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diff --git a/42414-8.txt b/42414-8.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 9fbd3e7..0000000 --- a/42414-8.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,20942 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Animal World, A Book of Natural History, by -Theodore Wood - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: The Animal World, A Book of Natural History - Young Folks' Treasury (Volume V) - -Author: Theodore Wood - -Editor: Ernest Ingersoll - -Release Date: March 26, 2013 [EBook #42414] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE ANIMAL WORLD *** - - - - -Produced by Juliet Sutherland and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - - - - -[Illustration: TROPICAL AMERICAN HUMMING-BIRDS] - - - - - YOUNG FOLKS' TREASURY - - In 12 Volumes - - HAMILTON WRIGHT MABIE - _Editor_ - - EDWARD EVERETT HALE - _Associate Editor_ - - - The Animal World - - A Book of Natural History - - - _By_ - THEODORE WOOD - - _Edited by_ - ERNEST INGERSOLL - - - VOLUME V - - - NEW YORK - THE UNIVERSITY SOCIETY INC. - _Publishers_ - - - - - COPYRIGHT, 1909, BY - THE UNIVERSITY SOCIETY INC. - - - - -PARTIAL LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS, ASSISTANT EDITORS AND ADVISERS - - HAMILTON WRIGHT MABIE - _Editor_ - - EDWARD EVERETT HALE - _Associate Editor_ - - -NICHOLAS MURRAY BUTLER, President Columbia University. - -WILLIAM R. HARPER, Late President Chicago University. - -HON. THEODORE ROOSEVELT, Ex-President of the United States. - -HON. GROVER CLEVELAND, Late President of the United States. - -JAMES CARDINAL GIBBONS, American Roman Catholic prelate. - -ROBERT C. OGDEN, Partner of John Wanamaker. - -HON. GEORGE F. HOAR, Late Senator from Massachusetts. - -EDWARD W. BOK, Editor "Ladies' Home Journal." - -HENRY VAN DYKE, Author, Poet, and Professor of English Literature, -Princeton University. - -LYMAN ABBOTT, Author, Editor of "The Outlook." - -CHARLES G. D. ROBERTS, Writer of Animal Stories. - -JACOB A. RIIS, Author and Journalist. - -EDWARD EVERETT HALE, Jr., English Professor at Union College. - -JOEL CHANDLER HARRIS, Late Author and Creator of "Uncle Remus." - -GEORGE GARY EGGLESTON, Novelist and Journalist. - -RAY STANNARD BAKER, Author and Journalist. - -WILLIAM BLAIKIE, Author of "How to Get Strong and How to Stay So." - -WILLIAM DAVENPORT HULBERT, Writer of Animal Stories. - -JOSEPH JACOBS, Folklore Writer and Editor of the "Jewish Encyclopedia." - -MRS. VIRGINIA TERHUNE ("Marion Harland"), Author of "Common Sense in the -Household," etc. - -MARGARET E. SANGSTER, Author of "The Art of Home-Making," etc. - -SARAH K. BOLTON, Biographical Writer. - -ELLEN VELVIN, Writer of Animal Stories. - -REV. THEODORE WOOD, F. E. S., Writer on Natural History. - -W. J. BALTZELL, Editor of "The Musician." - -HERBERT T. WADE, Editor and Writer on Physics. - -JOHN H. CLIFFORD, Editor and Writer. - -ERNEST INGERSOLL, Naturalist and Author. - -DANIEL E. WHEELER, Editor and Writer. - -IDA PRENTICE WHITCOMB, Author of "Young People's Story of Music," -"Heroes of History," etc. - -MARK HAMBOURG, Pianist and Composer. - -MME. BLANCHE MARCHESI, Opera Singer and Teacher. - - - - -CONTENTS - - - PAGE - - Introduction xi - - CHAPTER - - I Apes and Gibbons 1 - - II Baboons 7 - - III The American Monkeys and the Lemurs 16 - - IV The Bats 26 - - V The Insect-Eaters 33 - - VI The Larger Cats 47 - - VII The Smaller Cats 60 - - VIII The Civets, the Aard-Wolf, and the Hyenas 68 - - IX The Dog Tribe 78 - - X The Weasel Tribe 91 - - XI The Bear Tribe 102 - - XII The Seal Tribe 113 - - XIII The Whale Tribe 121 - - XIV The Rodent Animals 136 - - XV The Wild Oxen 157 - - XVI Giraffes, Deer, Camels, Zebras, Asses, - and Horses 179 - - XVII The Elephants, Rhinoceroses, - Hippopotamuses, and Wild Swine 201 - - XVIII Edentates, or Toothless Mammals 212 - - XIX The Marsupials 218 - - XX Birds of Prey 232 - - XXI Cuckoos, Nightjars, Humming-Birds, - Woodpeckers, and Toucans 243 - - XXII Crows, Birds of Paradise, and Finches 254 - - XXIII Wagtails, Shrikes, Thrushes, etc. 263 - - XXIV Parrots, Pigeons, Pea-Fowl, Pheasants, etc. 273 - - XXV Ostriches, Herons, Cranes, Ibises, etc. 281 - - XXVI Swimming Birds 291 - - XXVII Tortoises, Turtles, and Lizards 299 - - XXVIII Snakes 311 - - XXIX Amphibians 321 - - XXX Fresh-water Fishes 326 - - XXXI Salt-water Fishes 337 - - XXXII Insects 354 - - XXXIII Insects (_continued_) 369 - - XXXIV Spiders and Scorpions 387 - - XXXV Crustaceans 397 - - XXXVI Sea-Urchins, Starfishes, and Sea-Cucumbers 409 - - XXXVII Mollusks 414 - - XXXVIII Annelids and Coelenterates 427 - - Walks with a Naturalist 437 - - Nature-study at the Seaside 457 - - Our Wicked Waste of Life 487 - - INDEX 497 - -(_Much of the material in this volume is published by permission of -E. P. Dutton & Company, New York City, owners of American rights._) - - - - -ILLUSTRATIONS - - - TROPICAL AMERICAN HUMMING-BIRDS _Frontispiece_ - - FACING PAGE - - TYPES OF APES AND MONKEYS 6 - - PHOTOGRAPHIC PORTRAITS OF MONKEYS 16 - - FOUR GREAT CATS 48 - - SOME FIERCE CATS 64 - - A WOLFISH GROUP 80 - - TYPES OF FUR-BEARERS 96 - - TYPES OF BEARS 128 - - TYPES OF RODENTS 144 - - FOUR TYPES OF CATTLE 156 - - WILD SHEEP AND GOATS 164 - - GOATS AND GOAT-ANTELOPES 166 - - TYPES OF ANTELOPES 176 - - THE ANTLERED DEER 184 - - CHILDREN'S PETS AT THE ZOO 189 - - WILD RELATIVES OF THE HORSE 196 - - PACHYDERMS AND TAPIR 206 - - TYPES OF MARSUPIALS 220 - - TYPICAL BIRDS OF PREY 232 - - FOUR HANDSOME BIRDS 253 - - FINCHES AND WEAVER-BIRDS 262 - - AMERICAN INSECT-EATING SONG-BIRDS 272 - - GAUDY TROPICAL BIRDS 276 - - AMERICAN GAME-BIRDS 280 - - FOUR GREAT GAME-BIRDS 280 - - AMERICAN WADING BIRDS 298 - - TYPES OF WATER-BIRDS 298 - - CHARACTERISTIC FORMS AND MARKINGS OF AMERICAN - BIRDS EGGS 298 - - NORTH AMERICAN FOOD AND GAME FISHES 336 - - INSECTS INJURIOUS TO AMERICAN MAPLE-TREES 368 - - LEAF-EATING INSECTS OF SHADE-TREES 386 - - LIFE ON THE SEA-BOTTOM 413 - - NORTH AMERICAN SEED-EATING SONG-BIRDS 442 - - CHICKADEE AND WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCH 456 - - - - -INTRODUCTION - - -This volume is a sketch of the animal life of the whole world. More than -a sketch it could not be in the space at the author's command; but he -has so skilfully selected his examples to illustrate both the natural -groups and the faunas which they represent, that his work forms a most -commendable ground-plan for the study of natural history. - -Few writers have been so successful in handling this subject. His style -is singularly attractive to the young readers whom he has in view; yet -he does not depart from accuracy, nor exaggerate with false emphasis -some unusual phase of an animal's character, which is the fault of many -who try to "popularize" zoölogy. - -One may feel confident, therefore, that the boy or girl who opens this -volume will enjoy it and profit by it. The sketch dwells on the animals -most often to be seen in nature, or in menageries, or read of in books -of travel and adventure, and will thus serve as a valuable reference aid -in such reading. But it will, and ought to, do more. It will arouse anew -that interest in the creatures about us which is as natural as breath to -every youngster, but is too rarely fostered by parents and teachers. - -Nothing is more valuable in the foundation of an education than the -faculty and habit of observation--the power of noting understandingly, -or at least inquiringly, what happens within our sight and hearing. To -go about with one's eyes half shut, content to see the curtain and never -curious to look at the play on nature's stage behind it, is to miss a -very large part of the possible pleasure in life. That his child should -not suffer this loss ought to be the concern of every parent. - -Little more than encouragement and some opportunity is needed to -preserve and cultivate this disposition and faculty. Direct a -youngster's attention to some common fact of woodland life new to him, -and his interest and imagination will be excited to learn more. Give him -a hint of the relationship of this fact to other facts, and you have -started him on a scientific search, and he has begun to train his eye -and his mind without knowing it. At this point such books as this are -extremely helpful, and lead to a desire for the more special treatises -which happily are now everywhere accessible. - -This suggestion is not made with the idea that every youngster is to -become a full-fledged naturalist; but with the sense that some knowledge -of nature will be a source of delight throughout life; and with the -certainty that in no direction can quickness of eye and accuracy of -sight and reasoning be so well and easily acquired. These are qualities -which make for success in all lines of human activity, and therefore are -to be regarded as among the most important to be acquired early in life. - -The physical benefit of an interest in animal life, which leads to -outdoor exercise, needs no argument. The mental value has been touched -upon. The moral importance is in the sense of truth which nature -inculcates, and the kindliness sure to follow the affectionate interest -with which the young naturalist must regard all living things. - -No matter what is to be their walk in life, the observing study of -nature should be regarded as the corner-stone of a boy's or girl's -education. - - ERNEST INGERSOLL - - - - -MAMMALS - - - - -CHAPTER I - -APES AND GIBBONS - - -First among the mammals come the monkeys. First among the monkeys come -the apes. And first among the apes come the chimpanzees, almost the -largest of all monkeys. - - -CHIMPANZEES - -When it is fully grown a male chimpanzee stands nearly five feet high. -And it would be even taller still if only it could stand upright. - -But that is a thing which no monkey can ever do, because instead of -having feet as we have, which can be planted flat upon the ground, these -animals only have _hind hands_. There is no real sole to them, no -instep, and no heel; while the great toe is ever so much more like a -huge thumb. The consequence is that when a monkey tries to stand upright -he can only rest upon the outside edges of these hand-like feet, while -his knees have to be bent awkwardly outward. So he looks at least three -inches shorter than he really is, and he can only hobble along in a very -clumsy and ungraceful manner. - -But then, on the other hand, he is far better able to climb about in the -trees than we are, because while we are only able to place our feet flat -upon a branch, so as to stand upon it, he can grasp the branches with -all four hands, and obtain a very much firmer hold. - -Chimpanzees are found in the great forests of Central and Western -Africa, where they feed upon the wild fruits which grow there so -abundantly. They spend almost the whole of their lives among the trees, -and have a curious way of making nests for their families to live in, by -twisting the smaller branches of the trees together, so as to form a -small platform. The mother and her little ones occupy this nest, while -the father generally sleeps on a bough just underneath it. Sometime -quite a number of these nests may be seen close together, the -chimpanzees having built a kind of village for themselves in the midst -of the forest. - - -A CLEVER SPECIMEN - -If you visit the zoölogical gardens in New York, London, or some other -city, you may be quite sure of seeing one or more chimpanzees. They are -nearly always brought to the zoos when they are quite young, and the -keepers teach them to perform all kinds of clever tricks. One of them in -the London Zoo, who was called "Sally," and who lived there for several -years, actually learned to count! If she was asked for two, three, four, -or five straws, she would pick up just the right number from the bottom -of her cage and hand them to the keeper, without ever making a mistake. -Generally, too, she would pick up six or seven straws if the keeper -asked for them. But if eight, nine, or ten were asked for she often -became confused, and could not be quite sure how many to give. She was a -very cunning animal, however, and when she became tired of counting she -would sometimes pick up two straws only and double them over, so as to -make them look like four! - -"Sally" could talk, too, after a fashion, and used to make three -different sounds. One of these evidently meant "Yes," another signified -"No," and the third seemed to be intended for "Thank you," as she always -used it when the keeper gave her a nut or a banana. - -Two kinds of chimpanzees are known, namely the common chimpanzee, which -is by far the more plentiful of the two, and the bald chimpanzee, -which has scarcely any hair on the upper part of its head. One very -intelligent bald chimpanzee was kept in Barnum's menagerie, and was even -more clever, in some ways, than "Sally" herself. - - -THE GORILLA - -Larger even than the chimpanzee is the gorilla, the biggest and -strongest of all the apes, which sometimes grows to a height of nearly -six feet. It is only found in Western Africa, close to the equator, and -has hardly ever been seen by white travelers, since it lives in the -densest and darkest parts of the great forests. But several -gorillas--nearly all quite small ones--have been caught alive and kept -in captivity in zoos, where, however, they soon died. - -One of these, named "Gena," lived for about three weeks in the Crystal -Palace, near London. She was a most timid little creature, and if -anybody went to look at her she would hide behind a chimpanzee, which -inhabited the same cage, and watched over her in the most motherly way. -Another, who was called "Pongo," lived for rather more than two months -in the London Zoo, and seemed more nervous still, for he used to become -terrified if even his keeper went into the cage. But when the animal has -grown up it is said to be a most savage and formidable foe, and the -natives of Central Africa are even more afraid of it than they are of -the lion. - -Like most of the great apes, the gorilla has a most curious way of -sheltering itself during a heavy shower of rain. If you were to look at -its arms, you would notice that the hair upon them is very thick and -long, and that while it grows _downward_ from the shoulder to the -elbow, from the elbow to the wrist it grows _upward_. So when it is -caught in heavy rain, the animal covers its head and shoulders with its -arms. Then the long hair upon them acts just like thatch and carries off -the water, so that the gorilla hardly gets wet at all. - -When the gorilla is upon the ground it generally walks upon all fours, -bending the fingers of the hands inward, so that it rests upon the -knuckles. But it is much more active in the trees, and is said to -be able to leap to the ground from a branch twenty or thirty feet high, -without being hurt in the least by the fall. - - -THE ORANG-UTAN - -Another very famous ape is the orang-utan, which is found in Borneo and -Sumatra. It is reddish brown in color, and is clothed with much longer -hair than either the gorilla or the chimpanzee, while its face is -surprisingly large and broad, with a very high forehead. But the most -curious feature of this animal is the great length of its arms. When a -man stands upright, and allows his arms to hang down by his sides, the -tips of his fingers reach about half-way between his hips and his knees. -When a chimpanzee stands as upright as possible, the tips of its fingers -almost touch its knees. But when an orang-utan does the same its fingers -nearly touch the ground. Of course, when the animal is walking, it finds -that these long arms are very much in its way. So it generally uses them -as crutches, resting the knuckles upon the ground, and swinging its body -between them. - -But the orang seldom comes down to the ground, for it is far more at its -ease among the branches of the trees. And although it never seems to be -in a hurry, it will swing itself along from bough to bough, and from -tree to tree, quite as fast as a man can run below. Like the gorilla and -the chimpanzee, it makes rough nests of twisted boughs, in which the -female animal and the little ones sleep. And if it is mortally wounded, -it nearly always makes a platform of branches in the same way, and sits -upon it waiting for death. - -Orangs are often to be seen in zoölogical gardens, although they are so -delicate that they do not thrive well in captivity. One of these -animals, which lived in the London Zoo for some time, had learned a very -clever trick. Leaning up against his cage was a placard, on which were -the words "The animals in this cage must not be fed." The orang very -soon found out that when this notice was up nobody gave him any nuts or -biscuits. So he would wait until the keeper's back was turned, -knock the placard down with the printed words underneath, and then hold -out his paw for food! - -As a general rule, orangs seem far too lazy to be at all savage. Those -in zoos nearly always lie about on the floor of their cage all day, -wrapped in their blankets, with a kind of good-humored grin upon their -great broad faces. But when they are roused into passion they seem to be -very formidable creatures, and Alfred Russel Wallace tells us of an -orang that turned upon a Dyak who was trying to spear it, tore his arm -so terribly with his teeth that he never recovered the proper use of the -limb, and would almost certainly have killed him if some of his -companions had not come to his rescue. - - -GIBBONS - -Next we come to the gibbons, which are very wonderful animals, for they -are such astonishing gymnasts. Most monkeys are very active in the -trees, but the gibbons almost seem to be flying from bough to bough, -dashing about with such marvelous speed that the eye can scarcely follow -their movements. Travelers, on seeing them for the first time, have -often mistaken them for big blackbirds. They hardly seem to swing -themselves from one branch to another. They just dart and dash about, -upward, downward, sideways, backward, often taking leaps of twenty or -thirty feet through the air. And yet, so far as one can see, they only -just touch the boughs as they pass with the tips of their fingers. - -If you should happen to see a gibbon in the next zoo that you visit, be -sure to ask the keeper to offer the animal a grape, or a piece of -banana, and you will be more than surprised at its marvelous activity. - -The arms of the gibbons are very long--although not quite so long as -those of the orang-utan--so that when these animals stand as upright as -they can the tips of their fingers nearly touch the ground. But they do -not use these limbs as crutches, as the orang does. Instead of that, -they either clasp their hands behind the neck while they are walking, or -else stretch out the arms on either side with the elbows bent downward, -to help them in keeping their balance. So that when a gibbon leaves the -trees and takes a short stroll upon the ground below, it looks rather -like a big letter W suspended on a forked pole! - -[Illustration: TYPES OF APES AND MONKEYS - - 1. Diana Monkey. 2. Orang-utan. 3. Hanuman Monkey. - 4. Mandrill Baboon. 5. Capuchin Monkey. 6. Spider Monkey.] - -Gibbons generally live together in large companies, which often consist -of from fifty to a hundred animals, and they have a very odd habit of -sitting in the topmost branches of tall trees at sunrise, and again at -sunset, and joining in a kind of concert. The leader always seems to be -the animal with the strongest voice, and after he has uttered a peculiar -barking cry perhaps half a dozen times, the others all begin to bark in -chorus. Often for two hours the outcry is kept up, so loud that it may -be heard on a still day two or three miles. Then by degrees it dies -away, and the animals are almost silent until the time for their next -performance comes round. - -Several different kinds of gibbons are known, the largest of which is -the siamang. This animal is found only in Sumatra. It is a little over -three feet high when fully grown. If you ever see it at a zoo you may -know it at once by its glassy black color, and its odd whitish beard. -Then there is the hoolock, which is common in many parts of India, and -has a white band across its eyebrows, while the lar gibbon, of the Malay -Peninsula, has a broad ring of white all round its face. Besides these -there are one or two others, but they are all so much alike in their -habits that there is no need to mention them separately. - - - - -CHAPTER II - -BABOONS - - -How can we tell a baboon from an ape? - -That is quite easy. Just glance at his face. You will notice at once -that he has a long, broad muzzle, like that of a dog, with the nostrils -at the very tip. For this reason the baboons are sometimes known as -dog-faced monkeys. Then look at his limbs. You will see directly that -his arms are no longer than his legs. That is because he does not live -in the trees, as the apes do. He lives in rough, rocky places on the -sides of mountains, where there are no trees at all, so that arms like -those of the gibbons or the orang-utan would be of no use to him. He -does not want to climb. He wants to be able to scamper over the rocks, -and to run swiftly up steep cliffs where there is only just room enough -to gain a footing. So his limbs are made in such a way that he can go on -all fours like a dog, and gallop along so fast among the stones and -boulders that it is hard to overtake him. - - -THE CHACMA - -Perhaps the best known of the baboons is the chacma, which is found in -South Africa. The animal is so big and strong, and so very savage, that -if he is put into a large cage in company with other monkeys, he always -has to be secured in a corner by a stout chain. A chacma that lived for -some years in the Crystal Palace was fastened up in this way, and the -smaller monkeys, who knew exactly how far his chain would allow him to -go, would sit about two inches out of his reach and eat their nuts in -front of him. This used to make the chacma furious, and after chattering -and scolding away for some time, as if telling his tormentors what -dreadful things he would do to them if ever he got the chance, he -would snatch up an armful of straw from the bottom of his cage and fling -it at them with both hands. - -"If I fed the smaller monkeys with nuts, instead of giving them to him," -says a visitor, "he would fling the straw at me." - -Chacmas live in large bands among the South African mountains, and are -very difficult to watch, as they always post two or three of their -number as sentinels. As soon as any sign of danger appears one of the -watchers gives a short, sharp bark. All the rest of the band understand -the signal, and scamper away as fast as they can. - -Sometimes, however, the animals will hold their ground. A hunter was -once riding over a mountain ridge when he came upon a band of chacmas -sitting upon a rock. Thinking that they would at once run away, he rode -at them, but they did not move, and when he came a little closer they -looked so threatening that he thought it wiser to turn back again. - -An angry chacma is a very formidable foe, for it is nearly as big as a -mastiff, and ever so much stronger, while its great tusk-like teeth cut -like razors. When one of these animals is hunted with dogs it will often -gallop along until one of its pursuers has outstripped the rest, and -will then suddenly turn and spring upon him, plunge its teeth into his -neck, and, while its jaws are still clenched, thrust the body of its -victim away. The result is that the throat of the poor dog is torn -completely open, and a moment later its body is lying bleeding on the -ground, while the chacma is galloping on as before. - -These baboons are very mischievous creatures, for they come down from -their mountain retreats by night in order to plunder the orchards. And -so cautiously is the theft carried out, that even the dogs on guard know -nothing of what is going on, and the animals nearly always succeed in -getting away. - -When it cannot obtain fruit, the chacma feeds chiefly upon the bulb of a -kind of iris, which it digs out of the ground with its paw, and then -carefully peels. But it is also fond of insects, and may often be seen -turning over stones, and catching the beetles which were lying hidden -beneath them. It will even eat scorpions, but is careful to pull off -their stings before doing so. - - -THE MANDRILL - -Another interesting baboon is the mandrill, which one does not often see -in captivity. It comes from Western Africa. While it is young there is -little that is remarkable about it. But the full-grown male is a -strange-looking animal, for on each of its cheeks there is a swelling as -big as a large sausage, which runs upward from just above the nostrils -to just below the eyes. These swellings are light blue, and have a -number of grooves running down them, which are colored a rich purple, -while the line between them, as well as the tip of the nose, is bright -scarlet. The face is very large in proportion to the size of the body, -and the forehead is topped by a pointed crest of upright black hair, -while under the chin is a beard of orange yellow. On the hind quarters -are two large bare patches of the same brilliant scarlet as the nose. So -you see that altogether a grown-up male mandrill is a very odd-looking -creature. - -The female mandrill has much smaller swellings on her face. They are -dull blue in color, without any lines of either purple or scarlet. - -Almost all monkeys are subject at times to terrible fits of passion, but -the mandrill seems to be the worst tempered of all. Fancy an animal -dying simply from rage! It sounds impossible, yet the mandrill has been -known to do so. And the natives of the countries in which it lives are -quite as much afraid of it as they are of a lion. - -Yet it has once or twice been tamed. In the Natural History Museum, at -South Kensington, London, is the skin of a mandrill which lived for some -years in that city in the earlier part of the nineteenth century. His -name was "Jerry," and he was so quiet and contented that he was -generally known as "Happy Jerry." He learned to smoke a pipe. He was -very fond of a glass of beer. He even used to sit at table for his -meals, and to eat from a plate by means of a knife and fork. And he -became so famous that he was actually taken down to Windsor to appear -before King George the Fourth! - -There is another baboon called the drill, which is not unlike the -mandrill in many respects, but the swellings on its face are not nearly -as large, and they remain black all through its life. It is a much -smaller animal, too, and looks, on the whole, very much like a mandrill -while it is quite young. - - -THE GELADA - -Almost as odd-looking as the mandrill, though in quite a different way, -is the gelada, which is found in Abyssinia. Perhaps we may compare it to -a black poodle with a very long and thick mane upon its neck and -shoulders. When the animal sits upright this mane entirely covers the -upper part of its shoulders, so that a gelada looks very much as if it -were wearing a coachman's mantle of long fur. - -In some parts of Abyssinia geladas are very numerous, living among the -mountains in bands of two or three hundred. Like the chacmas in South -Africa, they are very mischievous in the orchards and plantations, -always making their raids by night. It is said that on one occasion they -actually stopped no less a personage than a Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, -and prevented him from proceeding on his journey for several hours. - -The story is, that as the Duke was traveling in Abyssinia his road lay -through a narrow pass, overhung with rocky cliffs; that one of his -attendants, catching sight of a number of geladas upon the rocks above, -fired at them; that the angry baboons at once began to roll down great -stones upon the path below, and that before they could be driven off -they succeeded in completely blocking the road, so that the Duke's -carriage could not be moved until the stones had been cleared away. - -Whether this story is altogether true or not, we cannot say. But there -can be no doubt that geladas are very warlike animals. Not only will -they attack human beings who interfere with them, they also attack other -baboons. When they are raiding an orchard, for instance, they sometimes -meet with a band of Arabian baboons, which have come there for the same -purpose as themselves. A fierce battle then takes place. First of all -the geladas try to roll down stones upon their rivals. Then they rush -down and attack them with the utmost fury, and very soon the -orchard is filled with maddened baboons, tumbling and rolling over one -another, biting and tearing and scratching each other, and shrieking -with furious rage. - -The Arabian baboon itself is a very interesting creature, for it is one -of the animals which were venerated by the ancient Egyptians. They -considered it as sacred to their god Thoth, and treated it with the -greatest possible honor; and when it died they made its body into a -mummy, and buried it in the tombs of the kings. Sometimes, too, they -made use of the animal while it lived, for they would train it to climb -a fig-tree, pluck the ripe figs, and hand them down to the slaves -waiting below. - -These baboons sometimes travel in great companies. The old males always -go first, and are closely followed by the females, those which have -little ones carrying them upon their backs. As they march along, perhaps -one of the younger animals finds a bush with fruit upon it, and stops to -eat a little. As soon as they see what he is doing, a number of others -rush to the spot, and begin fighting for a share. But generally one of -the old males hears the noise, boxes all their ears and drives them -away, and then sits down and eats the fruit himself. - - -THE PROBOSCIS-MONKEY - -Next we come to a group of animals called dog-shaped monkeys, and the -most curious of them all is the proboscis-monkey. This is the only -monkey which really possesses a nose. Some monkeys have nostrils only, -and some have muzzles, but the proboscis-monkey has not merely a nose, -but a very long nose, so long, in fact, that when one of these monkeys -is leaping about in the trees it is said always to keep its nose -carefully covered with one hand, so that it may not be injured by a -knock against a bough. - -Strange to say, it is only the male animal that has this very long nose, -and even he does not get it until he is grown up. Indeed, you can tell -pretty well how old a male proboscis-monkey is just by glancing at his -nose. When he is young it is quite small. As he gets older it grows -bigger. And by the time that he reaches his full size it is three -or four inches long. Naturally this long nose gives him a very strange -appearance, and his great bushy whiskers, which meet under his chin, -make him look more curious still. - -We do not know much about the habits of the proboscis-monkey. In Borneo, -its native country, it lives in the thick forests, and is said to be -almost as active among the branches of the trees as the gibbons -themselves. The Dyaks do not believe that it is a monkey at all, but say -that it is really a very hairy man, who insists on living in the forests -in order to escape paying taxes. - - -THE HANUMAN - -The hanuman, another of the dog-shaped monkeys, lives in India, where it -is treated with almost as much reverence as the Arabian baboon was in -Egypt in days of old. - -The natives do not exactly worship these monkeys, but they think that -they are sacred to the god Hanuman, from whom they take their name. -Besides that, they believe that these animals are not really monkeys at -all, but that their bodies are inhabited by the souls of great and holy -men, who lived and died long ago, but have now come back to earth again -in a different form. So no Hindu will ever kill a hanuman monkey or -injure it in any way, no matter how much mischief it may do. The -consequence is that these animals are terrible thieves. They know -perfectly well that no one will try to kill them, or even to trap them, -so they come into the villages, visit the bazaars, and help themselves -to anything to which they may take a fancy. Yet all that the -fruit-sellers will do is to place thorn-bushes on the roofs of their -shops to prevent the monkeys from sitting there. - -European sportsmen, however, often find the hanuman very useful. For its -greatest enemy is the tiger, and when one of these animals is being -hunted a number of hanumans will follow it wherever it goes, and point -it out to the beaters by their excited chattering. - -Next to the tiger, the hanuman dislikes snakes more than any living -creature, and when it finds one of these reptiles asleep it will -creep cautiously up to it, seize it by the neck, and then rub its head -backward and forward upon a branch till its jaws have been completely -ground away. - -The hanuman belongs to a group of monkeys which are called langurs. They -may be known by their long and almost lanky bodies, by the great length -of their tails, and by the fact that they do not possess the -cheek-pouches which many other monkeys find so useful. And it is very -curious that while the arms of the apes are longer than their legs, the -legs of the langurs--which are almost as active in the trees--are longer -than their arms. - -If you ever happen to see a hanuman you may know it at once by its black -face and feet, and by its odd eyebrows, which are very bushy, and -project quite away in front of its face. - - -THE GUENONS - -We now come to the guenons, of which there are a great many kinds. Let -us take two of these as examples of the rest. The first is the green -monkey, which comes from the great forests of Western Africa. You may -know it by sight, because it is the commonest monkey in every menagerie. -It is one of the monkeys, too, which organ-grinders so often carry about -on their organs. But they do not care to have it except when it is quite -young, for although it is very gentle and playful until it reaches its -full size, it afterward becomes fierce and sullen, and is apt at any -moment to break out into furious passion. - -Like most of the guenons, green monkeys go about in droves, each under -the leadership of an old male, who wins and keeps his position by -fighting all his rivals. Strange to say, each of these droves seems to -have its own district allotted to it; and if by any chance it should -cross its boundary, the band into whose territory it has trespassed will -at once come and fight it, and do their utmost to drive it back. - -Wouldn't it be interesting to know how the animals mark out their own -domains, and how they let one another know just how far they will be -permitted to go? - -Our second example of the guenons is the diana monkey, which you -may at once recognize by its long, pointed, snow-white beard. It seems -to be very proud of this beard, and while drinking holds it carefully -back with one hand, in order to prevent it from getting wet. - -Why is it called the "diana" monkey? Because of the curious white mark -upon its forehead, which is shaped like the crescent which the ancients -used to think was borne by the goddess Diana. It is a very handsome -animal, for its back is rich chestnut brown in color, and the lower part -of its body is orange yellow, while between the two is a band of pure -white. Its face and tail and hands and feet are black. It is a very -gentle animal, and is easily tamed. - - -THE MANGABEYS - -These are very odd-looking monkeys, for they all have white eyelids, -which are very conspicuous in their sooty-black faces. Indeed, they -always give one a kind of idea that they must spend their whole lives in -sweeping chimneys. - -They are among the most interesting of all monkeys to watch, for they -are not only so active and full of life that they scarcely seem able to -keep still, but they are always twisting their bodies about into all -sorts of strange attitudes. When in captivity they soon find out that -visitors are amused by their antics, and are always ready to go through -their performances in order to obtain a nut or a piece of cake. - -Then they have an odd way, when they are walking about their cages, of -lifting their upper lips and showing their teeth, so that they look just -as if they were grinning at you. And instead of carrying their tails -behind them, as monkeys generally do, or holding them straight up in the -air, they throw them forward over the back, so that the tip comes just -above the head. - -Only four kinds of mangabey are known, and they are all found in Western -Africa. - - -MACAQUES - -There is one more family of monkeys found in the Old World which we must -mention, and that consists of the animals known as macaques. They -are natives of Asia, with one exception, and that is the famous magot, -the only monkey which lives wild in any part of Europe. It inhabits the -Rock of Gibraltar, and though it is not nearly as common as it used to -be, there is still a small band of these animals with which nobody is -allowed to interfere. They move about the Rock a good deal. When the -weather is warm and sunny, they prefer the side that faces the -Mediterranean, but as soon as a cold easterly wind springs up they all -travel round to the western side, which is much more sheltered. They -always keep to the steepest parts of the cliff, and it is not easy to -get near enough to watch them. Generally the only way to see them at all -is by means of a telescope. - -The magot is sometimes known as the Barbary ape, although of course it -is not really an ape at all. But it is very common in Barbary, and two -or three times, when the little band of monkeys on the Rock seemed in -danger of dying out, a few specimens have been brought over from Africa -just to make up the number. - -The only other member of this family that we can mention is the -crab-eating macaque, which is found in Siam and Burma. It owes its name -to its fondness for crabs, spending most of its time on the banks of -salt-water creeks in order to search for them. But perhaps the strangest -thing about it is that it is a splendid swimmer, and an equally good -diver, for it has been known to jump overboard and to swim more than -fifty yards under water, in its attempts to avoid recapture. - - - - -CHAPTER III - -THE AMERICAN MONKEYS AND THE LEMURS - - -A great many very curious monkeys live in America; and in several ways -they are very different from those of Africa and Asia. - -Most of the Old World monkeys, for example, possess large cheek-pouches, -in which, after eating a meal, they can carry away nearly enough food -for another. No doubt you have often seen a monkey with its cheeks -perfectly stuffed out with nuts. But in the American monkeys these -pouches are never found. - -Then no American monkey has those bare patches on its hind quarters, -which are present in all the monkeys of the Old World, with the -exception of the great apes, and which are often so brightly colored. -And, more curious still, no American monkey has a proper thumb. The -fingers are generally very long and strong; but the thumb is either -wanting altogether, or else it is so small that it cannot be of the -slightest use. - -[Illustration: PHOTOGRAPHIC PORTRAITS OF MONKEYS. - - 1. Young Orang-utan "Dohong." 2. Barbary Ape. - 3. Japanese Red-faced Monkey. 4. White-faced Sapajou. - 5. Siamang Gibbon. 