affected by means of leaps and bounds. The
opposite extreme of limb structure is shown in the bats;
whose hind limbs retain their normal structure, while the
fore limbs are enormously elongated to afford support for
a leathery wing like structure, by means of which these
strangely modified creatures are enabled to fly in the air
with the same ease and swiftness as the birds. In the true
seals, the hind limbs are directed backward to form with
the tail a kind of rudder, while the fore limbs are short-
ened so as to form paddles for swimming, and as before
stated, in the completely aquatic mammals the hind limbs
are entirelv wanting.

116 The Bear Family.

CARNIVORA.

Flesh-eating mammals are designated as Carnivores,
although some of them are omnivorous rather than
strictly carnivorous. They are all more or less beasts
of prey, and their mental system as well as their struc-
ture shows the results of their predatory habits.

The bones in all the species of this order are compara-
tively slender but very strong; as a rule they have
thirteen dorsal vertebrae, and with a few exceptions like
the cat and dog, they have five toes armed with claws,
the thumb or great toe not being opposable to the others
so as to enable them to grasp any object.

The jaws of the Carnivores are short and stout, and
the head of the lower jaw is usually placed in a deep
and narrow socket so that little grinding motion is pos-
sible, the movements of the jaw being confined to a
vertical plane. The enamel covered teeth are fitted for
cutting rather than grinding. There are six incisors in
each jaw, the lateral ones being the largest. The canines
are strong and conical and in some cases enormously
developed. The number of molars varies, but the typical
number is four premolars and three molars on each side of
each jaw, one of them on each side of each jaw usually
being converted into a sectorial tooth that has a com-
pressed cutting edge, and with its fellow of the opposite
jaw acts like a pair of shears.

The alimentary tract of the Carnivores is compara-
tively short and simplified, and they have no vermiform
appendix. With the exception of taste their senses are
highly developed. As is shown by our classification
chart they are divided into two sub-orders, the Fissipedia
and the Pinnipedia. The Fissipedia are divided, by
some authorities into three groups, of which the Bear,
the Dog and the Cat are the respective types. Most of
the varieties of the first two walk on the sole of the foot,
and are known as Plantigrades, while the majority of
the other group are called digitigrades because they
walk on the ends of the toes.

The Bear Family. 117

THE BEAR FAMILY.
(Ursidae.)

All members of the Bear family have a marked resem-
blance to one another, and are of heavy massive build,
with thick limbs, extremely short tails, and the five
toes on each foot armed with powerful fixed claws.
Their ordinary gait is slow and measured, and they plant
the foot squarely on the ground so the impression is very
much like that made by the human being; this feature
being more marked in the case of the Bear than in that
of other animals of the plantigrade order. Like the dogs
they have two pairs of molar teeth in the upper jaw
and three in the lower, but the shape of the teeth is dif-
ferent. The Bears are evidently descended from dog-
likie animals, but the majority of them subsist on a vege-
table diet or on insects to a much greater extent than on
flesh. All Bears are notoriously deficient in hearing and
have poor sight, but their sense of smell is very acute.
They differ in many important particulars from all other
carnivorous animals, and are rightly classed as a separate
family with a comparatively small number of species.
The fur of the Bear is always coarse, and generally long,
thick and shaggy, and of one color all over the body if
we except the white collar sometimes found around the
neck of the black and the brown Bear. With the excep-
tion of a few peculiar species all Bears have forty-two
teeth, and the soles of the feet are bare, while the small
ears are thickly haired.

BROWN BEAR.

The Brown Bear (Ursus-arctos), is the best-known
member of the Bear family. The Grizzly Bear of North
America, the Syrian Bear, the Isabellan Bear of the
Himalayas, and numerous others are really local races
of the Brown Bear rather than distinct species of their
kind.

The Brown Bear is an inhabitant of almost the whole
of Europe and of Asia to the north of the Himalayas ; and

118 Carnivora Fissipedio.

is also comparatively common in manj^ parts of Scan-
dinavia, Hungary and Kussia. In Kamschatka it is very
plentiful and attains to large dimensions.

The Brown or Common Bear of Europe has a convex
forehead; on the cubs the fur is woolly, but grows
smoother with age and changes from its original whitish
color to varying shades of brown, or a greyish hue, in
some specimens bordering on the silver. All the young
havei a white collar which in some varieties remains
through life. There is also considerable variation in
height, without any fixed relation to age and sex. This
animal inhabits the lofty mountains and great forests of
Europe and Asia, and lodges high up in the trees; the
coupling season is in June, and the young are produced
in January. When young the flesh of this animal is
esteemed a delicacy and the paws are good eating at all
ages.

The favorite haunts of this species are wooded, hilly
districts, and in the higher latitudes they hibernate regu-
larly in the winter. They are unsociable animals, but occa-
sionally a male and female will be seen together accom-
panied by their cubs. In some sections they kill and eat
other animals, but generally speaking the Brown Bears
are insect and vegetable feeders. In Kamschatka they
are said to subsist largely on salmon. In pursuing the
salmon a Bear will walk slowly into the water to a depth
of about eighteen inches, and facing down stream will
wait motionless for its prey; the careless fish swimming
up the river mistakes the Bear's legs for tree stumps, and
so falls an unconscious victim to the lightning stroke of
the Bear's forepaw.

The Brown Bear is uncouth in appearance and move-
ment, but it can travel pretty fast in a shambling kind
of a gallop. It never voluntarily attacks a human being,
but when angered it is capable of inflicting terrible in-
juries when thrashing around with its paws. From its
anatomical construction there would seem to be little
foundation for the stories told of its hugging powers.
Is is easily tamed and taught to perform tricks. It is re-
markable for its longevity, some of the species having
been known to live over forty years, and a case is re-
corded of a female Brown Bear giving birth to a cub at
the age of thirty-two years.

The Bear Family. 119

GRIZZLY BEAR.

The largest of all Bears, the Grizzly (Ursus-horribilis),
is a native of western North America, where it ranges
from Mexico to Alaska. In the northern part of its range
it hibernates, but in the south it remains active all win-
ter. The Silver Tip, Barren Ground, Roachback, Cinna-
mon and Isabella are all varieties of the Grizzly; and its
differences of form are as marked as its wide range in
color; some of the species have a well-defined hump on
the back which is entirely wanting in others, and there
is also a wide variation in the width of the sole of the
hind feet. Accounts vary greatly as to the size and
weight of the Grizzly, but there is no doubt that this ani-
mal sometimes attains to thirteen feet in length, and 1,100
pounds in weight, but the average weight of a large male
Grizzly is nearer 800 pounds.

The Grizzly feeds on flesh, nuts and acorns. It is a
poor climber, but has prodigious strength; one of the
species has been known to break the neck of a tall bison
with a single blow of its paw, and another to have car-
ried off over rough ground a male Wapiti weighing
over 1,000 pounds. Sir Samuel Baker says, ''It will kill
several deer and leave them untouched on the ground at
daybreak the following morning.'* It is credited with
extreme ferocity towards man.

BLACK BEAR.

As the Grizzly is the largest so the Black Bear (Ursus-
americanus), is the smallest member of the American
Bear family. It seldom exceeds five feet in length, and
its fur is smoother, glossier and less shaggy than that of
either the Brown or Grizzly Bear. It is said by Col. E.
D. C. Alexander, that the Black Bear formerly frequented
''all the mountains, the thickets of the vast plains, and
every creek, river and bay bottom, from Labrador and
Canada to the Gulf of Mexico. At present its habitat is
confined to the mountains south of the St. Lawrence
River and the Great Lakes and east of the Mississippi
River, if we except the few that are still found in the
dense thickets of the Colorado, Trinity and Brazos
Rivers."

120 Cabnivora Fissipedio.

When full grown, the American Black Bear will stand
about three feet high and weigh fully 600 pounds. It feeds
on frogs, fish, turtles, the smaller rodents, insects, honey,
berries, roots and vegetables, with a decided preference
for a frugiverous diet; but some writers claim that it is
gradually growing more carnivorous and bolder, and cite
in proof of this contention a growing disposition to raid
bam yards and slay and eat poultry, sheep, pigs and
even calves. The Black Bear is an excellent swimmer
and a good climber, but cannot go up into the tree tops,
or out upon the branches, because of its weight.

The Black Bear hibernates regularly in winter; but
the male remains active as long as he can find an abund-
ance of food, while the female always seeks shelter as soon
as cold weather comes in a den excavated under the
root of a fallen tree, or beneath a pile of logs, with a few
bushes and leaves scooped together for a bed. Some-
times the den is a great hole dug into the side of a knoll.
The young, who are usually born in January or February,
number from two to four to a litter. If the indications
point to a severe winter and there is a scarcity of food
these animals will take great pains to make a comfort-
able nest; but when the weather permits them to stay
out late they do not fix up their dens at all; but simply
crawl into any convenient shelter, letting the snow com-
plete a covering which forms into an icy wall as their
breath condenses and freezes into it, increasing in thick-
ness and extent day by day until they could not escape
from their icy cell, even if they would, before they are
liberated by the sun, in April or May.

The Himalayan Black Bear, with its pure white chin,
long side whiskers, and large ears, is unquestionably the
handsomest representative of the Bear Family. The
Malay Sun Bear is the smallest, ugliest and most ill tem-
pered of the lot, but in size the Japanese Black Bear
approaches it closely.

Among the peculiar species we find the Spectacled
3ears of South America, which are distinguished by their
very glossy jet-black coats, small ears, long feet and the
imperfect circles of white around their eyes.

The Bear Family. 121

POLAR BEAR.

The Polar Bear (Ursus-maritimus), has a smaller and
more elongated head, longer neck, shorter ears, and
smaller teeth than other Bears ; and is also distinguished
by the white coat which it retains all the year round.
In this respect it differs from other white mammals, who
generally exchange their winter dress for one of darker
color in the summer. This animal is one of the largest
members of the Bear family. In attacking its enemies
it does not hug or strike with its claws like the others
of its kind, but bites; stories of its ferocity have how-
ever been greatly exaggerated, for unless rendered fierce
by hunger or an attack it is rarely known to molest a
man. The most dangerous and aggressive of the species
is the large male of a yellowish or dirty white tinge. A
large, fat male Polar Bear will sometimes weigh from
600 to 700 pounds, and measure as much as nine feet.
The speed of the Polar Bear is considerable, but Indians
have been known to overtake and kill it after a fair chase.

The Polar Bear is found in the Arctic regions of both
hemispheres, and generally lives on the coasts of islands
surrounded by ice although it is often found on ice
fields far out at sea. Its principal food consists of the
flesh of Seals and Walruses, but it also eats sea weed,
grass, lichens and smaller fish.

In the Hudson's Bay district the females proceed to
hibernate for the purpose of producing their young about
the end of September and reappear in the spring, two
cubs generally being produced at a birth. Hibernation
takes place on some distant island. The males accompany
their consorts to their resting place, but leave them
there, while they return to the coast to hunt throughout
the winter.

The fur of the Black, Brown and Grizzly Bear is made
into muffs and neck pieces as well as sleigh robes and
rugs ; but the skin of the Polar Bear is only used for floor
rugs.

122

Carnivora Fissipedia.

Polar Bear,

Grizzly Bear.

Brown Bear.

Black Bear.

The Cat Family. 123

THE CAT FAMILY.

"Of all the Carnivora, the Cats are the most completely
and powerfully armed. Their short and round muzzles,
short jaws, and particularly their retractile nails, whi'»h
raised perpendicularly and hidden between the toes by
the action of an elastic ligament when at rest lose neither
point nor edge, render them formidable animals.

' ' They have two false molars above, and two below. Their
superior carnivorous tooth has three lobes and a blunted
heel on the inside, the inferior has two pointed and trench-
ant lobes without any heel. They have a very small canine
tooth above, without anything below to correspond.''

The species are all similar in form, but vary greatly in
size, length of hair and color.

All the Felidae have five digits on the fore feet, and
four on the hind ones; when ready to strike they crouch
and spring upon their victim which they fasten ''by
the deadly grip of the well armed jaw, and the united
action of eighteen fully extended piercing claws. The
fore-limbs are endowed with a freedom almost equal
to that of the Primates, and can be bent, extended and
turned with the utmost ease and swiftness, and deal a
blow^ as readily as the fists of a man." Although cats
possess only thirty teeth — twelve less than the dog —
they have every variety of tooth needed by a carnivorous
mammal. Their eyes are large, but the pupil possesses a
power of contraction under the influence of sunlight,
that enables some species to reduce it to a vertical slit
and others to a small round aperture.

The European Wild Cat (Felis-catus) is now extinct
in England where it was very common at one time, but
it is- still found in Scotland, Southern Russia, Turkey,
Greece, Hungary, Germany, Spain, Dalmatia, Switzer-
land and in some parts of Asia. During the middle
ages its fur was commonly used for trimmings, and a
canon of the year 1227 forbade any abbess or nun to
wear more costly fur than that of lambs or cats. W. A.
Lockington says: ''This cat is larger and more
strongly built than any domestic cat, and has a stouter

124

Carnivoba Fissipedia.

and shorter head, and a thick tail which does not taper.
It is usually yellowish grey in color with a dark streak
along the back, numerous darkish stripes down the sides
and across the limbs, and has black rings on the tail. It is a
very savage animal even as a kitten, and sometimes
attains a length of more than three feet from tip to
tip. The female, who carries her young sixty-eight days,
makes her nest in the hollows of trees or clefts of rocks,
or even uses the deserted nest of some large bird.'^ Some
naturalists claim that the domestic cat is descended, at
least in part, from this species, but the Egyptian Cat

The Egyptian Cat.

(Pelis-caliata) , whose range extends throughout Africa
and also into Asia, is probably the ancestor of most of
the varieties of the Felis-domestica. The color of this
species varies from a pale red to grey, always marked
with more or less obscure stripes on the body and more
distinct ones on the hind limbs, the tail is ringed and
has a black tip ; it has been known by different
names at different times, and probably the Felis-chaus
of Africa really belongs to this species, as the hinder
parts of its feet are sometimes black.

The Cat Family. 125

THE DOMESTIC CAT.

Not every Domestic Cat is a house cat, but all House
Cats belong to Domestic species. While the skins of a
number of varieties of domesticated cats who live out
doors are extensively used by furriers, the skin of the House
Cat is of little commercial value.

The House Cat of our homes is one of the animals that
has become attached to civilization all over the world.
There are many species in the Cat Family, but the House
Cat is the one familiar to us all. We have all played with
it in childhood or watched it roll the spools or grand-
mother's ball of yarn across the kitchen floor, and have
heard it purr contentedly before the fire, or seen it basking
in the sunshine on the porch of the old homestead. We
have all been reminded at times by the sting of the sharp
<jlaws hidden in the velvet paw^^, and its cruelty to the
mouse within its grasp, of the inherent treacherous, savage
nature that lies dormant under its apparently gentle
disposition. The House Cat makes us think of
home and the fireside, just as the dog recalls to the mem-
ory of most of us, the days in camp and tramps through
the woods, or walks along the shore. The Cat is not as
intelligent or affectionate as the dog. It is attached to
the house and its surroundings, rather than the individual.
A dog will follow his master to the ends of the earth
and if needs be die in his defense, but the cat will fly
from him upon the first approach of danger. The one
is a faithful, dumb friend, upon whose loyalty we can
always depend, the other is a sleek, unctous brute time
-server.

The House Cat though naturally timid will fight
desperately in its own defense. No one who has lain
awake listening to the caterwauling of this animal, rang-
ing in volume of sound from the low plaintive cry of an
infant, to the loud, discordant tones of an enraged virago,
will doubt that there is a cat in every well regulated
household — and some to spare.

This animal begins to produce at the end of the first
year; bringing forth four to six young ones, two or even
three times a year.

126 CarNIVORA FlSSIPEDIA.

There are some varieties of House Cats like the
Angora species and the tailless Manx Cat that for
various reasons have a commercial value. Among
other singular breeds may be mentioned the Mombas Cat
of Africa, which has short, stiff, close-lying hairs instead
of fur. The Persian, believed by some to be descended
from the Asiatic Cat, is the largest variety of Domestic
Cat, and the Diminutive Paraguay Cat is the smallest
representative of the species.

Manx Cat.

The skin of the Domestic Cat like that of other cats is
much thicker at the head than on the rest of the body,
as a natural protection to the males in fighting. Owing
to the elasticity of its limbs, and the freedom with which
the skin moves on the body, it can also fall or jump from
a great height without sustaining serious injury.

The black skins are the most valuable, and the largest
and best of these come from Holland. Denmark and Hol-
stein also produce good black skins, and fair and medium
skins are obtained in Germany, France and Switzer-
land. Russia produces many skins, but they are of poor
quality. All cat skins have a line of bristly hair running
down the back, which is cut out when they are being manu-
factured into articles of fur wear. The black skins are
often called "Genet;'' but while they are a good depend-
able fur it is a misrepresentation to sell them for Genets.

Cuvier says, that the habitat of the Domestic Cat was
originally in the forests of Europe; where in its wild
state the fur was of a greyish brown with dark trans-

The Cat Family,

127

verse undulations and paler below than on the top, and
yellowish on the inside of the thighs and feet. Naturalists
all claim that if turned out again into the wild the Do-
mestic Cat would go back to its original color and habits.

White African Cat.

Everything indicates that the Wild and Domestic Common
Cats belong to the same species. The greater length of the
more tapering tail of the House Cat being accounted for
by the better feeding and greater comfort it enjoys.

European Wild Cat.

The dun and yellow Caffer Cat, of the Cape of Good
Hope with its brown or spotted marks,, the Bokharan
Chaus or Afghan Cat, with its longer, lighter fur and
few rings on the tail, the European Wild Cat and all the
Domestic or House Cats, are undoubtedly varieties of the
same species (Felis-eatus).

128 Carnivora Fissipedia.

Reference to the classification charts will show that
there are more species of Leopard and Tig'er Cats in
different parts of the world than of any other animal. It
is impossible to give a detailed description of each variety
here, but the Servals of India and Africa, like the Ameri-
can Ocelot, call for something more than passing notice.

The habitat of the African Tiger Cat, as the type species
(Felis-serval) is sometimes called, is in Algeria and other
parts of East Africa. It is a tall, slender animal with a
small head and pointed broad ears. The ringed tail is
thick and heavily furred. The ground color is yellow
above and white on the under parts. There are four
narrow stripes on the head and shoulders, and three or
four black stripes running the length of the back. The sides
are marked with numerous large round black spots, that
also appear on the belly, but farther apart. The Cape
Serval is smaller than the Algerian, and has a much longer
tail. The orange colored variety found in Senegal has a
very short tail, and its under parts are Isabella color.
It has black ears, black stripes on the back, and full round
spots on the sides. There are several other sub-species
of the African Serval.

There are two distinct species of the serval found in
India; the (Felis-viverrina), which is somewhat smaller
than the type species, and the brownish yellow (Felis-
himalayana) which is smaller still, and has short close
hair, marked on the back with large chocolate colored
stripes, and on the under parts with spot-like short stripes
of the same color.

The Servals are blood thirsty animals, but- can be
tamed if taken when young. They prey on the young
antelopes, and in settled districts rob the hen coops.

The Margay Cat (Felis-tigrina) is an animal consider-
ably smaller than the Ocelot. Its habitat is the wooded
lowlands of Mexico and all the countries between Mexico
and Paraguay. It is about two feet long exclusive of
the twelve to eighteen inch tail, and the type variety
has a rather harsh fur of a dun drizzled color marked
with black spots and rings. Other forms have soft reddish
fur with black spots that often have a pale center, and
a tail that is larger than that of the type species.

The Cat Family.

129

Geoffrey's Cat (Felis-geoffroy), found in Paraguay
and Chili, and the Ocelot-like cat (Felis-pardinoides) of
the United States of Columbia, are species nearly related
to the Margay cat. The former has a short whitish
brown fur, with a white throat and a white streak on
the cheeks, and numerous evenly distributed small black
spots on the body. It also has four black streaks on the
crown, two on the cheeks and one on the chest. The
skull is short and broad. The Ocelot-like Cat measures
eighteen inches without the ten inch tail, and has dark
blotches with a black border, instead of the spots that
distinguish the Geoffrey's Cat which it otherwise greatly
resembles.

The Ocelot.

The Ooelot (Felis-pardalis), the largest Leopard Cat of
America, is from two to three feet long, and has a twelve-
inch tail which is partly ringed. It is a lively and graceful
animal, marked more or less with black on the face and
light under parts; and showing a great variety of mark-
ings on the back and sides. Some specimens are beauti-
fully striped, while others are blotched like a dark tabby
cat, but they are all characterized by the oblong shape of
the dark spots with drab centers which appear on the
sides; on the back the spots are always solid black. The
Ocelot is the third largest of the American Felidae, and is
sometimes called the Jungle Cat and the Young Jaguar.
Its range is from Texas south through Mexico, Central
America and South America, down to Southern Brazil.

130 Carnivora Fissipedia.

There are also a number of species of uniform brownish
colored Panther Cats, of which the Jaguarondi (Felis-
yaguarondi), whose range is from Texas through Mexico
and Central America to Brazil, is a type. The Jaguarondi
has a slender elongated body, a very long tail, and short
limbs. It is larger than a good size domestic cat and
quite often seen in captivity.

The Pampas Cat (Pelis Payeros) is another type of
South American Wild Cat. It is distinguished from the
Leopard and Panther Cats by its short full tail, and the
dark transverse bars on its greyish yellow coat, which
cause it to somewhat resemble the European Wild Cat in
appfearance.

LEOPARDS.

The Leopard, the most graceful and beautiful of all its
tribe, is the largest spotted cat of the old world. It is not
as large, strong or fierce as the American Puma or Jaguar,
but superior in these particulars to all the Felidae
of the Eastern continent, except the Lion and the Tiger.
The body of a good size Leopard will measure four feet in
length, exclusive of th-e three foot tail. The skull is nine
inches long and five inches across at the widest part.
There are several distinct species of this animal, and a
number of sub-species or varieties of the type species
(Felis-pardus), which was called the panther by the
ancients, and is now commonly known as the Pard.

The Pard is found in Africa, Southern Asia and the
islands of the Indian Archipelego. The East Indian
Leopard (F. pardus-panther) is the most numerous of the
Asiatic Pards. It is a rich reddish yellow color above and
white beneath. On each flank it has six or seven rows of
large open ring-like black rosets with orange centers,
that in some cases are clearly defined. A profusion of
solid black spots of different sizes show on the neck,
breast, belly and legs, and the head is beautifully marked
with black and white stripes. The tail has a black tip and
black spots along the entire length, and the ears are also
tipped with black. The Pards on the island of Ceylon
are somewhat smaller and lighter in color than those'
inhabiting the central and southern portions of India,

The Cat Family.

131

and have longer and softer fur. The Leopard of North
Eastern India is still smaller and lighter, and more thickly
covered with black spots.

The large, dark yellow Pard of southern China, Java,
Siam and Sumatra (L. pardus-variagatus), has reddish
roset rings, in which the openings . are closed with spots
of the same color. A smaller variety, with a longer tail,
and colored more like the Par dus-p anther, and marked
with innumerable spots, each made up of two or three
black dots, is seen on the island of Sunda.

Ounce (Snow Leopard).

The Snov^ Leopard (Felis-uncia), also called the
Ounce, is a distinct species. Its habitat is in the
Vale of Cashmere, in the Himalayas, and other highlands
of central Asia. The fur of this animal is almost two
inches long, and white on the surface, but bluish at the
roots. In spite of its length, the fur is harsh to the touch ;
this being due, probably, to its exposed habitat on the
mountain wastes. The legs are faintly marked, and the
thickly furred tail is longer than the body, and also
marked with faint rings. The spots on the head are
small, black and solid. From the reference to **The
Mountains of the Leopard '' in Canticles (IV-8) it would
appear, that this animal in ancient times had a habitat in
Palestine.

132

Carnivoba Fissipedia.

The Black Pard of Java is probably only a color varia-
tion, as mothers have been seen nursing young of different
hues. It is said that Black Leopards are never seen on
the main land, and the skins, some of which are so dark
that the spots are hardly perceptible, and others of a
greyish shade on which the spots stand out in beautiful
contrast, are highly prized.

Black Leopard.

The Persian Pard (F. pardus-tulliana) is not as graceful
as the East Indian Leopard, but larger and slenderer, and
very beautiful. The greyish yellow ground color is
whitish in places, and marked with black roset rings of
solid spots. ,The range of this animal extends from
Persia to the Caucausian Mountains. The (F. pardus-
sinensis) of southern China resembles the East Indian Pard
in some respects, but is smaller and of a darker yellow color
and marked with small spots.

The Chinese Leopard, the (F. pardus-fontaineri) of
Mongolia, Manchuria and the entire eastern slope of the
Himalayas, has a fine dense fur, that is over an inch long,
with black markings showing on the brownish yellow ground
color. The hair on the neck and belly is longer than on

The Cat Family. 133

the rest of the body, and the long thickly furred tail is
marked with spots at the base. The (F. pardus-greyi), a
much smaller Leopard, is found in the same habitat. The
Pard of Turkistan, and the western Himalayas, also has
a long fur, but it is coarser and lighter in color than that
of the Mongolian Leopard. The Corean Leopards are much
lighter than those of northern China, and have shorter
tails.

There are several varieties of Pards in Africa south of
Senegambia, the most important of which, the Common
Leopard (Felis-pardus, leopardus) of West Africa, is
characterized by its large size, small ears and long tail,
which is two-thirds the length of the body. It is light
yellow in color, and marked on the head, neck and legs
with black spots of various sizes, and on the rest of the
body and the tail with rosets formed of five or six small
points each. The other African varieties of the Felis-pardus
are the (F. pardus-somaliensis) of Abysinnia and Sumalo-
land, which has larger ears, larger spots and more rosets,
and is considerably darker in color than the West African
Pard; the (F. pardus-suabelicus) of South Africa that has
very large spots; and the (F. pardus-antiquorum) of
Algeria, which is the largest and darkest of the African
Leopards.

(Felis-Chalibelata), is the designation given to a dis-
tinct species, found in the eastern parts of East India. It
stands lower than any other Leopard, and has a tail as
long as the head and body combined.

The type species of the rare and beautiful Clouded
Leopard, or panther, has its habitat in the mountains of
Northern India, Burma and Siam. It is about the size of
an ordinary small leopard. The color is a brownish
yellow on the upper parts, and lighter beneath. It has
large oblong black spots on the back, and small spots
between the two broad bands on the head. The sides are
almost entirely covered with large irregular black
blotches, and there are a number of dark rings on the
tail.

Other species of the Clouded Leopard are : The (Felis-
macrocelis) of Borneo, and the (Felis-macrourus) of
China.

134

Carnivoba Fissipedia.

The Hunting" Leopard, (Felis-jubata), has a smaller
and shorter head than the Common Leopard; but is
longer bodied, and stands higher, though otherwise it is
about the same size. Its nails are not retractile. The fur
is fawn colored, mottled with uniform black spots ; and it
has a black stripe on each side of the face, reaching from
the eye to the end of the mouth. The disposition of this
animal is mild and docile, and its name indicates the
purpose for which it is mostly used.

Chitah

The Chitah or Hunting Leopard, takes kindly to cap-
tivity, and permits handling to a greater extent than
any other large feline. In the middle ages the Chitah
was used in France to stalk the Koebucks and hares, and
in India it is still trained to hunt the Antelope. It is
drawn blindfolded on a cart to a spot within a few hun-
dred yards of a herd of antelope, when the bandage is
removed from its eyes the Chitah singles out some animal
in the herd, and approaching it by bounds seizes it and
pulls it down.

The Leopards all have a peculiar habit of watching;
and all the species and varieties of this animal have the
cat habit of sharpening their claws against the trees.

The Cat Family. 135

THE LION

The Lion (Felis-leo), the largest, strongest and most
courageous member of the Felidae, is rightly named the
king of beasts. It was at one time frequently seen in
Algeria, Musholaland and other parts of Central Africa,
South Western Asia, Arabia and Guzarat in India. In
ancient times it was found in much colder climates than its
present range, which is becoming more and more restrict-
ed. Now the large, lean, short maned East African Lion
is the most numerous variety of the Felis-leo. The Lion
lives chiefly on sandy plains or in rocky places interspersed
with thorn thickets ; but it also frequents the low bushes
and tall rank grasses and reeds along the edges of streams,
where it lies in wait for the larger herbivorous animals
upon which it feeds. It is occasionally seen abroad in the
day time, but the night is the period of its greatest
activity. The Lion usually trots and sometimes even gal-
lops, but its ordinary pace is a walk. It cannot climb, but
has been known to jump over fences twelve foot high in
pursuit of its prey. It fears nothing but fire.

The roar of the Lion is deep, impressive and appalling ;
but it is an established fact that formidable and merciless
as the Lion is when aroused it will not go out of its way
to attack a human, but will avoid a conflict unless it is
famished or defending its young, or approached so close
that it is afraid to turn and retreat.

The adult male Lion is about ten feet long measuring
from the tip of the nose to the end of the tail ; the color is a
uniform tawny brown, and the tail is tipped with a tuft of
elongated black hairs.

There are individual cases where the adult Lion is of a
deep red or chestnut brown color, and occasionally one
is seen whose skin is almost silver grey. The. young
when born, and for several months after, are spotted or
striped. They play like kittens, and the mother carrier
them by the back of the neck. The period of. gestation is
about one hundred days, and from two to three whelps
are produced at a birth.

136 Carnivora Fissipedia.

The male of the species possesses a mane which gives
the full-grown animal a majestic appearance. The mane
is usually black or brown, and sometimes grows beyond
the forelegs and is a protection to the male lions when
fighting. The mane begins to grow when the animal is
about three years old and is fully developed by the time it
is five or six years of age. The small ears of the Lion
are black or dark brown. . The canine teeth are two
inches long and in the man-eaters they are blunted or
broken. The full-grown male will weigh five hundred and
fifty pounds and upwards ; but the Lioness, which is much
smaller and has no mane, will weigh only two hundred
pounds, or even less. There are two marked species of
the Lion; the Leo-africanus and the Leo-asiaticus, but
there are several varieties of each. The Lion is principally
sought for its skin, although the living animals are valuable
for menageries and zoological collections. A live male
Lion is worth from $1,500 to $2,000; the skins bringing
about one-tenth of that amount. The Lioness is much
less valuable.

The Lions from different districts show considerable
variation in size, color and other external characteristics.
The Germans distinguish them as Berberlowen, Kaplowen,
Massailowen, Persicher Lowen, Lowen von Guzzerat and
so on to the end of the list. The zoologists dvide the
different local representatives of the Felis-leo into the
following sub species: leo-barbarus, leo-capensis, leo-
senegalensis, leo-somaliensis, leo-massaicus, leo-kamptii,
leo-persicus and leo-goojratensis.

The Cape Lion is now seldom seen near the Cape or in
the Orange Free State, its habitat having been crowded
back. The Guzerat Lion, which is the largest represen-
tative of the family, and the Persian Lion, the smallest of
the tribe, have also become rare. The ''Man Eaters" are
principally found among the long geared Massai Lions of
Central East Africa. The Cape Lion is distinguished by
its long dark mane, the now almost extinct Algerian Lion
alone surpassing it in this respect. The Northwest African
Lion is a smaller variety that is characterized by its
orange color and yellow mane.

The Cat Family. 137

LYNXES.

All the Lynxes are distinguished by the pencils of black
hair which ornament the tips of their ears and the long
fringe of hair, black at the base and white at the extrem-
ity, that surrounds their faces. They all have very short
tails, and their skins are usually more or less spotted but
there is considerable variation in color, not only in the
various species but in the same animal at different sea-
sons, and at different elevations, or in different localities.

The Jungle Cat (Felis-chaus) is the connecting link that
prevents the Lynxes from being considered as a distinct
species. It is larger than the domestic cat with which
it agrees in having three premolar teeth in the upper jaw,
as well as in the form of the lower flesh tooth ; but in the
circular pupil of its eye, its shorter tail, and a few long
hairs on the tips of the ears, it approximates to the Lynxes.
In color it varies from a yellowish grey, to a greyish brown,
on the back, with reddish white under parts ; the cheeks and
breast may be either banded or pale, and the tail is always
ringed and has a black tip like the ears. Black specimens
are seen occasionally. In length it varies from twenty-
four to thirty inches, exclusive of the ten inch tail. This
animal has a wide range, being found in India, Persia,
Ceylon, Burma, Syria and North Africa. It is also known,
as the Chaus and the Marsh Lynx, although it is some-
times found in the Himalayas at an elevation of eight
thousand feet, and frequents the open country as well as
the jungles. It breeds twice a year and produces from
three to four kittens at a litter. It is very savage and
even the young are generally untamable.

The Caracal (Felis-caracal) is believed to be the species
to which the expression ''Lynx-eyed" owes its origin. It
is also known as the Persian and the Red Lynx, although
the latter name properly belongs to one of the North
American species. The Caracal was the true Lynx of the
ancient but is now a rare animal, although its habitat
still extends over the greater part of India and a large
portion of Africa. This animal is of slender build, from
twenty-six to thirty inches long, has a ten inch tail,
and stands about eighteen inches high at the shoulders.

138 Garni voRA Fissipedia.

The color varies from a reddish fawn to a brownish
red, paler on the under than the upper parts of the body ;
the limbs and the tail are usually the same color as the
body, but in some individuals the tail has a black tip ; the
ears are black on the outside and white within. The Car-
acal is found in the grass and bushes oftener than in the
forests. It feeds on the smaller species of deer, hares,
cranes and other birds, and is so active it can jump and
capture birds on the wing at a height of five to six feet
from the ground. It is easily tamed, and can be taught
to capture the animals that are its natural prey.

The Pardine Lynx (Felis-pardinus), of Southern Europe,
is the most beautiful of all the Lynxes, clearly defined
rounded black spots showing through the soft fur, which
is fox red on the upper and white on the lower parts.
Cuvier refers to the (Felis-cevaria) of Asia as being the
handsomest representative of its family; but from his
description it must be a variety of the Pardine Lynx rather
than a distinct species, although it appears to be larger
in size, and to have a denser fur.

The Persian or Siberian Lynx, which is classed by some
zoologists as (Felis-isabellina), is probably a local variety
of the Common Lynx of Europe.

Compared with the American Lynx the Common Lynx
of Europe (Felis-lynx) is a rare animal. It has entirely dis-
appeared from France and some other parts of the conti-
nent of Europe, but is still found in considerable numbers
in Russia, the Scandinavian Peninsula, Finland and Spain.
It is very much like the American type in its soft silvery
winter coat, but its summer dress is considerably redder
although the color varies in different localities, sometimes
being a light brown marked with small black spots.
In the milder climates it always has less fur and is more
spotted than where it is exposed to extreme cold. In
structure, habits and disposition the American and
European Lynxes are so much alike that they should
properly be considered as different varieties of the same
species.

The American Lynx (Felis-canadensis) is abundant in
all British North America, except Labrador where the
skins are of superior quality, but the animal is compara-

The Cat Family. 139

lively rare. Minnesota appears to be the southern limit
of its eastern habitat, but it is sometimes found as far
south as the Adirondack Mountains; its range on the
western slope of the North American continent extending
from Alaska to California. The skins from Nova Scotia,
and the eastern part of the Hudson Bay country, closely
resemble those of the Norway Lynxes of Europe in the
character of the pelt and the beauty of the fur. The Cali-
fornia and northwestern varieties, while stronger in the
fur, are coarser and redder than the Nova Scotia skins.
The Alaska skins have a soft, rich, thick fur, but they are
very pale in color. The Sitka skins have a shrivelled ap-
pearance but the fur is soft and fine. All the Alaska
Lynxes are characterized by the thick hair that protects
their large foot pads from the snow.

The American or Canadian Lynx is two feet high, and
from three to four feet long including the five inch tail.
As is the case with all of its kind, the hind legs are
much longer than the front legs, and the claws are quite
sharp and retractile and well concealed in the thick foot
pads. Its winter pelage consists of a coat of thick
soft fur, about one inch long on the back, which is inter-
mixed with longer silvery hairs; the under coat, which
in some rare instances is drab or blue or light yellow, gen-
erally being light reddish in color on the surface. The
ground color of the under fur is invariably a greyish blue ;
and the fur on the belly is always finer and longer than
that on the back, generally showing light spots through
the three inch silky hairs. The fur is always thicker and
richer on the paler animals than on those of darker hue.
In summer the Lynx loses most of its beautiful fur
and its chief covering is a brownish red hair. The skin
of the Lynx is thin but as is the case with all of the Cat
family, it is thicker at the neck than on the other parts of
the body.

The Lynx is a shy animal dwelling in the deep forests
and bush country where it preys on birds, hares and other
small mammals, sometimes attacking young fawns and
lambs, but the stories of its killing full grown deer are
probably fiction. It is said to swim well, and its ordinary
gait is a long gallop like that of a hare, but when leaping
over the ground with the back arched it presents a pecu-

140

Carnivora Fissipedia.

liar appearance. The Lynx is hunted for its skin
which is very valuable. The hunters either follow its
track through the snow, or hunt it with dogs trained to
follow the trail by scent till the animal is treed and shot.

Lynx.

The name Lucerne formerly given to the Lynx Avas prob-
ably a contraction of Loup-Cervier, a term applied to it by
the early French writers ''who ascribed to it a habit of
dropping from trees onto the backs of the deers, and des-
troying them by tearing their throats and drinking their
blood."

The Bay Lynx (Felis-rufa), also known as the American
Wild Cat or Cat Common, is placed in a separate species
because of its inferior size, uniform reddish color, bushy
tail and shorter fur. It shows considerable vari-
ation in color and pelage in different localities of its hab-
itat. A handsome spotted variety is found in Texas and
southern California, and another with dark vertical
streaks in Washington and Oregon; these were formerly
regarded as distinct species and classed respectively as
Felis-maculata and Felis-faciata. The type species of
American Wild Cat is rarely seen as far north as the Adi-
rondacks, being more common in milder climates, where
Dr. Merriam says: ''They frequent rocky hills and ledges
and do not show that antipathy to civilization so«marked
in their cogeher the True Lynx. In fact, the Bay Lynx is
often quite common in thickly-settled portions of the
country, and sometimes proves of much annoyance to the

The Cat Family. 141

farmer by carrying off lambs, little pigs, and poultry —
ducks, geese, turkeys and chickens proving equally ac-
ceptable. Away from the farmyard it feeds upon rabbits,
squirrels, mice, grouse, and what small birds it is fortunate
enough to capture. It generally makes its nest in a hol-
low tree or log, and lines it well with moss. From two to
four young constitute a litter, the most frequent number
being three."

There is a large and woolly variety of Cat Common
found in Nova Scotia, known as the Canadian or Halifax
Bay Lynx, which is much larger than the other varieties
of the species, and has a finer, denser and longer fur.
It is a rich grey brown in color and the belly is beautifully
marked with black spots, and some of the skins of this
animal almost equal those of the true Lynx in quality.

The Plateau Lynx (Felis-baileyi), a species of Ameri-
can Lynx found on the high plateaux of Colorado, Utah
and Arizona approximates closer to the Bay Lynx
or American Wild Cat than it does to the true Lynx;-but
it has a shorter tail, softer fur, and a paler light buff color
above, and lacks the black markings found on the face
and forehead of the Bay Lynx.

The lair of the True Lynx is usually formed among the
rocks. It is savage in spite of its timidity, often killing
more animals than it can devour. The young are born
blind, and from two to three cubs are produced at a birth.

142

Carnivora Fissipedia.

PUMA.

The Puma, sometimes erroneously called the panther,
is also known as the American lion. Its principal habitat
is in Central and South America, but it is also found in
some parts of the North American Contineiit, at one time
being quite common in New York State.

The Puma is a powerful animal from four to five feet
long; and its bushy black-tipped tail is nearly as long as
the body. It is capable of making great leaps — a spring
of twenty feet not being uncommon. The general color
of the body is a light dun brown, the fur on the belly
being much lighter and longer than on the back. Ex-
cept for mountings and rugs the skins have little value

Puma or Couguar.

at present, though at one time they were used for car-
riage robes. The color changes with age until it becomes
a silvery fawn in the older animals.

It is said to be swifter, deadlier, more subtle and more
voracious than the Jaguar. The Guanaco is its favorite
prey ; but the Viscachas also are the victims of its insatiable
appetite and thirst for blood, and in consequence of the
terror with which it inspires them these creatures have
become wild to excess.

The Cat Family.

143

JAGUAR.

The Jaguar is about as large as a timber wolf, and in
strength and ferocity resembles the royal Bengal tiger;
but unlike the tiger it is an agile climber, although it has a
massive and heavy appearance.

The general color of the Jaguar is a light yellowish
brown, beautifully marked with chocolate brown or black
roset rings, which with the exception of those on the
head and tail generally have a small black spot in the
center. The hair is short, but longer than that on the
East Indian Leopard, and is almost white on the under
part of the body.

Jaguar.

''It is a merciful dispensation of Providence that ani-
mals like the Jaguar, Puma, Tiger and Lion are not gre-
garious, but hunt singly or in couples. If they herded
like wolves whole provinces would be depopulated by
their ravages; but as it is they can be destroyed in de-
tail and their numbers kept within bounds while their
depredations are confined to their native jungles."

The Jaguar is found in Mexico, British Honduras and

most parts of South
and Peru.

America with the exception of Chili

144 Carnivora Fissipedia.

THE TIGER.

Handsomer in color and markings but not as majestic in
appearance as the Lion, the Tiger is said to fully equal if
it does not excel in strength the king of beasts.

As is the case with many mammals the general color of
the Tiger assimilates itself to the color of the country in
which it lives ; and in the reedy jungles of India its stripes
are so difficult to distinguish, that it is often fully upon
people before they are aware of its presence.

Most tigers will avoid a man, but some species watch
for human victims upon the highways, and at night even
enter the settlements to secure their prey. At one time it
was no unusual thing for whole villages to be abandoned
because of the terror inspired by these ferocious creatures,
but the number of these ''man hunters" has been greatly
reduced by the "shikarees" employed by the local authori-
ties to destroy them, and by those who have pursued them
to secure the bounty offered by the British Crown for
Tiger Skins.

Some scientists class the Mongolian Tiger and other
varieties of this animal found in Sumatra, Java, Corea
and the Maylayan Peninsula as belonging to a number of
different species, but in spite of some marked differences
in external appearance they are all local varieties of the
Felis-tigris.

There are really only two marked and distinct varieties
of this ani^lal; the Bengal Tiger, and the Mongolian or
Chinese Tiger. The Turkistan or Himalayan Tiger, while
its coarse fur is deeper and redder in color than that of
the Chinese Tiger, and sometimes even has brown stripes,
cannot be considered as a separate variety, the differences
noted being probably due to its more exposed habitat in
Turkistan, and on the high grounds of Asia and the
western Himalayas.

To protect it from the cold of its elevated habitat
the Mongolian Tiger is covered with a rich, thick
fur from one and one-half to two inches in depth, in-
stead of the short hair which forms the coat of the
Bengal Tiger; and is thus easily distinguished from the
latter variety. The skins are sometimes beautifully

The Cat Family. 145

marked, but in general color they are lighter than those of
the Bengal Tiger, and the stripes are not as black and
numerous.

White Tigers with light brown stripes are rare but ex-
ceedingly beautiful.

The face of the Chinese Tiger, like that of the lynx, is
surrounded by a long, deep fringe of white and black fur ;
and on many of the animals there is a hump of longer
and thicker fur between the shoulders than on the rest
of the body, and on all of them there is a thick ridge
of bristly hair running down the back the same as on
the lynx and other species of the cat family. On
many of the younger animals the color is sometimes pale,
but the larger adults are mostly of a fine, rich brown
color, approaching the deep hue of the Bengal variety.
The cubs have the densest coats. The ears of the Tiger
are black with white tips.

The Bengal Tiger is the smaller and more numerous of
the two varieties, and is distinguished by the brightness of
its markings. The strongly contrasting colors of the head
are w^hite and black. The belly is white, but the general
color of the body is a rich reddish brown striped with
black, with well defined spots sometimes showing between
the stripes, especially on the legs. The tail is long and
ringed with black. The strong bristling whiskers are
white, and the hair of the body is short and lies very close
to the skin.

The skins of the Bengal Tiger have a more uniform
value than either of the other varieties. The Himal-
ayan tigers are sometimes worth from two to four times
as much as the Bengal, and a fine Mongolian skin that is
large and perfect is ten times as valuable. The skins
of the different varieties are principally used for rugs.
Only a small proportion of the Bengal skins find their way
into the market, most of them are kept as trophies by the
English officers and others who secure them ; and the skins
of the animals killed by ''shikarees" are generally sold to
tourists, who exhibit them to admiring friends at
home, as evidences of their courage and prowess.

The Bengal Tiger rarely exceeds eleven feet in length
including its tail, but the skins of the Mongolian Tiger
sometimes measure as much as fourteen feet.

146

Carnivora Fissipedia.

The Civet Family. 147

THE CIVET FAMILY.

The Civets occupy a position between the Felidae
and the Hyaenidae. They have much more elongated
heads and longer muzzles than the Cat Family. They
have forty teeth. The tongue is bristled with sharp,
rough papillae. The true Civets (The Viverra) all have
large forms and robust bodies from two to three feet
long, exclusive of the fifteen inch tail, and walk on the
tips of their toes. Their legs are short, and each small,
rounded foot is furnished with five toes the claws of
which are partially retractile. Although their eyes re-
main round and full in the day they are nocturnal and
solitary animals, hiding in the w^oods, bushes or thick
grass during the day time, feeding on snakes, frogs, in-
sects, eggs, fruits and roots, and going out at night to
kill any small animals they may find. They take readily
to the water but most of the species are poor climbers.
The young are produced in May or June, three or four
at a birth.

The fur is ash colored, irregularly barred and spotted
with black ; the tail is black at the end and has four or
five black and white rings near its base. Two black bands
encircle the throat and one surrounds the face; a black
mane runs along the whole length of the spine. The fur
of most of the species, however, is of little value.

The Civet Cats are of interest commercially because of
a musky substance which is obtained from a deep, two
sac pouch situated near the anus of the animal; this secre-
tion oozes into the pouch from peculiar glands, and is ob-
tained by the natives of Abyssinia and Java by scraping
the inside of the pouch with a spatula. A dram is often
secured by one scraping and the operation can be re-
peated at short intervals. As this civet, as the substance
is called, sells for ten dollars an ounce to the perfumers
who use it as a base for perfume extracts, it will be seen
that it pays to domesticate these animals even though
they are irritable and untrustworthy. The Civet Cats are
dangerous animals when aroused, and as they produce

148 Carnivora Fissipedia.

more of the secretion when angry they are generally con-
fined by those who cultivate them in a cage so long and
narrow that they are unable to turn around when the
spatula is being used to obtain the secretion.

The habitat of the Civet Cat is confined entirely to the
Eastern Hemisphere, the majority of the species being
Asiatic though some are found in Africa. The Asiatic
species (Viverra-zibetha) can be distinguished from the
(Viverra-civetta) of Africa by the black half -rings ex-
tending the whole length of the tail, black bands on the
side of the neck, and the absence of a mane.

This animal should never be confounded with the little
striped skunk of North America, the so-called ''Civet Cat"
of commerce, which is fully described in its proper place
in the weasel family. The Chinese Civet is not only an
entirely different animal, but its coarse, harsh fur is of a
different color, and the skins, of which quite a number
are consumed, are only used where price is the primary
consideration.

In China and on the west coast of Africa this animal is
also known as the Bush Cat, and the Chinese species are
called Chinese Civets by the furriers.

In the Genets (Viverra-genetta), the pouch is reduced
to a slight depression formed by the projection of the
glands, and has scarcely any visible secretion although
an odor is diffused from it that is very perceptible. The
pupils of the eyes of the Genet form a vertical fissure in
the light and the nails are completely retractile as in
the Cat. It is also distinguished from the Civet by the
slenderness of its body, a longer and more tapering tail,
shorter and blunter claws, and the nature of its fur which
is short and soft, brownish yellow or greyish in the
ground, and blackish brown on top. These animals are
easily tamed, and in the south of Europe the (Genetta-
vulgarus) or Common Genet is often kept in the houses
for killing rats and mice.

The Civet Family. 149

The Common Genet (Genetta-vulgaris) is grey, spotted
with black or brown, and has a blackish muzzle. It has
white spots on the brows, cheeks, and on each side of the
end 0^^ the nose; the tail is the same length as the body
and annulated with black and white, the black and white
rings being from nine to eleven in number. It is the only
species of Genet now found in Europe, and its range is
from the south of France to the Cape of Good Hope. In
the different localities it varies in the size and the number
of the spots in the bands along the Shoulder and the neck,
as well as in the lines on the nape of the neck. It frequents
the edges of parks near springs. The skins of different
species of this animal are used more or less at all times
by furriers, but the fur generally sold under the name
of Genet is that of the European Black Cat, which in
Holland, Denmark and Holstein has a beautiful dense
brownish black pelage that is soft and durable, and espe-
cially suited for coat linings because the skins are very
pliable and light in weight.

The Blotched Genet (Genetta-tigrina), is found only in
Africa, and is lighter in color than the Yiverra-civetta,
and marked with blotches, instead of spots. The tail is
marked with six to nine dark or black rings ; and a white
mark on each side of the mouth is another distinguishing
feature of this animal.

Those whose habitat is nearest the equator are darker
than those found in other parts of Africa, and they are
called Pardine Genets; but they are simply a variety of
the same species.

The Fossane of Madagascar has its tail, flanks and
all above fawn color; the legs and all beneath being a
yellowish white; there are reddish brown spots, forming
four longitudinal bands, on the back; the tail is semi-an-
nulated with red and is only half the length of the body.

The Paradoxure, also known as the Palm Cat of India,
is only found in west Africa. It is about twelve inches
long with a tail two feet long. It has the teeth and most
of the characteristics of the Genet, with which it was for
a long time .confounded; it is however more stoutly

150 Carnivora Fissipedia.

limbed; its feet are semi-palmate and its walk is nearly
plantigrade; but what particularly distinguishes it is the
spiral inclination of the tail, which is not prehensile. The
color is yellowish brown, with spots of a deeper brown;
the face, muzzle and part of the tail are blackish; the
eyebrows are white, and there is a white spot under the
eye.

The Rasse (Viverra-mallaccensis), also known as the
Malaca Weasel, and Lesser Civet, has a greyish brown
body about 10 inches long, with small brown spots on
the rump forming five longitudinal lines. The tail is
shorter than the body and annulated Avith black and white,
the black rings numbering six or seven. The hair is
harsher than in the preceding species. This animal is
easily irritated, and has a sharp bite.

Ichneumon (Herpestes-ichneumon). This is an Egyptian
animal which hunts out crocodile eggs, and is also
known as the Tracker because like all the Mungoose it
can track or trace out a footstep. It is a carnivorous
animal, classed by Linnaeus as the (Viverra-ichneumon),
but is now known as the Herpestes-ichneumon of the fam-
ily Viverridae or Civet.

It has a slender form something like the Weasel. The
body is about nineteen inches long, and of a grizzled
brownish color. The muzzle and face are black and the
tail is tufted; it feeds on small mammals, eggs, reptiles
and small birds. It is easily domesticated, and is useful
in destroying vermin. The fur has no commercial value,
and the species is only mentioned here because of its
connection with the Viverridae.

