The term fur is sometimes distinctively applied to hairy animal skins when prepared for being made into articles of dress, etc, while the name of peltry is given to them in an unprepared state or when merely dried. The animals chiefly sought after for the sake of their furs were the beaver, raccoon, musk-rat, squirrel, hare, rabbit, the chinchilla, bear (black, grey, and brown), otter, sea-otter, seal, wolf, wolverine or glutton, marten, ermine, lynx, coypou (nutria), polecat (fitch), opossum, fox, etc. All the preparation that skins require before being sent to the market is to make them perfectly dry, so as to prevent them from putrefying. This is done by exposing them to the heat of the sun or a fire. The small skins are sometimes previously steeped in a solution of alum. When stored in large quantities they must be carefully preserved from dampness, as well as from moths. The fur-dresser, on receiving the skins, first subjects them to a softening process. He next cleans them from loose pieces of the integument by scraping them with a metalblade. Finally, the fur is cleaned and combed, after which it is handed over to the cutter, who cuts the furs out into the various shapes required to make different articles.
In Europe the furtrade was fed chiefly by Russia, which yielded great quantities of furs, especially in the Asiatic portion of her dominions. Austria, Turkey, Scandinavia, etc, also yielded a certain quantity.
The furtrade of America has long been highly important, and several great trading companies were engaged in it, of which the Dutch East India Company was first. The French early took up the furtrade in Canada, and their chain of forts and trading posts at one time extended from Hudson's Bay to New Orleans. Quebec and Montreal were at first trading posts. In 1670 Charles II granted to Prince Rupert and others a charter empowering them to trade exclusively with the aborigines of the Hudson's Bay region. A company, then and after called the Hudson's Bay Company, was formed, which for a period of nearly two centuries possessed a monopoly of the furtrade in the vast tract of country known as the Hudson's Bay Territory. In the winter of 1783-1784 another company was formed at Montreal, called, the North-west fur Company, which disputed the right of the Hudson's Bay Company, and actively opposed it. After a long and bitter rivalry the two companies united in 1821, retaining the name of Hudson's Bay Company. The monopoly which had hitherto been enjoyed by the original company about Hudson's Bay was much extended; but in 1868 an act of parliament was passed to make provision for the surrender, upon certain terms, of all the territories belonging to the company, and for their incorporation with the Dominion of Canada. In 1869 the surrender was carried out, Canada paying 300,000 pounds to the company by way of compensation. The company still possessed large stretches of valuable land, and many houses, forts, and posts in the region formerly belonging to it. Its operations even extended beyond British America into the United States and to the Sandwich Islands and Alaska. It employed a large staff of agents, traders, Indian hunters, etc. Some of its posts were situated far north, almost approaching the Arctic Ocean.
In the United States, the fur-trade, especially that trade in beaverfur, was an important element in the economic life of all the colonies in the seventeenth century, and in the struggle between England and France for the possession of North America, also in all negotiations respecting the northwest boundary of the United States. In 1809 John Jacob Astor secured the incorporation of the American Fur Company. He founded Astoria in Oregon, and attempted to connect it with Mackinaw by a line of posts and consolidate the whole north-western fur-trade. After the War of 1812 he renewed his attempt. In 1816 the American Congress passed an act excluding foreign fur-traders. Research Fur-Trade
The Bird-cherry Ermine (Yponomeuta evonymella) is a moth of the family Yponomeutidae with a wing span of between 22 and 24 mm found in the Palaearctic region flying from July to August. Research Bird-Cherry Ermine
Ermine is a name for the stoat in its winter dress of a white coat which it assumes in winter in cold countries. The term is also used to describe the white fur obtained from a suitable stoat in winter. Research Ermine
The Spindle Ermine (Yponomeuta cagnatella) is a moth of the family Yponomeutidae with a wing span of between 20 and 25 mm found in Europe flying from June to July in sparse deciduous forests and shrubby undergrowth, on wastelands, shrubby hillsides and beside roads. Research Spindle Ermine