6. Chimpanzee "Polly." - -_All lived in the New York Zoölogical Park._] - - -SPIDER-MONKEYS - -Perhaps the most curious of all the American monkeys are the -spider-monkeys, which look very much like big black spiders when one -sees them gamboling among the branches of the trees. The reason is that -their bodies are very slightly built, and their arms and legs are very -long and slender, while the tail is often longer than the head and body -together, and looks just like an extra limb. And indeed it is used as an -extra limb, for it is prehensile; that is, it can be coiled round any -small object so tightly as to obtain a very firm hold. A spider-monkey -never likes to take a single step without first twisting the tip of its -tail round a branch, so that this member really serves as a sort of -fifth hand. Sometimes, too, the animal will feed itself with its tail -instead of with its paws. And it can even hang from a bough for -some little time by means of its tail alone, in order to pluck fruit -which would otherwise be out of its reach. - -Owing partly, no doubt, to constant use, the last few inches of this -wonderful tail are quite bare underneath--without any hair at all. It is -worth while to remember, just here, that while in many American monkeys -the tail has this prehensile grasp, no monkey of the Old World is -provided with this convenience. - -When a spider-monkey finds itself upon level ground, where its tail, of -course, is of no use to it, it always seems very uncomfortable. But it -manages to keep its balance as it walks along by holding the tail over -its back, and just turning it first to one side and then to the other, -as the need of the moment may require. It uses it, in fact, very much as -an acrobat uses his pole when walking upon the tight rope. - -It is rather curious to find that while other monkeys are very fond of -nibbling the tips of their own tails, often making them quite raw, -spider-monkeys never do so. They evidently know too well how useful -those members are to injure them by giving way to such a silly -habit--which is even worse than biting one's nails. - -When a spider-monkey is shot as it sits in a tree, it always coils its -tail round a branch at once. And even after it dies, the body will often -hang for several days suspended by the tail alone. - -These monkeys spend almost the whole of their lives in the trees, -feeding upon fruit and leaves, and only coming down to the ground when -they want to drink. As a general rule they are dreadfully lazy -creatures, and will sit on a bough for hours together without moving a -limb. But when they are playful, or excited, they swing themselves to -and fro and dart from branch to branch, almost as actively as the -gibbons. - - -HOWLERS - -Very much like the spider-monkeys are the howlers, which are very common -in the great forests of Central America. They owe their name to -the horrible cries which they utter as they move about in the trees by -night. You remember how the gibbons hold a kind of concert in the -tree-tops every morning and every evening, as though to salute the -rising and the setting sun. Well, the howlers behave in just the same -way, except that their concert begins soon after dark and goes on all -through the night. They have very powerful voices, and travelers who are -not used to their noise say that it is quite impossible to sleep in the -forest if there is a troop of howlers anywhere within two miles. And it -is hard to believe that the outcry comes from the throats of monkeys at -all. "You would suppose," says a famous traveler, "that half the wild -beasts of the forest were collecting for the work of carnage. Now it is -the tremendous roar of the jaguar, as he springs upon his prey; now it -changes to his terrible and deep-toned growlings, as he is pressed on -all sides by superior force; and now you hear his last dying groan -beneath a mortal wound. One of them alone is capable of producing all -these sounds; and if you advance cautiously, and get under the high and -tufted trees where he is sitting, you may have a capital opportunity of -witnessing his wonderful powders of producing these dreadful and -discordant sounds." - -If one monkey alone is capable of roaring as loudly as a jaguar, think -what the noise must be when fifty or sixty howlers are all howling at -the same time. No wonder travelers find it difficult to sleep in the -forest. - -Perhaps the best known of these monkeys is the red howler. Its color is -reddish brown, with a broad band of golden yellow running along the -spine, while its face is surrounded by bushy whiskers and beard. - - -THE OUAKARI - -Another very curious American monkey is the red-faced ouakari. If you -were to see it from a little distance you would most likely think that -it was suffering from a bad attack of scarlet fever; for the face and -upper part of the neck are bright red in color, as though they had been -smeared with vermilion paint. And as its whiskers and beard are -sandy yellow, it is a very odd-looking animal. - -If a ouakari is unwell, strange to say, the bright color of its face -begins to fade at once, and very soon after death it disappears -altogether. - -Ouakaris are generally caught in a very singular way. They are only -found in a very small district on the southern bank of the Amazon River, -and spend their whole lives in the topmost branches of the tallest -trees, where it is quite impossible to follow them. And if they were -shot with a gun, of course they would almost certainly be killed. So -they are shot with a blowpipe instead. A slender arrow is dipped into a -kind of poison called wourali, which has been diluted to about half its -usual strength, and is then discharged at the animal from below. Only a -very slight wound is caused, but the poison is still so strong that the -ouakari soon faints, and falls from its perch in the branches. But the -hunter, who is carefully watching, catches it in his arms as it falls, -and puts a little salt into its mouth. This overcomes the effect of the -poison, and very soon the little animal is as well as ever. - -Ouakaris which are caught in this way, however, are generally very -bad-tempered, and the gentle and playful little animals sometimes seen -in zoos have been taken when very young. They are very delicate -creatures and nearly always die after a few weeks of confinement. - - -THE COUXIA - -If you were to see a couxia, or black saki, as it is often called, the -first thing that you would say would most likely be, "What an -extraordinary beard!" And your next remark would be, "Why, it looks as -if it were wearing a wig!" For its projecting black beard is as big as -that of the most heavily bearded man you ever saw, while on its head is -a great mass of long black hair, neatly parted in the middle, and -hanging down on either side, so that it looks just like a wig which has -been rather clumsily made. - -The couxia is extremely proud of its beard, and takes very great -pains to prevent it from getting either dirty or wet. Do you remember -how the diana monkey holds its beard with one hand while drinking, so as -to keep it from touching the water? Well, the couxia is more careful -still, for it will not put its lips to the water at all, but carries it -to its mouth, a very little at a time, in the palm of its hand. But the -odd thing is that it seems rather ashamed of thinking so much about its -"personal appearance," and, if it knows that anybody is looking at it, -will drink just like any other monkey, and pretend not to care at all -about wetting its beard. - -Like most of the sakis, the couxia is not at all a good-tempered animal, -and is apt to give way to sudden fits of fury. So savagely will it bite -when enraged, that it has been known to drive its teeth deeply into a -thick board. - - -THE DOUROUCOULIS - -Sometimes these odd little animals are called night-monkeys, because all -day long they are fast asleep in a hollow tree, and soon after sunset -they wake up, and all night long are prowling about the branches of the -trees, searching for roosting birds, and for the other small creatures -upon which they feed. They are very active, and will often strike at a -moth or a beetle as it flies by, and catch it in their deft little paws. -And their eyes are very much like those of cats, so that they can see as -well on a dark night as other monkeys can during the day. - -The eyes, too, are very large. If you were to look at the skull of a -douroucouli, you would notice that the eye-sockets almost meet in the -middle, only a very narrow strip of bone dividing them. And the hair -that surrounds them is set in a circle, just like the feathers that -surround the eyes of an owl. - -But perhaps the most curious fact about these animals is that sometimes -they roar like jaguars, and sometimes they bark like dogs, and sometimes -they mew like cats. - -There are several different kinds of these little monkeys, the most -numerous, perhaps, being the three-banded douroucouli, which has three -upright black stripes on its forehead. They are all natives of Brazil -and other parts of tropical America. - - -MARMOSETS - -One of the prettiest--perhaps the very prettiest--of all monkeys is the -marmoset, which is found in the same part of the world. It is quite a -small animal, being no bigger in body than a common squirrel, with a -tail about a foot long. This tail, which is very thick and bushy, is -white in color, encircled with a number of black rings, while the body -is blackish with gray markings, and the face is black with a white nose. -But what one notices more than anything else is the long tufts of -snow-white hair upon the ears, which make the little animal look -something like a white-haired negro. - -Marmosets are very easily tamed, and they are so gentle in their ways, -and so engaging in their habits, that if only they were a little more -hardy we should most likely see them in this country as often as we see -pet cats. But they are delicate little creatures, and cannot bear cold. -What they like to eat most of all is the so-called black beetle of our -kitchens. If only we could keep pet marmosets, they would very soon -clear our houses of cockroaches, as these troublesome creatures are -correctly called. They will spend hours in hunting for the insects, and -whenever they catch one they pull off its legs and wings, and then -proceed to devour its body. - -When a marmoset is suddenly alarmed, it utters an odd little whistling -cry. Owing to this habit it is sometimes known as the ouistiti, or -tee-tee. - - -LEMURS - -Relatives of the monkeys, and yet in many respects very different from -them, are those very strange animals, the lemurs, which are sometimes -called half-apes. The reason why that name has been given to them is -this: Lemurs by the ancients were supposed to be ghosts which wandered -about by night. Now most of the lemurs are never seen abroad by day. -Their eyes cannot bear the bright sunlight; so all day long they sleep -in hollow trees. But when it is quite dark they come out, -prowling about the branches so silently and so stealthily that they -really seem more like specters than living animals. - -When you see them close, they do not look very much like monkeys. Their -faces are much more like those of foxes, and they have enormous staring -eyes without any expression. - -The true lemurs are only found in Madagascar, where they are so numerous -that two or three at least may be found in every little copse throughout -the island. More than thirty different kinds are known, of which, -however, we cannot mention more than two. - -The first of these is the ring-tailed lemur, which may be recognized at -once by the fact that its tail is marked just like that of the marmoset. -The head and body are shaped like those of a very small fox, and the -color of the fur is ashy gray, rather darker on the back, and rather -lighter underneath. It lives in troops in Central Madagascar, and every -morning and every night each troop joins in a little concert, just like -the gibbons and the howlers. - -But, oddly enough, this lemur is seldom seen in the trees. It lives on -the ground, in rough and rocky places, and its hands and feet are made -in such a way, as to enable it to cling firmly to the wet and slippery -boulders. In fact, they are not at all unlike the feet of a house-fly. -The body is clothed with long fur, and when a mother lemur carries her -little one about on her back it burrows down so deep into her thick coat -that one can scarcely see it at all. - -The ruffed lemur is the largest of these curious animals, being about as -big as a good-sized cat. The oddest thing about it is that it varies so -very much in color. Sometimes it is white all over, sometimes it is -partly white and partly black, and sometimes it is reddish brown. -Generally, however, the shoulders and front legs, the middle of the -back, and the tail are black, or very dark brown, while the rest of the -body is white. And there is a great thick ruff of white hairs all round -the face. - -The eyes of this lemur are very singular. You know, of course, how the -pupil of a cat's eye becomes narrower and narrower in a strong -light, until at last it looks merely like an upright slit in the -eyeball. Well, that of the lemur is made in very much the same way, -except that the pupil closes up from above and below instead of from the -sides, so that the slit runs across the eyeball, and not up and down. - -The slender loris may be described as a lemur without a tail, It is -found in the forests of Southern India and Ceylon. It is quite small, -the head and body being only about eight inches long, and in general -appearance it gives one rather the idea of a bat without any wings. In -color it is dark gray, with a narrow white stripe between the eyes. - -This animal has a very queer way of going to sleep. It sits on a bough -and rolls itself up into a ball with its head tucked away between its -thighs, while its hands are tightly folded round a branch springing up -from the one on which it is seated. In this attitude it spends the whole -of the day. At night it hunts for sleeping birds, moving so slowly and -silently among the branches as never to give the alarm, and always -plucking off their feathers before it proceeds to eat them. Strange to -say, while many monkeys have no thumbs, the slender loris has no -forefingers, while the great toes on its feet are very long, and are -directed backward instead of forward. - - -LEMUROIDS - -There are two lemur-like animals which are so extraordinary that each of -them has been put into a family all by itself. - -The first of these is the tarsier, which is found in several of the -larger islands in the Malay Archipelago. Imagine an animal about as big -as a small rat, with a long tail covered thickly with hair at the root -and the tip, the middle part being smooth and bare. The eyes are -perfectly round, and are so big that they seem to occupy almost the -whole of the face--great staring eyes with very small pupils. The ears -are very long and pointed, and stand almost straight up from the head. -Then the hind legs are so long that they remind one of those of a -kangaroo, while all the fingers and all the toes have large round pads -under the tips, which seem to be used as suckers, and to have a -wonderful power of grasp. Altogether, the tarsier scarcely looks like an -animal at all. It looks like a goblin. - -This singular creature seldom seems to walk. It hops along the branches -instead, just as a kangaroo hops on the ground. And when it wants to -feed it sits upright on its hind quarters, and uses its fore paws just -as a squirrel does. - -Even more curious still is the aye-aye, of Madagascar, which has puzzled -naturalists very much. For its incisor teeth--the sharp cutting teeth, -that is, in the middle of each jaw--are formed just like those of the -rat and the rabbit. They are made not for cutting but for gnawing; and -as fast as they are worn away from above they grow from beneath. All of -its fingers are long and slender; but the middle one is longer than all -the rest, and is so thin that it looks like nothing but skin and bone. -Most likely this finger, which has a sharp little claw at the tip, is -used in hooking out insects from their burrows in the bark of trees. But -the aye-aye does not feed only upon insects, for it often does some -damage in the sugar plantations, ripping up the canes with its sharp -front teeth in order to get at the sweet juices. It is said at times to -catch small birds, either for the purpose of eating them or else to -drink their blood. And it seems also to eat fruit, while in captivity it -thrives on boiled rice. - -The aye-aye is about as big as a rather small cat, and its great bushy -tail is longer than its head and body put together. It is not a common -animal, even in Madagascar, and its name of aye-aye is said to have been -given to it on account of the exclamations of surprise uttered by the -natives when it was shown to them for the first time by a European -traveler. But it is more likely that the name comes from the cry of the -animal, which is a sort of sharp little bark twice repeated. - -Strange to say, the natives of Madagascar are much afraid of the -aye-aye. Of course it cannot do much mischief with its teeth or claws; -but they seem to think that it possesses some magic power by means of -which it can injure those who try to catch it, or even cause them to -die. So that they cannot be bribed to capture it even by the offer of a -large reward. Sometimes, however, they catch it by mistake, finding an -aye-aye in a trap which has been set for lemurs. In that case -they smear it all over with fat, which they think will please it very -much, and then allow it to go free. - -The aye-aye is seldom seen in captivity, and when in that state it -sleeps all day long. - - - - -CHAPTER IV - -THE BATS - - -Next in order to the monkeys come the bats, the only mammals which are -able to fly. It is quite true that there are animals known as flying -squirrels, which are sometimes thought to have the power of flight. But -all that these can do, as we shall see by and by, is to take very long -leaps through the air, aided by the curious manner in which the loose -skin of the body is fastened to the inner surface of the legs. - - -HOW BATS FLY - -Bats, however, really can fly, and the way in which their wings are made -is very curious. If you were to look at a bat's skeleton, you would -notice, first of all, that the front limbs were very much larger than -the hinder ones. The upper arm-bone is very long indeed, the lower -arm-bone is longer still, and the bones of the fingers are longest of -all. The middle finger of a bat, indeed, is often longer than the whole -of its body! Now these bones form the framework of the wing. You know -how the silk or satin of a lady's fan is stretched upon the ribs. Well, -a very thin and delicate skin is stretched upon the bones of a bat's arm -and hand in just the same way. And when the little animal wants to fly, -it stretches its fingers apart, and so spreads the wing. When it wants -to rest it closes them, and so folds it against its body. - -Then you would notice that a high bony ridge runs down the bat's -breast-bone. Now such a ridge as this always signifies great strength, -because muscles must be fastened at each end to bones; and when the -muscles are very large and powerful, the bones must be very strong in -order to carry them. So, when an animal needs very strong -breast-muscles, so that it may be able to fly well, we always find a -high bony ridge running down its breast-bone; and to this ridge -the great muscles which work the wings are fastened. - -Something more is necessary, however, if the animal is to fly properly. -It must be able to steer itself in the air just as a boat has to be -steered in the water. Otherwise it would never be able to fly in the -right direction. So nature has given it a kind of air-rudder; for the -skin which is stretched upon the wings is carried on round the end of -the body, and is supported there, partly by the hind legs, and partly by -the bones of the tail. And by turning this curious rudder to one side or -the other, or tilting it just a little up or a little down, the bat is -able to alter its course at will. - - -THE USEFUL CLAW - -But you would notice something else on looking at a bat's skeleton. You -would notice that the bones of the thumb are not long and slender, like -those of the fingers, but that they are quite short and stout, with a -sharp hooked claw at the tip. The bat uses this claw when it finds -itself on the ground. It cannot walk, of course, as it has no front -feet; so it hitches itself along by means of its thumbs, hooking first -one claw into the ground and then the other, and so managing to drag -itself slowly and awkwardly forward. - -It is not at all fond of shuffling along in this way, however, and -always takes to flight as soon as it possibly can. But as it cannot well -rise from the ground it has to climb to a little height and let itself -drop, so that as it falls it may spread its wings and fly away. And it -always climbs in a very curious manner, with its tail upward and its -head toward the ground, using first the claws of one little foot and -then those of the other. - -When a bat goes to sleep it always hangs itself up by the claws of its -hind feet. In an old church tower, or a stable loft, you may often find -bats suspended in this singular way. And there is a reason for it. The -bat wants to be able, at the first sign of danger, to fly away. Now if -it lay flat upon the ground to sleep, as most animals do, it would not -be able to fly quickly; for it would have to clamber up a wall or a post -to some little height before it could spread its wings. And this -would take time. But if it should be alarmed while it is hanging by its -hind feet, all that it has to do is to drop into the air and fly off at -once. - - -BATS IN THE DARK - -There is something else, too, that we must tell you about bats. They -have the most wonderful power of flying about on the darkest night, -without ever knocking up against the branches of trees, or any other -obstacles which they may meet on their way. It used to be thought that -this was because they had very keen eyes. But it has been found out that -even a blind bat has this power, which seems really to be due to very -sensitive nerves in the wings. You can feel a branch by touching it. But -a bat is able to feel a branch _without_ touching it, while it is -eight or ten inches away, and so has time to swerve to one side without -striking against it. - - -THE WINTER SLEEP - -Bats, like hedgehogs and squirrels, pass through the winter in a kind of -deep sleep, which we call hibernation. It is more than ordinary sleep, -for they do not require any food for months together, while they -scarcely breathe once in twenty-four hours, and their hearts almost -cease to beat. If the winter is cold throughout, they do not wake at all -until the spring. But two or three hours' warm sunshine arouses them -from their slumber. They wake up, feel hungry, go out to look for a -little food, and then return to their retreats and pass into the same -strange sleep again. - - -AN INTERESTING SPECIMEN - -"I once kept a long-eared bat as a pet," says a writer, "and a most -interesting little creature he was. One of his wings had been injured by -the person who caught him, so that he could not fly, and was obliged to -live on the floor of his cage. Yet, although he could take no -exercise, he used to eat no less than seventy large bluebottle flies -every evening. As long as the daylight lasted, he would take no notice -of the flies at all. They might crawl about all over him, but still he -would never move. But soon after sunset, when the flies began to get -sleepy, the bat would wake up. Fixing his eyes on the nearest fly, he -would begin to creep toward it so slowly that it was almost impossible -to see that he was moving. By degrees he would get within a few inches. -Then, quite suddenly, he would leap upon it, and cover it with his -wings, pressing them down on either side of his body so as to form a -kind of tent. Next he would tuck down his head, catch the fly in his -mouth, and crunch it up. And finally he would creep on toward another -victim, always leaving the legs and the wings behind him, which in some -strange way he had managed to strip off, just as we strip the legs from -shrimps. - -"I often watched him, too, when he was drinking. As he was so crippled, -I used to pour a few drops of water on the floor of his cage, and when -he felt thirsty he would scoop up a little in his lower jaw, and then -throw his head back in order to let it run down his throat. But in a -state of freedom bats drink by just dipping the lower jaw into the water -as they skim along close to the surface of a pond or a stream, and you -may often see them doing so on a warm summer's evening." - - -THE PIPISTRELLE - -The pipistrelle, a common European bat, is said to feed chiefly upon -gnats, of which it must devour a very large number, and as it much -prefers to live near human habitations, there can be no doubt that it -helps to keep houses free from these disagreeable insects. In captivity -it will feed freely upon raw meat chopped very small. It appears earlier -in the spring than the other bats, and remains later in the autumn. - - -HORSESHOE BATS - -These bats of the Old World have a most curious leaf-like membrane upon -the face, which gives them a very odd appearance. In the great -horseshoe bat this membrane is double, like one leaf placed above -another. The lower one springs from just below the nostrils, and spreads -outward and upward on either side, so that it is shaped very much like a -horseshoe, while the upper one is pointed and stands upright, so as -partly to cover the forehead. The ears, too, are very large, and are -ribbed crosswise from the base to the tips; so that altogether this bat -is a strange-looking creature. - -Perhaps none of the bats is more seldom seen than this, for it cannot -bear the light at all, and never comes out from its retreat until -darkness has quite set in. And one very seldom finds it asleep during -the day, for it almost always hides in dark and gloomy caverns, which -are hardly ever entered by any human being. In France, however, there -are certain caves in which great numbers of these bats congregate -together for their long winter sleep. As many as a hundred and eighty of -them have been counted in a single colony. And it is a very strange fact -that all the male bats seem to assemble in one colony, and all the -female bats in another. - - -VAMPIRES - -In Central and South America, and also in the West Indian Islands, a -number of bats are found which are known as vampires. Some of these eat -insects, just like the bats of other countries, and one of them--known -as the long-tongued vampire--has a most singular tongue, both very long -and very slender, with a brush-like tip, so that it can be used for -licking out insects from the flowers in which they are hiding. Then -there are other vampires which eat fruit, like the flying foxes, about -which we shall have something to tell you soon. But the best known of -these bats, and certainly the strangest, are those which feed upon the -blood of living animals. - -If you were to tether a horse in those parts of the forest where these -vampires live, and to pay it a visit just as the evening twilight was -fading into darkness, you would be likely to see a shadowy form hovering -over its shoulders, or perhaps even clinging to its body. This would be -a vampire bat; and when you came to examine the horse, you would -find that, just where you had seen the bat, its skin would be stained -with blood. For this bat has the singular power of making a wound in the -skin of an animal, and sucking its blood, without either alarming it or -appearing to cause it any pain. And if a traveler in the forest happens -to lie asleep in his hammock with his feet uncovered, he is very likely -to find in the morning that his great toe has been bitten by one of -these bats, and that he has lost a considerable quantity of blood. Yet -the bat never wakes him as it scrapes away the skin with its sharp-edged -front teeth. - -Strangely enough, however, there are many persons whom vampires will -never bite. They may sleep night after night in the open, and leave -their feet entirely uncovered, and yet the bats will always pass them -by. Charles Waterton, a famous English traveler, was most anxious to be -bitten by a vampire, so that he might learn by his own experience -whether the infliction of the wound caused any pain. But though he slept -for eleven months in an open loft, through which the bats were -constantly passing, they never attempted to touch him, while an Indian -lad who slept in the same loft was bitten again and again. - -But as these bats cannot always obtain blood, it is most likely that -they do not really live upon it, but only drink it when they have the -chance, and that as a rule their food consists of insects. - - -FLYING FOXES - -Of course these are not really foxes. They are just big bats which feed -on fruit, instead of on insects or on blood. They are called also -fruit-bats. But their long, narrow faces are so curiously fox-like that -we cannot feel surprised that the name of flying foxes should have been -given to them. - -Flying foxes are found in many parts of Asia, as well as in Madagascar -and in Australia, and in some places they are very common. In India, -long strings of these bats may be seen regularly every evening, as they -fly off from their sleeping-places to the orchards in search of fruit. -In some parts of India, early in the morning, and again in the evening, -the sky is often black with them as far as the eye can reach, and they -continue to pass overhead in an unbroken stream for nearly -three-quarters of an hour. And as they roost in great numbers on the -branches of tall trees, every bat being suspended by its hinder feet, -with its wings wrapped round his body, they look from a little distance -just like bunches of fruit. - -It is rather curious to find that when they are returning to the trees -in which they roost, early in the morning, these bats quarrel and fight -for the best places, just as birds do. - -In districts where they are at all plentiful, flying foxes do a great -deal of mischief, for it is almost impossible to protect the orchards -from their attacks. Even if the trees are covered all over with netting -they will creep underneath it, and pick out all the best and ripest of -the fruit; while, as they only pay their visits of destruction under -cover of darkness, it is impossible to lie in wait for them and shoot -them as they come. - -The flight of the fruit-bats is not at all like that of the bats with -which we are familiar, for as they do not feed upon insects there is no -need for them to be constantly changing their course, and darting first -to one side and then to the other in search of victims. So they fly -slowly and steadily on, following one another just as crows do, and -never turning from their course until they reach their feeding-ground. - -The largest of these fruit-bats is the kalong, which is found in the -islands of the Malay Archipelago. It measures over five feet from tip to -tip of the extended wings. The Malays often use it for food, and its -flesh is said to be delicate and well flavored. - - - - -CHAPTER V - -THE INSECT-EATERS - - -Next to the bats comes the important tribe of the insect-eaters, -containing a number of animals which are so called because most of them -feed chiefly upon insects. - - -THE COLUGO - -One of the strangest of these is the colugo, which lives in Siam, Java, -and the Islands of the Malay Archipelago. It is remarkable for its -wonderful power of leaping, for it will climb a tall tree, spring -through the air, and alight on the trunk of another tree seventy or -eighty yards away. For this reason it has sometimes been called the -"flying colugo"; but it does not really fly. It merely skims from tree -to tree. And if you could examine its body you would be able to see at -once how it does so. - -First of all, you would notice that the skin of the lower surface is -very loose. You know how loose the skin of a dog's neck is, and how you -can pull it up ever so far from the flesh. Well, the skin of the colugo -is quite as loose as that on the sides and lower parts of its body. - -Then you would notice that this loose skin is fastened along the inner -side of each leg, so that the limbs are connected by membrane just like -the toes of a duck's foot. And you would also see that when the legs are -stretched out at right angles to the body, this membrane must be -stretched out with them. - -Now when a colugo wishes to take a long leap, it springs from the tree -on which it is resting, spreads out its limbs, and skims through the air -just as an oyster-shell does if you throw it sideways from the hand. The -air buoys it up, you see, and enables it to travel ten times as far as -it could without this loose skin. But of course this is not flight. The -animal does not beat the air with the membrane between the legs, -as bats and birds do with their wings. It cannot alter its course in the -air; and it is always obliged to alight at a lower level than that from -which it sprang. - -The colugo is about as big as a good-sized cat, and its fur is olive or -brown in color, mottled with whitish blotches and spots. When it clings -closely to the trunk of a tree, and remains perfectly motionless, it may -easily be overlooked, for it looks just like a patch of bark covered -with lichens and mosses. It is said to sleep suspended from a branch -with its head downward, like the bats; and whether this is the case or -not, its tail is certainly prehensile, like that of a spider-monkey. And -strangest of all, perhaps, is the fact that, although it belongs to the -group of the insect-eaters, it feeds upon leaves. - - -THE HEDGEHOG - -In European countries, where it is common, one can scarcely walk through -the meadows on a summer's evening without seeing this curious animal as -it moves clumsily about in search of prey. There everybody is familiar -with its spiky coat, which affords such an excellent protection against -almost all its enemies. - -But it is not everybody who knows how the animal raises and lowers its -spines. It has them perfectly under control; we all know that. If you -pick a hedgehog up it raises its spines at once, even if it does not -roll itself up into a ball and so cause them to project straight out -from its body in all directions. But if you keep the creature as a pet, -and treat it kindly, it will very soon allow you to handle it freely -without raising its spines at all. - -The fact is this. The spines are shaped just like slightly bent pins, -each having a sort of rounded head at the base. And they are pinned, as -it were, through the skin, the heads lying underneath it. Besides this, -the whole body is wrapped up in a kind of muscular cloak, and in this -the heads of the spines are buried. So if the muscle is pulled in one -direction, the spines must stand up, because the heads are carried along -with it. If it is pulled in the other direction they must lie -down, for the same reason. And it is just by pulling this muscle in one -direction or the other that the animal raises and lowers its spines. - - -HEDGEHOG HABITS - -The hedgehog is not often seen wandering about by day, because it is -then fast asleep, snugly rolled up in a ball under the spreading roots -of a tree, or among the dead leaves at the bottom of a hedge. But soon -after sunset it comes out from its retreat, and begins to hunt about for -food. Sometimes it will eat bird's eggs, being very fond of those of the -partridge; for which reason it is not at all a favorite with the -gamekeeper. It will devour small birds, too, if it can get them, also -lizards, snails, slugs, and insects. It has often been known to kill -snakes and to feed upon their bodies afterward. It is a cannibal, too, -at times, and will kill and eat one of its own kind. But best of all it -likes earthworms. - -The number of these which it will crunch up one after another is -astonishing. "I once kept a tame hedgehog," says a naturalist, "and fed -him almost entirely upon worms; and he used to eat, on an average, -something like an ordinary jampotful every night of his life. He never -took the slightest notice of the worms as long as the daylight lasted; -but when it began to grow dark he would wake up, go sniffing about his -cage till he came to the jampot, and then stand up on his hind feet, put -his fore paws on the edge, and tip it over. And after about an hour and -a half of steady crunching, every worm had disappeared." - -In many places farmers persecute the hedgehog, and kill it whenever they -have a chance of doing so. And if you ask the reason the answer is -generally to the effect that hedgehogs steal milk from sleeping cows at -night. Now it does not seem very likely that a cow would allow such a -spiky creature as a hedgehog to come and nestle up against her body. -But, on the other hand, it cannot be denied that hedgehogs are often to -be seen close by cows as they rest upon the ground. But they have not -gone there in search of milk. Don't you know what happens if you lay a -heavy weight, such as a big paving-stone, on the ground? The worms -buried under it feel the pressure, and come up to the surface in -alarm. Now a cow is a very heavy weight; so that when she lies down a -number of worms are sure to come up all round her. And the hedgehog -visits the spot in search, not of milk, but of worms! - -The young of the hedgehog, which are usually four in number, do not look -in the least like their parents, and you might easily mistake them for -young birds; for their spikes are very soft and white, so that they look -much more like growing feathers. The little creatures are not only -blind, but also deaf, for several days after birth, and they cannot roll -themselves up till they have grown somewhat. The mother animal always -makes a kind of warm nest to serve as a nursery, and thatches it so -carefully that even a heavy shower of rain never seems to soak its way -through. - -Strange to say, the hedgehog appears to be quite unaffected by many -kinds of poison. It will eat substances which would cause speedy death -to almost any other animal. And over and over again it has been bitten -by a viper without appearing to suffer any ill results. - -In England, about the middle of October, the hedgehog retires to some -snug and well-hidden retreat, and there makes a warm nest of moss and -dry leaves. In this it hibernates, just as bats do in hollow trees, only -waking up now and then for an hour or two on very mild days, and often -passing three or four months without taking food. - - -SHREWS - -During the earlier part of the autumn, you may very often find a curious -mouse-like little animal lying dead upon the ground. But if you look at -it carefully, you will see at once that in several respects it is quite -different from the true mice. - -In the first place you will notice that its mouth is produced into a -long snout, which projects far in front of the lower jaw. Now no mouse -ever has a snout like that. Then you will find that all its teeth are -sharply pointed, while the front teeth of a mouse have broad, flat edges -specially meant for nibbling at hard substances. And, thirdly, you -will see that its tail, instead of gradually tapering to a pointed -tip, is comparatively short, and is squared in a very curious manner. -The fact is that the little animal is not a mouse at all, but a kind of -shrew, of which there are many American species. One is large, and -pushes through the top-soil like a mole. Another, smaller, is blackish, -and has a short tail. The commonest one is mouse-gray and only two -inches long plus a very long tail. It is fond of water, but has no such -interesting habits as those of the European shrew next described. - -These creatures are very common almost everywhere. But we very seldom -see them alive, because they are so timid that the first sound of an -approaching footstep sends them away into hiding. Yet they are not at -all timid among themselves. On the contrary, they are most quarrelsome -little creatures, and are constantly fighting. If two shrews meet, they -are almost sure to have a battle, and if you were to try to keep two of -them in the same cage, one would be quite certain to kill and eat the -other before very long. They are not cannibals as a rule, however, for -they feed upon worms and insects, and just now and then upon snails and -slugs. And no doubt they do a great deal of good by devouring -mischievous grubs. - -Why these little animals die in such numbers just at the beginning of -the autumn, nobody quite seems to know. It used to be thought that they -were killed by cats, or hawks, or owls, which refused to eat them -because of some unpleasant flavor in their flesh. But then one never -finds any mark of violence on their bodies. A much more absurd idea was -that they always die if they run across a path which has been trodden by -the foot of man! Perhaps the real reason may be that just at that season -of the year they perish from starvation. - - -THE WATER-SHREW - -The best way to see this pretty little creature is to go and lie down on -the bank of a stream, and to keep perfectly still for five or ten -minutes. If you do this--not moving even a finger--you will very -likely see half a dozen or more of the little animals at play. They go -rushing about in the wildest excitement, chasing one another, tumbling -over one another, and uttering curious little sharp, short squeaks, just -like a party of boys let out from school after a long morning's work. -Suddenly one will dash into the water and dive, quickly followed by -another and then by a third. As they swim away beneath the surface they -look just like balls of quicksilver, because their soft, silky fur -entangles thousands of little air-bubbles, which reflect back the light -just as a looking-glass does. And you will notice that they do not swim -straight. First they turn to one side, and then to the other side, -exactly like some one who has just learned to ride a bicycle, but does -not yet know how to keep the front wheel straight. And the reason is -this. The shrew swims by means of its hind feet, which are fringed with -long hairs, so as to make them more useful as paddles; and it uses them -by striking out first with one and then with the other. The consequence -is that when it strikes with the right foot its head turns to the left, -while when it strikes with the left foot its head turns to the right. - -But it would not be able to swim even as straight as it does if it were -not for its tail, which is fringed with long hairs just like the hind -feet. And as the little animal paddles its way through the water it -keeps its tail stretched out behind it, and uses it as a rudder, turning -it a little bit to one side or the other, so as to help it in keeping -its course. - -After chasing one another under water for a minute or two, the little -animals give up their game. And now, if you watch them carefully, you -can see them hunting for food. First they go to one stone down at the -bottom of the stream, and then to another, poking their long snouts -underneath in search of fresh-water shrimps, or the grubs of -water-insects. But a minute or two later they are all back on the bank -again, dashing about and chasing one another and squeaking as merrily as -ever. - -Sometimes you may see a water-shrew which is very much darker in color -than the others, the fur on the upper part of its body being almost -black. It used to be thought that such animals as this belonged to a -different species, to which the name of oared shrew was given. But we -know now that they are only dark varieties of the common water-shrew. - - -JUMPING SHREWS - -These are all found in Africa. They are curious little creatures with -extremely long hind feet, by means of which they leap along just as if -they were tiny kangaroos. So swift are they, that it is very difficult -for the eye to follow their movements. And as they disappear into their -burrows at the slightest alarm and do not come out again for some little -time, few people ever have a chance of watching their habits. - -The snouts of these shrews are so very long that the little animals are -often known as elephant-shrews. - - -TREE-SHREWS - -This is a group so called because they spend almost the whole of their -lives in the trees. In some ways they are not unlike tiny squirrels, -being nearly as active in their movements, and sitting up on their hind -quarters to feed, while the food is held in their fore paws. They are -found in various parts of Southern Asia. They soon become very tame, -actually entering houses, and climbing up on the table while the -occupants are sitting at meals. They will even drink tea and coffee out -of the cups! And if they are encouraged they make themselves quite at -home, and will drive away any other tree-shrews which may venture into -the house. - -The largest animal of this group is the tupaia, which lives in Borneo -and Sumatra. But the most curious is the pen-tailed tree-shrew, which -has a double fringe of long hairs at the end of its tail, arranged just -like the barbs of a feather, so that its tail looks very much like a -quill pen. The rest of the tail, which is very long, is covered with -square scales; and while the tail itself is black, the fringe of hairs -is white, so that the appearance of the animal is very odd. It is found -in Sarawak, and also in some of the smaller islands of the Malay -Archipelago. - - -THE DESMAN - -This animal may be described as a kind of mixture of the elephant-shrew -and the water-shrew; for it has an extremely long and flexible snout, -and it spends almost its whole life in the water. Its feet are very well -adapted for swimming, the toes being joined together by a web-like -membrane like those of the duck and the swan, so that they form most -exquisite paddles. And the animal is so fond of the water that, although -it lives in a burrow in the bank of a stream, it always makes the -entrance below the surface. - -This is a very good plan in one way, for if the little animal is chased -by one of its enemies, it can easily take refuge in its long, winding -tunnel, which twists about so curiously, and has so many side passages, -that the pursuer is almost sure to be baffled. But in another way it is -a bad plan, for as the burrow has no entrance except the one under -water, it never gets properly ventilated, the only connection with the -outer air being some chance cranny in the ground. And in winter-time, -when deep snow has covered up this cranny, while the surface of the -stream is frozen to a depth of several inches, the poor little desman -can get no fresh air at all, and often dies in its own burrow from -suffocation. - -This animal has a curious musky odor, which is due to certain glands -near the root of the tail. So strong is this odor, that if a pike -happens to have swallowed a desman a few days before it is caught, its -flesh cannot be eaten, for its whole body both smells and tastes -strongly of musk. Two kinds of desman are known. One is the Russian -desman, which is found in the steppes, and the other is the Pyrenean -desman, which lives in the range of mountains from which it takes its -name. - - -THE COMMON MOLE - -This is perhaps the most interesting of all the insect-eaters. Have you -ever noticed how wonderfully it is suited for a life which is almost -entirely spent under the ground? - -Notice, first of all, the shape of its body. It is a pointed cylinder. -Now that is the very best shape for a burrowing animal, because it -offers so little resistance to the ground as the creature forces its way -along. And nowadays we make all our boring tools and weapons of that -shape. The gimlet, which has to bore through wood; the bullet, which has -to bore through air; the torpedo and the submarine boat, which have to -bore through water--they are all made in the form of pointed cylinders. -And the mole is a pointed cylinder too. Its body is the cylinder, and -its head is the point; and so the animal is able to work its way through -the soil with as little difficulty as possible. - -Then notice the character of its fur. It has no "set" in it. You can -stroke it backward or forward with equal ease. And this is most -important in an animal which lives in a burrow. If a mole had fur like -that of a cat, it would be able to travel head foremost through its -tunnel quite easily; but it could not move backward. And this would -never do, for sometimes the mole is attacked by an enemy in front, while -it has no room to turn round in order to retreat. So nature has made its -fur in such a way that it "gives" in either direction, and enables the -little animal to move either forward or backward with equal ease. - - -A WONDROUS DIGGER - -See what wonderful front paws the mole has--so broad, so very strong, -and armed with such great, stout claws. They are partly pickaxes, and -partly spades, which can tear away the earth and fling it up into -molehills with the most wonderful speed. The rapidity with which a mole -can dig is really marvelous. "Three times," a writer tells us, "I have -seen moles walking about on the ground. Each time I was within ten yards -of the animal; each time I ran to the spot. And yet each time the little -creature had disappeared into the ground before I could get there! It -did not seem to be digging. It simply seemed to sink into the soil, just -as though it were sinking into water." - -Then just see how hard and horny the skin of the paws is. If it were -not for this, the mole would be always cutting itself with sharp flints -as it dug its way through the ground. Notice, too, how both the eyes and -ears are hidden away under the fur, so that fragments of earth may not -fall into them. Nature has been very careful to suit the mole to the -strange life which she calls upon it to lead. - -Perhaps no animal is so strong for its size as the mole. Its muscles and -sinews are so hard that they will turn the edge of a knife. If a mole -could be magnified to the size of a lion or a tiger, and its strength -could be increased in corresponding degree, it would be by far the more -powerful animal of the two. - - -THE MOLE AND ITS FOOD - -The reason why the mole is so strong, and so well suited for a life -underground, is that it is meant to feed partly upon worms, and partly -upon such grubs as wireworms, which live on the roots of plants. And the -appetite of the animal is astonishing. It is ever eating, and yet never -appears to be satisfied. Don't think of keeping a mole as a pet; because -if you do, you will have to spend almost the whole of your time in -digging up worms for it to eat! Mole-catchers say, indeed, that if a -mole goes without eating for three hours it is in danger of starvation. -So that the animal must spend the greater part of the day, and of the -night too, in searching for food. - -How does it find the worms and grubs? Well, of course it cannot see -underground; so sometimes, we may think, it smells them, for its scent -is certainly very keen. But oftener, most likely, it hears them moving -about; for its ears are even keener still. Haven't you noticed that, -although you may often walk through fields which are almost covered with -molehills, you never see the earth being thrown up? That is because the -mole hears you coming. It hears your footsteps when you are a hundred -yards distant, or even more, and immediately stops work until you have -gone away again. In "The Tempest," Caliban tells his companions to -"tread softly, that the blind mole may not hear a footfall." Although -Shakespeare was wrong in thinking that moles are blind, he was quite -right in reminding us that they have very sharp ears. - - -FRIEND OR FOE? - -The gardener, of course, looks upon the mole as a foe; and so it is when -it drives its tunnels under our lawns, and throws up great heaps of -earth on the surface of the grass. And the farmer regards it as a foe -too, and kills it whenever he has an opportunity. But perhaps the farmer -may not know what a busy little animal the mole is, and what thousands -and thousands of mischievous grubs it devours. There are wireworms, -which nibble away at the roots of plants till they kill them, and then -move on to destroy other plants in the same way. There are -"leather-jackets," or daddy-long-legs grubs, which feed upon the roots -of grass, and sometimes ruin all the turf in a meadow. There are also -the great fat white grubs of beetles, which are worse, perhaps, than -either; and many others as well. Now the mole is always preying upon -these. It eats them in hundreds every day of its life. And just