Another species of Ichneumon or Mungoose (Herpestes-
grisius) is so easily domesticated that it is kept in many
houses in India to rid them of reptiles, mice, etc. Though
small, this Mungoose is absolutely fearless, and its
movements are so rapid that the snakes it attacks have
no chance to poison it. It is grey in color, flecked with
black and about the size of a small cat.

151

THE DOG.

The origin of the dog is a difficult question to answer.
Some think it is descended from the wolf, and others
claim the jackal is its progenitor; but all admit there is
no trace to be found of it in a primitive state. Scientists
are all agreed however that "the dog is neither a species,
nor the descendant of any one species modified by dom-
estication, but that dogs of different parts of the world
have a correspondingly various ancestry from different
wild species of the genus Canis, such as wolves, foxes and
jackals."

"The differences between dogs, and the readiness of
most of them to cross with their wild relations, seems to
prove the contention that the name Canis-familiaris is a
convention rather than a proper zoological designation
of the dog as a species."

It is hard to arrive at a satisfactory classification of
domestic dogs; as those that some naturalists regard as
types are held by. others to be mongrels. ^ One old classifi-
cation divided them into three groups, according to the
special qualities they possessed — Celeres, Sagaces and
Pugnaces; but Col. Hamilton Smith groups the domestic
dogs into six divisions; (1) Wolf Dogs; such as Siberian,
Eskimo, Newfoundland, Great St. Bernard and Sheep
Dogs; (2) Watch and Cattle Dogs; like the German Boar
Hound, Danish Dog and Dog of the American Indians ; (3)
The Greyhounds ; including the Irish Hound, Lurcher and
Egyptian Street Dog; (4) Hounds; taking in the Blood
Hound, Stag Hound, Fox Hound, Harrier, Beagle, Pointer,
Setter, Spaniel, Springer, Cocker. Blenheim Dog and
Poodle; (5) The Curs; under which designation are in-
cluded the Terrier. and all its allies; (6) The Mastiff,
Bulldog, Pug-dog, etc. ; but all these varieties soon lose
their distinctive characteristics if they are left to inter-
breed, and to prevent this tendency to reversion it is
necessary that the several strains be kept pure by arti-
ficial selection along the lines of desired specialization.
The best bred dogs of every form are those furthest
removed from an organic or common type of production.

152 Carnivora Fissipedia.

''All through the different varieties the difference of
heredity is seen in the readiness with Avhich dogs inter-
breed with one another, and cross with wolves, foxes,
and jackals; and the readiness with which like the cat,
they return to the wild state of their native ancestors."

AVhere so many are worthy of special mention it is
hard to pick out a few for particular consideration; the
following are selected only because they seem best to
illustrate the great difference between the various breeds
of domesticated dogs as to size, color, structural charac-
teristics, nature and habits.

The Chinese Dog, which is the most important com-
mercially, is about the size of a large Retriever and shows
much variation in color, some specimens being white,
others black, and many mottled or brindled. In addition
to the wild animals of this species there are thousands
of small dog and goat farms all over Manchuria and the
Eastern borders of Mongolia, on each of which from a
score to a hundred dogs are reared annually. Most of
the Chinese dog skins are dressed and made into robes
of from four to eight skins before they are exported from
China to the different fur markets of the world. The
Chinese dog skin takes a brilliant black dye, and is used
in the manufacture of "Chinese Lynx" muffs and neck
pieces, as well as for making sleigh robes and men's
overcoats.

The Dalmatian or Coach Dog is an artificial breed, and
is built much like the pointer, but its white coat is liber-
ally marked with black spots. This animal is worthless
for any other purpose than running under the carriage
of its master.

The Dingo (Canis-dingo) is a fierce, wild, wolf -like
Australian dog, with short erect ears, and a bushy tail.
It is about three feet long, and in general color either a
reddish brown, black, or brindled like a wolf. It breeds
well in confinement, but in its wild state is very destruc-
tive to flocks, and is consequently persistently hunted.
The skins are of little value.

The Eskimo Dog, of North America and Eastern Asia,
with its deep dun color marked with darker patches is
used only as a beast of burden in the Arctic regions,.

The Dog Family — Dogs. 153

where a team of these animals will draw the Eskimo
sixty miles over the ice in a day. It is characterized by
its black eyes, elongated muzzle and bushy tail.

The Maltese Bog with its long white, silky hair and
round muzzle is one of the smallest representatives of the
family, and is principally valued as a household pet.

The Typical Newfoundland Dog is one of the largest
and handsomest dogs. It has a long, broad muzzle, car-
ries its head well up, and has wavy or curly black and
white hair, and a bushy curled tail. It is noted for its
sagacity, patience, good nature and affection for its mas-
ter ; and in Newfoundland, and other parts of its habitat,
is made to draw sledges and wagons loaded with fish,
firewood and other supplies of various kinds. There is a
variety of Newfoundland Dog that is almost all black.

The Raccoon Dog is found in China, Japan and through-
out Northeastern Asia ; but most of the skins taken from
this species are exported from Japan. It is a lively ani-
mal, only about a foot in length, and the skins are some-
times sold as ''Jackal," ''Chinese Badger," "Sea Fox" or
"Japanese Fox." The Chinese call it the Kju Hao Tze,
and in Japan it is known as the Tanuki. The
general color is a dark brownish grey, the soft thick
underfur being of a light reddish hue, while the long,
bristly top hairs are black. There is a white stripe over
the eye, and sometimes a dark mark across the shoulders
like that on a cross fox. The ears are dark brown, and
the short tail is occasionally tipped with white; rarely a
white spot is seen on the dark covering of the short legs.
The skins are used in their natural state, or plucked and
dyed, for making trimmings and fur sets.

The Siberian Dog is a larger animal than the Chinese,
and has a finer and more valuable skin. It is usually
black, so that many of the skins can be used in their
natural color.

In the Oriental countries, where the dog is a scavenger,
performing the same work as the vultures, it is not
prized as it is in western lands, but is regarded as a
thing unclean. The Pariah dog, half wild, half starved
and belonging to no one, but subsisting by scavenging
and theft, infests every town and village in India.

154 Carnivora Fissipedia.

Civilized nations have acquired many breeds of dogs
by " direct importation, and other varieties have been
secured by crossing and artificial selection, but some
strains have been introduced into countries, where they
were before unknown, by savage and half-civilized
people, who in their migrations have carried with them
the breeds they had obtained by domesticating the wolves
and the wild dogs of their native country.

All the living representatives of the Dog family, in
which are included the Dogs, Foxes and Wolves, are so
much alike, apd resemble one another so much in struc-
ture, habits and distinguishing characteristics, that scien-
tists have placed nearly all the species in a single genus.
Canis. The teeth of the dogs are much less carnivorous
in character than those of the cats, and their legs are
larger and more free from the body so they can walk
erect upon their limbs, and are adapted for running
rather than springing or climbing; as a rule they have
five toes upon the fore and four upon the hind feet, the
development of the rudiamentary fifth toe showing con-
siderable variation in the different species. The claws
in time become worn and blunt at the top because they
do not have the slightest power of retraction. The inner
toe of the fore feet is placed high up, and in some cases
is lacking. The normal number of teeth is forty-two
but one or two species have an extra molar on both sides
of each jaw, and a few have less than the normal number.
There is a remarkable resemblance in the sectorial teeth
of all the species, the Azara's Dog ( Canis- jubata) of South
America, and the Kaccoon Dog (Canis-procyonoides) of
Japan, who live largely on fruits and roots, having the
same pattern of sectorial teeth as the more carnivorous
forms.

The difficulty of classifying the Canidae is increased
by the great range of variation in each species; but
apart from some structural peculiarities the foxes can
be distinguished from the dogs and wolves by their
bushy tails, elongated pupils, erect acute ears, and longer
muzzles. The skulls of the largest grey and red foxes
are inferior to that of the average Jackal, and those of
the smaller species of Foxes are less than half the length
of an average Wolf skull.

Wild Dogs.

155

156

Domestic Dogs.

The Dog Family— Foxes. 157

THE FOXES.

There are four distinct species of North American
Foxes; the Western Kitt or Swift Fox (Canis-velox), the
Grey Fox (Oanis-virginianus), the Red Fox (Canis-fulvus)
and the Arctic Fox (Canis-lagopus). There are two vari-
eties of the Arctic Fox — the Blue Fox and the White or
Polar Fox. The Black, Silver and Cross Foxes are all
colpr varieties of the Canis-fulvus, naturalists claiming
that the only difference they show is in the fur. Other
writers say that, as these varieties are only found in the
Northern districts, they should be considered as a separate
species from the North American Red Fox whose habitat
extends well into the Southern portion of the hemisphere,
but as they all interbreed, and pups of the various colors
are sometimes found in the same litter, the scientists are
ji:istified in placing them all in the same species. Even the
Red Fox shows considerable difference in size, markings,
cobr, and the quality of the fur in different localities;
those from Nova Scotia, Labrador, the Hudson Bay
Country and other Northern sections being larger, and
having longer and richer colored fur than that on the rep-
resentatives of this variety found in the Northern and
Central portions of the United States ; where they are most
abundmt in the New England states, although they are
found also in New York and Pennsylvania and as far
south aa West Virginia and Virginia. In the far Western
States aind on the Pacific Coast the Grey Fox takes the
place of the Red Fox.

Silver ind Black Foxes are occasionally met with in all
parts of (panada and in the most northern of the United
States, buithey are not found in any considerable numbers
sbilth of Newfoundland, Labrador and the northern por-
tions of thevprovinces of Quebec and Ontario. These varie-
ties are als(\ quite plentiful in the interior of Alaska, and
the Yukon province of Canada where their range is lost
in that of the Arctic Fox. The Arctic Fox is a bluish
mauve color au the year around, in the lower latitudes of
its habitat, buWccording to some authorities, in the far
north it become\ white in winter, when it is known as the
White or Polar Eox ; others claim that the White and the

158 Garnivora Fissipedia.

Blue Fox are district varieties, but that the White Fox
becomes dark in summer. We are inclined to accept the
latter theory. The range of the Cross Fox is the same as
that of the Black and Silver varieties, except that it
extends further South in the United States.

On the Pacific Coast the Grey Foxes are found only in
California and Oregon, but they are plentiful all through
the southern and south central states, and in the east are
met with as far north as Connecticut. The habitat of the
Kitt Fox is on the prairies and plains of the far west and
southwestern states.

The mating season of the Red Fox is in February or the
beginning of March, and the young, from five to nine to a
litter, are born in April or early May. The mating season
of the Grey Fox is later and its young are produced in
May. This species is not as carnivorous as the Red Fox,
and fruit, corn and fish form a larger part of its diet. The
Arctic Foxes, who in their natural state subsist chiefly on
Lemmings, and in some parts of their habitat on the car-
casses of the Seals that have been killed for their fur, take
very kindly to a vegetable diet in their captivity. The
Grey Fox prefers the wooded districts for its home, but
the different varieties of the Canis-fulvus are inclined to
the more open country, although all North American
Foxes, with the exception of the Kitt or Swift Fox, take
to the rough hilly country rather than the level plains.

Red and Grey Foxes do not mix. In the sections where
both species were at one time plentiful the Greys have in
some instances driven out the Red, while in o:hers the
Reds have dominated and surplanted the Greys.

In Virginia and the other southern sections of its hab-
itat the North American Red Fox attains its deepest
coloring, but the animals there are much snaller than
those seen in the northern part of its range r the bellies
of this variety are sometimes white, but usually black ; the
long bushy tail is of lightish brown color with longer
black hairs on the top, and it has a white tip. The whiskers
are black, and the ears are covered with a short black
velvety fur.

The largest of all Red Foxes inhabit the Kadiak Island.
Their skins are three feet long exclusive of the tail, but
the color is pale aiid the quality of the far is coarse. The

The Dog Family — Foxes.

159

Kamschatka Fox surpasses all other varieties in the fine
quality of its fur, and the depth and richness of the red
color. Some of the Mongolian red foxes are of good
quality, but most of the skins received from China are
coarse furred and yellowish in color. The Japanese Fox
is similar to the Chinese, but the color is somev^rhat deeper,
and since the increase in the value of American Foxes the
skins of this animal have been quite extensively used.
There was a time when the skin of the Ked Fox was the
chief medium of barter in Northeastern Asia, the same as
the Beaver skin was in America.

Young Foxes are covered with a soft, downy, yellowish
grey fur at birth, the orange colored hair not beginning
to appear until they are five or six weeks old. Even the
Indian hunters cannot distinguish the pups of the Red
Fox at an early age from those of the Cross or Silver
Foxes.

All Foxes have the soles of their feet covered with wool
pads in the winter, no callous spots being then visible.

Silver Fox.

In point of value as well as beauty the Black and Silver
Foxes come first. The Arctic Foxes come next, then the
Cross, and last the Red variety. All the Foxes of this
species are hardy animals, cunning and suspicious. They
spend but little of the time in their dens on the sandy hill
sides, preferring to pass the day curled up among the
grasses or weeds, or in a clump of brush, or on the top of
a stump.

V?

160

Carnivora Fissipedia.

They hunt their food at night, being most active in the
early morning when all animal life is on the move, and
they have a better chance to secure the small animals and
birds with which they vary their diet of fruit, nuts and
eggs.

Grey Fox.

In the wild state foxes are monogamous. The male has
only one consort in a season, and while the young are
being reared he dutifully forages for them. In confine-
ment however one male sometimes has been mated suc-
cessfully with two or even three females.

When born the young are small and weak, but if all is
well they grow rapidly, and when about six weeks old begin
to come out to play and to lap a little milk, or to take an
occasional bit of solid food. If allowed to do so they will
continue to nurse for nearly six months. They breed the
first season when a little less than a year old, but usually
produce only two or three young.

Foxes may all be distinguished from the Wolf or Dog
by their longer muzzles, and longer and more tufted tails.
Their upper incisors are also less sloping, and the pupils
of their eyes form a vertical fissure during the day. They
all diffuse a more or less fetid odor, dig burrows, and are
the most timid of the dog family, attacking none but the
weaker animals.

As before stated, "in the red phase the Fox is entirely
rich fulvous, except restricted black markings on the feet

The Dog Family — Foxes. 161

and ears, a white area at the end of the tail, and certain
white-tipped hairs on the back and rump. From this phase
to the next the black increases in extent, until in the typical
cross fox the black predominates at the feet, legs and
under parts, while fulvous overlaying black covers most of
the head, shoulders, and back. A gradual increase of the
black and elimination of the, fulvous, or its replacement by
white, brings us to the next phase, the silver or silver-
grey in which no fulvous appears, the entire pelage being
dark at the base and heavily or lightly overlain with grey-
ish white. Silver foxes vary from those in which the color is
entirely grizzled, to those in which it is entirely black, except
a few white-tipped hairs on the back and rump. Finally, in
the black phase, the white is absent from all parts except
the tip of the tail, which is white in all phases. The red
phase is much more abundant than the others, but the three
interbreed freely, and wherever one occurs occasional ex-
amples of the others also may be expected. In general the
cross fox is fairly common, the silver-grey is comparatively
scarce, and the pure black is excessively rare. The prices
usually paid for skins of the different phases vary accord-
ing to the relative scarcity of the animals. Thus red fox
skins command only a moderate price, cross foxes are some-
what higher, silver foxes are many times higher, and pure
black skins are exceedingly valuable being higher priced
than any other fur except sea otter."

It is believed that the Arctic or Blue Fox was not found on
the Pribilov Islands at the time of their discovery in 1787,
but that it was taken to those islands subsequently, and
under the fostering care of the government the herds on
these islands have not only grown strong numerically but
produce exceptionally fine skins. They are therefore very
desirable for breeding stock and can be obtained from the
Secretary of Commerce for that purpose, sales being made
from time to time under competitive bids.

Blue Fox skins from the Pribilov Islands have been mar-
keted for many years, some idea of their quality may be
formed from the fact that three hundred and ninety-one
Blue and White Foxes taken on the islands in the winter
of 1911-12, netted the government $20,505.17; one lot of
twenty-eight skins bringing $3,675, or an average of more
than $1 ^1 T>er skin.

162

Carnivora Fissipedia.

In the chapter on Fur Farming considerable space is
devoted to Silver Fox breeding, but no mention is made of
successful attempts by different individuals to raise Blue
Foxes on the islands off the coast of Alaska. In a recent
announcement the Secretary of Commerce said that he
intended to lease twelve islands on the coast of Alaska for
five years, to the highest responsible bidders who would en-
gage in the business of rearing this species, and agree to
pay an annual fee of not less than $200.00.

The islands which it is proposed to lease are those which
which had been leased by the Secretary of the Treasury
for fox propagation purposes prior to May 14, 1898. They
are Chirikof island. Long island. Marmot island, Little
Koniuji island, Simeonof island. Little Naked island, Carl-
son island, Middleton island, Pearl island, Elizabeth
island, Aghiyuk island and Chowiet island.

Leases will only be given to American citizens, and com-
panies or corporations organized under the laws of a
state or territory, and detailed reports must be made by
the leasees annually to the Secretary of Commerce. Fur-
ther particulars regarding the conditions that must be
complied with to secure a lease of one of these islands
can be obtained by addressing the Secretary of Commerce,
Washington. D. C.

Ml

White or Polar Fox in Summer Dress

As the fur of the White or Polar Fox is much less valu-
able than that of the Blue or Arctic Fox, breeders should
always be careful to eliminate from their breed of Blue
Foxes any individuals that show any tendency toward
the white fox variety.

The Dog Family — Foxes. 163

Wilfred H. Osgood of the U. S. Department of Agricul-
ture, says : ' ' Cold weather has no terrors for Foxes, and
snow is their delight. In confinement, as in their natural
state, they show considerable individuality. ' Some are
much better breeders than others; some can never be in-
duced even to mate, and others mate but do not produce
young. Their wild nature dominates most of their actions,
and it is rare that one becomes really tame. They are con-
stantly in a state of fear, and it is only by the greatest
care that confidential relations can be established between
them and their keepers.

"Hope for increased profits in fox raising lies almost
entirely in improving the stock by selective breeding. The
darker the animal the more valuable its pelt. Hence the
object of every breeder should be to produce pure black
foxes, or as nearly pure black as possible. To do this he
must retain his darkest and most valuable animals for
breeding, selling only the poorer ones. The temptation
to sell animals of high value is often very great, but in the
long run such animals are likely to be more profitable if
kept for breeding. The possibilities of modification and
improvement by selection are fully as great with wild
animals as with domestic. This has already been demon-
strated in the case of foxes. Some of the highest priced
fox skins ever put on the market have been from animals
reared in confinement and improved by selective breeding.

*' Breeding for disposition is perhaps fully as important
as breeding for color. So far this has not been attempted
to any extent, but evidently it may be of great importance
in overcoming some of the principal difficulties now en-
countered. By selecting those animals which show *the
least aversion to man, due regard being paid to prolific-
ness and other qualities, a strain may be obtained which
will breed with the certainty of our domestic animals.
This in time should produce a thoroughly domesticated
race of foxes, a result of inestimable value, amply justify-
ing the utmost efforts. Although it may not be fully ac-
complished by those who begin it every breeder should
keep its importance in mind, for every slight improvement
will be to his advantage, and in the end the unqualified
success of the business will be assured.

164 Carnivora Fissipedia.

Besides the prominent species that have been mentioned
in this article, there are a number of other foxes of more
or less importance commercially at the present time.

The Prairie Fox of the central states is smaller than the
Kitt Fox, of which species it is a variety although its dense
fur resembles that of the Grey Fox. It has a black tipped
tail.

The Brazil Fox is also grey in general color, but the sides
of the neck are reddish and it has a black line commencing
at the nape of the neck and extending to the middle of the
tail.

The Patagonian Fox is fawn color on the flanks but has
red ears and feet, and two-thirds of its tail is black.

There are two varieties of the Vulpes Leucopus, whose
range extends from the Volga to India. The Hill or Stone
Fox, also known as the Cossac, Steppe and Afghan Fox,
which inhabits the high table lands of Asia, is of medium
size and has a long, soft, very light brown fur, that in some
cases becomes a darker shade on the back and rump, causing
it to look, with its black belly, ears and legs and white
tipped tail, something like the American Cross Fox. The
East Indian Desert Fox is very small and lighter in color
than the Hill Fox, and has white silvery hairs on the back.

African Foxes are remarkable for the size of their ears;
one species that burrows in the sands of Nubia is an almost
white fawn color ; the Cape species are yellowish grey above
and whitish beneath, and have black feet and tail and dorsal
line.

The Asiatic Kit Fox, called Ture by the French because
it is the same color as the Turkish Fox, is a small animal
measuring from eighteen inches to two feet in length. The
under fur of the back is light grey relieved by longer white
hairs ; the sides are light yellow and the belly is white ; the
ears are brownish grey and tipped with black, and the
twelve inch ^yellow and grey tail is also tipped with black
hair ; the whiskers are black. Its burrows are always seen
on the open plains. Mr. Say claims that it exceeds even
the antelope in swiftness, and is consequently known as
the velox species of the genus vulpes.

The Dog Family — Wolves.

165

WOLVES.

In America there are two distinct species of Wolves;
one of them the Grey Wolf v^^ith its grizzled grey coat
showing reddish in some specimens and black in others,
is almost identical with the European Wolf, but most of
the strains of the American Wolf are larger and stouter
than those of the European species. The Grey Wolf is
also called the "Buffalo Wolf" because of its former abun-
dance in the buffalo country, and is generally known as
the Timber Wolf to distinguish it from the Prairie Wolf
or Coyote, a much smaller animal that lives in the open
country and in some ways resembles the Jackal.

Grey Wolf.

The Common Wolves of Europe (Canis-lupus), stand
from twenty-seven to twenty-nine inches at the shoulders,
and are yellowish grey in color, with long harsh hair, erect
pointed ears, and a nearly straight tail. " They are crafty
and rapacious animals, swift of foot, and destructive
enemies of the sheep fold and farm yard. They associate
in packs to hunt the larger quadrupeds like the deer and

166 Carnivora Fissipedia.

elk, and when pressed by hunger will attack isolated
travelers, having even been known to enter villages and
carry off children; but they are cowardly and sneaking
in their advances, retreating rapidly if disturbed by a
man or dog, and showing great cunning in avoiding
traps. They are still numerous in France, Hungary, Spain,
Turkey and Russia, but became extinct in England in
the Fifteenth Century, and disappeared from Scotland
and Ireland in the early part of the Eighteenth Century.

''There are numerous other species of Wolves in dif-
ferent parts of the world. Some like the Thous grading
into jackals; others like the Fox Wolf inclining more
toward the foxes ; and most of them interbreed easily with
some varieties of the dog in the countries they inhabit,
the dog itself being a composite of a mixed wolf an-
cestry.

Many stories have been told about the ferocity of the
Wolves, and when food is scarce in the winter they are
doubtless dangerous animals to meet when they are trav-
eling in packs ; but the writer has heard the Coyotes howl
all night without offering to come within gunshot range
when the bright fires burning in the camp told the cun-
ning animals that a warm reception w^as awaiting them.
It is claimed however that the common Wolf of Europe
is of a bolder and fiercer disposition than any of the
American species, and the reports that come to us from
time to time of thrilling adventures of sledging parties
in Russia support this contention.

The Russian or Black Wolf is larger than the other Eur-
opean varieties, which are about the size of a large dog,
and has long black top-hairs with a thick brownish red
underfur, bluish at the ground. The full tail is of
medium length dark brown above and light below and
has a black tip ; the ears, which are generally dark brown,
are covered with a soft velvety fur; and the black whis-
kers are few in number. The Siberian Wolf is larger still
than the Russian variety, and is of a much lighter color
and has much harsher fur.

The American Grey or Timber Wolf (Canis-lupus-occi-
dentalis), found in the wild regions of North America as
far north as twenty-seven degrees north latitude, is
fully as large if not larger than the Siberian Wolf.

The Dog Family — Wolves. 167

It is from five to six feet in length, and in the extreme
north grows to a still larger size. Those in the Church-
ill District of the Hudson's Bay Company have almost
white hair, while those from the Eskimo Bay District are
characterized by their bluish grey color although occa-
sionally black and even fawn colored specimens are found
there.

With the exception of the Alaskan variety, which has
coarser hair, the American wolves have finer, denser and
longer fur than the European species, and their skins are
more valuable, especially those of the blue and white
ones. They live in burrows with several outlets, where
they bring forth thftir young in litters of from four to
five or even nine. Dr. Richardson says: "The resem-
blance between the northern wolves and the domestic
dog of the Indians is so great that the size and strength
of the wolves seems the only difference. I have more than
once taken a band of wolves for the dogs of a party of
Indians; and the howl of the animals of both species is
prolonged so exactly in the same key that even the prac-
ticed ear of an Indian fails at times to discriminate be-
tween them. The Indians do not consider the Black Wolf
to be a distinct race, but report that one or two black
whelps are occasionally found in a litter of Grey
Wolves."

The American Timber Wolf has been observed as far
north as twenty-seven degrees and has broad feet well
calculated for running in the snow. The skull and denti-
tion approach closely to that of the dog. In Alaska wolves
prey on the Reindeer, and in other sections the Moose is
often their victim, but they always seemed to fear to
attack the Bison.

The Black Thibetan Wolf (Canis-pallipes), is really a
climatic variety of the Common Wolf of Europe, but is
classed as a separate species.

Chinese, Japanese, Indian (Canis-pallipes), and South
American Wolves (Canis-antarcticus), are of little import-
ance commercially. They are all small animals, and their
skins are poor in quality.

The Coyote or Prairie Wolf (Canis-latrans), which is
rapidly disappearing before the advance of civilization,
is much smaller than any of the other important species

168 Carnivora Flssipedia.

of wolves. It was formerly abundant in many parts of
this country and Canada where it is never seen now, but
it still ranges the plains in the West and Southwest por-
tions of the United States. It is a handsome animal,
showing considerable variation in color from a grey with
black tips to brown and black specimens. The tail is
usually tipped with black, and the large reddish ears are
also black at the points. The dense, long fur is rather
harsh.

Although the Coyotes are generally classed by scien-
tists as all belonging to one species, Dr. Merriam, from an
examination of a number of specimens received from all
parts of the United States, was led to separate them into
eleven distinct species.

Coyote or Prairie Wolf.

What the Coyote lacks in courage it makes up in auda-
city. W. T. Hornaday says : It seems to know when the
hunter has left his gun behind, and on such occasions will
boldly plant itself within a stone's throw of its enemy,
and even when a man is armed it seems to know within a
rod just how near it is safe to approach. It is a coward,
and, ''so far as man is concerned a band of a thousand
Coyotes can be put to flight as easily as one animal; but
in hanging on the ragged edge of civilization and living
by its wits no one can beat the Coyote."

Wolf skins were formerly used only in their natural
color for making sleigh robes and coats, but when the
constantly increasing demand for muffs and neck pieces
of long fluffy fur caused such a phenominal advance in

The Dog Family — Wolves. 169

the price of the lynx and fox, the furriers saw an oppor-
tunity to utilize the wolf to meet the constantly increas-
ing call for good popular-priced long-haired furs. Wolf
skins are now being dyed black, blue and other shades,
and sold either for what they are or under some fictitious
name. The finer grades make articles as beautiful as they
are serviceable ; but as the best Siberian Wolves are now
worth from twelve to fifteen dollars each, and fine Ameri-
can skins are bringing as high as seven dollars, the
manufacturers have to depend upon other and lower
priced skins for their supply of ''cheap" substitutes for
Lynx and Fox.

Scandinavian Wolves are similar in shape to the Rus-
sian, but heavier, and deeper in the shoulders, and lighter
in tint. In winter they become almost white. The
wolves of Italy and southeastern Europe are fulvous,
but in the Pyrenees a Black Wolf is found that is more
common than the ordinary variety. The Wolves of
France are smaller and browner than those of Germany,
and the Indian Wolf approaches the Jackal in appear-
ance more nearly than any of the other Old World
wolves. The range of the wolf in the Old World extends
from the German Sea to the Pacific Ocean, embracing
all of Europe and the greater part of Asia. When
wolves attack cattle they bite their hind legs so as to
hamstring them, but their method of attacking a horse
is to spring upon his back, or to seize him by the but-
tocks taking care to keep out of the range of his heels.

There is a difference of opinion among naturalists, as
to whether the American Grey, and the European Com-
mon Wolf belong to the same species, but it is certain
that the geographical varieties of both species differ
more widely among themselves than the type forms of
each do from one another, and it is safe to say that they
are identical.

170

Carnivora Fissipedia.

THE JACKAL.

The Jackals (Canis-aureus) are gregarious animals,
hunting in packs and rarely attacking larger quadrupeds.
They hide in the daytime and come out at night with
dismal cries to feed on the remnants of the lion's prey,
dead carcasses and smaller mammals and poultry. These
animals are numerous in India, and Algeria where the
French government pays a bounty for their slaughter
and as high as thirty thousand are killed in a year; but
the fur is harsh and of little value ; they interbreed with
the common dog and can be domesticated.

The Jackal.

The piercing, unearthly cry of a pack of Jackals prowl-
ing through a village at night is familiar to all who have
lived in Orental lands, and is appalling to weak nerves.

The Wild Jackal emits an offensive odor, is about two
feet long, and has a black sharply pointed nose. It is a
lively animal and bites quickly and sharply. In color it
is a light reddish brown shading deeper on the back than
the other parts, and it is characterized by a small w^hite
mark on the throat. It has sometimes been called the
"Lion's provider," because of the mistaken impression
conveyed by some writers that it hunts prey for the King
of Beasts,

The Hyaena Family. 171

THE HYAENAS.

The Hyaenas have three false molars above, and four
below, all conical, blunt and singularly large; their su-
perior carnivorous tooth has a small tubercle within and
in front; but the inferior has none, presenting only two
stout trenchant points. So powerful are the muscles of
the neck and jaws of the Hyaenas that it is almost impos-
sible to wrest anything from between their teeth, with
which they are able to crush the bones of the largest prey.
They are nocturnal animals inhabiting caves, and are
extremely voracious, feeding chiefly on dead bodies,
which they seek for even in the grave. A thousand super-
stitious traditions are connected with them, and among
the Arabs their name is a symbol of obstinacy.

There are three distinct species of Hyaena, all repul-
sive animals. Owing to the shortness of their loins and
the lowness of their hind-quarters they do not walk,
but progress by a sort of quick shuffle, occasionally giv-
ing utterance to peculiar unearthly cries. They are as
cowardly as they are ravenous, and hunt in packs for
their food, whether it be carrion or living prey. Strange
as it may seem these beasts can be tamed and even domes-
ticated.

The Striped, or Laughing Hyaena (Hyaena-striata), in-
cludes most of Africa, and Syria, Mesopotamia, Persia
and India in its range. It is about the size of a
large dog, but its feet are redigitigrade with retractile
claws. It has the prowling, nocturnal habits of all of its
kind, hiding in caves during the day.

The Spotted Hyaena (Hyaena-crocuta), has its habitat
in South Africa. It has a thin fur of light brown color
marked with dark brown spots; and there is a ridge of
longer hair between the shoulders. The tail is thin and
bristling; and the head is round, with dark, prominent
eyes.

The Brown Hyaena (Hyaena-brunnea) is also found in
the south of Africa, where the inhabitants of the Cape
call it the Shore Wolf which it resembles in size. Its
pelage, which is darker than that of other Hyaenas,
is from eight to ten inches in length on the back and

172 Cabnivora Fissipedia.

sides. It is reddish in color, sprinkled with black spots.

The Earth Wolf of the Dutch (Proteles-cristatus), gen-
erally known as the Aard Wolf, is sometimes called the
Hyaena by furriers; but it has weaker jaw^s, smaller teeth,
and no tubular grinders in the upper jaw. It is about
three feet long and is met with only in South Africa. Its
thick and rather long under fur is mixed with still longer
hairs; and the tail has long bristling black hairs. The
color is a light brown, with black stripes running cross-
wise of the body. It has a slight mane of bristling hair.

The Hyaena is distinguished from the Dog, by the num-
ber of its toes, four to each foot. The Wild Dog of the
Cape has the dental system of the Dog, and not of the
Hyaena. Its form is long and thin; it is about the size
of a Wolf; has a white and fawn-colored mottled fur,
large ears with black tips. It is a gregarious animal, and
frequently approaches Cape Town, devastating its en-
virons.

173

THE WEASEL FAMILY.
(Mustelidae.)

As the human family is composed of different branches
of varying degrees of intelligence, wealth and refine-
ment; so the Weasel family is made up of six dis-
tinct groups differing widely from one another in com-
mercial value, in exterior character, in coloration, in the
structure of the teeth, and in other details; but they are
all distinguished by the great development of the curved
ridges of bone by which the lower jaw is held in place,
and by the peculiar shape of the upper molar teeth. They
are all carnivorous.

The tj^ical forms of the species are characterized by
long, slender bodies and short limbs, and none of them are
very large, most of them being of medium or small size.
Several of the Northern forms have a dark summer and
light winter dress, differing in this particular from all
other carnivores, except the White Fox. One of the Mar-
tens, and some of the Badgers, are remarkable for ex-
treme brilliancy of color; and *' warning colors," or
contrasting bands of dark brown, or black, and white,
make the American Skunk, and the Cape Polecat, con-
spicuous; but most of the members of the Weasel family
are clothed with a fur of uniform dark tint. The family
is widely distributed on all the great continents except
Australia ; it is also noted that none of them inhabit
Madagascar. With very few exceptions members of the
Weasel family are fierce and blood-thirsty; cases are re-
corded where they have followed rodents twice as large
as themselves into their own burrows, and destroyed
them there.

The first and most important group of the Weasel fam-
ily is the Marten group ; consisting of the Pine Marten,
the Stone Marten, the Japanese Marten, the Indian
Marten, the American Marten (H. B. Sable), the
Sable, the Fisher, the Mink and the Kolinsky. In the
second, or Weasel group, are included the Common
Weasel, the Tayra, the Orison, and the Stoat or Ermine.
The Polecats, Ferrets and Skunks constitute the third or
Polecat Group. Under their own names, the Otter, the

174 Carnivora Fissipedia.

Badger and the Wolverine, form respectively the fourth,
fifth and sixth groups of the Weasel family.

The Civets, the Bears and the Raccoons are closely al-
lied to the Weasel family; but there is no generic connec-
tion between any of them, and each must be considered
as belonging to a separate family.

THE PAHMI.

The Pahmi (Helictis-napelensis or ferrogrisea), some-
times called the "Chinese Stone Marten" by the Leipzig
skin dealers, is an animal whose skins have lately come
into favor, and it is estimated that more than eighty
thousand pelts were marketed in 1913, causing a marked
advance in the price. The Pahmi is principally found
in the Central Provinces of China, where it is also
known as the "Grej^ Marmot." Different varieties of the
genus showing considerable variation in color are also
found in Nepal and Sikkin, and on the Island of Formosa.
It is so closely allied to the Stinking Badger (Mydaus-
miliceps) that the Germans have also named the Pahmi,
Stinkdachs.

The under fur is thick and silky, but the glossy top
hair is coarse. The top hair of the Helictis-napelensis
is a dark greyish brown, with a distinct white line
running down the middle of the back from the neck to
the tail. A white band also goes nearly to the back on
both sides, from a great white patch that covers the
throat and chest like a baby's bib. The under fur is
light yellow, and the coarsely haired light grey tail has
a white point. The pelt is heavy. The Pahmi lives
under ground, in burrows of its own construction, but
does not hibernate in winter. It is probably the con-
necting link between the true badgers and the skunks,
as it burrows like the former, and discharges a fluid after
the manner of the latter, although it cannot throw it as
far.

The Weasel Family — ]\Iarten Group. 175

RUSSIAN SABLE.

The most important animal in the Marten group is the
Russian Sable (Mustela-zibellina). By many it is consid-
ered merely as a variety of the Pine Marten, distinguished
by the greater length and finer quality of its fur; but it
also has a much more distinctly cone-shaped head, longer
and stouter limbs and larger feet. Like all the members
of the Weasel family, the Sable has a habit of walking
almost entirely on its toes, and its short and compressed
claws are capable of partial retraction. It has soft, thick
fur, the top hairs of which are darker and glossier than
the under fur ; in fact, the value of a Sable as well as of
the other Martens depends upon the color and density of
the top coat. The skins of animals taken in the depths
of the forests where the sun's rays never penetrate the
gloom are almost black, and well nigh priceless in value ;
but ordinarily the color varies from a light to a deep
chestnut brown, and is uniform, except for a reddish grey
patch on the throat, and a mixture of black and grey on
the cheeks and snout. The skins are worth from ten to
two hundred and fifty dollars each raw. There are furs
that cost more, per skin, than Russian Sable; but when
the size of the animal is considered, its full length being
from fifteen to twenty inches, exclusive of the seven inch
tail, the Russian Sable is the most valuable of all fur-
bearing animals.

The finest Sables are the large, wide stretched skins
received from the Vitim and Olekma river districts, on
which the long, glossy top hair is very full and black.
They are almost equaled in quality by the Bargusin skins
that are generally stretched a little more in the length by
the trappers. The skins from Jakutsk are smaller, and
have browner top hair, but they have very large and full
silky tails. The Okhotsk Sables are smaller and browner
still, but fine and full furred.

The large brown Kamschatka skins that come to the
market stretched in the length, have many silver hairs in
the top coat. The Nerschinsk Sables are also well silvered,
but are coarser furred. Those from the valley of the

176 Carnivora Fissipedia.

Yenesei are large and coarse and for the most part light
in color.

Some long, thin-furred skins are received from the Altai
mountain section, that like the large, coarse, light-colored
skins from Nekolaievsk, Afghanistan and Turkistan, are
only suitable for blending. Many of the small, wide-
stretehed, brown Sables from the Amur district are, how-
ever, well silvered and of a fair quality.

The range of the Sable originally extended from the
Ural Mountains to the Bering Sea, and from the moun-
tains on the southern border of Siberia to the 68th parallel
north latitude. Now its chief haunts are in the mountain
forests of Eastern Siberia and Kamschatka.

Sables should only be purchased where the buyer can
have the fullest confidence in the representations of the
dealer, as skins that have been taken out of season, or
artificially darkened, are often palmed off upon the
uninitiated as prime or natural.

The Sable is a nocturnal animal, averse to the presence
of mankind, and inclining to the least known and most
inaccessible parts of the country. It subsists upon hares,
birds, fish and every living thing it can kill. Sables make
their nests in holes in the trees, and bring forth one lit-
ter of four or five young each year. Formerly they were
caught in traps; but now they are generally hunted with
dogs who either run them down, or drive them into trees
from which they are knocked with long poles into nets
stretched to receive them. A hunter who succeeds in cap-
turing twenty Sables in a season is considered lucky.
Hunting the Sable in the midst of winter and tremendous
snows is a dangerous task. Is is largely to the pursuit
of this animal that we owe the discovery of the eastern
provinces of Siberia.

HUDSON BAY SABLE.

The American, or Brown, Marten (Mustela-americana)
is generally known as the Hudson Bay Sable; although
strictly speaking, it is more like the Pine Marten than the
Russian Sable in color and habits. It is found in the
forests of North America in the Hudson's Bay district,

The Weasel Family — Marten Group. 177

and to some extent in Labrador and Alaska, and is some-
times met with as far south as the Adirondack Mountains
in New York. It never ventures near the habitations of
man ; and while gentle in appearance, when it attacks an
animal larger than itself it becomes as fierce as a tiger.
One strange peculiarity about the Brown Marten is the
fact, that while in some years as high as one hundred
thousand pelts are taken, at other times they are very
scarce; the periods of scarcity recurring at regular inter-
vals of ten years.

The skins are at their best when the animal is taken
in November, and are worth raw from fifteen to forty-five
dollars each, some choice specimens even bringing as
high as ninety dollars. The color of the fur is brown, but
of a more reddish cast than that of the Russian Sable.
As in the case of its European cogener the value depends
upon the color, density and silky gloss of the top hair,
rather than upon the nature of the under fur. The head
and ears are grey, and the breast spot is yellow.

American Martens are generally taken in wooden traps
set up in line by the hunters for miles across the country.

In Labrador Martens are large and rich in fur, but
very scarce, the same is true of Nova Scotia. The skins
received from Alaska are large, but the fur is coarse
and light in color, occasionally being entirely white. The
skins from the East Maine and Fort George districts of
the Hudson Bay territory are the finest and darkest,
some of them being almost black.

PINE MARTEN.

The typical representative of the Martens is the yel-
low breasted Pine Marten (Mustela-martes). Its range
is in the higher latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere, but
one species is found as far south as India and the Malayan
region. It has a sharply-pointed muzzle with nose ex-
tending far beyond the ]ip, and ears that are thickly cov-
ered with fur on both sides. The length of the body is
from sixteen to eighteen inches, and the bushy tail is from
nine to twelve inches long. The fur is of a rich brown

178 Carnivora Fissipedia.

color at the top, with a reddish grey tint to the under coat,
and a white, yellowish or bright orange patch on the
throat. The soles of the feet have a thick coat of fur be-
tween the bare pads. This animal is arboreal in its habits
and averse to the open country, but remains in the bosom
of the forest ranging through the thickets, or creeping
from branch to branch of the towering trees, where its
sharp claws aid it in procuring a firm hold. When domesti-
cated it is said Pine Martens will eat fruit, but in their
natural state they subsist entirely upon mice, rats, moles,
and poultry ; and in the neighborhood of the sea they sup-
plement this diet with mussels. They can be domesticated
and taught to eat fruit.

The skins of the Pine Martens, like those of the Sable,
are used principally either in the natural color or dyed
for the manufacture of muffs and neck pieces. When
blended it is hard to distinguish the fur of the Pine Mar-
ten from that of the Sable ; in fact even in their natural
color it is sometimes difficult for any one but an expert to
tell some of the finer skins from Hudson Bay Sable.

BEECH MARTEN.

The white-breasted Beech or Stone Marten (Mustela-
foina), is much more common than the Pine Marten; in-
habiting the whole of central Europe, parts of
European Kussia, Asia Minor, and some sections of North
America. Although a frequenter of woods and trees this
animal is more often found among rocks and stones, and
has therefore been called stein-marder, or stone marten, by
the Germans. The fur is coarser than that of the other
Martens and different in color ; the roots of the fur being
of ash color, the middle of chestnut and the points black,
giving to the whole a greyish brown effect. The Turkistan
and Afghanistan skins have beautiful, long, glossy black
top hairs and very pale ashy under fur. They were once
regarded as belonging to a distinct species, but are now
considered a variety of the foina. The Beech Marten is
bolder than the other members of its family, being fre-
quently found in the neighborhood of human habitations,
and sometimes even making its nest in an old barn or

The Weasel Family — Marten Group. 179

granary, although generally its abode carefully formed of
hay and straw is found in a hole in a tree, or in a crannie
between rocks. The young, generally four or five in num-
ber, are born early in the spring; and are blind for the
first two weeks of their existence. The food of the Beech
Marten consists of mice, rats, rabbits and all kinds of
birds; and no dove cote, however lofty it may be, is safe
when a Marten is in the neighborhood. Beech Martens
make a mewing sound, not unlike that of a cat, and a pair
of them in a tree may be heard quite a distance. They
are exceedingly bloodthirsty, but they have such a fond-
ness for certain kinds of fruits, like cherries and plums,
that in some parts of the continent of Europe the trunks of
fruit trees are washed with tobacco-juic^, or petroleum, to
keep them away.

Natural Stone Marten fur has not been very popular
for some time, but many of the skins are being dyed to
imitate blended Sable, and this creates a demand which
serves to keep the price about normal.

Professor Kolleston thought that the Ailouvos of the
Greeks was a white breasted Beech Marten. The darkest
skins come from Spain, Italy and France ; and the finest
from Bosnia. Stone Martens are very numerous in Rus-
sia, but their fur is coarse and light in color.

The Japanese Marten (Mustela-melanopus) has a yellow-
ish underfur, almost white.

INDIAN MARTEN.

The Indian Marten (Mustela-flavigula), is the hand-
somest member of the group. It is from twenty to twenty-
two inches long, with a seventeen to twenty inch tail. It
can be distinguished by its beautiful coloration. The fur
is generally short, but longer on the animals caught on the
Himalayas than on those taken in the Nilgiri section. The
color of the upper part of the head, neck, rump, tail and
limbs is a blackish brown or black, the middle of the back
being of a paler brown; the chin and upper part of the
throat are white, the lower part of the throat and chest
being orange, brownish yellow, or pure yellow. This ani-
mal is found only on the densely wooded hills, and is not

180 Carnivora Fissipedia.

often seen, although its range extends from the Himalayas,
where it is generally found at an elevation of from 7,000 to
8,000 feet, to Nilgiri. This species generally travel in par-
ties of five or six, and give utterance to a low chuckle, which
becomes a harsh cry when they are excited.

FISHER.

The largest member of the Marten group is the Fisher
(Mustela-pennanti), known also as the Pekan, Fisher
Marten, Pennant's Marten, ''Black Fox'' and "Black
Cat;" the two last titles having been given it because in
size, color and build it resembles the fox, and cat, more
than it does the Weasel. The length of the body is
from twenty-four to thirty inches, and the tail is from
twelve to eighteen inches long. The general color of the
fur is a blackish brown becoming grey at the head and
neck, but showing no light colored patch at the throat.

The range of the Fisher covers the greater part of
North America from the upper part of Texas to Alaska,
but continual hunting has exterminated the animal in
the sections east of the Mississippi River. It is nocturnal
and aboreal in habit and very agile, often leaping from
tree to tree in pursuit of its prey. Its nests are found in
holes in trees, high above the ground. The skins are at
their best in the northern country from October to May,
and the customary mode of capturing the animal is by
means of set traps.

The name Fisher is evidently a misnomer, for while it
will eat any fish that may come in its way it does not
catch fish for itself, and makes its home in the swamps
and on the wooded sides of the mountains, away from the
water, feeding principally on snakes and porcupines,
varying the diet occasionally by devouring one of its own
cogeners.

The fur is coarser and not as valuable as that of the
American Marten, but it is handsome and durable, and in
fair demand for fine neck pieces and muffs. In the Euro-
pean markets the Fisher is generally known as the Vir-
ginia Polecat.

It brings forth its young in April or May, producing
from two to four at a birth.

The Weasel Family — Marten Group. 181

MINK.

The true Mink (Mustela-vison) is confined to North
America, but the Mustela-lutreola, called Nerz or Sump-
otter by the Germans, has rightly been classed as the
European Mink, in spite of essential differences in struc-
ture, and quality. A white upper lip always characterizes
the European varieties. Minks of inferior quality that
are classed as local varieties of the Russian Mink, are
also found in Japan, and China where they are generally
called Chinese Weasels.

The Mink is distinguished from the other members of
its genus by a narrower muzzle, longer premolar teeth,
and a partial webbing of the toes. Like all members of
the Marten group the Mink has a bushy tail, about half
the length of its body which measures from fifteen
to eighteen inches. The pelage consists of a soft, dense
under-fur mixed with long, stiff, glossy hairs, the latter
being most in evidence on the upper part of the body.
The color varies from a light, yellowish brown in the
poorer representatives of the species, to a rich chocolate
in the finer grades. The chin is always white, and small
irregular patches of white are often found on the under
part of the body. The Mink ranges over the greater part
of North America; the choicest specimens coming from
Maine and Nova Scotia; next in value are those from
Canada, New York and New England ; the poorest Ameri-
can qualities come from the southern section of the
United States, and the intermediate grades from the cen-
tral, western and northwestern states.

The Mink is an amphibious solitary animal, semi-
aquatic in habit, living in holes in the banks of streams
and lakes. The young, four or five to a litter, are born
early in the spring, and remain with the mother until the
autumn. The Mink is a good diver and swimmer, and
can remain under the water a long time; it has been
known to pursue and catch as agile a fish as the brook
trout ; and as an evidence of its remarkable strength, it is
said that a Mink has been seen to drag a mallard duck
a mile to its hole so that its mate could join in the feast
provided by so much effort. This animal has a keen
sense of smell and wonderful tenacity of life, a case being

182 Carnivora Fissipedia.

recorded where a Mink was found alive twenty-four
hours after it was crushed flat by a falling tree.

The fur of the Mink is used for muffs, neckwear, coats,
linings, trimmings, and sleigh robes. It is one of the most
fashionable furs this season and it is never entirely out
of style, although at some times it is less popular with
wearers of furs than at others.

The Russian Mink is a good size and dark in color, but
it has a flatter appearance than that of the American
Mink because the fur is shorter and the top hairs are not
so long and numerous.

KOLINSKY.

The Kolinsky or Siberian Mink (Mustela-sibirica), also
known as the Chorok, Red Sable and Tartar Sable, is the
connecting link between the Marten and Polecat groups
of the Weasel family. The Tartars call it the Kulon. It
is about fifteen inches long, has an eight-inch tail, and the
fur is of a rich brown or tawny color. This animal is
found in the district east of the Yenesei River, and has
for some time received favorable consideration from the
furriers, by whom it is now dyed to imitate the Marten
and Sable, the same as they dye Japanese and Chinese
Mink to make a cheap substitute for American blended
Mink.

The hairs of the tail of this animal are sometimes used
in the manufacture of brushes.

THE WEASEL.

The Common Weasel (Mustela-vulgaris), is distin-
guished from the Polecats by its smaller size, slender body
and differences in cranial development, as well as the fact
that its winter coat is different in color from its summer
covering. The range of this animal extends over all
Europe, Northern and Central Asia, and a large part of
North America. It is about eight inches long, and its
tail will measure from two to two and one-half inches.
The throat and under parts of the body are always white,
but the outside of the limbs and the back are a dark

The Weasel Family — Weasel Group.

183

brown in summer, often changing to white in winter. It is
a bold and inquisite animal, w^hose food consists of small
birds, mice, etc., but it will seldom attack a rabbit or a
poultry-yard. It is quick of movement, has a strong power

Indian Weasel.

of scent, and follows the small animals on w^hich it preys
to their hiding places. Common Weasels bring forth from
four to five young, and generally live in a nest of dry leaves
placed in a hole in a cave or a hollow tree.

Tayra.

THE TAYRA.

The Tayra or Taira (Galictis-barbara), is found in
Central and South America. It is the largest member of
the Weasel group measuring over twenty inches, exclusive
of the tail which is nearly as long as the body. It is dark
brown above and yellowish on the under part of the
body. Tayras often hunt in companies for the small
animals upon which they prey.

184 Carnivora Fissipedia.

THE GRISON.

The Grison ( Galictis-vittata) , has its habitat in Cen-
tral and South America, and Mexico. It is about the size
of a Marten, and is black in color except on the top of the
head, back and tail, where the long hair is bluish grey.
The sharp contrast between the grey crown and black
face gives this animal a vicious look in keeping with its
savage disposition. It lives in hollow trees, holes in the
ground, and clefts in the rock. It feeds on small mam-
mals and birds. Like the other Weasels it destroys the
poultry in settled districts. The odor it emits is, if pos-
sible, more nauseating than that of the skunk.

Allemand's Grison (Galictis-allemandi), a larger and
lees common species of this genus, has the same range as
the above. The skins of these animals have no commercial
value, and they are only noticed here because of their
connection with the Weasel family.

ERMINE.