The stoat (Mustela Erminea) is a carnivorous mammal of the weasel family Mustelidae found over temperate Europe, but common only in the north,. Stoats are quick, strong and adept hunters. In winter, the stoat's reddish-brown above coat turns a white colour. In both states the tip of the tail is black. A stoat with a white winter coat is called an ermine. The stoat has a body about 25 cm long, with a tail about 10 cm long. The female is smaller than the male, about 20 cm long in the body. Stoats live in hollow trees and in holes in banks, where they build a nest of grass and leaves for the young which are born around April. Stoats feed on mice, rats, voles, hares and rabbits. Like many other species of this genus the stoat has the faculty of ejecting a fluid of a musky odour. Its fur is short, soft, and silky; the best skins being brought from Russia, Sweden, and Norway. Stoat fur and particularly ermine were formerly in great demand; it was formerly one of the insignia of royalty, and is still used by judges. When used as linings of cloaks the black tuft from the tail is sewed to the skin at irregular distances. Research Stoat
Baron is the lowest but oldest rank of nobility in Britain. The title seems to have been used first to describe men who held grants of land direct from the Crown. By the reign of Edward I 'barony by tenure' was becoming obsolete and the title became confined to the great landowners who were summoned by the king's writ as barons to attend the Great Council, the nucleus of Parliament. In 1387 the first barony by letters patent was created, but baronies still continued to be created by writ until 1607. The only form of creation nowadays is by letters patent, although there are still some barons who hold their rank hereditarily by writ. The baron's mantle has only two bars of ermine, and his coronet has six large silver balls fixed to a silver circlet. Research Baron
Duke is the highest rank in the British peerage. Dukes take precedence over all except princes and princesses of royal blood and certain officials of the Crown. The first duke to be created in England was Edward the Black Prince, who was made Duke of Cornwall in 1337. The honour is rarely given in modern times except to princes of royal blood; and the duchy of Westminster, created in 1874, was the last to be given to anyone not of the royal family. The duke's mantle has four rows of ermine on the cape, and his coronet is formed of a circle of silver gilt, surmounted by eight strawberry leaves, with a cap of crimsonvelvet topped with a golden tassel, which is turned up with ermine. The oldest existing duchy in the United Kingdom is the dukedom of Norfolk, which was created in 1483. A letter to a duke should be addressed: To His Grace the Duke of -.
At various periods and in different continental countries the title duke (Herzog in Germany) has been given to the actual sovereigns of small states. The title 'grand-duke' and 'grand-duchess,' 'archduke' and ' archduchess,' were also in use on the European continent, the latter to distinguish the princes and princesses of the Austrian imperial family. Research Duke
Earl is now the third order in the nobility, but originally the first. The rank was introduced into Britain by the Danes, and the earl became a district administrator appointed by the king. For several centuries it was customary for earls to take their titles from the counties they administered, and for the king to make grants of land in the counties. The premier earldom is really that of Arundel, but as this is now united with the dukedom of Norfolk the senior earldom is that of Shrewsbury, which was created in 1442. The earl's mantle has three rows of ermine on the cape. His coronet is a circle of silver gilt, with eight silver balls on points and golden strawberry leaves between the points. The cap is the same as for the senior ranks.
When William the Conqueror invaded Britain he tried to replace the rank of Earl with that of Count, but was unsuccessful though the wife of an earl does bear the title of countess.
Marquess is the second order of nobility. The first marquess was Robert de Vere, who was created
Marquess of Dublin in 1385 by Richard II. A marquessate is rarely created and only for exceptional services to the State. The premier marquess is the Marquess of Winchester, the title having been created in 1551. The marquess' s mantle has three and a half rows of ermine on the cape. His coronet has only four strawberry leaves as opposed to the duke's eight, the four intervening spaces being occupied by four silver balls. The cap is the same as for a duke. A letter should be addressed: To the Most Noble the Marquess of --. Research Marquess
The Probert Encyclopaedia was designed, edited and programed by
Matt and Leela Probert
Abbreviations
Research Fur-Trade
