association with the nether regions.

A common belief among seamen is that if rats migrate from a
vessel that vessel is doomed; and many hardships have been
endured at times on account of this belief. I am inclined to
favour the idea that these creatures are just as tenacious
of life as human beings are; but to say they have keener
intuitive capacity than we is arrant nonsense. It is true
they do not like leaky ships any more than their crews do;
and they leave them for the same particular reasons as would
induce them to leave districts on shore. Scarcity of food
or comfort, or danger of attack, create their itinerant
moods. Of course if their pasture is good they are difficult
to get rid of. They are prolific and cling to their young.
That unquestionably is a reason for their willingness to be
driven from a position where the food supply may be
precarious. They have their channels of communication which
are as difficult to cut off as to find out, so that when
they do leave a vessel that is in port it is pretty certain
they have heard of some more comfortable quarters and a
better playground. This accounts for them clearing out of a
ship just before she sails, thus throwing some poor
superstitious creature into abject fear that their exodus is
the forerunner of calamity. To carry the superstition out
logically, instead of rats being exterminated throughout a
place or a vessel, they should really be encouraged to
remain and multiply. I saw an extract from an American paper
some years ago, and it told a sensational tale of a steamer
which had arrived at Baltimore from Cuba, laden with iron
ore. During the passage the whole crew were attacked by
swarms of rats, which had come aboard at the loading port.
The crew, including the captain, his wife, and family, were
driven to take refuge on deck. The rats became infuriated
for want of food, and boldly clamoured for it, until it was
decided to feed them discreetly from the ship's stores. Many
of the crew were bitten. Under less startling circumstances
it is quite a common occurrence for seamen to have their
toenails eaten off while they are asleep. It rarely happens
that the flesh is penetrated; and they nearly always go for
the big toe. People who have not seen such things are sure
to be sceptical about the truth of this statement. It can,
however, be easily verified. On the Baltimore vessel's
arrival in the stream, and after communications had been
effected with the sho