think of -all the mischief that they would have done if they had been allowed to -live! No doubt it is annoying to the farmer to have molehills among his -hay, which blunt the knives of the reaping-machines, and prevent them -from cutting properly. But even that is better than having no hay to -cut; and there would be none if all these mischievous grubs were allowed -to live. - -But there is another way as well in which the mole is useful; for the -earth which it digs up from down below, and throws up in heaps on the -surface of the ground, serves for what the farmer calls a top-dressing. -After a time, you see, the nourishment in the soil at the surface is -sucked out of it by the roots of the grass. If it were in a garden, the -farmer could dig it. If it were in a corn-field, or a turnip-field, he -could plow it. But in a meadow, he can do neither, without destroying -the pasture. So he applies a top-dressing. He gets some good, rich earth -from elsewhere, and spreads it over the surface; and this earth works -down to the grass-roots, and gives them just the nourishment they -require. - -Now this is exactly what the mole is always doing. The earth which it -throws up is fresh, rich earth from down below, which the roots have not -reached. It is just what the failing grass requires. And if the farmer -rakes the molehills down, so as to spread this earth evenly over the -surface of the field, he finds that it forms a top-dressing quite as -good as any he could apply himself. So instead of looking upon the mole -as one of his enemies, he ought to include it in the list of his -laborers. - - -THE LITTLE WELL-DIGGER - -Another thing that we must tell you about the mole is the way in which -it obtains water. It is a very thirsty animal, and constantly requires -to drink. At the same time, it cannot leave its burrow half a dozen -times a day, in order to visit a stream or a pond, for it would almost -certainly be killed by one of its many enemies. So it actually digs -little wells of its own, always doing so in the dampest parts of its -tunnels, where they fill up almost immediately. And when it wants to -drink it just goes off to the nearest of these wells and satisfies its -thirst. - - -THE MOLE'S FORTRESS - -But the most wonderful thing that the mole does is to make what we call -a fortress, surrounding the chamber in which it sleeps. This fortress is -situated either in a natural mound of earth, or else beneath the -spreading roots of a tree or a large bush; and it is made in this way: -First the mole digs a short circular gallery. A little way under this it -digs another, rather larger in diameter, and connects the two by means -of five short passages. In the middle of the mound, and about half-way -between the two galleries, it scoops out a large round hole, from which -three passages run to the lower gallery. This is the mole's bedroom, and -it communicates with the main burrow by a tunnel which dips under the -lower gallery. Finally, a number of runs branch out from the lower -gallery in all directions. - -So, you see, if a mole is chased by an enemy, it can nearly always -escape by passing through its fortress. It goes up one passage, down -another, up again by a third, down again by a fourth, and then off by -one of the side runs; so that its pursuer is almost sure to be -bewildered. And if the little animal should be surprised while asleep, -it can escape in any direction without losing even a moment. - -As the mole always likes to make itself comfortable, it collects -together a quantity of dry grass, moss, and leaves, and piles them up in -the central chamber, so as to make a warm and cosy bed! And the female -mole makes a nursery for her little ones in much the same way. - - -FIERCE FIGHTERS - -Sad to say, moles are very quarrelsome little animals, and frequently -fight when they meet. Here is an account of one of their battles, -written by a passer-by who happened to witness it. - -"Walking along a quiet lane, I heard some very funny little squeaks -proceeding from the other side of the hedge. I am perfectly used to all -sorts of animal and bird sounds, but had never heard the like of these -before. On getting cautiously over the hedge, I found two moles fighting -in the ditch. I went to within two yards of them, but they took not the -slightest notice of me, so intent were both on their business. I at once -looked at my watch. They kept on, up and down, scratch and bite, for -seven minutes, when one turned the other completely over on his back, -and seized him by the throat, which he cut as cleanly as if done by a -knife, thus finishing the fight. The way in which they used their -formidable front feet was surprising." - - -THE STAR-NOSED MOLE - -This mole is found in the United States and Canada. It is a very -odd-looking animal, for its muzzle is shaped into a long snout, at the -tip of which is a circle of fleshy rays of a rosy red color, which look -like the petals of a red daisy, or the spreading arms of a sea-anemone. -These rays can be opened wide or closed up at pleasure, and seem to -serve as very delicate organs of touch, helping the animal in finding -and catching its prey. - -This mole is also remarkable for having a very long tail, which is more -than half the length of the head and body. The total length is about -seven inches. - - - - -CHAPTER VI - -THE LARGER CATS - - -Now we come to the beasts of prey, foremost among which stand the -members of the great cat tribe. All these animals have their bodies -formed in a very wonderful way. - -First of all, their eyes are intended for use chiefly by night. If you -look at a cat's eyes during broad daylight, when the sun is shining, you -will notice that the pupils, through which she sees, are nothing more -than mere narrow slits in the middle. Look at them again toward evening, -when the twilight is just beginning to creep on, and you will see that -the pupils are a good deal bigger, occupying nearly half the eyeball. -Look at them once again, when it is almost dark, and you will find that -they are bigger still, having widened out over nearly the whole of the -eye. - -Now the eyes of a lion and a tiger are made in just the same way. The -darker the night, the more the pupils expand, so that they may be able -to take in the few rays of light that there are. We sometimes say that -these animals can see in the dark. That, of course, is a mistake, for in -perfect darkness no animal can see at all. But even on the darkest night -there is always some light, and no matter how little there is it is -enough to allow lions and tigers to see perfectly well, because of the -wonderful way in which their eyes are made. - - -THE STEALTHY TREAD - -But these creatures do not only want to be able to see their victims on -a dark night; they also want to be able to creep up to them without -making the slightest sound. It would be quite useless, for instance, for -a lion to chase a deer, because the deer is by far the swifter animal of -the two. If the lion is to catch the deer at all he must spring upon it -unawares, and strike it down before it knows its danger. And this is -not at all easy, for the ears of a deer are very sharp, and if the lion -were to make the least noise while creeping up, it would take the alarm -directly. But under his great broad paws the lion has soft, fleshy -cushions, which enable him to walk along without making any noise at -all. Haven't you noticed how silent a cat's tread is? You simply cannot -hear her place her foot upon the ground. Well, lions and tigers walk in -just the same noiseless manner, so that the deer never hears them -creeping up, and is struck down and killed before it has time to realize -its danger. - -[Illustration: FOUR GREAT CATS - - 1. Lion and Lioness. 2. Canada Lynx. - 3. Cheeta. 4. Tiger.] - -But suppose that there are bushes in the way. Suppose, for example, that -in order to approach the deer at all the lion must creep through a -thicket. Is he not quite sure to brush up against a branch as he does -so, causing the leaves to rustle? And will not the deer hear the sound -and take the alarm? - -Well, no doubt this would happen if the lion had to depend for his -silent approach only on the soft cushions under his feet. But then, you -see, he has whiskers as well! Perhaps you thought these were only meant -for ornament. But they are meant for use; and they are employed in a -very curious manner. When they are spread out on either side, they -measure from tip to tip exactly the width of the body. Besides this, -there is a very delicate sensitive nerve at the root of every whisker, -which runs straight to the brain. So, you see, if the tip of a whisker -is touched, the brain feels it directly; and if as the lion is creeping -through the bushes his outspread whiskers brush against the branches, he -knows at once that there is no room for him to pass without making a -noise and alarming his victim. So he draws his head back, and creeps up -by another way. - - -KILLING AND EATING - -Then it is very important that his claws should be kept sharp; for he -depends upon them for tearing his victim down. So every claw fits into a -sheath, which protects the point, and prevents it from being worn down -by rubbing against the ground. You can easily see these sheaths by -examining the paw of a cat; and those of the lion and tiger are formed -in just the same way. And the muscles which work them are so arranged -that they keep the claws always drawn back, except just when the animal -uses its paw in striking. - -And then, once more, these animals have very curious tongues. Haven't -you noticed when a cat has licked your hand how very dry and rough her -tongue feels? It is quite different from the smooth, wet tongue of a -dog. Well, the tongue of a lion or tiger is even rougher still; and if -you were to look at it sideways, you would see why. It is covered all -over with sharp hook-like projections, the points of which are directed -toward the throat. - -The reason is this: a lion or a tiger does not succeed in killing prey -every night. Sometimes it hunts for one night, sometimes for two nights, -sometimes even for three nights, without any success at all. So that -when it does catch a victim, it wants to eat as much of its flesh as it -possibly can. And if its tongue were not made in this singular manner, -it would have to waste a great deal; for its sharp-pointed teeth cannot -tear off nearly all the flesh of the bones. By means of its rough -tongue, however, it can lick off even the tiniest scraps; and not even -the smallest atom has to be wasted. - -If you give a dog a bone which is too big for him to crunch up and -swallow, you will always find that he leaves a good deal of meat upon -it. But if you give a similar bone to a hungry cat, you will find that -she licks it perfectly clean. That is because her tongue is made in just -the same way as that of a lion. - - -LIONS - -About forty different kinds of cats are known, most of which are found -in the warmer parts of Africa and Asia. The most famous of all, of -course, is the lion, which is spread over the greater part of the -African continent, and is also found in Persia and in India. - -We need not describe the lion, for everybody knows perfectly well what -it is like. But perhaps you do not know that the Indian lion hardly ever -has a mane. For this reason it was formerly thought that there were two -different kinds of lions, the Indian animal being quite different from -that found in Africa. But we now know that this is not the case, and -that the Indian lion is only a kind or variety, not a distinct species. - -But there are very few lions left in India now, while even in Persia -they are not nearly so plentiful as they used to be. In many parts of -Africa, however, these animals abound, and it is not at all an uncommon -thing for six or eight to be seen together. - -During the daytime the lion is generally fast asleep, lying up in a -thicket, or in a bed of reeds by the side of a pool or a river. But as -soon as night falls he leaves his retreat, and begins to prowl about in -search of prey, roaring loudly from time to time. One would think that -this would only alarm other animals, and lead them to seek safety in -flight. But when a lion roars he generally puts his head close to the -ground, and this has the effect of making it almost impossible for them -to tell from which direction the sound is coming, so that they do not -know how best to try to escape him. And very often, in their -bewilderment, they rush to the very spot where he is lying in wait. - -When a lion springs upon his victim, he either kills it by a stroke from -his terrible paw, or else bites it in the throat or across the back of -the neck. He then drags it away to some convenient retreat, eats his -fill, and returns to his lair to sleep. Next day, very likely, he will -return to the carcass for another meal. But when he gets there he often -finds that the jackals and hyenas have discovered it, and left very -little for him. - -Wherever a lion goes he is almost sure to be followed by a number of -jackals, all anxious to feast on the remains of the animals he kills. -But he never allows them to approach until he has eaten as much as he -can possibly swallow, and it is said that if one of them attempts to do -so he will catch it and bite off all its paws as a warning to the others -to be more respectful. - -According to a great many hunters, the lion is not nearly so courageous -as it is generally supposed to be, and is really rather a cowardly -animal. They say, for example, that it will hardly ever face a man -unless it is brought to bay, but will always try to slink away and -escape. If they kill a deer, and want to protect its body from the -lions, they can always do so by tying two or three streamers of white -cloth to sticks planted round the carcass, so that they flutter in the -wind. And though the animals may prowl round and round all through the -night, roaring loudly from time to time, they will never venture to -approach within fifteen or twenty yards. Neither will they attack a -tethered horse if the bridle is left hanging from its neck. - -All hunters agree, however, that if a lion is wounded, or if it sees no -chance of escape, it is a most terrible foe, and cannot be encountered -without the utmost peril. - -If a lion is captured while quite young, it is very easily tamed, and -can even be taught to perform all kinds of tricks at the word of -command. But lions born in captivity are not nearly so easy to manage, -and can never be depended upon for a moment. - -Lions generally have three or four cubs at a birth, and the little -animals are just as playful at kittens. But although they are always -ready for a good romp it is not wise to play with them, for a baby lion -is as big as a good-sized cat, and is very much stronger, so that a bite -from its teeth or a blow from its paw is rather a serious matter. For -the first few months of their lives the cubs are brindled, almost like -tigers, the stripes disappearing by degrees as the fur grows darker. -They do not reach their full size until they are about four years old. - - -TIGERS - -The tiger is found principally in the jungles of India, although it is -spread over the greater part of Central and Southern Asia. In some -respects it is a finer animal than even the lion. It is certainly -stronger; it is quite as courageous; and it is nearly as large, though -the shortness of its legs and the absence of a mane cause it to appear a -good deal smaller. - -Probably any one, on seeing a tiger for the first time, would imagine -that it must be a very conspicuous animal in its native jungle. But, as -a matter of fact, this is not the case at all. As long as a tiger keeps -perfectly still it is most difficult to see him, even if you happen to -be looking straight at him; for his bright orange fur, marked with -glossy black stripes, looks just like the yellow leaves of the -jungle-grass, with streaks of deep shadow between them. This coloring, -of course, helps the tiger in two ways. In the first place, when he is -hunting, it enables him to creep up to his victims without being seen; -and in the second place, when he is being hunted himself, it often helps -him to crawl away without being noticed. - -In some parts of India tigers are still extremely common; and of course -they do a great deal of mischief. They are very fond of preying upon -domesticated cattle, and sometimes, every four or five days for months -together, the same tiger will kill and carry away a bullock from the -same herd. He generally kills his victims by springing upon them -suddenly, seizing their throats with his jaws, and then wrenching their -heads backward and sideways, so as to break their necks. Then he will -either drag away the carcass into the jungle at once, or he will hide -close by, and come back in order to feast upon it when night is -beginning to fall. - -Of course a tiger cannot devour the whole of a bullock's body at one -meal; but at the same time he does not care to leave the remainder for -the jackals. So when he has eaten his fill he nearly always finds a -sleeping place close by, so that if he should wake up and hear a party -of jackals quarreling over the carcass, he can rush out at them and -drive them away. - - -MAN-EATERS - -But worse by far than the cattle-destroying tigers are the man-eaters. -These are sometimes said to be the old and almost toothless animals -which can no longer kill a buffalo or a bullock, and therefore take to -preying upon human beings instead. But very often quite a young animal -becomes a man-eater; and it is said that if a tiger should once taste -human blood he will always prefer it afterward to any other food. - -A man-eating tiger will often throw a whole district into a state of -terror. Day after day he will conceal himself among the thick bushes -which border a native road, and lie in wait for solitary passers-by. One -day, perhaps, a man will be carried off; the next day, a woman; the day -after, a child. No one knows where the animal is hiding; and sometimes -he will succeed in killing fifty or sixty human beings before he is -discovered and destroyed. - - -TIGER-HUNTING - -When the natives kill a tiger, they generally do so by driving him into -a small clump of jungle, surrounding it with stout netting, and then -spearing him through the meshes. Or perhaps they will climb a tree close -to the carcass of a bullock which the animal has killed, and shoot him -when he comes at dusk to feast upon its remains. But in Oudh the tiger -is said to have been formerly destroyed in a very curious way. A number -of leaves of the prauss tree, which are large and broad like those of a -sycamore, were smeared with a kind of bird-lime, and laid upon the -ground in the animal's path. When he came along one of these leaves -would stick to his paws, and he would find that he could not shake it -off. So he would try to remove it by rubbing it against his face. The -only result, of course, would be that his nose and eyes became covered -with bird-lime. Meanwhile he had trodden upon other leaves, which he -tried to remove in the same way. Before very long his eyelids were stuck -down so that he could not open them. Then he would lie down and rub his -face upon the ground, covering it with earth, and so making matters -worse. By this time he would be thoroughly frightened and begin to howl -pitifully, so that when the hunters came running up they found the poor -beast an easy prey. - -Europeans, however, hunt the tiger by means of elephants, which have to -be carefully trained before they can be depended upon to face the -furious animal. A number of elephants are generally employed, the -hunters riding in howdahs, seats fixed upon their backs, while several -hundred natives, perhaps, act as beaters, shouting and yelling, beating -drums, firing guns, and making as much din as they possibly can to -frighten the animal from its retreat. Sometimes it is so terrified that -it slinks out, and falls an easy prey. But now and then it will charge -the nearest elephant with the utmost fury, sometimes springing upon it -and almost reaching the howdah before it is killed by a well-directed -bullet. - -The number of tiger cubs in a litter varies from two to five, or even -six, although families of more than three are not very common. The -little ones do not reach their full size until they are three years old, -and during the whole of that time they go about with their parents. - - -LEOPARDS - -Much smaller than either the lion or the tiger, but still a very large -and powerful animal, is the leopard, which is sometimes known as the -panther. It is spread over almost the whole of Africa, and also over the -greater part of Asia, and in many districts is very common. - -You can always recognize the leopard by its markings. The ground color -of the fur is bright yellow, with just a tinge of red in it, becoming -lighter on the flanks, and passing into white on the lower surface of -the body. The spots are black, and those on the back and sides are -always ring-shaped, enclosing a patch of yellow. Sometimes, however, the -whole of the fur is black. But even then you can see the spots, which -look something like the markings in watered silk. - -Somehow, these black leopards always seem far more savage than the -others, and those who have them under their care say that it is quite -impossible to tame them. - -In spite of its smaller size, the leopard is nearly as powerful as the -tiger, and in some ways is an even more formidable foe. It is much more -active, for instance, and is more easily roused into rage; while it can -climb trees like a cat, and spring down upon a passer-by from among the -branches. It does not as a rule attack man, and will always seek safety -in flight if it can. But if it is brought to bay it will fight -furiously, and nothing will check it but a bullet through the heart or -the brain. - -When it can do so, the leopard always likes to live near the habitations -of man, because there are so many opportunities of springing upon a -pony, a sheep, or a goat. At night, too, it will rob the hen-roosts, or -make its way into the pens where the calves are kept, and carry one of -them off before its presence is even suspected. Dogs, too, fall victims -to it in great numbers, and now and then it succeeds in pouncing upon -an unwary monkey. When it kills an animal it does not leave the carcass -lying on the ground as the tiger does, and visit it night after night -until it is consumed, but carries parts of its body up into a tree, and -hides them in a kind of larder which it has made among the branches. - -Those who have hunted it say that the leopard is a far more difficult -animal to kill than the tiger. The reason is that it is so much more -wary. A tiger, as it creeps through the jungle, will look most carefully -in front of it as it moves along, as well as on either side, but it -never seems to think of looking up into the branches of a tree above, to -see if an enemy is hiding there. So very often the hunter is able to -shoot it before it has the least idea that it is in danger. But a -leopard is much more cautious, and never comes back to its lair, or to -the remains of its kill, without carefully examining the boughs above as -well as the bushes below; so that unless the hunter is well concealed -the animal is almost sure to discover him and to crawl silently away -before he has got the chance of a shot. - - -THE OUNCE - -This animal looks rather like a leopard with very light-colored fur. But -the rosette-like spots are a good deal larger, the fur is very much -longer and thicker, and the tail is almost as bushy as that of a Persian -cat. The reason why the fur is so thick is that the ounce lives in very -cold countries. It is found high up in the mountains of Central Asia, -ascending during the summer to a height of perhaps eighteen thousand -feet--a good deal higher than the summit of Mont Blanc--and coming down -to the lower levels in winter. In other words, it is hardly ever seen -below the snow-line, and is often known as the snow-leopard. So it wants -good thick, warm fur. We do not know very much about its habits, for it -is a very difficult animal to watch in a state of nature. Very few -people ever see it. But it seems to prey chiefly upon wild goats, wild -sheep, and those odd little burrowing animals that we call marmots, and -also upon domesticated sheep and cattle which are sent up to graze on -the higher slopes of the mountains. It is said never to venture to -attack man. - - -THE JAGUAR - -Still more like a leopard is the jaguar, which lives in Central and -South America. But you can tell it at once by looking at the -rosette-like marks on its body, most of which have either one or two -small patches of dark brown fur in the middle. It also has three or four -bold black streaks across its breast, which are never seen in the -leopard. And its tail is ever so much shorter, the tip scarcely reaching -to the ground when the animal is standing upright. - -The jaguar is perhaps even a better climber than the leopard, and seems -far more at its ease among the branches than on the ground. Indeed, -there are some parts of the great swampy forests of Brazil in which the -animal is said never to descend to the ground at all, but to spend its -whole life in the trees which stand so close side by side that it can -easily spring from one to another. You wonder, perhaps, what it feeds -upon. Why, upon monkeys, and very active indeed it has to be if it -wishes to catch them. But then, when a band of monkeys discover a -jaguar, they are never able to resist the temptation of getting as close -to him as they dare, and chattering and screaming as loudly as they can, -just to annoy him. Isn't that exactly like monkeys? But sometimes they -venture a little _too_ close, and then with a sudden spring he -seizes the nearest of his impudent tormentors and carries it shrieking -away. - -Birds, too, are often caught by the jaguar, who pounces upon them as -they are roosting upon a branch. But he is not at all particular as to -what he eats, and sometimes he will leave the trees altogether, and go -hunting in the reed-beds by the riverside for capybaras, which we will -describe farther on. He is very fond of these animals, for they are so -slow in their movements that they cannot run away, so badly provided -with natural weapons that they cannot fight, and so fat and delicate -that they afford most excellent eating. - -Then, just for a change, perhaps, he will stroll down to the -sea-shore, and look for a good big turtle. When he sees one--which is -generally a female on her way back to the water after laying her eggs in -the sand--he seizes it suddenly with his fore paws, and turns it over on -its back, so that it cannot possibly escape. Then, perhaps, if he is not -very hungry, he leaves it for a little while. But soon he returns, and -manages to scoop out all the flesh of the animal from between the shells -by means of his long hooked talons, thrusting in his paw over and over -again, till scarcely the smallest particle is left remaining. - -Very likely, too, he will find the spot where the turtle had laid her -eggs, dig them up, and devour them as well. Sometimes he will crouch on -the bank of a stream, quite close to the water, and hook out the fish -that pass by with his claws. And when he is very hungry indeed he will -eat lizards and even insects. - -Like the ounce, however, the jaguar seldom or never ventures to attack a -human being, although he will fight savagely if he is driven to bay. But -he will often spring upon horses and cattle, and in such cases he nearly -always kills them by seizing their heads between his front paws, and -giving a sudden wrench sideways and upward so as to break their necks. - -Like most of the cats, the jaguar has a fondness for scratching the -trunks of trees, and sometimes a tree may be found with gashes in its -bark an inch deep and more than a yard long. - - -THE PUMA, OR COUGAR - -Next to the jaguar, the puma is the largest of the American cats, a -full-grown male being sometimes as much as eight feet in total length, -of which about three feet is taken up by the tail. In color it is tawny -brown, becoming lighter on the lower surface, and without any spots at -all. But the odd thing is that its young are marked all over with large -blotches of blackish brown, while their tails are ringed with black like -that of the tiger. And these markings do not disappear until they are -more than six months old. - -The puma is found in almost all parts of the American continent, from -British Columbia in the north to Patagonia in the south, and it is even -said to have been seen in Tierra del Fuego. It spends some part of its -life in the trees, being almost as good a climber as the jaguar. But it -almost always hunts upon the ground, trying to creep stealthily up to -its victim, and to spring upon it before its presence is even suspected. - -It scarcely ever ventures to attack a man, but will often follow him for -a long distance as though waiting an opportunity to pounce upon him -unawares. But if he suddenly turns and faces the animal, it will always -slink away, even if he is quite unarmed. Sometimes, too, it will allow -itself to be killed without attempting to defend itself at all. So -hunters have a rather poor opinion of its courage. The farmers, however, -have very good reason for dreading the animal, for it is a terrible -enemy to sheep, and has been known to kill as many as fifty in a single -night. And it will also leap suddenly upon horses and cattle and break -their necks, just as the jaguar does. - -Although in some ways it is such a cowardly creature, the puma will -often fight the jaguar itself. Of course it is the weaker animal of the -two, but it is so exceedingly quick in its movements, and makes such -excellent use of its teeth and talons, that in many cases it gets the -best of the battle. Sometimes, when a jaguar is killed by a hunter, its -back is found to be deeply scored all over by the claws of a puma. - -In many parts of North America the puma is known as the panther, or -"painter," also as the mountain lion, and it has other names besides. - - -THE CLOUDED LEOPARD - -There is still one more of the larger cats which we must not pass by -without mention, and that is the clouded leopard, or clouded tiger, -which is found in the southeastern parts of Asia, and in the larger -islands of the Malay Archipelago. In size it is about as big as a small -leopard, and its yellow brown fur is marked with stripes like those of -the tiger, spots like those of the leopard, rosettes like those of the -jaguar, and blotches like those of the ocelots, while its tail is -adorned with rings of glossy black. So, you see, it is a very handsome -animal. - -We do not know very much about its habits, but it seems to live -almost entirely in the trees, and to prey chiefly upon birds, while -those who have caught and tamed it say that it is very gentle and -playful. The Malays call it the rimau-dahan, or "tree-tiger"; and there -is a smaller variety, found in the same localities, which is generally -known as the marbled cat. - - - - -CHAPTER VII - -THE SMALLER CATS - - -The smaller members of the cat tribe include many interesting animals of -which our readers, if not already informed concerning them, will be glad -to learn something. - - -THE SERVAL - -Unfortunately, although this is quite a common animal in many parts of -Africa, we know very little about its habits. But it appears to prey -chiefly upon the smaller antelopes, creeping silently up to them as they -are grazing, and springing upon them so suddenly that they never know -that they are in danger until they are struck down. - -In South Africa, where it is a good deal more numerous than it is in the -northern parts of the continent, the Dutch call the serval the -_bosch-katte_, or "bush-cat," because it looks like a rather big -cat, and lives in the thick bushy parts of the veldt. It is a pretty -animal, and would be prettier still if its short, stumpy tail were a -little longer, for its fur is bright golden yellow, marked with dark -spots, some of which run into one another, and so form stripes. -Underneath the body the fur is nearly white, while the ears are -jet-black, with a broad white band running across them. In length the -animal measures about three feet, ten inches of which are taken up by -the tail; and it stands about eighteen inches in height. - - -THE OCELOT - -This is one of the handsomest of all the cats. It is found in almost all -parts of tropical America. But it is not a very easy animal to describe, -because it varies so much in color that until a few years ago -naturalists thought there were several different kinds of ocelots, to -all of which they gave separate names. As a rule, however, the ground -color of the fur is either brownish yellow or reddish gray, while the -back and sides are marked with rows of streaks and spots and blotches, -which sometimes run into one another in such a way as to look almost -like stripes. The length of the animal is about four feet, of which -about fifteen inches is occupied by the tail, and it stands from sixteen -to eighteen inches in height. - -The ocelot is found only in forest districts, and is an excellent -climber, spending most of its life in the trees. It feeds chiefly upon -birds, hiding among the thick foliage until they settle within reach, -and then knocking them over with its ready paw. Or it will spring down -upon them as they alight on the ground below. It seems to like the head -of a bird best of all, and generally eats that first; and very often it -will pluck its victim most carefully before proceeding to devour it. - -The animal called the margay is really a kind of small ocelot, and it is -sometimes known as the tiger-cat. - - -THE EGYPTIAN CAT - -In this we have a most interesting animal, not only because it seems -certain that it is the ancestor of the cats we keep now as pets, but -also because in days of old the people of Egypt used to venerate it, -just as they also did the Arabian baboon. In every way they treated it -with the greatest possible honor. Indeed, to kill a cat, in those days, -was a far more serious offence than to kill a man, and if the offender -was discovered he was certainly made to pay the penalty with his life. -And when the animal died its body was carefully embalmed and wrapped in -spices, and was then solemnly buried in the tombs of the kings. - -If you ever go to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, or to the -Boston Museum, you may see the mummied remains of some of the very cats -which were venerated by the people of Egypt five thousand years ago. - -In the British Museum is an old painting which is as interesting, -although in a different way. For it shows us that, while the ancient -Egyptians held the cat in such high honor, they expected it to make -itself useful in return. The picture represents a hunter and his family -going out on an expedition in search of water-birds, and from it we -learn that they would embark in a boat with several decoy birds, -together with a carefully trained cat. They would then push off into the -great beds of tall reeds which fringed the sides of the river, and sit -in the boat while the cat went and caught birds for them, which were -attracted within reach by the decoys. In a picture we have seen, the cat -is represented with one bird in her mouth, another in her fore paws, and -a third between her hind paws; so that if she got all three back to the -boat, she must have been a very clever cat. - -This animal is sometimes known as the Caffre cat, and it is found wild -in almost all parts of Africa, and also in Syria and Arabia. In size it -is about as big as a rather large domestic cat, and in color is -generally yellowish gray, with a few faint stripes across the back and -several darker ones on the hind quarters, while the tail is marked with -black rings and always has a black tip. - - -THE WILDCAT - -The true wildcat is a European animal. In the United States, what is -commonly called a wildcat is really a species of lynx--the bay -lynx--often called bobcat. It is found in nearly all the States east of -the Mississippi River that have large forests. - -If you were to see a real wildcat in captivity, you would most likely -think that it looked a very gentle creature. But in reality it is one of -the fiercest and most savage of all living animals, and no matter how -kindly it is treated it never seems to become tame. - -True wildcats are nearly always found in thickets in mountain districts -which are hardly ever trodden by the foot of man. They mostly live -either in hollow trees, or in crevices among the rocks, where they bring -up their litters of little ones. They keep their kittens in very good -order. We have heard of a wildcat which was kept in a large otter's -cage, with a pool of water in the middle; and there she brought -up three kittens. One day she heard a strange footstep approaching. Now -she could not bear strangers, and would never allow them to look at her -little ones; so she jumped into the sleeping-compartment, and called to -her kittens to come in after her. Two of them obeyed; the third -preferred to stay outside. So out she jumped, soused it three times in -the water, just to teach it to be more obedient in future, and then -carried it off by the scruff of its neck. - -A full-grown wildcat is about twenty-eight inches long without the tail, -which is much shorter and more stumpy than that of the domestic cat. The -thick soft fur is gray in color, brindled with black. - -Another kind of wildcat is found in the northern parts of Africa, and -also in Persia and India. Sometimes it is called the jungle-cat, and -sometimes the chaus. It is rather bigger than an ordinary cat, and is -sandy gray or grayish brown in color, with just a few darker streaks -across the legs. It lives, as a rule, among long grass and reeds, and in -corn-fields, coming out to hunt only by night; so very few people ever -see it in a wild state, and we do not know very much about its habits. -But it must be rather a formidable animal to meet, for a writer tells us -that a jungle-cat which he kept for some years as a pet was more than a -match for two powerful English bull-terriers, which used to attack her -day after day, but always got the worst of the battle. - - -THE CARACAL - -You may see this animal at some zoo; and if you go to look at it your -first idea will most likely be that it is very bad-tempered. For as soon -as you come near its cage it is almost sure to throw back its ears, show -its teeth, and spit and hiss and snarl at you, and to look as if it -would fly at you in a moment if only the bars were not in its way. And -so no doubt it would, for it is one of the most savage of all the cats, -and cannot be tamed without very great difficulty, unless it is caught -while very young. - -The name caracal signifies black-eared, and has been given to the -animal because its ears are jet-black in color. They also have a long -tuft of dark hairs at the tip. The head, body, and legs are bright -reddish brown. But some caracals are a good deal lighter than others, -and now and then the lower parts of the body are marked with dull -reddish spots. The height of the animal is about eighteen inches at the -shoulder, and the length of the body and tail together is from three to -four feet. - -Caracals are found in India and Arabia, and also in most parts of -Africa. They live among bushes and long grass, as a rule, and prey upon -the smaller deer and antelopes and also upon birds, which they are said -sometimes to capture even on the wing, springing into the air and -seizing them between their fore paws as they fly past. - -[Illustration: SOME FIERCE CATS. - - 1. Mexican Ocelot. - 2. Young Leopard-cat. 3. Himalayan Snow Leopard. - 4. Saharan Serval. 5. American Jaguar.] - - -THE LYNX - -This odd-looking creature appears somewhat like a stoutly built caracal. -But the ears are gray instead of black, the tufts of hair upon them are -a good deal longer, and the fur of the body is gray, generally marked -with a number of darker spots. Its curious appearance, however, is due -to the fact that it has an enormous pair of very bushy whiskers, which -hang down far below the chin. - -Not so very long ago the lynx was found commonly in many parts of -Europe, and it is still tolerably plentiful in Norway, Sweden, and the -northern parts of Russia, as well as in Northern Asia. But it is very -much persecuted by the hunters, for two reasons. In the first place, it -is a very destructive creature. A couple of lynxes have been known to -kill six sheep between them in a single night. In the second place, its -fur is so thick, so soft, and so warm that its skin sells for a good -deal of money. So a great many lynxes are shot or trapped every year, -and before very long the animal will most likely disappear from Europe -altogether. - -No doubt you have sometimes heard the expression "lynx-eyed" used of -somebody whose sight is unusually good. And certainly the lynx is very -sharp-sighted. In days of old it was actually thought that the animal -could see right through a solid wall as easily as we can through a pane -of glass! - -The lynx is a good climber, and spends a great part of its life in the -trees, often lurking among the branches in order to spring down upon an -unsuspecting victim as it passes below. But it mostly makes its lair -among rocks, just as the wildcat does. There it brings up its two or -three little ones, which are playful little creatures, but very -bad-tempered if any one interferes with them. However, they are easily -tamed if they are captured while quite small, and will follow their -master about just like a dog. - -Another kind of lynx, called the pardine lynx, inhabits the south of -Europe, from Spain as far as Turkey. - -Lynxes are also found in Canada; but it is not quite certain whether -these belong to a different species or not. At any rate, they are rather -smaller than those which live in Europe and Asia, and their tails are -hardly ever more than five inches long. They live in the deepest parts -of the forests, and in thick bushy districts, so that they are not very -often seen; and they prey upon hares and other small animals, and also -upon such birds as grouse and partridges. - -When one of these lynxes is running through long grass it looks very -odd; for it travels by means of a series of leaps, all four of its feet -coming to the ground together. - -We have already mentioned the bay lynx of the United States, which in -size is equal to the Canada lynx. - - -THE CHETAH - -Last among the cats comes the very curious chetah, or hunting-leopard, -which is found both in Africa and in India. - -In some ways, however, it is much more like a dog than a cat. Its head -is quite small and round, its body is very slender, and its legs are -much longer in proportion to its size than they are in any other member -of the family. But, more remarkable still, the claws are not entirely -drawn back into their sheaths while not in use, as they are in all the -true cats, but partly project, so that the points are worn away by -constantly rubbing against the ground. So we may consider the chetah -as partly a cat and partly a dog--a connecting link joining the two -families together. - -If it were not for the length of its limbs, however, the chetah might -very well be mistaken for a leopard, for its head and body are colored -and marked in much the same way. But the spots are solid, so to speak, -and not ring-like as they are in the leopard. The animal stands from -thirty to thirty-three inches in height at the shoulders and the body -and tail together are about seven feet long. - -The chetah does not capture its prey as other cats do. Lions, tigers, -and leopards, for example, always try to creep up quite close to their -victims, so that they may be able to pounce upon them at a single -spring. But the chetah only creeps up to within about two hundred yards, -and then runs them down in fair chase. It is exceedingly swift of foot, -being able easily to outrun a greyhound, so that when once it starts in -pursuit its victim has but little chance of escape. Indeed, a chetah has -actually been seen to put up a blackbuck two hundred yards away, and to -run it down within a quarter of a mile. - -Just fancy being able to run nearly twice as fast as an antelope! - -In India the chetah is often caught and tamed, in order that it may -catch game for its master. It is always taken out to the hunting-ground -in a light cart, drawn by a pair of bullocks, and its eyes are covered -with a kind of hood. When a deer or an antelope is sighted, this hood is -taken off, and the chetah is released from its chain. No sooner does it -catch sight of its quarry than it creeps quietly toward it until it is -within distance, and then starts off in pursuit like an arrow shot from -a bow. The hunters ride quietly after it, and before they have gone very -far they are sure to find the chetah with its victim pinned upon the -ground. Then the throat of the animal is cut, and some of the blood is -given to the chetah to drink, after which it is again blindfolded and is -led back to the cart. - -When the natives want to catch a chetah or two, in order to train them -for hunting, they do so in rather a curious way. Although these animals -cannot climb trees, because of the manner in which their claws -are made, there are certain trees to which they are very fond of -resorting, in order to sharpen their talons upon the bark. So the -natives make a number of nooses of raw hide, and arrange them on the -ground all round one of these trees: and when they visit them next day -they are almost sure to find that two or three chetahs have been snared. - -It is needless to say that this beautiful and interesting animal is very -easily tamed. If it is kindly treated it will rub its great round head -against one, put up its tail, and purr loudly just like a big cat. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII - -THE CIVETS, THE AARD-WOLF, AND THE HYENAS - - -Between the great tribes of the dogs and the cats come three small but -rather important families, one of which contains the civets, while the -aard-wolf belongs to the second, and the hyenas to the third. We must -tell you a little about each. - - -CIVETS - -First of all, then, come the civets; and first among the civets is the -fossa, which is found in Madagascar. - -This is a very curious animal. It is about five feet long from the end -of its snout to the tip of its tail, and has a body shaped much like -that of a weasel. Its fur is pale reddish brown in color, and reminds -one of the coat of a dachshund dog. But the oddest thing about the fossa -is its way of walking. Some animals walk on the tips of their toes, like -the cats and the dogs. We call these digitigrades. Others plant their -feet flat upon the ground, like the bears. We call these plantigrades. -But the fossa does neither, for its feet have half-soles only, the front -part being quite bare underneath, while the hind part is covered with -hair. And as it walks the animal places the bare part of its feet upon -the ground, while the hind part is lifted up; so that it is half a -digitigrade and half a plantigrade. - -Then it has claws just like those of a cat, which are drawn back into -sheaths while not in use, so that their sharp points may not be worn -down by rubbing against the ground. No doubt this is the reason why the -animal is able to climb so well. If you go to look at the fossa in a zoo -you will be quite surprised at its activity. In its double cage, with -one compartment above the other, and two or three stout branches on -which it can take exercise, it goes running up and down from one to the -other, and backward and forward from the branches to the walls, and -from the walls to the branches, with such wonderful swiftness that it is -really not at all easy to follow its movements. - -But don't be tempted to stroke the animal, if it happens to be lying -quietly near the bars, for although it looks very gentle it is in -reality a most savage creature, and has hardly ever been tamed. And -partly for this reason, and partly because it only comes out to hunt for -prey by night, we know very little about its habits. - -The true civets have much stouter bodies than the fossa. Their heads are -long and narrow, with the muzzle drawn out almost into a point, their -legs are quite short, and along the back runs a crest of stiff hairs, -which can be raised and lowered at will, just like the spines of the -hedgehog. - - -CIVET PERFUME - -Six different kinds of civets are known, five of them being found in -Asia, and one in Africa, and they are chiefly remarkable for producing a -most powerful perfume. This perfume is obtained in a very curious way. -It is secreted in a kind of double pouch under the body, close to the -root of the tail, and as it is continually being formed, the animal is -much too valuable to be killed in order that its pouch may be emptied. -At the same time, its teeth and claws are so sharp and strong, and it -knows so well how to use them, that it would be a most dangerous -creature to handle. So when the perfume has to be taken, the animal is -forced into a long and very narrow cage, in which it is held so close a -prisoner that it can neither scratch nor bite. Then the contents of the -pouch are scraped out by means of a long, slender spoon, which is passed -through a hole under the cage. - -Each side of this pouch is about as big as an almond, and the contents -are thick and greasy in character, almost like butter. When the animal -is at liberty the perfume is dropped from time to time, in lumps about -as big as an ordinary hazelnut. - - -INDIAN CIVET - -The best known of these animals is the Indian civet, which is about four -feet in length, including the tail. The general color of its fur is dark -gray, sometimes with a yellowish tinge, and on the chest, shoulders, and -thighs are a number of dark stripes. The crest of hairs along the back -is glossy black, and the tail is marked with six black rings and five -white ones. It is a solitary animal, and is hardly ever seen during the -daytime, which it spends in hiding among bushes, or in long, thick -grass, coming out after dark to search for the lizards, frogs, birds, -and other small creatures upon which it feeds. - - -GENETS - -The genets may be described as small civets, with narrower bodies, -shorter legs, and longer tails, and without the curious pouch for -producing perfume. - -One of these animals, the common genet, is found in Spain and the south -of France, as well as in Southwest Asia, and the northern parts of -Africa. It is between three and four feet in total length, and is -yellowish gray in color, with blotches of dark brown scattered all over -the body. It is a very gentle creature, and is easily tamed, being often -kept in houses to destroy rats and mice, just as we keep cats. - -The palm-civets live in trees, chiefly in palm-trees, and they are so -fond of drinking the sweet juice, or toddy, which the natives collect in -small vessels suspended on the trunks, that they are often known as -toddy-cats. - -One of these animals is very common in many parts of India, where it is -in the habit of taking up its abode in the thatched roofs of the native -huts. It is often tamed by Europeans, and after roaming about the house -all night in search of mice and cockroaches will come up to its master's -bedroom, jump up on his bed, snuggle away under his pillow, and there -sleep soundly until late in the following day. But if it finds a chance -it will get into the poultry-houses and kill some of the fowls, in order -to suck their blood; so that it has to be looked after very carefully. - -There are ten or eleven different kinds of these animals, the commonest -of which is the Indian palm-civet. It is about as big as a rather big -cat, and is brownish gray in color, with very coarse and rather ragged -fur. It has an odd way of twisting up its tail into a very tight coil, -and for this reason is sometimes known by the name of paradoxure, a word -which signifies queer-tailed. - - -THE BINTURONG - -The binturong, or bear-cat, as it is often called, may be recognized at -once by the long tufts of black hair upon its ears. Its fur, too, is -entirely black, without any gloss except upon the head, which is gray, -and its tail is very long and bushy, and is prehensile at the tip, like -that of a spider-monkey. When the animal is climbing it makes a great -deal of use of this organ, seldom moving unless it is tightly coiled -around a branch. But it seems hardly ever to hang from a bough by its -tail alone, as the spider-monkeys so often do. - -The binturong is a native of Assam, Siam, and some of the larger islands -in the Malay Archipelago. It is not at all an uncommon animal, but is -seldom seen, for it not only lives in the thickest and darkest parts of -the forests, which are scarcely ever trodden by the foot of man, but -spends the whole of the day fast asleep in some snug retreat, with its -head completely buried beneath its big bushy tail. And even if it is -found and disturbed it only gives an angry snarl and shows its teeth, -and then goes to sleep again. - - -MONGOOSES - -Of course you have heard of the mongooses. They look somewhat like -weasels with very long tails, which are thickly covered with hair. The -head is pointed, with a rather sharp nose, the ears are small and -rounded, the legs are very short, and the claws cannot be drawn back -into sheaths, so that they are always projecting like those of a -dog. The general color of the body is either brownish or reddish gray. -But the fur has a peculiar speckled appearance, which is due to the fact -that all the longer hairs are marked with alternate rings of black and -white, like those upon a surveyor's measuring-pole. - -At least sixteen kinds of mongooses are found in different parts of the -world, but we shall only be able to tell you about two. - -The first of these is the Indian mongoose, which is common in almost all -parts of the great country from which it takes its name. And it is one -of the most useful of all animals, for although it will feed upon mice, -small birds and their eggs, lizards, and even upon insects and fruit -when it is really hungry, there is nothing of which it is so fond as a -snake. - -Now snakes are more plentiful in India, perhaps, than in any other -country in the world. Many of them are terribly poisonous, and kill at -least twenty thousand people every year; so that an animal which -destroys them is very useful. Many people keep tame mongooses in their -houses just as we keep cats, knowing that if a snake should find its way -indoors they are sure to find it and kill it. - -When a mongoose attacks a snake it dances about in front of the reptile, -and pretends to be about to spring upon it, until the snake strikes. -Then, like lightning, it leaps over the snake's head, or underneath its -open jaws, or round to one side, and gives it a sharp bite just at the -back of its neck. This renders the snake quite harmless, paralyzing it -so that it cannot use its fangs. Then the mongoose crunches up its head, -eats a little of the body also if it is very hungry, and goes off to -look for another. - -Rats, too, are killed in great numbers by the mongoose. So in the year -1871, when these animals swarmed in some of the West Indian Islands to -such an extent that it was feared that the sugar-cane plantations would -be wholly destroyed by them, nine mongooses were set free in Jamaica. -Very soon they began to multiply, and the rats began to decrease, till -in about two years' time the mischievous little animals were almost -entirely destroyed. So mongooses were turned down in other islands, with -equally satisfactory results. Unfortunately, however, the mongooses soon -found out that fowls and chickens were even nicer than rats, and began -to visit the hen-roosts at night. Then they took to killing young lambs, -and even small pigs, while they also did a great deal of damage to -mangoes and yams. - -So now the planters had to turn their attention to destroying mongooses, -and on one estate alone more than fourteen hundred were trapped in about -two months. - -The Egyptian mongoose is a rather larger animal, being about three feet -in length from the head to the tip of the tail. Like its Indian -relation, it preys upon snakes; but it also feeds very largely upon -crocodile's eggs, which it digs out of the sand on the banks of the -rivers. For this reason it was venerated by the ancient Egyptians, who -used to treat it with the greatest reverence while it lived, and to -embalm its body and bury it in the tombs of the kings when it died, just -as they did with the cat and the sacred baboon. - - -MEERKATS - -The last of the civet-like animals about which we can tell you is the -meerkat, sometimes known as the suricate. It is found in South Africa, -and is a small, slender-bodied animal of a light grizzled gray color, -with a number of black stripes running across its back, while the ears -are black, and the tail is yellowish with a black tip. - -Meerkats live in large colonies, almost like rabbits, each animal -scratching out for itself a deep hole in the ground. If you were to -drive across the South African veldt, you would very likely come across -one of these curious meerkat warrens, and would see several hundred of -the little animals sitting upright on their hind legs with their front -paws hanging down, just like so many small dogs "begging." Until you -came quite close they would remain quietly watching you. But the moment -that you stopped and attempted to seize one of them there would be a -sudden whisk of hundreds of tails, and down they would all pop into -their burrows as if by magic. - -As they are gentle creatures, and very clean in their habits, -meerkats are often kept as pets, and in many parts of Cape Colony there -is scarcely a single house without them. You would think that the dogs -would be very jealous of them, wouldn't you, and that they would be very -much afraid of the dogs? But, strange to say, the two are nearly always -the best of friends, and may often be seen trotting about after their -master together. - - -THE AARD-WOLF - -This is such a very odd animal that it has been placed in a family all -by itself, though there can be no doubt that it is related to the civets -on the one side and to the hyenas on the other. In size it is about as -big as a fox, but with very much longer legs; and in general appearance -it certainly resembles a half-grown striped hyena. But then its skull -and teeth are not at all like those of a hyena; they are like those of a -very big mongoose. So the aard-wolf evidently forms a connecting link -between the two creatures. - -The name aard-wolf means earth-wolf, and has been given to this animal -because the Dutch people in South Africa thought that it really was a -kind of wolf, and because it lives in deep burrows which it digs in the -ground. Strange to say, although each aard-wolf digs its own burrow, -several of these tunnels often unite in one large central chamber--a -common sitting-room, as it were--which is used by all the animals alike. -But each always goes in and out by its own front door. - -During the daytime the aard-wolf is nearly always fast asleep -underground, so that it is hardly ever seen except by those who go out -to hunt it. But it is not often hunted, being so timid and cowardly that -when it is turned out of its burrow its only idea is to run away as fast -as it possibly can, so that it affords very poor sport. - -This animal is not a creature of prey, but feeds chiefly on carrion. But -it is rather fond of insects, and will sometimes break a hole in the -side of a termites' nest and lick up the inmates by thousands as they -come hurrying up to repair the breach in the walls. - - -HYENAS - -These are not very pleasant-looking animals, for their sloping hind -quarters give them a very slinking and cowardly appearance. In their -habits, too, they are disgusting. Nevertheless they are most useful -creatures in the countries in which they live; for they belong to that -vast group of animals which we may call "nature's dustmen," because -their great work in life is to clear away the rubbish from the world. -There are millions upon millions of these natural scavengers, and some -of them have to clear away carrion, some to clear away skins, and some -to clear away decaying vegetable matter. But the principal duty of the -hyenas is to clear away bones, and very thoroughly they do it. - -Their jaws and teeth are immensely strong. A hyena will seize the -thigh-bone of an ox, and crush it up into splinters as easily as a dog -will crush a chicken-bone. And when a lion or a tiger kills a victim, he -always leaves a great part of the carcass lying on the ground. Some of -it he has no time to eat because the jackals come and steal it while he -is fast asleep after the big meal which he always takes as soon as he -has killed his victim. Some of it neither he nor the jackals can eat -because their teeth are not nearly strong enough to crush the larger -bones. So they have to leave these for the hyenas, which come up in -numbers to the kill, and quarrel and fight over it, until nothing even -of the skeleton remains. - -Although the hyena is a much stronger animal than the aard-wolf, it is -quite as cowardly, and will hardly ever show fight, even when it is -driven to bay. The Arab hunters despise it for its want of courage, and -if they find it hiding in a burrow will never condescend to kill it -themselves. Neither will they use any weapon against it. They just fling -a handful of wet mud into its face, drag it out by its hind feet, and -hand it over to be stoned to death by the women. But sometimes, after -all, it contrives to escape, for it is so cunning that it will pretend -to be dead when it is not really injured, allowing itself to be pulled -about, or even to be severely beaten, without moving a limb. Then -suddenly, when the attention of its captors is taken off for a moment, -it will jump up and run away. - -Perhaps you wonder why they should want to kill the hyena if it is such -a useful creature and never attacks human beings. The reason is that it -is fond of prowling about the outskirts of villages in order to prey -upon the cattle. It is much too cowardly to attack them openly, and -always tries to frighten them and make them run away, so that it can -leap upon them from behind. It generally does this by creeping as close -to them as it can, and then springing up suddenly just under their eyes. -But if they stand and face it, instead of running away, it just looks at -them for a few moments and then slinks off without attempting to touch -them. - - -THE STRIPED HYENA - -Three different kinds of these animals are known, the commonest being -the striped hyena, which is found in India, Syria, Persia, Arabia, and -Northern Africa. It is about as big as a collie dog, and is brownish -gray in color, with a number of black stripes running across the body -and round the legs. The ears are long and pointed, the tail is big and -bushy, and a kind of mane of long hairs runs down the neck and along the -middle of the back. - -In some parts of Africa these animals roam about by night in large -packs, entering the native villages, and searching the streets for the -offal which has been thrown out from the huts. And more than once, when -very hungry, they have been known to enter a house and carry off a -sleeping man. - -Sometimes they will set a kind of snare for a dog. One hyena will lie in -wait behind a bush, while another will run boldly up to within two or -three hundred yards of the village and utter a series of loud howls. A -dog is almost sure to hear him and to rush out in pursuit. Then the -hyena, pretending to be dreadfully frightened, runs away past the bush -where his companion is hiding, and the dog is pounced upon and killed -almost before he realizes that he has two enemies to deal with instead -of only one. - - -THE BROWN HYENA - -This kind of hyena, found in South Africa, is not nearly so numerous as -that just described. It is about the same size as the striped hyena, but -may be recognized at once by the great length of its mane, which hangs -down on each side below the body. In fact, the animal looks just as if -it were wearing a mantle of thick, shaggy fur. It lives chiefly in rocky -ground, on the lower slopes of the mountains, but is fond of visiting -the sea-shore by night, and prowling about in search of the dead bodies -of fishes and other creatures flung up by the waves. - - -THE SPOTTED HYENA - -The tiger-wolf, as the spotted hyena is also called, is much more -dangerous than the other hyenas. It is a larger and more powerful animal -than either of its relations, and is not near so cowardly. It will enter -a sheepfold, or cattle-pen, for instance, under cover of darkness, and -boldly attack and carry off one of the animals. But even an unarmed man -need not be afraid of it, for though it will come quite close, and will -follow him for a long distance, it will never venture to spring upon -him. - -This animal is often known as the laughing hyena, because of the -extraordinary sounds it utters when very much excited. These sounds are -not in the least like a yell or a howl, but resemble a peal of strange, -unearthly laughter, and while they are being uttered the hyena dances -about on its hind legs, nods its head up and down, runs to and fro, and -twists itself into all sorts of singular positions, just as though it -had suddenly gone mad. Travelers tell us that sometimes for nights -together sleep is rendered impossible by the hideous outcry of these -creatures, which surround the camp as soon as darkness sets in, and -never cease from their horrible din till sunrise. - -The spotted hyena is found throughout Southern Africa, and may be known -from the other two species by its larger size, and also by the -dark-brown spots with which the body and the limbs are marked. - - - - -CHAPTER IX - -THE DOG TRIBE - - -Next in order comes the great tribe of the dogs, which includes -altogether about forty different animals. We are not speaking of -domestic dogs, for we have not space in which to tell you about those. -Indeed, if we were to say all that might be said about them, they would -want a very big book all to themselves; and fortunately there are many -good books about domestic dogs that readers who desire them can easily -get. But besides the tame dogs there are two or three wild dogs in the -dog tribe, several wolves, several jackals, and several foxes; and many -of them are very interesting creatures. - - -THE DHOLE - -First of all, there is a dog which is known by three different names. -Sometimes it is called the dhole, sometimes the kholsun, and sometimes -the buansuah. It lives in India, but it is not very often seen, for it -keeps to the thickest parts of the jungle, and never ventures near the -habitations of man. Yet it is by no means a cowardly animal, like the -hyenas and the aard-wolf. On the contrary, it is extremely courageous, -and does not seem to know what fear is, for it will even attack the -tiger itself, and more than that, will kill it. - -Of course the tiger is by far the stronger and more formidable animal of -the two, and if he only had one dhole to reckon with, there would be no -doubt as to the issue of the combat. But the dhole always hunts in -packs. Sometimes there are eight or ten animals in one of these packs; -sometimes there are fifteen; sometimes there are as many as twenty, or -even thirty. And so fierce are they, and so determined, and so -persevering, that it is said that when they once put up an animal--that -is, start it from cover--no matter whether it be large or small, they -never fail to kill it. - -The deer, of course, are swifter than they are. But then the deer become -tired much sooner than the dholes; and while they are resting their -pursuers catch up with them. The tiger is much more powerful, and has -his talons and fangs to fight with. But while he is killing one of his -foes three or four more are leaping upon him; and even if he should -succeed in killing half the pack the rest will still go on fighting as -savagely as ever. They do not dread the horns of the buffalo, or the -tusks of the wild boar. In fact, they dread nothing, and no animals are -so feared in the jungle. - -When the pack are running, they never bark, or yelp or bay, as almost -all domesticated dogs do. For the most part they are silent, the only -sound which they utter being a low whimper. In color the dhole is a rich -bay, which becomes rather darker upon the ears, the muzzle, and the tip -of the tail. - - -THE DINGO - -This is the only member of the dog tribe found in Australia, and many -naturalists think that it is not really a native of that continent, but -was brought there a very long time ago from some other country. But as -the dingo is not now found in any other part of the world, it is quite -impossible to say whether this is actually the case or not. It is a very -fine-looking animal, about as big as a large sheep-dog, with a -reddish-brown coat, pointed, upright ears, and a bushy tail. And if you -were to see it you would most likely think that it must be a very gentle -animal. We have already seen, however, that there are several creatures -which look very gentle, but are in reality most savage and ferocious, -and though the dingo is not quite so fierce as the fossa or the wildcat, -its appearance is not at all in keeping with its character, for it is -very bad-tempered and hard to tame, and is always liable to fits of -rage. - -In many ways the dingo is not unlike the dhole. It lives in packs, for -instance, which scour the country in search of prey. These packs are -always led by one of the strongest and most experienced animals, -which has won its position by fighting and overcoming all the rest; and -when the leader begins to grow old and feeble, a younger and stronger -animal takes his place by overcoming him in the same way. In some -strange manner, these packs divide up the country among themselves. Each -pack has its own district allotted to it, over which it may roam at -will, while it is never permitted to hunt outside its own borders. -Wouldn't it be interesting to know how these districts are marked out, -and how the animals arrange what part of the country shall be allotted -to each pack? - -[Illustration: A WOLFISH GROUP. - - 1. Coyote. 2. Red Fox. 3. Hyena Dog, or Hunting Dog. - 4. Tasmanian Pouched Wolf. 5. Tasmanian Devil. 6. Gray Wolf.] - -When the first white colonists settled down in Tasmania, they found -these packs of dingoes terribly troublesome, for they would visit the -folds night after night and carry off the sheep and lambs in numbers. -Watchers were employed to shoot them, traps were set for them, huge -bonfires were lighted to keep them away; but all to no purpose. One -colony lost twelve hundred sheep from their ravages in less than three -months; another lost seven hundred. At last the settlers banded -themselves together in a war against the dingoes, and by hanging pieces -of poisoned meat to the branches of trees, about a foot from the ground, -they succeeded in greatly reducing their numbers, so that now they are -comparatively scarce. - -A dingo which was kept at the London Zoo many years ago used to sit -outside his kennel and bay at the moon so loudly that his dismal howling -could be heard all over the Regent's Park. - - -THE CRAB-EATING DOG - -Two or three kinds of wild dog are also found in South America; but of -these we can only mention the crab-eating dog which is chiefly found in -the forests of Guiana, Demerara, and Brazil. - -This animal owes its name to its great fondness for crabs. Even domestic -dogs will often eat these creatures. "I once had a black-and-tan -terrier, called 'Jock,'" says a writer, "whose greatest delight was to -be taken for a walk along the sea-shore, so that he might hunt for -crabs. Whenever he found one he would fling it up into the air half a -dozen times or so, until it was perfectly dazed. Then holding it down -with one paw, he would twist off the great claws so that it could not -nip him; and finally he would crunch up its body and lick out pieces of -flesh from the shell. Now and then, however, he would get a pinch and I -would see him dancing about on his hind legs with a crab hanging to his -lip, howling pitifully for me to come and set him free." - -Whether the crab-eating dog gets nipped in the same way, sometimes, we -cannot tell you. Most likely he does; at any rate he spends a great deal -of his time in hunting for crabs on the shore. But he also feeds on -small animals and birds, and it is said that sometimes he hunts in -packs, like the dingo and the dhole, which even run down and kill the -swift-footed deer. - - -WOLVES - -Of wolves--which are really only large and very savage wild dogs--there -are several different kinds. - -First of all, of course, there is the common wolf of Europe. We have all -read accounts of its ferocity, and of the way in which it sometimes -pursues travelers through the Russian forests during the depths of -winter. In days of old it was plentiful in England, while the last wild -wolf in Scotland was not killed until the middle of the eighteenth -century. - -During the spring, summer, and autumn the wolf is mostly found singly, -or at any rate only in pairs. But when the ground is covered with snow, -and food becomes scarce, the hungry animals gather together in packs, -which scour the forest in all directions and kill every living creature -which they meet. In the year 1875 no less than 161 human beings fell -victims to them in Russia, while the mischief which they do in the -farmyards and sheepfolds is very great. In Livonia alone, for instance, -during a single year, 15,182 sheep, 1,807 cattle, 1,841 horses, 3,270 -goats, 4,190 pigs, 703 dogs, and 1,873 geese and fowls were destroyed by -wolves. - -In some parts of France, too, these animals are still not uncommon, -although a reward of one hundred francs is paid for every adult wolf -that is killed, and thirty francs for each cub. And they are also -found in almost every other country in Europe. - -When they are not famished with hunger, wolves are by no means -courageous animals, and if we have many tales of their savage ferocity -we have quite as many more which bear witness to their cowardice. In -Norway, for example, a large tract of country in which wolves had always -been only too numerous was suddenly deserted by them; and what do you -think was the reason? Simply that a telegraph wire had been put up, -which frightened the wolves so much that they left the neighborhood -altogether, and never came near it again! And if a hunter kills a deer, -and wishes to leave the carcass lying on the ground for a while, and at -the same time to protect it from the wolves, all that he has to do is to -plant three or four sticks beside it with streamers of white cloth -fastened to the tips; for not a wolf will dare to approach the spot as -long as these are fluttering in the wind. - -When wolves are running they generally utter a series of dismal howls, -which are so loud that they can be heard by any one miles away. And even -a single wolf can make such an outcry that more than once a traveler, -hearing one howl, has imagined that a large pack were in pursuit of him, -and has climbed into a tree and spent the whole night among the branches -before discovering his mistake. - -Wolves usually make their lairs among rocks, or in the trunk of a hollow -tree, or among thick bushes. But sometimes they live in holes in the -ground, which they seem to dig out for themselves. There are generally -from six to ten cubs in a litter, which are born in the spring, and do -not leave their parents for at least eight or nine months. Strange to -say, the father often seems much fonder of them than the mother, for he -will take care of them, and hunt for them, and teach them how to hunt -for themselves for weeks after she has left them altogether. - - -WOLVES IN INDIA - -The common wolf is by no means confined to Europe, but is also found in -many parts of Asia, and throughout almost the whole of North -America. In India, however, there is another kind of wolf which is -rather smaller, and has very much shorter fur. It is seldom seen in -large packs, and hardly ever howls as the common wolf does. It is not in -the habit, as a rule, of attacking human beings. But now and then two or -three of these animals will band together to attack a man, while -sometimes they will prowl round the outskirts of a native village, in -the hope of being able to carry off some of the smaller children. - -These animals have a very clever way, too, of killing deer. Three or -four of them will creep quietly up and hide themselves near the spot -where the deer are feeding. Then another will come dashing up from the -opposite direction, the result, of course, being that when the -frightened animals run away they pass close to the very place where -their enemies are lying concealed. - - -COYOTES - -On the great plains of North America lives a very handsome wolf called -the coyote, or prairie-wolf. It is a good deal smaller than the common -wolf, but has much thicker and longer fur, so that it looks bigger than -it really is. And a very odd thing about it is that it is differently -colored at different seasons of the year, being reddish yellowish brown -in summer, and grayish, or even quite gray, in winter. The back is -generally darker than the rest of the body, and the tail is rather long -and very bushy. - -The coyote takes the place of the hyena as a scavenger, but has some of -the habits of the fox. It catches birds and jackrabbits, and feeds on -insects, as well as small rodents like prairie-dogs and mice. Its -melancholy howls make night hideous to prairie-dwellers. It is the -steady foe of young creatures, such as the fawns of deer. The skin of -this animal is thick and makes good fur wraps. - -Coyotes assemble in packs like jackals. It is not an easy matter to -destroy them, for they are so wary that it is almost impossible to -approach within gunshot. Often a single coyote will do a great deal of -mischief before it can be killed. Poison kills a great many; but -a good fence of wire netting has been found to be the best remedy -against these troublesome creatures. - - -JACKALS - -Jackals may be described as half wolves and half foxes. One of these -animals, the common jackal, is found in great numbers in the south of -Asia, and north of Africa, and the southeastern corner of Europe. -Sometimes it is seen singly, sometimes in pairs; but generally it -associates in great packs, which go roaming about the country together. -In India these packs visit the native villages by night, to carry away -any offal which may have been thrown out of the houses. They are -"nature's dustmen," you see, like the hyenas. Then they will follow a -lion or a tiger about for weeks, in order to feast upon the carcasses of -the animals which he kills, after he has eaten his fill. And when twenty -or thirty of these ravenous creatures are all struggling and fighting -over the body of a deer or an antelope, you can easily imagine that in a -short time there is not very much of it left. - -The jackal is sometimes called "the lion's provider," but we may say -that the lion ought rather to be called "the jackal's provider." - -The natives of Africa say that the jackals stand very much in awe of the -lion, and seldom dare even to show themselves until he has eaten his -fill of his victim's body, and has gone away to sleep. And they also -declare that if a jackal comes too near the carcass before the lion has -finished his meal, the lion catches him and bites off all his paws in -order to teach the rest of the pack better manners. - -The howling cry of the jackal is very strange and weird, and the animals -call to one another, and answer one another, just as if they were -carrying on a conversation. First comes a long, wailing yell; then -another, rather higher, then another, a little higher still, and then -three short, sharp barks. And so on, over and over again. - -When a jackal is caught, it often pretends to be dead, and will be -perfectly still for a very long time in the hope of being able to make -its escape when the attention of its captors is taken off. On one -occasion one of these animals lay without moving for a whole hour -although several times it was picked up and worried by a dog. Then quite -suddenly it jumped up and rushed away apparently unhurt. - -The common jackal is reddish brown in color, sometimes lighter and -sometimes darker, while the tip of the tail is black. But there is -another kind of jackal found in South Africa which has the whole upper -part of the back black, and the lower part of the body and the inner -sides of the limbs nearly white. This animal is called the black-backed -jackal, while a third, which has a pale streak running across its -flanks, is called the side-striped jackal. In habits the three animals -are almost exactly alike. - - -FOXES - -The best-known of the foxes, of course, is the common fox of Great -Britain and Western Europe, which is also found in many other parts of -the world. - -This animal is famous for its cunning, and certainly, in many ways, it -is very clever. It has all sorts of tricks, for example, to throw the -hounds off its track when it is being hunted. It seems to know perfectly -well that it is followed by scent, and sometimes it will suddenly leap -to one side so as to break the trail, and then make off in quite a -different direction. Sometimes, when it has a sufficient start, it will -return on its track for sixty or seventy yards, and then leap aside. Or -it will roll in carrion in order to disguise its own peculiar odor. A -hunter tells us that he once found a fox's burrow which was very -cleverly made. The entrance to it was about twenty feet from the edge of -a sand-pit, in the middle of a thick clump of bushes, and there was a -"bolt-hole" about half way down the side of the pit. So when the fox was -chased he could run into his burrow by the upper entrance, slip out by -the lower one, and so make his escape through the pit while the hounds -were all gathered round the hole up above. - -Very often a fox will climb a tree, sometimes to a great height, and -hide among the branches, and we have heard of a fox which baffled the -hounds over and over again in a most ingenious way. He used to run to a -certain fence, spring to the top, and then walk along for several -hundred yards before leaping down again to the ground. By doing this, of -course, he broke the scent most thoroughly, and long before the hounds -could find it again he had reached a place of safety. - -But although the fox is generally so clever he sometimes does the most -stupid things possible. Charles Waterton tells us of a fox which visited -a poultry-yard and carried off eight young turkeys. He could not eat -them all, of course, so he buried five in the ground, meaning no doubt, -to come and fetch them away on the following evening. But apparently he -thought that if he buried them entirely he might not be able to find -them again. So he carefully left one wing of each bird sticking up above -the surface to serve as a guide, and never seemed to reflect that others -would be able to see it as well as himself! So the farmer recovered his -turkeys, and when Reynard came to look for his supper next night he -found that it had disappeared. - -The burrow of a fox is sometimes an old rabbit-hole enlarged to a -suitable size. But generally the animal scrapes out a burrow for -himself, frequently choosing the roots of a large tree as a situation, -or a very rocky piece of ground from which it will be very difficult to -dig him out. In this burrow four or five little ones are brought up. -They are odd-looking creatures, with very snub noses, and if you did not -know what they were you would never take them for young foxes. - - -THE ARCTIC FOX - -This animal, more interesting still, perhaps, lives in the ice-bound -regions of the far north. There are often several of these to be seen in -a zoo, and the first thing that one notices on seeing them is that no -two of them are alike. One, perhaps, is reddish brown above and -yellowish white beneath. Another is gray all over. A third, very likely, -is mottled; while a fourth may be of that curious bluish color which we -see in Russian cats. - -In fact, in the snowy polar regions a great many of these foxes turn -perfectly white in winter. This enables them to creep over the snow -without being seen by their victims. Then, when warmer weather comes, -and the snow begins to melt, their fur passes back again to its original -color. - -During the spring and summer the arctic fox feeds on sea-birds and their -eggs, and it is said to attract the birds to the place where it is lying -in wait by imitating their peculiar cries. But we do not think that that -is true. What it feeds upon during the rest of the year is rather -doubtful. It cannot catch birds, for they have all flown away farther -south. It cannot catch fishes, for the water is covered in by ice -several feet in thickness. Most likely it catches numbers of those odd -little animals known as lemmings just as winter begins, and stores them -away in a kind of larder, where the cold prevents their bodies from -decaying. - -The arctic fox is a good deal smaller than the common fox, and has ears -so short and rounded that they look just as if they had been cropped. - -In order to allow it to travel over the slippery ice, the arctic fox has -the soles of its feet covered with long stiff hairs, which give it a -perfectly firm foothold on the frozen surface. - -The arctic fox is not nearly such a clever animal as the common fox, and -is very easily trapped. If a hunter follows one, it will certainly run -into its hole; but a moment or two later it is almost sure to poke out -its head in order to yelp at him, so that he is easily able to shoot it. -The consequence is that these animals are destroyed in very great -numbers for the sake of their skins, those with bluish fur being -especially valuable. - -First-class skins of these foxes are, in truth, among the most costly of -furs. In view of this, men interested in the fur-trade in Alaska have -endeavored to raise them in captivity, so as to obtain a constant supply -of their pelts. This experiment has succeeded best on a certain island -in Bering Sea, where a large colony of arctic foxes is kept, guarded and -tended by Eskimos, who feed them, and who once a year catch and kill a -certain number when their fur is in its best condition. - - -AMERICAN FOXES - -Besides the arctic fox, which of course is found in American as well as -other arctic regions, this country has many species of fox that belong -peculiarly to itself. William T. Hornaday, director of the New York -Zoölogical Park, who has written many instructive things about animals, -tells us in his "American Natural History" that north of Mexico this -continent has sixteen distinct species of foxes, some of which have -several subspecies. - -The American fox most widely found is that which Mr. Hornaday calls "our -wise old friend, the red fox," which is so well known in many parts of -the country. It is a very cunning creature, "so well able to take care -of itself that it refuses to be exterminated." Still we are told that it -was not hard for the early settlers in this country to outwit the red -foxes, and to shoot them and trap them when they came into the clearings -where the settlers made their homes. It is easier to get the better of -these animals in a wild region than where many people live, for the -foxes are sharp observers and appear to learn many things from seeing -what their human neighbors do. Naturalists tell us that in this way the -American foxes have come to be almost as intelligent as those of the Old -World. The red fox, we are told, "now holds his own against man, as much -by boldness and audacity as by caution; few of our wild animals look on -man with so little awe." - -You must have read many stories illustrating this boldness of the fox, -often shown in robbing hen-roosts and even catching chickens in the -yards or the fields. And quite as remarkable are the accounts of foxes' -cunning in avoiding hunters and hounds. In fact, they have often been -known to follow the very hunter who was looking for them, as though they -wanted to learn all his ways so as to be better able to baffle him. - -The gray fox, which is somewhat smaller than the red fox, belongs -especially to the southern part of the country, "but it ranges northward -far into the home of the red fox." It is very wild, and can move -swiftly. Sometimes, to escape from dogs, it will climb a small tree and -get far above the pursuer's reach. It is at its best only in the forest, -and cannot hold its own as the red fox does, in a country much inhabited -by men. With all his slyness the gray fox "lacks that astonishing -shrewdness and faculty for working out deep-laid schemes which enables -the red fox to turn the tables on the hunter." - -All the different varieties of American fox are more or less closely -related to the one or the other of these two--the red fox and the gray -fox--so that naturalists class them in two groups, the red fox group and -the gray fox group. If you learn all that you can about them you will -find that you have obtained a great deal of interesting knowledge. - - -THE FENNEC - -This is a very pretty fox-like little animal found in Nubia and Egypt. -It is only about twenty inches long, including its big bushy tail, and -its fur is sometimes pale fawn color, and sometimes creamy white. But -what strikes one most about it is the extraordinary size of its ears, -which are always carried perfectly upright, and look as if they were -intended for an animal at least five times as big as itself. - -The fennec is a creature of the desert, and lives in burrows which it -scoops out in the sand. In order to make these burrows more comfortable, -it lines them with leaves, hair, and the feathers of birds, while they -are nearly always situated beneath the roots of plants, where the sand -is softer and more easy to work. The animal digs with the most wonderful -speed, and those who have surprised it while at a distance from its -burrow say that it disappears in the sand just as though it were sinking -into water, and is lost to sight in a few seconds. - -The fennec spends the heat of the day comfortably curled up in its -burrow, with its nose tucked away under its big bushy tail. When the sun -sets it wakes up and goes off to the nearest water to drink, after which -it hunts for jerboas, birds, lizards, insects, and the various other -small creatures upon which it feeds. - - -THE HUNTING-DOG - -Although a member of the great dog tribe, this animal is not really a -dog. It looks very much like a spotted hyena, and yet it is not really a -hyena. Sometimes it is known as the hyena-dog, and perhaps that is the -best name which can be given to it. - -These animals are found throughout Southern Africa, and are especially -numerous in Cape Colony. They hunt in packs of from ten to fifty or -sixty, which run with such wonderful speed that even the swiftest -antelopes cannot escape them. When they catch up with their quarry they -all spring upon it together, snapping at it over and over again until -they bring it to the ground. And in a few minutes there is nothing left -of its carcass but just a few of the larger bones. - -In size the hyena-dog is about as big as a wolf. In color it varies a -good deal, but the head is always black, with a white mark round the -eyes, while the body is more or less mottled with black, white, and -yellow. The long bushy tail is yellow at the root, black in the middle, -and white at the tip. - - - - -CHAPTER X - -THE WEASEL TRIBE - - -Almost all the animals which belong to this tribe have very long, -slender bodies and very short legs; and the reason is a simple one. They -feed on living prey, which they often have to follow through a long and -winding burrow. Now if they had stout bodies or long legs they could not -do this. Most likely they could not enter the burrow at all; and even if -they did so they would be almost sure to find, before they had gone very -far, that they could neither move forward or backward. But, having such -snake-like bodies and such very short limbs, they can wind their way -through the tunnels without any difficulty, and then spring upon their -victim at the end. - -They always try to seize their prey by the throat, in order to tear open -the great blood-vessels which pass through that part of the body. One -who had a personal experience of the strength and sharpness of their -teeth thus tells it: "I was walking through a park one day early in the -autumn, when I noticed that the dead leaves under a tree were tossing -and tumbling about in a very curious manner. On going a little closer I -found that a mother weasel and her little ones were playing together. -When I came up of course they all ran away. So I ran after them, and -caught one of the little animals by putting my foot on it, just hard -enough to hold it down on the ground without hurting it. And immediately -the little creature, which was only about six inches long, twisted -itself round, and drove its sharp teeth into the edge of the sole of my -shoe, both from above and below. So that if I had done what I thought of -doing at first and had stooped to pick it up, its teeth would certainly -have met in my finger." - -The weasel is common in many parts of the United States as well as in -Europe. In some regions you can scarcely take a walk along the roads or -through the fields without catching sight of it. Very likely it will -poke its head out of a hole in the bank at the side of the road, and -watch you in the most inquisitive manner as you go past. Or you may -notice it slipping in and out of the herbage at the foot of a hedge, as -it searches for the small creatures on which it feeds. But very often it -will leave the hedge, and follow a mole along its burrow. Or it will -make its way to a wheatstack, and pursue the mice through their "runs." -And it is very fond of going out bird's-nesting, and robbing the nests -of the eggs or little ones which they contain. But the weasel is not -always successful when he sets out on one of these expeditions. While -coming down Helvellyn, a mountain in England, a writer witnessed a -strange little scene. "Hearing a loud chattering," he says, "I looked -up, and saw just above me a pair of stonechats and a weasel. Evidently -the weasel had come too near the nest of the birds, and they were trying -to entice him away. And this is how they managed it. First the cock bird -sat down on a stone about a yard in front of the weasel, and began to -flap his wings, and to chatter and scream. The weasel immediately darted -at him, and the bird flew away. Next the hen bird sat down on another -stone a yard farther on, and began to flap her wings and to chatter and -scream. Then the weasel darted at her, and _she_ flew away. As soon -as she had gone the cock came back, sat on a third stone, and played the -same trick again. And so the two birds went on over and over again, till -they got the weasel far up the mountain side, quite two hundred yards -from the nest, when they quietly left him and flew away together. - -"Wasn't it clever of them? And the odd thing was that the weasel never -realized that he was being taken in, but evidently thought he was going -to catch one of the birds every time that he darted at them." - -When fully grown the European weasel is from eight to ten inches long, -about one-fourth of that length being occupied by the tail. The fur of -the upper parts of the body is brownish red in color, while that of the -throat and lower surface is white. - -In the United States are found various species of weasels, the -largest of which is called the New York weasel. The length of the male -is sixteen inches, that of the female thirteen inches, the tail being -more than one-third of the total length. It is also called the -long-tailed weasel. The smallest species is the least weasel, only six -inches long. Both bear much resemblance to stoats. "The various kinds of -weasels in this country," say Stone and Cram in their "American -Animals," "are much alike in their habits.... They hunt tirelessly, -following their prey by scent, and kill for the mere joy of killing, -often leaving their victims uneaten and hurrying on for more." - - -THE STOAT, OR ERMINE - -This is the commonest and most widely distributed of all the weasel -tribe. The name is British. The fur of the lower parts of the stoat's -body is pale yellow instead of white, while the tip of the tail is -black. In very cold countries the whole of the fur becomes white in -winter, like that of the arctic fox, the tip of the tail alone excepted. -Indeed, the famous ermine fur which we value so highly, and which even -kings wear when they put on their robes of state, is nothing but the -coat of the stoat in its winter dress. - -The stoat preys upon rather larger animals than do other weasels, and -many a hare and rabbit falls victim to its sharp little fangs. Strange -to say, when one of these creatures is being followed by a stoat it -seems almost paralyzed with fear, and instead of making its escape by -dashing away at its utmost speed, drags itself slowly and painfully over -the ground, uttering shrill cries of terror, although it has not been -injured at all. - -In poultry-yards the stoat is sometimes terribly mischievous. One stoat -has been known to destroy as many as forty fowls in a single night. So -both the gamekeeper and the farmer have very good reason for disliking -it. But in some ways it is really very useful. It kills large numbers of -mice and rats and voles, which often do such damage in the fields. And -if we could set the good which it does against the evil, we should find -that the former more than makes up for the latter. - - -THE POLECAT - -This animal was formerly very common in Great Britain. But owing to its -mischievous habits it has been greatly persecuted, and now it is very -seldom met with. It is a good deal larger than the stoat, being nearly -two feet in length from the nose to the tip of the tail, and you would -think, on looking at it, that its fur was brown, yet it scarcely has a -brown hair on the whole of its body. The fact is that the long outer -hairs are so dark as to be almost black, while the soft under-fur next -the skin is pale yellow; and as the inner coat shows through the outer -one, the effect is very much the same as if the whole of the fur were -brown. - -The polecat is sometimes called the foumart. This name is formed from -the two words foul marten, and has been given to the animal because it -looks like a marten, and has a most foul and disagreeable smell. In its -habits it is very much like the stoat. It comes out chiefly by night, -and preys upon any birds or small animals which it may meet with, -following rabbits down their burrows, tracking hares to their "forms," -and sometimes killing nearly all the poultry, geese, and turkeys in a -farmyard. Early in April it makes a kind of nest in a deserted -rabbit-hole, or in a crevice among the rocks, and there brings up its -family of from three to eight little ones. - -The animal called polecat in North America is the skunk, of which we -shall speak soon; the name is particularly applied to the common skunk -of the Northeastern States and Canada. - - -THE FERRET - -You know that the ferret is much used in hunting rabbits and rats. It -appears to be really a variety of the polecat, and is usually of a -yellowish white color with pink eyes. But there is also a brown form, -which is generally called the polecat-ferret. It is known only in a -domesticated form. - -In some of the Western United States--Kansas, Colorado, etc.--is found -the black-footed ferret, "often called prairie-dog hunter because its -specialty is the killing of prairie-dogs." It has not become very well -known to animal students, for it dwells in burrows and hunts at night. - - -MARTENS - -Old World martens may be described as large weasels that live in the -trees. One of them, the pine-marten, is still found in the wilder parts -of Great Britain, although it is even scarcer, perhaps, than the -polecat. - -This animal is about as big as a cat. But it does not look as large as -it really is, because of the shortness of its legs. In color it is rich -brown above and yellowish white below, while the tail is very long, and -is almost as bushy as that of a squirrel. - -Martens are only found in the thickest parts of the forests, and spend -almost the whole of their lives in the trees, running up and down the -trunks, and leaping from bough to bough with the most wonderful -activity. They even make nests among the branches, in which to bring up -their little ones, weaving a quantity of leaves and moss together in -such a way as to make a most cosy little nursery. But it is to be feared -that they are sometimes lazy animals, for just to save themselves -trouble they will turn squirrels or woodpeckers out of their nests, and -take possession of them for themselves. - -Martens feed on any small animals which they can find, and have more -than once been known to kill lambs, and even fawns. When they happen to -live near the sea, it is said that they will visit the shore by night in -order to hunt for mussels. - -The American sable or pine-marten is about the size of a common domestic -cat, and looks much like a young red fox. It is now rare south of -Northern Canada. - -The sable found in the mountainous forests of Northern Asia seems to be -nothing more than a variety of the pine-marten with very long fur. This -fur is so much in request that the animal is greatly persecuted, more -than two thousand skins being sometimes taken in a single season. - -[Illustration: TYPES OF FUR BEARERS. - - 1. Weasel; Ermine. 2. Otter. - 3. Wolverine; Glutton. 4. Pine Marten; Sable. - 5. Skunk. 6. Badger.] - - -THE GLUTTON, OR WOLVERENE - -You would say that this animal hardly looks like a weasel at all, for it -is very heavily and clumsily built, and, including the tail, is often as -much as four feet long. If you did not know what it was, you might -almost take it for a bear cub with a tail. It is blackish brown in -color, with a lighter band which runs from the shoulders along the sides -and across the flanks, as far as the root of the tail. - -"Glutton" is rather an odd name for this creature, isn't it? But -certainly the animal deserves it, for it will go on eating and eating, -long after you would think that it could not possibly swallow a morsel -more. Indeed, a glutton has been known to devour, at a single meal, a -great joint of meat, which would have been more than sufficient for a -lion or a tiger for a whole day! It lives in North America, and also in -Northern Europe and Northern Asia, and the hunters find it a terrible -nuisance, for night after night it will search along a line of traps and -devour all the animals caught in them. Then, too, if they bury a -quantity of provisions in the ground, meaning to come back and fetch -them later on, a glutton is very likely to discover them and dig them -up, while the animal is also fond of visiting their huts while they are -absent, and stealing everything it can carry away. - -Blankets, knives, axes, and even saucepans and frying-pans have been -stolen in this way by gluttons, and once one of these animals actually -succeeded in dragging away and hiding a gun! It is even a worse robber, -in fact, than the arctic fox. And it can hardly ever be trapped, because -it is so crafty that it almost always discovers the traps, and either -passes them by or pulls them to pieces, while it is so wary, and so -swift of foot, that the hunter very seldom has a chance of shooting it. - -It was formerly supposed that this animal was even more crafty still, -and that it would collect a quantity of the moss of which deer are so -fond, lay it upon the ground as a bait, and hide in the foliage of an -overhanging bough, so as to spring down upon the animals when they -stopped to feed. But this story seems to be quite untrue. - - -THE RATEL - -More curious still is the ratel, which belongs to the family of badgers. -You cannot possibly mistake it if you see it, for all the upper part of -its body is grayish white, and all the lower part is black. So that it -looks rather like a lady wearing a white mantle and a black skirt. - -But if the ratel is odd in appearance, it is odder still in habits. If -you go to look at them in a zoo you are sure to find them trotting -leisurely round and round their cage in a perfect circle, one behind the -other. And when they come to a certain spot they always stop, turn head -over heels, pick themselves up, and then run on again. Why they do so -nobody knows, but for hours every day they keep up this singular -performance. - -The ratel is very fond of honey, so fond that it is often called the -honey-ratel, or honey-weasel, and it spends a good deal of time in -prowling about in search of the nests of wild bees. You would think that -it would get badly stung by the bees, wouldn't you, when it tore their -nests open and robbed them of their sweet stores? But its coat is so -thick that the insects can scarcely force their stings through it, while -even if they do so there is a thick loose skin under it, and a layer of -fat under that. So it seems quite certain that a ratel never gets stung, -no matter how many nests he may rob. - -The animal does not live entirely on honey, however, but also feeds upon -rats, mice, small birds, lizards, and even insects. - -Two kinds of ratels are known, one of which lives in Africa and the -other in India. - - -THE BADGER - -The European badger was formerly very common in Great Britain. It was -generally known as the brock, and when we hear of a place called by such -a name as Brockley, or Brockenhurst, we may be quite sure that it was -once inhabited by a great many badgers. Nowadays, however, these -animals are more scarce in Great Britain and only to be found as a -general thing, in the wildest parts of the country; and as they only -come out of their burrows by night, very few people even see them in a -state of freedom. But all over temperate Northern Europe and Asia the -European badger is found. - -Their burrows are generally made either in the very thickest part of a -dense forest, or else on the side of a steep cliff which is well covered -with trees. They run for some distance into the ground, and generally -open out into several chambers, while at the end there is always a large -hollow which the animals use as a bedroom. They like to be comfortable, -so they always line this hollow with a good thick layer of dried fern -and dead leaves. You would be quite astonished to find how much of this -bedding is often packed away in the burrow of a single badger. - -These animals are most cleanly in their habits, and are very careful not -to take any dirt into their burrows with them. They have been known, for -example, to use a low branch near the entrance as a scraper, and always -to rub their feet upon it before going in. And every now and then they -have a grand house-cleaning, turning out all their bedding, and taking -in a fresh supply. - -When the badger is digging, it uses its nose as well as its paws, -shoveling the earth aside with it from time to time. And every now and -then it walks backward to the entrance of the burrow pushing out the -loosened earth in a heap behind it. - -The teeth of the European badger are made in a very curious way, for -they interlock with one another just like those of a steel trap. The -jaws, too, are exceedingly strong, so that the animal is able to inflict -a very severe bite. But it is a most peaceable creature, and never -attempts to attack unless it is driven to bay. - -As regards food, it will eat almost anything. It seems equally fond of -mice, frogs, lizards, birds' eggs, snails, worms, fruit, beechnuts, and -roots. If it finds a wasps' or a bumblebees' nest, it will dig it up and -devour all the grubs and the food which has been stored up for them, -caring nothing for the stings of the angry insects. And very often -it gathers a quantity of provisions together in a small chamber opening -out of its burrow, which it uses as a larder. - -The head of the badger is white, with a broad black streak on either -side, which encloses both the eye and the ear. The body is reddish gray -above, whitish gray on the sides, and blackish brown below, and the -flanks and tail are nearly white. In length it is very nearly three feet -from the muzzle to the tip of the tail. - -The American badger, living in the western parts of North America, -resembles its European cousin in nearly all respects, differing from it -chiefly in the form of the teeth, in the habit of eating more flesh, and -in liking open flat country better than the dense forests preferred by -its Old World relation. Another difference is noted by Mr. Hornaday, who -tells us that the American badger "has a savage and sullen disposition, -and as a pet is one of the worst imaginable." - - -THE SKUNK - -Many of the animals of the weasel tribe have a most disagreeable odor; -but there is none whose scent is so horribly disgusting as that of the -skunk. - -This is a North American animal of about the size of a cat, with a long, -narrow head, a stoutly built body, and a big bushy tail. In color it is -black, with a white streak on the forehead, a white patch on the neck, -and a broad stripe of the same color running along either side of the -back. - -The offensive odor of the skunk is due to a liquid which is stored up in -certain glands near the root of the tail. This liquid can be squirted -out at will to a distance of twelve or fifteen feet, and if the animal -is attacked, or thinks itself in danger, it does not attempt to use its -teeth, but just turns round, raises its tail, and sends a perfect shower -of the vile fluid over its enemy. And it is almost impossible to wash -the smell away. A drop or two once fell on the coat of a dog. The animal -was washed over and over again, most thoroughly, with various kinds of -soap. Yet a week later, when he happened to rub himself against one -of the legs of a table, no one could bear to sit by it afterward. - -The skunk seems to know perfectly well how offensive its odor is, and -never runs away if it meets a man, or even a large dog. It just stands -perfectly quiet, like a cat expecting to be stroked, ready to make use -of its evil-smelling fluid if necessary. - -This singular animal lives in holes in the ground, making a warm little -nest at the end in which to bring up its young. It feeds upon small -animals, small birds and their eggs, frogs, lizards, and, most of all, -upon insects. - - -OTTERS - -Last among the members of the weasel tribe come the otters. These -animals are specially formed for living in the water. The paws, for -example, are very large and broad, and the toes are fastened together by -means of a kind of web, like that on the foot of a swan or a duck, so -that they form very useful paddles. Then the body is long, lithe, and -almost snake-like, and the tail is so broad and flat that it serves as a -capital rudder, and enables the animal to direct its course. The fur, -too, consists of two coats of hair instead of only one; the outer, which -is composed of long, stiff bristles, lying upon the inner like a very -close thatch, and quite preventing water from passing through. So -although an otter is dripping from head to foot when it comes out of the -water, it never gets really wet. - -The animal is wonderfully active in the water, and can easily overtake -and capture the swiftest of fishes. Sometimes it is very destructive, -for when fishes are plentiful it becomes so dainty that it never eats -its victims, but just takes a bite or two from the best part of the -flesh at the back of the neck, and then leaves the rest of the body -lying upon the ground. So fishermen are not at all fond of it, and kill -it whenever they can. But sometimes, when the rivers are very low, or -when the surface of the water is thickly covered with ice, the otters -find it very difficult to obtain a sufficient supply of food. So they -leave the streams and wander far inland, sometimes making their way into -the farmyards, and feasting upon poultry, or even upon young pigs and -lambs. But they only do this when they are in real danger of starvation, -and always return to the river-banks as soon as they can. - -The home of the otter is generally situated beneath the spreading roots -of a large tree on the bank of a stream. The animal does not dig a -burrow if it can help it, but prefers to take advantage of some natural -cleft in the ground, at the end of which it makes a nest of flags and -rushes. In this nest from three to five little ones are brought up, and -if you were to lie very quietly on the bank for some little time early -on a warm spring morning, you would very likely see the mother otter -playing with her little ones, or teaching them how to swim and to catch -fish. - -The bite of the otter is very severe, and it is almost impossible to -force the animal to loose its hold. - -In India there is a kind of otter which is often trained to catch fish -for its master. It is taught, first of all, to pursue an imitation fish -as it is drawn through the water by a string, and to bring it ashore and -lay it down upon the ground. Then a dead fish is substituted for the -false one, and when the otter has learned to bring this to its owner, -and to give it up at the word of command, it is sent in pursuit of a -live fish fastened to a line. And before very long it learns its duties -so thoroughly that it will catch fish after fish, and bring them back -without attempting to eat them, just as a well-trained retriever dog -will bring back the birds or the rabbits which its master has shot. - -The otter of North America is still found, but not numerously, in the -Carolinas and Florida, in some Rocky Mountain districts, in British -Columbia and Alaska, and in the Canadian provinces. - -There is also a kind of otter which lives in the sea, and is called the -sea-otter. It is also known as the kalan. It is found on the coasts of -the Northern Pacific, and is much larger than the common otter, often -weighing as much as seventy or eighty pounds, and being nearly four feet -in total length. Its fur is the most costly known, a fine pelt being -worth $600 or $800 before dressing. This high price is due partly to the -beauty of the fur, but mainly to its rarity. - - - - -CHAPTER XI - -THE BEAR TRIBE - - -The bears are very interesting animals. In no animals, perhaps, are -young folks more interested than in these, for they have many traits -that endear them to little human admirers, while with older persons they -have often lived on terms of intimate friendship. In our own country -this interest in these fascinating animals was lately quickened, for -children especially, by the almost universal possession and popularity -among them of "Teddy bears," so named with playful reference to -President Theodore Roosevelt, affectionately called "Teddy," and himself -well acquainted with bears and other beasts, both wild and tame. - - -POLAR BEARS - -One of the most interesting of all bears is the polar bear, which is -found in almost all parts of the arctic regions. Sometimes it is called -the white bear, on account of the color of its coat. But this is very -seldom really white. Generally it is creamy yellow. And sometimes, in an -old male, it is dingy yellow, and not even of the color of cream. - -This is one of the largest of the bears, for it often grows to a length -of nine feet, and weighs eight hundred or even nine hundred pounds. Yet -it is wonderfully active, and it can run with very great speed. Indeed, -if it were to pursue a man, he would have very little chance of escape. -But it is not at all a quarrelsome animal, and although it will fight -most savagely if it is wounded or driven to bay, using both teeth and -claws with terrible effect, it very seldom attacks if it is not -molested. - -One of the first things that we notice on looking at a polar bear is the -small size of its head and the length of its neck. This, no doubt, is to -help it in swimming; for if it had a head as big as that of an -ordinary bear it would find it very much harder to force its way through -the water. And of course it must be able to swim well, for otherwise it -could never catch the porpoises and fishes upon which it feeds. We -notice, too, the huge size of its paws, which are nearly eighteen inches -long, and very broad as well. These form most excellent paddles, while -the thick fur is so oily that it quite prevents the icy water from -coming into contact with the skin. - -The bear is very fond of feeding upon seals as well as upon porpoises -and fishes. But these are so active in the water that it seldom attempts -to chase them, preferring to creep quietly up to them as they lie -sleeping on the ice. Then it kills them with one stroke of its terrible -paw. Sometimes, too, it is said to prey upon the walrus, crushing in its -skull by a series of tremendous blows before it can shuffle off the ice -into the sea. - -The feet of the polar bear are specially suited for traveling over the -ice, for the soles are covered with long, thick hairs, which give it a -firm foothold, and at the same time prevent it from feeling the cold of -the frozen surface. - -The young of these bears are born and brought up in a kind of nursery -under the snow, which is so warm and snug that they do not feel the cold -at all. Here they live with their mother until the snow melts at the -return of warmer weather, and then for some months father, mother, and -cubs all wander about together. - -Polar bears sometimes live for a very long time in captivity. One of -these animals lived in the London Zoo for thirty-four years, and another -for thirty-three. The former of these once gave the keepers a terrible -fright, for early one morning he managed to climb out of his enclosure, -and when they found him he was just setting off on a journey of -discovery into the Regent's Park. After a good deal of trouble they got -him back, and altered his enclosure in such a way that he could never -make his escape again. - - -THE BROWN BEAR OF EUROPE AND ASIA - -This bear is found in most parts of Europe, and also throughout almost -the whole of Asia north of the Himalayas. In former days it was not -uncommon even in England, and in the time of Edward the Confessor the -city of Norwich was obliged to kill a bear every year and send its body -to the king. - -These bears are found in wooded, hilly districts, often ascending to -considerable heights in the mountains. In some parts of Asia they make -regular tracks through the forest, in the form of pathways about two -feet wide; and it is said that these tracks sometimes run for hundreds -of miles. They are solitary animals, and it is not often that even a -pair are seen together. But for several months after they are born the -cubs go about with their mother. - -This bear is generally supposed, when it fights, to try to hug its -enemies to death, throwing its fore limbs round them, and crushing them -in its embrace. But in reality it strikes a kind of side blow, and -forces its great claws into its victim's body thus causing a terrible -wound. Just before it strikes it rears its body erect, and sits for a -moment almost perfectly still; and it is for this moment that an -experienced hunter waits in order to send a bullet through its heart. - -The brown bear of Europe and Asia can scarcely be called a beast of -prey, though now and then, when it is very hungry, it will kill a pony -or a sheep and feast upon its flesh. It eats roots, as a rule, digging -them up with its great paws; and it is also very fond of fruit. It will -rob the nests of wild bees, too, and feed greedily upon the honey, -appearing to pay no attention to the stings of the angry insects. And -sometimes it may be seen turning over large stones, in order to catch -and eat the beetles, earwigs, centipedes, etc., which have been hiding -beneath it. - -Now and then, too, these bears have been known to catch fish. Their -usual plan seems to be to wade out into a stream, in some place where -the water is not more than about eighteen inches deep, and there to -stand motionless until a fish comes swimming past. Then with one quick, -sudden stroke the victim is killed, and the bear seizes it in its mouth -and carries it to the bank to be devoured. - -When bears catch fish in this way they are usually rather dainty, and -only eat the best part of the flesh upon the back. - -In cold countries these bears often hibernate during the winter, just as -bats and hedgehogs do. They eat a great deal of food toward the end of -summer, and become exceedingly fat, and then retire to hollow trees or -caves and fall asleep for several months, during which they live on -their own fat. In the spring, of course, when they wake up, they are -very thin, but a few weeks of good feeding will bring them back into -proper condition. - -These brown bears are very easily tamed, and many "performing bears" -belong to this species. It is not nearly such a large animal as the -polar bear, its average length being only about six feet. - - -THE AMERICAN BROWN BEAR - -The brown bear of America is closely allied to that of the Old World. It -was first described by Sir John Richardson, who called it the -Barrenlands bear. It has since been further described by Dr. Clinton -Hart Merriam, chief of the United States Biological Survey. It differs -from the grizzly in the smallness of its claws. The difference in the -profile also is very marked--the brown bear having a profile like that -of the European and Asiatic bear, while that of the grizzly is flat. - -The brown bear of North America lives largely on the fruits and berries -of the northern plants, on dead deer, and on putrid fish, of which -quantities are left on the banks of the northern rivers. Whether the -large brown bear of the Rocky Mountains is always a grizzly, or often -this less dangerous race, is doubtful. The following is Sir Samuel -Baker's account of these bears. He says: "When I was in California, -experienced informants told me that no true grizzly bear was to be found -east of the Pacific slope. There are numerous bears of three if not four -kinds in the Rocky Mountains. These are frequently termed grizzlies; but -it is a misnomer. The true grizzly is far superior in size, but of -similar habits." There are certainly three Rocky Mountain bears--the -grizzly, the brown, and the small black bear. There is probably also -another--a cross between the black and the brown. It is a mistake to say -that the brown bears which come to eat the refuse on the dust-heaps of -the hotels of the Yellowstone Park, and let ladies photograph them, are -savage grizzly bears. - - -THE GRIZZLY BEAR - -The famous grizzly bear, which lives in North America, is much bigger -and stronger and more savage than the brown bears, so that it is really -a very formidable animal. When fully grown, this huge creature is -sometimes as much as nine feet long from the tip of the snout to the -root of the tail, while it weighs at least 800 or 900 pounds. - -The grizzly is a very distinct race of brown bear. It has a flat -profile, like the polar bear. This enormous creature is barely able to -climb trees, and has the largest claws of any--they have been known to -measure five inches along the curve. The true grizzly, which used to be -found as far north as 61º latitude and south as far as Mexico, is a rare -animal now. Its turn for cattle-killing made the ranchmen poison it, and -rendered the task an easy one. It is now only found in the northern -Rocky Mountains and parts of northern California and Nevada. Formerly -encounters with "Old Ephraim," as the trappers called this bear, were -numerous and deadly. It attacked men if attacked by them, and often -without provocation. The horse, perhaps more than its rider, was the -object of the bear. - -On a ranch near the upper waters of the Colorado River several colts -were taken by grizzly bears. One of them was found buried according to -the custom of this bear, and the owner sat up to shoot the animal. -Having only the old-fashioned small-bored rifle of the day, excellent -for shooting deer or Indians, but useless against so massive a beast as -this bear, unless hit in the head or heart, he only wounded it. The bear -rushed in, struck him a blow with its paw (the paw measures a foot -across), smashed the rifle which he held up as a protection, and struck -the barrel on to his head. The man fell insensible, when the bear, -having satisfied himself that he was dead, picked him up, carried him -off, and buried him in another hole which it scratched near the dead -colt. It then dug up the colt and ate part of it, and went off. -Some time later the man came to his senses, and awoke to find himself -"dead and buried." As the earth was only roughly thrown over him, he -scrambled out, and saw close by the half-eaten remains of the colt. -Thinking that it might be about the bear's dinner-time, and remembering -that he was probably put by in the larder for the next meal, he hurried -home at once, and did not trouble the bear again. - -Not so a Siberian peasant, who had much the same adventure. He had been -laughed at for wishing to shoot a bear, and went out in the woods to do -so. The bear had the best of it, knocked him down, and so frightfully -mangled his arm that he fainted. Bruin then buried him in orthodox bear -fashion; and the man, when he came to, which he fortunately did before -the bear came back, got up, and made his way to the village. There he -was for a long time ill, and all through his sickness and delirium -talked of nothing but shooting the bear. When he got well, he -disappeared into the forest with his gun, and after a short absence -returned with the bear's skin! - - -THE BLACK BEAR - -The black bear is also an inhabitant of North America, but is neither so -common or so widely distributed as it used to be. There are two reasons -for this. The first is that this bear is an extremely mischievous -animal, and is very fond of visiting farmyards, and carrying off sheep, -calves, pigs and poultry. So the farmer loses no opportunity of shooting -or trapping it. And the other reason is, that its coat is very valuable, -so that the hunters follow it even into the wilder parts of the country, -where settlers, as yet, have not made their appearance. - -This animal is only about half as big as the grizzly bear, for it seldom -exceeds five feet in total length. It never attacks man unless it is -provoked. When driven to bay, however, it becomes a most formidable -opponent, dealing terrific blows with its fore paws, and fighting on -with furious energy even after it has received a mortal wound. - -Early in the autumn the black bear generally goes into winter quarters. -Finding a hollow under a fallen tree, or a cave of suitable size, -it gathers together about a cartload of dead leaves and ferns, and makes -a snug, cosy nest. Very often it lays a number of branches on the top, -to prevent the leaves from blowing away. Before very long, of course, -this nest is deeply covered with snow, and the bear lies fast asleep -inside it for four or five months, living on the fat which it stored up -inside its body during the summer. - -This bear is sometimes known as the musquaw, an Indian name. - - -SUN-BEARS - -These animals are so called because they wander about by day, and like -to bask in the hottest sunshine, instead of hiding away in some dark -retreat, as most of the other bears do. They live in India and the -larger islands of the Malay Archipelago. They are excellent climbers, -spending a great part of their lives among the branches of the trees. - -These bears have most curious tongues, which are very long and slender, -and can be coiled and twisted about in the most singular way. Apparently -they are used for licking out honey from the nests of wild bees. - -Sun-bears are small, gentle creatures, and are easily tamed. In the zoo -they are extremely playful, and you may often see them standing upon -their hind legs and wrestling with one another, and then tumbling over -and rolling upon the floor, evidently enjoying themselves very much. -Their fur is smooth and glossy, and is jet-black in color, the chin and -a crescent-shaped patch under the throat being white. - - -THE SLOTH-BEAR - -Another name for this bear is the aswail--its East-Indian name. It is -perhaps the oddest of all the bears, for it has very long and shaggy -hair, a flexible snout which it is always curling and twisting, and a -very awkwardly and clumsily built body. It walks with a curious rolling -gait, crossing its paws over one another at every step it takes. And it -has a queer way of eating termites and ants by breaking open their -nests with its great fore paws, blowing away the dust and fine earth, -and then sucking up the insects by forcibly drawing in its breath -through its lips. It makes such a noise when doing this that it can be -heard from a distance of two or three hundred yards. - -The sloth-bear is seldom seen abroad during the daytime, for the odd -reason that the skin of the soles of its feet is so delicate that it -cannot bear to walk upon ground which is heated by the rays of the sun. -Sometimes, when a hunter has driven one of them from its lair and -pursued it by day, he has found its feet most terribly scorched and -blistered when at last he killed it, simply because it had been obliged -to walk over rocks on which the midday sun was beating down. - -When a mother sloth-bear has little ones, she always carries them about -on her back. If she stops to feed they at once jump down, but always -spring up again as soon as she moves on. Even when they are quite big -they travel about in this way, and a sloth-bear may often be seen with a -cub as large as a retriever dog perched upon her back, and another one -trotting along by her side. And from time to time she makes the little -ones change places. - -If a mother is wounded while her cubs are with her, she always seems to -think that one of them must have bitten her, and immediately gives them -both a good sound box on the ears. If several of these animals are -together, and one of them is struck by a bullet, it begins to howl and -cry at the top of its voice. The other bears at once come running up to -see what is the matter, and begin to howl and cry too, out of pure -sympathy for its sufferings. Then the wounded animal thinks that they -have caused his injuries, and begins to cuff them with his paws. They, -of course, strike back, and very soon all the bears are buffeting and -biting and scratching one another. They must be very stupid creatures, -mustn't they? - -The sloth-bear is a little more than five feet long when fully grown, -and stands from twenty-seven to thirty-three inches in height at the -shoulder. In color it is black, with a white crescent-shaped mark on the -upper part of its chest, like that of the sun-bear. - - -THE PANDA - -Besides the true bears, there are a number of smaller animals which -belong to the same tribe. - -One of these is the panda, wah, or bear-cat, which is only about as big -as a rather large cat. It is rusty red in color, with darker rings upon -the tail, the tip of which is black. The face is white, and the lower -parts of the body are very dark brown. - -The panda is found in the forests of the Eastern Himalayas, and also in -Eastern Tibet. It is a very good climber and spends much of its time in -the trees, searching for the nuts, fruits, and acorns on which it feeds. -If it happens to find a bird's nest with eggs in it, it will suck them -all, one after the other. And sometimes it will come down to the ground -to make a meal upon roots, or the young shoots of bamboo. - -The panda has rather large claws--just like those of a bear--and one -would think that they would form very serviceable weapons. But the -animal seems to have very little idea of fighting, and scarcely tries -even to defend itself if it is attacked. - - -RACOONS - -Next come the racoons, which live in America. The best known of them is -the common racoon, found throughout the United States, and also in -Central America as far south as Costa Rica. - -This is a very pretty animal. In size it is about as big as a rather -large cat, and is brown or grayish brown in color, with a tail that is -very bushy and beautifully ringed with gray and black. The head is -rather like that of a fox, with a whitish forehead, and a black patch -just below it, enclosing the eyes. - -Racoons may usually be seen in a zoo, and if you give one of them a -piece of bread or biscuit it will take it in its fore paws, just as if -the animal were a monkey, and then go and rinse it carefully in the -little pond in the middle of its cage. It never eats a scrap of food -without washing it in this curious manner, and for this reason the -Germans have given it the name of "Waschbär" or "washing-bear." - -The fur of the racoon is so soft and thick that it is very valuable, and -the animal is very much hunted. It is generally hunted by night, the -hunters going out with a number of dogs, which soon drive the animal -into a tree. They then sit in a circle round the trunk, while one of the -hunters climbs the tree, drives the racoon to the end of the branch, and -then shakes it violently till the poor creature falls to the ground, -where it is quickly seized and despatched. - -Racoons will eat almost anything. Sometimes they will visit a -poultry-yard and kill a number of the fowls by biting off their heads. -Or they will go down to the sea-shore when the tide is out to search for -crabs and oysters, or to the creeks and streams to hunt for crayfish. -They are fond, too, of mice, and young birds, and eggs, and lizards, and -fresh-water tortoises, and even insects. Occasionally they make a meal -on nuts or fruit; but although they are such capital climbers, and can -run about among the tree-branches as actively as squirrels, they never -appear to pluck fruits or nuts as they grow, but only to pick up those -which have fallen on the ground. - -In Northern Mexico and adjoining parts of the United States there is a -small relative of the racoon called cacomistle, or American civet-cat -(though it is not a real civet). This has a sharp, fox-like face, big -erect ears, a cat-like body, and long furry ringed tail; and it makes a -gentle and most amusing pet, of great service in keeping a house free -from vermin. Hence it is often tamed and kept by miners and others who -are glad of its lively company and need assistance in housekeeping. - - -THE COATI - -Closely allied to the racoons is the coati, or coati-mondi, which you -may recognize at once by its very long snout. This snout is turned up at -the tip, and gives to the animal a most curious appearance, while it is -continually being curled and twisted about like that of the sloth-bear. -It is chiefly used for rooting about in the ground in search of worms -and insects, and when the animal is drinking it always turns up the tip -of its snout as far as possible, in order that it may not get wet. - -The coati can climb quite as well as the racoons and spends most of its -life in the trees, seldom coming down to the ground except to feed or to -drink. It has a queer way of descending a tree with its head downward, -turning the hinder feet around in such a way that it can hook its claws -into the little crevices in the bark. During the daytime it is generally -fast asleep, using its long bushy tail partly as a pillow and partly as -a blanket. But almost immediately after sunset it wakes up and begins to -scamper about among the branches with the most wonderful activity, -stopping every now and then to rob a bird's nest, or to poke its snout -into a hole in search of insects. - -The coati is about a yard in length, nearly half of which belongs to the -tail. In color it is chestnut brown, with black ears and legs, while the -tail has black and brownish yellow rings. - - -THE KINKAJOU - -Only one more member of the bear tribe remains to be mentioned, and that -is the very curious kinkajou, which is found in the forests of South and -Central America. It is about as big as a cat, with very woolly fur of a -light brown color, and a very long tail. This tail is prehensile, like -that of a spider-monkey, and the animal never seems quite happy unless -the tip is coiled round a branch. And if you make a pet of it, and carry -it about in your arms, it will always try to coil its tail round one of -your wrists. - -It has a very odd tongue, too, so round and long that it looks almost -like a worm. The animal can poke this tongue into the cells of a -honeycomb, in order to lick out the honey, or use it in plucking fruit -which would otherwise be out of its reach. And it descends the trunks of -trees head first, just as the coati does. - - - - -CHAPTER XII - -THE SEAL TRIBE - - -We now come to a group of carnivorous or flesh-eating mammals which live -in the water--the seals. - -People sometimes think that these creatures are fishes; but that is -quite a mistake, for their blood is as hot as our own, and they breathe -by means of nostrils and lungs just as we do, and not by means of gills, -like the fishes. Then they have not fins to keep their bodies upright in -the water as fishes have, neither do they swim by means of their tails; -and their bodies are covered with fur, not with scales. - - -HOW SEALS SWIM - -So, you see, seals are very different from fishes, although they spend -almost the whole of their lives in the water. But nature has formed them -in such a way that they can swim and dive quite as well as the fishes -can. Yet it is difficult to see how they do so. If you watch a tame seal -swimming about in a large tank of water, you will see that it glides -smoothly and swiftly and easily and gracefully along, rising and diving -and turning with the most perfect ease; but _how_ it swims you will -not be able to tell at all. - -You know, however, that you can row a boat by means of a single oar, if -you