Slow of foot, it cannot flee from danger, nor has
it any natural weapons of offence; but in the sharp,
hard, and tough prickles of its coat it is endowed,
as Mr. Bell observes, ‘‘ with a safeguard more secure and effectual than the teeth and claws of the
Wild Cat, or the fleetness of the Hare.” A remarkable array of powerful muscles exists beneath
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- HEDGEHOG.
the skin of the whole body, by the contraction of which the animal, on the slightest alarm, is able to roll itself up into the form of a ball, the head and limbs being enclosed in the centre. The more forcible the muscular contraction, the more rigidly do the spines project from every part of the surface, so that it cannot be touched with impunity.
A thorough-bred Terrier, however, will sometimes