' The most important member of the Weasel group is the
Stoat or Ermin^ (Mustela-erminea), sometimes called the
greater Weasel. The fur of common Weasels is often sold as
Ermine, but the winter dress of the Stoat is the only true
Ermine. ^The Stoat though closely allied to the common
Weasel and of similar habits is its superior in size, and in
the purity and depth of its fur; another distinguishing
•feature is the black tip on its tail which never changes
color even when the rest of the fur turns white.

The habitat of the Stoat, like that of the common
Weasel, is spread over a large portion of the globe; the
finest representatives of the species being found in
Siberia, British North America and Alaska. In the higher
latitudes it invariably assumes the white winter dress
which characterizes the Ermine. This change also takes
place in winter in the highlands of Scotland, and the
United States as far south as Pennsylvania, New York
and Massachusetts. Partly white specimens have even
been taken at times in Virginia but in the milder climates

The Weasel Family — Weasel Group. 185

the fur is generally of a tawny brown color above all
the year round. Various reasons have been advanced
by different authorities for the change of color the Stoat

Stoat in Summer Dress.

undergoes at different seasons, and all seem to agree that
the change is due to the necessity of the color of the
animal being adapted to its external surroundings, as it
is noted that the change of color seems to be determined
by the presence or absence of snow in its habitat. The
native of the far north have a legend that the white coat

Stoat in Winter Pelage.

is given to the Ermine by the Creator to enable it to
escape the notice, as it travels over the frozen wastes, of
large and powerful enemies against whom it could not
contend.

The haunts of the Stoat are in stony places and im-
penetrable thickets that afford it a refuge from the larger
animals. It lives on poultry, game and smaller animals;

186 Carnivora Fissipedia.

and it is claimed that when food is abundant it will only
suck the blood and eat the brains of its victims, leaving
the flesh untouched. The Stoat moves very rapidly and
hunts its prey by day and by night. It is a good climber and
also a good swimmer, although not an aquatic animalN, The
young are produced in the spring, the usual number to a
litter being five to twelve. The full-grown animal is about
seven to twelve inches long, exclusive of the tail which
will measure about four inches.

Royal in its beauty, the fur of the Ermine has at all
times adorned the state robes of kings and queens, and
has always been in favor for occasions w^here full dress
was demanded. At present it is very popular for street
wear as well and the price is very high for the better
grades.

The fur of the Ermine when made up with black spots
instead of tails is called minever, the whitest skins come
from Ischimer. Good medium grades, with extra fine
full furred tails that are black half their length, are
received from Tomsky and Perchorsky. The smaller skins
from Jakutsky and Janiseisky are white but flat, and the
Lasky skins have no black points on the tails. The Bara-
binsky skins are the largest and best of the Siberian
Ermines. The skins are put up for sale in ''timbers" of
forty skins each.

THE FERRET.

Zoologists are now agreed that the Ferret (Putorius-
furor), with its pink eyes and yellowish white color, is
merely a variety of the Polecat, modified by the effect of
long continued captivity. Ferrets came originally from
Spain and Barbary, but now are bred for rabbit and rat
hunting both in Europe and the United States. The Fer-
ret has no strong local attachment and therefore must
be carefully secured.

As is the case with most domesticated animals Ferrets
are more prolific than their wild allies; the young are
usually born in the spring, but sometimes there are two lit-
ters a year of from five to ten each. The Ferret will al-
most invariably seize a rabbit behind the ears.

The Weasel Family — Polecat Group. 187

THE SKUNK.

A well known scientist, when asked if the Skunk was
a polecat, replied: "Yes — and more too." Cuvier ex-
plains the meaning of this remark when he says : ''Among
a family remarkable for its stench, the Skunk (Mephitis-
mephitica) is distinguished by a sort of stench far ex-
ceeding that of the remaining species. The odor it pro-
duces resembles that of the Polecat, mixed with a strong
smell of garlic — nothing could be more nauseous"; any
one who has encountered it, will know why the French
formerly called this animal "enfan-du-diable" — ^the child
of the devil.

Like the Polecats, the Skunk has thirty-four teeth;
two false molars above, and three below ; but the superior
tuberculous one is very large, and as long as it is broad,
and the inferior carnivorous has two tubercles on its
inner side; circumstances which ally it to the Badger,
just as the Polecat approximates to the Grison and the
Glutton. The anterior nails of the Skunk, like those of
the Badger, are long and fitted for digging, and they are
moreover semi-plantigrade. The American Skunk has
sometimes been called the Fitchet of Pennant. Its general
color is brownish black with a white tip on the head. It is
marked on the back with white stripes of considerable
individual variation, narrow in some and wide in other
specimens, but all have the white spot on the head, and a
white tip at the end of the long, bushy tail, which they
carry curved over the back when walking. The slightly
curved claws are set in straight toes. The head is small,
and the ears are short and round, and the stoutly built
body is moderately elongated. It is terrestrial and fos-
sorial in its habits.

The Skunks make their homes in holes in the ground,
in hollow trees, or in crannies in the rocks. They are
good climbers but prefer the clearings and the open
glades to the dense forests. The young are born in the
spring, six to ten in number, and remain with the mother
until the following spring. Dr. Merriam says, that
when captured early in life, Skunks make pretty and

188 Carnivora Fissipedia.

agreeable pets, gentle in manner, and cleanly in habits.
They feed on insects, birds, eggs, frogs, mice and rab-
bits, sometimes even leaves and berries. Several families
of Skunks will live in one burrow.

It is hard to intimidate a Skunk as besides being of a
fearless and unsuspicious nature, it seems to be conscious
of the power it possesses of putting all enemies to rout
with the nauseous artillery which it can at all times
bring to bear on the object of its wrath. This secretion,
with its penetrating, lasting, never-to-be-forgotten odor,
is contained in a pair of glands located under the tail;
and can be ejected at the will of the animal with such
force that the fluid w^ill carry from thirteen to sixteen
feet, as many unfortunate victims can testify. Strange
as it may seem the flesh is said to be white, tender and
highly palatable. Skunks are caught in traps. The finest
skins come from Ohio, and the country east of that state.
Western and southern skins are coarser and not so full
furred. Skunk farming is carried on successfully in dif-
ferent sections of the country.

Whatever we may think of the Skunk otherwise, its
fur is certainly worthy of the high regard in which it is
held by the public. Many wearers of "Alaska Sable"
and ''Black Marten" furs, have no suspicion that their
beautiful muffs and neck pieces are made of Skunk
skins, for when properly dressed and cured the skins
soon lose the objectionable odor, which has made the
useful and handsome Skunk famous — or infamous.

The natural black skins are the most valuable, and
w^here the w^hite stripes are not too large they are cut
out by the furriers, so the l^alance of the skin can be
used in its natural color, which is a brownish black on
top, and deep grey at the roots. The white skins, and
those in which the stripes are too prominent, are dyed
either a jet black, or as near as possible to the natural
color of the skin. Some dyers are very successful in
imitating this shade, but w^hen the natural and dyed
skins are placed side by side it is easy to see that man
at his best is only a poor imitator of natural products.

The Lesser Skunk (Mephitis-putorius), sometimes re-
ferred to as the Little Striped Skunk, and for some

The Weasel Family — Polecat Group.

189

unaccountable reason called ''civet" by the furriers, be-
longs to the same genus as the common Skunk, but it is
a much smaller animal, with different cranial character-
istics, and it has the peculiar odor of the Poelcat. It also
differs in the white markings which it shows in an endless
variety of detail on its black fur, but which are always
so arranged as to form a lyre, more clearly defined on
some specimens than on others. This animal never ex-
ceeds a foot in length, and its tail is shorter than the
head and body. Its range is in the lower part of the
United States, and as far south as Yucatan and Guate-
mala. In working up these skins no attempt is made
to cut out the white stripes, but the furriers match them
so that on the finished article they will look like the lines
of one general design. The largest skins come from the
northern part of its habitat, the animals growing smaller,
coarser and fatter as they go south.

Lesser Skunk.

Skunk.

Nearly allied to the above species is the long tailed
Skunk (Mustela-macrura), of Mexico, w^hose tail is longer
than the head and body combined.

There is a white backed Skunk in South America
(Conepatus-mapurito), which is heavier than the others
t^nd has a more pig-like snout with nostrils directed down-

190 Carnivora Fissipedia.

ward instead of laterally. It has only thirty-two teeth,
extremely small ears, and a shorter tail than the other
species. The body is from eighteen to twenty-four inches
long, and generally marked on the back with two very
wide white stripes; the under part is always black, and
the tail is white and black. Its range is from Patagonia
and Chili, through Central America, as far north as
Texas.

In Nicaraugua the Skunk goes along at night with its
tail up as a danger signal. Naturalists claim that the
conspicuous markings of the Skunk are "w^arning colors"
that are a benefit to the species as well as its enemies, as
many a time a man who would hesitate a long time be-
fore hunting a Skunk, would take a shot at an animal of
whose identity he was not certain.

The gait of the Skunk is a measured walk, but it can
shuffle along at a pretty good speed if necessary. A
peculiarity of this animal is its indifference to the presence
of man, which is evidenced by its being so often run over
by vehicles.

POLECATS.

Polecats are the most sanguinary of all the Weasel
tribe. They are larger and more powerful than the
Skunks and Weasels, but as a rule are smaller in size
and have shorter legs than the Martens. They were
formerly known as Foulmart (Foul-Marten) because of
their fetid smell, due to a secretion carried by these ani-
mals in small glands. They are the terror of poultry
yards and warrens, for while they are less active than the
Martens, they not only work havoc with the rabbits, poul-
try, birds and small rodents, but also destroy the eggs and
young of their prey in their burrows and nests. The
lower carnivorous tooth of the Polecat has no inner
tubercle, and the superior tuberculous one is more broad
than long; there are two false molars above and three
below; they can also be distinguished from the Weasels
and the other Martens by the absence of the first pair
of molars in'both jaws.

The Weasel Family — Polecat Group. 191

Fitchet, or Fitch Cat, is the name given to the com-
mon Polecat of Europe (Mustela-putorius). It has a fur
made up of a woolly yellow under-fur showing through
long, glossy dark top hairs; in the Russian skins the under
fur is almost white. The body of this animal is about seven-
teen inches long, exclusive of the tail which measures
about six inches. It is a nocturnal animal inhabiting
the deserted burrows of other animals in the forest and
issuing forth at night for its depredations. ** Fitch'* was
a popular fur with our grandmothers, and at present has
come back into favor. The finest darkest skins come from
Germany.

The Perwitsky or Sarmatian Mottled Polecat (Putorius-
sarmaticus), is a distinct species, that has its habitat in
the wilds of Siberia, Russia and Central Asia — principally
Afghanistan. This species is not exclusively nocturnal,
but it passes the greater part of the day in some deserted
rabbit burrow, or in a deep, dark crannie in the rocks or
an opening between large stones, issuing forth at night
to procure food. It is a fearless, ferocious fighter, and
does not hesitate to attack animals many times its size.
Where it cannot outspeed its victims it patiently tracks
them until it can steal upon them. The Perwitsky is
generally caught in traps; sometimes it is smoked out of
its burrow into a net spread over the opening; and
occasionally it is roped as it escapes to the trees. The
fur of this species is of an orange color, with irregular
brown spots on the upper part very much like the thighs
of the Russian Sable in color and texture, underneath it
has glossy black fur. It is a much smaller animal than
the common Polecat, measuring from seven to ten inches
in length. Like that of the Fitch, the fur of the Per-
witsky was very much in vogue fifty years ago, but for a
long time was neglected by the furriers ; it is in de-
mand again at the present time, being admirably suited
to the effects which the designers are producing in this
season's garments.

The Black-footed Polecat of North America (Mephitis-
migripis), is found in the Central plateau of the United
States as far south as Texas. It is larger than the com-
mon species, measuring about nineteen inches exclusive
of the tail which is about five and one-half inches long.

192

Carnivora Fissipedia,

It is of a brownish white color, with the feet, the tip of the
tail, and a broad stripe across the forehead black. It
shows the distribution of dark and light colors character-
istic of all members of this family.

Other unimportant species of this animal are the Si-
berian Polecat (Mustela-eversmanni), which can be distin-
guished by certain differences in the form of the skull
and its nearly white back and head ; and the Tibetan Pole-
cat (Mustela-larvata), found in Ladok and Tibet.

Polecat.

The Cape Polecat of South Africa (Itonyx-zorilla), is
so much like a small Skunk that it is often taken for a
member of the same group; the teeth, however, are
smaller and more like those of the Polecat between which
and the Skunks it appears to be a connecting link. Both
in size and shape it is like the Polecat. It has a broad
head, small rounded ears, and a very sharp muzzle; the
tail is bushy, and about three quarters of the length
of the body which measures about twelve inches. The
fur is glossy black and marked with white stripes and
spots. The upper part of the tail is mostly white, and
there are always some white spots on the head and tail.
Its range is from the Cape of Good Hope to Senegal.

The Weasel Family — Polecat Group. 193

Another species of the Zorilla is the Itonyx-funata,
which is found in Egypt, and ranges across the Isthmus
of Suez into Asia Minor. This animal frequents the rocky
districts, and is purely nocturnal; it is not able to climb
like the Martens and Polecats, and only takes to the
water when compelled to do so. It has an odor as in-
tolerable as that of the Skunk, but it is found in many of
the homes of the Dutch Boers in South Africa, where it
is kept to destroy vermin.

The South African Weasel (Poecilogali-albinucha),
with one exception the only Weasel found in Africa south
of the Sahara, is almost exactly like the Cape Polecat
in coloration and marking. It is placed in a distinct
genus because it has two pairs of premolar teeth in each
jaw, while generally there is only a single pair in the
lower jaw of the Polecats.

THE BADGERS.

The Badger, which Linnaeus placed with the Bears,
but which is now conceded to belong to the Weasel fam-
ily, is found throughout Europe, Asia, British North
America, and the central and western portion of the
United States; the best species coming from the western
continent. In some places it is called the Javanese Skunk,
because of its offensive odor. The Badger is of a shy
and retiring disposition, never courting danger, but when
brought to bay will put up a fierce and stubborn fight.
\ It is nocturnal, lives in burrows of its own construction,
and in the colder regions hibernates during the winter.
It is partial to bird's eggs and bee's nests with their
honey and larvae, but its principal food consists of fowl
and the various species of small rodents. Badgers are
conspicuously distinguished by a pouch beneath the tail,
from which a greasy, fetid secretion exudes.

This animal measures about two feet in length, ex-
clusive of the six inch tail. It stands low on its legs, is
clumsy in its movements, has a long snout, and long claw^s
peculiarly adapted for digging. The American Badger
(Taxidea-americana) has a light yellowish under fur,

194

Carnivora Fissipedia.

covered with long black and white hairs that grow much
longer on the sides than on the back; and the skins are
used principally for making robes, muffs and other furs.
The European or Common Badger (Meles-taxus) is much
coarser and darker than the American species; and the
hairs of most of the skins of this variety are used for
brush-making, although the great majority of skins used
for that purpose come from Russia.

American Badger.

The brush manufacturers shave the skins on the leather
side, then wash them in alkali to remove the grease, after
which the hair is cut off close to the pelt and sorted into
lengths ; the longest hairs being used for graining brushes,
and the medium length for shaving brushes, while the
tooth brushes are made of the shortest hairs.

Badgers at one time were very abundant in England,
and are still found in the southern part of Great Britain.

The Ratel, a small, clumsy looking creature, about the
size and appearance of the Badger, is often called the
Honey Badger. There are two distinct species of this
animal; the (Mellivora-indica), found in India; and the
(Mellivora-ratel), which has its habitat in Africa. A
black Ratel, that ranges the Ituri forests, is known as the

The Weasel Family — Badgers. 195

(Mellivora-cottoni). Both the other species are iron grey
on the upper parts, and black below, and have thickly
built, stout bodies; their legs are short and strong, and
armed, especially the anterior pair, with long curved
claws with which they dig up the earth in search of the
honey combs of the wild bees; their tails are short and
their ears are reduced to mere rudiments. They have
stout, heavy, conical skulls. The two species may be
distinguished from one another by a distinct white line
around the body of the African species, at the junction
of the grey of the upper side with the black of the lower,
which is wanting in the Indian Katel; the teeth of the
former species are also larger, rounder and heavier than
those of the latter.

The Sand Badger (Arctonyx-collaris) is a yellowish
animal, larger than the common Badger and looking very
much like a small bear. It is nocturnal and omnivorous
in habits and very fierce. It is found in Eastern India,
from the eastern Himalayas to Burma. A small Sand
Badger (Arctonyx-taxoides) is found in Assam, Arakan
and also in China. It is said there is another species in
Tibet, with a tail much longer in proportion to the body
than any of the rest of the group.

There are four species of Ferret Bagders (Helictes),
which are found in Asia and the Eastern Archipelago ;
and the Stink-dachs of the Germans (Mydaus-meliceps),
which is said to be the connecting link between the true
Badgers and the Sand Badger, has its habitat in the Mala-
van Peninsula.

196 Carnivora Fissipedia.

OTTER.

All Otters are so like one another that it is difficult
to determine the exact number of species, but it is certain
that there are at least ten species of true Otters; one
of which is European and Oriental, three are exclusively
Oriental, two are African and four are American. The
largest member of the group is the Brazilian Otter, the
smallest representatives are the feline Otter of South i
America, and the clawless Otter of India; the best known]
of the species is the European or Common Otter (Lutra-
vulgaris), and the most valuable is the North American
Otter (Lutra-canadensis).

Otters Vary much in size, the average length being]
thirty inches, exclusive of the tail which will measure
about fifteen inches. The general color of the fur varies]
from a fawn to a liver brown when the top or hair coat
is on the skins, the chin, throat and under part of the
body always being lighter than the back. The under-
fur remaining, when the top hairs have been plucked
out, varies from a light tan in some skins, to a golden
brown tint in others.

Their elongated forms, w^ith but slight restriction at

the neck, enable the Otters to glide through the water

with ease and speed, and the dense under fur affords them^B
protection against the cold. Their teeth are so constructed ■
that they can both hold such slipperj^ prey as fishes, and
pierce their scales, with equal facility. They have broad,1
flat heads with sm^all external ears, a neck so thick that
it passes imperceptibly into the trunk, and short legs with
webbed feet, and curved blunt claws. They are expert^B
and graceful swimmers and divers, and live exclusively '
on fish when they are procurable. They frequent all kinds •
of bodies of water, sometimes even descending to the sea.^f
In feeding they hold the fish in the forepaws, eating down
to the vent, and leaving the tail, but only a small propor- i
tion of the fish they capture are devoured, as the Otter^Bj
seems to delight in killing for killing's sake. Otters ^
never hibernate, and in winter, when they cannot procure
fish, they will kill poultry, and smaller animals. They are

;*

The Weasel Family — Otters.

197

generally found in pairs, or family parties of five or six.
They are somewhat deficient in sight, but the other senses
are well developed. When excited they give a yelping
bark, and are said to sound a sort of whistle as an alarm
note to their fellows. Otters build their homes in the
hollows under roots of trees near the water's edge, or in
hilly districts in the clefts between the rocks; sometimes
their abodes have several entrances, one of which opens
under the water. The young may be produced at any
time, although winter is the usual season; they are born
blind, and a litter generally contains from two to five
cubs, which can easily be tamed if caught when young.
The North American Otters are said to travel so fast in
going across country from river to river, that it is hard
for a man to overtake them; on the ice they progress by
making a series of jumps, and then sliding on their bel-
lies as far as the impetus thus acquired will carry them.
They have a curious habit of sliding down smooth or
steep banks of snow or mud, and are caught in steel traps,
set under the water at the bottom of one of these slides,
or under the snow at the top. They are animals of high
general intelligence, and very successful in evading traps.
When domesticated they will follow like a dog.

Otter

I

I

198 Carnivora Fissipedia.

The fur of the Otter is very valuable, as it can be used
for nearly every purpose, either in its natural state, or
plucked and dyed. The skins of the North American
Otter are worth raw from fifteen to fifty dollars each,
and those of the European species from five dollars to
fifteen dollars. The finest skins come from Canada, Nova
Scotia and Labrador; those from the York Fort district
are large, thick and dark; the Halifax skins are also very
dark, but rather coarse, like the Norwegian Otters. The
best skins come from the East Elaine district, and are
almost black. Otters found in the Southern States have a
thick pelt, and are of low standard. Silvery skins are
occasionally met with, but they are rare; the white are
more common.

There are three species of South American Otters; the;
largest of these, the Brazil Otter, is often called the Mar-
gin Tailed Otter because it has a distinct ridge running -
along each side of the tail; it is about forty inches long,^B
and has a twenty-two ijich tail; the nose of this species '
is covered with hair. The color is chocolate on the back,
but lighter on the under parts, and it also has light spots]
on the chin and throat, and some dark spots on the under
fur. There is ^ hairy nosed Otter found in the Malay ;
Peninsula. The Japanese Otter is very fine in quality.

SEA OTTER.

Zoologists while classing the Sea Otter (Latax-lutris)
as belonging to a genus apart from that containing thej
common Otter, consider it as a member of the family
Mustelidae, and we have therefore placed it with the Wea-
sels, although in many of its habits, in its general ap-
pearance, and in the possesson of long flipper-like hind
feet, it very much resembles the Eared Seal.

The body of the Sea Otter is about three feet long,]
tapering to the front so that it joins the small rounded]
head without any marked constriction at the neck. Thei
skin is so large and loose for the size of the body that]
when it is removed from the animal it can readily be
stretched to one-third more than its apparent length.^
The pelage consists mainly of a fine, soft fur, amonj

The WExVsel Family — Sea Otters. 199

which are a small proportion of long stiffer hairs. The
general color is a dark liver brown, silvered over with
the greyish tips of the longer hairs. The Sea Otter dif-
fers from the common Otter not only in external charac-
teristics, but in the construction and the number of its
teeth — having only thirty-two teeth, while the common
Otter has thirty-six, and Dr. Cones says: '^If the teeth
of ordinary carnivorous quadrupeds be likened to fresh
chipped, sharp and angular bits of rock, those of the Sea
Otter are comparable to Avater-worn pebbles." Sea Ot-
ters are very playful and will lie upon their backs in the
water for hours tossing pieces of sea weed into the
air from paw to paw, or sporting with their young. Their
food consists almost entirely of clams, mussels, sea urchins
and other shell fish, from which they extract the contents
by taking one in each paw and striking them together
to break the shells. The young may be born at any sea-
son, but only one is produced at a birth. The mother
sleeps in the water on her back, with her young clasped
between her fore paws. Pups have frequently been cap-
tured alive, but it is impossible to raise them as w^hen
taken from their mother they invariably die of self-im-
posed starvation.

Sea Otters inhabit both coasts of the North Pacific ;
their chief haunts on the Asiatic side being found in
Kamschatka, and on the American side in Alaska, the
Aleutian Islands, Sitka Island on the w^est coast of Can-
ada, Vancouver Island and the shores of the continent
as far south as Oregon. It is stated by Mr. H. W. Elliot
that when the Russian traders first opened up the Aleu-
tian Islands they found the natives wearing cloaks made
of the fur of the Sea Otter ; and that when the Pribilov
Islands were discovered in the Bering Sea upwards of
five thousand Sea Otters were killed the first season,
but in less than six years these animals had com-
pletely disappeared from these islands ; and now they are
becoming so rare everyw^here, that nothing but govern-
ment protection can save the species from total extinc-
tion. Mr. Elliott says: ''Over two-thirds of the Sea
Otters now taken in Alaska are secured in two small
areas of water around the Islands of Saanach and Cher-
nobours and most of those taken on the Coast of Wash-

200

Carnivora Fissipedia.

ington and Oregon are secured in the neighborhood of
Grey's Harbor, which shows that these animals seem to
have a preference for certain localities to the exclusion
of all other territory."-

Because of their quick hearing and acute smell Sea
Otters are hard to capture by shooting or clubbing, unless
there is a heavy gale from the north to drown the sounds
made by the approaching hunters. Some of the natives
spread nets over the kelp-beds where the Otters are in
the habit of sleeping, when the animals becoming par-
alyzed with fear as they find themselves entangled in the
meshes, fall an easy prey to the hunters.

The Sea Otter furnishes one of the most valuable of:
furs as a single skin will often sell for from one thousand
five hundred dollars to two thousand dollars, and the
average price of a season 's catch is about five hundred dol-
lars per skin.

Sea Otter.

The Weasel Family — Wolverine. 201

THE WOLVERINE.

The Wolverine (Gulo-luscus), is known all over Eu-
rope as the Vielfrass. By the French Canadians it is
called Carcajou; and by the British residents of North
America it is named Quick-hatch,

Linnaeus placed the Wolverines among the Bears,
whom they really only resemble in their plantigrade move-
ments; approximating much nearer to the Weasels, in
their teeth, as well as in- their habits. Scientists are now
agreed that the W^olverine should be placed with the
Weasel, in spite of the fact that it belongs to another
genus and is different in appearance and dimensions from
all the other members of the Weasel family. It has the
same number of teeth as the Weasel, but they are un-
usually powerful and strong, distinctly resembling those
of the Hyaenas.

The Wolverine is an inhabitant of the northern regions
of both hemispheres. 4 It is heavily and clumsily built;
has thick, stout limbs; and like the Badger walks w^th
the back arched, and both head and tail carried low\ The
head is broad and rounded, with small, widely separated
eyes, and small rounded ears. The length of the body is
from twenty-four to thirty-six inches, and the tail, which
has a plait or fold in place of a sac, measures from twelve
to fifteen inches. The body is covered with a thick,
woolly under fur, and a top coat of long, coarse hair. The
general color is blackish brown, with distinct bands of
chestnut brown or some lighter tint, commencing behind
the shoulders and running down the flanks to meet at
the root of the tail, forming a perfect disc on the back.
The fur on the front and sides of the head is of a light,
grey color. „ In the Western Hemisphere this animal
ranges as far north as the Arctic coast, and as far south
as Lake Erie on the eastern side of the continent, and
Salt Lake on the western side; in the mountains it is seen
as far south as Arizona and New^ Mexico. - It is a forest
haunting species, nocturnal in habit and can travel rapidly.
It is so voracious that it has been termed the Glutton.
It hunts during the night; does not become torpid dur-
ing the winter; and is a solitary animal, living in sub-

202 Carnivora Fissipedia.

terranean holes, where its young are born in June or
July. It is sanguinary and ferocious and masters the
largest animals by leaping upon them from trees, and in
pursuit of its prey it has been known to swim rivers.

The Wolverine is a natural born thief, often stealing
things for which it has no possible use. In search of
food it will rob the traps set for other animals, and it
will devour any beast or bird it can catch. It is won
derfully sagacious, and is very difficult to trap because
of its ability to detect the preparations made for its cap
ture. Lydeeker says: "When one of them has discov
ered a line of Marten traps the trapper may as well re
linquish his trade until he has destroyed the marauder
Every trap along the line will be pulled to pieces and the
bait or captured marten removed, and after the hunger
of the Glutton is satisfied the remainder of the booty wil
be buried. Another curious propensity of the Glutto
is its habit of stealing and hiding articles which can b
of no posible use to it ; and an instance is recorded wher
these animals removed and concealed the "yvhole para-
phernalia of a hunter's lodge, including such articles as
guns, axes, knives, cooking vessels and blankets." Strang
as it may seem, in spite of its cunning, this animal is itsel
caught in large traps made to look like caches, int
which it will break to get the bait which is concealed in
stead of being exposed in the usual way.

The darkest specimens of this animal are found in th
glacial regions of the Eastern Hemisphere. The Commo;
Glutton or l^ossomak (Urus-gulo) of Kussia has a fine
deep maronne color, with a darker disc.

The fur of the Wolverine is seldom used for anythin
except sleigh robes and rugs, and the manufactur
of tails that make a good imitation of the stone marte
tails.

Hot climates produce some species, which only differ
from the Gluttons in having one false molar less in eac
jaw, and a long tail. Such are the animals called Ferre
by the inhabitants of South America, which while the
have the teeth of our Ferrets and Polecats and simila
habits, are distinguished from them by their plantigrad
movement.

I

ir

i

203

RACCOONS.

The Kaccoons or Ratons (Procyonidae), are a very small
family of Carnivores whose habitat is principally con-
fined to the central and southern portions of the North
American continent. The skull has the same essential
characteristics as that of the bear, and while in some other
respects their external appearance is like that of a bear
in miniature, they differ in other ways very materially
from that animal, having well developed tails marked
by alternate dark and light rings. They have the same
plantigrade feet, but they rest the whole sole of the foot
on the ground only when they stand still; when they
walk they raise the heel. The dark brown fur on the
body of the Raccoons is thick and rather coarse and
has tips of greyish hair; the muzzle is white, and
they have a brown streak across the eyes. The length of
the body is from twenty-two to twenty-six inches long. A
Raccoon will weigh from fifteen to thirty-five pounds
when in the best of condition. Raccoons have three back
tuberculous molars, the superior of which are nearly
square; and three pointed false molars in front forming
a continuous series to the canine, which are straight and
compressed. The total number of teeth in these animals
is forty.

Raccoon.

Raccoons (Procyon-lotor) are extremely common
about the borders of the Adirondacks. They are good
climbers, and they delight to sport on the margins of

204 Carnivora Fissipedia.

pools and streams, where they capture fish lurking be-
neath the stones and the fresh water mussels buried in
the mud and sand, but although they are good swimmers
they are unable to dive in pursuit 'of their prey. Trees
are their refuge when pursued by foes, and form their
resting, and breeding places. Their nests are made in
hollows high up from the ground ; but as it does not hunt
its prey among the tree tops the Raccoon cannot be
considered as an arboreal animal, nor does it gather
nuts or fruit from the branches, or feed upon young
shoots or twigs, preferring a diet of eggs, birds, fish and
smaller animals like mice. From a singular habit it has
of eating nothing without first dipping it in water, the
Germans call it the Wash Bear.

Raccoons are the most strictly nocturnal of all North
American mammals. They commonly live and travel in
small companies and do not return to the same nest every
morning, but often make excursions in various direc-
tions that last several days, taking refuge at the
approach of dawn in any convenient arboreal shelter.
In the Adirondacks the young, numbering from four to
six to a litter, are produced early in the spring, and
remain with the parents about a year. Raccoons hiber-
nate during the severest part of the winter, retiring to
their nests high up in the trees early in the fall, and not
appearing again until February or March of the following
year.

Raccoons are easily caught in steel traps, if these are
set under the water at the edge of swamps or streams;
but the sporting method of hunting them is at night with
trained dogs, when after a short run they invariably take
to a tree where they are shot by the hunter.

Because of the many purposes for which it can be
used the fur of the Raccoon ,though not expensive, is
very valuable. Either in its natural state, or dyed, it is
manufactured into sleigh robes and coats; as well as such
small furs as muffs, neck pieces, caps and gloves.

The Coatis have a singularly elongated and flexible
snout, and the teeth, tail, nocturnal habits, and slow
dragging gait of the Raccoon. Notwithstanding their long
nails, which are used for digging, and their semi-palmate

The Raccoon Family. 205

feet, they climb trees. They inhabit the warm climates
of America, and their diet is nearly the same as that of
the Marten in Europe.

The Cacomistle or Bassaxisk is a small member of the
Raccoon family, inhabiting^ Mexico and parts of the United
States. Its body is sixteen inches long, and its tail will
measure about fifteen inches. It is rather slender, has a
sharp, fox-like face, and large bright eyes surrounded by
light patches w^hich, with the erect ears, give an alert and
pleasing expression to the countenance. Its fur is long,
soft and light brown above, darkest along the back, and
the long bushy tail has six or eight broad, white rings;
the fur on the under parts of the body is white.

This animal has been called the Cacomistle by the
Mexicans, and the Bush Cat, Raccoon Fox and Ring Tail
by skin dealers in different parts of the world, but the
scientists have now agreed upon the name Bassarisk for
the various species of the Basaris-astuta.

Plucked and dyed the fur of the Bassarisk resembles
that of the Marten, and has become very popular as a
substitute for it under various names, the French furriers
calling it Bassarius, and others listing it as the Ringtail
and Bush Cat.

The Panda (Aelurus-fulgens), or Red Cat-bear, which
seems to be the connecting link between the Raccoons
and Bears, approximates to the Raccoon by its canines
and what is known of its other teeth, with the exception
that it has only one false molar, making the total number of
its teeth thirty-eight. This animal is rather larger than a
cat, has a sharp muzzle and small round ears, the inner sur-
face of which are white; a moderately long tail covered
with long hair ; and plantigrade feet, with semi-retractile
claws in the five white toes. The face is white, with the
exception of a vertical stripe of red from just above the
eye to the angle of the mouth and a red stripe running
down the center of the nose ; there are several pale rings
on the tail, the tip of which is black. Its l)ack fur is of a
remarkable rich, reddish brown color, darker below than
on the upper parts. Its thick, fine, woolly under
fur is concealed by long, soft, glistening and richly
colored hairs, making it, according to some authorities,

206 Cabnivora Pinnipedia.

the most beautiful animal in the world. It dwells chiefly
among the rocks on the high mountain slopes, 7,000 to
12,000 feet above sea level, but it also climbs trees, and
preys on birds, small animals and insects. It also eats
fruits, roots and other parts of plants, and will feast on
milk and butter. It is a harmless, defenseless animal,
equipped for climbing, rather than fighting. It makes
its nest in hollow trees, and brings forth its young, gen-
erally two in number, in the spring. They are helpless
for a long time, one litter remaining with the parents
until the next comes. The Panda is easily tamed.

The Kinkajau (Viverra-caudivolvula), an animal with
thirty-six teeth, a short muzzle, slender tongue, and a pre-
hensile tail, found at elevations of from 4,000 to 5,000
feet, from Central Mexico to the Amazon River in Brazil ;
and the Potto found in parts of Africa, are also related
to the Raccoons.

Pinnipeds. 207

PINNIPEDS.

The Seals and Walruses are the only Pinniped or fin-
footed Carnivores. Their entire organization is adapted
for an aquatic life. Both the fore and hind limbs are
modified into paddle or flipper-like organs; the upper
parts of which are enclosed with the same integument as
the body, while the elongated feet or flippers are cov-
ered with a skin resembling India rubber. The feet have
great power of expansion and the five toes are completely
connected with web. The first and fifth toes on the hind
feet are stouter and longer than the three middle toes;
and the skin covering on all the feet terminates in large
lobes projecting beyond the extremity of the bones, and
is thick and ribbed on the exposed parts, to prevent it
from being injured by abrasions, when brought into vio-
lent contact with the rocks or ice. These animals all have
very short tails, and are further characterized by the
absence of rudimentary collar bones and the presence of
large protruding eyes by which they are enabled to
secure accuracy of vision under the water.

Seals are the only pinnipeds that come within the scope
of this work, as the Walruses can hardly be considered
as fur-bearing animals. Seals have either thirty-four or
thirty-six teeth, but none of them show the flesh tooth,
always found in the jaw of the fissiped or true Carni-
vores. The number of incisors is invariably reduced
below the typical pairs in each jaw, some Seals having
only two pairs in each jaw, and none having more than
three pairs in the upper, and two pairs in the lower jaw.
They all have five cheek teeth in each jaw, the first four of
Avhich belong to the pre-molar system. A marked pecul-
iarity of the teeth, is a groove in the upper incisors, into
which the sharp lower incisors fit so as to form a vice
from which it is impossible for a fish to escape. The milk
teeth are of no real use to these animals, and are fre-
quently shed by them before birth.

208 Carnivora Pinnipedia.

At the present time, the aggregate number of Fur
Seals killed in a year, in all parts of the world, is less
than 30,000; and the yearly catch of Hair Seals is some-
thing less than 250,000. The following estimates of the
number of Seals, of all kinds, taken in 1886, will give an
idea of the location of the different sealing grounds and
the relative commercial importance of the different spe-
cies thirty-five years ago.

HAIR SEALS.

Newfoundland, including Labrador and the Gulf

of St. Lawrence 400,000

Canadian Net Fishery, Gulf of St. Lawrence. . . 75,000

Jan-Mayen and adjacent seas 110,000

Western Greenland 50,000

Nova Zembla, White Sea and Arctic Ocean 75,000

Caspian Sea 140,000

North and South Pacific Oceans 5,000

875,000
FUR SEALS.

Pribilov Islands (Alaska) 100,000

Commander Island (Copper Island) 30,000

Straits of Juan de Fuca, and vicinity ......... 15,000

Patagonia, including South Shetland Islands,

and Straits of Magellan 15,000

Lobos Islands, mouth of Rio de la Plata 12,000

Falkland Islands 5,000

Cape of Good Hope, including southwest coast

of Africa, and islands in South Indian Ocean 10,000

Islands belonging to Japan 2,500

185,000
All Seals are maritime and extra-tropical with the ex-
ception of a few unimportant species found in the Medi-
terranean and other inland seas, and in West Indian
waters. Seals are divided into two distinct families — the
Phocidae or True Seals, and the Otariidae or Eared Seals
— differing from one another in character and habits, as
well as in external appearance. Those species having a
dense coat of soft, short fur under the stiff long hair
which forms the outer covering of all the members of

Hair Seals or Sea Dogs. 209

both families, are called Fiir Seals ; and those which are
entirely devoid of this under fur, or possess it only in a
limited degree, are known as Hair Seals. Not all the
Otariidae are Fur Seals; but all the Phocidae are Hair
Seals, although the cubs of some of the species of the
latter family are called Wool Seals, until they lose the
soft woolly white coat with which they are born. The
time of shedding this coat varies in different species. The
cubs of the Common Seal take to the water and change
their coat within a few hours of their birth, while the
young Greenland Seals do not go into the water or shed
their fur, until they are from four to six weeks old. Seals
seldom produce more than one cub in a year, and never
more than a pair. They subsist entirely upon fish, crus-
taceans and mollusks, and can sleep as w^ell floating on
their backs on the sea, as upon the ice floes or the land.

TRUE SEALS (Phocidae)

True Seals occur along the shores of the temperate and
colder portions of the globe, but the greater number are
found on the Northern Hemisphere. The members of
this family have no trace of external ears, and the front
limbs are always smaller than the hinder. The under
surfaces of both front and hind feet are well covered with
hair, and in most cases all the digits are furnished with
well-developd claws. The hind feet are incapable of the
great power of expansion, and want the long flaps of skin
at the extremities characterizing those of the Eared Seals.
There is but little difference in size between the males and
females of this family, and none of the various species are
Fur Seals. True Seals are with few exceptions gregar-
ious, gentle and submissive, offering no resistance when
attacked by man. They have strongly developed social
instincts, and display an extraordinary affection for their
young, who generally remain on the land for the first few
weeks of their existence, and who, strange as it may seem,
take reluctantly to the water, and have to be taught the
art of swimming by their parents; but the cubs of the
Common Seal are a marked exception to this rule. True
Seals are more specialized for an aquatic life than the

210 Carnivora Pinnipedia.

Eared Seals. They can remain under the water twenty
minutes, or more, without coming up to the surface to
breathe.

Owing to their hind limbs being turned permanently
back, so as conjointly to form a sort of rudder, True Seals
move very slowly when out of water. They progress with
a kind of wriggling motion, made by pressing the palmer
surface of the forepaws on the ground either alternately
or simultaneously, and sliding the body forward in a suc-
cession of short jerks.

Two of the species, the Greenland Seal and the Hooded
Seal, are migratory. In May, attended by their young,
they commence their northerly movements to the Green-
land seas, where they spend two or three months. In
September they begin a southerly migration to escape
the intense cold of the northern winter; one division
passing through the straits of Belle Isle to the Gulf of St.
Lawrence, and the other along the east coast of New-
foundland. By the close of the year they reach the Great
Banks, which is their southern headquarters. Early in
February they again start northward to meet the ice
fields upon which their young are brought forth in March.

The appearance of the herds as they pass a given point
on their journey from the north is most imposing. Mr.
J. C. Stevenson says : ' ' The southern migration commences
soon after the frost sets in. A fisherman posted as a sen-
tinel on some headland commanding an extensive sea
view, will first notice small detachments, of from half a
dozen to a score of Seals each, passing at rather long in-
tervals; the detachments gradually increase in frequency
and numbers, until they are seen in companies of a hun-
dred or more, closely following one another. After two
or three days the main body, consisting of an uncount-
able crowd, will come into sight, and then for the greater
part of two days the sea as far as the eye can reach will
seem to be literally paved with the heads of the Seals.

True Seals seldom stay on the land for long periods,
and even when basking in the sunshine on the beaches
and ice floes, they generally keep so near the water's
edge that it is difficult for the hunters to cut off their
retreat. i

Hair Seals or Sea Dogs. 211

With the exception of the Elephant Seal, none of the
species of this family resort to any particular breeding
ground, but produce their young on the ice floes and
beaches. There are sixteen or seventeen varieties of True
Seals, but only such as are of special interest, structurally
or commerciallj^, are considered in this work.

The Elephant Seal, whose habitat is in the seas of the
antipodes, is the largest of all pinnipeds, measuring from
fifteen to twenty feet in length. Like the next largest
representative of the Phocidae — the Sea Leopard of the
Antarctic Ocean — this species is well nigh extinct, and
the few skins now taken are used for leather purposes
only. Unlike most True Seals the Elephant Seal is polyg-
amous.

The Grey Seal, or square flipper, by some authorities
also claimed to be polygamous, is one of the largest True
Seals of the Northern Hemisphere, sometimes attaining
a length of twelve feet, although the average '^Grey
Back," which will weigh about 400 pounds, is eight feet
long. The cubs or White-coats of this species are larger
than the adult Ringed Seals, measuring from four to five
feet, which is nearly the size of the full-grown Greenland
and Common Seals. The Grey Seal is found in compara-
tively narrow limits in the North Atlantic, being com-
moner on the shores of Europe than on the American
side, where it ranges from Sable Island to the Straits of
Labrador and Disco Island, and is sometimes seen in the
Gulf of St. Lawrence and Hudson's Bay. It also occurs
in Iceland, and is one of the two species occasionally met
with off the British Islands; but its chief habitat is the
northern coast of Norway, where it usually breeds at the
end of September, producing its young on the ice. The
Grey Seal is the sole representative of its genus, and can
be distinguished from all other species of True Seals by
the form of its skull, and the simple character of its teeth.
It is less docile and intelligent than the Common Seal,
and cannot be tamed in the same manner.

Grey Seals have chosen localities where they come
ashore, generally selecting places on the leeside of an
island. Before landing they will swim back and forth
several times, with head erect and eye, ear and nose on the

212 Carnivora Pinnipedia.

alert, to detect the slightest sign of danger. Then care-
fully choosing a place where a shelf of rock, raised but
little above the sea, descends vertically several feet be-
neath, so it will be possible for them to plunge head first
into the water, and disappear upon the first alarming
«ound, they will emerge. Upon gaining the surface of
the rock, they at once turn completely around, so they
can lie with the head seaward, ready to dive on the in-
stant, should occasion require.

The coat of the Grey Seal is yellowish in color, becom-
ing lighter on the under parts, and is marked with dusky,
ill-defined spots. The skins are seldom met wdth in com-
merce, and the few that are marketed are bought exclu-
sively by tanners.

The Ringed Seal, or floe-rat, is the smallest representa-
tive of the Phocidae, averaging about three feet in length.
It is sometimes called the Fetid Seal, because of the odor
it exudes. While they are found to some extent in the
North Atlantic and the North Pacific Oceans, the true
home of the Ringed Seals is in the icy Arctic Seas, where
their favorite resorts are sheltered bays and fjords, in
which they will remain as long as they are filled with solid
ice, but when the ice breaks up, they drift out to sea upon
the floes, and there the young are born in April and May.

This species is not migratory, but very abundant, and
of special local value to the Eskimos, who take large
quantities of them through holes which they cut in the
ice. The skins that are exported are used exclusively for
leather.

The Ringed Seal can be distinguished from all others,
by the peculiar markings to which it owes its name, -its
smaller body, slenderer form, longer limbs and tail, nar-
rower head and more pointed nose. It is one of the spe-
cies of True Seals that make circular blow holes in the
ice, through which they ascend and descend at pleasure.
The covering of the body is a dense, coarse hair, almost
like w^ool, and the color of the adult, is blackish grey
above, with oval rings, and whitish on the under parts.

The Baikal Seal, and the Ca,spian Seal, which are re-
spectively confined to the seas which bear their names,
although they are much larger, are closely allied to the

Hair Seals or Sea Dogs. 213

Ringed Seal. They are of special interest only because
of the nature of their habitat ; the Baikal Seal inhabiting
a fresh water lake, and the Caspian Seal living in a sea
but slightly salt.

The Common Seal belongs to the same genus as the
preceding species, and the Greenland Seal. While its
teeth are smaller and sharper than those of the Grey Seal
they are more massive than those of the other representa-
tives of its own genus, from whom it is further distin-
guished by its stouter build, longer head, broader nose and
shorter limbs. In color the adult Common Seal is yellow-
ish grey, with irregular dark brown 'or blackish spots;
but the cubs, which are brought forth in May or June, are
born with a woolly, yellowish white coat, which they shed
immediately after birth. The full-grown males vary from
five to six feet in length.

These Seals do not make seasonable migrations, but are
found in the same haunts throughout the year. They are
gregarious, but do not gather together in such large num-
bers as some of the other species, and prefer sheltered
sounds and bays, with shallow water and an abundant
supply of fish to more exposed positions. Common Seals
leave the water at every tide, to rest on the rocks or
beach almost invariably selecting portions that are sep-
arated from the mainland. They are more intelligent
than their cogeners, and can be readily tamed ; instances
being recorded where they have followed their owners
about like dogs, and also where they have been taught to
perform tricks. Like other True Seals these animals
are readily attracted by music, and will follow a vessel,
from which such sounds proceed, for a considerable dis-
tance.

The Common Seal has a wide range ; occurring princi-
pally, however, in the North Atlantic and North Pacific
Oceans, extending on the shores of both oceans to
the Arctic regions. In the Atlantic it is sometimes found
as far south as the Mediterranean on the European side,
and New Jersey on the American side. In the Pacific its
southern limit seems to be marked by Kamschatka on the
eastern, and Southern California on the western side.
This species does not confine itself to the coast, but often

214 Carnivora Pinnipedia.

ascends the tidal rivers to a considerable distance from
the mouth, and has been known to pass up the St. Law-
rence River into the Great Lakes. Apart from the Grey
Seal, this is the only species ordinarily met with on the
coasts of the British Islands.

The skins used in commerce come principally from
northern w^aters, and are manufactured into leather, or
used with the hair on for making saddle housings, trunk
covers, tobacco pouches, toy knapsacks and a variety of
similar articles.

The Greenland Seal, which is essentially a northern
species, is the most important member commercially of
the True Seal family. It is about the same size as the
Common Seal, and at some periods of its existence sim-
ilarly mar]ied; but when full grown it can easily be dis-
tinguished by the characteristic coloration of the back,
because of which it is often called the Harp or Saddle-
Back Seal. The general color of the adult Greenland Seal
is a yellowish white w^ith black markings on the back,
fore part of the head and limbs — the markings being less
distinct on the females than on the males. In neither sex,
however, is the full coloration obtained before the fifth
year, and so different is the appearance of the animal at
various stages of its growth that it is called by different
names at different ages. For the first few months it is
classed as a ''White-coat"; when the woolly hair begins
to fall off, and dark spots to appear in the new coat, it
is designated a "Small Spot." At two years old it is
known as a "Middling Spot" or "Bedlamite"; and later
it is called a "Spot," until such time as it develops by
reason of full coloration into a "Harp."

The migratory habits of the Greenland Seal have al-
ready been referred to ; and a study of its itinerary shows,
that while it is found to a limited extent in the far north,
and is at rare intervals a visitor to the British islands,
and parts of the West Coast of Northern Europe, its
habitat is on the west side of the North Atlantic from
Newfoundland to the Arctic regions.

During their migrations these animals keep close to the
coast, and frequently enter the bays and estuaries, but
when settled at their breeding resorts, they prefer ex-

Hair Seals or Sea Dogs. 215

posed ice floes in the open sea. They are very gregarious,
always assembling in immense herds. Some idea of their
abundance a few decades ago is given in the estimates
printed on another page of the catch in 1886; in that
year a single steamer secured 22,000 skins, valued at $2.50
each, in nine days.

At the present time, the total number of Greenland
Seals taken annually in the Jan-Mayen seas, is probably
30,000, and the yearly catch in the Newfoundland dis-
trict is about three times that number. Unlike the Ringed
Seals, and the Bearded Seals, the Greenland Seals do not
make breathing or blow holes in the ice. This is prob-
ably the reason why they frequent the floes in preference
to the stretches of unbroken ice. Off the coast of New-
foundland the young are born early in March, and in the
Jan-Mayen district a few weeks later.

The skins of "Harps" are manufactured into leather
of the finest quality, and lower grades of leather are pro-
duced from the "Spots." The "White-coat skins are dyed
black or brown, and under the name of "Wool-seals" are
sold to furriers by whom they are w^orked up into muffs,
collars, capes and other articles of fur wear. The bulk of
the skins are sent to London for sale.

The Crested or Hooded Seal, also known as the blad-
der-nose seal, because the males have an appendage on
the nose which they are able to distend at pleasure, is
the boldest and fiercest of all True Seals. It is about the
same size as the Grey Seal ; the full-grown males measur-
ing from seven and a half to eight feet in length. This
species can easily be distinguished from all others by the
peculiar casque-like prominence crowning the forepart
of the head. It has the same migratory habits as the
Greenland Seal, whose habitat it shares ; and, like the lat-
ter prefers the ice floes in the open sea to the neighbor-
hood of the land; but "Hoods" and "Harps" are never
found on the same floe.

The young of the Crested Seal are born on the ice in
March; and the parents will often lose their lives in de-
fense of their offspring, rather than seek safety in flight.

The ground color of the coat, after the second year, is
a blackish blue, becoming lighter on the flanks and the
nether parts. The head and limbs are uniformly black.

216 Carnivora Pinnipedia.

and the body is marked with whitish spots. The skins
are known to commerce as "Bluebacks." They are chiefly
used for shoe trimmings, muffs, gloves, military caps and
clothing, but they are not nearly so abundant as the
Greenland Seal skins.

The Beaxded Seal, probably the largest of all northern
True Seals, is circumpolar in distribution; never being
found south of Labrador on the American, or of the North
Sea on the European side of the Atlantic. It is boreal
and solitary in its habits, nowhere abundant, and produces
its young in the fall of the year. It can be distinguished
from other species of the family, by the beard from which
it derives its name, its superior size, its broad muzzle and
convex forehead, as well as its small weak teeth. It dif-
fers from all other Seals in that the third or middle digit
of the front flipper is longer than the rest, while in the
other species the digits of the front flippers decrease in
length from the first, or first and second, to the last.

Like the floe-rat, the Bearded Seal makes blow holes in
the ice; and a ditsinguishing peculiarity is its habit of
turning a complete somersault when about to dive. Its
color is a shade of grey, showing individual variations in
tint but always darker on the back than elsewhere. This
Seal is of no commercial importance.

The Monk Seal, found in the Mediterranean and Black
Seas, and the West Indian Seal are the only two species
of the Phocidae that inhabit the warmer seas. They are
neither of commercial value, nor of special interest other-
wise. The full-grown males, of either species, will meas-
ure from seven to eight feet in length.

217

HAIR SEAL FISHERIES.

