THERED SHREW-MOUSE.
This species of the Mouse-kind has a nose like a mole, and is in general a very harmless, inoffensive little animal, in regard to its preying on any thing: it is much smaller than the house-mouse. The chief mischief done by these vermin is, that in harvest-time they will come home with the corn, remain there and breed. I have known great numbers taken out of a rick; and I once remember half a bushel of these and other Mice caught at one time out of a rick or stand, which is often owing to the farmer’s own negligence and inattention; for you may often see a rick-stand made a nursery, occasioned by putting under it harrows,ploughs, hurdles and props: what avails it then to have a stand to fill the ricks in this manner, and assist the vermin up? You cannot indeed prevent their coming home with the corn, or when rats hop up and down the stand, which they do very easily: the best method, therefore, would be to nail some tin to the props, which would keep the Mice from getting up them; and when once you find they have got to a corn-rick, the best way is to take it in as soon as you can, for these Mice, in one particular, are worse than the rats among the corn, and do a great deal more mischief; for this reason, that they will live a great while without water, only by licking the ends of the straws, while any moisture remains therein, and all the while they remain in the ricks they do infinite prejudice. If it is not convenient to remove the rick, observe the following method; take a quarter of a pound of the best nux vomica, put it into an old saucepan, with three quarts of water, boil it till it comes to two quarts, and put twopounds of treacle to it, in order to overcome the bitter taste of the nux vomica; then take some small earthen pans, into which pour some of this mixture, and set the pans in different places under the eaves of the ricks; the Mice being in want of water, will greedily drink of the mixture, which will kill them; and this method you must continue till they are destroyed.
Before I conclude this account, I cannot help taking notice of a gross blunder, which a certain writer has made in his description of this little vermin, who asserts that it is as large as a rat, of the colour of a weasel, and very mischievous to cattle, and that it will get upon a beast’s back, and make it lame in the chine; and in consequence of the bite, the beast will swell to the heart and die; all which particulars are entirely erroneous; for its size is less than that of the common house-mouse, its colour like the squirrel; and as to the miraculous affair of its killing any beast or cattle, it is of a piecewith the rest. On the contrary, I am convinced from long observation, that it feeds on roots, vegetables, and corn, and will not touch flesh on any account.