For Bruises and Aches.
Their Fat is excellent for bruises and Aches. Their Skins are esteemed a good deep Fur; but yet as the Wild Cats somewhat coarse.
The Porcupine.
The Porcupine, in some parts of the Countrey Eastward towards the French, are as big as an ordinary Mungrel Cur; a very angry Creature, and dangerous, shooting a whole shower of Quills with a rowse at their enemies, which are of that nature, that wherever they stick in the flesh, they will work through in a short time, if not prevented by pulling of them out. The Indians make use of their Quills, which are hardly a handful long, to adorn {18} the edges of their birchen dishes, and weave (dying some of them red, others yellow and blew) curious bags or pouches, in works like Turkie-work.[53]
The Beaver, Canis Ponticus, Amphybious.[54]
The Beaver, whose old ones are as big as an Otter, or rather bigger, a Creature of a rare instinct, as may apparently be seen in their artificial Dam-heads to raise the water in the Ponds where they keep, and their houses having three stories, which would be too large to discourse.[54] They have all of them four Cods hanging outwardly between their hinder legs, two of them are soft or oyly, and two solid or hard; the Indians say they are Hermaphrodites.
For Wind in the Stomach.
Their solid Cods are much used in Physick: Our Englishwomen in this Country use the powder grated, as much as will lye upon a shilling in a draught of Fiol Wine, for Wind in the Stomach and Belly, and venture many times in such cases to give it to Women with Child: Their Tails are flat, and covered with Scales without hair, {19} which being flead off, and the Tail boiled, proves exceeding good meat, being all Fat, and as sweet as Marrow.
The Moose-Deer.[55]