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In India, the shrew-mice attain to the size of ordinary rats, and are there also called musk-rats, from the fact that a strong odour of musk is exhaled by them so strong as to make the place through which the animal passes exceedingly disagreeable.
Vast forests of primeval pine slope to the very shores of the lake, to which descend great droves of bears brown, green, and bear-coloured while as the shades of evening fall, the air is loud with the lowing of moose, cariboo, antelope, cantelope, musk-oxes, musk-rats, and other graminivorous mammalia of the forest.
It came timidly, the beautiful creature, and sat down at a short distance from them. The chief of the Musk-rats upon this spoke to the Nanticoke, and asked him what he thought of his little daughter. The Nanticoke who, like all other good and brave men, always spoke the truth, answered that "she was indeed a most beautiful Musk-rat what a pity that she was still a Musk-rat!"
"A famous breeding-place this must be for ducks," observed Louis. "And for flowers," said Catharine, "and for grapes and cranberries. There is always some beauty or some usefulness to be found, however lonely the spot." "A fine place for musk-rats, and minks, and fishes," said Hector, looking round. "The old trapper knew what he was about when he made his lodge near this pond.
Chuchundra is a broken-hearted little beast, He whimpers and cheeps all the night, trying to make up his mind to run into the middle of the room, but he never gets there. 'Don't kill me, said Chuchundra, almost weeping. 'Rikki-tikki, don't kill me. 'Do you think a snake-killer kills musk-rats? said Rikki-tikki scornfully.
There are, however, two who equal if they do not surpass them the Musk-rat and its relative, the Beaver. The Musk-rats of Canada live in colonies on the banks of streams or deep lakes, and construct dwellings which are very well arranged. In their methods we find combined the woven shelter with the house of built earth.
Musk-rats build a little house of rushes, and plaster it; they have two chambers, and do not lie torpid; they build in shallow, rushy places in lakes, but in spring they quit their winter houses and are often found in holes among the roots of trees; they live on mussels and shell-fish. The fur is used in making caps, and hats, and fur gloves." "Nurse, did you ever see a tame beaver?"
But the gravel hid them from the eyes of egg-eating fishes and musk-rats; the water kept them cold, but not too cold; the fresh oxygen came and encouraged them if ever they grew tired and dull, and so the good work went on.
He does not make the scenery less wild, more than the jays and musk-rats, but stands there as a part of it, as the natives are represented in the voyages of early navigators, at Nootka Sound, and on the Northwest coast, with their furs about them, before they were tempted to loquacity by a scrap of iron.
They are a mighty scarce article now-a-days. But rabbits ain't worth shucks. It is a job to skin 'em, they are so tender; and they won't fetch nothing." "How about musk-rats?" "Got an eye to business, eh?" "If I am lucky enough to catch one, I should like to sell the skin." "Well, musquash pays if it is skun right." "How is that? A skin is a skin, isn't it?"
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