The pursuit of the Elephant Seal in the southern seas
and the Pacific Ocean, was a profitable occupation in
the) first half of the present century. Owing' to the
decimation of the southern species the sealers have
changed their field of operations, and now the Greenland
Seal is the species mainly hunted, and the principal seal-
ing grounds are off Newfoundland and Labrador, and in
the seas adjacent to Jan-Mayen Island; although quite a
number of Hair Seals, of other species, are taken in the
Arctic Ocean, and in the White and Caspian Seas.

It is interesting to trace the evolution of the sealing
industry in the Newfoundland district, from the day
when the Seals were taken in nets set from the shore
or beneath the ice, through various stages of develop-
ment when expeditions were sent out, first in large boats,
and later in small schooners, to harpoon, shoot pr club
the Seals upon the ice or in the sea, to the present time
when large steamers carry crews of from 150 to 300 men
to the immense ice fields, far out in the sea, where the great
herds resort for the purpose of producing their young.

The cubs, which weigh about five pounds at the time
of their birth, grow so rapi41y, that at the end of four
weeks the skins, with the three or four inches of fat
which have accumulated beneath, weigh from forty to
fifty pounds each. It is at this time, when the oil that is
yielded is of the best quality, and their capture is easy
because they have not yet taken to the water, that the
young Seals are killed. When the steamer reaches the
floe upon which the Seals are congregated the hunters
take to the ice, armed with poles or gaffs that have a hook
at one end, and are shod with iron at the other. A blow
on the nose quickly despatches the animals, and then the
skins with the fat adhering to them are rapidly detached
with scalping knives. The skins secured are rolled into
bundles, and taken aboard ship. When the ship reaches
port the skins are separated from the fat, and salted for
export to Great Britain and other parts, where they are
sold as "Wool-seals" to furriers. The fat is ground by

218 Carnivora Pinnipedia.

machinery into minute particles and steamed, and the
oil resulting from the process, after being exposed to the
rays of the sun for a time in glass-covered tanks, is bar-
reled for exportation. The vessels then make a second
trip for the capture of the older animals, whose skins are
principally used for leather purposes. These are taken
either by shooting them in the water, or by clubbing when
they can be caught congregating on the ice. By a conven-
tion between the powers interested a close time has been
established, and sailing vessels are not allowed to clear
for the fisheries before March 1st, and steamers before
March 10th.

For years seal hunters from all nations conducted op-
erations in the Jan-Mayen district, in a reckless and bar-
barous way; shooting the mothers as they were suckling
the young, and leaving thousands of their offspring to die
of starvation upon the ice ; but since the establishment in
1876, by an international treaty between England and
Norway, of a close time in these waters, the industry is
carried on the same there as in the Newfoundland district,
where the hunters wait until the cubs are ready to leave
the mothers before killing the older animals.

The Kussians take some Seals in the White Sea, but
their most valuable sealing grounds are in the Caspian
Sea, where the animals pass the summer in deep water,
but in the autumn resort to the east basin, where their
young are born in December and January. Some of the
Caspian Seals are taken in nets, others are shot, but the
greater number are clubbed to death on the ice. The Nova
Zembla Fisheries, though once productive, have declined
in value until they are of no importance.

Some of the Eskimo still practice what is probably the
oldest method of capturing Hair Seals, harpooning from
kayaks, or canoes made of skins. When within about
twenty-five feet of the Seal the hunter hurls his harpoon
from a wooden thrower. A bladder, attached to the har-
poon by a cord, enables him to follow the course of the
Seal under the surface, and to wound it again and again
with his lance as it comes up to breathe, before it is finally
despatched.

In some parts of Scandinavia the seal box is still used
by the natives. This is a contrivance with a swining

I

Hair Seal Fisheries.

219

plank by means of which the Seal as it attempts to land
is hurled headlong into a deep pit.

Where nets are used, in Newfoundland or Labrador,
two are usually set together in the neighborhood of rocks
to which the Seals resort, and they are always placed to
the leeward of the mainland or some headland. When
nets are used in the Caspian Sea they are hung from
boats at some distance from the land; and on Lake
Baikal, they are let down through the breathing holes of
the Seals in the ice. When they strike the nets the Seals,
thrust their heads through some of the meshes, and in
their efforts to extricate themselves become completely
involved.

Greenland Seal.

Besides the skins, a valuable product of the hair seal
industry is the oil extracted from the blubber of the
young animals and used for lighting and lubricating
purposes. The natives of the far north look to the seals,
not only for lamp oil, and the greater part of their food,
but for material from which to make their boats, sledges,
clothing and hunting implements.

220

Hair Seals.

Grey Seal. Ringtail Seal.

Elephant Seal.

Sea Leopard.
Crested Seal. Greenland Seal.

Common Seal.

Eared Seals or Sea Lions. 221

EARED SEALS (Otariidae)

Eared Seals are active, aggressive and polygamous.
They are not so highly specialized as the True Seals, hav-
ing well-marked necks, well-defined external ears and
hind flippers that can be turned forward under the trunk.
Their fore feet are nearly as long as the hind ones, and
the soles of both fore and hind feet are entirely devoid of
hair. The toes of the fore feet, decrease in length from
the first to the fifth, and have merely rudimentary claws ;
on the hind feet the three middle toes have better devel-
oped claws, but the first and last are quite clawless. These
animals can progress fairly well on the land by arching
the back, and carrying the body forward with a sort of
jerk, or bear-like lope. The males of the family are all
very much larger than the females of their species.

At one time all Eared Seals were grouped under one
generic title; but now the thirteen species considered in
this Avork are assigned to five different genera, and di-
vided into two sub-families ; the Eared Hair Seals, or Sea
Lions, being grouped together in the sub-family, Trico-
phocinae; and the Eared Fur Seals, or Sea Bears, being
grouped together in the sub-family Ulophocinae. The
Sea Lions are always considerably larger, and much more
pow^erful, than the Sea Bears found in the same locality.
"While these animals frequent the same shores, and often
breed on the same islands, they never live together; as
the Sea Lions, who are very shy and wary, and much
slower and clumsier in their movements, seldom travel
as far inland as the Sea Bears; and when they do meet
by chance on the narrow belts of land to which the Sea
Lions resort for their stations, the Sea Bears always yield
their places without a struggle to their formidable op-
ponents.

The Eared Seals spend a large portion of their time on
the land, assembling in great numbers at regular seasons,
at certain breeding grounds. The males are the first to
arrive at these rookeries and having selected individual
stations, about ten feet square in size, they keep up a con-
tinual struggle to maintain their positions, and to preserve

222 Carnivora Pinnipedia.

the females they secure. As the males who have suc-
ceeded in securing stations have from six to fifteen females
and in some cases even a larger number each, to protect
from those who, having failed in the struggle for part-
ners, are waiting close at hand in the rear of the colony
to take advantage of any unguarded moment to raid the
harems of their successful rivals, the preservation of the
stations requires constant .vigilance on the part of the
males in possession of them. They are compelled to remain
continually on the ground during the entire breeding
season, undergoing an unbroken fast of about three
months' duration, and becoming in consequence weak and
emaciated to the last degree and losing half their weight
before they return to the water. Some of the males show
wonderful strength and courage in the defense of their
homes and families. The fighting is mostly done with the
mouth ; the opponents seizing each other with their teeth,
and clenching the jaws, so the sharp incisors tear deep
gutters in the skin and blubber, and shred the flippers
into ribbons.

The females are as gentle as the males are truculent.
They remain for a time after their arrival continuously
at the stations of their lords, but as they go to the sea at
frequent intervals for food, they do not spend such a long,
unbroken period on the shore.

The Sea Lions are less systematic and exacting in the
formation and protection of their families than the Sea
Bears; allowing their consorts to move more freely from
place to place, and to go to the shore accompanied by
their young to disport themselves in the surf.

On the Pribilov Islands, the Sea Lions come ashore, and
produce their young, a month earlier than the Sea Bears.

With the exception of the California species, the gen-
eral color of all Sea Lions is a reddish brown showing
darkest at birth, and becoming gradually lighter with age.

Sea Bears are black, or nearly so, when born ; but they
become lighter as they grow older, through an abundant
mixture of greyish hairs — varying, in the different spe-
cies, from a whitish to a yellowish grey. The adults, of
the southern species, are generally much greyer than the
northern representatives of the family, and there is also
considerable individual variation of color, in all the spe-
cies, due to age, sex and season.

I

I

Eared Hair Seals or Sea Lions. 223

EARED HAIR SEALS

The Patagonia Sea Lion was met with by Magellan as
early as 1579, and was the first species to be exhibited
alive in England, a specimen having been bought by the
London Zoological Society in 1866. It is found as far
north as the Coast of Chili on the Pacific side, and the
Rio de la Plata on the Atlantic side of South America;
and as far south as the Falkland Islands and Terra del
Fuego. It is docile and clever, but very suspicious, sel-
dom leaving the shore line. It always selects isthmuses
and headlands where it can have an unobstructed outlook,
for its resting place when it does wander away from the
water's edge. The representatives of this species
are solitary in their habits, for even where a number of
families, of from six to fifteen each, are seen in the same
creek, it will be noticed that the individuals of different
families do not associate with one another. Their daily
occupation seems to be divided between sleeping and pro-
curing food; at high tide they take to fishing near the
entrances of the fresh water rivulets into the sea, the rest
of the time they lie huddled together. The full-grown
males of the species measure about seven feet in length,
and are of a rich brown color. The young are of a deep
chestnut, and the adult males of a brownish grey shade.
The ears of this animal are smaller than those of any
other Sea Lion, and it is also characterized by the pres-
ence of a distinct mane. The profile of its head is nearly
straight.

The Northern Sea Lion, discovered by Behring, in 1741,
is noted for its leonine expression and ferocity of counten-
ance. It has an entirely different head from that of the
southern species, having a pointed nose and flattened pro-
file, like the northern Sea Bear. It is the largest repre-
sentative of the Eared Seal family, the full-grown males
often weighing from 1,000 to 1,300 pounds, and measuring
from ten to thirteen feet in length, and from eight to ten
feet in girth. The young are of a dark chocolate color,
and the adults of a golden rufous or ochrey tint, the shade
varying with the seasons. Its principal breeding places

224 Carnivora Pinnipedia.

are on the Aleutian and Pribolov Islands in the Bering
Sea; but the northern limit of its habitat is apparently
determined by the southern border of the Polar floating
ice, while its southern range extends to California on one
side, and to Japan on the other side of the North Pacific
Ocean. Although provided with flippers, apparently the
same as those of the Sea Bears, these animals are unable
to use them in the same free manner; for where the Sea
Bears can be driven six miles, the Sea Lions can barely go
two. They seldom raise their hind quarters from the
ground, but draw them after the fore feet with a slide
over the grass or sand. The Sea Lions do not leave the
islands in the fall as the Fur Seals do to return in the
spring ; but remain there the whole year, keeping close to the
shores near the stations even after the close of the breed-
ing season, although they are only seen in small groups
from the time the cold weather sets in late in December,
or early in January, until spring once more frees the
islands of ice and snow\ The voice of the Northern Sea
Lion is a deep, grand roar. Unlike the Northern Sea Bears,
the Sea Lions have a marked affection for their young;
the males often going into the water with the females to
watch over the cubs, as they learn how to swim.

The California Sea Lion, or West Coast Seal, is also
found on both sides of the North Pacific ; but the northern
boundary of its habitat is the southern limit of the range
of the Northern Sea Lion. The general habits of these
animals seem to be very similar to those of the Northern
Sea Lion, but they utter a sharp bark, or howl, by which
they can easily be distinguished even at night, when it is
impossible to note differences in size and color and truc-
tural appearance. The shape of the head of the Cali-
fornia Sea Lion is different from that of all other Seals,
resembling that of the dog-faced baboon. The cubs are
almost black in color, but the general color of the adults
is a chestnut brown, deeper on the under parts and limbs
than on the back. The length of the full-grown males
varies from seven to eight feet. California Sea Lions
breed on the Farralone Islands and the island of Santa
Barbara. During the hauling-up season they congregate
there in vast numbers, and are considered one of the
sights of California, summer visitors to San Francisco

Eared Hair Seals or Sea Lions. 225

seldom failing to make excursions to Seal Point, about six
miles from the city. As each of these animals consumes
from ten to forty pounds of fish a day, it is a natural con-
sequence that most of the thousands of Sea Lions who
are seen in the neighborhood of San Francisco during
the summer are obliged to swarm away in various direc-
tions in a quest of new feeding places at the close of the
pairing season in September. This is the Sea Lion often-
est seen in captivity, as it seems to thrive better in that
state than any other representative of its family. Its
wonderful sagacity and activity are best illustrated by
the method it pursues in capturing the Sea Gull. Sight-
ing its prey, the Sea Lion will dive deeply and swim some
distance under the water, then it will rise and expose the
tip of its nose above the water giving it a rotary motion
like a water buoy at play. The Sea Gull, attracted by the
object, will alight to catch it, only to be seized and de-
voured by its wily foe.

Hooker's Sea Lion, found south of New Zealand; and
the Australian Hair Seal, believed by many to be the miss-
ing link between the Pur and Hair Seals because the cubs
have a soft thick underfur, which however disappears in
the adults, are the remaining species of Sea Lions.

Sea Lions are too formidable to be taken in nets, or
clubbed to death, and are generally shot with rifles. Where
they congregate in large numbers, as on the Pribilov
Islands, they are driven from the shore to a village from
ten to twelve miles inland ; the journey taking about five
days. A man will get between the edge of the water and
the herd, and by running at them with an umbrella, which
he expands as he approaches, will alarm and rouse the rear
line of animals, who will press forward upon those in
front until the whole herd is in motion. By shouting and
waving flags, at the rear and on the flanks of the herd,
the Sea Lions are kept moving in the right direction un-
til they reach their destination, or it is necessary to halt
them for a rest. At the killing-grounds the full-grown
males are shot with rifles, after which the slaughter is
continued with lances. The skins are valued only for
leather purposes; as the under fur, in the few cases
where it is present, is very scarce.

226

Hair Seals.

Seals Swimming.

22"

FUR SEALS

We now come to the consideration of the most valuable
and interesting of all Seals, the Sea Bears of the Eared
Seal group, commonly called Fur Seals because they are
the species possessing the soft, dense underfur which pro-
duces the beautiful "sealskin" of commerce. Of the
eight different kinds of ''sealskin" recognized in com-
merce, three— ''Shetland," "Lobos Island" and "Cape"
— are produced from the skins of the Southern Sea Bears ;
and five— "Alaska," "Victoria" or "North West,"
"Copper Island," "Robben Island," and "Japan" — are
the products of the skins of the Northern Sea Bears. The
variations in the quality, and size of the skins are due to
differences in the age, sex and location of the habitat of
the animals, rather than to generic distinctions. Fur
Seals are valued only for the skins, as the oil obtained
from them is too rank to be refined.

The Fur Seal is polygamous. Steller, its discoverer,
found it living in families, numbering eight, fifteen, fifty,
and in some cases even one hundred and twenty females
to one bull. An exact account of the full birth rate of
pups in 1912, showed an average family of sixty cows to
one bull, with idle bulls to spare.

Shetland Seal is the name commonly given to the skins
of all Sea Bears of the southern seas, but rightly it
should only be applied to those taken from the Sea Bears
of the South Shetland Islands and adjacent groups.

The cubs of this species are almost black, but the gen-
eral color of the adults is a silvery grey, blending into a
deep rich brown on the sides and the belly behind the
flippers. The underfur is of a reddish or deep pink color,
and being longer, softer and more abundant than that of
any other species it produces the richest and most beau-
tiful "sealskin." At one time Sea Bears were very num-
erous around the South Shetland, South Georgian, South
Falkland and other islands of the Antarctic and Indian
Oceans. In the year 1800, 112,000 skins were shipped from
the South Georgian Islands alone, and 320,000 skins were

228 Carnivora Pinnipedia.

taken off the South Shetland Islands, in 1820 and 1821;
but the immense herds of Southern Sea Bears, at one time
numbering up into millions, have been gradually reduced
by overcatching, and the indiscriminate slaughter of the
females and the young, until today a few hundred skins
represent the entire catch of a year. Southern Sea Bears
breed in December and January.

The Cape Horn, and Lobos Island, Fur Seals belong to
the same genus and are in fact the same animal in dif-
ferent localities of its habitat. Like all Sea Bears of the
Southern Hemisphere, these animals are longer and nar-
rower and have more depressed muzzles than their north-
ern cousins. The range of the species extends from the
Gulf of Tres Monte to the Straits of Magellan in the Atlan-
tic Ocean. They are most abundant on the Cordova Penin-
sula, and the Lobos Islands at the mouth of the LaPlata
Eiver, the best representatives of the species coming from
the latter district. In color they are yellowish brown,
with sides of a darker hue. As compared with the North-
ern species the fur of these Seals is longer and of poorer
quality; but the skins are easy to work and take the dye
well. They are used quite extensively for repair work, over-
coat linings, and other purposes for which moderate-
priced skins are demanded. The Lobos Island breeding
grounds are under the protection of the government of
Uruguay.

I

I

Other species of Southern Sea Bears are the "South
Sea Seals" (Otaria-gazella) of the Crozet and Kerguelan
Islands; the ''San Louis Seal," of the same genus, fre-
quenting Marion, Prince Edward and St. Paul Islands;
the Lima Fur Seal ; and the New Zealand and Australian
Fur Seal (Arctocephalus-fostereri) ; but the first three
species have been virtually exterminated; and the others
are too poor in quality to be worthy of consideration.

Alaska Seal is a name which strictly speaking should
only be applied to the skins of the bachelor Sea Bears
taken on the Pribolov Islands in the Bering Sea; but
many dealers do not hesitate to sell the skins of the Cop-
per Island and other Northern Sea Bears of the same
genus, as "Alaskas"; and some even go so far as to in-
clude the skins of all Fur Seals under this name. The

Fur Seals or Sea Bears. 229

reason for this will be apparent, when it is understood
that the "sealskin" obtained from the Pribolov Islands
skins is next in quality to the Shetland, and is superior to
that produced from any other Sea Bear. The Northern
Sea Bears would long since have shared the fate of the
Southern species, if the United States government had
not, in a measure, limited the catch, by confining the right
to kill Sea Bears on the Pribilov Islands, to a company
Avorking under a lease from the government, and subject
to government restrictions. When the lease of the North
American Commercial Company expired in 1909, the
government took over the management of its own busi-
ness at the rookeries on the Pribilov Islands; and during
1910 and 1911 twenty-five thousand skins taken by the
government on the Islands, were sold for eight hundred
thousand dollars. Since 1847 no female Sea Bears have
been killed on the islands.

The Alaska Commercial Company, who held the lease
from 1869 to 1889, are said to have realized over $33,000,-
000, from the sale of furs during that time; and it is es-
timated that since the purchase of Alaska in 1867, citizens
of the United States have received more than $50,000,000,
for skins taken on the Pribilov Islands.

The payment of $7,000,000 to Russia for the territory of
Alaska has proved a profitable investment for the United
States; for, besides the profits that have accrued to in-
dividual citizens from the industry, the government has
realized over $10,000,000 from the sale or leasing of the
sealing privileges on the Pribilov Islands.

These figures do not include the duties paid on dressed
skins, returned from London for consumption in the
United States.

The Alaska Commercial Company paid the United
States an annual rental of $50,000, and a royalty of $2.25
per skin, for the privilege of killing 75,000 male seals
each year on the island of St. Paul, and 25,000 on the
island of St. George.

Under the terms of the twenty-year lease secured by
the North American Commercial Company in 1889, no
dogs or vessels, other than those in the employ of the
company, were permitted to touch at, or to land persons
or merchandise on the islands of St. Paul and St. George,

230 Carnivora Pinnipedia.

except in case of shipwreck or distress ; and the company
was obligated to pay the government a yearly rental tax
of $2.00 per skin, for the privilege of killing each year
20,000 bachelor Seals, between the ages of one and five
years. In addition to the payments to the government
the company was obliged to furnish the natives of the
islands mentioned, such quantities of salt, and such a
number of barrels, as they might need for the preserva-
tion of the meat kept for food , and eighty tons of coal an-
nually; to erect, and keep in repair, comfortable dwell-
ings, and a suitable house of worship; to establish, and
maintain for eight months each year, proper schools for
the education of the young ; to provide competent physic-
ians and medicines for the sick; and to supply the
widows and orphans, and the aged and infirm inhabitants
of the islands, with the necessities of life. The govern-
ment reserved the right to change the terms of the lease
at any time by giving due notice of its intentions, and re-
quired the company to deposit, with the United States
Treasury at Washington, the sum of $50,000 as a guaran-
tee fund.

The only change made in the conditions of this lease
was one limiting the catch to 15,000 skins yearly, and
obliging the company to brand and sequester one thousand
•each of one and three-year-old male Seals before the killing
commenced. In spite of all restrictions it is claimed there
had been up to 1906 a falling off of forty-two per cent, in
the number of breeding males or bulls, and the Congress-
ional Committee having the matter in charge recommended
the entire suspension of killing on the islands for a num-
ber of years, as the only way to prevent the complete ex-
termination of the species. Those who made a careful
study of the subject were however convinced that, in-
asmuch as the proportion of males and females is about
the same at birth, the polygamous nature of these animals
will safely allow the killing of six or even nine out of
every ten males. They therefore claimed that the
preservation of the herd did not depend upon further
protection for the males on the islands, but upon the ces-
sation of pelagic sealing, which results in the destruction
of at least three lives for every skin taken — the mother,
the unborn offspring and the nursing pup. That this was

Fur Seals or Sea Bears. 231

not an idle contention is proved by the fact that in 1896
over 16,000 young Seals were found dead from starva-
tion on the Pribilov Islands because they had been de-
prived of their natural sustenance; while careful esti-
mates, made in 1897, showed that since the b*eginning of
pelagic sealing 300,000 young Seals had died as the direct
result of the slaughter of 400,000 adult female Seals at
sea.

"Originally descended from a land animal, the Fur
Seal has become adapted to life in the open sea, and seeks
the land only for breeding purposes. When the young
are able to care for themselves, and on the approach of
winter, the animals leave their island home and the long
migration down the Pacific Ocean to the latitude of Santa
Barbara in California begins. The return journey, which
brings them back to the island, is not completed until June
of the following year. The food they consume on the islands
in the summer is procured at a distance of from one
hundred to two hundred miles from the rookeries."

The Indians have always hunted the stragglers from
the migratory herd who came within reach of the shore,
but it was not until the spring of 1879, that sailing vessels
were used, to take the hunters out to meet the main body
of the herd, and follow its course northward. In time the
hunting extended to the summer feeding grounds in the
Bering Sea, where the female Seal was the chief victim
because of the greater regularity of its feeding, leaving
many unprotected young to die of starvation.

Beginning with the catch of eight thousand in 1879,
the number of Seals taken annually by Pelagic sealers
steadily increased on account of the extension of the
fleet; and in 1894, sixty-one thousand skins were taken.
Since 1894, the pelagic catch has declined, with the de-
clining herd ; but the actual toll, in the period from 1879
to 1911, exceeded one million without taking into account
the seals killed but not recovered. As the adult males do
not as a rule accompany the female and their young on
the long journey to the south, eighty-five per cent, of the
animals destroyed by pelagic sealers were females.

The United States attempted to stop pelagic sealing
years ago, and in 1886 seized a number of British vessels
found pursuing the industry in waters declared closed

232 Carnivora Pinnipedia.

by this government. England however successfully con-
tested the claim of the United States to jurisdiction in the
Bering Sea outside of the three-mile limit, but the In-
ternational Tribunal, which sat in Paris in 1893, and de-
cided against the claims of this government, as a compro-
mise measure established a close season from May 1st to
July 31st, in both the North Atlantic and North Pacific
Oceans; and excluded all killing in the waters within
sixty miles of the Pribilov Islands, These conditions,
however, failed to accomplish the desired result; and the
herd, which in 1874 numbered over 4,000,000, and in 1891,
1,000,000, had in 1909 been reduced to less than 200,000.

A treaty was finally concluded on July 7, 1911, by
which the Governments of the United States, England,
Japan and Russia agreed to co-operate in abolishing
pelagic sealing for fifteen years. In this treaty it is
agreed; that the United States and Russia, as the owners
of the principal fur seal herds, shall each pay to Great
Britain and Japan, fifteen percent of their land sealing
operations. This treaty went into effect in 1912, and it is
estimated that as a result fifteen thousand breeding fur
seal females, who under the operation of pelagic sealing
would have failed to reach the islands, brought forth their
young at the rookeries. This fact alone demonstrates the
cause of the herd's decline as well as its ability to restore
itself if protected from further loss from this source. On
February 15, 1912, a bill, which has since become a law,
was introduced in the House of Representatives to give
effect to certain provisions of the treaty of 1911. An
effort was at once made to attach to this bill an amend-
ment providing for the suspension of all land sealing dur-
ing the period of the treaty. The amendment was defeated
as originally offered, but a compromise was finally effect-
ed fixing the period of the suspension of land sealing at
^ye years, and permitting only the killing of a limited
number of the animals as food for the natives on the
islands; and that is now the law.

As the essential consideration in the treaty of 1911, is
the agreement of the United States and Russia, to give
to Great Britain and Japan each fifteen per cent, of the
land catch, to compensate the pelagic sealers ; this action
was an actual repudiation, by this government of the

Fur Seals or Sea Bears. 233

terms of the treaty, and for a time threatened to lead to
its abrogation by Great Britain and Japan, as the killing
of the superfluous males on the islands would yield more
than twelve thousand skins annually, while killing for
food supplies alone would not allow of the taking of more
than from three to five thousand.

Apart from the question of bad faith, it is the judg-
ment of those who are posted on this subject that the
cutting down of the number of bachelor seals to be killed
on the islands from the number provided in the treaty,
will result in the existance, in 1917, of at least thirty
thousand superfluous bulls, who in their struggles to
establish their harems, will not only destroy one another,
but many of the female and the young as well. The
amendment, instead of helping to conserve the herd, will
hasten its destruction. Statistics show that only fifteen
hundred bulls w^ere needed for the herd on the island in
3912.

Another thing about which those who voted for the
amendment seemed to be ignorant of, is the fact that
the carcasses of the seals are needed for the sustenance
of the blue foxes, and other subsidiary life on the islands.
As the government has taken forty thousand blue foxes
during the time it has been in possession there ; and as
the skins of three year old bachelor seals are worth forty
dollars apiece; it is easy to calculate the money loss to
the government by the passing of this amendment.

Previous to this the United States Congress, in 1890,
passed laws prohibiting American vessels from engaging
in pelagic sealing, and preventing the bringing into this
country of the Victoria or Northwest Coast skins which
are the fruit of this industry. In the absence of co-opera-
tion on the part of England, Russia and Japan the only
result of this legislation was an increase in the number
of Canadian and other foreign vessels engaged in the
work of indiscriminate slaughter; and it looked as if,
for want of united action on the part of the great
maritime powers interested, it would be only a short
time before human greed and folly would so reduce the
number of Sea Bears, in northern waters, that their
pursuit would no longer be profitable. Referring to this
condition in a message to Congress, President Roosevelt

234 Carnivora Pinnipedia.

said: ''In case we are compelled to abandon the hope
of making arrangements with other governments, to
put an end to the hideous cruelty now incident to pelagic
sealing, it will be a question for your serious considera-
tion how far we should continue to maintain and protect
the Seal herd on land, with the result of continuing such
a practice ; and whether it is not better to end the practice,
by exterminating the Seal herd ourselves, in the most
humane manner possible."

There was considerable difference of opinion as
to the wisdom of the President's suggestion and a
joint resolution introduced in the Congress, in 1907, pro-
viding for the killing of all female Seals on^the islands
down to a minimum of not less than 10,000, and of all
male Seals down to a minimum of not less than 1,000,
was killed in the House Ways and Means Committee.
The opponents of the measure justly claimed that if such
reduction was desirable, the Secretary of Commerce and
Labor should be empowered to authorize the North
American Commercial Company to kill the Seals on the
islands down to the number designated, and thus accom-
plish the result aimed at without any violation of the
contract with the lessees, or expense to the government,
which on the contrary would receive the sum of $10.22
for every skin thus taken by the lessees.

It was the judgment of the writer at that time that
there should be no change in the provisions then existing
for the killing of Sea Bears on the Pribilov Islands, unless
England, Russia and Japan would agree to a convention
to put a stop to pelagic sealing in northern w^aters; and
that in the absence of such an agreement, the United
States government should, at all times, keep a sufficient
force on the islands, and in the Bering Sea, to compel
the observance of the regulations of the Tribunal of Paris,
and to prevent the possibility of a repetition of such a
raid as was made on the Island of St. Paul, in June, 1906,
by the crews of Japanese vessels. He claimed it was also
imperative for the better protection of American interests
in the Pribilov Islands, that the restrictions regarding the
landing of aliens and citizens upon the islands of St. Paul
and St. George should be made to apply to Sea Otter,
Walrus, and Sea Lion Islands as well, so that designing

Fur Seals or Sea Bears. 235

persons would not have it in their power to establish a
base of operations within easy reaching distance of the
rookeries.

Hutchinson Hill Rookery, on the Island of St. Paul,
is the principal breeding place of the Alaska Seals. Dur-
ing the winter the island is deserted, the Seals, late in the
fall, following the southward migration of the fish upon
which they feed. The first males to revisit the old haunts,
in the following spring, are very shy and sensitive; and
will spend several days swimming around among the
rocks before venturing to land. The first arrivals, though
not always the oldest, are generally the finest specimens,
of their race who are fully capable of maintaining pos-
session of the stations they may select. As a rule the
males do not re-occupy the same stations year after year,
although some will occasionally do so for a number of
seasons. Only a few of the bulls come ashore in May, but
when the humid, foggy, summer weather sets in, about
the first week in June, they come up, fat and sleek, by
hundreds and thousands, and having selected their sta-
tions, prepare for the reception of the females who begin
to arrive from three to four weeks later.

The first females to land are always received with
marked attention by the stronger bulls, who by virtue
of their superior prowess have succeeded in securing
possession of the most available stations nearest the
shore. They are seldom allowed to remain long with
these however, as the males from the more inland sta-
tions take possession of them the first time their mas-
ters are away on the outlook for new additions to their
harems. In this way some of the unfortunate females
are again and again taken by the scruff of the neck,
as a cat seizes its kittens, and passed on from station
to station until they find security at last in one of the
families farthest away from the water. By the time
the last batch lands late in July, the males have become
so exhausted by constant fighting, and the stations have
become so fully occupied, that the late arrivals are allowed
to crowd their way unmolested through the fifteen or
sixteen rows of stations intervening between the shore
and the open ground, to the rear of the colony. There
they congregate in droves, always being careful how-

236 Carnivoba Pinnipedia.

ever to select positions where there are no depressions
in which the water can collect in puddles.

Pairing begins immediately after the birth of the cubs,
who are born shortly after the landing of the females,
and come into the world with their eyes open. At birth
the young Sea Bears weigh from three to four pounds,
and measure from ten to twelve inches. Their skins are
valueless, but many of the young Seals are killed by the
natives for food. The females make frequent visits to
the sea after the birth of their offspring, and the cubs at
such times gather together by thousands. A mother Seal
upon her return from the water never has any difficulty,
however, in singling out her own offspring by its cries, but
will without a moment's hesitation and with unerring cer-
tainty push her way direct to the spot in the assembly
where it happens to be.

Early in August the bulls leave their families, and
the majority of them do not return to the islands after
going to the sea; and those who do come back, instead
of returning to their stations, remain near the shore until
the colony migrates in the fall. After the departure of
the males the family parties break up ; the females and the
cubs, together with the older males who did not succeed
in getting partners, and the younger males who up to this
time have been prevented by their older brethren from
gaining a footfold on the shore, take possession of the
entire sea area in a very disorderly manner. At this
period the females spend three-fourths of their time in
the water, and the cubs nearest the shore make their first
attempts at swimming. Though at first they are very
awkward and tire quickly the cubs soon become adepts
at the art, and by the middle of September all the young
have become thoroughly familiar with the water, and have
deserted the higher ground to take positions on the rocks
and beaches near the water's edge, where they remain
until the southward migration of the colony begins a few
weeks later.

By November the islands are deserted by the great
mass of Sea Bears, although a few remain until driven
off by the ice and snow in December.

The Sea Bears, which the lessees had the privilege of
killing on the Pribilov Islands, are the males from one to

Fur Seals or Sea Bears. 237

five years old called "Hollus-Chuekie" or Bachelor Seals
by the natives, because they are not allowed by the old
bulls to mix with the females.

The Bachelor Seals arrive at the islands early in the
season, but they are not compelled to undergo any long
periods of fasting. Even when they take a position in
the rear of the colony, they are allowed to make their way
to and from the beach through passages between the
stations.

The hauling ground they select however is generally
a space on the beach at some distance from the stations
and extending about a quarter of a mile inland. They
are restless creatures, but though very sportive and frolic-
some they never quarrel or fight. They only keep to the
shore on dull, foggy days. When it is bright and warm
they spend most of their time in the water ; doing all kinds
of fancy tumbling, jumping out of the water like so many
dolphins, or describing beautiful elliptical curves, as they
rise three or four feet from the sea, with the back slightly
arched, and the fore flippers folded back against the sides
while the hinder limbs are extended and pressed together
straight out behind.

The fact that the Bachelor Seals are compelled to herd
by themselves, frequently miles away from the breeding
grounds, greatly facilitates the arrangements made for
their slaughter. Some morning early in June, the time
when the skins are at their best, a company of natives
will run along the beach; and having turned them inland
from their hauling grounds w411 drive the animals at
the rate of a half a mile an hour to the place of slaughter.
At the killing-grounds the herd is first allowed to rest and
cool, and then they are drawn off in ''pods" or detach-
ments of from fifty to a hundred each, and despatched
by being knocked on the head with oaken bludgeons. The
killing gang always have an understanding as to what
grades are to be killed, and permit the others to escape and
make their way back to the sea. In the days before the
limitation of the catch, a party of fortj^-five natives would
drive, kill and skin upwards of 72,000 Seals in four weeks.
Now there is no occasion for such haste, and more time
can be given to the careful selection of the animals to be
killed.

238 Carnivora Pinnipedia.

''The female Seals are protected by law and custom
from killing; and breeding seals are never disturbed. The
three-year-old, and large two-year-old bachelors are the
animals killed ; the younger, and older animals being allow-
ed to return to the sea; the former to be the basis of a
future killing quota, the latter to replenish the stock of
breeding males."

"The processes of driving and killing are simple and
humane. The fur seal is well adapted to land travel to the
extent to which it is necessary to drive the animal. The
powerfully developed muscles of the fore limbs on which
it depends in swimming are the ones used in land locomo-
tion. Though of strong instincts the fur seal is not an
animal of high intelligence, or susceptible to injury by
nervous strain. The processes of land travel do not con-
travene that natural law which decrees that the fittest
shall survive."

As the skins will spoil in a few hours if they are not
flayed at once, and properly salted, they are taken from
the field to the salt-houses as quickly as possible; there
they are laid out flat, one skin upon the. other, in bins or
on benches, salt being spread thickly over the pelt side of the
skin. After lying in the salting bins for two weeks the
skins are taken out and rolled pelt to pelt, in bundles of
two skins each, and strongly corded. In this shape they
are packed in casks, containing from forty to fifty skins
each, and shipped to the point where they are to be sold
at auction in December. Before being offered for sale
the skins are sorted according to the following clasvsifica-
tion:

Middlings and Smalls 4 to 5 years old

Smalls 4 '' "

Large Pups 3 " ''

Middling and Small Pups 2 '' ''

Extra Small and Grey Pups 1 year

li

The average price for raw seal-skins in 1888 was 78s.
each, and the figures, showing the prices obtained at the
December sale in 1906, prove that they had increased three
hundred per cent, in value up to that time. There was
a further increase of more than fifty per cent, during the
period from 1906-1913.

Fur Seals or Sea Bears. 239

After being thus sold in the rough state the salted
skins are sent to the dressers by the purchasers, and there
and at the dyers they are changed by various processes
into the beautiful seal-skin exhibited by the furriers.

First the strips of blubber and flesh still adhering
to the skin are removed with a blunt knife, then the ears
are cut off, and the skins are washed in warm alkali water ;
next they are stretched on hoops and dried in warm rooms
where currents of hot air pass over them; after this they
are soaked in water so the hair is loosened without effect-
ing the underfur. Then the skins are warmed on the fur
side, and the top hairs removed with a blunt knife. The
skins, which now have nothing but the fur on them are
then rubbed to soften the leather, shaved, repaired, and
sent to the dyer's.

At the dyer's, the skins are limed back to back, with
a thick layer of paper over the paddle holes to prevent
the dye from going through and damaging the skin by
being absorbed by the pelt. The ground color is then trod-
den in, and after this has thoroughly dried the necessary
coats of the top color are applied with a brush or by
dipping. When the dying process has been completed
the skins are scraped and shaved, and cleaned in a revolv-
ing drum containing saw dust; and finally are machined
to remove the fine water hairs. The entire process by
which the raw hide of the Sea Bear is converted into the
"sealskin" of commerce takes from three to four months,
and greatly increases the value of the skin.

The sea migration of the males of the Pribilov Island
colonies is unknown. The females and the young of
both sexes pass out through the Bering Sea into the
North Pacific, where they are known as Victoria or North
West Coast Seals because some of them are speared on
the North West Coast of British Columbia by the natives,
who go out in canoes to take them. Most of the Victoria
Seals however are taken in deep water as before stated,
and the United States, in its war against pelagic sealing,
has declared the skins of the Victoria Seals to be con-
traband, and to prevent their introduction into the country
in manufactured garments or other articles has found it
necessary to adopt such stringent customs regulations that
it is often difficult for tourists, not familiar with the

240 Carnivora Pinnipedia.

requirements of the government, to get their own American-
made garments back into this country after taking them
abroad. There need be no trouble on this score however
if American going abroad wdll take their sealskin gar-
ments to the custom house at the port of departure before
leaving and have them registered, receiving at the same
time an order for their re-entry into this country.

Pelagic sealing is carried on by well-appointed
schooners, and other vessels. When the Seals are sighted,
swimming or sleeping in the w^ater, small boats are lowered
and the hunters are rowed to the sealing-ground by the
sailors. The percentage killed is very small, for in a great
majority of cases the Seal wall take alarm and dive before
the hunter can get within range; and even when a Seal is
shot it commences to sink so quickly that the boat has to
be pulled very rapidly up to the carcass if it is to be gaffed
and pulled abroad. At the end of the day's hunt the
boats return to the vessel, and the Seals are skinned and
the pelts salted and laid away in the hold.

While the headquarters of the Northern Sea Bears are
on the Pribilov Islands, these animals are also found in
other parts of the Bering Sea ; and on both shores of the
North Pacific, as far south as Victoria on the American
side, and the island of Saghalien on the other. Thus it will
be seen that the Alaska, Copper Island, Victoria, Robben
Island and Japan Seals are all species of the same genus;
differing in quality, color, form and size, according to
locality and sex, but having the same disposition and
habits.

"Victoria" Seals, being the females of the same
species, are of course much smaller than Alaska Seals, and
the fur, though beautiful to look at, is less durable than
that on the skins of bachelor Seals ; and the money value
of the skins, figured inch for inch, is about one-third less
than that of the bachelor skins taken on the Pribilov
Islands.

Copper Island Seals, breed on the Commander Islands,
about two hundred miles east of Kamschatka. Their habits
are identical with those of the Alaska Seals, of the Pribilov
Islands, and some authorities claim that they are the same
species in a different locality. However that may be
although some of the Copper Island skins are very fine,

Fur Seals or Sea Bears. 241

the fur of these animals is not as rich as that on the
Alaska Seals, and the money value of the skins is con-
siderably less. The difference in the quality of the two
species is probably due to climatic influences. The general
migration of this species is along the east coast of Japan.
The Alaska Commercial Company for years held a lease
from the Russian government, allowing them to kill 30,000
Seals, annually, on the Commander Islands.

The fur of the skins taken from the Sea Bears found
on Robben's Island, south of Kamschatka, is of poorer
quality than that of the Copper Island skins; and con-
sequently of much lower value. The Japanese Sea Bear
has the shortest, and thinnest fur, of all Northern Fur
Seals; and the skins of this species are used principally
for the manufacture of caps, and other small articles, where
a short fur is not objectionable.

Northern Sea Bears show considerable variation in
color, both in the underfur . and the top hair. In the
adult males the general color of the upper parts, with
the exception of the shoulders which are a decided grey,
is nearly black, with a more or less marked grey or reddish
grizzle. The sides of the nose and lips are brownish, the
breast is brownish orange, and the limbs and under parts,
are reddish brown. The females, and the bachelors, are
lighter in color; being uniformly grey above, with under
parts of brownish or rufous color. In both sexes there are
individual variations due to the varying proportion of
grey hair. The color of the Copper Island Seals is lighter
than that of the Alaska Seals, being a dark brown. The
Robben Island Seals are yellower and coarser-haired than
either of the above, and their short even under-fur is red.
The skins taken on the Japanese Islands are mostly those
of female Seals, with yellow necks and cheeks. The males
are called bachelors from the time they cease to be year-
lings until they are six years old, and from that time until
they become fully materialized bulls at seven years of age
they are classed as half bulls. All Seals under two years
are yearlings. At two years the females are designat^H ajs
virgins, and at three years as cows. The males when undis-
turbed will live from fifteen to twenty years, and the
females nine or ten years.

242 Carnivora Pinnipedia.

The difference in the dimensions of the sexes is greater
in the Northern Sea Bears than in any other species of
Eared Seals. The old bulls weigh from 700 to 800 pounds,
and measure from seven to eight feet ; while the full-grown
cow only weighs from 80 to 100 pounds, and measures
about four feet in length, and two and a half feet in girth.
The finest fur is obtained from the skins of the three-
year-old Bachelor Seals, which weigh about 100 pounds,
and measure from four to five feet in length, and a little
over two and a half feet in girth. As the animals grow
older the fur becomes longer and loses in density until
in the old bulls it is so long and thin that they are some-
times called wigs.

All the Northern Sea Bears have a short face, wdth
a sharp profile ; but the other species have a slenderer head
than those frequenting the Pribilov Islands; this is espe-
cially true of the Copper Island Seals.

The cows of this group have but one note, a hollow^
prolonged, bla-a-ting call; but the males utter four dis-
tinct notes — a loud, long, hoarse roar, a low gurgling grow^l
or chuckle, a sibilant piping whistle and a kind of spitting
sound. Mr. Elliott saj^s: ''The sound arising from the
great breeding grounds of the Fur Seals, where thousands
upon thousands of angry bulls are roaring, chuckling,
piping; and multitudes of mother Seals are calling in
blaating tones to their young, w^ho in turn respond in-
cessantly is simply indescribable, and under favorable
conditions can be heard five or six miles away ; often warn-
ing vessels that are approaching the islands in thick, foggy
weather, of the positive, though unseen proximity of land.
Night and day, throughout the season, the din of the
rookeries is steady and constant."

Both Sexes of these animals have a marked indiffer-
ence for their offspring, cases being on record w^here a
cub has been killed before the eyes of its mother without
causing the parent to show the least concern.

The hauling grounds of the bachelors are ahvays on
the beaches, but the rookeries of the bulls are on the rock-
covered slopes back from the shore.

All Northern Sea Bears are impatient of heat. A
temperature of 45° is unpleasant to^ them, and when the
mercurv in the thermometer rises to 55° or higher they

I
I

Fur Seals or Sea Bears. 243

suffer great inconvenience ; and the rookeries, at such times,
present a peculiar appearance, because the distressed Sea
Bears spread out in every conceivable position their bodies
can assume and try to obtain relief by briskly fanning
themselves with their hind flippers, w^hile they hold the
front flippers aloft so as to form a sort of ventilator for
the air to pass through.

In their native element these animals are as grace-
ful and quick in their movements as they are slow and
clumsy on the land. In commenting on this fact, Mr. El-
liott says: "Sea Bears of all ages swim with great
rapidity, and may be fairly said to dart along under the
water, with the velocity of a bird on the wing. The fore
feet can be seen to work, feathering forward, and sweeping
back flatly opposed to the water, with great rapidity and
energy, and are evidently the sole propelling power; for
if the long, flexible hind limbs have any propelling power,
or are used otherwise than as a steering medium, my eye
has never been quick enough to detect it."

A census of the seal herds taken by the agents of the
Government, showed that there were on the Pribilof
Islands in 1913, 1,403 active bulls with harems, 364 idle
and young bulls, 47,000 one, tw^o, three and four-year-old
pups, 92,269 young pups, with an equal number of breed-
ing cows, and 35,000 one and two-year-old cows.

The number of seal skins shipped from the islands in
1912 to C. M. Lampson and Company in London and sold
for the Government was 3,764. Under the leasing system,
which prevailed prior to 1910, the Government would have
received $38,589.25 for these skins, instead of the $130,-
640.57, which represented the net proceeds of the sale.

244

Carnivora Pinnipedia.

Flippers of the True Seal.

Desman. 245

INSECTIVORA.

Insectivora are small mammals with carnivorous ten-
dencies, that are compelled by their inferior size to depend
principally upon insects for their supply of food. On
account of differences in the development of their incisor
teeth, these animals were distributed by Linnaeus among
several orders, but Cuvier in 1816 grouped them together
in one independent order, all the species of which have
teeth encased in enamel, and grinders studded with coni-
cal points, which distinguishes them from the Mdno-
tremes, while the peculiar clondyles of their jaws separate
them from the rodents, and their limbs distinguish them
from the bats. As Dr. Theodore Gill says, the various
types of Insectivores differ so much in external charac-
teristics that it is only possible to give general characters
to the order. They commonly lead a nocturnal and sub-
terranean existence, and in cold climates many of them
pass the winter in a lethargic state. Their feet and legs
are generally short, and their motions are feeble ; in
walking they place the whole sole of the foot on the
ground. Some of them have long incisors in front, fol-
lowed by other incisors and canines shorter than the
molars. Others have large separated canines, between
which are placed small incisors. Some species are covered
with robust spines, while others have the finest and softest
fur; some have barrel-shaped bodies, minute eyes, and
wide, sharply-clawed fore-feet fitted for digging; some
are ground animals with mouse-like forms, and still others
are squirrel-like and arboreal. Formerly the naturalists
called all the round, digging Insectivores Talpidae; and
those with mouse-like forms Soricidae, but now they are
divided according to structural characteristics, into a
dozen different families, the most important of which as
a fur producer is the Talpidae, of which the Common Mole
(Talpa-europaea) is the principal representative.

The European Mole is about four inches long, has
extremely small eyes that are almost hidden by the thick
fur which prevents the dirt from entering them when
the animal is burrowing. It has no external ears, but

246 Insectivora.

the openings can be distinguished just above the fore-
feet; the long naked snout is furnished with a few black
whiskers, and the one inch tail has a scanty covering of
bushy hair, which is most abundant at the tip. The fur
on the body is short and very fine and silky, the color
generally being a peculiar shade of lustrous brownish
grey that has become very popular with fur wearers.

Moles are entirely insectivorous and usually feed early
in the morning and again in the evening, boring long
tunnels in the ground in pursuit of their prey. Their
nests are made by throwing up the earth in hillocks with
their fore feet, which are very large and furnished with
five strong, sharp claws that turn outward. In some
parts of England Mole catching is a regular business;
they are sometimes captured with spring traps, but can
be easily taken, before eight in the morning or after six
o'clock in the evening, by placing a spade a few inches,^
below where they are working and catching them with ■
the hand ; as the long passages they make under the earth
are clearly visible on the surface this is easily accom-
plished. In severe frosts the moles sometimes seek shelter
in the hedges, but they never hibernate, but work all
through the winter. The inconvenience they cause by ^
spoiling walks and uprooting plants, is more than com- fl
pensated by the service they render in draining the sub-
soil of meadows, and in destroying the larvae of insects ^
that would become a pest. ^M

Moles have well developed senses of smell and hearing *
and are good swimmers, and are found in the hill country ^>
as well as on the bottom lands. ^M

Bell, in his History of British Quadrupeds, gives an
interesting description of the way in which each Mole^^
confines itself to its own district or encampment. He^^l
says : ''Within its limits, or at least in immediate commu-
nication with this district, all the labors of the animal :
are pursued. It consists of the habitation or fortress, ^B
from which extends the high road by which the animal
reaches the opposite extremity of the encampment, and
of various galleries or excavations opening into this road,
which it is continually extending in search of food, and
which constitute, in fact, its hunting-ground. The fort-
ress is formed under a large hillock, which is always

Mole.

247

raised in a situation of safety and protection, either
under a bank, against the foundation of a wall, at a root
of a tree, or in some similar locality. The earth, of which
the dome covering of this curious habitation is composed,
is rendered exceedingly strong and solid by being pressed
and beaten by the mole in forming it. It contains a
circular gallery within the base which communicates
w^ith a smaller one above by five nearly equidistant pas-
sages ; and the domicile or chamber is placed within the

Star Mole.

Common Mole.

Garden Mole.

lower and beneath the upper circular gallery, to which
last it has access by three similar passages. From the
chamber extends another road, the direction of which
is at first downwards for several inches; it then rises
again to open into the high road of the encampment.
From the external circular gallery open about nine other
passages the orifices of which are never formed opposite
to those which connect the outer with the inner and
upper gallery; these extend to a greater or less distance,
and according to De Vaux return, each taking an
irregular semicircular route, and opening into the high
road at various distances from the fortress. Such is a
very hasty description of this most singular structure;
and nothing surely can be imagined more admirably calcu-
lated to ensure the security or the retreat of the inhab-
itant than such an arrangement of internal routes of
communication as this. The chamber communicating

248 Insectivora.

beneath directly with the road, and above with the upper
gallery — this with the lower five passages, and the
latter again with the road by no less than nine — exhibit
altogether a complication of architecture which may rival
the most celebrated erections of the beaver.

"But the labors of the mole are not confined to the
excavations already mentioned. In lands newly sown in
summer with barley or turnips, the surface of which is
consequently light and yielding, after a moderate rain
has brought the earth-worms to the surface, the mole
follows them and pursues its chase along the super-
ficial layer of the soil, digging a shallow continuous
trench, in which work it advances with great rapidity.
This is done by merely forcing its way through the light
soil, and thus lifting it up ; and mole-catchers take advan-
tage of these times to steal softly upon them, and throw
them oi;it of the ground with their paddle. But great
quickness is necessary in doing this, for the mole will
bury itself again so rapidly as often to escape, even when
fairly thrown on to the surface. We have on more than
one occasion seen a mole making so shallow a run that
the fine soil has fallen away on each side, leaving the
creature's back exposed to view. It is said that tEe
gravid female, to whom the usual excavations in the
subterranean alleys would be too laborious, limits herself
principally to this lighter toil."

Desman.

249

THE DESMAN.