work it from side to side at the stern. You will not travel very -fast, partly because the oar is not very big, and partly because you are -not very strong. But still the boat will move. - -Now if you look at the hinder feet of a seal, you will see that they are -very broad, that they are set far back upon the body, and that, if -necessary, they can be placed side by side together. Then think of the -body of the seal as a live boat, and of these great broad feet as an -oar worked from the stern, and you will be able to understand how the -animal swims. It just places these feet side by side, and uses them in -such a way that they act upon the water exactly as an oar does, while -their strength is so great that they drive the body along very swiftly. - - -HOW THEY ARE KEPT WARM - -But if the seal is a hot-blooded animal, how can it remain in the sea -for days together without being chilled? If we go to the seaside, and -wish to bathe, we are advised not to stay in the water for more than ten -or fifteen minutes; and if we were to do so, we might be made seriously -ill. Yet the seal can live for days, or even weeks, in the icy seas of -the far north and yet never seem to suffer from the cold at all. How is -this? - -Well, the fact is that, first of all, nature has supplied the seal with -a kind of mackintosh, to keep it dry. This mackintosh, in most seals, is -made of a double coat of fur. First there is an outer layer of long, -stout hairs, almost like bristles; and underneath there is generally -another layer of soft, close hairs--those which you see in a lady's -sealskin jacket. And in order to keep the water from passing through it, -this double coat of fur is kept constantly oiled. All over the surface -of a seal's skin are thousands upon thousands of little holes, each of -which opens into a tiny bag of oil, and this oil is constantly oozing -out on to the fur. So, you see, the furry coat really does act like a -mackintosh, for it quite prevents the seal from ever getting wet. - -When an animal lives in water which is often covered with ice, however, -something more than a mackintosh is necessary in order to keep it warm; -so under the mackintosh nature has provided the seal with a thick -greatcoat. And this greatcoat is made of a substance much warmer than -cloth, or even than fur. It is made of fat. Just under the skin, -covering the whole of the body, is a layer of fat two or three inches -thick. And this keeps the seal so warm that even when it is lying upon -ice it never gets chilled in the least. - - -FULLY FITTED FOR ITS HOME - -The nostrils and the ears of the seal are made in such a way that water -cannot enter them when the animal is diving. They are furnished with -little valves, which are so arranged that they close as soon as the -water presses upon them. And the greater the pressure the more tightly -they shut up, so that not the tiniest drop of water can ever enter them. - -There is still one more way in which the animal is specially fitted for -its life in the water. It has to feed on fishes, and fishes are very -slippery creatures. If you have ever tried to hold a live fish in your -hand you will know that it is a difficult thing to do, for the fish just -gives a wriggle and a twist, and slips out of your grasp as if it had -been oiled. So that it would seem quite impossible for the seal to hold -its finny victims, even if it overtook and seized them. But when we come -to look at its teeth we find that those which we call molars, or -grinders, are set with long, sharp points; so that when a fish is seized -they enter its body, and hold it in a grip from which there is no -escape. - - -THE COMMON SEAL - -There are many different kinds of seals, but we shall only be able to -tell you about four or five of the best known. - -The first of these is the common seal. It is found on both sides of the -Atlantic Ocean and in the North Pacific. On some coasts it is much -disliked by fishermen, owing to the great number of fishes which it -devours. It is so cunning that it will even find its way in among the -nets they have let down, feast heartily upon the captive fish, and then -quietly swim out again, often doing the same thing day after day for -weeks together. And it is almost impossible to destroy it, for it seems -to know perfectly well when its enemies are on the watch, and will only -expose its nostrils above the water when it comes up to the surface to -breathe. - -Very often fishermen consider it "unlucky" to kill a seal, so that the -animal is able to carry on its robberies without being interfered with. - -The common seal, when fully grown, is about five feet long, and is -yellowish gray in color, with a number of darker spots sprinkled over -the body and sides. It is very active in the sea, and fairly active on -land, for although it cannot walk it will shuffle along over the beach -at a wonderful pace for such an animal. As it does so, it throws up a -perfect shower of stones with its hinder nippers, and those who have -chased it have often thought that it was doing so on purpose, and was -actually throwing stones at them. - -If this seal is caught when quite young and treated kindly, it soon -becomes exceedingly tame. It has even been known to live indoors, like a -dog or a cat, and to lie for hours together basking in front of the -fire. And in more than one case, when its owner wished to get rid of it, -and put it back into the sea, it swam after him, crying so pitifully as -he rowed away that he could not bear to leave it, and took it home with -him again after all. - - -SEA-LIONS - -The sea-lions are so called because they are supposed to look very much -like lions. But it is not easy to see the resemblance. Sometimes they -are called hair-seals, because there is no soft woolly under-fur beneath -the coating of thick bristles, as there is in most of the animals -belonging to this family. - -There are nearly always sea-lions to be seen in zoos, and they are so -intelligent and clever that the keepers are able to teach them to -perform many tricks. A wooden platform is built for them, with the upper -end standing some feet above the surface of the water, and they are very -fond of shuffling up this, lying at the end until a number of visitors -have come close to the railings to look at them, and then diving into -the water with a great splash, so as to send a shower of spray over the -spectators. - -There are several different kinds of these animals, of which the -Patagonian sea-lion is perhaps the most numerous. It is found on both -the Atlantic and the Pacific coasts of South America, and is rather -more lion-like than its relations, since it has a crest of long hairs on -the back of its neck, which really looks something like a mane. But you -cannot see this crest when the animal is wet, as it then lies down flat -upon the skin. The color of the fur varies much, for the old males are -brown, the females are gray, and the young ones are a rich chocolate, -which begins to grow paler when they are almost twelve months old. - -The California sea-lion is a distinct species of the Pacific coast, and -is found from there to Japan. On the rocks off San Francisco is one of -its ancient rookeries, and the animal is there preserved by the -government as one of the sights of the bay. In traveling menageries and -in zoos you may hear the California sea-lions loudly and continually -barking. - -A sea-lion that lived for a good many years in the London Zoo was -exceedingly clever, for it would climb up and down a ladder, with either -its head or its tail first, fire off a gun, kiss its keeper, and catch -fishes in its mouth if they were thrown to it, just as a dog will catch -a piece of biscuit. Cleverer still, however, were a party of sea-lions, -established at the London Hippodrome in 1902, for they would play a kind -of football with their heads, catching the ball and passing it from one -to another in a most wonderful way, and scarcely ever missing it or -making a mistake. They would take part, too, in a musical performance, -one playing the drum, another cymbals, a third the horn, and a fourth -the bells, while their trainer stood in the middle and beat time. And -one of them would actually balance an upright pole, with a fish on the -top, on the tip of its nose, waddle across the stage, still holding the -pole upright, and then suddenly jerk the pole aside, and catch the fish -in its mouth as it fell. - -But sea-lions are rather expensive pets to keep, for they have such very -large appetites. A single sea-lion will eat about twenty-five pounds of -fish in a single day! And when one remembers that these seals are -sometimes found in herds of hundreds of thousands, one would almost -think that they must very soon devour all the fishes in the sea. - -When fully grown the male of the largest species of sea-lion is often -ten feet long and weighs a thousand pounds. - - -FUR-SEALS - -The fur-seals are sometimes known as sea-bears, although they are not -even as much like bears as the sea-lions are like lions. They are -destroyed in very great numbers for the sake of their skins, which have -a thick coating of soft fur under the stiff outer bristles. These -bristles, of course, have to be removed before the fur can be used, and -this is done by shaving the inner surface of the skin away until their -roots are cut off. They can then be pulled out without any difficulty, -while the roots of the under-fur, which are not nearly so deeply buried, -are not hurt in the least. But the operation is not at all an easy one, -and can only be performed by a highly skilled workman, and that is one -reason why sealskin jackets are so expensive. - -Another reason is that in almost every skin there are a number of flaws, -all of which have to be most carefully cut out, after which the holes -have to be filled up in such a way as to leave no traces of the -operation. Then the fur has to be cleaned, combed, and prepared and -dyed, so that the garments which are made from it really cannot be sold -except at a very high price. - -These seals are not hunted in the sea, for they are such good swimmers -that it would be very difficult to kill them. So during the greater part -of the year they are allowed to live in peace. But during the -breeding-season they live on land, lying upon certain parts of the coast -in enormous herds; and the seal-hunters visit these places, drive the -young males to a distance from the rest, and there kill them by striking -them on the head with a heavy club. - -Such vast numbers of fur-seals were destroyed in this way that at last -it became necessary to protect them, for fear lest they should be -entirely killed off. So only a certain number may now be killed in each -year. - -The best known of the fur-seals is the northern sea-bear, which is found -on both shores of the Northern Pacific. It used to visit the Pribilof -Islands in enormous numbers during the breeding-season, but lately so -many have been killed, despite protective laws, that now the herds are -quite small. - - -THE HOODED SEAL - -Another seal whose fur is very valuable is called the hooded seal, or -crested seal, because the adult male has a singular growth upon the -front part of the head. This hood or crest consists of a kind of bag of -skin which lies just above the nose, and can be inflated with air at -will. What its use may be in a state of nature is not known. But when -the seal is hunted it is often of the greatest service, for the force of -a blow which would otherwise have caused instant death is so broken by -the crest that the animal is merely stunned for a few moments, and is -able to slip into the water before the hunter returns to take off its -skin. - -This seal is rather a formidable animal when it is enraged, for it is -quite large when fully grown, and uses both its claws and its teeth in -fighting. The male animals are very quarrelsome among themselves, and -most desperate battles take place. - -These and other hair-seals lie in summer upon floating ice-fields where -their young are born. Steamers filled with men find them off the coast -of Labrador, land on the ice, and kill thousands for the sake of their -skins and the oil tried out of the blubber or underlying fat. - - -THE SEA-ELEPHANT - -One of the biggest of all the seals is the great sea-elephant, also -called elephant-seal, which frequents the shores of many of the islands -in the Antarctic Ocean. It owes its name partly to its enormous size, -the old males sometimes reaching a length of eighteen or even twenty -feet, and partly to its very curious trunk, which is sometimes as much -as a foot long. In the females and the young animals this trunk is -wanting, and even in the male it is seldom seen unless the animal is -excited, when it can be blown out very much like the bag of the hooded -seal. - -The fur of the sea-elephant is much too coarse to be of any great value. -But its skin can be made into excellent leather, while the thick coat of -blubber which lies beneath it furnishes large quantities of useful oil. -The consequence is that the animal has been much hunted, and is now -comparatively scarce even in districts where it was once very common. It -is not nearly so fierce as the hooded seal, and almost always takes to -flight if it is attacked, its huge body quivering like a vast mass of -jelly as it shuffles awkwardly along over the beach. But the males fight -most fiercely with one another, inflicting really terrible wounds by -means of their tusk-like teeth. - - -THE WALRUS - -The strangest of all the seals is the walrus, whose tusks, representing -the canine teeth, are sometimes as much as two feet long. - -This animal is found only in the northern parts of the Atlantic and -Pacific oceans, and is not often seen outside the arctic circle. -Formerly it was far more widely distributed, and in the Atlantic was -even seen frequently as far south as the Gulf of St. Lawrence; but it -has been so persecuted by hunters that it has quite disappeared from -many districts where once it was in great numbers. - -The walrus is not quite so large as the sea-elephant, nevertheless, it -is a very big animal, for a full-grown male will often measure twelve -feet in length, and will weigh nearly a ton. It uses its tusks for many -different purposes. When it wants to climb upon an ice-floe, for -example, it will dig them deeply into the ice, and so obtain purchase -while it raises its huge body out of the water. They are very formidable -weapons, too, and the animal can strike so quickly with them, both -sideways and downward, that it is not at all easy to avoid their stroke. -Then they are very useful in obtaining food. If a walrus finds the body -of a dead whale, it will cut off huge lumps of the flesh by means of its -tusks; and very often it will dig in the sandy mud with them for mussels -and cockles. The consequence is that the tusks are frequently broken, -while they are nearly always very much worn at the tips. - -The name walrus is a corruption of whale-horse. The animal is sometimes -known as the sea-horse, and also as the morse. - - - - -CHAPTER XIII - -THE WHALE TRIBE - - -The whales are more thoroughly creatures of the water than even the -seals, for they never come upon dry land at all, even during the -breeding-season. Indeed, if a whale is unfortunate enough to be thrown -upon the shore by a great wave, and left stranded, it cannot possibly -make its way back into the sea, but is obliged to lie there till it -dies. - -Yet we must not think that these giant creatures are fishes; for they -are as truly mammals as the seals are. Their blood is hot, and is driven -through the body by a heart made up of four chambers, instead of only -two. They breathe by means of nostrils and lungs, and not by means of -gills. And besides that they suckle their young, just as all other -mammals do. - -Then, once more, if you look at the body of a whale, you will see that -its tail is quite different from that of a fish. The tail of a fish is -upright, but that of a whale is set crosswise. So that there is only one -respect in which whales are really like fishes, and that is the general -shape of the body. - -These huge animals fall naturally into two families, the first -consisting of those which have teeth, and the other of those which have -whalebone, or baleen, instead. But in many ways the members of both -these families are alike. - - -HOW WHALES BREATHE - -All whales, for example, breathe in a very curious way. No doubt you -have heard of the "spouting" of these animals, and perhaps you may have -seen a picture of a whale lying on the surface of the sea, and throwing -up a great column of water from its nostrils, or blow-holes. These -pictures, however, are rather exaggerated, for what really happens is -this: A whale, as of course you know, often remains under water for a -very long time, and when at last it rises to the surface, the air in its -lungs is heavily laden with moisture. When the air is discharged through -the blow-holes into the cold atmosphere the moisture condenses at once -into a kind of misty spray, just as that in our own breath does in very -cold weather. This is what one sees when a whale is spouting, although -as the animal sometimes begins to blow while its nostrils are still -beneath the surface, a small quantity of sea-water may, perhaps, be -thrown up too. - -A whale, if it is not disturbed, will often blow fifty or sixty times in -succession. Let us try to explain why it does so. - -If _you_ try to hold your breath, you will find that it is very -difficult to do so for more than three-quarters of a minute. But if, -before you make the attempt, you get rid of as much of the air in your -lungs as you possibly can, draw in a very deep breath and get rid of -that, and then repeat the process about half a dozen times, you will -find that you can hold your breath quite easily for at least a minute -and a half. The reason is that by breathing so often and so deeply you -have purified all the blood in your body, instead of having, as usual, a -very large quantity which has done its work, and requires to be -refreshed in the lungs before it can be of any further use. - -Now the whale spouts fifty or sixty times in succession for just the -same reason. It is taking a series of deep breaths so that it may purify -all the blood in its body, and be able to remain under water for as long -a time as possible without having to rise to the surface for air. And, -besides this, there is a most wonderful arrangement in its body which -enables it to stay below for very much longer than would otherwise be -possible. Inside its chest it has a sort of blood-cistern, so to speak, -consisting of a number of large vessels, which contain a great quantity -of extra blood, besides that which is circulating through the body. This -blood, also, is purified when the whale spouts. Then, when the animal -has remained under water for some little time, and begins to feel the -want of air, it does not rise to the surface at once, in order to -breathe, but just pumps some of the extra blood from this curious -cistern into its veins and arteries, to take the place of that which is -used up and requires to be purified. This it can do over and over -again until all the extra blood-supply is used up too, when it is -obliged to rise and spout. - -As a general rule a whale spends from ten to twelve minutes in spouting, -and can then remain under water, if necessary, for considerably more -than an hour. - -It is owing to this singular method of breathing that whales can be so -easily killed. The object of the hunters is simply to drive them below -before they have finished spouting. They do this again and again, and -the consequence is that the poor animal soon becomes completely -exhausted and falls an easy prey. - - -THE WHALE'S BLUBBER - -You remember, don't you, how the seals are protected from cold, partly -by their thick and oily fur, and partly by the layer of fat which lies -just under the skin? Well, the whales are protected in much the same -way. They have no fur, of course; but the layer of fat, which we call -blubber, is always several inches in thickness, and is sometimes as much -as two feet; so that the whale is never chilled by living in the water, -even when it has to make its way through floating ice. - -This blubber has another use as well. When the whale dives to a great -depth--and sometimes it sinks half a mile or more beneath the surface of -the sea--the pressure on its body becomes enormously great because of -the weight of the water above it. If you were to dive to half that depth -you would die. But the blubber of the whale is so elastic that it -resists the pressure just as a great thick sheet of india-rubber would, -so that the animal does not suffer from it in the least. - - -MISTAKES OF ARTISTS - -Sometimes you see pictures in which whales are drawn with very big eyes, -very long ears, and perhaps even with their tongues hanging out of their -mouths. Now such pictures are drawn by artists who know nothing about -whales, for the eyes of these animals are quite small, their outward -ears are merely little holes in the skin, closing by means of -self-acting valves like those of the seals, and the tongue cannot -be poked out of the mouth at all. - -Now let us learn something about the different kinds of whales. - - -TOOTHED WHALES - -First come the toothed whales, or denticetes. As an example of these we -will take the famous sperm or spermaceti whale, which is also known as -the cachalot. - -This whale has nearly all its teeth in the lower jaw, the upper one only -having a very short row of small teeth on either side. The lower teeth -are five or six inches long, and fit into pits in the upper jaw when the -mouth is closed. These teeth are composed of beautiful ivory, and were -formerly valued so highly by the natives of the South Sea Islands, that -more than once a tribe has actually gone to war with another tribe -simply to obtain possession of a single whale's tooth. - -Now that it has been hunted so much, apparently the sperm-whale does not -grow to so great a size as it did in days gone by. Yet it is a very big -animal, for a full-grown male will attain to a length of sixty or even -seventy feet, while even a baby whale is from eleven to fourteen feet -long, or as big as a big walrus. And, strange to say, the head is almost -as large as the body and tail put together. This is chiefly due to the -fact that there is a great cavity in the skull, which contains the -valuable substance we call spermaceti. When one of these whales is -killed, the head is cut off, and a kind of well is dug in the forehead, -from which the spermaceti is drawn to the surface in buckets, as much as -thirty barrels being sometimes taken from a single animal. - -Besides this, the blubber yields a large quantity of very valuable oil, -which burns with a much clearer and stronger light than ordinary -whale-oil. And sometimes a curious substance called ambergris is found -in its body. It is used in making certain kinds of scent, and is quite -costly, although as much as fifty pounds of it have sometimes been taken -from a single whale. - -Sperm-whales are generally seen in companies, which are known as -schools. In olden days there were sometimes as many as two hundred -whales in one of these schools. But so many of the great creatures have -been killed by whalers that it is now quite the exception to see more -than four or five together. - -These whales are very playful creatures, and may often be seen gamboling -on the surface of the sea, and now and then breaching, or leaping -completely out of the water and falling back again with a tremendous -splash. They feed chiefly upon the great cuttles, or squids, which are -so plentiful in some parts of the ocean, but also devour large numbers -of cod and other fishes. But how they manage to catch these fishes -nobody quite seems to know. - -These whales were formerly hunted by means of a small boat, in the bow -of which stood a man with a long spear, or harpoon, in his hand, -attached to an enormous coil of rope. As soon as this was hurled at a -whale the boat was backed, so as to escape the stroke of its tail, and -the whale would then sound, or dive to the depth of perhaps -three-quarters of a mile. As soon as he rose he was driven down again, -as already described, before he had had time to finish spouting, and at -last, when quite exhausted, was killed by means of a very long and -sharp-edged lance. Nowadays, however, the harpoon is generally fired -from a ship by means of a gun, and as a charge of gun-cotton is placed -in the harpoon's head, which explodes as soon as the weapon enters the -body of the whale, such a severe wound is caused that the animal very -soon dies. - - -BOTTLE-NOSED WHALES - -These whales are so called because their muzzles are produced into beaks -shaped somewhat like bottles. Although they belong to the toothed whales -they only have two teeth in the lower jaw, and even these are so small -that they are completely buried in the gum. - -By the side of the cachalot the bottle-nosed whale seems quite a small -animal, for even the full-grown male seldom exceeds thirty feet in -length, while the female is quite six feet shorter. It yields, on an -average, about two hundredweight of spermaceti and two tons of oil. Its -color, strange to say, is continually changing all through its life, for -the young animals are black above and the older ones brown, which grows -lighter and lighter as time goes on, till at last it becomes almost -yellow. - -These whales seem to be very sympathetic creatures, for if one of them -is wounded, its companions generally swim round and round it, and will -even allow themselves to be killed one after the other rather than take -to flight. But they are also rather stupid animals, for if they happen -to find themselves near the coast they seldom seem to realize that they -can easily escape by turning round and swimming out to sea, but leap and -tumble about in a state of great terror till at last a big wave comes -and throws them up on the beach. - - -WHALEBONE-WHALES - -The members of the other great group of these animals are called -whalebone-whales, because they have whalebone in their mouths instead of -teeth. - -Of course this substance is not really bone at all. It consists of a -kind of horny material which grows all round the upper jaw in a series -of flattened plates, which are usually very long, and hang downward from -the edge of the palate. Each of these plates, at the tip, is broken up -into a sort of hair-like fringe; so that when the jaws are partly closed -there is a kind of sieve, or strainer, between them, through which -everything must pass that goes in or out of the mouth. - -This sieve is used in feeding. It seems strange that an animal so huge -as a whale should feed on some of the smallest creatures which live in -the sea. Yet such is the case, for the throats of the whalebone-whales -are so narrow that one of them would almost certainly be choked if it -tried to swallow a herring. So these whales live upon very small jelly -fishes, and the young of shrimps, prawns, tiny crabs, etc., which often -swim about in such vast shoals that for miles and miles the sea is quite -alive with them. When the whale meets with one of these shoals it opens -its mouth wide and swims through it. Then it partly closes its mouth, -and squirts out the water which it has taken in through the whalebone -strainer, the little animals, of course, remaining behind. These are -then swallowed, a few thousand at a gulp, and the whale opens its mouth -and repeats the operation over and over again, until its enormous -appetite is satisfied. - -Most of the whalebone which we use is obtained from the bowhead, or -Greenland whale, which is found in the northern seas. This animal is -from forty to sixty feet long when fully grown, and the baleen plates -are often ten or even twelve feet in length, while there are nearly four -hundred of them on each side of the upper jaw. In a large whale these -plates weigh more than a ton, and are worth at least $15,000. Then from -130 to 150 barrels of oil will be obtained from its blubber; so that a -big Greenland whale is a very valuable animal. - -But whales of this size are now very rarely met with, and there seems to -be some danger that before many years have passed away these giant -creatures will be almost extinct. - - -RORQUALS - -The rorquals are sometimes known as fin-whales, or finbacks, because -they have an upright fin on the hinder part of the back. They are not so -valuable as the Greenland whale, because their baleen is of inferior -quality, and is very much shorter, while their blubber does not yield -nearly so much oil, and they can swim with such speed that they are very -much harder to catch. - -The common rorqual grows to a length of about sixty or sixty-five feet, -and is found throughout all the northern seas, and occasionally even in -the Mediterranean. It is a solitary animal as a rule, but schools of -from ten to fifteen individuals are sometimes met with, and may be seen -leaping into the air, and rolling and tumbling about in the water, as -though they were having a game of play together. - -The rorqual feeds partly upon the small creatures which it captures by -means of its whalebone strainer, and partly upon fishes. How vast its -appetite is you can judge from the fact that as many as six hundred -large codfish have been found in the stomach of one of these animals, -together with a number of pilchards. Sometimes a rorqual will come quite -near the coast, and remain in a fishing-ground for weeks together, and -as it swallows several boatloads of fish every day, it is scarcely -necessary to say that the fishermen are not at all pleased to see it. - -There is another kind of whale, called the lesser rorqual, which only -grows to the length of about twenty-five or thirty feet. It is common -off the shores of Norway, and commoner still in North American waters, -where it is known as the sharp-nosed finner. It is a very playful -animal, and is said sometimes to gambol round and round a ship for -miles, now and then diving underneath it on one side and coming up on -the other. - -[Illustration: TYPES OF BEARS. - - 1. Polar or Ice Bear. 2. American Black Bear. - 3. Brown Bear: Grizzly Bear. 4. A Marine Bear (California Seals).] - - -THE DOLPHIN FAMILY - -Next we come to the dolphin family, which includes the narwhal, the -grampuses, and the porpoises, as well as the true dolphins. - - -THE NARWHAL - -This is a curious animal, for the male has a very long straight tusk -projecting from one side of its upper jaw. This tusk is often as much as -seven or eight feet in length, and the ivory of which it is made is -twisted round and round in a spiral from base to tip. In former days -this tusk was thought to be the horn of the unicorn, and the narwhal is -often known as the sea-unicorn. - -In reality, this tusk is the left-hand upper "eye" tooth of the animal, -that on the right-hand side being very small and completely buried in -the bone of the jaw. Now and then, however, both teeth are developed, -and a narwhal was once killed which had one tusk seven feet five inches -long and the other seven feet. There are no other teeth in the mouth, -and the female animal has no tusks at all. - -Now what is the use of this singular weapon? Two or three answers have -been given to this question. Some people have supposed, for example, -that it is used in spearing fish, or in digging up buried mollusks from -the mud at the bottom of the sea. But the female narwhals require food -just as much as the males do; how is it that they are not provided with -tusks also? - -Other people have thought that when the winter is very severe, and the -ice on the surface of the sea is very thick, the animal could bore a -hole through it with its tusk, and so be able to breathe. But then -again, female narwhals require air just as they require food. So this -suggestion will not do either. - -The only explanation we can really give is that the narwhal's tusk is a -weapon used in fighting, just like the antlers of the male deer. At any -rate, narwhals have several times been seen as they were taking part in -a kind of make-believe battle, and striking and clashing their tusks -together just as though they were fencing with swords. And when they are -fighting in earnest they must be able to use their long spears with -terrible effect, for several times a narwhal has charged a ship, and -driven its tusk so deeply into her timbers that it was quite unable to -withdraw it. - -The ivory of which this weapon is made is of very fine quality. But as -the tusk is hollow for the greater part of its length it is not very -valuable. - -Narwhals are only found in the half-frozen seas of the far north, where -they are sometimes seen swimming side by side together in large -companies. They grow to a length of twelve feet or over, and are dark -gray in color on the upper part of the body, and white underneath, the -back and sides being more or less mottled with gray. - - -THE WHITE WHALE - -The white whale, or beluga, is something like a large narwhal without a -tusk, and is also a dweller in the northern seas. But it often ascends -the larger rivers for hundreds of miles in search of fish. Now and then -it has been killed off the coasts of Scotland, and one example lived for -quite a long time in the Firth of Forth, going up the river day after -day as the tide came in, and always retreating as it began to fall. The -fishermen were very anxious to kill it, because of the quantities of -fish which it devoured. But it was so quick and active that it eluded -them over and over again, and three whole months passed away before at -last they succeeded. - -In one or two of the great rivers of North America white whales are -regularly hunted, the animals being first driven up the stream, and then -caught with nets as they return. They yield a large quantity of very -pure oil, and the "porpoise-hide," which is used so largely in making -boots and shoes, is in reality prepared from their skins. - - -THE TRUE PORPOISE - -The true porpoise, or sea-hog, is much more widely distributed. It likes -to tumble and gambol on the surface of the sea quite close to the shore. -It will ascend tidal rivers too. Its range is mainly along the Atlantic -coast, and it is also found on coasts of Europe and in the Pacific -Ocean. Chasing porpoises in canoes, and spearing them, is an exciting -Canadian sport. - -Porpoises have a curious way of swimming, for they travel along by a -series of bounds, first of all leaping almost out of the water, and then -diving under it. When a number of them are moving along in this way one -behind the other, as they very often do, they look from a little -distance just like an enormous snake winding its way through the water, -and no doubt have given rise to some of the tales about the great -sea-serpent. - -A herd of porpoises will frequently follow a sailing ship for days, -sometimes, apparently, out of pure curiosity, and sometimes in the hope -of picking up something eatable among the rubbish that is thrown -overboard. But they are very much afraid of steamships, and always keep -at a respectful distance from them. They feed chiefly on fish, and are -so quick and active that even the salmon cannot escape from them, while -they will follow up shoals of mackerel and herrings and destroy them in -enormous numbers. - -When fully grown the porpoise is rather more than five feet long. The -upper part of the body is almost black in color, becoming paler on the -sides, while the lower surface is almost pure white. - - -THE GRAMPUS - -The largest and fiercest of all the members of the dolphin family is -undoubtedly the grampus, which is also known as the killer, or -killer-whale. It often reaches a length of twenty feet, or even more, -and is so savage and voracious that it has sometimes been called the -wolf of the sea. One of these animals was once found floating on the -surface of the sea, choked by a seal which it had attempted to swallow; -and when its body was opened fourteen other seals and thirteen porpoises -were taken from its stomach. - -Three or four killers will often combine in an attack upon a large -whale, leaping upon it again and again, and striking terrific blows upon -its body with their tails, hanging upon its lips like so many bulldogs, -biting and tearing its flesh, and often actually killing it. The whale -seems terrified by the onslaught of the ferocious creatures, and -sometimes scarcely attempts to resist them, apparently knowing quite -well that they are sure to be victorious in the end. - -The grampus is most plentiful in the northern seas, but is found now and -then in almost all parts of the ocean. It occasionally visits the -British shores. Once a living specimen was exhibited in the Brighton -Aquarium, and did very well for some little time. But one day it got its -snout jammed in the rock-work at the bottom of its tank, so that it -could not rise to the surface to spout. And when the keeper discovered -what had happened to it the poor creature was dead. - - -THE BLACKFISH - -Almost as large as the grampus, but not nearly so savage, is the -blackfish, which is so called on account of its color, for it is not a -fish, being a member of the dolphin family. It is found in great shoals, -generally consisting of two or three hundred animals, and often of a -great many more, which are always under the guidance of a single leader. -Wherever he goes they will always follow, and they are such stupid -creatures that if he swims into shallow water and casts himself ashore, -they will all swim after him and fling themselves on the beach also. In -Iceland, and also in the Faroe Islands, large numbers of them are often -killed, the fishermen arranging their boats in a semicircle between the -shoal and the deep sea, and then driving them forward till they strand -themselves upon the shore in their efforts to escape. Large herds have -also been driven ashore in the Orkneys and the Shetlands. - -On the east coast of North America the blackfish is one of the most -abundant cetaceans. Off Cape Cod more than a hundred blackfish have been -seen in one school, and they are eagerly hunted for the sake of the soft -oil yielded by their fat. - - -DOLPHINS - -There are two groups of dolphins, the first of which contains three -animals that live in rivers, and therefore are generally called -fresh-water dolphins. - -The only one of these that we can mention is the Gangetic dolphin, which -inhabits the great rivers of India, and is named from the Ganges. Its -chief peculiarity is that it is almost totally blind. Although the -animal grows to a length of seven or eight feet, and is bulky in -proportion, yet its eyeballs are no larger than peas, while the nerves -of sight are so imperfect that it is quite possible that it may not be -able to see at all. This is no deprivation to it however, for the rivers -in which it lives are always so thick with mud that even if it had -properly developed eyes it would be quite unable to use them. - -The Gangetic dolphin is very seldom seen, because when it comes up to -breathe it only raises just the blow-holes above the surface of the -water. For the same reason, we know very little indeed about its habits. -But it seems to feed on fresh-water shrimps and mollusks, and also on -certain fishes which lie half-buried in the mud at the bottom of the -water, rooting about for them with its snout after the manner of a pig. -This animal is often known as the susu. - - -SEA-DOLPHINS - -Of the sea-dolphins we can only notice two. The first of these is the -common dolphin, which is found in great numbers in almost all parts of -the temperate and tropical seas. Apparently it is not often to be found -on American coasts, but it has been captured in eastern harbors. It -generally lives in herds, which will follow ships for hours together, -leaping and gamboling on the surface of the sea, and yet keeping pace -with the vessel without the least apparent effort. It feeds on fishes, -to capture which, and hold them firmly, it has one hundred and ninety -teeth, so arranged that when the mouth is closed the upper and lower -ones fit in between one another like those of a steel trap and hold the -prey in a grip from which there is no escape. - -A full-grown dolphin is usually about seven feet long, but much larger -specimens are occasionally found. The color is dark gray or glossy black -above, and almost pure white on the lower parts of the body. - -The bottle-nosed dolphin is a rather smaller animal, with a shorter and -more pointed beak shaped rather like the neck of a bottle, and is purple -black above and grayish white below. Its range is on the North Atlantic -coast from Maine to Florida, on the Gulf coast, and also on some of the -coasts of Europe. - - -MANATEES AND DUGONGS - -There is just one other family of water-mammals which it will be -convenient to mention here, although they do not really belong to the -whale tribe. These are the very curious creatures known as sirenians, -the best known of them being the manatee and the dugong. - -Of course you have heard of mermaids, those imaginary creatures of the -sea, which were supposed in days of old to combine the head and body of -a woman with the tail of a fish. Well, very likely stories of them were -told in the first place by some traveler who had seen a manatee, for the -animal has a queer way of raising its head and the upper part of its -body almost upright out of the water and cuddling its little one in its -flippers, so that from a little distance it really looks something like -a human being with a child. But at close quarters the comparison would -not be a very flattering one, for there is a kind of disk-like swelling -at the end of the snout, and the skin is black and coarse and wrinkled -like that of an elephant. - -Manatees are found on the west coast of Africa, and also on the shores -of South America, living near the mouths of the larger rivers. They -never seem to leave the water of their own accord, and if by any chance -they find themselves upon dry land, they are perfectly helpless, and can -only roll over and over. One specimen seen in a zoo was quite a small -animal, and had to be fed with milk out of a baby's bottle, while the -keeper nursed it upon his knees. When it grew a little bigger it became -very playful, and would tumble and roll about in its tank almost like a -dolphin or a porpoise. And more than once it even succeeded in knocking -its keeper into the water. - -Another of these animals, caught at the mouth of the Essequibo River, -lived in an aquarium for sixteen months. It was about eight feet long, -and its tail was so powerful that every one was afraid the sides of its -tank would be broken in by its tremendous blows. Its appetite was -remarkably good, for it used to eat as much as eighty-four pounds of -lettuces every day. - -There is a species of manatee, also called sea-cow, formerly ranging the -South Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the United States, but now seen only -in the rivers and lagoons of southeastern Florida, where it has become -so rare that the State prohibits its wanton destruction under penalty of -a heavy fine. - -The dugong is found on the east coast of Africa, and also on the coasts -of Mauritius, Ceylon, the islands of the Indian Archipelago, and Western -Australia. In many respects it is very much like the manatee. But it has -a forked tail instead of a rounded one, and its body is bluish black -above and whitish below. It lives in shallow water near the mouths of -rivers, feeds on various water-plants, and is said to be so affectionate -that if one of a pair is killed the other cannot be induced to leave the -dead body, but will remain by it and allow itself to be slaughtered -also. - -Not very many years ago dugongs were found in large herds, sometimes -consisting of two or three hundred individuals, and were so tame that -they would even permit themselves to be touched without attempting to -escape. But they have been killed in great numbers for the sake of their -hides and a valuable oil which is extracted from their bodies, so that -nowadays it seldom happens that more than two or three are seen -together. - -A full-grown dugong is generally from seven to eight feet long, and -measures about six feet round the body. The Australian dugong is said to -attain a length of fourteen feet. - - - - -CHAPTER XIV - -THE RODENT ANIMALS - - -The group of the rodents is the largest of all the tribes of mammals, -for it contains more than a thousand different animals. Indeed, nearly -one third of all the mammals in the world belong to this very important -division. - - -TEETH OF THE GNAWERS - -The word rodent signifies gnawing, and is given to these creatures -because their front teeth are specially formed for the purpose of -gnawing hard substances. You know, of course, how long and sharp the -front teeth of a rat or a mouse are, and how easily these animals can -nibble their way through a stout piece of board. Well, all the rodent -animals have these teeth formed in just the same way. And when we come -to examine them we find that they are beautifully suited to their -purpose. - -You would think that as they are so constantly in use, these teeth would -quickly be worn down to the gums, wouldn't you? Ours would, if we -employed them in the same way. But then, in the rodent animals, these -teeth never stop growing, so that as fast as they are worn from above -they are pushed up again from below. - -Sometimes this fact leads to a very singular result. It happens now and -then that a rodent animal meets with an accident and breaks off one of -its front teeth. Now these teeth, remember, cannot be used unless they -have one another to work against, just as the blades of a pair of -scissors cannot be used unless they have one another to cut against. So, -you see, when one tooth is broken short off, the opposite tooth in the -other jaw becomes useless. It has nothing to work against. So it is no -longer worn away from above. But of course it still goes on growing. -So before very long it projects