The Girls Own Paper, Vol. VIII, No. 355, October 16, 1886 | Page 3

of these streams becomes too deep for the bur-reed,
and its surface is only diversified by the half-floating leaves of one or
two aquatic plants.
On approaching one of these places, I find the water to be apparently
without inmates. They had only been alarmed by my approach, which,
as I had but little time to spare, was not as cautious as it ought to have
been. However, I remained perfectly still, and presently a little fish
appeared from below. It was soon followed by a second and a third, and
before long a whole shoal of fish were floating almost on the surface,
looking out for insects which had fallen into the water.
The day being hot, and with scarcely a breath of wind, the fish soon

became quite bold. They did not move beyond the small spot in which
they had appeared, but they all had their tails in slight movement, and
their heads in one direction, thus showing that although the water
appeared to be perfectly motionless, there must be a current of some
sort, fish always lying with their heads up the stream, so as to allow the
water to enter their mouths and pass over their gills.
If then these sluggish streams were unlike those of Oxford, where the
ground is low, and nearly level, how utterly distinct must they be from
those of hilly and especially of rocky localities!
In the earlier part of the present year I was cursorily examining a brook
in Cannock Chase, in Staffordshire. Unfortunately, the day was
singularly inauspicious, as the sun was invisible, the atmosphere murky,
and a fierce north-east wind was blowing, a wind which affects animals,
etc., especially the insect races, even more severely than it does man.
Even the birds remain under shelter as long as they can, and not an
insect will show itself. Neither, in consequence, will the fish be "on the
feed."
On a previous visit, we had been more fortunate, trout, crayfish, etc.,
testifying to the prolific character of the brook, which in one place is
only four or five feet in width, and yet, within fifty yards, it has formed
itself into a wide and treacherous marsh, which can only be crossed by
jumping from one tussock of grass to another; and yet, again, it
suddenly spreads out into a broad and shallow torrent, the water leaping
and rippling over the stony bed. Scarcely a bush marks its course, and
within a few yards it is quite invisible.
As we shall presently see, the brooks of the chalk downs of Wiltshire,
and of the regular mixture of rock and level ground, which are
characteristic of Derbyshire, have also their own separate
individualities.
We shall, however, find many allusions to them in the course of the
work, and we will therefore suppose ourselves to be approaching the
bank of any brook that is but little disturbed by man. What will be
likely to happen to us will be told in the following chapters.

CHAPTER II.
Life-history of the water-rat--No science can stand alone--What is a
water-rat?--The voles of the land and water--Their remarkable
teeth--The rodents and their incisor teeth--The tooth and the chisel--The
skate "iron"--Chewing the cud--Teeth of the elephant--Feet of the
water-vole--A false accusation--Water-voles in gardens--Winter
stores--Cats and water-voles--Subterranean pioneering--Mental
character of the water-vole--Standing fire--Its mode of eating.
Plop!
A water-rat has taken alarm, and has leaped into the brook.
A common animal enough, but none the less worthy of notice because
it is common. Indeed, it is in many respects a very remarkable creature,
and we may think ourselves fortunate that we have the opportunity of
studying its habits and structure.
There is much more in the animal than meets the eye, and we cannot
examine its life-history without at the same time touching upon that of
several other creatures. No science stands alone, neither does any
animal, however insignificant it may appear to be; and we shall find
that before we have done with the water-rat, we shall have had
something to say of comparative anatomy, ornithology, ichthyology,
entomology and botany, beside treating of the connection which exists
between man and the lower animals, and the reciprocal influence of
civilisation and animal life.
In the first place, let us define our animal.
What is a water-rat, and where is its place in zoological systems of the
present day? Its name in science is Arvícola amphíbius. This title tells
its own story.
Though popularly called a rat, the animal has no right to the name,
although, like the true rat, it is a rodent, and much resembles the rat in
size and in the length and colour of its fur. The likeness, however,

extends no further.
The rats are long-nosed and sharp-snouted animals, whereas the
water-rat has a short, blunt nose. Then,