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expreffed by licking my hand, first the back of it, then the palm, then every finger separately, then between all the fingers, as if anxious to leave no part of it unfaluted; a ceremony which he never performed but once again upon a fimilar occafion. Finding him extremely tractible, I made it my cuftom to carry him always after breakfast into the garden, where he hid himself generally under the leaves of a cucumber vine, fleeping or chewing the cud till evening; in the leaves alfo of that vine he found a favourite repaft. I had not long habituated him to this tafte of liberty, before he began to be impatient for the return of the time when he might enjoy it. He would invite me to the garden by drumming upon my knee, and by a look of such expreffion as it was not poffible to mifinterpret. If this rhetoric did not immediately fucceed, he would take the skirt of my coat between his teeth, and pull at it with all his force. Thus Pufs might be said to be perfectly tamed, the shyness of his nature was done away, and on the whole it was visible by many fymptoms, which I have not room to enumerate, that he was happier in human fociety than when fhut up with his natural companions.

Not fo Tiney; upon him the kindeft treatment had not the leaft effect. He too was fick, and in his

fickness had an equal share of my attention; but if, after his recovery, I took the liberty to ftroke him, he would grunt, ftrike with his fore feet, fpring forward, and bite. He was however very entertaining in his way; even his furliness was matter of mirth, and in his play he preserved such an air of gravity, and performed his feats with such a folemnity of manner, that in him too I had an agreeable companion.

Befs, who died foon after he was full grown, and whose death was occafioned by his being turned into his box, which had been washed, while it was yet damp, was a hare of great humour and drollery. Pufs was tamed by gentle ufage; Tiney was not to be tamed at all; and Befs had a courage and confidence that made him tame from the beginning. I always admitted them into the parlour after fupper, when the carpet affording their feet a firm hold, they would frifk, and bound, and play a thousand gambols, in which Bess, being remarkably ftrong and fearlefs, was always fuperior to the reft, and proved himself the Veftris of the party. One evening the cat being in the room, had the hardiness to pat Bess upon the cheek, an indignity which he refented by drumming upon her back with fuch violence, that

the cat was happy to escape from under his paws and hide herself.

I defcribe these animals as having each a character of his own. Such they were in fact, and their countenances were fo expreffive of that character, that, when I looked only on the face of either, I immediately knew which it was. It is faid that a fhepherd, however numerous his flock, foon becomes so familiar with their features, that he can, by that indication only, diftinguish each from all the reft; and yet, to a common obferver, the difference is hardly perceptible. I doubt not that the fame difcrimination in the caft of countenances would be difcoverable in hares, and am perfuaded that among a thousand of them no two could be found exactly fimilar; a circumftance little suspected by those, who have not had opportunity to obferve it. These creatures have a fingular fagacity in discovering the minuteft alteration,that is made in the place to which they are accustomed, and instantly apply their nofe to the examination of a new object. A small hole being burnt in the carpet, it was mended with a patch, and that patch in a moment underwent the ftricteft fcrutiny. They feem too to be very much directed by the smell in the choice of their favourites: to fome perfons, though they saw them daily, they

could never be reconciled, and would even feream when they attempted to touch them; but a miller coming in engaged their affections at once; his powdered coat had charms that were irrefiftible. It is no wonder that my intimate acquaintance with these specimens of the kind has taught me to hold the sportsman's amusement in abhorrence; he little knows what amiable creatures he perfecutes, of what gratitude they are capable, how cheerful they are in their spirits, what enjoyment they have of life, and that impreffed as they seem with a peculiar dread of man, it is only because man gives them peculiar caufe for it.

That I may not be tedious, I will just give a short fummary of thofe articles of diet, that fuit them beft.

I take it to be a general opinion that they graze, but it is an erroneous one, at leaft grass is not their ftaple; they seem rather to use it medicinally, foon quitting it for leaves of almoft any kind. Sowthiftle, dent-de-lion, and lettuce, are their favourite vegetables, especially the laft. I difcovered by accident that fine white fand is in great eftimation with them; I fuppofe as a digeftive. It happened that I was cleaning a bird-cage while the hares were with me; I placed a pot filled with fuch fand upon the floor, which being at once directed to by a ftrong

instinct, they devoured voraciously; fince that time have generally taken care to see them well supplied with it. They account green corn a delicacy, both blade and ftalk, but the ear they feldom eat: ftraw of any kind, especially wheat-ftraw, is another of their dainties; they will feed greedily upon oats, but if furnished with clean ftraw never want them ; it ferves them alfo for a bed, and, if shaken up daily, will be kept fweet and dry for a confiderable time. They do not indeed require aromatic herbs, but will eat a small quantity of them with great relish, and are particularly fond of the plant called mufk; they seem to resemble sheep in this, that, if their pasture be too fucculent, they are very subject to the rot; to prevent which, I always made bread their principal nourishment, and filling a pan with it cut into fmall fquares, placed it every evening in their chambers, for they feed only at evening and in the night: during the winter, when vegetables were not to be got, I mingled this mefs of bread with fhreds of carrot, adding to it the rind of apples cut extremely thin; for, though they are fond of the paring, the apple itself difgufts them. Thefe however not being a fufficient fubftitute for the juice of summer herbs, they muft at this time be supplied with water; but fo placed that they cannot overfet it into their beds.

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