in front of the other teeth. Still it -continues to grow, and in course of time its natural curve brings it -round in a semicircle, with the point toward the face. And at last, if -it is a lower tooth, it pierces first the flesh of the forehead and then -the skull beneath it, and enters the brain and kills the animal; while, -if it happens to be an upper tooth, the point curls round under the chin -and at length prevents the poor creature from opening its mouth, so that -it dies miserably of starvation! It seems impossible, doesn't it? Yet in -museums there are skeletons of hares and rabbits which have been killed -in this singular way by one of their own front teeth. - - -HOW THE TEETH ARE KEPT SHARP - -One would think that the edges of the teeth, at any rate, must soon be -worn away. Nature has guarded against this danger by making these teeth -of two different substances. The face of the tooth is made of a very -thin plate of hard enamel, the rest of the tooth of much softer bone. -During use, of course, the soft bone is worn away very much faster than -the hard enamel, and so the sharp, cutting edge is preserved. - -It is interesting to find that we make our chisels in a very similar -way. The blade is not a solid piece of steel, of the same quality -throughout; it consists of steel of two different qualities. The face of -the tool is a very thin plate of extremely hard steel, but the rest is -of much softer metal. And as it is with the rodent's tooth, so it is -with the chisel. The soft metal is worn away during use much faster than -the hard, so that the edge is not destroyed. - -Only two pairs of front teeth are developed in the rodent animals, and -as the "eye" teeth are wanting there is always a gap in each jaw between -these and the grinders. - - -THE COMMON SQUIRREL - -First on our list of rodent animals comes the common red squirrel, which -of course you know by sight very well. There are very few parts of the -country where we may not see it frisking and gamboling among the -branches of the trees, or sitting upright on its hind quarters and -nibbling away at a nut, which is delicately held between its front paws. - -It skips up the trunk of a tree quite as easily as it runs along the -ground. That is because its sharp little claws enter the bark, and give -it a firm foothold. And it scarcely ever falls from a branch because its -big bushy tail acts as a kind of balancing-pole, like that of a man -walking upon a tight rope; and by stretching it straight out behind its -body, and turning it a little bit to one side or a little bit to the -other, the animal can nearly always manage to save itself from a tumble. - -Even if it does fall, however, it does not hurt itself, for the skin of -the lower part of the body is very loose, and it is fastened for a -little distance along the inner surface of each leg. So, when the animal -falls from a height, it merely stretches out its limbs at right angles -to its body--stretching out the loose skin, of course, with them--and so -turns itself into a kind of open umbrella, just like the parachutes -which are often sent down from balloons. And instead of tumbling -headlong to the ground and being killed by the fall, it is buoyed up by -the air and floats down comparatively slowly, so that it is not hurt in -the least. - -The squirrel feeds on nuts, acorns, beechnuts, bark, buds, and the young -shoots of certain trees. But it is also very fond of fir-cones, which it -nibbles right down to the core; and sometimes it will eat bird's eggs. -In fact, this squirrel is, in the United States, one of the most dreaded -foes of nesting birds, and they often attack it and chase it away from -their homes. Early in the autumn it always lays up a store of -provisions, hiding them away in a hole in a tree, or more often in -several holes. Then, when a warmer day than usual rouses it from its -long winter sleep, it goes off to its hoard and enjoys a hearty meal. - -These pretty little animals generally go about in pairs, and the little -ones are brought up in a warm cosy nest made of leaves and moss. It is -placed either in the fork of a lofty branch or in a hole high up in a -tree-trunk, and it is so perfectly made that rain never soaks through -it, and the wind never blows it away. - - -THE GRAY SQUIRREL - -"This," says Mr. Hornaday, "is the most prominent squirrel of Southern -Canada, New England, and the Eastern and Southern States southward to -Florida. It ranges westward to Minnesota, Kansas, and Texas. Above, its -color is clean iron-gray, which in southern specimens is mixed with dull -yellow. The lower surface is white, varying to yellowish brown. Usually -it nests in hollow trees, but when crowded for room builds an open nest -of green leaves, or strippings of cedar bark made into a round ball. The -young are usually five in number. The gray squirrel frequently consents -to live in city parks, and becomes quite tame. It spends much of its -time upon the ground, searching for nuts, roots, or anything which can -be eaten." - -Here is a good place to repeat some other words of Mr. Hornaday's. -"There is no other animal of equal size," he says, "that can add so much -of life and cheerfulness to a hardwood forest or a meadow as a good -healthy squirrel. _Why is it_ that American men and boys kill them -so eagerly?... Surely no true sportsman or right-minded boy can find any -real 'sport' in 'potting' squirrels out of the tree-tops." And we might -add that too often the desire to kill leads men and boys to destroy -other kinds of innocent animals, instead of treating them as friends to -be enjoyed, and whose right to live is just as good as that of human -beings. Kindness toward harmless animals helps to make us kinder to each -other. - - -FLYING SQUIRRELS - -So-called flying squirrels are found in some parts of the world; but -like the colugo, of which we have told already, they do not really fly. -They merely skim from one tree to another by spreading out the very -loose skin of the sides of the body and then leaping into the air. In -this way they can travel for perhaps two or three hundred feet. But as a -rule they merely spring from branch to branch, just like the common -squirrel. - -The largest and perhaps best known of these squirrels is the taguan, -which is found in India and Siam, and is about two feet in length, not -including the tail. It is fairly abundant, but is not very often seen, -for all day long it is fast asleep in a hole in some tree, only coming -out of its retreat after sunset. - -Several species of flying squirrels are found in North America, and -often make their homes in garrets. - - -GROUND-SQUIRRELS - -There are several squirrels that live upon the ground, and do not climb -trees at all. The most famous of these is the chipmunk, or chipping -squirrel, which is very common in many parts of North America. It is -called chipmunk because, when it is excited or alarmed, it utters a -sharp little cry like the word "chip-r-r-r," over and over again. - -This is an extremely pretty little animal, its fur being brownish gray -on the back and orange brown on the forehead and hind quarters, while a -broad black stripe runs along the back, and a yellowish-white stripe -edged with black along each side. The throat and lower part of the body -are white. - -The chipmunk lives in burrows which it digs in the ground, and very -wonderful little burrows they are, seldom less than eight or nine feet -long, with a large sleeping-chamber at the end, filled with moss and -grass and dry leaves. Then on either side of the main burrow are several -shorter ones which are used as larders, and in which large stores of -provisions are packed away. From one chipmunk's nest have been taken -nearly a peck of acorns, together with about a quart of beechnuts, two -quarts of buckwheat, a few grains of corn, and a quantity of -grass-seeds! Only three squirrels were found in this burrow; so that -they were in no danger of starving during the winter, were they? - -The beechnuts have very sharp points, and the chipmunk bites these -carefully off before it attempts to pack the nuts away in its mouth. It -carries four nuts to its burrow at a time, putting one into each of its -odd cheek-pouches, which are very much like those of certain monkeys, -and one into the mouth itself, while the fourth is held between the -teeth. - -The chipmunk is a very active little creature, and its quick, jerky -movements as it darts in and out among the herbage have often been -compared to those of the wren. - - -PRAIRIE-DOGS - -The prairie-dog, which is so called because it lives on the prairies of -North America, and utters an odd little yelping cry which is something -like the bark of a very small dog, has several other names as well, for -sometimes it is known as the prairie-marmot, and sometimes as the -wishtonwish. It is quite a small animal, being seldom more than twelve -inches in length without counting the tail, and is reddish brown or -brownish gray above, and yellowish or brownish white beneath. The tail -is about four inches long. - -In the great prairie-lands which lie to the east of the Rocky Mountains, -this quaint little animal is exceedingly plentiful. It lives in -underground burrows, and the earth which it digs out in making them is -always piled up just outside the entrance in the form of a mound about -two feet high, on the top of which it likes to sit upright, squatting on -its hind quarters as a dog does when "begging." At the slightest alarm -it utters its queer little yelping cry, throws a sort of -half-somersault, and dives into its burrow, to reappear a few minutes -later when it thinks the danger has passed away. - -A large number of prairie-dogs always live together, like rabbits in a -warren, and sometimes the prairie, as far as one can see, is dotted all -over with their mounds. Usually the animals are steadily moving -eastward. They increase as ranching and farming spread over the plains; -for the cultivation of hay and grain and the destruction of their -natural enemies favor them. In parts of Texas and northward they are so -destructive that united means of destroying them by poison have been -adopted. - -It was formerly thought that prairie-dogs took in lodgers, so to speak, -for small owls, known as burrowing owls, are often found in their -tunnels, together with rattlesnakes; and it was supposed that all three -lived peaceably together. But now we know that this is not the case, for -the owls are nearly always found in deserted burrows, while the -rattlesnakes undoubtedly enter the homes of the prairie-dogs for the -purpose of feeding upon their young. - - -MARMOTS - -Not unlike a rather big prairie-dog is the common marmot, which is found -in considerable numbers in the mountainous parts of Northern Europe and -America. Here it is named whistler or siffleur. More familiarly known is -the American woodchuck, or groundhog, which burrows deeply in the fields -of almost every farm in the country. These marmots are famous for their -winter sleep. During the summer months they are very active and busy. -From about the middle of autumn till the beginning of spring, however, -they are fast asleep in their burrows, not waking up at all for at least -six months! Before entering upon this long slumber they pack their -sleeping-chamber full of dry grass, and in these warm beds survive the -winter by the slow absorption of their fat, so that when they come out -they are very lean. - -Another kind of marmot, called the bobac, is found both in Northern -Europe and in Asia. It is sometimes eaten as food, but is most difficult -to kill, for unless it is actually shot dead as it sits it will nearly -always contrive to get back into its burrow. And if the animals are -startled by the report of a gun they all disappear underground, and will -not be seen again for several hours. - - -BEAVERS - -One of the most interesting of all the rodent animals is the beaver, -which is found in the northern parts of Europe, Asia, and America. It -spends a great part of its life in the water, and no doubt you have -heard of the wonderful dams which it makes in order to prevent the -rivers from drying up during the summer months. - -When the animals want to construct one of these dams, the first thing -they do is to fell a number of trees which stand near the banks of the -river. They do this by gnawing through the stems quite close to the -ground, and they are able easily to cut through trunks ten or even -twelve inches in diameter. Most likely one of the trees falls across the -stream. In that case they leave it as it is. Then they strip off the -bark from the others, and cut up both the trunks and the larger branches -into logs about four or five feet long. These logs they arrange most -carefully in position, piling them upon one another, and keeping them in -their places by heaping stones and mud upon them. They also fill up all -the gaps between them with mud, and so hard do they work that by the -time the dam is finished it is often two hundred yards long, fifteen or -even twenty feet thick at the bottom, and six or eight feet high. And -when the river runs swiftly, they are clever enough to make their dam in -the form of a curve, so that it may be better able to resist the force -of the current. - -This dam causes the river to swell out into a broad shallow pool, and in -districts where beavers are plentiful the whole course of a stream is -sometimes converted into a series of pools, made in this curious manner. -After a time peat is formed round the edges, and gradually spreads, and -then the marshy ground round the pool is called a beaver-meadow. - -But beavers do not only make dams. They construct what are called lodges -as well, to serve as dwelling-places. These are made by piling up a -number of logs, mingled with clods of earth, stones, and clay, and -digging out the soil from underneath so as to form a sort of hut. These -lodges are oven-shaped, and are from twelve to twenty feet in diameter, -the inside chamber being about seven feet wide. So, you see, they have -very thick walls. And they are generally entered by at least two -underground passages, all of which open in the river-bank below the -surface of the water, so that the animals can go straight from their -lodge into the river without showing themselves above ground at all. - -Inside each lodge is a bed of soft warm grasses and woodchips, on which -the animals sleep; and it is even said by some hunters that each beaver -has his own bed! At any rate, several animals of various ages live -together in each lodge. Then near the lodge these wonderful creatures -make a ditch or hole, which is so deep that even in the hardest winter -the water in it never freezes quite to the bottom; and in this deep -place they pile up a great quantity of logs and branches, so that in -winter they may have as much bark as they require to eat. - -Beavers are capital swimmers, for the toes of their hinder feet are -joined together with webbing, and make excellent oars, while the broad, -flat tail is very useful as a rudder. They are very much hunted, for -their fur is valuable, while they also secrete a curious substance known -as castor, or castoreum, which is used in medicine. So in some parts of -North America these animals are strictly preserved, and only a certain -number may be killed every third year. - -[Illustration: TYPES OF RODENTS - - 1. European Hamster. 2. East Indian Striped Squirrel. - 3. Woodchuck; Marmot. 4. South American Capybara. - 5. South American Vizcacha. 6. Beaver.] - - -THE DORMOUSE - -Everybody knows what a sleepy little creature the dormouse is. Very -often it may actually be picked up and handled without waking! It sleeps -all day long, and hibernates from the middle of October till the -beginning of April as well, so that it fully deserves its name of -dormouse, or sleep-mouse. It is found in Europe and Asia, and sometimes -in Africa. - -In Germany it is called the Haselmaus, or hazel-mouse, because it is so -fond of hazelnuts. It eats these just as the squirrel does, holding them -in its fore paws as it sits upright on its hind quarters. But it also -feeds upon acorns, beechnuts, hips and haws, and corn when it can get -it. - -Dormice always make two nests during the year, one being used during the -summer, and the other during the winter. They are very warm and cosy -little retreats, about six inches in diameter, and are made of grass, -leaves, and moss. Sometimes numbers of the summer's nests are found in -thick bushes, or among the low herbage at the bottom of a hedge, perhaps -with the dormice fast asleep in them. But the winter nests are generally -more carefully hidden, so that it is not very easy to find them even -when the leaves are off the bushes. - -Before it goes into hibernation in the autumn, the dormouse becomes very -fat. But it does not sleep right through the winter without taking any -food, for on very mild days it wakes up for an hour or two, and eats one -of the nuts or acorns which it has carefully stored away in its nest. - - -JERBOAS - -The jerboa is an extremely curious animal, and if you were to see it in -the sandy deserts of the Old World, where it is found, you would be very -likely to mistake it for a small bird. For it has very short fore legs, -which it tucks up against its breast in such a way that they can hardly -be seen, and very long hind ones, on which it hops about in a very -bird-like manner. But you would soon notice that it has a long tail, -rather like that of a mouse, but which has a tuft of hairs at the tip. -When it is leaping about it stretches this tail out behind it, and seems -to find it of very great use in keeping its balance. - -Jerboas are very common in Egypt and other parts of North Africa, and -live in burrows which they dig in the sandy soil. In order to enable -them to obtain a firm foothold on the slippery sand, the soles of their -feet are covered with long hairs, which also prevent them from being -scorched by contact with the heated ground. But as a rule they do not -come out of their burrows until the evening, when the sun is not so -powerful as it is during the middle of the day. They feed upon grasses -and dry shrubs; but how they find enough to eat in the desert places in -which they live is rather hard to understand. - -Many different kinds of jerboas are known. The best known, the common -jerboa, is about as big as a small rat, and has a tail about eight -inches long. In color it is so much like the sand that from a few yards -away it is almost impossible to see it, even when it is skipping about. - - -THE HAMSTER - -This is a queer little rodent which is found very plentifully in -Germany, and also in many districts between that country and Siberia. It -is a rather stoutly built animal, and measures nearly a foot in length -including the tail, which is about two inches long. In color it is -generally light brownish yellow above and black beneath, with a black -stripe on the forehead, a yellow patch on the back, and white feet. But -hamsters are by no means all alike, and some are entirely black, some -pied, and some entirely white. - -You remember how dormice make summer and winter nests. In the same way, -European hamsters make summer and winter burrows. The summer burrow is -quite a small one, not more than a foot or two deep, with a small -sleeping-chamber at the bottom. But the winter one is very much larger, -for it is not only six feet long at least, with quite a big -sleeping-chamber, but there are from one to five side chambers as well, -which are used as granaries. In these the animal stores up vast -quantities of grain, peas, and beans, as many as sixty pounds of corn -having been taken from the burrow of a single hamster, and a -hundredweight of beans from that of another. About the middle of October -it stops up the entrances to its home, and passes into a state of -hibernation, in which it remains till the beginning of March. For about -a month longer it still remains in its burrow, feeding on its stores and -provisions, till early in April it resumes its active life, and returns -to its summer habitation. - -Of course hamsters are terribly destructive in cultivated land, and -large numbers are destroyed every year. In one district alone nearly a -hundred thousand have been killed in a single season, while an enormous -quantity of grain was recovered from their tunnels. - - -WATER-VOLES - -If you walk along the bank of a stream in some European country, you may -often hear a splash, and see a brownish animal about eight inches long -swimming away through the water. This is a water-vole, often called -water-rat, although it belongs to quite a different family from that of -the true rats. And if one looks down the side of the bank he will see -its burrow, which generally runs into the ground for some little -distance. - -Water-voles are usually supposed to be mischievous; but during the -greater part of the year they feed only on water-plants, being specially -fond of the sweet pith of the wild flags. In winter, however, when food -of this kind is scarce, they will nibble away the bark of small -trees and shrubs, and sometimes do a good deal of damage in osier-beds, -while they will also visit cultivated fields in order to feed on -vegetables. - -The water-vole is a very good swimmer, although its toes are not webbed, -and its fur is so close and so glossy that it throws off the water just -like the feathers on a duck's back. - -A near relation of the water-vole is the field-vole, or field-mouse, -also called meadow-mouse, which is found very commonly in most parts of -Europe, and also in North and South America. It is about as big as an -ordinary mouse, and is grayish brown in color, which becomes rather -paler on the lower parts of the body. - -This animal is found chiefly in meadows, where it makes long runs -beneath the grass, and also burrows into the ground. It is always -plentiful, and sometimes appears in such vast numbers that it can only -be described as a plague. - -The muskrat, which is one of the most widely distributed and important -of American fur-bearing animals, is really a a sort of big aquatic vole. - - -LEMMINGS - -Still more mischievous, in Norway and Sweden, are the odd little rodents -known as lemmings, which make their appearance from time to time -literally in millions. They always seem to come down from the mountains, -and when once they have begun their journey nothing will stop them. If -they come to a river they swim across it; if to a house, they climb over -it; if to a stack of corn or hay, they eat their way through it. Large -numbers of wolves, foxes, weasels, stoats, hawks, and owls soon discover -the swarm, and kill off the animals in thousands; but still the great -army moves steadily on, leaving the country perfectly bare behind it, -until it reaches the sea. And then those behind push on those in front, -till almost the whole vast host perish in the waves. - -These great migrations take place, as a rule, about once in seven years, -and no one seems to know quite where the lemmings come from, or why they -travel in this singular manner. - -These strange little animals do not seem to know what fear is, for if a -passer-by happens to meet one of them it will never turn aside, but will -sit up and yelp defiantly at him, while if a dog goes up and examines -it, the chances are that it will try to bite his nose! - -In color the European lemming is blackish brown above and yellowish -white below, while its length is about six inches. - -Various kinds of rodents known as lemmings are found in North America. -The Hudson Bay lemming has a thick, warm fur. Eskimo children use -lemming-skins to make clothes for their dolls. - - -RATS - -The brown rat and the black rat, of course, are only too common -everywhere. They seem to have come in the first place from Asia, and -have spread to almost all parts of the world. For almost every ship that -sails the sea is infested with rats, some of which are nearly certain to -make their way ashore at every port at which she touches. - -Rats are rather formidable animals, for besides being very savage, a -number of them will often combine together in order to attack a common -foe. We have known a large cat, for example, to be so severely wounded -by rats, that after lying in great pain for two or three days it -actually died of its injuries. Rats are very bloodthirsty creatures, for -if one of their own number is caught in a trap, they will tear it in -pieces and devour it. They will enter fowl-houses at night, and kill the -birds as they roost upon their perches, while if they can find their way -into a rabbit-hutch they will even destroy the rabbits. - -In barns and farmyards rats are very mischievous, and corn-stacks are -often infested by them. How often they get into houses you know too -well! But on the other hand, they often do a great deal of good, by -devouring substances which would otherwise decay and poison the air; so -that they are not altogether without their uses, as people annoyed by -them are too apt to suppose. - -Rats generally have three broods of little ones in the course of the -year, and as there are from eight to fourteen in each brood, you can -easily understand how it is that these animals multiply so rapidly. - - -MICE - -Still more plentiful, and almost as mischievous, is the common mouse, -which is found both in town and country. And this, too, seems to have -been in the first place a native of Asia, and to have since spread to -almost all parts of the world. - -There is no need, of course, to describe its appearance, and most of us -are familiar with its habits. So we will pass on at once to one of its -near relations which is not quite so well known, namely, the long-tailed -field-mouse. - -In some respects this animal is very much like the field-vole. But you -can tell it at once by its more pointed muzzle, by its much larger ears, -and, above all, by its very much longer tail. It lives in gardens, -fields, and hedgerows, but often takes shelter in houses and barns -during the winter. But all through the spring, summer, and autumn it -occupies burrows in the ground, and very often it lays up quite large -quantities of provisions in its tunnels for winter use, just as the -hamster does in Germany. It does not always dig these burrows for -itself, however, for very often it will take possession of the deserted -run of a mole, or even of a natural hollow beneath the spreading roots -of a tree. - -As a general rule, this little animal is a vegetable-eater only. But -when food is scarce it will kill and devour small animals, and has even -been known to prey upon its own kind. - -The pretty little harvest-mouse is the smallest of the European rodents. -A full-grown harvest-mouse is seldom more than four and a half inches -long, of which almost one half is occupied by the tail. And it would -take six of the little creatures to weigh an ounce. - -The harvest-mouse is not found, as a rule, near human habitations, but -lives in corn-fields and pastures. But sometimes it is carried home in -sheaves of corn at harvest-time, and in that case it lives in the ricks -during the winter. Generally, however, it spends the winter months fast -asleep in a burrow in the ground. Then, when the warm months of spring -come round, it wakes up, and sets about building a most beautiful little -nest of grasses and leaves, which it always suspends among corn-stalks -or grass-stems at some little height from the ground. This nest is about -as large as a baseball, and the odd thing about it is that you can never -find any entrance! Apparently, when the little builder wishes to go in -and out, it pushes its way between the strips of grass of which the nest -is composed, and then carefully arranges them again in position. And it -is so cleverly built that when eight or nine little mice which are -brought up inside it begin to grow, it stretches to suit their -increasing size, so that their nursery is always just big enough to -contain them. - -The harvest-mouse is a capital climber, and runs up and down the -corn-stalks with great activity, even though they bend nearly to the -ground under its weight. The tip of its tail, strange to say, is -prehensile, just like that of a spider-monkey. - - -PORCUPINES - -Of course you know what a porcupine is like, with its coat of long, -bristling spines. Indeed, the word porcupine means spiny pig, and refers -partly to the quill-like spikes, and partly to the odd grunting noise -which the animal utters from time to time. - -There are several different kinds of porcupine in the Old World and in -America. The common porcupine is found in the south of Europe, and also -in the northern and western parts of Africa, and grows to a length of -about two feet four inches, not including the tail. The quills are of -two kinds. First of all, there are a number of long, slender spines, -which bend quite easily, and are not of very much use as weapons. But -under these is a close array of very much stiffer ones from five to ten -inches long; and these are very formidable indeed. For they are so -loosely fastened to the skin that when the animal backs upon a foe a -good many of them are sure to be left sticking in its flesh; while, -further, they are made in such a manner that they keep on boring their -way farther and farther in, and in course of time may penetrate a vital -organ, and cause death. Even tigers have sometimes lost their lives -through the quills of a porcupine which they had been trying to kill and -devour. The animal is not at all fond of fighting, however, and never -attacks unless it is provoked. - -During the daytime the porcupine is seldom seen, being fast asleep in -its burrow. But soon after sunset it leaves its retreat, and wanders to -long distances in search of the roots, bark, etc., upon which it feeds. -"In the woods, it loves to prowl around camps and eat every scrap of -leather or greasy board it can find." - -In North America is found the Canada porcupine, ranging from New England -westward to Ohio and northward to Hudson Bay. Another species in the -West and Northwest is the yellow-haired porcupine. In Mexico, Central -America, and South America are other species known as tree-porcupines. - -It has been widely supposed that porcupines shoot their quills, but this -belief has no foundation. When attacked, Mr. Hornaday tells us, its -defence consists in erecting its quills and striking quickly a strong -sidewise blow with the tail, which often drives many quills into its -enemy. - - -THE CHINCHILLA - -This pretty little rodent is famous for its beautiful silky fur, which -is in much request for women's garments. In appearance it is rather like -a large dormouse, with very big rounded ears, and a short, hairy tail. -It is found in Bolivia, Chile, and Peru, and lives high up among the -mountains in burrows in the ground. A large number of the animals always -dwell together, so that their burrows form a kind of large warren, and -they dart up and down the steep rocks with such wonderful speed that it -is almost impossible to follow their movements. - -When it is feeding the chinchilla sits upright, like a squirrel, and -conveys the food to its mouth with its fore paws. It lives chiefly upon -roots, and as the districts in which it lives are so wild and barren it -often has to travel for long distances in order to obtain them. - - -THE VISCACHA - -Closely related to the chinchilla is the viscacha, which is found very -abundantly in the great pampas districts of South America. It generally -lives in little colonies of from twenty to thirty animals, which dig -their burrows close together, and heap up the earth which they scrape -out into one common mound. These burrows are generally dug in the form -of the letter Y, and often a number of them communicate with one another -by means of short passages, so that if the little animals feel in want -of society they can easily go and see their friends. - -These colonies are called viscacheras, and in some parts of the -Argentine Republic the plains are closely studded with them as far as -the eye can reach. - -Viscachas have a curious way of clearing off all the vegetation that -grows near their burrows, and piling up the refuse in a mound near the -entrance. They will also collect together any hard objects which they -may happen to find, and we are told by Darwin that sometimes quite a -barrow-load of bones, stones, thistle-stalks, and lumps of earth may be -found outside the entrance to a single burrow, and that a traveler who -dropped his watch one evening found it next day by searching the -viscacha-mounds in the neighborhood. - -In appearance the viscacha is not unlike a rather small marmot; but the -fur is gray above, with dusky markings, and white below, while the face -is crossed by two black bands, with a broad white stripe between them. - - -THE AGOUTI - -This animal, found in South America and the West Indies, was formerly -very plentiful--in some parts literally swarming. But it did so much -mischief in cultivated ground that it was trapped and shot in immense -numbers, and it has now almost entirely disappeared from many districts -in which it once abounded. - -The first point that strikes one on looking at the agouti is the great -length of its hind legs. So long are these limbs, that the animal finds -a good deal of difficulty in running downhill, and often tumbles head -over heels and rolls for several yards before it can recover its -footing. And for the same reason, when it is running at any pace on -level ground, it travels along by a kind of gallop, which is really made -up of a series of leaps. - -As the agouti comes out only by night it is a difficult animal to watch, -and it is so wary that it cannot be approached without great caution. -All the time while it is feeding, it keeps on turning its head first to -one side and then to the other, so that it can scarcely ever be taken by -surprise. - -If it should be captured, however, it never seems to fight, and has no -idea of using either its sharp teeth or its claws to defend itself. So -sometimes it has been thought that an agouti would make a very nice pet. -Those who have allowed it to run loose in the house, however, have -seldom repeated the experiment, for it will ruin any article of -furniture in a very short time, and will cut its way through the -stoutest door in a few minutes! - -When fully grown, the agouti is rather more than eighteen inches long, -and in general color it is olive brown. But the hair of the hinder -quarters, which is very much longer than that of the rest of the body, -is golden brown, while the middle line of the lower part of the body is -almost white. - - -THE CAPYBARA - -Few people, on seeing a capybara for the first time, would take it to be -a rodent. It looks much more like a wild pig, for it has a very heavily -built body, which almost touches the ground as it waddles along, short, -stiff, bristly hair, and great hoof-like feet. Indeed, it is sometimes -called the water-hog. Yet we only have to look at its front teeth to see -that it really is a rodent after all. - -The capybara is a native of South America, and is generally found in the -damp, marshy ground near the banks of the larger rivers. It is a good -swimmer, and always makes for the water when alarmed. It is a good -diver, too, and can easily remain below the surface for seven or eight -minutes without requiring to breathe, so that if it can once plunge into -the river it is safe from almost any foe. When fully grown, the capybara -is about four feet long, and weighs nearly one hundred pounds. In fact, -it is the largest of all the rodent animals. In color it is reddish -brown above, and brownish yellow beneath, and it is further remarkable -for having no tail at all. - - -HARES AND RABBITS - -The hares and rabbits, of which our account is taken from "The Life of -Mammals," by Ernest Ingersoll, form a compact family of some sixty -species, scattered in all divisions of the globe except Australasia and -Madagascar; but only one species occurs in South America, and the family -is most numerous in northerly regions, where these animals form an -important food resource for man and beast. All are much alike in the -long, high-haunched hind legs, which give great leaping and dodging -power; tall, erectile ears; divided upper lip; short scut; and grizzled -gray-brown coat, with various specific markings of white and black. The -only exceptional one is the "hispid" hare of Northeastern India, which -has small eyes, bristly short ears, short hind legs, and much the manner -of a rabbit. - -The term rabbit has wholly replaced "hare" in America, because the -common small hare of the eastern United States, quickly seen by the -first English settlers, looked to them more like the rabbit they had -known at home than like their bigger hare; and they ignored the -difference in habits as they did so many other facts in their careless -naming of the animals of the New World after those of Europe. It must -always be remembered that the first Pilgrims, Puritans, and southern -"adventurers" were mainly from cities, and knew little of rural things, -to which ignorance, by the way, they owed most of their early -misfortunes in the colonies. - -The true rabbit, or cony, differs from its relatives by its small size -(average weight two and a half to three pounds), short ears and hind -legs; but more in its habits, for its young are born naked, blind, and -helpless, and it is comparatively slow-footed. Hence it has been -compelled to become a burrower for the safety of both itself and its -babies, and, as is usual with animals become burrowers, has acquired the -habit of gathering in communities, whose crowded diggings, or warrens, -are labyrinths of subterranean runways. Even this, however, would hardly -suffice to preserve this timid and nearly defenceless race were not -several litters of five to eight young (leverets) produced by each pair -annually to make good the loss from enemies and disease. The original -European wild rabbit is grayish brown, becoming foxy on the neck, but -this rabbit has been domesticated since ancient times, and alterations -of coloring as well as of form have been produced. Ten or more distinct -breeds are recognized by fanciers, some of which, as the lop-eared, the -great Belgian, and the Angora, are far away from the original type. - -Their amazing fecundity has caused rabbits to multiply into an almost -uncontrollable pest since they were unwisely introduced into Australia -and New Zealand, where the scarcity of beasts of prey allowed them to -increase without bounds. In a few years, therefore, the whole country -was overrun by millions, which threatened to devour not only all the -crops but every bit of wild herbage; even in Europe, when for any reason -their subjection is neglected, they do great damage to gardens, -orchards, and plantations of young trees. - -At present further use is being made of the rabbits by "packing" their -edible flesh in various forms as an article of preserved food, which is -finding a wide market; and probably the pest will be abated in course of -time by natural processes. - -Returning to the hares, not much need be said as to particular species. -All dwell either in open grassy country or else among rocks and bushes. -They do not flock, nor make any sort of shelter, but each inhabits a -certain small district, where it makes a smooth resting-place called its -form. To this it will return day after day for a long time unless -frightened; and in such a form the young are born and are left -concealed, when still in the suckling age, under a cover of leaves and -vines, or even fur plucked by the mother from her own loose coat and -felted into a sort of blanket. They seek no better shelter than this in -winter, except that some, as our common little cottontail, will creep -into the mouth of an old skunk's or woodchuck's hole or within a hollow -stump, to seek protection from the "cauld blast." The "jacks" of the -Plains are so well furred that even the soles of their feet are warm -mats of hair; and they are the only small animals able to survive -outside of burrows the intense winter cold and gales of those bleak -uplands. This hardihood is due primarily, of course, to the fact that -hares are able to find nutritious forage all through the winter, and so -keep up their bodily heat. - -[Illustration: FOUR TYPES OF CATTLE. - - 1. American Bison. 