The Desman (Myogale-moschata), sometimes called the
Russian Muskrat, and also the Wuychuchol or Musk Shrew,
although it approaches nearer to the Mole in appearance
than the Shrews, has comparatively narrow feet that are
not specially fitted for digging like those of the great
burrowing Insectivores. It is a peculiar looking little
animal about ten inches long, exclusive of the six inch
tail. It has no external ears and the eyes are very small.
The muzzle is elongated into a small four inch proboscis

Desman.

which is constantly in motion. The tail is scaly and
flattened at the sides, and makes a powerful swimming
organ, and the feet have the five toes fully webbed so
the animal is entirely aquatic. It lives in burrows in
the banks of the lakes and rivers of its habitat, the
entrances to which are beneath the surface of the water.
The Desman feeds on insects, leeches and similar food,
which it finds in the mud and beneath the stones. There
are four genera of the family found in different parts of
Europe and Asia, and one in South America ; but the type
representative of the family Myogalidae is the species
described in this article, which is confined to southeastern
Europe and western Asia. Like the otter and other
aquatic animals, the Desman has an outer coat of long
stiff hairs to protect the fine, dense, soft, short under-fur,
which is purplish brown on the back, and silvery white
on the belly, and is used to some extent for trimmings,
glove tops and similar purposes.

250 Pouched Mammals or Marsupials.

MARSUPIALS.

''Marsupials are peculiar in the premature production
of their young, whose state of development at birth is
hardly equal to that of the ordinary foetus a few days
after conception. Incapable of motion and hardly exhibit-
ing the germs of limbs, or other external organs, these
diminutive beings attach themselves to the mammae of the
mother, and remain fixed there until they have acquired
a degree of development similar to that in which other
mammals are born. The skin of the abdomen is so arranged
as to form a pouch, in which the imperfect little animals
are carried about, as in a second uterus; and to which,
long after they are able to walk, they fly for shelter upon
the approach of danger. Two particular bones, attached
to the pubis, and interposed between the muscles of the
abdomen, support the pouch. These bones are also found
in the males, and even in those species in which the folds
that form the pouch are scarcely visable. "

It is a peculiarity of the Marsupials that in spite
of a general resemblance in appearance, the species vary
so much in the formation of their teeth, and feet, and
organs of digestion, that they really should be separated
into several special orders. Cuvier says : * ' They carry us
by insensible gradations, from the Carnivora to the Roden-
tia; and actually form a distinct class, parallel to that of
Quadrumana or Primates, and dissolvable into similar
orders. ' '

R. Ramsey Wright, in an article written for the River-
side Natural History, says:

"A glance at the map of the world will show the very
curious distribution of existing Marsupials. All the
families but one have their home in the Australian
region; that is, either on the continent of Australia, the
Island of Tasmania to the south, Papua or New Guinea to
the north, Celebes to the northwest, or, finally, on the
small islands which lie to the east and west of Papua.
The remaining family (the opossums) is confined to
South America and the southern parts of North America.
The characteristic difference between the Australian and

Marsupialia. 251

American Marsupials extends also to the fossil forms
found in these regions, for the earliest marsupial remains
which have been detected in both countries are distinctly-
allied to the existing Fauna.

''In none of the orders of the higher mammalia do we
find such wide limits as to the size of the body, for the
order includes kangaroos as tall as a man, and little
mouse-like creatures of dwarf proportions. The fur is
in most cases long and soft, its coloring rarely very
marked, and often very sober. In the structure of the
skeleton the Marsupials are rather allied to the higher
mammals than to the Monotremes. The lower jaw is
always characterized by the inflection of the angle, a
peculiarity which has assisted in the recognition of the
marsupial character of the earliest fossil mammalian
remains, which almost invariably consist of lower jaws.
The number of bones in the vertebral column is remark-
ably constant, except in the caudal region, the tail being
more or less rudimentary in the Wombat and Koala, but
w^ell developed in the Kangaroos and Phalangers, serv-
ing the former species as a sort of fifth leg, and being
used by the latter in climbing.

"The relative length of the fore and hind limbs is
very different in the different groups, the difference being
especially striking in the kangaroos, where the fore limbs
are particularly short. The bones of the fore arm are
distinct, and allow of a rotary motion, the one around
the other; the same is true of the bones of the hind legs
in the climbing forms, but in the leaping forms such
rotation is not possible. Of the toes of the hind feet,
the inner one is sometimes opposable after the fashion
of a thumb. This inner toe may be absent, or the second
and third next it may also disappear or be much reduced.

' ' The brain of the marsupials is small, and consequently
the cavity of the skull is relatively small as compared
with the bones of the face. The surface of the brain is
almost destitute of convolutions, and the two halves of
the brain are less intimately joined by the corpus callo-
sum than is the case in the higher animals.

In the number and arrangement of their teeth the
different families of Marsupials differ from one another
more than those of the higher orders. The vegetable

252 Pouched Mammals or Marsupiaus.

feeders have teeth with constantly growing roots like
those of the Rabbits. In the insect and flesh eating
pouched mammals the roots of the teeth do not increase;
and the canine teeth, which are well developed in the
carnivorous forms of the order, are absent or very much
reduced in the vegetable feeders. It is also worthy of
notice that, with the exception of the Wombat, most of
the Marsupials have an unequal number of incisor teeth
in the upper and lower jaw. The premolars are double
fanged and are usually t on each side. The com-
monest formula for the true grinders is I, but in the
Banded Ant Eater it rises to t and in the flying Pha-
langer falls to t. In the Kangaroos the mode of suc-
cession of the teeth is singular, the hinder ones eventu-
ally replacing in function those in front as the latter
become worn away. »

''The stomach also varies in shape with the food, being
simply oval or rounded in the carnivorous or insectivorous
forms, while in the herbivorous kangaroos it is converted
into a gut-like tube,/ sacculated like the colon, sometimes
as long as the body, and occasionally provided, near the
entrance of the gullet, with two blind sack-like append-
ages.

''The most preposterous theories as to the mode of
development of the kangaroos were at one time credited
by the Australian colonists and even by naturalists. It
was thought that the young were formed at the end of
the teat, and indeed the intimate connection which
exists between the teat and the young readily explains
such a popular conception. Now, however, ripe embryos
have been discovered in the uteri, and such have also
been observed a few hours after their fixation to the
teats. There appears to be no doubt that the trans-
ference of the young from the womb to the pouch is
effected by the mother's lips, the fore-paws being only
employed to hold the lips of the pouch widely open.
Both transference and fixation are, however, difficult to
observe, for the little embryo, hardly an inch long, is
first concealed by the lips of the mother, and then more
effectually so by the insertion of the mother's head into
the pouch. Even in the largest member of the family,
the giant kangaroo, the young, when born, are no larger

Marsupialia. 253

than a newly-born mouse. It is interesting to compare the
degree of development of the hind and fore legs at this
stage. While in the fore feet the five fingers are distinctly
formed, even to the tips of the claws, the hind feet are
more like short fins slightly notched into three lobes, the
inner of which is again perceptibly divided, in correspond-
ence with the structure of the adult foot. One of the most
remarkable features about the young kangaroo is the
largely-developed mouth and tongue; by their aid the
little creature is able to grasp the teat firmly, and in
fact the orifice of the mouth may grow smaller after the
teat has once been firmly secured in it. The milk is
, injected into the gullet of the young, passing on each
«ide of the upper end of the windpipe which is carried
as far up as the hinder part of the nasal cavity. In
this way the little creatures may breathe, and be fed at
the same time, without danger of choking. The injec-
tion of the milk is effected by a specially modified part,
the cremaster, of one of the superficial abdominal mus-
cles. The epipubic, or so-called marsupial bones, serve
as a sort of pulley by which tbe cremaster muscles are
enabled more effectively to compress the milk glands.

''The duration of the pouch-life of the young varies
with the species. The Kangaroo, according to Owen,
suckles her young for eight months. During this period
the liind legs and tail assume a great part of their adult
proportions; the muzzle elongates, the external ears and
eyelids are completed, and the hair begins to develop
about the sixth month ; at the eighth the young kangaroo
may be seen frequently to protrude its head from the
mouth of the pouch, and to crop the grass at the same
time that the mother is browsing. Having thus acquired
additional strength it quits the pouch, and hops at first
with a feeble and vacillating gait, but continues to
return to the pouch for occasional shelter and supplies
of food till it has attained the weight of ten pounds;
after this it will occasionally insert its head for the pur-
pose of sucking, notwithstanding another foetus may have
been deposited in the pouch, for the latter attaches itself
to a dift'erent nipple from the one which had been used
'by its predecessor.

254 Pouched :Mammals or ^Marsupials,

THE KANGAROO.

Nearly all the twenty-three species of Kangaroos are re-
stricted to Australia, although a few are found in New
Guinea. The family, which embraces the Kangaroos and
their allies the Wallabies, includes not only the largest
forms, but also has the greatest number of genera and
species, and the widest geographical range. It owes its
name, Macropodidae, to the difference between the size of
the fore and hind legs. Kangaroos are entirely herbivorous,
and the lower incisors, which are elongated, play upon eaclj
other like the blades of a pair of scissors, and crop the
grass. Of the upper incisors, the foremost are the largest,
and occasionally the premolars are strikingly large. In
contrast to the other Marsupials the members of this family
generally have well developed eyelashes. The tail of the
Kangaroo is very thick and strong, so that the animal can
use it as a fifth leg in standing upright or moving slowly.
The hind legs are very strong, and the fore limbs are short,
which enables them to progress and get over the ground,
very swiftly and gracefully by a series of bounds.

Although very powerful animals, all species of Kangaroos
are exceedingly timid, and in captivity have been known to
die of sheer fright. In freedom, when alarmed by any un-
familiar sight, sound or smell, they will immediately raise
upon their tail and hind limbs as upon a tripod. Mr. R.
Ramsey Wright says that when resting, one male of the
family will support himself on the tail and ankle bones,
while the others lie about or browse at their ease, commonly
applying their fore-feet to the ground till they receive a
danger signal from their sentinel. Some species of Kan-
garoos are the size of a small rabbit, while others are as
large as sheep, the head always being small compared to the
rest of the body and tapering tow^ards the muzzle. The
fore-paws each have five digits armed with a strong curved
claw. The hind foot is extremely long, narrow and without
the first toe, consisting mainly of one very large and strong
toe corresponding to the fourth of the human foot, and end-
ing in a strong curved and pointed claw ; close to the oute"r
side of this lies a small fifth digit, and to the inner side, two

Kangaroo.

255

exceptionally slender toes bound together almost to the
extremity in a common integument.

Giant Kangaroo.

The Common or Grey Kangaroo (Macropus gigantius)
is the best known species. It is also the largest, an old male
Grey Kangaroo when erect on his hind feet and tail often
standing seven feet high, the females being about one-third
shorter than the males. The color of this species is usually
a dull yellowish brown, pale on the under parts and darker
on the tail, but while the exact shade varies greatly in dif-
ferent individuals, generally the color has a distinctly grey-
ish cast. This species is the most numerous as well as the
most common of its genus, and is also known as the Boomer,
Forester, and Old Man Kangaroo. Although their num-
bers have diminished considerably in the proximity of the
towns, on the other hand they have increased on the sweet
pasture of the newly settled districts, so that on the whole
Kangaroos do not seem to have decreased much since they
were discovered by Cook off the coast of New South Wales
over a hundred and thirty years ago, although they have
been steadily driven further inland by the persistent hunt-
ing of the colonists and natives.

256 Pouched Mammals or Marsupials.

''The natives generally hunt the Kangaroo by forming a
circle around the herd and killing them with clubs. By the
colonists they are generally driven toward a particular spot
where the sportsmen have been stationed before hand after
the fashion of a bateau, but they are also stalked, and occa-
sionally hunted by dogs. In spite of their timidity Kan-
garoos are enemies not to be despised when brought to
bay, and a blow from the powerful tail or hind legs is
sufficient to cause serious injuries, and the dogs are often
torn open by the strong claws of the hind feet. "

Mr. W. H. Blundell, in a letter to "Nature," a number
of years ago wrote :

"The great plains and deserts over which these marsup-
ials wander in search of food afford an exceedingly precar-
ious supply of pasture, in consequence of drought and bush
fires, which not infrequently follow a super-abundance of
herbage. These animals by means of their procumbent teeth,
which they make use of as shears, are enabled to cut off
any green root or half buried remains spared by a scorching
sun, and obtain nourishment where any grass feeding pla-
cental animal would certainly starve. It is in consequence,
I believe, of the power which is by this means given these
animals, that in the great pastural districts in New South
Wales and Queensland, it has been found that they are far
more destructive of food than any stock that can be put upon
the land. And in places where Wallabys and Paddy Melons,
are exceedingly numerous, it is noticed that the native
grasses in the particular localities which they frequent be-
come completely destroyed, and that such places remain
entirely ungrassed until fresh seed is scattered over them
by the winds.

Brehm in describing the locomotion of Kangeroos
says: "the fore limbs are tightly clasped against the
chest and the tail stretched backwards, while the powerful
thigh muscles are caused suddenly to straighten the
joints, by which action the body flies through the air in
a low curve. In ordinary locomotion the leaps are only
nine or ten feet, but when alarmed the animal doubles
or even trebles its exertion. The right foot seems to be
employed more than the left and is held a little in front
of it. With each leap the tail swings upward and down-
ward, but it is not employed in changing the course of
the animal, for this is always effected by two or three short
leaps. The fore limbs are never lowered in locomotion, and
in fact, only the toes of the hind limbs touch the ground. In

Kangaroo and Its Allies. 257

open ground it is more than a match in speed for the swift-
est dog, and can keep up its swiftest pace for hours. When
there is any cover it has immeasurably the advantage by
clearing clumps or shrubs six or eight feet high ; on uneven
ground, on the other hand, it is at a disadvantage, especially
when going down hill, for it is liable to slip and roll over on
reaching a sloping surface. ' '

Kangaroo flesh is said to be excellent eating, but the
Giant Kangaroo is hunted principally for its skin which
is largely used in the manufacture of shoes. Only the
fur of the younger animals is dense enough to make
the skins of value to the furriers.

The Red Kangaroo (Macropus-rufus) is next in size to
the Giant Kangaroo, but, as its name indicates, the fur has
a reddish hue, and as it is also coarse and woolly, it is not
sought by furriers, the skin is also too harsh for leather.

The Blue Kangaroo (Macropus-erubescens) is still
smaller than the Red species, but has a long soft fur, the
under coat of which is pinkish or light blue in color. The
pelt is soft and thin, and the skins very much appreciated
by the tanners. The fur is also valued by the furriers.

The Walleroo (Macropus-robustus) is smaller than any
of the foregoing, and is the scarcest of all Kangaroos. It
is whitish grey in color, and the hair is so coarse and harsh
that the skins are only suitable for the tanner's use.

The smallest members of the Kangaroo tribe are the
gregarious Kangaroo Rats that live in colonies in connect-
ed burrow^s, and the tree-climbing Musk Kanguroo, whose
body exhales a strong odor, and which feeds upon insects
and worms. The Rat Kangaroos live in the grass and
"scrub," and according to Ingersoll, ''scratch the ground
all day in search of the roots upon which they feed, and
cause havoc in the potato patches of the frontiersmen."

The so-called Hare Kangaroos (Lagorchetes) , live on the
open plains, and in size, color and habits resemble the com-
mon hare. They make ''forms" in the grass, but are
exceedingly fleet, so that at the first approach of danger
they generally succeed in reaching the galleries, they have
made in the "scrub" by cutting away the lower branches
and spines, where it is almost impossible to reach them.
Like the Kangaroo Rats, the Kangaroo Hares differ from
the true Kangaroos in anatomical peculiarities as well as
in their habits and appearance.

258 Pouched Mammals or Marsupials.

THE WALLABIES.

Of the Wallabies, or Rock Kangaroos, the Yellow Wall-
aby (Petrogale-xanthopus is the one oftenest seen in cap-
tivity. It is about two feet long, and has a tail as long
as the body, and the narrow head and long ears that
characterize all Kangaroos. The long dense fur is soft
and fluffy, and the general color is yellowish, shading to a
light brown on the back, and showing a black stripe down
the center and white marks on each side. This species is
not very numerous, and the skins that are marketed are
shipped to London from Adelaide.

The Rock Wallaby, or Bush-tailed Kangaroo (Petrogale-
pencillata), is more numerous, and has a two inch long
reddish silvery fur very similar to that of the red Lynx;
the hair on the back is grey speckled, rather longer than
that on the belly w^hich is brownish in hue. There is a
black line between the eyes, and there are occasional
white spots on the body. The fur is serviceable, and exten-
sively used for making coats, capes and various other
articles. This species inhabits New South Wales and
Victoria, and the best skins are those shipped from
Sydney.

Phalangers. 259

All the species of the genus Fetrogale, or Wallabies,
have shorter toes and hind legs than the true Kangaroos
of the genus Macropus; and the under surfaces of their
feet are covered with horny tubercles to prevent them
from slipping. They do not support the weight of their
bodies on the tail, although they can use it to balance with.

The representatives of the genus Halmaturus, to which
Bennett's Wallaby, or Bush Kangaroo (Halmaturus-ben-
netii), and the Black or Swamp Wallaby (Halmaturus-
wallabutus), belong, do not live on open ground like the
Macropus, but inhabit the swamps, and sections of country
more or less thickly covered with brush and shrubs. The
close lying hairs on the former species in short and griz-
zly, similar to the Raccoon in color but browner, and the
skins are used hy furriers as an imitation for raccoon, or
made into leather by the tanners. The Swamp Wallaby is
one of the largest representatives of its genus, being about
three feet long, but the reddish brown fur is coarse and
covered with long black hairs. It is strong and service-
able however, and the smaller skins are quite extensively
used in the manufacture of coats but the large skins are
made into leather.

Among the other species of this genus are the large
Antelope Kangaroo (Halmaturus-antelopinus),of Northern
Australia, and the small Bridled Kangaroo, or Pedemelon
— Paddy Melon — (Halmaturus-thetidis), of New South
Wales, the Halmaturus-billardieri that lives in herds in the
interior of Tasmania ; and the eighteen inch Wood Wallaby
(Halmaturus-brachyurus), which spends most of its time
in the trees, and whose grizzly brownish soft fur is well
adapted for coat linings.

THE PHALANGER.

(Australian Opossum.)
The Phalangers are for the most part small in size and
are divided into two classes, the common and the flying
Phalangers; some of them are insect eaters, but most of
them live on the young shoots, leaves and blossoms of the
trees they inhabit. All the species of Phalangers have long
prehensile tails, and six incisor teeth in the upper, and
two in the lower jaw, with four molars on each side, but
the small premolars vary in number.

260 Pouched Mammals or Marsupials.

The Vulpine Phalanger, (Trichosurus-vulpecula) com-
monly known as the Australian Opossum, is the most in-
teresting of the many different species of Phalangers. It is
found in nearly every part of Australia, and seems to be
constantly increasing in numbers in spite of the fact that
millions of the species are killed annually for the fur value
of their skins. In the finest skins the under fur is a bluish
grey, with longer and darker hairs on the back than on the
belly, which is yellowish, and has very dense fine short hair.
The largest representatives of this species are found in Tas-
mania, and sometimes measure twenty-five inches in length,
exclusive of the eleven inch tail ; it is yellower, and the fur
is longer and thicker than that on the varieties found in
other parts of Australia. The Victoria skins have a darker

Australian Opossum.-

and richer blue-grey shade than any others except those of
the so-called ''Adelaide Opossum," which is the smallest
of its species, and has a fur resembling that of the chinchilla
in appearance. The ''Melbourne Opossum" is the most nu-
merous of all the Vulpine Phalangers. Its length is about
sixteen inches from tip to tip. The dense one and a half
inch long fur is usually bluish grey, mingled with larger
and coarser dark hairs on the ifpper parts, and white be-
neath. Most of the ' ' Australian Opossum ' ' skins are worked

Opossums. 261

up and sold in the natural color, but they take a brilliant
dye, and the fur becomes soft and silky in the process.

Cook's Phalanger, generally called the Ring-tail Opossum,
is a small animal only six inches long, with a tail twice the
length of its body. The fine soft fur is a rich blue on the
back, and a pure white on the belly; like the ''Adelaide
Opossum," it has very much the appearance of chinchilla,
and is sometimes used for making small articles of fur wear.

The skin of the Great Flying Phalanger (Petaurus-aus-
tralis), is too thin to allow of its being used for fur pur-
poses, but mounted specimens of this animal are often seen
in miJ§eums.

THE OPOSSUM.

Of all the Marsupials the Opossum approaches most
closely to the typical mammal in the structure of its
reproductive organs; and while fossils show that the
different families of Australian Marsupials are of com-
paratively recent origin, the American Implacentals are
represented amongst the earliest mammalian fossils.

Some of the family Didelphidae, which includes all the
American Marsupials, are very small and few of them
attain the size of a cat. They feed chiefly on insects, but
will also eat small reptiles, birds and eggs. The Water
Opossum (Chironectes) differs entirely in habits from the
other species of the family, and has the webbed feet
necessary for an aquatic existence. The other species,
all belonging to the genus Didelphy, are arboreal and
more or less nocturnal and while some are provided with
a pouch, others are destitute of it.

The Virginian Opossum (Didelphys-virginiana) is one
of the largest members of the family and has a well
developed pouch, as have also the species found in Brazil.
It has an elongated muzzle that makes its head appear
large in proportion to the rest of its body although the
brain cavity is small. The tail is scaly like a rat's,
except at the root, and the black ears are naked, resem-
bling a bat's wing. The feet, which are naked on the
under surface, each have five toes, the inner toes of the
hind feet being opposable.

The general color of the woolly fur is a yellowish grey
or grizzly, caused by the white underwool showing through
black or brownish top hairs.

262 Pouched MzVmmals or Marsupials.

Opossums lead solitarj- lives, except in the pairing
season when they occupy nests of dried grass, in the
hollows or roots of trees, which are shared by the young
as soon as they are able to leave the pouch.

''The opossum brings forth a litter corresponding
more or less nearly to the number of her teats. These
are thirteen, disposed in a circle, six on each side and one
in the middle.

"The developmental changes which take place within
the body of the mother occupy from twenty-four to
twenty-eight days. The young are then born in a per-
fectly helpless condition, and only about half an inch
in length. They are immediately placed in the pouch by
the mother, one being attached to each of the long teats.
The mouth at this stage is well formed, and the fore
limbs are sufficiently advanced for the claws to assist
the young to cling to the teats, but the hind limbs are
developed afterwards. After attachment, the corners of
the mouth grow up around the teat, insuring a more per-
fect channel for the flow of the milk ; this is further aided
by a well-marked groove on the upper surface of the
tongue. In five or six weeks the young opossums have
attained the size of little mice, and in about two months
have developed sufficiently to leave the pouch.

In the species of Opossums that are characterized by
the absence of the pouch, the young are born practically
in the same condition, but they are carried on the back of
the mother after they are old enough to leave the teats,
being securely held there by means of their prehensile
tails, which are twined around the tail of the mother.

The color variation in Opossums is largely due to age,
the half grown animals looking blackish at a little dis-
tance while the old ones have a whitish appearance. The
skins are worked up either in their natural color, or dyed
and sold as Black Marten or skunk opossum.

Koala. 263

THE KOALA.

(Native Bear.)

While not as important commercially as the Common
Phalanger, the skins of the Koala are used extensively in the
manufacture of sleeping bags, coats and other articles
where a durable, reasonable priced fur is desired. The sci-
entific designation of this animal signifies Ashy Pouched
Bear, which is a very good description of it. The Koala is
strictly arboreal, the natives often being obliged to fol-
low it to the top of the highest trees sixty and seventy
feet above the ground.

The Koala is the largest Australian mammal living in the
trees and that is probably the reason why it is called the
bear by the natives, as it is unlike that animal in its noc-
turnal habits as well as its slow movements, in both of
which characteristics it resembles the sloth.

It is from eighteen to twenty-four inches long, and the
general color is a light grey, the tips of the coarse hair be-
ing white. The upper part of the belly and chest and the
insides of the legs are white, and the lower part of the belly
is reddish brown, at times approaching to a dark purple
hue. The fur on the hind quarters is much shorter than on
the rest of the body, and has patches and spots of white. The
ears are very short, tufted on the inside with long white

264 Pouched Mammals or Marsupials.

hairs. The head, which is broad and short, is surrounded
with a fringe of hair. The nose is bare, and whiskers are
absent. The formation of the feet is singular, the claws of
the fore-paws being five in number, the two inner ones op-
posable to the toes like the thumb of a man to the
fingers of the hand. The next two toes are small and joined
together, and the fourth, which is the longest, is separate,
as is also the fifth which however is somewhat shorter.

THE WOMBAT.

The Phascolomyidae is a family of Marsupials repre-
sented by a single genus, the Wombat, sometimes called
the Australian Badger. There are three species of this
animal — Phascolomys-platyrhinus, Phase olomys-latifrons
and Phascolomys-wombat. The latter is the most com-
mon. It is a clumsy animal, but in spite of its shuMing
gait is able to cover considerable ground, as it is patient
and persistent. It is easily caught alive, and in captivity
is indifferent to its keeper's appearance and cares for
nothing but its food. It is difficult to arouse Wombats
from their ordinary condition of good natured indiffer-
ence, but when excited they are able to take care of
themselves with their chisel-like teeth.

The Common Wombat is about two feet long, has a
rudimentary tail, short thick neck, and a large head. The
short stout legs are adapted for burrowing by the stout
curved claws with which the toes, with the exception of
the innermost toe on each hind foot, are armed. It lives
chiefly on roots which it gnaws after the fashion of the
rodents. It has. two chisel-like incisor teeth in the upper
and two in the lower jaw, which like the beaver's are
separated by a gap from the molars. Of the five rootless
molars in each jaw, the foremost of each series is a pre-
molar of only half the size of the true molars.

The short fur is soft and dense, and of the general
whitish grey color characteristic of most of the Australian
mammals. It is used extensively in the manufacture of
cheap, serviceable fur coats, sleeping bags and robes.

The Bandicoots are small animals that show the same
disproportionate development of the hind legs which char-

Bandicoots and Dasyures. 265

acterizes all the species of Kangaroos, but instead of
prQgressing by a series of bounds like the latter their
gait is a combination of running and leaping similar to
that of the hares; they are distinguished by having the
opening of the pouch turned backward instead of forward,
as is the case with all other Marsupials.

The Bandicoots live in the cooler and more mountainous
regions of Australia, and form burrows in their search
for roots and tubers often proving a nuisance to
settlers by ravaging potato fields and burrowing under
the walls of barns to get at the grain. There are two
genera of Bandicoots — the Perameles, resembling the rat
in form and the sparsely haired character of the tail,
which is represented by a half dozen or more species on
the continent of Australia, and the Choeropus-castanotis,
or Pig-footed Bandicoot, found only in South Australia.
They agree in general habits, but the Choeropus, instead
of living in burrows, make nests for themselves in the
thick underbrush where they easily escape notice. Their
fur is longer than that on the Perameles, and they have
slenderer legs and only two toes — the second and third —
on the fore feet, and only one on the hind feet — the
fourth — which bears the weight of the body; the second
and third joined toes, and the fifth are present and bear
nails, but are quite rudimentary. All the species of the
Perameles bear the weight of the body on the fourth and
fifth toes of the hind feet, and have five toes on the fore
feet, the two inner ones being rudimentary and nailless.

The skins of the Bandicoot are of little value either for
fur or leather purposes.

The Dasyuridae Family includes both Carnivorous and
Insectivorous types, differing from the other Marsupials
in the character of their dentition and in having the
second and third toes of the hind feet perfectly free from
each other. The Dasyuridae is rich in Genera and Species,
ranging from mouse-like insect eaters to the Carnivorous
Spotted Cat of Australia (Dasyurus-maugoei) and the
Tasmanian Devil (Dasyurus-ursinus) resembling the Bad-
ger in the form of body and large head, while the tex-
ture of its deep black fur is more like that of the bear.
Some of the smaller species possess a small inner toe on
the hind foot which is wanting in the type variety.

266 MONOTREMATA.

THE MONOTREMATA.

The Monotremata are an order of Australian Mam-
mals whose young are hatched from eggs laid by the fe-
male, and they are known as egg-laying mammals because
the young when hatched are suckled by the mother.

The Platybus (Ornithorhynchus-anatinus), or as it is
sometimes called the Duck Bill, because of the bill which
forms the extremity of its head, has a mole-like browTiish
black under fur that excells that of the seal in richness.
The color of the water hairs that protect the under fur
are a silvery brown on top and lighter on the belly, giving
the animal a beautiful appearance when in full pelage.

The Platybus is a small animal, from eighteen to
twenty inches long from tip to tip ; in structure it some-
what ^resembles the reptiles, and like all water animals
has a thick pelt and no external ears. It has no teeth. The
eyes are small, and the bill is perforated with two holes
for nostrils. The limbs are short, and each foot has five
complete toes furnished with strong nails. The fore feet
are webbed considerably beyond the extremity of the
nails, but on the hind feet the web reaches only to the
base of the nails. The nails of the fore feet are some-
what flattened and expanded, but those on the hind feet
are longer, narrow and curved. The heel of the Platybus
is furnished with a spur like that of the gamecock but not
so long.

The Platybus lives in burrows from twenty to forty
feet deep, with one entrance to its nest from the land and
another from the water. The young are bom hairless and
blind and totally unlike the full grown animal, having
short fleshy lips with which to obtain the milk from the
mammae of the parent. While possessing marsupial
bones similar to those of the Pouched Mammals the female
Platybus has no pouch.

Dehaired and dyed, the fur of the Platybus is much
finer than that of the seal, and well adapted for the manu-
facture of caps and other small articles or trimming orna-
ments, but comparatively few skins reach the fur markets
of the world.

Egg Laying Mammals. 267

The Echidna (Echidna-hystrix) is an ant eater that
has a much more extensive distribution than the Platybus,
from which it differs in structure as well as appearance;
instead of a mole-like fur, the upper part of the head and
body are covered with a mixture of stiff hairs, and short
thick spines that have caused it to be called the Australian
Porcupine. Although in some localities the underwool of
the Echidna is abundant, its skin is of little value for any
purpose, and it is only mentioned here because of its pe-
culiarities. It has a long bill but no teeth, and feeds solely
on ants which it obtains by means of its long tongue,
which like the palate is beset with spines. The eyes are of
fair size, but it has no ears, and the tail is a mere stump.
The body is broad and depressed, and the line of division
between the spine covered back and the hairy under parts
is sharply drawn. The short strong limbs are armed with
very powerful claws, varying in number in the different
species from three to five on each foot.

Echidnas are fossorial and in the main nocturnal
animals, inhabiting rocky districts in the mountains at an
elevation of three thousand feet and upwards. Little is
known of their breeding habits, but according to the na-
tives they lay eggs, and the young, two in number, are
born during the Australian winter, usually in May.

268

The Primates.

269

THE PRIMATES.

Linnaeus included Man and the Bat, as well as the
Monkeys and Lemurs, in the order of Primates ; but now
the Bats are placed in a separate order — Chioptera, and
Man is referred to as belonging to the Bimana, while the
Monkeys and Lemurs are usually spoken of as Quad-
rumana ; although strictly speaking the Bimana and Quad-
rumana, the latter so called because of their ability to use
both front and hind feet as hands, are simply subdivisions
of the order of Primates, which is therefore naturally con-
sidered the first and highest order of the sub-kingdom
Vertebrata.

Cuvier, writing of the Quadrumana in his '' Animal
Kingdom," says: ''Independently from the anatomical
details which distinguish it from Man, this family differs
from our species in a remarkable way. All the animals
belonging to it have the toes of the hind feet free and
opposable to the others, and the toes on all are as long and
flexible as fingers. In consequence of this the whole
species climb trees with the greatest facility, while it is
only with pain and difficulty they can stand and walk
upright, their foot resting on its outer edge only and their
narrow pelvis being unfavorable to an equilibrium. They
differ from Man by having a much more elongated muzzle
and a tail, and a gait more like that of other quadrupeds.
Notwithstanding this, the freedom of their arms and the
complication of their hands allow them all to perform
many of the actions of mail as well as to imitate his ges-
tures."

Everybody knows what an Ape or Monkey is, but com-
paratively few can tell how to distinguish the Apes from
the true Monkeys and the Baboons or Dog-faced Monkeys,
or what constitutes the line of demarkation between these
two groups and the Lemurs, which are closely related to
them but have so many different characteristics that they
are placed in a separate family (Lemuridae) ; while the
Apes are classified as Simiidae and all the Old World
Baboons and Monkeys are grouped together in the family
Oeropithecidae, and all the American Monkeys, except the

270 QUADRUMANA.

Marmosets, which belong tp the family Halpalidae, are
included in the family Cebidae.

Because of structural differences and peculiarities of
coloration and appearance, there are numerous genera
with a variety of species in each family of the Quad-
rumana, but only a few of them are entitled to considera-
tion as fur-bearing animals. Monkeys are most abundant
in the tropical parts of South America and Africa, al-
though they are fairly numerous in the warmer portions of
Asia, and some specimens are found as far north as the
snow line. The only species in Europe is the Barbary
Maccaque (Macacus-inuus). Nearly all the leading species
of Monkeys have specific common names as well as differ-
ent technical scientific designations.

The Monkeys all have four straight incisors in each
jaw, and with a single exception flat nails on all the ex-
tremities, two characters which approximate them more
nearly to Man than the Lemurs; their molars are blunt
tubercles like ours, and their food consists chiefly of fruit.
Their canine teeth being longer than the rest supply a
weapon which we do not possess, and require a hollow in
the opposite jaw to receive them when the mouth is closed.

The Monkeys of the Eastern Continent all have the
same number of grinders as Man ; but the Marmosets are
the only Monkeys of the New World of which this can
be said, all the representatives of the Cebidae having eight
bicuspeds instead of four. None of the American Monkeys
have cheek pouches, and they can always be distinguished
by the absence of the deep callosities which are found on
the buttocks of all the Old World species except the Apes,,
with which they could never be confounded because of
their small size. The American Monkeys are purely ar-
boreal, passing all of their time in the tree tops, swinging
from branch to branch, and rarely if ever descending to
the ground. They have all their digits provided with well
developed nails, but those who have thumbs cannot oppose
that digit to the other digits of the hand as the repre-
sentatives of the foreign species do.

For a long time zoologists classed all the Old World
Monkeys as belonging to one family (Oatarhini) because-
of the very thin partition between their nostrils, while
they grouped all the broad-nosed monkeys of the Western.

Apes, Baboons and Monkeys. 271

Continent in the family (Platyrhini) on account of the
greater width of the vertical partition between the two
nostrils. This classification has been generally aban-
doned for the one that divides the Monkeys of the Old
"World into the Simiidae and Ceropithecidae families, and
places the Marmosets with their thirty-two teeth, clawed
toes, and nonprehensile tails, in the family Halpalidae,
and all the other South American species with prehensile
tails and thirty-six teeth, in the family Cebidae.

The Baboons differ from the rest of the Quadrumana in
disposition as well as appearance, having fierce tempers
and a bull dog courage, combined with strength and agil-
ity that enables them to meet their most powerful enemies
upon something like equal terms ; and it is said that even
in captivity they must at all times be treated as dangerous
animals. The Mandrill (Cynocephalus-mormon) of West
Africa, with its long shaggy hair, lion like appearance,
and the peculiar markings on its face which accentuate
the grimaces which it is constantly making, is the most
interesting and wonderful of the Baboons. It is easily the
largest, most formidable, ferocious and hideous of its kind,
and fully justifies Dr. Hornaday's statement that ''It
seems like an animal not of this earth, but reminds one
of the great beasts of the vision of St. John the Divine."
The Hamadryas Baboon, with long side whiskers and a
cape of long hair, is the handsomest representative of the
Dog-faced Monkeys, while the Golden Baboon has the
liveliest disposition, is the best tempered.

Of all the Quadrumana, the Gorilla (Gorilla-savagei),
resembles Man the closest in walk and in structural for-
mation, but the Orang Utang( Simla) and the Chimpanzees
(Athropopithecus-niger and -calvus) approximate the
nearest to the Hominidae in intelligence and susceptibility
to training, both being mentally superior to the Gorilla
and the long-armed Gibbons (Hylobartes-lar) ; but as
none of the Apes are fur-bearing animals, our present in-
terest lies with some of the representatives of the Cero-
pithecidae rather than any of the members of the Simiidae
family.

Generally speaking, the Black Monkey of commerce is
the skin of the White Thighed Colobus (Colobus-velloro-
sus) while is very abundant on the west coast of Africa.

272 QUADRUMANA.

This species is from one to two feet long exclusive of the
tail which will measure fully two feet. The long black
silky hair on the back is from two to four inches long, and
in some cases is divided by a natural part in the center.
In some localities the hair is coarse and harsh and the
skins consequently are of less value. The tail of this
animal is white and slightly tufted, and the beard, cheeks
and the long fringe around the black face are also pure
white and there is a white spot on the chest. The legs and
feet are black, but the sparse short hair on the thighs and
rump is of a greyish white color. The skins of the Ursini
Colobus (Colobus-ursinius), from Sierra Lerone, are also
sold as Black Monkeys, but they are smaller and harsher
and only a small quantity are marketed.

The Abyssinian Monkey (Colobus-guereza), whose home
is in the mountains of East Central Africa, is one of the
largest and the most beautiful of all the true Monkeys.
The skins measure from two to two and one-half feet,
exclusive of the four-foot tail; the long silky white hair is
marked with a black saddle on the back, and the thick bushy
black tail has a beautiful long white tuft on the end. The
legs are all black, but the black face is surrounded by a
white fringe. The skins are highly prized but they are
very rare.

The skins of the Grey Monkey of the west coast of
Africa, also known as the Diana Monkey (Ceropithecus
diana), are much more common in the fur markets than
those of the Abyssinian Monkey. It is almost eighteen
inches long with a black tail twice the length of the body.
The color of the back is a bright chestnut brown, the
sides are grizzly, and the cheeks, chest and belly, white.
A white beard, and a white line on the forehead, as well
as one on the thighs separating the black extremities from
the brown and silvery body, help to give a striking ap-
pearance to this animal.

The fur of the Blue Monkey or Mountain Entellus of the
Himalayas (Semnopithicus-schistanus), is highly esteemed.
The hair is three inches long, dense and silky, and varies
in color from a bluish grey in some specimens to a dark
grey in others ; the belly being lighter in color than the back
and almost bare. There is a white tuft on the two-foot
tail, and a crest of black fur between the eves. The

The Monkey Tribe. 273

length of the body of this animal is from two to three feet.

There are a number of other African Monkeys that are
hunted more or less for their skins, but none of them are
of much importance commercially, the skins of the various
species all being sold under the comprehensive name of
** Common Monkey," which is made to include: Camp-
bell's Monkey (Ceropithecus-campbelli), the Mona
Monkey (Ceropithecus-mona), the Green Monkey (Cero-
pithecus-callithricus), the Grivet Monkey (Oeropithecus-
griseoviridis), the Malbrouck Monkey (Ceropithecus-
cynosurus), the Patas Monkey (Ceropithecus-patas), the
Vervet (Ceropithecus-lalandi), the Moustache Monkey
(Ceropithecus-cephus), the Red Monkey (Ceropithecus-
erythrogasta), the Pluto Monkey (Ceropithecus-pluto), the
Blue Monkey (Cerocebus-fuliginosis), the Wanderoo Mon-
key (Macacus-silenus), the China Grey Monkey (Macacus-
tchelicusis), and a number of. others.

The Marmosets of South America, also known as Ouistitis
and Tamarins, are the smallest of the Monkey tribe ; and
in fact are more like squirrels than Monkeys in size as
well as habits, climbing in the same way and subsisting
not only on fruits, but also to a large extent on insects.
The Marmosets measure from several inches to one foot
in length, and have a short thick silky or woolly fur,
which lengthens in some species into ear tufts and in
others into a kind of mane. These little animals are ex-
tremely variable in coloration, and are very sensitive to
cold; they are of a low order of intelligence but make
amusing pets when kept in confinement. There are many
different varieties or species in the two genera into which
they are divided to distinguish those whose lower canine
teeth are longer than the front teeth from the others ; but
they all have long prehensile tails, and toes that with the
exception of the great toe are furnished with pointed claws
instead of the more or less flattened nails that characterize
other Monkeys; the differences in appearance are occa-
sioned principally by the length of the fur and the variety
in coloration.

The best known American Monkeys are some of the
species of the Woolly Monkey (genus Lagothrix), the
Spider Monkeys of the genera Eriodes and Ateles ; and the
Sapajous or Capauchin Monkeys of the genus Cebus,

274 QUADRUMANA.

which are the typical long prehensile tailed representa-
tives of the family Cebidae and the variety commonly
seen in the menageries. The non-prehensile tailed mem-
bers of this family are the Owl-faced Monkeys of the
genus Nycthitithecns, the Squirrel Monkey of the genus
Chrysothrix, the Brazilian Titi Monkey of the genus Cal-
lithrix, the Saki Monkey of the genus Pithecia, the Ukari
Monkey of the genus Uacaria, and the Howling Monkeys
of the genus Mj^cetes.

THE LEMURS.

The Lemurs, according to Linnaeus, comprehend all the
Primates that have in either jaw incisors different in num-
ber from four, or at least differently directed than those
of the Monkeys; this negative characterization could not
fail to embrace very different beings, while it did not even
include those which should be combined. Geoffroy has
established several divisions of this genus which are much
better characterized. The fore-thumbs of these animals
are well developed and opposable, and the first hind finger
is armed with a pointed raised nail, all the other nails
being flat. Their fur is wooly, and their teeth exhibit
sharp tubercles catching in each other as in the Insectivora.
They are very active animals, and from their pointed
heads have sometimes been called Fox-nosed Monkeys.
Their food is fruit. Their species are very numerous, but
they are only met with in the Island of Madagascar where
no Monkeys are found. Nearly all the difference that
exists between the different species of Lemurs is in the
color. Their skins are of little value.

The Black Lemur (Lemur-macaco) is a handsome ani-
mal about twenty inches long, which inhabits the dense
inland forests on the Island of Madagascar. The head
and back are covered with a thick jet black fur about
one inch long, but on the chest the thin fur is brown with
a patch of white in the center.

The Black and White, or Ruffled Lemur ( Lemur- albi-
f rons) , is really a variety of the Black Lemur and is found
in the same habitat. It has the same narrow head, short
tail, long legs, and fingers furnished with spongy pads.
The back and lower half of the body are light brown,
almost white, but the hind legs and arms are a dark
brown.

The Lemurs.

275

The Red-Fronted Lemur (Lemur-rubifrons) ; the Rin^-
Tailed Lemur (Lemur-catta), and the Grey or Brown
Mouse Lemur (Cherogalens-nutri), are all smaller than
the Black and the Ruffled Lemurs, the general color of
each being various shades of grey, with the distinctive
markings that the different names indicate.

The Woolly or Dwarf Lemur (Microcebus-senithir), the
smallest of the Lemurs, is of a brown grey color and only
six inches in length.

Drill (Dog-Faced Monkey).

We have devoted so much space to the Quadrumana
on account of the general interest felt in these animals
because of theories advanced by Darwin and other scien-
tists in regard to their relationship to man, rather than
because of their value as fur-bearing animals.

276 Chiromyidae and Tarsiidae.

The Aye Aye (Chiromys-madagascariensis), the only
representative of the family Chiromyidae, is the last of the
lemur-like animals, but it has teeth so different from the
Primates that it must be considered as belonging to the
Rodentia. This animal measures about three feet from
tip to tip, most of the length being in the bushy tail. The
claw corresponding to our middle finger is of great length
and slenderness, and is probably used to extract from
their burrows the larvae which is the principal article of
its diet. The Aye Aye is dark brown in color on top, red-
dish on the under parts, and greyish yellow on the throat.
It is nocturnal, builds its nest in the upper branches of
trees, and gives birth to but one young at a time. The
natives of Madagascar have a superstitious fear of the
creature, and it is therefore hard to obtain, although it is
inoffensive and easily tamed.

The Tarsier (Tarsius-spectrum) is another animal that
in many respects resembles the Lemurs, but is so different
in others that it is placed in a separate family — the Tar-
siidae. It is arboreal and nocturnal in habit, about the
size of a small rat, and covered with a soft thick fur ; the
general color is a dark fawn, with a reddish face and fore-
head, and dark rings around the eyes. The tarsal bones
of the hind limbs are unusually long and the hand is also
noticeable for its length and the curious claws with which
it is provided. It has thirty-four teeth — four more than
the Indri, and two more than the true Lemur. It feeds on
insects and small reptiles, never eating fruit. Its habitat
is in the Malayan Islands, where it is looked upon with
dread by the natives.

277

THE BEAVER (Castoridae)

The Beaver is the most interesting of all fur bearing
animals. It possesses almost human intelligence, and its
instinct is often better than human judgment. It works
with marvelous ingenuity, and illimitable patience in the
construction of its lodges and dams; and will attack the
trunk of a tree, without any regard to its size, and fell it
by gnawing through the wood with its chisel-like teeth.

According to Cuvier, ''The Beavers choose waters of
sufficient depth not to be frozen to the bottom; and, as
far as possible, running streams, in order that the wood
that they cut above, may be carried down by the cur-
rent to the spot where it is to be used. They keep the
water at an equal height, by dams; composed of all sorts
of branches, mixed with clay and stones, the strength of
which is ever increased, and which finally, by a process
of vegetation, become converted into hedges. Each hut
serves for two or three families, and consists of two stor-
ies. The upper story is dry, for the residence of the
animals ; and the lower is under water, for the storage of
their bark, etc. The lower story alone is open, and the
entrance is under water, having no connection with the
land. The huts are a kind of rude wicker-work, being
made of interwoven branches and twigs, plastered with
mud. There are always several burrows along the bank,
in which they seek shelter when their huts are attacked.
They only reside in these habitations in winter, in the
summer they separate, and live singly in holes in the
bank. They are usually caught in traps, but they are
sometimes taken in nets; or their houses are broken into,
and when the animals take refuge in the water, they give
the alarm to their companions by striking the surface of the
water with their tail. Beavers have been known to cause
the waters of a lake to rise by building a dam across the
outlet; and the soil, in many sections, has been enriched
by the alluvial deposits, resulting from the dams which
have been constructed by beavers to collect the water,
that but for their efforts, would have been carried off in
many small streams." ,

278 RODENTIA.

Kingsley claims that many of the tales that have been
told about this animal are fanciful exaggerations. He
says, "No beaver could learn the trick of felling the tree
to fall in a given direction. What it has found out, is,
that by biting a tree long enough, and hard enough, it can
bring down within reach the twigs it w^ants to eat. The
appearance of a stump left by a beaver is different from
that left by a woodsman, who causes the tree to fall in
the required direction by cutting one side lower than the
other. The tree felled by the beaver is gnawed all around
its circumference, so that an hour-glass shape results, with
a constantly contracting center, until the tree falls to
whatever side it is inclined, the trunk as well as the end
of the stump being conical." Those who have seen trunks
of trees floating in the streams, where the beavers have
operated, know that the stories told about its sagacity
in only cutting the trees that can be used in the construc-
tion of its homes and dams are products of the imagina-
tion; but on the other hand, it is certainly something
more than a coincidence, that the trees felled by the
beavers never fall in the direction of their lodges ; some-
thing certainly teaches them to bite harder on the side
where a deeper cut will cause the tree to fall in the direc-
tion that will save the work, upon which they have ex-
pended so much time and skill, from destruction.

Beavers work only at night, and their food is of a
vegetable nature. They thrive in captivity, and can be
tamed and made to eat bread and cabbage, or flesh.
Dr. Richardson says: "The Beaver attains its full size
in about three years, but breeds before that time. Ac-
cording to Indian report, it pairs in February, and after
carrying its young about three months, brings forth from
four to eight or nine cubs, toward the middle or end of
May." Hearne states the usual number of young pro-
duced by the Beaver at a time to be from two to five,
and that he only saw six, in two instances, although
he had witnessed the capture of some hundreds in a gra-
vid state. In the pairing season, the call of the Beaver
is a kind of groan ; but the voice of the cubs, which are
very playful, resembles the cry of an infant.

The Beaver is a large animal, weighing from forty-five
to sixty pounds; and measuring from two to three feet in

The Beaver.

279

280 RODENTIA.

length, exclusive of the tail, which is about ten inches
long. Its life is completely aquatic, both the feet and
tail aiding it in swimming, and its ears are nearly hidden
in the fur. The color of the fur of the Beaver varies
from a light to a dark chestnut brown, in some cases be-
ing almost white, and in others almost black. The grey-
ish under fur, which is about two-thirds of an inch deep,
and protected by stiff water hairs from two to three
inches long, is shorter and denser on the under part of
the body than on the top, forming a pelage that is the
perfection of water-proof covering.

The Beavers are distinguished from other Rodentia by
the horizontally flattened tail, which is nearly oval in form
and covered with scales. Beavers have five toes on each foot,
those of the hinder ones being connected by a membrane;
and the next toe to the thumb, on the hind feet, has a double
and oblique nail. The four grinders, with their flat crowns,
appear as if formed of a bony ribbon, reflected on itself,
so as to show only one sloping edge on the upper row at
the internal border, and three at the external one ; in the
lower row it is exactly the reverse. As their chief food
is hard bark and other hard vegetable substances, their
incisors are very powerful, and as they are worn away
at the points, grow again rapidly from the roots. It is
with these teeth that they cut down trees of every size
anji description.

Before the advance of civilization had restricted its hab-
itat, and reduced its numerical strength, there were mil-
lions of Beavers on this continent where there are thousands
today. They not only furnished man with covering for
his body, and food for his nourishment, but they were the
principal source of his wealth ; but instead of working for
the conservation of this important contributor to his com-
fort and prosperity, man has used so little judgment in
hunting the Beaver that it is almost exterminated.

The Beaver, at one time, inhabited the greater part of
North America, and some are still found in New York
and Maine; but every year they are getting scarcer in
the country east of the Missouri River, and north of the
Rio Grande. Their range, which at one time extended
farther north than that of most other fur bearing animals,
is being constantly cut down ; and even in Alaska, where the

■^

The Beaver. 281

animals were once numerous^ they have greatly decreased
in numbers. The Beavers inhabiting Oregon, and the
Rocky Mountains, are of a very light color, almost white ;
those found in the Southern States, Mexico and Arizona,
are poor in quality, being heavy in pelt, and pale in color.
The skins most valued, are those with a dark reddish
brown hue found in the Hudson Bay country, in the
Fort York district, and along the Moose River.

Beavers are also found in Europe, where they burrow
along the banks of the Rhone, the Danube, the Weiser
and other rivers. Scientists are somewhat divided in
opinion because of the difference in their habits as to
whether the European beavers belong to a distinct species,
or are prevented by the closer vicinage of man, from
building their houses like the American Beaver.

At one time, most of the Beaver skins were sold to the
manufacturers of silk hats, commonly called "beavers";
who first washed the skins to remove the grease, then re-
moved the long top hairs ; after which the under fur was
cut off the pelt hy machinery, and blown to remove the
coarser hairs, before it was worked oii the nap of the
hat and dyed. Today the majority of skins taken go to
the furriers, who use most of them, with the long top or
water hairs removed, for making muffs and neck pieces
for women; cuffs, coat facings and. gloves for men; and
for trimmings. Some skins are dyed black or seal brown,
either with or without the long water hairs. The dark
skins are sometimes made to imitate the sea otter fur by
being pointed with white hairs.

