The beauty and delicacy of this animal induced me to attempt taming and domesticating some of them, but without success; for though several of them were so familiar as to take any thing out of my hand, and sit on the table where I was writing, and play with the pens, &c. yet they never would bear to be handled, and were very mischievous; gnawing the chair-bottoms, window-curtains, sashes, &c. to pieces. They are an article of trade in the {386} Company's standard, but the greatest part of their skins, being killed in Summer, are of very little value.
The Ground Squirrel.
The Ground Squirrels[151] are never found in the woody parts of North America, but are very plentiful on the barren ground, to the North of Churchill River, as far as the latitude 71°, and probably much farther. In size they are equal to the American Grey Squirrel, though more beautiful in colour. They generally burrow among the rocks and under great stones, but sometimes on the sides of sandy ridges; and are so provident in laying up a Winter's stock during the Summer, that they are seldom seen on the surface of the snow in Winter. They generally feed on the tufts of grass, the tender tops of dwarf willows, &c. and are for the most part exceedingly fat, and good eating. They are easily tamed, and soon grow fond; by degrees they will bear handling as well as a cat; are exceeding cleanly, very playful, and by no means so restless and impatient of confinement as the Common Squirrel.
Mice of various kinds.
Mice are in great plenty and variety in all parts of Hudson's Bay; the marshes being inhabited by one species, and the dry ridges by another. The Shrew Mouse[152] is frequently found in Beaver houses during Winter, where they not only find a warm habitation, but also pick up a comfortable livelihood from the scraps left by the Beaver. Most of the other species build or make nests of dry grass, {387} of such a size and thickness, that when covered with snow, they must be sufficiently warm. They all feed on grass in general, but will also eat animal food when they can get it. The Hair-tailed Mouse[153] is the largest in the Northern parts of the Bay, being little inferior in size to a common rat. They always burrow under stones, on dry ridges; are very inoffensive, and so easily tamed, that if taken when full-grown, some of them will in a day or two be perfectly reconciled, and are so fond of being handled, that they will creep about your neck, or into your bosom. In Summer they are grey, and in Winter change to white, but are by no means so beautiful as a white ermine. At that season they are infested with multitudes of small lice, not a sixth part so large as the mites in a cheese; in fact, they are so small, that at first sight they only appear like reddish-brown dust, but on closer examination are all perceived in motion. In one large and beautiful animal of this kind, caught in the depth of Winter, I found those little vermin so numerous about it, that almost every hair was covered with them as thick as ropes with onions, and when they approached near the ends of the hair they may be said to change the mouse from white to a faint brown. At that time I had an excellent microscope, and endeavoured to examine them, and to ascertain their form, but the weather was so exceedingly cold, that the glasses became damp with the moisture of my breath before I could get a single sight. The hind-feet of these Mice are exactly like those of a Bear, and the {388} fore-feet are armed with a horny substance, (that I never saw in any other species of the Mouse,) which is wonderfully adapted for scraping away the ground where they wish to take up their abode. They are plentiful on some of the stony ridges near Churchill Factory, but never approach the house, or any of the out-offices. From appearances they are very local, and seldom stray far from their habitations even in Summer, and in Winter they are seldom seen on the surface of the snow; a great proof of their being provident in Summer to lay by a stock for that season.
Pinnated Quadrupeds.
With respect to the Pinnated Quadrupeds with finlike feet, there are but few species in Hudson's Bay. The Walrus, or Sea-Horse, and Seals, are the only ones that I know.
The Walrus.