New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1898-02-27

rowing animals are among the fnerr,eSt OF the
merry; there are few creatures more fun OF
gayety and buoyant spirits than prairie -dos.
or even a sandhill rabbit; and we have only
once seen animal grimy from attempted
burrowng and that was an opossum which
mistook a chimney Tor hole IN hollow tree.
Some have coats so close and fine that saLl
runs off them like water does from feathcrz
others have "siivering muscles" by which they
can shake their jackets without taking them off
Rats however do object 70 forms Of dust
and viii not burrow In 1t. An old Suffolk rat
catcher always laid ashes in the runs made by
them beneath brick floors His theory on tho
subject was that the ashes Jared 10 make them
shuttle"
But even IL earth, dust and clay do not adj
here to the animals coats when furrowing the
danger. at least the discomfort to the deli
cate surface Of the eye would seem to afford an
almost constant source of uneasiness 10 Great
ures burrowing in loose soil. But the eyes Of
most burrowng creatures are by 10 means pro-
tected against such damage. If the rat and the
rabbit had a horn plate over their eyes as
snake has or overhanging eyebrows and deeply
sunk orbits. the modification would be at once
explained by evolution; but they exhibit no
such modification whatever. on the contrary,
both of them have prominent. rather staring
eyes. without protection. and no eyelashes 10
speak of. We believe that, just - divers learn
to keep their eyes open under water without
feeling pain so many Of the mining animals can
endure the presence of dust aud grit on the
eye without discomfort. Tame rats will allow
dust or fine sand to rest on the eyeball without
trying to remove it; and 1t may be inferred
that rabbits mice, voles aud shrews can do the
same The moles eyes have become so
IL &c Oh, he
come off with the skin; but this is probably not
because the mining hurts the eye, but because
the mole having learned to work by scent and
touch, had little further use for sight
Ventilation or rather the want OF il, must be
another difficulty in the underground life of al
most all mammals The rabbit and the rat Sc
cure a current Of air by forming bolthole IN
connection with their system OF passages; but
the fox the badger. and many Of the field voleS
and mice seem Indifferent to any such precau-
ton. There is no doubt that whatever gave the
first irnpulse TO burrow many animals look upon
this To rs most unpleasant exertion as form
Of actual amusement 1t also confers right
OF property Prairie dogs constantly set TO
work to dig holes merely for the love Of the
thing II they cannot have suitable place 10
exercise their talent In. they Will gnaw into
boxes or chests Of drawers. and there burrow.
10 the great detriment OF the clothes theTein
contained. In an inclosed prairie dog town
they have been known to mine until the super
incumbent earth collapsed and buried the great
er number young prairie dog let loose in a
small gravel-hOored house instantly dug mole
large enough TO sit turned round in 1t, ana
bit the first person who attempted 10 touch MIN.
Property gave him courage, for before he had
been a. meek mouse.
II is noticeable that the two weakest and least
numerous of our mice, the dormouse and the
harvest mouse do not burrow. but make nests
and that these do not multiply or maintain
their numbers like the burrowing mice ana
voes But the fact that there members OF
very closely allied species, some of which do
burrow while others do not seems to Indicate
that the habit is an acquired one. In this con-
nection it is worth noting that many animals
which do not burrow at other times form bur-
rows in which to conceal and protect their
young or, if they do burrow, make a different
kind Of more elaborate character Among
these nursery burrows are those Of the dog, the
fox the sand-martn. the kingfsher and the
sheldrake. Foxhound ltters never do so well
as when the mother is allowed to make burrow
on the sunny side of "A straw stack In time she
will work this , feet or + feet into the stack, and
keep the puppies at the far end, while she lies
in the entrance Vixens either dig or appro-
priate a clean burrow for their cubs, which IS a
natural habit or at any rate one acquired pre-
viously to the use Of earths 10y adult foxes.
The sand martins are however, the most com
plete examples OF creatures which have taken
10 underground life entirely to protect their
vouuq and abandon II with JOY the instant