Skin for skin, there are other furs that will bring more
dollars than the Beaver ; but none that are so well known
in commerce, or that have such a staple value. In the
early days of the fur trade on this continent, the beaver
skin was the basis by which not only the value of other
skins, but of all other commodities, was determined. A
beaver skin was worth so many muskrats, and it took so
many beavers to buy a sable or an otter skin. People paid
their bills with Beaver skins and estimated the value of
their possessions, by the number of Beavers they represent-
ed. To illustrate the way trades were made at this time, we
reproduce here a schedule showing the value, in beaver
skins, of some of the various articles traded to the Indians,

282 RODENTIA.

by the Hudson's Bay Company in 1670; other skins being
taken upon the basis of their relative value to the Beaver.

Guns Twelve winter beaver skins for the largest

Guns Ten winter beaver skins for the smallest

Powder • One Beaver for % lb.

Shot One Beaver for 4 lbs.

Hatchets One Beaver for a great and little one.

Knives . . One Beaver for 8 great knives and 8 jack knives.

Beads One Beaver for % lb. of beads.

Laced Coats Six Beavers for one

Plain Coats Five Beavers for one plain red coat.

Coats for women, laced, 2 yards Six Beavers.

Coats for women, plain Five Beavers.

Tobacco One Beaver for one pound.

Powder-horn .... One Beaver for a large pow^der horn

and two small ones.

Kettles One Beaver Skin for a 1 lb. kettle.

Looking glass and comb Two Beaver Skins.

It is said, that in the early days, the fur traders in re-
mote regions where they had no competition would stand
a gun on end on the floor, and hold it in that position,
while the Indians laid one Beaver on top of the other,
until the pile received in exchange for the weapon was
as high as the length of the gun,, but we can find no one
to vouch for the truth of this statement.

The Beaver is not prized alone for its skin value. The
castorium, a secretion resembling sealing wax, found in
two glands situated in the hinder part of the body of
both the male and female of this species, also has a com-
mercial value; thousands of pounds being sold annually.
The flesh of the animal is good eating; the tail of the
Beaver being considered the greatest delicacy on the
board at the banquets of the old fur-trading companies.

Mention has been made of the double claw on the
hind foot of the Beaver. The simply statement unex-
plained is misleading, as it naturally suggests to the mind
a split claw, or two similar claws one above the other.
By referring to the accompanying cuts the reader will
see, that while the upper claw on the next to the last
toe on the hind foot is smaller, it is otherwise like the
claws on the other toes. The claw beneath it and
which it protects is a thin blade, shaped at the end like

The Beaver,

283

the point of a pruning' knife or scalpel. There have been
many theories advanced as to the use that the beaver
makes of this blade-like claw. It is too thin to be employed
in cutting or digging ; and the writer is inclined to agree
with the trappers and woodsmen, who say that this extra
claw is given to the Beaver to remove the splinters that
get between its teeth when cutting down trees. The shape
of this knife-blade claw and its location would seem to
prove that it is indeed ''the Beaver's toothpick."

It is strange that such an important structural peculiar-
ity should have been overlooked, or ignored, by nearly
all the scientists, and others, who have written about this
wonderfully intelligent and interesting animal. The few
who have noticed it at all, merely say, "The Beaver has a
double claw on the next to the last toe on the hind foot."

The Beaver's Toothpick

284 RODENTIA.

THE CHINCHILLA.

The Chinchilla is the most valuable and beautiful of all
the rodentia. It is found only in a limited area in South
America, where it lives in burrows among the loose rocks,
coming out to feed in the early morning, and towards sun-
set. The Chinchillas often travel considerable distances
in search of their food, which consists entirely of roots
and grasses and other vegetable matter, for which their
strong, sharp incisors are well adapted. When eating they
sit on their haunches, holding their food in their fore
paws. They are very prolific, the female producing five
or six young twice a year. The skin is light and thin, and
th^ animal, which somewhat resembles the rabbit in the
formation of its head and its long, broad ears, will measure
from six to twelve inches in length, exclusive of the long
bushy tail. It is covered with a dense, soft, lustrous, silky
fur, nearly an inch long on the back of the finest skins,
which come from the mountainous districts near Arica. On
the sides the fur is somewhat longer and thinner. The
color is a delicate French grey, darkly mottled on the
surface, with a bluish slate tint beneath.

The skins incorrectly named and known to the trade as
''Bastard Chinchillas" (Ohinchilla-lanigera), come from
the La Plata Valley, and owing to the lower altitude and
warmer climate of their habitat, are smaller than the
''Arica" skins, and have a shorter and less beautiful fur,
that is idarker underneath and not so clear one top.
This species is more abundant than any of the others.

The Peruvian, Bolivian and Chilian Chinchillas, which
have shorter ears and tails than the other species ; all belong
to the same genus and species (Chinchilla-brevicaudata),
but the skins of the Chilian Chinchillas are larger and not
quite so choice as those of the other two varieties. The
Chinchillone (Largotis-cuvieri), whose principal habitat
is in the Argentine Republic, but which ranges as far
south as Patagonia, is larger than any of the foregoing
species, and by some is supposed to be a cross between the
rabbit and the chinchilla. The Largotis is yellower and
dingier than the other Chinchillas, and the fur, while long
and fine, is rather ragged.

The Chinchilla Family. 285

The fur of the Chinchilla was prized by the ancient
Peruvians, who made coverings and other articles out of it.
It has always been in favor, but at present the price is so
high for fine skins, and even those of inferior grades, that
Chinchilla furs are not seen as much as they were a quarter
of a centur}^ ago when ''Bastard" Chinchillas sold for
from ten dollars to twenty dollars per dozen ; and the finest
of "real" Chinchillas, as the (Chinchilla-brevicaudata)
were called, could be bought for thirteen dollars each ; and
three dollars was a high price for a fair " Chinchillone. "
Now the prices are fifty to eighty dollars and upwards per
dozen for the "Bastards," seven to fifteen dollars each for
Chinchillones, and from fifty dollars upwards for real Chin-
chillas, extra fine skins bringing as high as one hundred and
fifty dollars each. This makes the fur of the Chinchilla,
when the size of its working surface is considered, as
expensive as that of the Russian Sable, with which it
cannot compare in durability. The leather is too light to be
worked into fitted coats, but for loose wraps, neck pieces,
muffs and trimming. Chinchilla can be used to advantage,
and makes up beautifully.

Chinchilla

The Viscacha (Largostomus-trichodactylus) bears the
same relation to the Chinchilla that the Marmot does to
the Squirrel. It is a stout animal about two feet long
with a ten inch bushy tufted tail. Its burrows dot the
grounds of the pampas of Argentina, w^here these ani-
mals live in villages of about fifteen burrows, each con-
taining about twenty members. In color the Viscacha is
grey on the back, mottled with darker shades, and a
yellowish white on the under parts. It has strong gnaw-
ing teeth and lives on roots.

286 The Rodentia.

THE RODENTIA.

• The Rodentia is the largest order of the IMammalia in
the number of species and individuals, and also the most
widely distributed. Most of the rodents are land animals,
and a large proportion of them live in colonies in subter-
ranean burrows of their own construction; some, however,
like the Beaver, Water Vole, Nutria and Muskrat, are more
or less aquatic, and others like the Squirrels lead arboreal
lives. In speaking of distinguishing characteristics,
Lydecker says :

"The Rodents are some of the most easily defined
of all mammals and are best characterized by the number
and nature of their teeth — especially those in the front of
the jaws. They are distinguished by the presence in each
jaw of a pair of large chisel-like front or incisor teeth,
which grow continuously throughout the life of their
owners. As a rule, no other incisor teeth, save these two
pairs, are developed, but in the hares and rabbits and their
allies a second smaller pair occur behind those of the up-
per jaw. There are no tusks or canine teeth in either jaw,
and in the cheek-series the number of premolars is always
reduced below the normal four, very generally only one
of these teeth being present, while in some cases even this
may be wanting. In consequence of the reduced number
of incisor teeth, coupled with the absence of canines and
the reduction in the premolars, the skull of a Rodent is
always distinguished by the presence of a long gap be-
tween the front and the cheek-teeth. Indeed, the presence
in all Rodents of only a single pair of chisel-shaped and
permanently-growing lower incisors, opposed to a corre-
sponding pair in the upper jaw, the total absence of
canines, the long gap between the incisors and the cheek-
teeth, and the reduction in the number of the premolars,
are of themselves sufficient to distinguish the Rodent order
from all other mammals, with the exception of the aye-aye
among the lemurs.

''Among other distinctive characteristics of the group,
the following may be mentioned. The feet are usually fur-
nished with five toes, which generally terminate in sharp-

RODENTIA. 287

claws, although they sometimes have broad nails. Either
the whole or the greater part of the sole of the foot is
applied to the ground in walking, so that these animals
may be described as entirely or partially plantigrade.
Their skulls are characterized by the condyle of the lower'
jaw being elongated from front to back instead of from
side to side, and thus permitting of that backwards-and-
forwards motion of the lower upon the upper jaw, which
is so noticeable when we watch a rabbit feeding ; this char-
acter serving to distinguish Rodents alike from Ungulates
and from Carnivores.

''The Rodents present a peculiarity in the structure
of the mouth, which is quite unknown in any other mam-
mals. In examining the mouth of any one of these animals
— say a rabbit — it will be found that behind the upper
front teeth the outer hairy skin of the face is continued
inwards into the sides of the mouth, which by this means
is divided into tw^o distinct chambers, communicating with
one another through a comparatively narrow orifice; the
first chamber containing only the front teeth, while the
,cheek teeth are included in the second chamber. It ap-
pears that this arrangement is designed to prevent the en-
trance of extraneous substances into the true cavity of the
mouth when the creatures are engaged in their character-
istic operation of gnawing. In addition to this peculiarity,
the whole of the inside of the cheeks in the hares and rab-
bits is covered with hair; while the pouched rats and
hamsters have large pouches inside the cheeks, which are
also lined with hairy skin. On the other hand, the gophers
have pouches in the cheeks which open externally instead
of internally.

''Rodents are almost entirely herbivorous in their
habits; and they all of them obtain their food by gnaw-
ing. The hares are among the fleetest runners of all mam-
mals, while the jerboas and chinchillas are distinguished
by their leaping powers. Rodents are mostly harmless
and inoffensive creatures, fleeing with the greatest terror
and precipitancy from the smallest of foes ; but a few, like
the common rat, when driven to bay, will defend them-
selves desperately, and will then inflict comparatively se-
vere bites with their powerful front-teeth.

288 RODENTIA.

''Rodents as a whole are characterized by their dull
and frequently uniform coloration, although there are
many exceptions to this. Indeed, many of the squirrels
from the warmer regions of the globe, as well as one of
the species of marmot, are among the most brilliantly col-
ored of all animals. In the brighter-colored forms it does
not appear that any rule can be laid down as to the plan of
coloration. Thus while in many of the squirrels the bril-
liant colors take the form of distinct patches, distributed
over various parts of the body, in the palm-squirrels and
ground-squirrels there are light longitudinal stripes on a
dark ground, and in the pacas there are light-colored
spots. It appears, however, that no Rodent exhibits trans-
verse bars of different colors on the body, and in none is
the tail ornamented with alternate light and dark rings."

With the exception of the Beaver, Chinchilla and
Viscacha, which have been considered in the preceding
chapters, all the Rodents belong either to the Hare or
Squirrel families ; or to the Rat tribe, which comprises all
the different families into which the mice and rats have
been divided by the scientists.

The Hare Family. 289

HARES (LEPORIDAE).

The Hares are distinguished by their elongated hind
limbs, short recurved tails, long ears, imperfect collar-
bones, and large full eyes devoid of eyelids.

The frontal region of the skull is very narrow in all
species of the Leporidae, and they have three pairs of
premolar teeth in the upper, and two in the lower jaw.
With the exception of one species, all the members of
this family are very much alike in appearance and color-
ization, the upper parts usually being a mixture of grey and
reddish brown, in which the grey or red predominates to
harmonize with the general appearance of the habitat of
the species.

With the exception of Australia, native hares are
found in every part of the globe, although most of the
species are confined to the Northern Hemisphere. The
Brazilian Hare is the only member of the family found
in South America. With the exception of the Rabbit and
the Hispid Hare of Northern India, all species of Hares
dwell in the open country in the grass and herbage or
among the rocks and bushes.

Richard Ly decker says: ''Hares are solitary; and
each inhabits a particular spot known as its form; such
form being a flattened resting-place among grass or
bushes, or merely the sheltered side of some rock or stone.
A hare will return to its form, as a rule, day by
day, for a considerable portion of the year; but the situa-
tion is changed periodically. Hares are mainly nocturnal,
going forth at evening in quest of food, and not returning
to their forms till after sunrise. Their speed is great;
but, owing to the great relative length of their hind-
limbs, they are better adapted for running uphill than
down. All the members of the genus are remarkable for
their extreme timidity, and their long ears are admirably
adapted to collect the least sound, and thus to give the
earliest possible notice of danger. It will be observed that
the ears are shortest and the legs are less elongated in
the rabbit and the hispid hare than the other species. Both
of these dwell in burrows, and have not, therefore, such

290 The Rodentia.

need of protecting themselves by acuteness of hearing and
extreme speed. All the members of the family breed with
great rapidity; the young being able to reproduce their
kind within about six months after birth. AVhereas, how-
ever, the young of the true hares are born fully clothed
with hair and with their eyes open, those of the rabbit
and probably also of the hispid hare, come into the world
blind and naked."

The Common Hare (Lepus-europaeus) is from two to
three feet long, and weighs from seven to eight pounds.
The highly developed teeth are placed in a circular
socket in the skull and the upper lip is divided. The
under fur is of a whitish hue, but the general color of
the full pelage which is white on the belly and yellowish
on the cheeks, is a warm brownish grey on the top.
In the winter the sides, ears, cheeks and haunches become
white like the belly, and in very severe seasons and in
the more northern climates the grey gradually disap-
pears entirely. The average life of a Hare is said to be
from six to seven years. They pair in March and the
young are generally produced, one to five to a birth,
in May or June, but in some cases the period of develop-
ment is less and in others greater than the average.
The short thick fur of this species is at its best in
January and February, and is not only used to some
extent by the furriers, but also by the fur-cutters who
remove it from the pelt and use it for felting. IMillions
of these animals are killed every year, being valued for
their flesh as well as their pelts.

The Polar or White Hare (Lepus-glacialis) is really
a variety of the Common Hare, although it is longer
and has the feet well padded to protect it from the
snow. The Polar Hare inhabits the Scandinavian Penin-
sula and the extreme northern regions of both Hemi-
spheres, showing considerable variation in character and
numbers in different localities. This species is grey in
summer, becoming pure white in winter, except for the
black tips on the ears. Most of the millions of skins
that find their way into the channels of trade annually
come from Russia and Siberia; and are worked up in

The Hares xVnd Rabbits. 291

their natural color or dyed any hue from a black to the
most delicate shades of blue and pink or the brightest
red and yellow.

The American Hare (Lepus-americanus) which is
closely allied to the varying hare of Scotland, is a much
smaller animal, from twelve to eighteen inches long,
and the skins are used principally for cutting, although
some of the winter skins are dyed and worked up by
the furriers. Like the European species its flesh is
excellent eating. In the summer the pelage of the
American Hare is brown like that of the English variety
of the European species, but the under fur is blue instead
of white. Dr. Richardson says: "The American Hare
does not burrow. In the northern districts it resides
mostly in willow thickets, or in woods where the willows
or dwarf birch constitute much of the underbrush. The
bark of the willow forms a great part of its food in winter,
but in summer it eats grass and other vegetables. It is
reported to do much damage in cultivated districts
to fields of cabbage or turnips."

The Rabbit (Lepus-cuniculus) is the best fur producer
of the Leporidae family, the pelt of most of the tame
varieties being heavier, and the fur stronger and less
liable to shed than that of the parchment skinned Hares.
The European Rabbit is the most important representative
of the family, and is the original of all species of wild
and domestic breeds of rabbits existing in the world
today.

Rabbits do not occupy forms, but in the wild state live
in burrows from three to six feet deep, generally excavated
in sand or loose dry soil. They avoid wet and marshy
districts, and even at the seaside seek elevated positions
on the cliffs or among the rocks. They are not nocturnal
but inclined to avoid the scorching heat of the sun. They
are sometimes carnivorous, but feed mostly on vegetable
food and ravas-e corn fields and hop gardens. They are
extremely prolific, producing from four to six young, and
sometimes more, five or six times a year. The female is said
to line her nest with fur from her own body. The fur of
wild Rabbits is used chieflv for felting or hat making,

292 The Rodentia.

England at one time importing for this purpose from
Australia, the enormous quantity of from 15,000,000 to
20,000,000 skins, although wild Rabbits were first intro-
duced into the Australian colonies, where they soon became
a pest, about fifty years ago.

The skins of tame French and Belgian Rabbits or
Conies, which are raised in warrens or hutches, are in
great demand, because of the superior quality of their fur
and leather, and millions of them are used by furriers in
all parts of the world every year for a great variety of
purposes.

Most of the skins are dyed brown or black before being
marketed, and are clipped or have the long hairs removed
before they are dyed so that they make an excellent imita-
tion of seal skin. The blue and white skins are generally
sold in their natural color, either full haired or sheared,
the latter often being used to make an imitation of Ermine.

The Belgian skins are about the same quality as the
German. The French skins are of a higher grade, espe-
cially the large silver conies in which the dense blue
underfur is covered with white and silver grey hairs.
French dyed skins are darker at the roots than the Eng-
lish and Belgian. They are assorted according to size as
X, XX and XXX, and bundled in dozens. An original
case contains one hundred dozen skins. In smaller quan-
tities they are sold in ''sets" of four dozen, made up of
one dozen X, two dozen XX and one dozen XXX. The
Belgian skins are sorted as XX, XXX and XXXX.

The Coypu Rat. 293

NUTRIA OR COYPU RAT.

The Coypu Rat (Myopotanuis-eoypus), generally
known in commerce as "Nutria," which is the proper
Spanish name for Otter, is sometimes called the South
American Beaver, because it is an aquatic animal some-
what like the Beaver in appearance and habits, swimming
Skud diving with ease, and making its burrows in the
banks of lakes and rivers it frequents, or where the banks
are low building a nest on a platform in the reeds. It
belongs, however, to the Rat family, of which it is the
largest representative, being about two feet long, ex-
clusive of the tail which measures from nine to ten inches.

The Coypu Rat is found only in South America. It ranges
south on both sides of the Andes from Chili and Peru, being
most abundant in Brazil and the Argentine Republic. Like
the Beaver, it has a close, dense under-fur, protected by a
covering of water hairs about three inches long. The
tail is scaly, but has a thin covering of short hairs. Each
of the feet have five toes, those on the hind limbs being
connected by a web. It is characterized by the very large
size of its incisor teeth, and by the upper molars having
two folds of enamel on each side, while the lower ones
have only one external and three internal folds. It is
very prolific, bringing forth six or eight young at a time.
The annual collection for years ranged ft-om three hundred
thousand to five hundred thousand skins.

The general color of the Coypu Rat is a speckled yel-
lowish brown, but many are light brown in color all over,
and some are nearly w^hite, while others are almost black
on the back. The best way to flay this animal is by cut-
ting it up the back so as to preserve in one piece the good
short under fur on the belly.

At one time this fur w^as used only for "cutting, "that
is for making hats; but when dehaired, the under-fur
can be dyed to make one of the finest appearing substi-
tutes for seal skin, and in this way it was for many years
used by furriers in the manufacture of muffs, neck pieces,
coats, and sleigh robes. It lost its hold on popular
favor because the fur is inclined to curl or crinkle when

294 RODENTIA.

it has been worn for a year or two, causing it to lose
the smooth, silky appearance which makes it attractive.
The Nutria skins in their natural state are worth from
two and one-half to eight dollars each ; and when plucked
and seal dyed, from three and a half to ten dollars each,
according to quality and the quantity purchased.

The Mouse and Rat Tribe. 295

THE MURIDAE.

The largest family of Rodents is the Muridae, which
includes many species of different genera in all parts of
the world. Because of varying external characteristics
they have been divided by some scientists into ten sub-
families, but nearly all the representatives of this group
have two incisors above and three below, rooted in some,
and rootless in others; and either tuberculate or flat
crowned, with angular enamel folds.

The Hamster is a stout little animal of the sub-family
Cricetinae of the Muridae, that is found in parts
of Europe and Asia. It is about ten inches long, has a
short sparsely haired tail, and the cheek pouches which
distinguish all the Cricetinae. It is very prolific and breeds
readily in confinement, but the fur, although beautifully
marked in orange, black and white colorings, is too short
and coarse to warrant its being used for any other purpose
than coat and cloak linings, and it is not very desirable
even for this purpose as the pelt is too light to wear well.
The Hamster burrows deeply in the ground, stores its
galleries with grain in the fall and summer, and hibernates
during the winter, waking up occasionally to feed from its
stores.

Hamsters are most numerous in Germany and Austria,
where they cause great damage to the crops by the amount
of grain they consume. The cheek pouches in which they
convey their winter supplies to the burrows will hold
about two ounces each. Like other Rodents, the Hamster
has the power of raising itself on its hind feet. The
ears are short and nearly bare, and the incisor teeth,
especially those of the lower jaw, are long. The belly and
legs are black, but the feet and the small claws are white,
and there are white patches on the cheeks and throat and
also on the fore-legs.

The European Lemming (Myodes-lemmus) is very much
like the Hamster in general color, being brownish grey on
the upper parts and lighter underneath ; it is, however, much
smaller, only measuring from four to five inches in length.
Its habitat is in Norway and Sweden, where at certain

296 The Rodentia.

seasons of the year it is very abundant, moving from place
to place in hordes of thousands, destroying the vegeta-
tion in its path until stopped by the sea or some other
natural obstacle to its further progress. According to a
writer in the Century Dictionary: ''so numerous are these
animals at times and so sudden is their appearance that
they are fabled to rain down from the clouds." Large
numbers of rapacious quadrupeds and birds hang upon
their line of march, and materially diminish their numbers.

There is a kind of false Lemming in British America,
and parts of the United States from Indiana and Kansas
to Alaska, but the only true Lemming on the Western
Hemisphere is the Hare-tailed Mouse (Cuniculus-hudsonius
or -torquatus), a species which turns snow-white in winter,
and is found only in Greenland and the Hudson's Bay
regions.

The fur of the Lemming is of little value, being used
only for cheap linings.

The Water Vole (Avicula-amphibius). commonly called
the Water Rat, whose habitat is in England and France,
is a fur-bearing animal although its skins are not used for
fur purposes. It is an aquatic mammal, resembling the
muskrat in form and habits, and living, like the European
Beaver, in holes in the banks of ponds and rivers. It is
strictly vegetarian, subsisting on the roots of plants, fallen
apples and pears, and the bark of trees. Black specimens,
and also white are sometimes seen, but generally the
Water Vole has a greyish brown coat with a blue under-
fur like that of the muskrat, which it resembles in so many
ways that some authorities think it may prove to be the
same animal.

The Beaver Rat (Hydromys-chrysogaster), sometimes
called the Golden-bellied Rat, is one of the few Australian
mammals which possess a thick under-fur. On the back
it is very much like the ordinary rat in color, but the fur
on the belly is a golden or light grey hue. like that on the
muskrat. The length of the body is about eight inches,
and the six inch tail is very dark grey or black in color,
except the part nearest the top, which is white.

The Mouse Family. 297

THE DORMOUSE.

The Common Dormouse or Sleep-mouse (]Muscadinus-
avellanarius), whose soft fur may come into favor with
the demand for mole skin, is confined to Europe, where
its range extends from Norway and the British Isles to
Northern Italy and Turkey. Galacia, Hungary and Tran-
sylvania. It is arboreal and in some of its other habits
like the Squirrels, but differs from them in being ex-
clusively nocturnal. It is generally found in hedgerows
or thickets, and hibernates five or six months during the
winter in a nest made of twigs, leaves and grass. It
feeds on nuts, acorns, corn and wild berries, and is said
to extract the kernels from hazel nuts without removing
them from their stems.

The young which are usually produced in the spring,
four or five to the litter, are born blind and naked, in a
nest placed a yard or so above the ground. There are
several species of this little animal.

The common Dormouse is about the size of an ordinary
mouse, and has a thick, compact body, with a somewhat
pointed muzzle on the large head. The tail is long and
bushy, and the color of the fur is a tawny hue on the
upper parts, but yellowish beneath, with a patch of white
on the throat and upper part of the chest.

The Squirrel Tail Dormouse of Southern Europe
(M.-glis) is the Siebenschlafer of the Germans, and the
loir of the French. It is larger than the conmion dor-
mouse, and has a thicker, bushier tail; and the heavy
soft fur is of an ashy grey color shaded with dark brown
above, and white on the under parts and inside of the
limbs. The tip of the snout and part of the throat are
white.

The Tree Dormouse (M-dryas), found in Siberia as well
as parts of Southern Europe, is smaller in size than the
foregoing but larger than the Garden Dormouse. Its
habitat extends into Africa, and it was known by the
ancient Romans as Nitela, and is called lerot in France,
and the Gartenschlafer in Germany. The Painted Dor-
mouse of Eastern Persia (M.-pictus) is a brightly colored
form closely allied to the (M.-dryas).

298 The Rodentia.

THE MUSKRAT.

The Muskrat or Musquash (Fiber-zibethicus), which
owes its name to its musky odor, is a stout, thick-set ani-
mal with a body from eight to fifteen inches long, and
an eight to ten inch scaly tail that is ''compressed
in the horizontal plane so as to present an upper and
under edge and two broad sides." The compressed form
of the tail is accentuated by a line of hairs on both the
upper and lower edge. The unusually wide head is not
separated from the body by any clearly defined neck, and
the eyes and ears are small, the latter scarcely project-
ing above the fur; with the exception of a small line
directly around the nostrils, the muzzle is completely
covered with fur. The front feet, on which the first of
the five toes is rudimentary, are small, but the hind feet,
on which all of the five toes are fully developed, are large
and stout, with the toes partially webbed, and so attached
to the leg that they are well fitted for swimming; but
like the Beaver, the Muskrat depends principally upon
the skulling movement of its large compressed tail to
propel it through the water. The pelage consists of an
under coat of soft dense grey fur, protected on the back
and sides by long shiny smooth dark brown hairs, making
the general color grey beneath, and a deep brown above,
darkest on the middle of the back. In some of the animals
the hair coat is black, and in this variety the under fur is
also darker.

While resembling the Beaver in the character of its fur,
scaly tail and aquatic habits, the Muskrat, or Ondontra,
is so closely allied to the insect eating Desman, and In-
dian Musk-shrew or Mongourou, that those animals are
respectively known as the European and Indian Musk-
rats. Its actual relationships are with the Lemmings,
and the Water Vole, or Water Rat, of England and
France, whose skins, although it is a fur-bearing animal,
are not used for fur purposes. The Vole and the Musk-
rat are similar in general appearance and habits, and in
the construction of the skull and molar teeth, but the
tail of the Vole is considerably shorter and round.

The Muskrat. 299

The Muskrat is not as strictly nocturnal in its habits
as the Beaver, and may often be seen swimming in broad
daylight. When leaping into the water to dive it makes
a loud noise by striking its flat tail against the surface.
The burrows of the Muskrat are long, inclining up the
bank for ten or fifteen feet before they expand into a
chamber with numerous passages, some leading further
into the bank, and others opening under the surface of
the water. In some sections they construct winter quar-
ters or ''muskrat huts," which Dr. Merriam describes
as follows:

' ' The summit of the structure is commonly high enough
out of water to admit of an air-chamber within, which
communicates with the outside world by means of a hole
through the center of the mass, the entrance or entrances
being under water. Many of the houses contain no mud
or sticks, but consist wholly of balls and knots of roots
and swamp-grasses. It seems clear that the animals make
no attempt to construct a dwelling of any particular
shape, but merely heap the materials together without
plan or order, the resulting mound naturally assuming,
in a general way, the form of a flattened cone. As the
Muskrat feeds on fruits, vegetables and roots, it will be
observed the materials of which the hut are composed
are such as serve as food for the animals during the long
winters; hence the Muskrat 's hut is in reality a store-
house, which he devours piecemeal as the winter ad-
vances.

''The nest is usually placed in a burrow in the bank,
although occasionally in the aforesaid hut. Here from
five to nine blind and naked young are produced at a
birth, and it is reported that there may be as many as
three litters in the course of a season."

The Muskrat is one of the commonest quadrupeds of
North America, living on the banks of lakes, rivers and
pools in every part of the continent. Owing to its nume-
rical strength and the many purposes for which its fur is
used the Muskrat is as valuable commercially as the ani-
mal is common, upwards of five million skins being con-
sumed every year. There are two collection of skins an-
nually, one in the late fall and another in the spring of

300

The Rodentia.

the year. The best skins are those taken in December,
January and February when the animal is in full fur;
next in value are the so-called winter skins, and the poorest
in quality are w^hat are known as "Fall Rats." The skins
of the very young animals called ''Kitts" are of little
value. The question of locality enters largely into the
grading of the skins. Muskrats are generally taken in
traps, and most of the skins come to the market eased.

-..:;s^_

MUSKRAT

With the exception of the black skins, which are found
principally in the southern part of its habitat and are
always used in their natural state, a large part of the Musk-
rat skins are plucked — that is, Ijave the long top hairs
removed — and the ground fur is dyed to make the rich
substitute for seal skin known as "Hudson Seal." Some-
times the skins are blended with the top hairs left on to
resemble the mink, when they are sold as "River Mink"
Most of them are used in their natural state and color to
make linings for coats, or in the manufacture of muffs
or other small furs, which are sold as "Brook Mink."

The Squirrel Family. 301

THE SQUIRREL FAMILY.

The Sciuridae, or Squirrel family, show a wide range of
variation, passing from the heavy terrestrial marmots or
ground hogs, with their short limbs, ears and tails, through
the Chipmunks, and Spermophiles or Susliks, to the grace-
ful arboreal Tree Squirrels with slender limbs and long
tails, and the ariel Flying Squirrels. The family is widely
distributed, being represented in all parts of the world
except Australia. True Scpiirrels abound in the torrid as
Avell as the temperate zone, but the ground squirrels are
found only in the temperate and colder latitudes. The
center of abundance is in Asia. Africa also has a long
list of species, and . North America tcomes next, *being
especially rich in the number and variety of its ground
squirrels. The eastern European and Asiatic Marmots
are the most numerous and valuable commercially. Only
a few species of the Sciuridae are represented in Europe
and South America.

The range of the Common Squirrel (Sciurus-vulgaris),
which is the type representative and finest furred species
of the Tree Squirrels, extends through Europe and into
Asia. The best skins come from Siberia and Russia,
those from the eastern side of the Ural ]\Iountains being
grey and in some cases almost blue; the darkest skins
having the greatest value, if free from the reddish cast
that shows in many of the species on the Continent of
Europe, and which is characteristic of most North Ameri-
can tree squirrels. Too much dependence, how^ever, must
not be placed upon colorization in deciding the geographi-
cal location of a species, as one variety of the Western
Continent is called the Grey Squirrel.

All Tree Squirrels have large pointed ears, long bushy
tails, and are able to sit up on their haunches, and use
their fore-paws like hands, and the Common Squirrel has
pencil tufted ears like the lynx. The bellies of this species
are white, and the tail, which is quite as long as the ten
inch body, is very bushy. Tree Squirrels are active and
agile, living in the trees, although they often descend to the
ground and run about there and feed on all kinds of nuts

302 The Rodentia.

and hard fruits. They usually bring forth three or four
young twice a year, and hibernate to some extent in the
colder latitudes. They are easily tamed and make inter-
esting and inquisitive pets.

The American species that approximates closest to the
Sciurus-vulgaris is the Chickaree or Red Squirrel (Sciurus-
hudsonianus), in fact some naturalists believe that the
Chickaree, and the American Grey Squirrel (Sciurus-
carolinensis), and the European Common Squirrel are all
geographical varieties of the same species, although the
American species are uniform in color all over the body
while the old world species have white breasts.

There are many other species or varieties of tree Squir-
rels, but those that have been mentioned are the most im-
portant, and in fact most of the w^orld's supply of squirrel
skins for fur uses is derived from the Sciurus-vulgaris of
Russia and Siberia, where the animals have better pelts and
thicker, softer fur than those of other regions.

As early as 1839, 2,730,826 squirrel skins were imported
into England alone, and at the present time the number
of skins used in different parts of the world is enormous.
They are worked up whole, or the backs are cut out to
make coats, muffs and neck pieces, while the bellies, which
/ are lighter furred, are used for linings. Many of the
vskins are dyed and blended sable color, and others are
changed so as to make a good imitation of chinchilla.

Squirrel tails were formerly extensively used in the
manufacture of string boas, and the dressed tails were
sold by the hundred. The raw tails are sold by weight,
six to nine pounds being the recognized weight of one
thousand tails.

It is a notable fact that the fur of the squirrel, which
in red in England, becomes grey as we approach the east-
ern part of Europe, and grows darker and darker as we
journey further east, until it almost reaches a black color
in Japan. The province of Kazan in Russia furnishes red
and reddish grey skins, Viatka and Kargopol skins are
greyer, and those from Obskoi are a clear grey. Light
blue skins are found in Yeniseisk, and deep blue ones in
the valley of the Lena river. In the provinces of Yakutsk,
Okhotch and Sakiminoi the color of the body is a very dark
blue and the ears and tails are black.

The Squirrel Family.

303

304 The Rodentia.

THE CHIPMUNKS.

Chipmunks are often called Rock Squirrels because they
make their nests in crannies in the rocks or other places on
the surface, instead of living in underground burrows.
They are closely allied to the tree squirrels, but they
are given a separate genus because they have pouches
inside the cheeks, a slenderer and narrower skull,
shorter ears and tail, and the first premolar tooth in the
upper jaw is either absent or very minute; they are also
characterized by a peculiar coloration, that shows them to
be the connecting link between the arboreal tree squirrels,
and the ground squirrels like the susliks or spermophiles.

The Common American Chipmunk (Tamias-striatus),
a small animal six inches long, with a four-inch tail, takes
its name from an American Indian w^ord meaning the
hacking or chipping squirrel. Its range extends from
Canada and Manitoba through the eastern section of the
Ignited States into Georgia and western INlissouri ; the
long-eared Chipmunk of California (Tamias-macrotus), and
other western varieties, are distinguished from it by
the greater length of their ears and other characteristics.
The common Chipmunk is sometimes about the size of the
European squirrel, and in some localities has the same
ground color, but is always distinguished by the black
stripe running down the middle of the back and the white
stripe w^th black edges on each of its sides, as well as the
two white stripes separated by a black one above and be-
low each eye. There is considerable local variation in the
ground color, that of the southern Chipmunks being
much lighter than that of those in the northern portions
of their habitat. They are the commonest of North Amer-
ican rodents, and are migratory in their habits, being
abundant in a certain district one year and entirely ab-
sent the next. They feed principally on beech mast, but
also consume corn and roots and the larvae of insects.
According to Dr. Merriam ; when the beech nuts are
abundant in the Adirondack Mountains the Chipmunks
put in an appearance in September, and by October the
woods are alive with them. ''They immediately estab-
lish themselves for the winter, and begin to hoard up
large stores of food. They are the least hardy of our

Ground Squirrels. 305

squirrels, eommoiily going into winter quarters before the
middle of November, and though early thaws sometimes
bring them out in February, rnrely appearing again in any
numbers until the warm sun in ^larch or April has caused
bare spots to appear between the snow banks.
In running from tree to tree, even when not pursued, the
length of their bound is from twenty-five to thirty-four
inches — a long leap for so small an animal." The young
are born in the spring, and live in their nests until June;
and as there is seldom a good crop of beech nuts any-
where two successive years a migration generally begins
in July. The Chipnmnk usually keeps to the ground,
though it will at times run a few feet up the trunk of a
tree, and when pursued may even take refuge among the
branches. It does not burrow like the spermophiles.

The Siberian ground squirrel (Tamias-asiaticus),
which is also known as the Siberian Chipmunk, is found in
northern Asia and extends into Russia. This species dif-
fers from the Common American Chipmunk in that it has
four light colored and five black stripes on the body and
has a longer tail. A number of other varieties of Chip-
munks are also found in North America, from the barren
grounds to New Mexico and Arizona.

THE SUSLIK OR SPERMOPHILE.

The Suslik or Sisel (Spermophilis-citillus), is confined
to Europe, Asia Minor and Asia north of the Himalayas ;
but the North American Spermophile, which is never seen
on the eastern slope of the continent, belongs to the same
genus. These animals have skulls like the squirrels, but
are characterized by large cheek pouches, and such dis-
tinctive coloration and markings that even the striped
specimens need never be confounded with the Chipmunk,
which is found in nearly the same regions of the North-
ern Hemisphere. There is considerable variation in the
size of the ears and the length of the tail, but the first
toe on the forefoot is always rudimentary in all the
species of the Spermophilis, although a nail is sometimes
present. Everman's Suslik (Spermophilis-eversmanni) is
the only Old World species that has a long tail.

The common Suslik of Central ^nd eastern Europe
and Siberia, an animal about the size of the Euroi)ean
Squirrel, is uniform in color, and has a very short tail

306 The Rodentia — Suslik and Gopher.

and minute ears. The long-eared species (Spermophilis-
grammurus), whose range is on the Western Continent
from the Mississippi valley to California, has a long bushy
tail and large tufted ears. The thirteen lined or Leopard
Spermophile (Spermophilis-tridecemlineatus), which is
the commonest species in America, and is found from the
Red River to Texas, has small ears and a tail about two-
thirds as long as its eight-inch body. In color it is dark
reddish above with six to eight longitudinal light stripes,
alternating with from five to seven rows of light spots.
The under parts are yellowish brown in the middle, bor-
dered onjhe sides with yellow and a narrow black band
runs between the two tints.

All species of Susliks prefer the open plains for their
burrows, which descend from six to eight feet, and have
but a single entrance. When the animals retire for their
winter sleep they make a second passage from their sleep-
ing chamber, to within a short distance from the surface.
Through this they make their exit when they awaken in
the spring, and block up the original entrance.

The roots, seeds and berries for the winter's supply
of food are accumulated in the summer and autumn, dur-
ing which time the Susliks will also eat mice and small
birds and their eggs. The young are born in the spring,
from four to eight to a litter.

The striped Spermophiles of North America are more
carnivorous than their European cousins. In the extreme
southern part of their habitat they remain active all
winter, but the northern species hibernate during the cold
weather.

Parry's Suslik (Spermophilis-empetra), a species close-
ly allied to Evermann's Suslik, is found in the vicinity of
Hudson Bay and the Bering Sea.

It is hard to understand why the graceful, slender, kindly
dispositioned Spermophiles are ever confounded with the
thieving Pocket Gophers, who belong to a separate family,
the members of which are all so ill tempered that they
hate one another. Possibly it is because both of these
animals make their burrows deep down in the ground
below the frost line.

The habitat of the Flying Squirrel is more restricted
than that of the other true squirrels, but there are eight
or more species in different parts of North America, Asia,
Africa, Japan and the Malayan Islands.

Gbound Squirrel — Marmot. 307

THE MARMOT.

The Marmot is found in America, Europe and Asia ; and
is known in some localities as the bear-mouse, and in
others as the ground-hog and woodchuck; the Wish-Ton-
Wish, or prairie dog of North America, is not a true
marmot, but very similar to it in size and many of its
habits. The Marmot is the largest living representative
of the squirrel family. It has a stout, thickset form, and
a short bushy tail. It is characterized by the absence of
cheek pouches, and by the flat nail with which the rudi-
mentary first front toe is furnished, as well as by certain
peculiar features of the skull and cheek teeth.

The most widely distributed species on the North Ameri-
can continent is the Arctomys-Monax, called Weemusk
by the Cree Indians, and known in commerce as the Quebec
Marmot and Woodchuck.

The Yellow-Bellied Marmot (Arctomys-flaviventer), found
only in the iRocky Mountains, and the large Hoary
Whistling Marmot (Arctomys-pruinosus), are not so num-
erous; and none of the American species are of much
value commercially. Europe has two species; the Alpine
or true Marmot (Arctomys-marmotta), and the Eastern
or Russian Marmot (Arctomys-bobac). Besides the Arc-
tomys-bobac there are numerous unimportant varieties in
Asia, one of which, the. Red Marmot, is a much larger
animal and has a much longer tail than any of the other
species.

The skins used in commerce come principally from south-
ern Russia and Siberia, where these animals exist in vast
numbers, consuming the growing grain and other crops,
and annoying the farmers with the large hillocks they
throw up in making their burrows. The burrows often
descend to a depth of from seven to ten feet, and besides
the main entrance have another opening to be used as an
avenue of escape in case of emergency. Each burrow is
tenanted by a family of from ten to fifteen members, but
there are always large colonies where these animals collect,
either in the mountains or on the plains in the north.

308 RODENTIA,

In the winter when the snow comes the Marmots retire
to their burrows and hibernate. According to some author-
ities the Russian ]\rarmots lay in a supply of food before
the winter begins, but others claim that they are not known
to lay in any store of food before their retirement, and
that their sleep is probably unbroken from the time they
begin to hibernate in October until they come out in the
spring. If either of these statements are accepted as true,
the Russian Marmot differs in this respect from the Ameri-
can Woodchuck, which causes so much trouble by coming
out of its hole on Candlemas Day to look for its shadow,
no matter how much snow there may be on the ground.

Marmots are all terrestial and fossorial, and some of the
habits that the Russian Marmot is said to have in common
with the North American Prairie Dog are sitting on its
haunches, whistling, etc. The Russian Marmot is about
the size of a rabbit and has a greyish yellow fur that
is browner on the head than on the body, and darker at
the roots than at the tips. It feeds on roots, leaves and
insects, and is very prolific, often producing nine young in a
litter. It can be domesticated, and taught to feed on
carrots, cabbaojes and other vegetables.

KussiAN Marmot

The skins are used for a great variety of purposes, either
in their natural state or dyed, but they are principally
consumed in the manufacture of linings for coats; when
they are dyed brown and striped they are sometimes
called ''Florida Mink" and "Mink Marmot"; and they
are also marked so as to make a good imitation of the
leopard.

309

THE UNGULATA.

The Ungulata, or hoofed mammals, constitute one of
the largest and most important orders of the animal king-
dom. They are all herbivorous ruminants with a few
notable exceptions that are omnivorous ; and none of them
have the digits of the fore or hind limbs provided with
either claws or nails, as is the case with other animals.

In the great majority of cases the toes of Ungulates are
encased in solid hoofs, although a few species are fur-
nished with broad flat nails. Many extinct forms have
four or five well developed digits to the limbs, but in all
living members of the order except the elephant which
has five, there are never more than four functional digits ;
and in a large number of instances these functional digits
are reduced to two, and in some cases to three, while
in the horse and its living allies only a single digit re-
mains.

Richard Lydecker, in his ''Royal Natural History,'*
says: ''As it is of primary importance in order to have a
clear idea of the manner in which this reduction of digits
takes place, to understand the relationship of existing
Ungulates one to another, the subject may be dealt with
in some detail.

"In all the Ungulates the limbs have entirely ceased
to be used as organs of prehension, arid there would seem
to be no necessity as development advances why there
should be any adherence to the primitive five-toed type.
The majority of the members of the order being, however,
unable to protect themselves against foes, and being also,
in proportion to their height, heavy-bodied animals, the
attainment of a high degree of speed was essential to
their well-being and development, if not for their actual
existence. For such a kind of life it will be obvious
that the greater the length and slenderness of limb, the
greater will be the speed. Now, in order to produce a
long and slender, and at the same time a strong limb, from
a stout and short-toed one, greater strength will clearly
be attained by reducing the number of the toes, and
lengthening and strengthening those which remain, rather
than by lengthening the whole of the five toes, the slender
bones of which would be liable to fracture by the concu!*-

310 Ungulata.

sion of the solid hoofs against the ground. Accordingly,
among the Ungulates, the plan has been to gradually
lengthen and strengthen the bones of one or more of the
original five toes, and at the same time to dispense more
or less completely with the others.

"A complete transition has thus been traced from a
five-toed Ungulate, walking partly on the soles of its
feet, to one provided with but a single toe to each foot,
and walking entirely upon the very tip of that one toe,
by which means the full extent of the limb comes into
play as an aid to speed. Throughout this series it is the
third or middle toe which has undergone development at
the expense of the others; and since this toe is always
symmetrical in itself, the term Odd-Toed Ungulates is
applied to the members of the group thus characterized.

''The resources of nature are, however, manifold, and
instead of this being the only line of evolution of the
Ungulates, nearly similar results have been reached by a
totally different series of modifications; in some cases
instead of the third toe remaining symmetrical in itself
and gradually increasing in size at the expense of the
others, the third and fourth toes become symmetrical to
a vertical line drawn between them. When this takes
place the first toe disappears, and the second and fifth
become diminished in size ; an instance of this stage of
development being presented by the pig, where the two
large and medially-symmetrical toes represent the third
and fourth of the typical series, while the two small lat-
eral ones are the second and fifth. In the pigs all the
metacarpal bone§ remain distinct and relatively short;
but in the water-chevrotain of Africa the third and fourth
metacarpals become much elongated and closely applied
to one another, while the second and fifth are reduced
to mere splints, and their toes so diminished as to become
practically functionless. Finally, in the deer, oxen, and
their allies, the third and fourth metacarpals in the fore-
limb, and the corresponding metatarsal bones in the hind-
limb, have become completely fused into a single rod-like
bone, corresponding in function with the cannon-bone of
the horse, and generally known by the same name. The
dual origin of this cannon-bone is, however, proclaimed

Ungulata. 311

by the formation of its lower extremity, which carries two
pulley-like surfaces, with which the bones of the two
functional toes (the third and fourth) articulate.

^' Since all the Ungulates displaying this second modi-
fication of foot-structure agree in having the third and
fourth toes arranged symmetrically to a line drawn
between them, they are collectively termed the Even-Toed
Ungulates.

''It is accordingly evident that although a few living
Ungulates, like the elephant and the hyrax," retain a gen-
eralized type of foot, the greatest number of the living
representatives of the order are characterized by their
more or less markedly specialized feet.

"As regards their teeth, the Ungulates are character-
ized by those of the cheek-series having broad crowns,
surmounted either by columns or transverse ridges, and
adapted for grinding and masticating vegetable sub-
stances. In the more specialized forms, like cattle and
horses, these cheek-teeth have their columns or ridges of
great height and closely approximated to one another, in
consequence of which the bases of the hollows or valleys
by which these columns or ridges are separated from one
another, cannot be seen when the tooth is unworn, while
the pattern produced on the crown by the wearing down
of these columns or ridges is complex. On the other hand,
in the more primitive types, such as pigs and tapirs, the
crowns of the cheek-teeth have low columns, or ridges,
so that the bases of the intervening valleys can be dis-
tinctly seen at all stages of wear.

''It should also be mentioned, that whereas in Carni-
vores the upper molar teeth are generally of the primi-
tive triangular type, in all existing Ungulates the^r have
assumed the quadrangular form. The food of the Ungu-
lates consisting in most cases entirely of vegetable sub-
stances requiring much mastication, is the inducing cause
for the complex structure of the cheek-teeth in the more
specialized kinds ; and to the same cause may be at-
tributed the circumstance that Ungulates always retain
the full number of molar teeth, and, except in the camels,
at least three out of the typical four premolars.

312 Ungulata.

"The order is well represented on all the continents
of the globe, with the exception of Australia, but at the
present day it has a far larger number of species in the
Old World than in the New; many of those from the
former area belonging to groups quite unknown in the
latter. Although represented in the Arctic regions only by
the reindeer and the musk-ox, Ungulates are found alike
in the coldest and the hottest regions of the globe. The
maximum number of peculiar forms, as well as those of
greatest corporeal bulk, are, however, inhibitants of the
tropical and subtropical regions; and it is also in the
warmer regions that the greatest number of species
occur."

Collar-bones are invariably absent in all the species of
the Ungulata, and their limbs as a rule are restricted to
a backward and forward motion ; while all of them are
adapted to a life on land, most of them can swim if neces-
sary, and none of them are arboreal; as a rule they are
characterized by their relatively large size, the order in-
cluding the most bulky of all mammals; and most of
them have a tendency to develop horns of some kind or
other on the head.

HOLLOW HORNED RUMINANTS.

Under the name Hollow Horned Ruminants are in-
cluded only the oxen, sheep, antelopes and goats; but the
deers, swine, camels and some other types also belong to
the even-toed or cloven-footed Ungulates.

Some scientists include all the Hollow Horned Rumi-
nants except the Prongbuck or Blessbok (Bubalis-albifrons),
in the family Bovidae ;but others place only the oxen in the
Bovidae, and put the Antelopes, Camels, Deers, Goats, Sheep
and Musk Ox into separate families, known respectively
as the Antelopinae, Camelidae, Cervidae, Capriniae, Ovinae
and Ovibromae. These Hollow Homed Ruminants, to-
gether with the Giraff, form a division distinguished
from all the other Even-Toed Ungulata by the absence of
front teeth in the upper jaw, the possession of complete
cannon bones, and hoof enclosed feet, and four cham-
bered stomachs '* divided into four complete cavities, into

Ungulata. 313

the first of which the food is temporarily received
until it is regurgitated into the mouth, when it is com-
pletely masticated, and afterwards conveyed to the true
digesting stomach. This process is known as the func-
tion of 'chewing-the-cud,' or ruminating; and the Un-
gulates in w^hich it occurs are consequently termed Rumi-
nants. The ruminating function is, however, developed
in the camels and chevrotains, as well as in the assemblage
of four families constituting the present group; but as
the camels and chevrotains differ in several important re-
spects, it is convenient to designate the group under con-
sideration as the true Ruminants, or technically, the
Pecora.

''The Hollow Horned Ruminants are distinguished
from their allies by the presence of true horns ; that is. to
say, of hollow and unbranched sheaths of horn growing
upon bony protuberances, or cores, arising from the
frontal bones of the skull, neither the horny sheaths nor
the bony cores being shed at any period of existence. In
all existing wild species these horns are present at least
in the male sex; but in many domesticated races of cat-
tle, sheep and goats, they are absent in both sexes ; and the
same holds good for certain extinct members of the fam-
ily. Usually the molar teeth of the Hollow Horned Rumi-
nants are characterized by the great relative height of
their crowns; and in all cases there is no tusk or canine
tooth in the upper jaw. In some few instances the small
lateral toes may be completely absent, but they are gen-
erally represented merely by the small spurious hooflets
alone, which may be supported internally by minute and
irregularly-shaped nodules of bone.

''The Hollow Horned Ruminants are chiefly Old World
forms, although they are represented in North America
by the Musk-Ox, the American Bison, the Rocky Mountain
Goat, and the Big Horn Sheep. They are quite unknown in
the southern half of the New World."

314

Bison and Buffalo.

The Buffalo. 315

THE BUFFALO.

The American Bison (Bos-americanus), is generally
known as the Buffalo; but the Buffalo is an entirely dif-
ferent animal, found in its wild state only in India and
Africa. There are four distinct species of this animal,
the fiercest and largest, being the Cape, or Black African,
Buffalo (Bos-caffer), whose habitat is generally in the
reedy swamps from the Cape to the equator; but a modi-
fied variety of this species is found from the equator
north to Abyssinia. The hair covering of the Cape Buf-
falos is always thin, and in old age the skin is almost bare.
They are heavily built, and a full-grown male will stand
four feet six inches at the shoulder. They have flattened,
curved, black horns, that meet at the base forming a great
bony plate on the front of the head ; the horns sometimes
measure three feet each in length, but they are so curved
along the line of the head that the span from bend to bend
is about three feet and six inches ; the flapping ears are of
enormous size, and are thickly fringed with hair on the
lower border.

