Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 14.djvu/229

MUSKOKA. Falls and the South Falls with a descent of 130 feet, on the Muskoka, near Bracebridge (population, in 1891, 1419; in 1901, 2479), the county capital. The chief lakes, Muskoka, 20 miles long by 2 to 8 miles broad, Rosseau, 12 miles long and 1 to 6 miles wide, and Joseph, are connected and have regular steamer navigation service in summer, in connection with the Grand Trunk, the Canadian Atlantic, and the Canadian Pacific railways, which traverse the region. The forests abound in game, and the lakes with fish, and the district has become popular for its hunting, angling, boating, and bathing.  MUSK OX. The musk ox (Ovibos moschatus), although approaching cattle in size, is really quite as closely allied to the sheep. It undoubtedly belongs in the family Bovidæ and is perhaps entitled to have a subfamily division to itself. The genus contains only the single species, at present confined to Arctic America, but formerly ranging over the Northern United States as far south as Kentucky and over Northern Asia and Europe also, as is shown by the bones found in the Pleistocene deposits of those regions. Its southern limit is gradually retreating northward, and there can be little doubt that the number of musk oxen is steadily declining. The name ‘musk ox’ or ‘musk sheep’ refers to a peculiar musky odor, the origin of which seems to be in doubt; apparently, however, there is no special gland as in the musk deer and other musky mammals. The legs are short and stout, so that the animal is somewhat lower than a small ox, which it otherwise resembles in size and shape. The hair is amber brown, woolly and long; thick, matted and curly on the shoulders, giving the appearance there of a hump: elsewhere it is straight and hangs down so as to conceal the short tail and upper half of the legs. The wool has been spun into fabrics said to be extremely soft. The hoofs are remarkable in being asymmetrical, the outer half being rounded while the inner is pointed; the sole of the foot is hairy. The head is inclined to be massive, especially in old males, where the horns have extremely broad bases. The latter are elegantly curved, first obliquely downward and backward by the side of the head and then upward and forward. The ears are so small as to be concealed by the hair, and the muffle is hairy as in sheep and goats. The flesh is coarse grained, but of variable quality, some individuals being tender and of good flavor, while others are tough and so musky as to be uneatable. Curiously enough, the difference in flavor is apparently not a matter of age or sex. Musk oxen are gregarious, going in flocks of 20 or 30, or rarely as many as 80 or 100, and are said to be very sheep-like in their habits. Although the legs are so short, they run with speed, and can climb steep slopes and clamber over rocks with remarkable agility. The young are produced, one at a time, at the end of May or early in June, and the rutting season is in September. The food of the musk ox is grass, moss, lichens, and tender shoots of willow and pine. They are themselves an important item in the larder of the Eskimos and of Arctic explorers. The writings of these explorers contain the best accounts of the animal, whose young have now and then been brought alive to Europe, and have survived for a time in zoölogical gardens. See Plate of with.  MUSK PLANT,, , . Various plants possessed of a musky odor. Among these are the common musk plant (Mimulus moschatus); the musk tree (Olearia argophylla) of Tasmania; the musk okra (Hibiscus moschcutos); the musk tree of Jamaica (Trichilia moschata); and the West Indian musk wood (Guarea grandifolia), used in perfumery. The drug called musk root or Sambul, brought from Asia principally through Russia and Persia, is the starchy root of Euryangium Sambul, which has a pure musky odor, and is used as a substitute for musk.  MUSKRAT (so called from its musky odor), or. The muskrat (Fiber zibethicus) is one of the most widely distributed and best known of North American quadrupeds, and it is peculiar to this continent. It makes its home in the banks or water of streams, ponds, and lakes. It is the largest known species of the subfamily Arvicolinæ; (see ) of the family Muridæ, and is peculiarly adapted to an aquatic life, although there are other species of the subfamily which are also amphibious. Its body is about 12 inches in length, and its tail about 8 inches. The body is rather stout and thickset, the head is rounded, and the ears are small and close. The front feet are rather small, with four digits and a rudimentary thumb, while the hind feet are stout, with five partially webbed toes, and so attached to the leg that they are well fitted for swimming, yet the sculling movement of the much compressed tail is the principal means of progress in the water. As with other aquatic mammals, the pelage consists of an undercoat of dense, soft fur and an outer coat, on the back and sides, chiefly of long, shining, smooth hairs. So much air is held by these outer hairs that in ordinary excursions the under fur is hardly wetted. The color above is dark umber brown, darkest on the middle of the back and on the tail, while beneath the prevailing shade is gray.

The musky odor from which the animal gets its name is due to the secretion of a large gland in the inguinal region, which is present in both sexes. The muskrat is omnivorous, eating roots (especially of the pond lily), fruits, vegetables, insects, worms, mollusks,. etc., but it is especially fond of apples, in search of which it often wanders far from its home, and thus finds its way occasionally into barns and cellars. In some localities fresh-water mussels are a favorite article of food, and large heaps of the empty shells are sometimes found near muskrat burrows, due to their preference for dining day after day in the same place. Although so widely distributed and abundant, the muskrat is not often seen, as it is mainly nocturnal in its habits, and during the day remains in its burrow or house. The home of this animal is either built of sticks, mud, and grass, and forms a heap the size and appearance of a small haycock, or else is dug out of the bank of a stream or pond and then forms a burrow of indefinite length, the entrance to which is under water. The character of the home seems to depend upon the nature of the country; where there is an extensive swamp, or stretch of shallow water, so that the houses will not he ordinarily exposed to wandering enemies, muskrats seem to prefer these homes; but where they live in or about a narrow stream,