Cape Buffalos are usually seen in herds of from fifty
to three hundred individuals. They are swift in their
movements, and according to Mr. Selous: '^When charg-
ing they invariably hold their noses straight out, laying
their horns straight back over their shoulders, and low-
ering their heads only as they are about to strike. ' ' They
live as near the water as possible in summer, and at sun-
down they refresh themselves with a bath before feeding.
They breed during the African summer, and calves are
born in January, February or March. The Cape Buffalo
sometimes lives to be thirty years old. According to W.
H. Drummond, there is a variety of Cape Buffalo occasion-
ally met with in the forest with blacker hair and more
spreading horns than the type species.

The Short Horned, or Red Buffalo (Bos-pumilis),
whose habitat is in West Africa, is smaller than the fore-
going, and has a heavier, lighter colored co^t of hair, in
some cases light yellow on top and reddish brown below,

316 Ungulata.

with a sharply defined line of demarkation. The Buffalos
found in the Congo district (Bos-centralis) are larger in
size and have much flatter horns than the (Bos-pumilis.)

The Common, or Indian Buffalo, (Bos-bubalus), dif-
fers from all the African species in appearance. It is
larger, has a much longer head, and smaller ears ; the
horns are very large and flattened, tapering gradually
from the root to the tip, and being much longer and thin-
ner in the cows than in the bulls. Lydecker says; that
a skull of this species in the British Museum, has horns
measuring twelve feet and two inches from tip to tip
along the outer curve; and he also tells of a specimen
measured by General Kinlock, that stood five feet high,
had a girth of eight feet and three inches, and was nine
feet and seven inches long from the end of the nose to
the root of the tail, the tail measuring three feet and
eleven inches more ; the horns on this animal, along the
greater curve, measured eight feet and three inches.

The hair on the Common Buffalo is short and scanty,
slightly longer on the head, shoulders and front of neck
than on the rest of the body, and almost black in color.
The Asiatic Buffalo are further distinguished from the
African species, by having the hair on the front part of
the back directed forward, as well as by a less thickly
fringed beard, and more elongated and narrower heads.
The general color of this species is ashy black, although
the legs are whitish and sometimes the domesticated
animals are pure white below the knees. The wild
Indian Buffalo is rarely found in the open plains, and
its habitat is generally in tall grass jungles, of such height
and depth, that General Kinlock in referring to them
whites: "Frequently, although a herd of Buffalo may be
aroused within a score of yards, the waving of the grass,
and perhaps the glint of a polished horn tip, is the only
ocular evidence of the presence of these animals. The
nearly noiseless tread may be caused by other animals;
and where the horns have not been seen, it is only by the
strong sweet smell — similar to, but much more powerful
than that of cows — that we can be absolutely certain of
what is in front of us." This species feed chiefly on grass,
are not shy, and are always seen in herds. The calves
are born in summer, sometimes two at a time. In walk-

The Bison and Ox FxVmily. 317

ing the Indian Buffalo always carries its head low. It
loves the moist ground, and its broad feet prevent it from
sinking into the mud.

The Common Buffalo has been domesticated in India,
and from there introduced into Greece, Italy and Hun-
gary. It is much more powerful than the Ox, and although
in a wild state it is savage and dangerous and retains its
courage in captivity, it is very docile w.hen domesticated.
It is much heavier than the Ox, and distinguished from
it by its sparcely haired skin, long tufted tail, broad
muzzle and angulated horns. In India this animal gives
more milk than the ordinary cow, and from it the ghee —
the clarified butter of India — is made. The hides of the
Buffalos are valued where strength and durability are
desired.

THE EUROPEAN BISON.

The Gaur (Bos-gaurus), is a magnificent animal; but
just why it should have usurped the name of the European
Bison (Bos-bonasus), is as hard to understand as the
reason why the bison should so often be called Aurochs
(Bos-primigenius), a species of European Wild Ox, now
extinct, w^hich was the progenitor of some of the existing
breeds of domestic cattle.

The European Bison with its fourteen or fifteen pairs
of ribs, cylindrical horns, and short forehead, resembles
the Yak (Bos-grunniens) more than it does either the
Gaur or the Aurochs. It differs from the Yak in certain
cranical characteristics, as well as in the great excess in
height of the withers over the hind quarters, which pro-
duces a distinct hump on the shoulders, that is intensified
by the mass of dark brown hair, similar to that on the
American Bison but not so abundant, with which the head,
neck and shoulders are covered. The long hair is con-
tinued as a kind of crest along the back nearly to the root
of the tail, the remainder of the body being covered wnth
a short curly hair of a lighter tint ; its tail, unlike that of
the American Bison, is covered with hair the full length
and is tufted on the end. In many respects the European
Bison resembles the American species to which it is very
closely allied; but it has longer legs and a shorter body.

318 Ungulata.

shorter hair, more tubular eyes, and longer and straighter
horns. It is a forest dwelling animal, feeding largely on
leaves, twigs and the bark of trees. The calves of this
species are born in May or the early part of June, and
apparently the cows do not produce more frequently than
once in three years.

The European Bison formerly ranged in considerable
numbers over a large part of the continent of Europe and
England ; but in 1892 the herds had decreased to less than
five hundred individuals. Since that time, owing to gov-
ernment protection, there has been an increase; and in
1906, it was estimated that, in addition to the small cap-
tive herds belonging to the Czar of Russia and the Prince
of Pless, there were about seven hundred wild Bison on
the northern slope of the Caucasus, and an equal number
protected by the game wardens of the Czar in the forests
of Bielowitza, and Swisslotsch. The wild European
Bison live in small scattered bands, sometimes at an ele-
vation of eight thousand feet, where they are exposed to
extreme cold ; but they are much less thickly haired than
those found in the forests of Lithuania.

THE GAUR.

The Gaur (Bos gaurus), the Wild Ox of India, whose
range extends into Burma and the Malay Peninsula, is-
the handsomest and tallest ox in the world, the cows
standing five feet and the males sometimes reaching six:
feet, at the shoulder. It is characterized by its short tail,
white legs, narrow pointed hoofs, large ears, the forward
curve and great elevation of the ridge between the com-
pressed, short, conical horns that are very thick at the
base, and the distinct ridge running from the shoulders^
to the middle of the back, where it ends in an abrupt drop
of about five inches.

The top of the head is ashy white, but the color of
the rest of the body is a dark brown or black in the older
males, and a paler reddish brown in the cows and young^
bulls. The hair is short, fine and glossy.

The Gaur prefers the hilly districts to the plains, and
in India is generally found at an elevation of from two ta
five thousand feet. It is not known to exist in a domes-

The Bison and Ox Family. 319

ticated state, but the Gayal, a much smaller animal
differing from it in the formation of its skull and horns,
is believed by some to be a modified variety of the Gaur.

THE YAK.

The Yak (Bos-grunniens), is found only on the ele-
vated plateau of Tibet. The color, with the exception of
a little ^hite around the muzzle, is a blackish brown.
The hair on the head and the upper part of the body is
short and nearly smooth. On the flanks, breast and
the under part of the limbs, the thick hair, which protects
it from the cold and snow, grows to a great length, giv-
ing the animal an ungainly appearance; on the thick,
bushy tail the hair is often twenty-five inches long. The
head of the Yak is long and narrow and the ears and
muzzle small. The shoulders are high, but the back is
otherwise straight without any falling away at the hips.
It has short stout legs and large rounded hoofs. The horns
are nearly cylindrical and curved upwards and out. The
Yak is nearly as large an animal as the Gaur.

The Wild Yak is impatient of heat and delights in
the cold; it is only found near the limits of perpetual
snow, often seeking an elevation of from fifteen to twenty
thousand feet in summer.

The Yak is an unsociable animal, but breeds in con-
finement and can be crossed with other cattle. The
grunt of this animal is so much like that of the pig that
the Germans call it the Grunzochs.

The domesticated Yak is much smaller than the wild
variety, and shows considerable variation in color, some-
times being entirely white. It is about the size of an ox,
and can stand a much higher temperature than the wild
Yak. It is covered all over with long silky hair, hanging
down like the fleece on a sheep. The head is rather short ;
the eyes large and beautiful ; the horns, which are not very
large spread and taper from the base, and are turned
back a little at the tips; the space between them on the
forehead being covered by a mass of curly hair; the neck
is short and over the shoulders there is a bunch of long
hair.

320 Ungulata.

The meat of this animal is good for food; and the
silky hairs are spun and woven into fabrics. The tails,
especially the white ones, are largely used in the manu-
facture of wigs. In Tibet the tails are suspended as
streamers from poles set before the entrances to the
monasteries; and in China they are dyed red and affixed
as pennants to the roofs of summer residences. They are
used throughout the East as fly wisps or "chouris.

? >

321

THE AMERICAN BISON.

Of the American Bison (Bos-americanus), W. T.
Hornaday says : ' ' The magnificent dark brown gauntlet
and beard, the shaggy hair upon the neck, hump and
shoulders, terminating in a thick mass of luxurient black
locks, to say nothing of the dense coat of fine fur on the
body and hind quarters, give to our species, not only an
apparent height equal to that of the Gaur, but a grandeur
and nobility of expression which are beyond all compari-
son among Ruminants."

The possession of a larger and more luxuriant mass
of hair on the head and fore quarters, which in some cases
almost sweeps the ground, makes the American Bison ap-
pear of larger size than the European species, when, as
a matter of fact, although the body is on the whole more
massively built, it is lower, and has a smaller pelvis and
hind quarters. The American Bison is one of the larg-
est and the best known of all North American hoofed
mammals; and with two exceptions, the Gaur and the
European Bison, it is the largest of all Bovenine animals.
The males, who have short, thick, curved horns, stand
from five feet to five feet eight inches at the shoulders,
though they are considerably lower at the hind quarters.
In fresh pelage the color of the long hair on the calves
is of a reddish hue; but on the full grown animals it is
almost black, although on aged or worn skins it becomes
brown or grey. The twenty inch tail always has a six
inch wisp of long black hairs on the end. The head is
convex, the muzzle is shorter and broader, and the
skull is much wider than in domestic cattle.

According to Mr. Hornday: ''The range of the Amer-
ican Bison originally extended over one-third of North
America. Starting almost at tide water on the Atlantic
coast, it extended westward to a vast tract of dense forest,
across the Alleghany mountain system to the prairies along
the Mississippi, and southward to the delta of that great
system. Although the great plain country of the West was
the natural home of the species, where it flourished most
abundantly, it also wandered south across Texas to the

322 Ungulata.

burning plains of northeast Mexico, westward across the
Rocky Mountains into New Mexico, Utah and Idaho, and
northward across vast treeless wastes to the bleak and in-
hospitable shores of the Great Slave Lake itself.

''Of all the quadrupeds that ever lived upon the
earth, probably no other species has ever marched in such
innumerable hosts as those of the American Bison. It
would have been as easy to count or estimate the number of
leaves in the forest, as to calculate the number of Bison
living at any time during the history of this species prior
to 1870. Even in Central Africa, which has been exceed-
ingly prolific in great herds of game, it is probable that all
the herds taken together on an equal area, would never
have more than equalled the total number of Bison in this
country fifty years ago." But as Captain Chittenden
says : 'Marvelous as were the numbers of the Buffalo, their
complete disappearance from the earth in less than a gen-
eration is more marvelous still. '

When the Union Pacific Railroad, in 1869, cut the
range of the Bison in two, the southern, or Texas, herd, in
the regions of the staked plains, numbered nearly four
million individuals; and there were over one and a half
million in the northern, or Yellowstone, herd on the upper
Missouri, and to the northward. It is estimated that over
three and one-half million of the southern herd were
slaughtered between 1872 and 1874, and by the end of
1875 this great herd had ceased to exist as a body ; the sur-
vivors, numbering about ten thousand, fleeing to the wild-
est parts of Texas where they were gradually exterminated.

Of the northern herd those living in British Columbia
were the first to be exterminated; and before 1880, the
herds in Dakota and Wyoming had also been greatly re-
duced by the Sioux Indians, who ate the flesh, ornamented
their dress with the hair, and used the hides of the Bison
to make their lodges, boats, shields, beds, clothes, moccasins,
bow-strings, saddles and halters, and the hoofs, horn and
bones for manufacturing an endless variety of other arti-
cles . Trutly, as Captain Chittenden says : ' ' more than the
horse to the Arab, the camel to the pilgrim in the desert,
the reindeer to the Laplander, the seal to the Eskimo or
the elephant to the Hindoo, was the Buffalo to the trans-
Mississippi Indian. History affords no other example

The Bison and Ox Family. 323

where a single product of nature, whether animal or veget-
able, has filled so large a place in the life of a people. The
self -sustenance of the tribes of the plains would have been
impossible without it, and when the Buffalo disappeared
these tribes fell back upon the government in hopeless de-
pendence for the very necessities of existence.

''This remarkable animal (Bos-americanus) furnished
nearly everything that the Indians wanted, and in the life
of the trapper as well it was a principal resource. Almost
every part of its huge body was utilized, and a volume
would be required to catalogue its manifold applications.
The hide was dressed in a variety of ways, each special
treatment having its particular use.

"The flesh of the Buffalo was the most wholesome, pal-
atable and universally used of that of any wild animal.
The extent of its use, that is, the degree to which the en-
tire animal was thus utilized, depended upon its abund-
ance. When there were multitudes at hand the epicurean
palate rejected all but the choicest morsels, but in times of
scarcity every part of the flesh did duty as food. The
greatest luxury was the tongue and this was often the only
part taken. The hump ribs and the tenderloin came next
in favor, but the smaller parts, such as the marrow bones,
liver and gall, and parts of the intestines, were often de-
voured with avidity while the process of butchering was still
going on. The fleece fat upon the animal's back was gen-
erally thick and rich, and was an important article in the
process of cooking.

"All authorities unite in praising the excellence of
buffalo meat, and the true plainsman would never admit
that the domestic beef could approach it. It always agreed
with the digestion and it seemed impossible to overeat of it.
Combined with the healthfulness of the open-air life on
the prairies or in the mountains, it formed a perfect food
whose virtues became widely known ; and many an invalid
has recovered his health on the plains with no shelter but
the sky and no food but the meat of the buffalo.

"The methods of capture were' various. "With the
Indians wholesale destruction was commonly resorted to
by alluring vast herds at full gallop to the brink of a preci-
pice or into the mouth of an artificial enclosure. The force
of the mass behind crowded those in advance ahead until

324 Ungulata.

they fell upon each other at the foot of the cliffs or in the
enclosures, and were thus slaughtered by the hundreds. A
great deal of skill and favoring conditions of wind, as
well as the most adroit management on the part of the
Indian who clad like a buffalo acted as decoy to the herd,
w^ere essential to the complete success of the maneuver.
These hunts were matters of great ceremony among the
Indians. Days and weeks were devoted to preparation,
with due observance of the established religious rites of
the tribes, and the most rigid laws against individual
hunting or frightening of the herds.

"The true sportsman-like attack was by direct on-
slaught on horseback, or, as it was sometimes called from
the manner of approach "the surround." It was managed
with the same ceremonious preliminaries that were observed
by the Indians in all great buffalo hunts. The attack was
made by riding under strict discipline in careful order
directly upon the herd until the latter had fully scented
the danger, "when the hunters, each free to go where he
chose, broke into a wild gallop and amid the thunder of
hoofs, the bellowing of the frightened beasts, and the
clouds of dust raised in the mad rush of so many animals,
fell pell-mell upon the herd, chasing and slaying. So com-
pletely panic-stricken w^ould these mighty herds become,
and so little sensible of where to flee, that most of them fell
victims to their pursuers, and the ground where the attack
took place would be strewn with hundreds of dead bodies.
Now and then, when some infuriated monster turned too
quickly upon him, a luckless hunter would be unhorsed,
or even slain in the confusion of the chase.

"The practical American hunter, when not bent on
sport for sport's sake, but after meat for food, adopted
a much simpler, more direct, and quite as efficacious means
of securing his game. This was the method of still hunting,
which consisted, as the name suggests, in stealing unob-
served upon the intended victim. Generally a small band
was preferable. It was not a difficult thing to crawl from
the leeward to within sure rifle shot without being discov-
ered. Then, choosing the best concealment the ground
afforded, the hunter would commence the work of destruc-
tion by firing at the fairest mark. The animals, hearing
only the report and seeing nothing, would not flee, but

The Bison and Ox Family. 325

stood still in apparent wonderment. Presently the
wounded animal fell, and the companions, smelling its
blood, gathered round it and tried to make it rise, and
even lick its wounds ; or they went on grazing, apparently
thinking that their companion had lain down to rest.
Meanwhile the hunter's rifle was busy, shot upon shot
was heard, and victim after victim fell, until either be-
cause there w^ere no more to kill, or because he was sur-
feited with slaughter, he rose and surveyed his conquest.

''The Buffalo was a difficult animal to kill. A ball
upon its shaggy head or neck fell off as from a panoply of
steel. Wounds in the nether portion of the body were
rarely fatal. It was .only in the region of the heart that
the blow was sure, and the Indians and white hunters
sought out this region in all their attacks. The animal
was not ordinarily pugnacious or dangerous, and only when
smarting with its wounds would it turn upon its enemy.
But its rage at such times made it a formidable adversary,
and lucky was the hunter who could keep out of its way."

With the opening of the Northern Pacific Railroad in
1880, the white man joined with the Indian in the final
work of destruction; and by February 1883, the great
northern herd was also practically annihilated.

Richard Lydecker, in his Royal Natural History, quotes
Mr. Hornaday as saying: "The systematic slaughter of
the Bisons for the sake of their flesh and hide began in
1830, and the ever increasing demand for "buffalo robes,"
as the dressed skins were termed, soon began to tell on their
numbers; but it was not until the completion of the Kan-
sas branch of the Union Pacific Railroad in 1871 that the
great slaughter commenced, which attained its height in
1873 ; when it is believed that every hide which came into
the market represented four Bisons killed." Some idea of
the wanton destruction of that time, due to the avarice of
the hunter and trapper and the reckless cruelty of the
sportsman, may be formed from the fact, that one of the
three roads penetrating the southern Bison country car-
ried, in 1873, nearly a quarter of a million skins, more
than a million and a half pounds of meat, and fully two
and a quarter million pounds of bones.

Referring to the numerical strength of the American
Bison in 1866, Catlin in his "North American Indians"

326 Ungulata.

says : ' ' The almost countless herds of these animals that
are sometimes met with on the prairies have only been
spoken of by other writers, and may yet be seen b}^ any
traveler who will take the pains to visit those regions.
The rutting season, which is in August and September, is
the time when they congregate in such masses in some
places as literally to blacken the prairie for miles around.
It is no uncommon thing at this season to see at these
gatherings several thousands in a mass, eddying and reel-
ing about under the cloud of dust which is raised by the
bulls as they are pawing in the dirt, or engaged in des-
perate combats, lunging and butting at each other in the
most furious manner, as they constantly are. In these
scenes, the males are continually following the females,
and the whole mass are in constant motion; and all bellow-
ing is in deep and hollow sounds which mingled together
appear like the sound of distant thunder at a distance of
a mile or tw^o.

*' During the season, while they are congregated to-
gether in these dense and confused masses, the remainder
of the country for many miles around becomes entirely
vacated, and a traveler will spend many a toilsome day,
and many a hungry night, without being cheered by the
sight of one buffalo. If he retraces his steps a few weeks
after however he will find them dispersed and equally
stocking the whole country and grazing quietly in little
families and flocks. *A bull in his wallow' is a frequent
saying in this country, and it has a very significane mean-
ing for those who have ever seen a bull performing ablu-
tions, or endeavoring to cool his heated sides by tumbling
in a mud puddle.

^'In the heat of summer, these huge animals, who no
doubt suffer very much from the great profusion of their
long and shaggy hair, often graze on the low grounds of
the prairies, where there is a little stagnant water lying
amongst the grass, and the ground underneath being satur-
ated is soft. Into this the enormous buU^ lowered down
upon one knee, will plunge his horns and at last his head,
digging up the earth and make an excavation in the
ground into which the water filters from among the grass,
forming for him in a few moments a cool and comfortable
bath, into which he plunges."

The Bison and Ox Family. 327

Today the "Buffalo," as the American Bison is gen-
erally called, is little more than a memory. Outside of a
herd of five hundred "Wood Buffalo" lately reported to
have been discovered in New Mexico, there are only two
herds of wild Bison in existence on this continent; about
twenty head remain in Yellowstone Park, and a herd of
about three hundred inhabits the stretch of barren terri-
tory southwest of the Great Slave Lake.

In addition to these there are possibly two thousand
Bison living in captivity in zoological parks, and large pri-
vate game preserves, in different sections of North Amer-
ica ; of these, forty-two are at the New York Zoological Park
in the Bronx; and thirty-seven are in the twelve square
miles of grazing ground, fenced in by the government in
the Wichita Forest and Game Preserve, when the New
York Zoological Society, in 1906, presented to the United
States government the fifteen Bison which formed the
nucleus for this herd.

The Bisons breed in captivity about as regularly as
domestic cattle, and though inclined to be stubborn, are
mild in disposition. The calves are born in May, June and
July, and full maturity is reached at the end of the sev-
enth year, when the horns of the male — at first a straight
spike — have attained their whole semi-circular curve. Like
all thick haired animals in the temperate zone, the Bison
sheds its coat in the spring, and does not regain full pelage
until October or November.

Contrary to the method employed in dressing cattle,
the skin of the ' ' Buffalo ' ' was parted along the spine ; the
chief articles of commerce obtained from it being the skin,
horns, tongue and tallow; for only the choicest parts of
the carcass were removed when the animal was plentiful,
the great bulk of it being left to rot on the plains.

As far back as 1840, the American Fur Company's
agents sent into St. Louis sixty-seven thousand "Buffalo
robes," and in 1848 a hundred thousand "robes" and
twenty-five thousand "Buffalo" tongues were received at
St. Louis; the shipments to New York in the seventies an-
nually exceeded these figures, and the writer distinctly
remembers when "Buffalo robes" sold for seven and eight
dollars each, and when a good "Buffalo" coat could be
bought for from fifteen to twenty dollars. Those who know

328

Ungulata.

how common they were at that time, and who are familiar
with the durability of the "Buffalo" hide and fur, wonder
where they have all gone. No one dreamed forty years
ago that the time would ever come when a ''Buffalo" skin
would be a curiosity, and a mounted ' ' Buffalo ' ' head would
be worth from two hundred and fifty to a thousand dol-
lars ; but that is the condition of things today.

When we consider that there is really nothing to take
the place of the "Buffalo" skin for warmth or service, as
well as the food value of the species, it seems a pity that
the North-West Breeding Company, organized in 1886, to
interbreed the Buffalo with selected native cattle, did not
succeed in their undertaking. They appear to have made
as complete a failure as the Buffalo Wool Company,
formed in Winnipeg, in 1832, to weave the hair of the
Bison into cloth.

Rocky Mountain Goat.

329

HAPLOOERUS-MOUTANUS.

The Rocky Mountain Goat so closely resembles a small
American Bison that there is considerable difference of
opinion among scientists as to Avhether it should be
classed with the oxen or the goats, and it has been given
a separate genus. This animal will weigh as much as the
average Virginia deer, and measures about five feet in
length, and three feet in height. It has a very short
tail, and a dense woolly undercoat, which like the coarse
long outer hair, is yellowish white in color. Mountain
goats generally occupy grassy belts high up on the moun-
tains in AVashington, Idaho and Montana ; but it is said
that in British Columbia they sometimes come so near to
tide water that more than one specimen has been shot
from a canoe. They are clumsy looking creatures, but as
Dr. W. T. Ilornaday says: "they are the most daring
climbers of all of the American hoofed animals, and the
small, angular, compact hoofs, which are an ingenious
combination of rubber pad inside and knife edge outside,
hold them equally well on snow, ice or bare rock, so that
they can cross walls of rock which neither man, dog, nor
mountain sheep, would dare attempt to pass; and thus
in spite of their natural stupidity they generally escape
from hunters who seek to destroy them, as an evi-
dence of their prowess rather than for any beauty or
commercial value they possess."

Dr. Hornaday believes that some of the species of our
North American animals were acquired by immigration
from the Old World. He says: "It requires no stretch
of the imagination to behold Bering Strait choked with
the great Polar ice pack, and hardy, strong-built boars,
wolves, mountain sheep, and reindeer crossing over the
sixty miles that now separate Asia from Alaska, and
spreading in all directions over North America. I fully
believe that the parent stock of our mountain sheep,
caribou, moose, wolves and bears came from Asia by that
route." Possibly the presence of the Rocky Mountain
Goat on this continent can be accounted for in the same
way.

330 The Musk Ox

THE MUSK OX.

Possessing the teeth of a Sheep, and the horns of a
bull, and intermediate between the sheep and the ox in size
and some other characteristics, the Musk Ox (Ovibos-mus-
chatus), is given a distinct genus midway between the two.
It is about two-thirds of the size of the American Bison,
but owing to its heavy coat of long hairs looks much larger
than it really is. Although it has a musky odor, there is no
special gland as in the Musk Deer and other musky ani-
mals. Both sexes have horns, those on the male being very
broad and meeting in the middle of the forehead, from
where they curve downward and backward beside the head
for most of their length, and then upward and forward.
The hair is amber brown, long and fine, hanging down
along the sides like that on a merino sheep so as to cover
the short tail and upper half of the short, massive legs;
but on the shoulders it is matted and curly, giving the
appearance of a hump. The hoofs are remarkably sym-
metrical, the outer half being rounded, while the inner
is pointed; the sole of the foot is hairy. The head is
massive and the small ears are concealed by the hair, and
the space between the nostrils and the upper lip is also
covered with short, close hair.

The Musk Ox is fleet, active aild hardy, and sometimes
makes extended migrations, traveling in bands of a dozen
or more. Its present habitat is in Arctic America, north
of the sixtieth degree of latitude; but fossilized remains
show that it was at one time circumpolar, and that its range
on the American continent extended as far south as Ken-
tucky and Kansas. This would indicate that at some time
the whole of North America was much colder than it is at
present.

The long fine hair of the Musk Ox has at times been
woven into fine soft fabrics, but now it is too expensive to
be used for that purpose, and at present the skins are only
used for robes. The meat of this animal is coarse grained,
but juicy and tender, and very palatable if the carcass is
dressed as soon as killed so it will not take on a musky
flavor.

Ungulata 331

THE OX.

'* Stupid as an ox" is an expression full of meaning
when applied to domesticated species of cattle that are
only fattened to be destroyed. As Professor David Low
says, in his Domesticated Animals of the British Islands,
''Nature is sparing of her mental gifts, giving to each
creature only that which is fit for its condition." What
benefit would consciousness of danger, docility, or the
knowledge of what is good for it, be to a creature that
only lives to be tied to a stall, or driven to the pasture
to be fattened for the slaughter-house?

''The wild Oxen that have never been reduced to
slavery, or those who on the fertile plains and in the wilder-
ness have regained their liberty, are altogether different
creatures from the apathetic beasts of burden that their
domesticated kin have become. They are wary in danger,
resolute in defending themselves, and fearless in protect-
ing the helpless members of their herds. When the
Hottentots still had a country they could call their own,
and were rich in the possession of vast numbers of cattle,
chosen oxen guarded their flocks and herds, and pro-
tected them from marauders and the Hyaenas and other
beasts of prey; and so great was the intelligence of
these creatures that while any inhabitant of the Kraal
could safely approach their charges, a stranger attempt-
ing to do so would have been in great danger of his life.
Not only were they taught to be the guardians and pro-
tectors of the flocks of their owners, but some of them
were trained for war until they caught the spirit of their
masters, and in the clash of contending hosts rushed
upon the opposing ranks, and trampled the enemy under
their feet, and gored them with their horns."

Although Domestic Cattle are all spoken of as belonging
to one species (Bos-taurus), instead of springing from
one common source, now extinct, there are really many local
races, produced by artificial selection from various wild
species. The seventeen distinct breeds on the British
Islands, many of which have been introduced into this
country, are so different from one another that if they
were wild animals they would be divided into a number

332 Domestic Cattle.

of distinct species ; even if the dairy cattle, the beef oxen,
and the animals valued for their hides alone, were not
each assigned to a separate genus.

Spanish writers say, that the origin of the vast herds
of cattle which cover the plains of Paraguay and other
parts of South America, can be traced back to several
cows and a bull that arrived at the City of Assumption
from Andalusia in 1556. AVhether this is literally true
may be questioned, but it is certain that the European
cattle, whatever may have been their original number,
multiplied amazingly in their new habitat, and now
extend in countless multitudes to the northward from
the southern boundaries of the La Plata over a ter-
ritory stretching from the Atlantic to the Cordilleras.
In the beautiful country between the Andes mountains
and the Pacific coast the oxen are reared in a state of
domestication, but west of the mountains they have
entirely escaped from the dominion of man, and are
hunted by the Gauchos of the country solely for their
hides, the carcasses being left upon the fields to rot or
to be devoured by the vultures and beasts of prey.

The Galloway oxen are a polled Scottish breed of
obscure origin, but are believed to have been descended
from the West Highland Kyloes. They are characterized
by their short limbs. The typical color of this species is
black, but brown and reddish specimens are frequent.
The hair is long and thick, especially in the winter, and
the skins of the calves make warm and sightly as well
as serviceable coats for men, the main objection to them
being their weigh-t, for while they are soft to the touch
the skins are thick and heavy. Undoubtedly many of
the coats sold as Galloways are made from the skins of
other varieties of calves that are probably just as good
for the purpose as the one that has been favored by the
furriers.

The skins of still-born young cattle of various breeds,
known as "Yetta" skins, are sometimes worked up by
the furriers into coats and even suits for women, but
cattle are chiefly prized for their food value, and the
various bi-products that are obtained from different parts
of the body. The skins or hides are mainly used for
making: leather.

333

THE CAMEL.

Many portions of the Orient would be uninhabitable
but for the single-humped Arabian Camel or Dromedary
and the Bacterian Camel with two humps, now known only
in their domesticated state; for they are not only "the
ships of the desert," but the source to which the natives
look for their supply of milk, flesh and hides, and the
hair which is a valuable article of trade.

Much could be written about the ability of these
animals to carry great burdens, and to travel many days
without drink, because of the reserve supply of water
they can carry in their peculiarly constructed cellular
stomachs; but our present interest is with the represen-
tatives of the Llama genus of the Camelidae family
sometimes called Cameloids. The Camelus however seems
to be the one genus that has gone on through the cen-
turies without changing from its original form, but is
the same today as it was before it bore the ''Wise Men
of the East" across the desert with their gifts of gold,
frankincense and myrrh.

The Alpaca is so closely allied to the Llama as to be
regarded by some as a smaller variety of that animal,
rather than a distinct species. It exists both in a dom-
esticated and wild state, and is found in its native state
in the Andes Mountains, especially in Chili and Peru.
It has a longer neck, but otherwise resembles the sheep
in form as well as size although it belongs to the Camel
family. The long, soft wool of this animal, which is
straighter than that of the sheep and very shiny, is woven
into beautiful silky fabrics, but most of the fabrics sold
as alpaca today contain little if any alpaca, being made
of a mixture of cotton and different wools.

The Llama (Lama-peruana) has an extremely long neck,
and stands from three to four feet high. The dense hair
of the adult is long and coarse, but that on the young
Llamas is soft and silky. Its wool is used to some
extent, but in Peru; where it is most abundant, the Llama
is used by the natives as a beast of burden. The usual color
is white, black or brown; the legs being black on both
the black and brown varieties.

334 Ungulata.

The Vicuna (Lama-vicugna), sometimes called the Vi-
cuna Sheep, is another representative of the Camel fam-
ily found in South America, principally in the southern
portion. The Vicuna is a light fawn color with a white
belly, and has a short tufted fawn colored tail. The wool
is long and thick, with longer hairs projecting through it
at intervals, and is well adapted for the manufacture of
woolen cloth ; the skins of the Vicuna being soft and
light would be used for sleigh robes to a greater extent
than they are if they were less expensive.

When the Vicuna stands with its two and a half foot
neck extended it measures about six feet from the head
to the ground. It is generally hunted by horsemen with
bolos.

The Guanaco (Llama-huanacus), the most valuable ani-
mal of the Lama genus, is as stupid as it is interesting.
It is so incapable of defending itself that the natives of
Terra del Fuego, slaughter Guanacos for food by sur-
rounding groups of them and simply clubbing them to
death. In size it is between the Llama and Vicuna,
standing about four feet at the shoulders. The thick,
woolly hair is a pale reddish brown or fawn color, but
there are naked patches of skin on the legs.

The Guanaco is a quaint animal, and probably really
belongs in the same species as the Vicuna. It has a pe-
culiar cry, between the belling of a deer and the neigh-
ing of a horse. It is very abundant on the Patagonian
plains, where its two principal enemies are the Patagon-
ian Indians and the Puma, as it is the principal food of
both. The skin is also of great value to the Patagonians,
as their long robes are made from it. In commerce it is
chiefly used for sleigh robes, but in this day of artistic
improvement there is no telling under what name or in
what guise it will appear next.

The Antelopes. 335

THE ANTELOPE.

The only representatives of the Antelope family, with its
many beautiful, curious and interesting species, that can
by any stretch of the imagination be brought within the
scope of this work are :

The Indian Antelope (Antilope-cervicapra), whose skins
are occasionally used by furriers for various purposes ; The
Spring-Bock (Gazella-euehore), which is found in Southern
Africa, and whose skins make good glove leather; The
Gnu, or Wildebeest (Connochoetes-taurina), the quaint
South African animal, with the hoofs of a stag, the head of
a bison, the horns of a buffalo, and the tail of a horse,
which was once sought for its hide, but is now only valued
because it can be broke to the plow; and The Chamois
(Rupicapra-tragus), which lends its name to the skins
sometimes used by furriers for intermediate linings, and
the pockets in fine garments.

None of these are of sufficient importance commercially
to call for extended mention here, unless it may possibly
be the Chamois, which, to quote from the Official Guide to
the New York Zoological Park, ^'has its home in the moun-
tains of Southern Europe, especially the Pyrenees, the
Swiss Alps and the Caucasus; and is the animal so often
pictured as leaping from crag to crag, across chasms
apparently two hundred feet wide; but it is not exclu-
sively a crag dw^eller, for in many localities it inhabits
the mountain forests. Like most other mountain ungu-
lates, the Chamois dwell high in summer, and in the win-
ter they seek lower and more sheltered situations. They
are exceedingly wary and agile, and sure-footed on dan-
gerous ground."

The Chamois are about three feet long, and have small
almost vertical horns that turn backwards and down at
the tips.

In beauty the Sable Antelope (Hippotragus-niger) of
Africa, surpasses all other species. Some claim, however,
that the purple and white Blessbok (Bubalis-albifrons),
that seems to have about disappeared since the Boer
War, was its superior in this respect, even though it

336 Ungulata.

lacked the impressive presence and the intelligent air
that together with its shapely horns and glossy black and
white coat, make the Sable Antelope conspicuous in a
family noted for the grace and beauty of its representa-
tives.

Sable Antelope

All Antelopes have true horns and with the exception
of a single species belong to one family. The Prong-Ham
Antelope (Antilocapra-americana), now rapidly becoming
extinct, is the only animal possessing a hollow horn with a
prong, and the only hollow-horned animal that sheds its
horns each year. It also lacks the "dew claws" possessed
by all other ruminants, and has long tubular hair on the
neck and body, that is erectile on the rump. Its horns are
placed directly over the eyes.

The Deer Family. 337

THE DEER FAMILY.

There are many species of deer. Strictly speaking
none of them are fur bearing animals, but some of them
are noticed here because they are as familiar to most of us
as the Dogs and Cats that are the household pets in so
many homes. They are of commercial importance on
account of the value of their horns, hair and hides, the
service they can be trained to render to mankind, and
the food v^^ith which they supply him; to say nothing
of their effect upon subsidiary wild life, or the use the
natives of their various habitats make of the skins of the
deer for clothing and other purposes.

The East India Deer (Cervus-axis), whose antlers are
used in the manufacture of knife handles and whose skins
make excellent leather, are sometimes used by the furriers
in making foot muffs. It is an abundant animal, which
inhabits India and Ceylon. It is a beautiful and graceful
creature with numerous white spots upon its light brown
coat which on the belly change into white lines.

It is characteristic of the axis, which in India is also
known as the chital, that the three points on the antlers
are thrown forward, with the exception of the second
tine which points backwards. It is generally found
among bushes or trees in the neighborhood of water, and
in bamboo jungles, either on the plains or at an elevation
of three to four thousand feet. The Axis are gregarious
and good swimmers, taking readily to the water.

There is great variation as regards the pairing sea-
son and the shedding of antlers, bucks with fully devel-
oped antlers, and young fawns, being met with at all sea-
sons.

The Fallow Deer (Dama-vulgaris) is the best known
of all the deer family. It is found in the greater part of
Europe, and has a light brown body spotted with white.
The inside of the legs is a beautiful fawn color, and the
black tail is tipped and edged with white. In some speci-
mens, that have no white markings on the tail, the legs
and points are brown and the general color of the body

338 Ungulata.

is almost black. The Fallow Deer is larger and heavier
than the Axis, and has a short, well formed head with full
round nose and expressive eyes. The antlers are rather
palmated at the top and are usually turned backwards.
The antlers are shed in April, and the bucks get rid of the
velvet on the new ones in August, by striking them against
the branches of the trees. The pairing season is in Sep-
tember, and the does bring forth one or two young ilt
May. This is the species usually seen in zoological parks.

The White Tailed Virginia Deer (Cariacus-virginianus),

was formerly widely distributed through North America,
and is still found in Montana and Alaska. It has short
bristly hair of a light grey color, sometimes marked with
small spots, especially on the hind quarters. The antlers
have an abundance of points and are small, branched and
curved abruptly forward.

The skins are used largely in the manufacture of
leather leggings.

The Black Tailed or Mule Deer (Cariacus-marcrotis),

is another North American species and derives its name
from the length of its ears. It is larger than the Virginia
Deer, and its color is reddisli brown. The principal hab-
itat of the Mule Deer is from Montana north and west to
the Pacific coast. Its skins are largely used by German
leather manufacturers.

The Red Deer (Cervus-elaphus), inhabits France, Ger-
many and Norway, and is still occasionally seen in the
British Islands, where it was at one time very abundant
and extensively hunted. Next to the Wapiti, the European
Red Deer is the finest living deer in the world. The stags
are of a brownish red color, with a dark mark along the
center of the back, and dark brown legs, and whitish or
light brown tail and buttocks.

The head of the stag is beautifully formed and pointed,
and has a lighter shade of color around the under jaw
and the large expressive dark brown eyes; the hind is
lighter in color and weight than the stag, and has a more
pointed nose. The hinds usually consort with the stag in
the second year, and, as a rule, produce but one calf at a
time. The young ones remain with the hinds until they
are nearly two years old, although they are, of course, able

The Deer Family. 339

to take care of themselves much earlier. The pairing sea-
son begins in October and the period of gestation is about
eight months. The calf at birth is white spotted like a fal-
low deer, and remains so for the first three or four months ;
after that the spots gradually disappear and the true color
of the Red Deer asserts itself.

The male sheds his antlers in March, and the new ones
begin to grow in April ; as is the case with all deers he eats
freely while they are developing, and by the time new
antlers are complete and hardened in September he is very
sleek and fat. He does not long continue so, for during
the rutting season when many fierce combats occur be-
tween the males he does not eat and becomes very thin.

Until the stag is full grown, which is in ten years, the
points on the autlers increase year by year.

The skins of Red Deer make excellent leather, and the
antlers are used in the manufacture of knife handles,
etc. In ancient times the antlers were used as picks and
hammers.

340 The Ungulata.

TRUE HORNS AND ANTLERS.

Antlers are worn by the female cariboos and nearly
every male member of the deer family, and usually have
several branches. They are solid modifications of true
bone grov^n from the skull, that are shed every year and
quickly renewed. They are of all shapes and sizes, from
the simple spikes of some species to the immense branched
or palmated antlers of the stag, elk or moose. During
growth they are covered with a velvety tissue that is
furry outside, and abounding in blood cells which afford a
copious supply of blood to the rapidly enlarging osseous
tissue. When the antlers are fully developed the vascular
activity of the velvety ^tissue fceaJses, and the velvet
shrivels and peels or is rubbed off by the animal. The old
antlers are usually shed in March, and the velvet dis-
appears from the fully developed new antlers just before
the mating season in August or September.

In the first year a stag has only frontal protuberances;
in the second a simple stem or snag, called a spike;
in the third year a larger stem with one branch, called
the brow antler, is developed. The bay antler is produced
the fourth year, and the royal antler is acquired in the
fifth year. After that the horns of the stag become more
or less palmate, with diverging points. The main stem
of a branched antler is called the beam, and the branches,
exclusive of the mere points on the palmated part, are
called tines.

Horns, as before stated, are hollow sheaths growing
over bony cores, and except in the case of the prong-
horn are never shed. They are worn by both sexes of
most species of Bison, Buffaloes, Cattle, Antelopes, Sheep
and Goats. True Horns arise from the frontal bones of
the skull.

341

THE WAPITI.

The Wapiti (Cervus-canadensis), the largest Deer on the
globe, exists only in North America, where it is often
erroneously called the Elk. Large herds of this animal
formerly ranged throughout the continent, but it has be-
come reduced in numbers, and its range has been re-
stricted. Now it is seldom seen anywhere except in Wash-
ington, Oregon, California, Montana, Wyoming, and on
Vancouver's Island; the largest herd remaining outside
of the Yellowstone Park, being found in the Olympic
Mountains in Washington and on the mountains on Van-
couver's Island.

The Wapiti stands from five to six feet high, and al-
though large males sometimes exceed a thousand pounds
in weight, the usual weight is about seven hundred pounds,
and full grown females often weigh less than four hun-
dred pounds. The color is dark brown on the head and
neck, a creamy grey on the back, flanks and sides, and
black on the under parts of the body. The legs are brown,
and there is a light patch bordered with black on the
buttocks.

The full grown stag is really a magnificent creature,
symmetrical in form, and remarkable for the graceful ease
with which he carries the immense antlers. These some-
times attain to a length of sixty inches and over, and in
the fifth year develop five points each, but after that
period the number increase irregularly so that in older
animals there are often more snags on one antler than the
other. The hinds are smaller and lighter in color than
the males, and have a more pointed nose, and fine, large,
plaintive eyes. The young are born in May, a single fawn
usually being produced at a birth, but occasionally two
appear.

The general habits of the Wapiti are very similar to
those of the Eed Deer to which scientists say it belongs.
The old stag lives apart from the main herd during the
greater part of the year ; and in the pairing season after
having vanquished his rivals in a fight takes pos-
session of a party of hinds. At the breeding season

342 llNGUIiATA.

the Wapiti desert the lower hills to take refuge in the
higher ranges, getting as near as possible to the snow line
without leaving the upper belt of the forest. The hinds
leave the herds, and the fawns are born in the most se-
cluded thickets. The antlers are shed late in December or
early in January, and the new antlers begin to sprout in
March or April, and are complete by August. At this time
the call of the old stag has such a resemblance to the
bray of a donkey that the old traders in the Rocky Moun-
tains called it the ''Jackass Deer."

Unlike most of the Deer the Wapiti do not feed at
night, but eat during the day, very much after the man-
ner of the Moose ; but they are not particular as to what
they eat, consuming the coarsest grasses and w^eeds as
freely as the leaves and tender shoots of deciduous trees.
In the winter, when they are pressed for food, they will
even gnaw the bark off the trees.

The skins of the Wapiti are used for leather, and the
antlers for ornamental purposes. The antlers are worth
from twenty-five to seventy-five dollar a pair.

The Moose or Elk. 343

THE MOOSE OR ELK.

(Alces-machlis)

The distinction between the Moose and the Elk is one of
locality and not of species. The Elk of the Old World and
the Moose of the New are so similar in formation, nature,
distinguishing characteristics and habits, that in considering
one we get a perfect description of the other. Long before
the Moose was discovered in America, the Elk was hunted
in every part of the British Islands, the continent of Eur-
ope and Northern Asia; but it is rapidly diminishing in
numbers, although it is still found in Norway and Sweden,
Eastern Prussia, and in parts of Russia and Siberia.

The Moose is valued by the hunters and trappers prin-
cipally for its flesh and horns, as its hide is inferior to that
of other wild animals. It is the largest living representa-
tive of the Deer family, and is characterized by the length
of its limbs, its short neck, long flapping ears, and the
length and narrowness of its head, the ungainly aspect of
which is greatly increased by the large nostrils, and the
large hairy overhanging muzzle. The front legs are con-
siderably longer than the hind ones, and as the Moose stands
six feet from the ground at the shoulder it cannot, owing
to its short neck, feed from the ground, but subsists on
shrubs, and the leaves and tender branches of the trees.

In his description of the Moose, Richard Lydecker says :
''The antlers, instead of emerging from the forehead at
an acute angle with its middle line, and inclining forward,
as is the case with all living representatives of the genus
Cervus, project on either side at right angles to the mid-
dle line of the forehead and on the same plane as its surf-
ace. Their basal position consists of a short cylindrical
beam without any tine, and beyond this beam they
expand into an enormous basin-like palmation containing
snags on the outer edge. The antlers of a fine specimen
may weigh as much as sixty pounds, and have a span of
sixty-five inches, a length along the palmation of forty-
one inches, and a ridge across the same of forty-eight
inches." The antlers of the male do not attain their full
dimensions until the ninth year. The female and the

344 Ungulata.

yearling male show only knobs an inch high. The tail of
the Moose is a mere rudiment, and the feet have large and
shapely pointed hoofs.

The bull Moose is much larger than the female, and has
a hair-covered appendage on the throat, formed by the di-
latation of the skin, varying from four to ten inches in
length.

The Moose is found throughout Canada, and in Maine
and Minnesota and the northern part of the Rocky Moun-
tains. The Alaskan Moose of the Yukon Valley is un-
doubtedly the largest form of its genus, and has lately been
classed as a separate species (Alces-gigas).

The Moose feed from early dawn till sunrise, when
they repose till ten or eleven o 'clock ; then they feed again
till about two, when they take another resting spell until
four or five o 'clock, after which they feed until dusk, when
they lay down for the night. In summer they are solitary
in their habits, wandering alone in the neighborhood of
swamps, rivers or lakes ; but in winter they gather in small
parties in what are termed moose yards, which are always
located in some part of the country where there is an abun-
dant growth of deciduous trees such as white birch, maple,
poplar and mountain ash, which with the shoots of the
evergreen, balsam fir and juniper, form the diet of the
moose.

The antlers of the Moose are shed during January, and
the new pair are fully developed by August. The hair of
the Moose is coarse and with the exception of the yel-
lowish legs generally of some shade of brown, but during
some seasons and at certain ages the pelage may be of a
greyish hue. The favorite pace of the Moose is a long,
swinging trot. The slaughter of these animals when
imprisoned in their yard in winter is prohibited by law.
The three legitimate methods of capturing them are :
stalking or still hunting, fire hunting and calling.

The Caribou or Reindeer. 345

THE REINDEER OR CARIBOU.

The word Caribou applied to the American Reindeer, is
a contraction or corruption of the name "caire boeuf " —
square ox — given this animal by the French Canadians
when it was first discovered in America.

The Woodland variety (Rangifer-caribou), which
stands about four and one-half feet at the shoulders, and
weighs from three hundred and fifty to four hundred
pounds, is found in Labrador, northern Canada, Maine,
Minnesota, northern Idaho and Montana, Oregon in the
neighborhood of Mt. Hood, British Columbia, and south-
ern Alaska to the head waters of the Yukon River. It
is twice the size of the barren ground Caribou (Rangifer-
groenlandicus), whose habitat in the summer is confined
to Greenland and the barren arctic wastes north of the
forest regions of North America, but which in winter
makes extensive migrations into the territory of the
Woodland Caribou, but even when living in the same
district the two species do not intermingle.

In its wild state the Caribou, like the European Rein-
deer (Rangifer-tarandus), lives on mosses, leaves, grass
and aquatic plants, its great resource being lichens. Like
the European variety, the American Reindeer is an ani-
mal of great speed and endurance, "frequenting marshy
and swampy grounds, and loving ice-covered lakes and
ponds as much as any boy/' Caribous are so shy they are
difficult animals to stalk, but they can be easily killed by
the hunter who, taking advantage of the wind, shoots as
they pass along on their migrations, when they travel in
herds and are not as shy and wary as when wandering
singly.

But little is known about the breeding habits of the
Reindeer, though it is understood that the "barren
grounds" Caribou pairs in winter, and the Woodland
species in September. The antlers of the bucks are shed in
December, but the small antlers with which the does are
provided do not fall until the spring. The fawns are
produced in Ma.y, and are either one or two in number.

346 Ungulata.

The Reindeer is invaluable to the inhabitants of the Arc-
tic regions in Europe, Asia^and America. It was formerly
abundant in Scotland. In Norway there are still thou-
sands of domesticated reindeer on the farms, the males
being harnessed and used for sledding and draught pur-
poses and the females yielding an abundance of milk. The
domesticated breed, which is smaller than the wild race,
is also found in Siberia and Lapland. The flesh of the
Reindeer is excellent eating, the tongue and kidney being
considered great delicacies.

The Old World Reindeer (Rangifer-tarandus), stands
from three to four feet high, and is buff or brown in color,
lighter on the belly and head than the back; in Labrador
it is almost white, and pure white specimens are met with
in Lapland. Mottled animals are sometimes seen in Rus-
sia. The hair is abundant, bristly and brittle, affording an
excellent protection from the arctic cold, and its broad
feet enable it to walk with ease on the snow. The antlers
are peculiar and vary in formation, no two pair being alike,
but they always curve forward, and usually consist of two
branches radiating into many points. The majority of the
males have a brow antler, which is a triangular piece of
bone shaped like a spatula and hanging over the nose, and
it is claimed that they use this antler to scrape the snow
away from the moss on which they feed. The females have
antlers as well as the males.

The hair of the Reindeer is* said to have floating qualities
superior to cork, and life belts and buoys are sometimes
made of it. The Eskimos make coats and sleeping bags,
which are both light and impervious to the cold, from the
skins, but in Europe they are generally used for leather.

In Russia, the skins of the younger animals are made
into linings, called Pijiky, which are light, warm and
durable.

347

THE GOAT FAMILY.

Goats do not generally range as far north as the sheep,
but they live at higher altitudes and incline to the steep
cliffs and mountain regions, where their remarkable
climbing powers enable them to speed where other ani-
mals could scarcely get a foot hold. They connect the
antelope with the sheep, which they approach so closely
in their internal organization that many authorities be-
lieve that they should be considered as belonging to the
same family, although they are of widely differing
natures and appearance.

The Goat even when enslaved is restless, bold and
independent, fearlessly facing the enemies who assail it,
and is always familiar and capricious, wandering at' will
away from its fellows to seek the crags where the shrubs
it craves are to be found.

Goats all have hard callosities on their knees, short
tails, hairy muzzles, and a more or less distinct beard
upon the chin of the males, who are further characterized
by a strong odor. In the few cases where foot glands
are present they are found only on the forefeet. Both
sexes have horns, those of the males rising close together
on the head above the plane of the forehead, and grow-
ing upward and backward to a considerable length, but
seldom showing the spiral twist which is a characteristic
of the horns of all sheep except the Ovis-tragelaphus.
Goats show no gland pits in the skull below the eyes, and
the outline of the face instead of being curved like that
of the sheep is straight; like the latter they are covered
Avith a mixture of wool and hair, but in the sheep the
wool forms the essential covering for the body, while in
the goat the hair predominates.

All wild goats are frequently spoken of as Ibexes,
but that name rightly belongs only to the few species
with long, flat, mottled scimetar-like horns, dwelling in
the Himalayas, and on the higher mountains of South
Eastern Europe, Syria, Arabia, and Abysinriia. The
Ibexes all have a uniform coloration, varying with age
and the season from a grizzly grey to various shades of

348 Ungulata.

brown, the color always being lighter on the throat, belly
and the inside of their legs than elsewhere. They pair
in midwinter, and the young, two at a birth, are born in
the early summer. The type species is the Alpine Ibex
(Capra-ibex).

With the exception of the Caucassian Tur, and the
Spanish Capramontes, all the different races of True Wild
Goats are confined to some of the mountainous regions
of North Western Africa, and Central Asia. They are
strong, agile and sure footed animals, preferring the
leaves and small branches of shrubs for food to the
richest pasture.

At one time the Ibex was believed to be the ancestor
of all the many breeds of common goats, and later
scientists claimed that the Pesang (Capra-aegagrus) was
the wild stock from which the type representatives of
the domesticated goat were descended ; but the probability
is that the common goats were derived not from one but
from a number of wild species; for not only do goats
of different countries differ from one another, but there
often exist in the same country, and under the same
climatic and food conditions, races so divergent that it
is impossible to believe that they have come down from
the same stock. ''The Black Syrian Goat, with its con-
vex face and udders hanging to the ground, is as different
from the other domesticated goats of that country as
the Jackal is from the Wolf; and the little goats from
the coast of Guinea have been acclimated in America for
more than a hundred years, without making the least
approach to those carried to the same country at different
times from Europe."

There are several varieties of the Angora Goat, which
is noted for the length and quality of the soft silky white
hair which covers the w^hole of the body and the greater
part of its legs, and which is of much more value to the
manufacturers of fabrics than the short coarse under
wool which is beneath it. Some of the skins are used by
furriers to make children 's sets and baby carriage robes ;
and at times there is also a demand for Angora fringe
or trimming, either dyed or in the natural glossy white
color. During the cold season Angora Goats are kept in
stables, but throughout the rest of the year are allow^ed

The Goat Family. 349

to roam at large in immense herds, each buck being
accompanied by about one hundred ewes. They are shorn
in April. This species is believed by some to be a direct
descendant of the Wild Himalayan Markhor (Capra-
falconis), which is distinguished from all other goats by
its upwardly directed, spiral twisted, horns, and the great
extension of the beard on its throat and shoulders. The
Markhor stands about three feet and a half high, and is
reddish brown in summer and grey in the winter. Its
beard always being black in front and grey behind.

The Cashmere or Tibet Goat, is distinguished by its
delicate head, long, wide half pendulous ears, and slightly
spiral erect horns w^hich in some cases incline inward to
such an extent as to cross. In this animal it is the under
wool that is of commercial value, being used in the manu-
facture of shawls and certain kinds of cloth. This wool
falls off at certain seasons of the year, when it is removed
from the body of the animal with combs, the long hairs
being undisturbed.

Goat raising is an important industry in different parts
of the Chinese Empire, and hundreds of thousands of
Chinese Goat skins are worked up by furriers annually
into rugs, robes, coats and other articles of fur wear.
The main objection to goat skins is their odor, which how-
ever is not so noticeable in the skins of the females and
of younger animals. Only the skins of the very young
are shipped in their natural shape, the others being sewed
into crosses and rugs before they are baled for
export. The Chinese Goats show considerable variation
in color, but grey predominates. A large percentage of
the skins are dyed black before being used, and some of
the still-born kids are hard to distinguish from Moire
Astrachans when they come from the dyers, but where
there has been any growth it is generally easy to detect
the goat, no matter what name may be used to hide its
identity.

The skins of many varieties of goats that cannot be used
by the furriers make fine leather, especially those from
INIorocco ; and there is a demand everywhere for kid skins
for the manufacture of gloves.

350 Ungulata.

THE HORSE.

Horse is a word often applied to any member of the
type species of the Equidse family without regard to sex
or age; but strictly speaking the adult male Horse should
be called a stallion ; the matured female a mare ; the female
foal, a filly; and the male foal, a colt. Pony is a general
term for all small horses, and a gelding is a castrated male
horse.

The Horse was probably first domesticated in Asia, long
before it was historically mentioned in Egypt nineteen
hundred years before Christ. The original wild representa-
tive of the species which was at one time found in all parts
of Asia and Europe, was of a uniform yellowish grey color,
ninch smaller but stronger than the breeds that have been
descended from it.

It is hard to believe that the single-toed slender
Arabian steeds, huge draft horses and diminutive Shet-
land ponies all trace their origin back to a common
several-toed ancestor scarcely larger than a fox, and
presenting few of the features that have since made the
Horse the most remarkable of all quadrupeds. It is
evident that there must have been a sustained effort all
through the centuries to increase the size of the species
by artificial selection, and the different structural charac-
teristics referred to are probably largely due to difference
in food and climate. In the moist temperate regions
where the herbage is rank and plentiful, the speed which
is the characteristic of the breeds reared in hot dry
southern countries where food is scarce, gives places to
strength ; and powerful draught horses are just as natural
a result in Flanders, as racers are on the Arabian deserts.
The smaller relative size of the Norway, Iceland and
Shetland ponies is due entirely to the colder temperature
of their habitat.

Horses quickly adapt themselves, to new conditions and
circumstances, and can be readily tamed and broke, but
it is an interesting fact that if turned loose they will
revert to their wild or natural state as quickly as they
were domesticated. This probably accounts for the im-
mense herds of half-wild ponies that range the Kirghiz
Steppes, and other portions of Asia.

The Horse 351

The brain of the horse is small, but all the members of
the family are noted for their sagacity, intelligence and
tenacious memories; while their timidity, desire to be
first in a race, their conduct on the battlefield, their
resentment of injury and appreciation of kindness, all
show that their emotional nature is also highly developed.

It is now generally conceded that the Tarpans of
Asia, like the mustangs of the North American plains,
the Cumarans of South America and the Brumbies of
the Australian Bush, are the descendants of reverted
domestic horses, and that the only living wild horse today
is the Equus Prejevalsky of the sand deserts of Central
Asia, and there seems to be a question as to whether that
is a valid species of the true horse, or an intermediate
between the horses and asses. In either case it is of
little value from a commercial or utilitarian standpoint.

Of all the various species of partly or wholly domes-
ticated horses in different parts of the world, only one
variety has any value as a fur-bearing animal, and it
was less than ten years ago that furriers began to recog-
nize the beauty of the moire marked skins of the foals
of the so-called Eussian ponies. These hardy animals,
resulted from the mixing of escaped domestic horses with
the Tarpans, and in spite of the way the young have been
slaughtered by the Kamuck and Kirghiz tribes, so that
the milk of the mares could be secured for the manufac-
ture of Koumyss, they have multiplied until it is esti-
mated that there are now over 10,000,000 of these animals
on the 850 square miles of sterile, stony and streamless
plains or Steppes between the Volga, Chinese Turkestan,
the Alutan Mountains and the Caspian Sea, and that the
marketing of upwards of 200,000 skins annually the last
few years, while it has been a source of revenue to the
nomadic tribes who sold them has in no way threatened
the destruction of the herds.

At first the skins were used almost entirely in their
natural state for automobile coats, but when it was
discovered that they would take the black dye so as to
look like broadtail, pony coats for all kinds of wear
became so desirable and popular that for a time the
skins trebled and quadrupled in value, and for some

352 • Ungulata

years the natives killed the foals immediately after birth,
sparing only the number necessary for the proper con-
servation of the species. The result was an increase in
the supply, which caused a decline in the price of the
skins of the ' ' Kirgisenpf erd, " as it is called by the
Germans. The color ranges from a clear white to a rich
blue-brown; the hair on some of the skins being as flat
and silky as the finest broadtail, and on others as shaggy
and harsh as the coarest astrachan.

In the Equidae family are included besides the
Horse, the now extinct Quagga, which scientists claim
was the connecting* link between the horse and the Wild
Asses, the Zebra and the Tapirs. Wild Asses are found
in Asia, Syria, and Africa ; the African species being the
ancestor of the domestic breeds. Sir Samuel Baker said :
''Those who have seen donkeys only in their civilized
state can have no conception of the beauty and courage
of the wild and original animal. It is the perfection of
activity, has a high-bred tone of deportment, and a high
actioned step, when it trots freely over the sands with
the speed of a race horse galloping over the boundless
desert."

Zebras were once very numerous, but are now reduced
in numbers, and found only in Africa south of the Sahara
Desert. They stand about four feet high, have short
manes and a creamy white ground color marked with
broad brown or black stripes.

The Tapir, which is often spoken of as the ancestor of
the horse, is one of the most ancient of the odd-toed
ungulates. All of the living species are included in one
genus — (Tapirus), and with the exception of one variety
found on the Malayan Peninsula, they are restricted to
the forest regions of the Andes Mountains in America,
but at one time they were also spread over the
Northern Hemisphere. With the exception of the Malayan
species, which is white on the middle of the body, all
Tapirs are uniformly black when adult, but the
young are all spotted and striped with white. They are
shy, harmless, nocturnal animals, living near the water
in which they delight to swim.

353

THE SHEEP FAMILY.

No animal is of greater service to mankind than the
Sheep. Poland rightly says that what the American
Bison was to the North American Indian, and what the
Reindeer is to the Laplander, the Sheep is to all the in-
habitants of every portion of the world. Clothing, and
lanoline and other by-products, are made from its wool;
gloves, shoes and innumerable useful and ornamental ar-
ticles are made from its skin, and nearly every part of its
body is used for food.

We are told that the Persian, Astrachan, Ukrainer and
other sheep producing the tight curled lambs, whose skins
are becoming more and more valuable every year, are the
result of crossing the native sheep of the various sections
indicated by the names applied to the different lambs,
with the Karakule and Arabi Sheep of the Asiatic desert ;
but the word Arabi is a general rather than a specific
term, and Karakule is a designation applied to all grade
fur producing desert sheep, rather than to any particular
species. The literal meaning of the word is Black Lake,
the name of the place where the Russian traders first went
to buy Sheep from the herders of the Bokhara Desert.

Dr. C. C. Young of Belen, Texas, a breeder of Arabi
desert Sheep, who recently made a hazardous trip to the
land of the Persian Lamb, says: '^The Tartars call the
producer of any valuable fur-bearing sheep Arabi. Arab
in Tartar means black, and it is supposed the name origin-
ated from this source, as the word and the Sheep are un-
known in Arabia. Th^ small Arabi (Ovis-patynra) is
practically extinct, and the one this country has been get-
ting most of its skins from for the last fifty years is the
large Sheep known as the Doozbai.

''When mature, all of the breeds have black, lustrous
hair on the legs, tail, abdomen, face and head; so I de-
cided that the origin of them all must have been a black
animal with a powerful, persistent strain, which had car-
ried its black pigment down through generation after gen-
eration. After a hunt through the traditions and his-

354

Ungulata.

tories of the country, a talk with the special Ambassador
of the Dalai Lama of Thibet, and conferences with a
representative of the Emir of Bokhara, a trip to the very
borders of Afghanistan and a careful search through
desert wastes, I found the origin of the first Persian
Lamb."

''Many years ago there were neither Karakules, Arabis
or Doozbais in Bokhara ; but they had a small Black Sheep
with a wonderfully lustrous fur, and which for some time
after birth was covered with uniform curls. There was
little demand for the fur, and what was used was purchased
by the old monarchs of Europe and Asia.

Arabi Kam

''As the demand increased these little Black Sheep,
known as the Danadar, were crossed with the Koordiuk,
an immense fawn colored desert-roving Sheep, giving us
the Doozbai wdth its beautiful and much tighter curls
than those of the Danadar. The smaller Arabi resulted
from a cross between the Danadar and a small animal
known as the Gray Kooldiuk. From these have descended
the breeds which now produce the Persian Lamb.

The Sheep Family.

355

''It is said that there are a few specimens of the Black
Danadar left in Khiva, but my search in that country
failed to produce any. Chambo Tshorze, Ambassador
from the Dalai Lama, told me there were some Danadars
in a valley near Lhassa in Thibet, but that they were very
few."

For several years the government has been making tests
in Washington, D. C, which have substantiated the claim
advanced by Dr. Young, and other sheep breeders in the
Southwest, that by crossing some of our domestic long-
wool breeds like the Lincolns, Cotswolds, Lestershires and
Dartmores with the strains of the Arabi, or broad tail
Sheep of the Bokharan desert, a fur is produced that is
vastly superior to that of the Persian and other Asiatic
Lambs for whose skins the American people are spending
millions of dollars annually. Dr. Young, in writing for
the Fur Trade Review about his experiments along this
line, says :

Arabi Ewe and Lamb.

''In texture some skins produced by us at Belen and
Conutello, Texas, show an unsurpassable quality, notwith-
standing the poor pasture that we w^ere compelled to graze
our Sheep on ; and I have no hesitancy in predicting that
the dry West and Southwest will in time revolutionize the

356 Ungulata.

Sheep fur industry, for it was no trick for us to produce
skins valued at from eight to twelve dollars in a raw state.
As good nutrition means luster and tightness of curl, still
better results can be obtained in the Northern and Eastern
States, on account of the excellent pasture and the very
nutritious hay that can be secured there."

"When we consider that owing to the lambs being killed
so soon after birth the ewes can safely be allowed to lamb
twice yearly ; that the dead lambs lose none of their meat
value, and that the skins of prematurely born lambs often
bring fabulous prices, it is easy to see that the profits to
be derived from a proper prosecution of this industry will
be large.

While the best results were obtained by Dr. Young in
the first cross of Arabis wath domestic long-wools, the
tight-wool strains, like Merinos, Shropshire, Ramboulets,
etc., have to be bred to the Arabis two or three times, be-
fore producing skins equal in quality to those secured
from the first cross with any of the different varieties of
our long-wool sheep.

The great obstacle to the prosecution of this industry,
is the almost unsurmountable barrier placed in the way
of bringing live Arabi stock into this country, because of
the rigid quarantine the Department of Agriculture has
established against the entire continent of Asia, on ac-
count of the existence of surra in Southwest India, and the
Maltese fever in the Maltese Islands.

Much that has been written about the killing of the
mother to secure the skin of the unborn Persian Lamb is
pure fiction, but it is true that in all the grades and crosses
of the Arabi Sheep it is necessary to kill the Lambs shortly
after birth, in order to prevent the curls from losing their
tightness and luster, and even their color. The black
pigment soon oxidizes and turns brown, and in
eight or ten months becomes grey, which is the natural
color of all mature fur-producing Arabi Sheep. The grey
wool of the mature Arabis, as well as that of all grades
produced from these animals is very coarse, and admir-
ably adapted because of its great length for the weaving
of rugs. Some of the most beautiful Persian and
Bokharan rugs are made from it.

The Sheep Family. 357

The name Persian as applied to lambs is misleading.
As we have seen most of the skins so designated still
come from Bokhara and the surrounding country. It is
the Shiraz, and some of the other grades, that come from
the provinces in Persia from which they derive their
names, that are strictly speaking Persian skins. The word
Persian, therefore, seems to indicate quality rather than
locality, and is applied to certain grades produced
from different strains of the Patyura, and other Arabi
sheep, whether they are obtained on the Bokhara desert
or in Texas.

The Krimmer or Crimean Lamb derives its name from
its habitat — the Crimean Peninsula. While the Astra-
chan, Persian, Ukranier and other Russian and Asiatic
lambs are generally born black, this variety usually
comes into the world with a grey or slate colored fur that
shows considerable variation in the character of the curl.
Krimmer is always more or less in favor for children's
furs, and sometimes is used for trimmings, caps and capes.

Iceland Sheep have a long, beautifully curled wool, and
the white specimens are sometimes sold for Tibet lamb,
but they can easily be distinguished by the dense under-
fur. The predominating colors are white, black, brown
and mottled ; but bluish grey, and black or brown spotted
animals are sometimes met with. This breed is conspicu-
ous because of the number of its horns. It is said that
the sheep are not shorn in Iceland, but that the wool is
pulled off the animals as it becomes loose late in the
spring.

China Sheep are generally coarser than the Iceland
sheep; some, however, have almost as fine wool, but the
hair is always shorter and the curl is smaller.

Slink Lamb is a name given to the skins taken from
the stillborn of the domesticated varieties of sheep, or
those who die or are killed soon after birth. These skins
are used principally for glove and shoe linings.

Sheep are the stupidest as well as the most harmless
and timid of all animals. They are nearly allied to the
Musk Ox by which they are connected with the Bovidae,
but in the Barbary Sheep of Africa (Ovis-tragelaphus)
and the Bharu, or Blue Sheep of Tibet (Ovis-nahura),
they approximate nearer to the goats; in the character of

358 Ungulata.

their molar teeth they so strongly resemble the gazelles
that some authorities think that they may be descended
from some extinct family of antelopes.

The strongest instinct in both wild and domesticated
sheep seems to be an inclination to seek the highest
altitudes; even in a level country the lambs will congre-
gate and contest for the possession of the highest knolls,
and the aged sheep seem as anxious to secure the most
elevated spot in the pasture field where the flock folds
for the night, as the lambkin that can hardly support itself
on its unsteady legs.

In summer sheep feed in flocks and graze very closely;
in the winter they aTe penned, and fed on hay, turnips
and other vegetables. They are extremely liable to a
very infectious foot and mouth disease, and for this
reason most countries establish a rigid quarantine against
the introduction of foreign sheep. The lambs are gener-
ally born in January and February, and are frisky and
frolicsome creatures.

The adult males are called rams, the females ewes, and
the young are known as lambs. Both males and females
are furnished with horns; those of the former being
large and massive at the base, triangular in section, and
curling upwards and backwards, and turning outward
from the side of the head. The horns of the females
are small and narrow. The largest sheep are smaller
than most oxen, and while their necks are comparatively
short they carry their heads higher above the level of
the back. A distinctive feature is a small gland between
the hoofs on each foot.

Domesticated sheep are all classed as one species (Ovis-
aries), and are found in vast numbers in every part of
the world. Sheep washing and shearing has been
practiced from time immemorial. While only a few
breeds are fur producers, the raising of sheep for wool
is an important industry in many lands, particularly in
England and her colonies. The Lincoln and Leicester
sheep have the heaviest fleeces, but the wool of the various
Scotch, Welch and Devonshire breeds is particularly fine,
and that of the super Southdowns is claimed to be the
best produced anywhere

The Sheep Family.

359

In Australia and New Zealand flocks are herded that
number as high as 3,000 individuals, but the larger flocks
are only penned once or twice a year, being allowed to
wander about the rest of the time.

According to some figures published by Poland in 1892,
the total number of domesticated sheep in the world in
1889 was over 500,000,000, of which 43,000,000 were cred-
ited to the United States, 35,000,000 to the United King-
dom, 80,000,000 to Australia and New Zealand, 30,000,000
to Canada, 22,000,000 to France and 16,500,000 to Spain.

The reports of the Census Bureau of the Department
of Commerce and Labor, show that in 1900 the total
number of domesticated sheep on the farms in the United
States was 60,503,713, and in 1910, 52,447,061, a decrease
of 14.4 per cent. The reports of the Department of
Agriculture show, that the total number of sheep on the
farms in this country, in 1913, was 51,482,000, valued at
$202,779,000.

The United States Government reports show that in
1910 the 617,268,700 sheep and lambs in the world were
distributed as follows:

Australia 89,780,000

Tasmania 1,896,281

Kussian Empire . . . 82,672,123

Argentina 67,211,754

United States 51,819,068

Ottoman Empire . . 41,000,000

Great Britain 31,164,547

British South Africa 31,102,467

Uruguay 26,286,296

New Zealand 23,996,126

British India' 21,824,000

China 18,900,000

France 17,357,640

Spain 15,471,183

Austro-IIungary ... 13,991,500

Italy 11,160,000

Algeria 9,632,177

Bulgaria 8,132,000

Germany 7,703,710

Eoumania 5,655,444

Greece 4,570,000

Chile 4,244,000

Mexico 4,424,000

Peru 3,700,000

Servia 3,160,166

Portugal 3,150,000

Peru 3,000,000

Canada 2,598,470

German East Africa 1,560,000

Sudan 1,421,721

Norway 1,378,517

Sweeden 1,024,500

Denmark 1.003,000

Egypt 920,000

Tunis 585,027

Columbia 746,000

Falkland Island . . . 689,000

Netherlands 607,000

Montenegro 496,856

Iceland 495,100

Central America . . 442,950

Brazil 380,000

Cyprus .• 302,000

Belgium 236,000

Switzerland 209,997

Ceylon 96,300

West Indies 51,400

Phillipines 30,400

360 Ungulata.

Of the sheep credited to Great Britain 16,273,518
were in England; 7,144,646 in Scotland; 3,979,516 in Ire-
land ; 3,684,781 in Wales ; and 82,126 on the Isle of Man
and in Jersey and Guernsey. Of the English sheep 1,024,-
934 were in Kent; 1,097,923 in Lincoln; 1,140,913 in
Northumberland; and 923,755 in Devon. The figures show
that there was one sheep for each 2.5 acres of the 17,690,240
acres in the Kingdom of Great Britain, and 1 to each 1.8
acres in England and Wales alone. The United States
had 1.36 sheep for each of its 1,903,461,760 acres. At pres-
ent 57% of the sheep in the United States are in eleven
States west of the Rocky Mountains. In 1840 over 66%
were in six Eastern and Central States: New York hav-
ing 5,119,000; Ohio, 2,028,000; Pennsylvania, 1,768,000;
Vermont, 1,682,000 ; Virginia, 1,294,000 ; Kentucky, 1,008,-
000. The total number of sheep (excluding lambs) on
farms and ranches in the United States in 1860, was
23,975,000; in 1870, 28,478,000 ; in 1880, 42,192,000 ; in 1890,
40,876,000; and in 1900, 39,853,000.

In the far west and portions of the state of Ohio wool
raising is a separate industry, but in the middle west and
east, sheep raising is generally only an incident of a mixed
system of husbandry. In 1910 the average number of sheep
and lambs to a ranch on the 609,323 sheep farms in the
United States was 85, although in some of the far western
states the average was over 3,000, The census showed that
of the total of 51,809,068 reported from the ranches and
farms that year, 31,582,097 were ewes, 7,604,672 were rams
and wethers, and 12,622,299 were lambs born after January
1st, 1910.

Of the 91,676,281 in Australia and Tasmania the same
year eighty-five per cent were in flocks of 1,000 or over, and
fifty per cent in flocks of 10,000 and upward. In Queens-
land and New South Wales a large percentage of the flocks
contained from 20,000 to 50,000 individuals, and some
numbered over 100,000 sheep each. The holdings were
from 10,000 to 100,000 acres each. 50% of the Australian
sheep were in New South Wales; 21.37% in Queensland,
7.07% in South Australia, 5.16% in West Australia, and
1.89% in Tasmania.

The following table shows the total number of sheep in
each state and section of the United States in 1910, as well

The Sheep Family. 361

as the number of ranches or farms, and average number of

sheep on each.

No. of Farms Average No. of Sheep

and Ranches on Each and Lambs

North Atlantic Division 71,467 32 2,273,458

Maine 11,066 19 206,434

New Hampshire 2,226 20 43,772

Vermont 5,033 24 118,551

Massachusetts 1,027 32 32,669

Rhode Island 243 28 6,789

Connecticut 740 30 42,398

New York 24,329 17 39,547

New Jersey 815 35 30,446

Pennsylvania 25,426 35 882,852

South Atlantic Division 76,188 33 2,507,417

Delaware 266 29 3,391

Maryland 6,288 38 110,826

District of Columbia . .

Virginia 21,496 37 803,552

West Virginia 26,814 35 906,093

North Carolina 14,694 15 214,176

South Carolina 1,721 22 37,433

Georgia 5,126 37 187,589

Florida 663 180 113,631

North Central Division 326,231 45 14,595,059

Ohio 71,523 55 3,907,055

Indiana 38,191 35 1,336,967

Illinois 26,240 40 1,059,672

Michigan 54,865 42 2,306,476

Wisconsin 30,040 31 929,783

Minnesota 24,549 26 637,033

Iowa 44,010 53 637,033

Missouri 21,789 41 1,144,583

North Dakota 3,673 79 289,354

South Dakota 5,155 118 610,928

Nebraska 3,043 96 293,496

Kansas 3,153 86 272,472

South Central Division 107,441 43 4,632,651

Kentuckv 45,663 30 1,361,000

Tennessee 29,953 27 793,983

Alabama 6,614 22 142,925

Mississippi 5,687 34 194,280

Louisiana 3,629 49 178,217

Texas 6,683 263 1,758,384

Oklahoma 831 72 59,792

Indian Territory . .

Arkansas 8,381 17 144,190

Western Division 27,994 993 27,800,485

Montana 2,267 2,370 5,372,639

Wyoming 1,641 3,287 5,274,959

Colorado 1,693 841 1,424,187

New Mexico 3,113 1,049 3,264,612

Arizona 1,025 1,035 1,061,36^

Utah 2,416 756 1,826,471

Nevada 316 3,493 x,103,88J?

Idaho 2,995 985 2,950,534

Washington 2,116 223 471,521

Oregon 6,308 427 2,676,729

California 3,801 508 2,234,125

362 Ungulata.

The ** Bighorn" (Ovis-montana) is the only wild sheep
indigenous to the North American Continent, and is very
closely allied to the Kamschatka Wild Sheep (Ovis-
nivicola). Both of these species, whose rams attain
a height of three and one-half feet at the shoulder and
average about three hundred and fifty pounds in weight,
can be readily distinguished from the Argali (Ovis-
ammon) of Mongolia, and the Wild Sheep of Tibet (Ovis-
hodgsoni), by the character of their skull and horns;
the skull of the last two species having a deeper pit for
the gland below the eye, and very strongly marked
wrinkles on the anterior surface of the enormous horns
which are wanting on the horns of the others. The range
of the Bighorn extends from Mexico to Alaska, and from
the eastern points of the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific
Coast. The Kamschatka species is found in the Stanovoi
Mountains as well as on the peninsula of Kamschatka,
where its range is separated by little more than the
Bering Strait from the Alaskan habitat of the American
species. The skins of the Tibet lambs, sometimes called
Mandarin lambs, are white, and the long curly wool is
fine and silky; they take the dye beautifully in fancy
colors as well as black, but are principally used in their
natural state for baby carriage robes and fur sets and
trimmings, or are dyed black and made into muffs and
boas. Furs made from the skins of the lambs of the
domesticated Iceland and China sheep are sometimes sold
as Tibet. The Pamir, which inhabits and takes its name
from the elevated district in central Asia known as ''the
roof of the world," has longer curved horns, but does
not grow to quite the size of the Argali. The horns of
some of the male Pamir sheep measure from fifty to
sixty inches along the outer curve.

The Armenian and Cyprian Sheep (Ovis-gnelini and
Ovi&-ophion) are two small species distinguished by dark
colored tails and the absence of horns in the ewes. The
Armenian sheep is the larger of the two, standing about
two feet nine inches. The horns of the males, which have
a peculiar backward and inward curve until they nearly
meet at the back of the neck, rarely exceed twenty inches
in length. The color of the body of these sheep is white
with the exception of the upper parts which are a russet

363

yellow. The females have a characteristic white saddle
mark on the back.

The Mouflon (Ovis-musimon) is probably the ancestor
of some of the long wool artificial breeds with short flat
tails and cresentic horns ; the origin of some of the tight
wool varieties like the Southdowns could possibly be
traced back to the fat tail, and it seems certain that the
broad tail sheep of Persia, the Arabis and Doozbais of
Bokhara, and the other producers of close spiral curled
lambs, like the Astrachan, Persian and Ukranier, are
strains of the now extinct Ovis-platyura, the original
broad tail.

The Mouflon is a species entirely confined to the Islands
of Corsica and Sardinia. It is of compact build and
stands about twenty-eight inches high. The generaj color
is a fox red shading to a light grey on the head; the
under part of the body, sides and tail, cheeks and parts
of the lower legs are white. Mouflons generally frequent
the highest peaks of the mountain ranges in their habitat,
where they can command a full view of the surrounding
country. In the pairing season, which occurs in December
and January, they divide into small parties consisting
of one ram and several ewes; the lambs — either one or
two at a birth — are produced in May, and within a few
days after they are born are able to follow the ewes
everywhere. The fact that the wild Mouflon occasionally
desert their own kin to live among tame sheep, and that
motherless domestic lambs have been known to seek com-
panionship among a flock of Mouflon, is the strongest
evidence that the wild sheep and domesticated breeds
are very closely related.

The Asiatic wild sheep ( Ovis-vignei) known in Punjab
as the Urial and in Ladok as the Sha, is distinguished
from the preceding species by its smaller size, more
diminutive horns, and the presence of a large ruff of long
hair on the throat, which is much less developed in the Sha
than in the Urial. The range of this species extends
from northern Tibet to Afghanistan and into eastern
Persia, and is generally at elevations of from twelve to
fourteen thousand feet. The Urial stands about two feet
eight inches at the shoulders, and the Sha sometimes
attains a height of three feet.

364

Index.

INDEX

A

Aard Wolf 172

Alaska Commercial Co 279

Alaska Sable 74

Alpaca 333

American Fur Company 11

American Wild Cat 140

Angora 348

Animal Kingdoms 85

Annual Quantities 61

Annual Supply 60

Antelope-Indian 335

-Prong-Horn 336

-Sable 335

AntilopniaB (Antelope) 93

Antlers 340

Ape 271

-Barbary 271

-Black 271

Argali 362

Astor, John Jacob 10-23-28

Astoria, Founding of 16

Astoria, Surrender of 20

Astrachan 353

Aurochs 317

Axis 337

Aye Aye 276

Azara 's Dog 74

B

Baboon Family 271

Baboon-Golden 271

-Gelada 271

-Hamadryas 271

Badger-Common 194

-European 195

-Ferret 195

-Honey 195

-Sand 195

-Stinking 195

Baltic Seal 74

Bandicoots 264

Ban Kaos 74

Bassarisk 205

Bassaris Mink 205

Bay Lynx 140

Bear- American Black 119

-Barren Ground 119

-Brown 117

-Cinnamon 119

-Grizzly 119

-Himalayan 120

-Isabella (Hairy Eared) .117

-Japanese 120

-Malay (Sun) 120

-Polar 121

-Roachbaek 119

-Silver Tip 119

-Spectacled 119

-Syrian 117

-White 120

Bear Cat 74

Bear Family 117

Beaver-American 277

-European 281

Beaver Dam 277

Beaver Lodge 277

Beaver Eat 296

Beaver's Tooth Pick 282

Bimana 86-269

Bison- American 321

-European 317

Black Buck 335

Black Marten 75

Bless Bock 335

Bobac 307

Bovidae (Ox) 97

Breitschwanz 75

Broadtail 357

Brook Mink 75

Brumbies 351

Buffalo- African Black 315

-Cape 315

-Common 316

-Indian 316

-Eed 315

-Short Horn 315

Burun Duchy 75

Bush Cat 75

C

Cacomistle 265

Calabar 75

Index.

365

Camelidae (Camel) 93

Camel-Bactaiian 333

-Dromedary 333

Canidse (Dog) ." 88

Capriniae (Goat) 93

Caracal 137

Caribou 348

Carnivora 116

Casing 51

Castoreum 282

Castoridae (Beaver) 94

Cat-Asiatic 126

-Afghan 127

-African 127

-Angora 126

-Australian Spotted 126

-Black 126

-Bokharan 127

-Bush 148

-Caffer 127

-Chaus 127

-Domestic 126

-Egyptian 124

-Eyra 77

-European Wild 123

-Geoffroy 129

-Golden 75

-House 125

-Jungle 125

-Leopard 128

-Manx 126

-Margay 128

-Molinas 76

-Mombas 126

-Pampas 130

-Panther 130

-Paraguay 126

-Persian 126

-Ocelot-like 129

-Tiger 128

Cat Common 75

Cat Family 123

Cat Lynx 75

Cebidse (S. A. Monkey) 93

Cerophithecidse (Old World

Monkey) 93

Cetacea 86

Champagne Fox 78

ChinchilliaB (Chinchilla) 93

Chiromyidae (Aye- Aye) 89

Civet- African 147

-Asiatic 147

-Chinese 148

Civet Cat 76

Civet Family 146

Chamois 335

Chaus 137

Chickeree 302

China Trade 12

Chinchilla- Arica 284

-Bastard 284

-Bolivian 284

Chinchilla-Chilian 284

-Peru 284

Chinese Lynx 76

Chinese Mouflon 76

Chinese Stone Marten 76

Chinchilla Squirrel 83

Chinchillone 284

Chinese Traders 46

Chioptera 86

Chipmunk 304

-American 304

-Asiatic 304

-California 304

Classes 85

-Anthropada 85

-Coelenterata 85

-Echinadermata 85

-Ichthyopsida 86

-Mammalia 86

-Molluscoida 86

-Mollusks 85

-Protoza 85

-Sauropsida 86

-Vermes 85

Chimpanzee 271

Chitah 134

CThittenden Hiram Marten. ... 29
Classes of the Invertebrata . . 85
Classes of the Vertebrata .... 86

•Classification-Kingdoms 85

-Classes 85

-Families 87-98

-Orders 86

-Species 99-110

Closed Seasons 73

Clouded Leopard 133

Coati 75

Colobus 271

Color 57

Conies-Belgian 292

-French 292

-German 292

Coney-Leopard 76

Coney-Mole 76

Cook-Captain 11

Couguar 142

Coyote 167

Coypur Rat 293

Crimmer 360

Cumarans 137

D

Dalgelty 77

Danada 77

Dasyure 265

Dasyure Family 265

Dasyuridae (Dasyurae) 91

Deer- Axis 337

-Black Tailed 338

-East India 337

-Fallow 337

366

Index.

Deer Mule 338

-Red 338

-Virginia 338

-White Tail 338

Deer Family 337

Desman 249

DidelphyidsB (Opossum) 92

Distillery at Fort William ... 28

Dog-Azara 's 154

-Chinese 152

-Collie 156

-Dalmation 152

-Dingo 152

-Domestic 156

-Eskimo 152

-Newfoundland 153

-Pariah 153

-Raccoon 153

-Siberian 153

-Wild 155

Dog- faced Monkey 77

Dog Family 151

Dormouse-Garden 297

-Painted 297

-Squirrel Tail 297

-Tree 297

Dressing 47

Drill 275

Durability 59

Dyeing 49

E

Echidna 267

Eehidnidae (Echidna) 92

Edentata 86

Elk 343

Equidae (Horse) 97

Ermine 184

F

Factory System 9

Fairs 45

Family-

-Aard Wolf (Protelidae) ... 89
-Antelope (Antelopinse) . . 93

-Ape (Simiidae) 92

-Aye Aye (Chiromyidse) ... 89
-Baboon (Ceropithecidae) . . 93
-Bandicoot (Peramelidae) . . 91

-Bear (Ursida) 87

-Beaver (Castoridse) 94

-Calf (Bovidas) 332

-Camel (Camelidae) 93

-Cat (FelidaB) 87

-Chinchilla (Chinchillidas).. 93

-Civet (Viverridae) 88

-Dasyure (Dasyuridae) 91

-Deer (CervidaB) 93

-Deseman (Myogalidae) .... 91

-Dog (Canidae) 88

-Dormouse (Myoxidae) .... 94

-Echidna (Eehidnidae) 92

-(Joat (Capriniae) 93

Family-

-Hare (Leporidae) 94

-Horse (Equinidae) 97

-Hyaena (Hyaenidae) 89

-Kangaroo (Macropodidae) . 92

-Lemur (Lemuridae) 93

-Marmoset (Halpalidae).. . . 93

-Mole (Talpidae) 91

-Monkey (Ceropithecidae).. 93

-Monkey (Cebidae) 93

-Monkey-S o u t h American

(Cebidae) 93

-Musk Ox (Ovibrominae) ... 97
-Opossum (Didelphyidae).. . 92

-Ox (Bovidae) 97

-Phalanger (Phalangeridae) 91
-Platybus (Ornithorhynchi-

dse) 92

-Raccoon (Procyonidae) .... 89

-Rat (Muridae) : . . . 95

-Rat (Geomyidae) 95

-Rat (Octodontidae) 95

-Sea Bears-Eared Fur Seal

(Tricophocinae Otariidae) 90
-Sea Lions-Eared 5air Seal

(Ulophocinae Otariidae) . . 91
-Sea Dogs-Hair Seals (Pho-

cidae) 91

-Sheep (Ovinae) 97

-Squirrel (Scuridae) 94

-Tapir (Tapiridae) 98

-Tasier (Tarsiidae) 93

-Weasel (Mustelidae) 89

-Wombat (Phascolomyidae) 92

Felidae 123

Felidae (Cat) 87

Fenec 77

Ferret 186

Fi Fu 78

Fisher 180

Fissipeds 78

Fitch ,191

Florida Mink 77

Foal Leopard 77

Forsythe, Richardson & Co . . . 8

Fossa-Fossane 149

Foxes- Afghan 164

-African 164

-Arctic 161

-Black 157

-Blue 161

-Brazil 164

-Cape 78

-Cossac 164

-Desert 164

-Grey 158

-Hue 164

-Kamschatka 159

-Kit 157

-Patagonia 164

-Prairie 164

-Red 158

Index.

367

Foxes-Silver 157

-Steppe 164

-White 162

Fox Famil}- 157

Fox-nosed Monkey 78

Fox Eaccoon 78

Fox Raising 30

Fox Ranches 35

Fox-Trade Names 78

French Leopard 78

French Lynx 78

French Seal 78

French Wolf 78

Fuchskiisu (Australian

Opossum) 81

Fur Farming 29

Fur Markets . . . '. 45

Furriers 41

Fur Sales . . 45

Fur Seals 208

Fur Traders 1

Fur Traders Lexicon 74

G

Gaur 318

Gayal 318

Gazell 335

Genet-Blotched 149

-Common 349

Genera- Alphabetical List 99

Geomyidae (Rat) 95

Gibbon 271

Glutton 201

Gnu 335

Goat- Angora 348

-Cashmere 349

-China 349

-Domestic 349

-Himalaya 349

-Ibex 347

-Italian 347

-Mongolian 349

-Rocky Mountain 349

-Russian 349

-Siberian 349

-Tibet 349

-Wild 349

Goat Family 347

Goat Raising 349

Golden Squirrel 79

Gopher 306

Gorilla 271

Grading 53

Gray, Captain 12

Grison 184

Guanaco 334

Guereza 272

H

Hair Seals 208

Halpalidae (Marmoset) 93

Hamster 295

Hares- American 291

Hares-Common 290

-White 290

Hare Family 289

Hollow Horned Ruminants. . .312

HominidaB (Mau) 93

Horns 340

Horse Family 350

Horse-Kirghiz 351

Hudson 's Bay Co 20

Hudson Seal 79

Huli 79

Huran 79

Hyaena-Brown 171

-Spotted 171

-Striped 171

Hyaenidae (Hyaena) 89

I

Ibex .347

Iceland Fox 78

Ichneuman 150

Icthyopsida 86

Imports and Exports 71

Improving Skins 49

Increasing Quantities . 64

Insectivora 245

Invertebrates 85

Irbit Fair 46

Istatsi 79

J

Jackal 170

J aguar 143

Jaguarondi ,' 130

Jama Jum 80

Japanese Fox 79

Jungle Cat 137

K

Kangaroo- Antelope 259

-Blue 259

-Bridled 259

-Bush 259

-Common 255

-Giant or Grey 258

-Musk 257

-Red 257

Kangaroo Family 254

Kangaroo Hares 257

Kangaroo Rats 257

Kangaroo Squirrels 259

Kingdom- Animal 85

Kingdoms 85

-Invertebrata 85

-Vertebrata 85

Kinkajou 206

Kittrass 80

Kitzenu 79

Kju 80

Koala 263

Kolinsky 182

Kratka Sales 46

Kumu 80

Kusu (Phalanger) 82

368

Index.

li

La Long 5U

Lamson & Co. (Report 1813) 66

Lamb-Astrachan 353

-Bokhara 354

-Broadtail 356

-Cape 356

-China 357

-Crimmer 360

-Danada 354

-Iceland 357

-Persian 357

-Shiraz 357

-Slink 357

-Tibet 362

-Ukrainer 353

Lao Fu SO

Largotis 284

Leipzig Sales 46

Lemming- European 295

-False 296

Lemuridae (Lemur) 93

Lemurs-Black 274

-Dwarf 275

-Mouse 275

-Red Front 275

-Ring Tail 275

-Ruffled 274

-Woolly 275

Leon ' 80

Leporidae (Hare) 94

Lewis and Clark Expedition.. 13

Lexicon 74

Leopards- African 132

-Black 132

-Ceylon 130

-Chalibelata 133

-Chinese 133

-Clouded 133

-Common 133

-Corean 133

-Hunting 134

-East Indian . .^ 130

-Mongolian 132

-Persian 132

-Snow 131

-Turkistan 133

Linsang 80

Lion- Asiatic 135

-African 136

-Barbary 136

-Cape 136

-Gugerat 136

-Massai 136

-Persian 136

-Senegal 136

-Soudan 136

-''Man Eaters" 136

Liquor Question 27

Lisa, Manuel 26

Llama 333

London Sales 46

Lynx-American 139

-Bay 140

-Canadian 141

-Caracal 137

-Chaus 137

-Common 137

-European 137

-Halifax 141

-Pardnie 137

-Persian 137

-Plateau 141

-Red 137

-Swamp 137

Lynx Cat 80

M

Machining . . . . ' 49

Macropodidae (Kangaroo) 92

McKenzie 's Party 18

McKenzie, Sir Alexander.... 13

Mackinaw Company 8

Malacca Weasel 80

Mami 80

Mammalia Ill

Mandrill 271

Mangabey 80

Mao 80

Markhor 349

Marmoset 273

Marmot-American 307

-Alpine 307

-Himalayan 307

-Hoary 307

-Pyrenees 307

-Rocky Mountain .... 307

-Russian 308

Marmot Mink 80

Marsupialia 250

Marsupials 250

Martens-Baum 178

-Beech 179

-Indian 179

-Labrador 177

-Pine 177

-Stone 178

Mink- American 181

-Chinese 181

-European 181

-Japan 181

-Russian 182

Mink Enclosures 40

Mink Raising 39

Missouri Fur Co 26

Mole-European 245

-Common 247

-Garden 247

-Star 247

Moline 81

Monkeys- Abyssinian 272

-Black 272

-Blue 272

-Capauchin 293

Index.

369

Monkeys-Common 273

-Diana 272

-Howling 274

-Owl-faced 274

-Saki 274

-Spider 273

-Squirrel 274

-Titi 274

-Ukari 274

-Vervet 274

-Wanderoo 274

-Woolly 273

Monkey Family 271

Monkey Tribe 269

Monotremata 266

Moose 343

Mouflou 363

Mountain Bear 80

Mountain Cat 81

Mountain Entellus 273

Mountain Lion 81

Mungoose 150

Muridae 295

Muridae (Eat) 95

Musk Ox 330

Musk Eat 298

Musk Shrew 249

Mustelidae (Weasel) 89

Myogalidae (Desman) 91

Myoxidae (Dormouse) 94

N

Native Bear 263

Native Cat 81

Near Seal 81

Nijni Novgorod Fair 45

Neko 81

North American Commercial

Co 229

North W^est Company 7

Nutria 293

0

Ocelot ...128

Octodontidae (Nutria) 95

Opossum-Adelaide 260

-Australian 260

-Melbourne 260

-Eing-tail 261

-Virginia 261

Orang-Utang 82

Otariidae 221

Otter 196

-African 196

-American 196

-Arctic 196

-Brazilian 196

-European 196

-Japanese 198

Orders of the Mammalia 86

-Carnivora 86

-Cetacea 86

Orders-Chioptera 86

-Edentata 86

-Insectivora 86

-Marsupialia 86

-Monotramata 86

-Primates 86

-Eodentia ,* 86

-Ungulata 86

Orinthorhynchidaa (Platybus) 266

Otariidae (Eared Seals) 90

Otter-Sea 198

Ouistitis 273

Ounce 131

Overland Expedition 17

Overland Eoute 12

Ovibromae (Musk Ox) 97

Ox-Domestic 331

-Galloway 332

-Wild 332

P

Pacific Fur Company 14

Paddy Melon 82

Pahmi 174

Pahmir s62

Palm Cat 149

Pampas Fox 78

Panda 242

Pantha 132

Panther 132

Paquina 174

Paradoxure 149

Pedemelon 259

Peramelidae (Bandicoot) 91

Perameles 265

Persian Lamb 357

Perwitsky 191

Pesang 348

Phalangeridae (Phalanger) ... 91

Phalangers 259

Phalanger-Cooks 261

-Great Flying 261

-Eingtail 261

-Vulpine 260

Phascolomyidae (W^ombat) ... 92

Phocidae 221

Phocidae (True Seal) 91

Pinnipeds 207

Platybus 266

Pointed Fox 78

Pole Cats 191

-Cape 192

-Siberian 192

-South American . . . 192

Pony-Kirghez 351

Potto 206

Pouched Mammals 250

Prairie Dog 308

Prices 67

Primates 269

ProcyonidaB (Eaccoon) 89

370

Index.

Prong-Horn 336

Protelidae (Aard Wolf) 89

Puma 143

Q

Quadrumana 269

Quagga 352

Quality 58

Quantities 61

Quantities-Increasing 64

R

Rabbit 291

Raccoon 203

-Crab Eating 204

Raccoon Dog 153

Raccoon Family 203

Rasse 150

Rat-Coypu 293

Raton 203

Reindeer 345

Restrictions 68

Ring Tail 82

River Mink 82

Rocky Mountain Goat 329

Rodentia 206

Rodents .287

Ruminants 312

Russian Fur Co 12

Russian Leopard 82

Russian Lynx 82

Russian Wolf 82

S

Sable-Hudson's Bay 176

-Russian 175

-Tartar 182

Sable Fox 78

Sable Squirrel 83

Sales 45

San Yang 83

Sapajous 273

Sauropsida 86

Sciuridae (Squirrel) 94

Sea Bears (Fur Seals) 227

Sea Dogs (True Seals) 209

Sea Fox 78

Sea Lions (Eared Hail Seals) 223

-Australian 223

-Calif ornian 224

-Hooker 's 225

-Northern 223

-Patagonia 223

Seal-Baltic 8:^

Seal.Catch in 1886 208

-Catch in 1912 233

-Census in 1913 243

-Conservation . .i 231

-Cubs 217

-Dying 239

-Extermination 227

-Fisheries-Hair Seal 217

Seal-French 83

-Fur 227

-Harems 235

-Hauling Grounds 237

-Herds 228-232

-Hair 21U

-Hudson 83

-Leases 229

-Migration 231

-Near 81

-Protection Treaty 235

-Restrictions 230

-Rookeries 234

-Shipments 1912 243

-Sorting 238

-Treaty 232

Seals (Fur) 227

-Alaska 228

-Cape 229

-Cape Horn 228

-Copper Island 228

-Japanese 241

-Lobos Island 240

-North West Coast 240

-Robben Island 241

-Shetland 227

-South Seal 228

Seals (Hair) 209

-Baikal 212

-Baltic 216

-Bearded 216

-Bedlamite 214

-Caspian 212

-Common 213

-Crested 215

-Greenland 214

-Grey 211

-Harp ....214

-Hooded 215

-Monk 216

-Norway 211

-Ringed 213

-Saddle Back 214

-Spots 214

-True 289

-Weddeirs 216

-West Indian 211

-White Coat 214

Seals (Elephant) 211

Seals (Leopard) 211

Seals (Wool) 217

Sea Otter 198

Seedracke 83

Serval 128

Sha 363

Sheep- American 362

-Arabic 253

-Barbary 357

-Big Horn 362

-Blue 357

-Bokhara 354

-China 357

Index.

371

Sheep-Crimmer 357

-Cyprian 362

-Danada 354

-Domestic 358

-Doozbai 354

-Iceland 357

-Karakule 353

-Koodiac 354

-Long Wool . 356

-Moufion 363

-Tight Wool 356

-Wild 362

Sheep Family 353

Sheep Raising 358

Sheep Statistics 359

Siberian Raccoon 83

Simmiidae (Ape) 92

Sirenia 86

Size 57

Skinners Co ' 1

Skinning 50

Skunk 187

-Little Stripe 188

-Nicaraugua 190

-South American 189

Skunk Farming 36

Skunk Opossum 83

Skunk Raccoon 83

Skunk Raising 36

Slink Lamb 357

Species (Alphabetical List) . 99

Spermophile 305

Spotted Cat 265

Springbok 335

Squirrel Family 301

-American Grey 302

-American Red 301

-European 302

-Flying 306

-Ground 305

-Rock 304

-Tree 301

Snow Leopard 131

Stoat 181

Strathcona-Lord 24

St. Louis Sales 45

South American Beaver 83

South West Company 11

SupplyrAnnual 60

Suslik 305

Sze Hue 84

T

Talpidae (Mole) 91

Tamarins 273

Tapir 352

Tapiridse (Tapir) 98

Tariff 69

Tarpans 351

Tarsier 276

Tarsiidae (Tarsiar) 93

Tartar Sable 82

Tasmanian Devil 265

Tasmanian Wolf 84

Taupe Fox jg

Taxidermy 52

Tayra or Tara 183

Teh Mao 84

Teladu 84

Ten '.;: 84

Tibet 362

Tiger-Bengal 145

-Chinese 144

-Corean 144

-Mongolian 145

-White 145

Tha 84

Tonquin- Voyage of 15

-Loss of 16

Tracker 84

Treaty of Paris 6

Tricophocinae 221

Turc Fox 164

u

Ulophocinae 221

Ungulata 309

Urial 363

Ursidae (Bear) 87

V

Vertebrata 86

Vervet 273

Vicuna 334

Viscaeha 285

Vole 296

Viverridse (Civet) 88

Vuli 79

w

Wallabies-Bennets 259

-Black 258

-Bush-Tailed 258

-Rock 258

-Swamp 258

Wild Cat- American 141

-European 123

Walleroo 257

Walrus 207

Wanderoo 273

Wapiti 341

Weasel Family 173

Weasel 183

-South African 193

Weasel Groups 173

Weight 59

West India Co . 2

Who Long 84

Wildebeest 335

372

Index.

Wolf-Black 166 Woodchuek

,308

-Common 165

-China 167

-Earth 166

-Grey 166

-Indian 172

-Japan 167

-Prairie 167

-Russian 166

-South American 167

-Siberian 166

-Tibetan 167

-Timber 166

-Wombat 265

Wolverine 201

Wool Seal 84

Wuychuchol 84,249

Yak 319

Ya Mao 84

Yetta 332

Zebra 352

Zorilla 198

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