2. Hindu Humped Ox. - 3. Thibetan Yak. 4. Asiatic Water Buffalo.] - -All species have great speed--their principal means of safety--and the -swiftest hounds are hardly able to run them down; while they also have -astonishing skill in suddenly halting and turning, or doubling, by which -they gain a fresh start before their more clumsy pursuers can perceive -what has happened, and change their course. Chasing them with greyhounds -is a regular sport called coursing. Along with this goes extreme -timidity and watchfulness, in which their big ears serve a most useful -purpose, rising to the slightest sound, but dropping out of the way as -the animal makes off in a series of tremendous leaps; and the hare can -make faster time uphill than down, owing to the greater length of the -hind legs--a decided advantage. Knowing these tricks, most of its -enemies resort to counter-strategy--a stealthy approach and quick -rush--and an excellent picture of these wiles, and poor Bunny's efforts -to meet them, may be read in Seton's tale of "Raggylug," and in such -delightful writings as those of Audubon and Bachman, Godman, Kennicott, -Lockwood, Abbott, Robinson, Sharp, Cram, and some others. Even the least -of the tribe, however, is able to make a defense which often completely -disconcerts the foe, and the means are found in its strong hind feet. - -In addition to this familiar eastern cottontail we have in the United -States several other species, as the little marsh-hare and the big -water-hare of the Southern States; the large northern varying hare; the -arctic hares; the various long-eared, long-legged "jack rabbits" of the -Plains and Rocky Mountains; and several lesser species, more or less -common on the Pacific coast. The varying hare is so called because, as -is the case with several foreign northern hares, its brown summer coat -when shed as usual on the approach of winter is replaced by one which is -white. - - - - -CHAPTER XV - -THE WILD OXEN - - -We now come to a very important group of mammals called ungulates, or -hoofed animals, because of the way in which their feet are formed. The -oxen, sheep, goats, antelopes, deer, horses, swine, elephants, and -rhinoceroses all belong to this order. First let us notice some of the -wild oxen. - - -THE GAUR - -The largest of these is the Gaur, which is found in India. It is a very -big animal, sometimes standing more than six feet in height at the -shoulder, and as it has long and very powerful horns, it is much dreaded -by the natives. As a rule, however, it is a very gentle and peaceable -animal, scarcely ever venturing to attack man, and only dwelling in -those remote parts of the jungle to which even hunters seldom find their -way. - -The gaur lives in small herds, generally of from ten to twenty in -number. Each of these is led by an old bull, and there are generally two -or three younger ones, the rest being cows and calves. When the younger -bulls grow up they usually fight the old one in order to take his place. -For some time he contrives to hold his own; but when at last he is -beaten he goes off and lives in the thickets by himself. - -These solitaries, as they are called, are generally very savage, and -will often rush out and attack a passer-by, even when he has not -provoked them at all. - -The gaur is a very wary animal, and sentries are always posted near the -herd, in order to give warning of the approach of a foe. When feeding, -they are said to stand in a circle with their heads outward, so that -they can see in every direction. - -The old male gaurs are nearly black in color, and the younger ones and -the cows reddish brown, while they all have white "stockings" from the -knee downward. - - -THE YAK - -The yak, which lives in Tibet, is something like an ox with great masses -of hair on its flanks, limbs, and tail. In color it is blackish brown, -with a little white upon the muzzle, and in height is about five feet -six inches at the shoulder. The thick fringes of hair do not begin to -grow till it is about three months old, and the young calf is covered -all over with curly black hair, like a Newfoundland dog. - -The yak lives among the mountains, sometimes climbing to a height of -fully twenty thousand feet, and scrambles about among the boulders with -wonderful activity. Large herds of these animals, however, have been -domesticated, and are used as beasts of burden, while their flesh is -said to be almost as tender and well-flavored as beef. The big, tufted -tail, too, is highly valued, for it is dyed in various colors, and is -then employed in making the fly-flappers which are used so much in -Eastern countries for driving away flies. - - -THE BISON - -The famous bison, commonly called buffalo, of North America, sad to say -is now almost extinct, for there are only a few small herds living under -special protection. Yet, not so very many years ago, these magnificent -animals wandered over the prairies in millions. Even a single herd, -sometimes, would extend farther than the eye could reach, and we read of -one herd which covered a tract of country fifty miles long and -twenty-five miles broad! But these herds were recklessly destroyed for -the sake of their hides and tongues, and now there are only a few wild -buffaloes left alive altogether. - -Generally, however, buffaloes are to be seen in zoos, and if you go to -look at them you will most likely think that the male looks rather like -a very big lion. For it has an enormous mane of long, shaggy hair, which -covers the head and shoulders. There is also a sort of long beard under -the chin, and the hair of the sides and hind quarters is very thick. The -consequence is that the animal looks a great deal bigger than it -really is, although it stands well over five feet high at the shoulders. - -In spite of its great mass of hair, this is a very active animal, and it -can both trot and gallop with considerable speed. When galloping it -always holds its head close to the ground, and its tail high up in the -air. It is not by any means a courageous animal, notwithstanding its -size and strength. But the bulls fight most savagely with one another, -roaring so loudly that in the days of the great herds the noise was -compared to thunder, and could be heard for miles. - -Another kind of bison, called the aurochs, lives in the great forests of -Northern Europe. Its mane is not so long and thick as that of the -American animal, but its horns are longer and not so strongly curved. - - -THE CAPE BUFFALO - -Smaller than the bison, but very much more formidable, is the cape -buffalo, which is spread over almost the whole of Africa south of the -equator. It is about as big as an ordinary bullock, and has a pair of -massive and sharply pointed curved horns, which are sometimes as much as -three feet in length. - -This animal lives in reedy swamps, and is generally found in herds, -which often number from 250 to 300 individuals. They are very wary, and -difficult to approach, while they are so swift of foot that only a very -fast horse can escape from them when carrying a rider on its back. In -charging they throw their heads back, with the horns upon the shoulders, -and then suddenly bend down and strike upward when they come within -reach. - -The buffalo does not usually attack unless it is wounded, however, -though solitaries will often lie in concealment and rush out upon the -hunter as he passes by. - - -THE INDIAN BUFFALO - -There is another kind of buffalo found in India, which is a very -different animal in every way. It is different in appearance, for it has -its head drawn out into a kind of muzzle, while its horns are very long -indeed, and taper gradually from base to tip, at the same time curving -outward and upward and backward. And it is different in disposition, -because it is easily tamed, and is employed in many parts of India as a -beast of draught and burden. You might see buffaloes drawing a plow, for -example, or dragging a cart, and for these and similar purposes they -have been introduced into Egypt, and even into Southern Europe. The wild -bulls, however, are apt to be very savage when they live alone. But a -herd of buffaloes, strange to say, though they will gallop up close, and -toss their heads, and behave in a most threatening manner, seem never to -actually attack a man so long as he has the courage to stand perfectly -still. - - -THE MUSK-OX - -Though it is called an ox, and looks like an ox, this animal is in -reality much more closely related to the sheep. It is of about the size -of a rather large ram, but looks much bigger than it really is, owing to -the great masses of long hair, which cover the whole of its body, and -hang down so far that one can scarcely see its legs at all. It is even -more hairy than the yak. - -The horns of the male animal are very curiously formed, for they are so -broad and flat at the base that they form a kind of helmet, which covers -almost the whole of the forehead. They then droop downward on either -side of the face, but curve upward and outward at the tips. Those of the -cow, however, are very much smaller. - -The musk-ox lives in the most northerly parts of North America. It is -perfectly at home amid the snow and ice, and lives in the wildest and -dreariest regions, in which the ground scarcely thaws during the whole -of the year; so that the life of those who hunt it is a very hard one. -But, as a rule, its only enemies are the arctic wolves, which drive it -to bay on some rocky mountain slope, and tear it to the ground by the -mere force of numbers. - -The name of this animal is due to the musky flavor of its flesh, which -is said to be very tender and delicate. - - -SHEEP - -The sheep are represented at the present time by several wild species, -one of which is found in Northern India east of the Indus, in the -Punjab, and in Sind; one in North America; and another in North Africa. -The rest inhabit the high ground of Europe and Asia as far south as the -Himalayas. These mountains, with the adjacent plateaus of the Pamirs and -the great ranges of Central Asia, form the main home of the group. Wild -sheep are of various types, some so much like the goats that it is -difficult to draw a hard and fast line between them; while others, -especially the curly-horned argalis, bighorns, urial, and Kamchatka wild -sheep, are unmistakably of the sheep type. - -The wild original of the domesticated breeds of sheep is unknown. -Domesticated sheep which live on hills and mountains are still inclined -to seek the highest ground at night. The rams fight as the wild rams do, -and many of them display activity and powers of climbing and of finding -a living on barren ground scarcely less remarkable than in the wild -races. - -The domesticated sheep have been bred by artificial selection for -unnumbered ages in order to produce wool. It is said that in some of the -wild breeds there is an under-fur which will felt like wool. Most of the -species are short-tailed animals, but this is not the case with the -Barbary wild sheep. Wild sheep are mainly mountain-living animals or -frequenters of high ground. They generally, though not always, frequent -less rugged country than that of the wild goats, and some are found at -quite low levels. The altitude at which other wild sheep are found is, -however, very great; on the Pamirs it reaches twenty thousand feet. Here -the country is quite open. - - -THE EUROPEAN MOUFLON - -The only wild sheep of Europe is the mouflon, found in the mountains of -Corsica and Sardinia. Its height at the shoulder is about twenty-seven -inches. In the rams the horns are strong, and curved into a spiral, -forming almost a complete circle. The hair is close, and in winter has a -woolly under-fur. In summer and autumn the coat is a bright red brown -on the neck, shoulders, and legs; the rump and under parts are whitish, -and the back and flanks marked with a white saddle. In winter the brown -becomes darker and the white saddle broader. A rather larger mouflon is -found on the Elburz mountain range in Persia, in Armenia, and in the -Taurus Mountains. A smaller variety exists in Cyprus, where it has been -preserved since the British occupation. The mouflon is a typical wild -sheep. In Sardinia and Corsica are dense scrubby forests of tall -heather, some five feet high, practically impenetrable to hunters. When -alarmed, the mouflon dash into this cover and are safe. These forests -have preserved two very interesting survivals of antiquity--the mouflon, -and the Corsican or Sardinian bandit. The Corsican bandit, like the -mouflon of the same island, is nearly extinct. In Sardinia both still -flourish. - - -THE ARGALI - -This animal is found in Siberia and Mongolia, and also in Tibet. It is -the largest of all living wild sheep, and is about as big as a large -donkey, and has enormous twisted and wrinkled horns, which are sometimes -as much as four feet long, and nineteen inches round at the base. The -male Tibetan argali has a ruff on the throat. The usual color is a stony -gray, mingled with white in summer in the case of the old males. - -The argali rams are very fond of fighting one another, and such fierce -conflicts take place that sometimes their horns are broken short off, -and left lying upon the ground. And it will give you some idea of the -size of these horns when we tell you that more than once a fox has been -found lying fast asleep in one of them! - -The argali is a mountain-loving animal, seldom seen at a lower level -than twelve or thirteen thousand feet even in winter, while in summer it -ascends much higher. It is a most difficult creature to approach, for it -lives in small flocks, which always post a sentry to keep careful watch -while they are feeding. At the slightest sign of danger the alert -sentinel gives the alarm and a moment later the animals are dispersing -in all directions, scrambling so actively over rocks and up and down -precipices that is it quite impossible to follow them. - -It has sometimes been said that when the argali leaps from a height it -alights on its horns, which break the force of its fall. But this -statement seems to be quite untrue. - -Writing of the argali of Southern Siberia, the naturalist Brehm says -that when the Tartars want mutton an argali-hunt is organized. The -Tartar hunters advance on their horses at intervals of 200 or 300 yards, -and when the sheep are started generally manage, by riding, shooting, -coursing them with dogs, and shouting, to bewilder, shoot, or capture -several. - - -THE GULJAR, OR MARCO POLO'S SHEEP - -On the high plateau of the Pamirs and the adjacent districts Marco -Polo's sheep is found. The rams are only slightly less in size than the -Siberian argali; the hair is longer than in that species, and the horns -are thinner and more slender and extend farther in an outward direction. -An adult ram may weigh three hundred pounds. The first description of -this sheep was given by the old traveler whose name it now bears. He -said that on the Pamir plateau wild animals were met with in large -numbers, particularly a sheep of great size, having horns three, four, -and even six palms in length; and that the shepherds (hunters?) formed -ladles and vessels from them. In the Pamirs Marco Polo's sheep is seldom -found at less than 11,000 or 12,000 feet above the sea. In the Tian-Shan -Mountains it is said to descend to 2,000 or 3,000 feet. They prefer the -hilly, grassy plains, and only seek the hills for safety. On the Pamirs -they are said to be very numerous in places, one hunter stating that he -saw in one day not less than six hundred head. - - -THE BIGHORN SHEEP OF AMERICA AND KAMCHATKA - -North America has its parallel to the argalis in the famous bighorn. It -is now very rare even in Northern Canada, and becoming scarce in the -United States, though a few are found here and there at various points -on the Rocky Mountains as far south as Mexico. In habits it is much the -same as other wild sheep--that is to say, it haunts the rock-hills and -"bad lands" near the mountains, feeding on the scanty herbage of the -high ground, and not descending unless driven down by snow. - -[Illustration: WILD SHEEP AND GOATS - - 1. Chamois. 2. Moufflon. - 3. Argali. 4. Markhor.] - -The bighorn sheep are very partial to salt. Mr. Turner, who hunted them -in British Columbia, says: "Wild sheep make periodical excursions to the -mountain-tops to gorge themselves with salty clay. They may remain from -an hour to two days, and when killed their stomachs will be found full -of nothing but the clay formed from denuded limestone, which they lick -and gnaw until sometimes deep tunnels are formed in the cliffs, large -enough to hide six or seven sheep. The hunter, standing over one of -these warrens, may bolt them within two yards of him. In the dead of -winter sheep often come to the woods to feed on fir-trees. At such times -they may be seen mixed with black-and-white-tailed deer, low on a -river-bank. I have known them come within forty yards of an inhabited -hut." - -Mr. H. C. Nelson tells us that once he was sleeping with two other -friends in a hut in the mountains where some miners had lived for a -time. These men, when they washed up their pots and pans, threw the -slops away at a certain place close by the hut. As all water used for -cooking meat has salt put into it, a little salt remained on the -surface. This the wild sheep had found out, and were in the habit of -coming to lick it at night. - -The bighorn sheep stands from three feet two inches to three feet six -inches at the shoulder. The horns are of the general type of the -argalis, but smoother. Another bighorn is found in Kamchatka. There is -also a beautiful white race of bighorn inhabiting Alaska. The typical -Rocky Mountain race is browner than the Asiatic argalis, and in winter -is dark even beneath the front parts of the body. It is not found on the -high peaks of the great ranges, but on difficult though lower ground on -the minor hills. - - -THE URIAL - -The vast range of the Himalayas affords feeding-ground to other species -of wild sheep and wild goat, so different in the shape of the horns that -the variations of the sheep race under domestication need not be matter -for wonder when so much variety is seen in nature. - -The urial, or sha, is found in Northwest India, on the Trans-Indus -Mountains, and in Ladak, Northern Tibet, Afghanistan, Baluchistan, -Turkestan, and Southern Persia. The horns make a half-curve backward, -and are flattened. The angle with the horizontal line across the ears is -about half a right angle. The coat is of a reddish-gray color, with -white on the belly, legs, and throat. This species has a very wide -geographical distribution, and is the only wild sheep found in India -proper. - - -THE AOUDAD, OR ARUI - -This is a large wild type of the North African highlands. It stands -intermediate between sheep and goats. The old rams have a very fine -appearance, with a long flowing beard or mane, and large horns. These -wild animals, though somewhat goat-like in appearance, are typical of -the sheep race in general habits. They live in the Atlas Range, and in -the splendid heights of the Aures Mountains, which lie at the back of -Algeria and fringe the great Sahara Desert. In the isolated and burning -rocks which jut up in the desert itself into single mountains they are -also found, living on ground which seems absolutely destitute of water, -grass, or vegetation. They live singly or in small families; but the -rams keep mainly alone. Sometimes they lie in shallow caves during the -heat of the day. These caves smell like a sheepfold. More generally the -aoudad reposes on some shelf of rock, where it matches the color of the -stone, and is almost invisible. The ground is one of the most difficult -in which any hunting is attempted, except perhaps in chamois-stalking; -but the pursuit seems to fascinate sportsmen. - -Mr. A. E. Pease gives some charming descriptions of the silence, -the rugged rocks, and the astonishing views over the great orange Sahara -Desert seen from the tops of these haunts of the aoudad--mountains on -the summits of which his Arab guides would prostrate themselves in -evening prayer as the sun sank over the desert, and then, rising, once -more resume the chase. The young of the aoudad are charming little -creatures, much like reddish kids. They can follow the mother over the -steepest ground at a great pace. When caught, as they sometimes are by -the Arabs, they soon become tame. - -[Illustration: GOATS AND GOAT-ANTELOPES. - - 1. Asiatic Tahr. 3. Rocky Mountain White Goat. - 2. Alpine Ibex. 4. African Aoudad. - 5. Arctic Musk-Ox.] - - -THE GOATS - -Though the dividing-line between the sheep and goats is very indistinct, -some differences are of general application. The goats are distinguished -by the unpleasant odor of the males, and by beards on the chins of the -same sex, by the absence of glands in the hind feet, which sheep -possess, and by certain variations in the formation of the skull. The -difference between the temperament of the sheep and goats is very -curious and persistent, showing itself in a marked way, which affects -their use in domestication to such a degree that the keeping of one or -the other often marks the owners as possessors of different degrees of -civilization. Goats are restless, curious, adventurous, and so active -that they cannot be kept in enclosed fields. For this reason they are -not bred in any numbers in lands where agriculture is practised on -modern principles; they are too enterprising and too destructive. -Consequently the goat is usually only seen in large flocks on mountain -pastures and rocky, uncultivated ground, where the flocks are taken out -to feed by the children. - -On the high alps, in Greece, on the Apennines, and in Palestine the goat -is a valuable domestic animal. The milk, butter, and cheese, and also -the flesh of the kids, are in great esteem. But wherever the land is -enclosed, and high cultivation attempted, the goat is banished, and the -more docile and controllable sheep takes its place. In Syria the goat is -perhaps more docile and better understood as a dairy animal than -elsewhere in the East. The flocks are driven into Damascus in the -morning; and instead of a milk-cart calling, the flock itself goes round -the city, and particular goats are milked before the doors of regular -customers. - -The European goat is a very useful animal for providing milk to poor -families in large towns. The sheep, while preserving its hardy habits in -some districts, adapts itself to richer food, and acquires the habits as -well as the digestion of domestication. The goat remains, as in old -days, the enemy of trees, inquisitive, omnivorous, pugnacious. It is -unsuited for the settled life of the farm. Rich pasture makes it ill, -and a good clay soil, on which cattle grow fat, kills it. But it is far -from being disqualified for the service of some forms of modern -civilization by the survival of primitive habits. Though it cannot live -comfortably in the smiling pastures of the low country, it is perfectly -willing to exchange the rocks of the mountain for a stable-yard in town. -Its love for stony places is amply satisfied by a granite pavement, and -it has been ascertained that goats fed in stalls and allowed to wander -in paved courts and yards live longer and enjoy better health than those -tethered even on light pastures. In parts of New York the city goats are -said to flourish on the paste-daubed paper of the advertisements which -they nibble from the bill-boards! - -It is beyond doubt that these hardy creatures are exactly suited for -living in large towns; an environment of bricks and mortar and -paving-stones suits them. Their spirits rise in proportion to what we -should deem the depressing nature of their surroundings. They love to be -tethered in places where they find bushes to nibble. A deserted -brick-field, with plenty of broken drain-tiles, rubbish-heaps, and -weeds, pleases them still better. Almost any kind of food seems to suit -them. Not even the pig has so varied a diet as the goat; it consumes and -converts into milk not only great quantities of garden stuff which would -otherwise be wasted, but also, thanks to its love for eating twigs and -shoots, it enjoys the prunings and loppings of bushes and trees. In the -Mont Dore district of France the goats are fed on oatmeal porridge. With -this diet, and plenty of salt, the animals are scarcely ever ill, and -never suffer from tuberculosis; they will often give ten times their own -weight of milk in a year. - -The Kashmir shawls are made of the finest goats' hair. Most of this very -soft hair is obtained from the under-fur of goats kept in Tibet, and by -the Kirghiz in Central Asia. Only a small quantity, averaging three -ounces, is produced yearly by each animal. The wool is purchased by -middlemen, and taken to Kashmir for manufacture. - -In India the goat reaches perhaps the highest point of domestication. -The flocks are in charge of herd-boys, but the animals are so docile -that they are regarded with no hostility by the cultivators of corn and -cereals. Tame goats are also kept throughout Africa. The valuable Angora -breed, from which mohair is obtained, is now domesticated in South -Africa and in Australia. In the former country it is a great commercial -success. The animals were obtained with great difficulty, as the Turkish -owners did not wish to sell their best-bred goats; but when once -established at the Cape, it was found that they proved better producers -of mohair than when in their native province of Angora. The clip from -their descendants steadily improves. - -We now pass to consider various species of wild goats, all of which -present very interesting features for our study. - - -THE TURS - -In the Caucasus, both east and west, in the Pyrenees, and on the South -Spanish sierras three fine wild goats, with some features not unlike the -burhal sheep, are found. They are called turs by the Caucasian -mountaineers. The species found in the East Caucasus differs from that -of the west of the range, and both from that of Spain. The East -Caucasian tur is a massive, heavy animal, all brown in color, except on -the fronts of the legs, which are blackish, and with horns springing -from each side of the skull like half-circles. The males are -thirty-eight inches high at the shoulder. The short beard and tail are -blackish, and there is no white on the coat. The West Caucasian tur is -much lighter in color than that of the East Caucasus, and the horns -point backward, more like those of the ibex, though set on the skull at -a different angle. The Spanish tur has the belly and inner sides of the -legs white, and a blackish line along the flank, dividing the white -from the brown; also a blackish chest, and some gray on the flank. - -In the Caucasus turs are found on the high crags above the snow-line in -summer, whence they descend at night to feed on patches of upland grass; -but the main home of the tur by day is above the snow-line. The Spanish -species modifies its habits according to the ground on which it lives. -Mr. E. N. Buxton found it in dense scrub, while on the Andalusian -sierras it frequents bare peaks 10,000 feet high. In Spain tur are -sometimes seen in flocks of from 100 to 150 each. - - -THE PERSIAN WILD GOAT - -The original of our domesticated goat is thought by some to be the -pasang, or Persian wild goat. It is a fine animal, with large -simitar-shaped horns, curving backward, flattened laterally, and with -knobs on the front edge at irregular intervals. It is more slender in -build than the tur, light brown in general color, marked with a black -line along the nape and back, black tail, white belly, blackish -shoulder-stripe, and a black line dividing the hinder part of the flank -from the white belly. Formerly found in the islands of Southeastern -Europe, it now inhabits parts of the Caucasus, the Armenian Highlands, -Mount Ararat, and the Persian mountains as far east as Baluchistan. A -smaller race is found in Sind. It lives in herds, sometimes of -considerable size, and frequents not only the high ground, but the -mountain forests and scrub, where such cover exists. The domesticated -goat of Sweden is said to be certainly a descendant of this species. - - -THE IBEX - -Of the ibex, perhaps the best known of all the wild goats, several -species, differing somewhat in size and in the form of their horns, are -found in various parts of the Old World. Of these, the Arabian ibex -inhabits the mountains of Southern Arabia, Palestine, and Sinai, Upper -Egypt, and perhaps Morocco. The Abyssinian ibex is found in the high -mountains of the country from which it takes its name. The Alpine -ibex is now extinct in the Swiss Alps and Tyrol, but survives on the -Piedmontese side of Monte Rosa. The Asiatic ibex is the finest of the -group; its horns have been found to measure nearly fifty-five inches -along the curve. This ibex inhabits the mountain ranges of Central Asia, -from the Altai to the Himalayas, and the Himalayas as far as the source -of the Ganges. - -The King of Italy is the great preserver of the Alpine ibex, and has -succeeded where the nobles of the Tyrol have failed. The animals are -shot by driving them, the drivers being expert mountaineers. The way in -which the ibex come down the passes and over the precipices is simply -astonishing. One writer lately saw them springing down perpendicular -heights of forty feet, or descending "chimneys" in the mountain-face by -simply cannoning off with their feet from side to side. Young ibexes can -be tamed with ease, the only drawback to their maintenance being the -impossibility of confining them. They will spring on to the roof of a -house, and spend the day there by preference, though allowed the run of -all the premises. The kids are generally two in number; they are born in -June. - -The ibex was long one of the chief objects of the Alpine hunter. The -Emperor Maximilian had a preserve of them in the Tyrol mountains, and he -shot them with a crossbow when they were driven down. He tells us in his -private hunting-book that he once shot an ibex at a distance of two -hundred yards with a crossbow, after one of his companions had missed it -with a gun, or "fire-tube." When away on an expedition in Holland, he -wrote a letter to the wife of one of the most noted ibex-poachers on his -domain, promising her a silk dress if she could induce her husband to -let the animals alone. In the Himalayas the chief foes of the ibex are -the snow-leopard and wild dog. - - -THE MARKHOR - -The very fine Himalayan goat of this name differs from all other wild -species. The horns are spiral, like those of the kudu antelope and -Wallachian sheep. It may well be called the king of the wild goats. A -buck stands as much as forty-one inches at the shoulder, and the -maximum measurement of the horns is sixty-three inches! It has a long -beard and mane, and stands very upright on its feet. Besides the -Himalayas, it haunts the mountains on the Afghan frontier. These goats -keep along the line between the forest and snow, some of the most -difficult ground in the hills. The horns are a much-prized trophy. - - -THE TAHR - -The tahr of the Himalayas is a very different-looking animal from the -true goats, from which, among other characters, it is distinguished by -the form and small size of the horns. The horns, which are black, spring -in a high backward arch, but the creature has no beard. A buck stands -sometimes as much as thirty-eight inches high at the shoulder. It has a -long, rough coat, mainly dark stone-color in tint. - -These animals live in the forest districts of the Middle Himalayas, -where they are found on very high and difficult ground. General Donald -Macintyre shot one standing on the brink of an almost sheer precipice. -Down this it fell, and the distance in sheer depth was such that it was -difficult to see the body even with glasses. The tahr is fairly common -all along the higher Himalayan Range. Its bones are believed to be a -sovereign cure for rheumatism, and are exported to India for that -object. A smaller kind is found in the mountains of Eastern Arabia, -where very few, even sportsmen, have yet attempted to shoot them. - - -THE NILGIRI TAHR, OR NILGIRI IBEX - -Though not an ibex, the sportsmen of India early gave this name to the -tahr of the Nilgiri and Anamalai hills. The Himalayan species is covered -with long, shaggy hair; the South Indian, has short smooth brown hair. - -"The ibex," says Hawkeye, the Indian sportsman, of this animal, "is -massively formed, with short legs, remarkably strong fetlocks, and a -heavy carcass, short and well ribbed up, combining strength and -agility wonderful to behold. Its habits are gregarious, and the does are -seldom met with separate from the flock or herd, though males often are. -The latter assume, as they grow old, a distinctive appearance. The hair -on the back becomes lighter, almost white in some cases, causing a kind -of saddle to appear; and from that time they become known to the hunters -as the saddlebacks of the herd, an object of ambition to the eyes of the -true sportsman. It is a pleasant sight to watch a herd of ibex feeding -undisturbed, the kids frisking here and there on pinnacles or ledges of -rock and beetling cliffs where there seems scarcely safe hold for -anything much larger than a grasshopper, the old mother looking calmly -on. Then again, see the caution observed in taking up their resting or -abiding places for the day, where they may be warmed by the sun, -listening to the war of many waters, chewing the cud of contentment, and -giving themselves up to the full enjoyment of their nomadic life and its -romantic haunts. Usually, before reposing, one of their number, -generally an old doe, may be observed gazing intently below, apparently -scanning every spot in the range of her vision, sometimes for half an -hour or more, before she is satisfied that all is well, but, strange to -say, seldom or never looking up to the rocks above. Then, being -satisfied on the one side, she follows the same process on the other, -and eventually lies down calmly, contented with the precautions she has -taken. Should the sentinel be joined by another, or her kid come and lie -by her, they always lie back to back, in such a manner as to keep a good -lookout to either side. A solitary male goes through all this by -himself, and wonderfully careful he is; but when with the herd he -reposes in security, leaving it to the female to take precautions for -their joint safety." Is it not pleasanter to think of watching such -innocent creatures, looking out for their own safety, than to think of -hunting and killing them? - - -THE ROCKY MOUNTAIN GOAT - -America possesses only one species of wild goat, the place of this genus -being taken in the southern part of the continent by the camel-like -guanacos. The Rocky Mountain goat, the North American representative of -the group, has very few of the characteristics of the European and -Asiatic species. In place of being active in body and lively in -temperament, it is a quiet, rather drowsy creature, able, it is true, to -scale the high mountains of the Northwest and to live among the snows, -but with none of the energetic habits of the ibex or the tahr. In form -it is heavy and badly built. It is heavy in front and weak behind, like -a bison. The eye is small, the head large, and the shoulders humped. It -feeds usually on very high ground; but hunters who take the trouble to -ascend to these altitudes find little difficulty in killing as many wild -goats as they wish. These goats are most numerous in the ranges of -British Columbia, where they are found in small flocks of from three or -four to twenty. Several may be killed before the herd is thoroughly -alarmed, possibly because at the high altitudes at which they are found -man has seldom disturbed them. None of the domesticated sheep or goats -of the New World are native to the continent of America. It is a curious -fact, well worth studying from the point of view of the history of man, -that, with the exception of the llama, the dog, and perhaps the -guinea-pig, every domesticated animal in use from Cape Horn to the -Arctic Ocean has been imported. The last of these importations is the -reindeer, which, though the native species abounds in the Canadian -woods, was obtained from Lapland and Eastern Asia. - -When the first rush to Klondike was made, the miners were imprisoned and -inaccessible during the late winter. The coming of spring was the -earliest period at which communication could be expected to be restored, -and even then the problem of feeding the transport animals was a -difficult one. The United States government decided to try to open up a -road from Alaska by means of sledges drawn by reindeer, and the Canadian -government devised a similar scheme. Agents were sent to Lapland and to -the tribes on the western side of Bering Sea, and deer, drivers, and -harness obtained from both. The deer were not used for the Klondike -relief expeditions by the Americans; but the animals and their drivers -were kept in Alaska, native reindeer were caught, and were found very -useful for carrying the mails in winter. - - -THE CHAMOIS - -The goats are linked with the antelopes by the famous chamois, which is -especially interesting because it makes its home among the snow-clad -mountains of Europe. It is a pretty little creature about two feet in -height, with a pair of short black horns which spring upright from the -forehead, and are then sharply hooked, with the points directed -backward. And its coat, strange to say, instead of becoming paler in -winter grows darker, so that from brownish yellow it deepens into rich -chestnut. - -The chamois is one of the most active of all living animals, leaping -from rock to rock, and skipping up and down steep cliffs, where it would -seem quite impossible for it to obtain any foothold at all. It will -often spring down, too, from a very great height, never seeming to -injure itself and always alighting upon its feet. And as it is very -sharp-sighted and exceedingly wary, a hunter finds the utmost difficulty -in approaching, and very often for days together he never has the chance -of obtaining a shot. - -When a chamois notices any sign of danger, it utters a shrill whistling -cry, on hearing which all the members of the herd instantly take to -flight. There are generally from fifteen to twenty animals in each herd, -consisting partly of does and partly of young bucks. The old bucks spend -most of the year quite by themselves. But early in the autumn they -rejoin the herds, drive away their younger rivals, and then fight fierce -battles with one another for the mastery. - -The young of the chamois are born in May or June, and are so strong and -active that when they are only a day old they can follow their mother -almost anywhere. - - -THE ELAND - -This is the finest of the antelopes, and is a really magnificent animal, -for it stands from five to six feet high at the shoulder, and -sometimes an eland weighs nearly fifteen hundred pounds! Both the buck -and the doe have spirally twisted horns, which are generally about two -feet long, and there is a heavy dewlap under the throat. In color the -animal is pale fawn, but sometimes the old males are bluish gray. - -In former days the eland was spread all over Southern and Eastern -Africa. But it has been so much hunted on account of its hide that it -has quite disappeared from South Africa, and is fast disappearing -elsewhere. There seems reason to fear that soon this splendid antelope -will be altogether extinct. It lives for the most part in wooded plains, -and is generally found in large herds, which spend the daytime hiding in -the forests, and come out into the open country by night to graze and -drink. In the desert districts, however, where water is scarce, they -quench their thirst by feeding upon melons. - -The eland is a difficult animal to hunt, for besides being very wary and -very timid, it is often accompanied by a rhinoceros-bird, which gives it -early warning of the approach of a foe. And, further, it is very swift -of foot, so that it can only be ridden down by a good horse. As a rule -it will never fight. But when a doe has calves with her, she will -withstand the onset of dogs, and has even been known to impale them upon -her horns. - - -THE KUDU - -This is another very fine antelope. It can easily be distinguished from -the eland by the shape of the horns of the male, which are twisted like -a corkscrew, while the female has none at all. Besides this, it has a -white mark across its face, shaped something like the letter V, several -white spots on its cheeks and throat, a white streak along its back, and -several others running down its sides and hinder quarters. It stands -rather more than four feet in height at the shoulder, and the horns are -often more than three feet long. - -The kudu is found all over Africa, from the Cape to Abyssinia, though it -is now very rare in the extreme south. It does not live in herds, as a -rule, but is generally found in pairs, which pass the day in dense -thickets, and come out to graze in the evening. It is not very swift -of foot, and can easily be run down by a man on horseback. But as it is -chiefly found in the country infested by the terrible tsetse-fly, whose -bite kills horses in a few days, it is generally hunted only with dogs. - -[Illustration: TYPES OF ANTELOPES - - 1. Waterbuck. 2. Dorcas Gazelle. 3. Indian Blackbuck. 4. Springboks. - 5. Oryx. 6. Eland. 7. Sable Antelope.] - - -THE GEMSBOK - -Another very fine antelope is the gemsbok, which is found in the more -desert regions of Southwestern Africa. It is remarkable for its very -long straight horns, which sometimes measure nearly four feet from base -to tip, and are such formidable weapons that the animal has been known -to drive off even the lion. More than once, indeed, a lion and a gemsbok -have been found lying dead together, the antelope having thrust his -horns deep into the lion's body, and been quite unable to withdraw them. - -What the gemsbok feeds upon is rather a mystery, for it is often found -in districts where there is no vegetation except a little dry scrub. Yet -it nearly always seems to be in good condition. And it is odder still to -find that for months together sometimes it must go without drinking! -Some hunters, indeed, have declared that they are quite positive that -the animal never drinks at all, obtaining all the moisture it needs from -small watermelons and certain bulbous roots. - -The gemsbok is of about the same size as the kudu, and is gray in color -above and white below. But there is a black streak across the face, -while another streak, which is much broader, runs along the sides, -dividing the gray of the upper parts from the white of the lower. This -antelope is hunted on horseback, and is so swift and so enduring, that -there is said to be no animal in Africa which is harder to overtake. - - -THE SPRINGBOK - -The most graceful and elegant of all the antelopes are the gazelles, of -which we may take the springbok as an example. - -In former days this was by far the most abundant of all the African game -animals, and would sometimes be seen traveling from one district to -another in enormous herds, covering the country as far as the eye could -reach. So vast were these herds, indeed, and so closely did the animals -march side by side together that sometimes a lion would be seen in their -ranks marching along with them, quite unable to stop, or to make his -escape, because of the pressure all round him! - -The springbok, or "springbuck," owes its name to its marvelous activity, -and to its curious habit of suddenly leaping straight up into the air. -In this way it can easily spring to a height of eight or ten feet. - -The springbok is easily tamed, and soon comes to know who are its -friends. One of these animals was kept as a pet by a lady living at -Klerksdorp, in South Africa, and would wander about the town by itself, -not seeming to be in the least afraid of the passers-by, or even of the -dogs. Every morning, too, it would cross the river, and go out upon the -veldt to feed; and although it would mix freely with its wild companions -during the day, it always left them in the evening and came home to -sleep. - -In height the springbok stands about two feet six inches, and it can -easily be distinguished from all the other gazelles by the white streak -which runs along the middle of the back. The horns are black, with a -number of ridge-like rings running round them, and the color of the coat -is dark cinnamon-yellow above and white beneath, with a blackish stripe -on the flanks between the two. - - -GNUS - -If the gazelles are the most graceful of all the antelopes, the gnus, -also known as wildebeests, are certainly the most ungainly, their great -broad heads, and very high shoulders giving them an extremely awkward -appearance. Then the curved horns are very broad at the base, and are -set so closely together on the forehead that they form a sort of helmet, -like those of the Cape buffalo, while the muzzle is fringed with long -bristles, and there is an upright mane of stiff hairs upon the neck. So -that altogether the gnu cannot be considered as a handsome animal! - -Two kinds of gnus are known, both of which are found in Southern and -Eastern Africa. The commoner of the two is called the white-tailed gnu, -because it has a long white tail, while the other, the brindled gnu, has -a black one. Both animals stand about four feet six inches in height at -the shoulder. - -Gnus are very suspicious, very inquisitive, and very timid, and when -they catch sight of a human being, they often behave in a most -extraordinary way, prancing about, pawing the ground, capering on their -hind legs, leaping into the air, and whisking their long tails about in -the most absurd manner. Then some will chase the others round and round -in circles. Next they will come charging on in a long line like cavalry, -as though they meant to attack. And then, quite suddenly, the whole herd -will wheel round, and dash off together, enveloped in a cloud of dust! - -They are so inquisitive that a hunter has often attracted a gnu to -within a very few yards just by tying a red handkerchief to the muzzle -of his gun, and allowing it to flutter in the breeze like a flag! - -Other antelopes that we should like to tell about have been described by -travelers and hunters. The sable antelope of South Africa, for example, -is regarded by Mr. Ernest Ingersoll as perhaps "the most admirable of -all antelopes," the object of "an admiring enthusiasm among sportsmen" -as well as naturalists. But as we cannot find space to describe all -these interesting creatures, we must leave you to learn about some of -them in books wholly designed to make them known. - - - - -CHAPTER XVI - -GIRAFFES, DEER, CAMELS, ZEBRAS, ASSES, AND HORSES - - -Here we reach a number of animals with which you have more or less -acquaintance, and about which you cannot fail to be interested in -hearing any particulars that we may be able to set down for you. - - -GIRAFFES - -These are the tallest of all living animals, for a full-grown male may -stand eighteen or even nineteen feet in height. Just think of it! If one -elephant were to stand upon another elephant's back a giraffe could look -over them both. - -This wonderful height is chiefly due to the great length of the neck. -Yet there are only seven _vertebræ_, or joints of the spine, in -that part of the body, just as there are in our own necks. But then each -of these joints may be as much as a foot long! When the animal is -hungry, its height is of very great use to it, enabling it to feed upon -the leaves of trees which do not throw out branches near the ground. And -in captivity, of course, its manger has to be put quite close to the -roof of its stable. - -Strange to say, the giraffe plucks each leaf separately by means of its -tongue, which is very long indeed and very slender, and is prehensile at -the tip, like the tail of a spider-monkey. So it can be coiled round the -stem of a leaf in order to pull it from the branch. And sometimes at the -zoo you may see a giraffe snatch flowers out of ladies' hats and bonnets -by means of this curious tongue. - -If a giraffe wants to feed upon grass instead of leaves, it straddles -its front legs very widely apart, and then bends its long neck down -between them. And it does just the same when it drinks. - -The giraffe is a fast runner, and a horse must be very swift to overtake -it. It runs in a most singular manner, with "a queer camel-like gallop," -and throwing out the hind legs with a semicircular movement, while its -long neck goes rocking backward and forward like that of a toy donkey, -and the long tail switches up and down as regularly as if it were moved -by clockwork. So a long line of giraffes all running away together must -look very odd indeed. - -You would think that giraffes would be very easily seen, even in the -forest, wouldn't you? Yet every hunter tells us that as long as they are -standing still it is almost impossible to detect them, since they look -just like the stems and foliage of the trees, with the sunlight shining -in patches between the leaves! - -Giraffes are found in various parts of Africa, south of the Sahara, and -two different varieties are known, that from South Africa being much the -darker of the two, and having the spots much larger and closer together. -A third kind, with five of the so-called horns on the head, has been -recorded by Sir Harry Johnston. - - -THE OKAPI - -A still more remarkable discovery, made in the same forest district by -the same famous explorer, was that of the okapi, which is a very -singular animal. Perhaps we can best describe it to you by saying that -it is something like a giraffe, and something like an antelope, and -something like a zebra, and something like an ox! The color of its coat -is like that of a very red cow, there are zebra-like stripes on the fore -and hind quarters, and the legs are cream-colored, while on the skull -are faint traces of horns like those of the giraffe. - -We do not as yet know much about the habits of this wonderful animal, -except that it lives in the thickest parts of the forest, seems to go -about in pairs, and to feed wholly on leaves and twigs. - - -THE DEER - -In some ways these animals are not unlike antelopes. But one great -difference between the two is this. In the antelopes the horns are -hollow, growing upon bony cores which spring from the skull, and remain -all through the life of the animal. But in the deer they are solid, and -are thrown off every year, fresh ones growing in their places in the -course of four or five months. Then the material of which they are made -is altogether different, for whereas the horns of the antelopes really -consist of highly compressed hair, those of the deer are composed of -lime, and are very much more like bone. On account of these differences -horns of deer are better called antlers. - -The way in which these antlers grow is very curious. For some little -time after they are shed the animal is extremely timid, for he knows -perfectly well that he has lost his natural weapons. So he hides away in -the thickest parts of the forest, where none of his enemies are likely -to find him. After a while, two little knobs make their appearance on -the head, just where the horns used to be. These knobs are covered with -a close furry skin, which is known as the velvet, and if you were to -take hold of them you would find that they were quite hot to the touch. -That is because the blood is coursing rapidly through them, and leaving -particles of lime behind it as it goes. Day by day they increase in -size, throwing out branches as they do so, until they are rather larger -than the pair which were cast off. Then the blood-vessels close up, and -the velvet becomes dry and begins to fall off, sometimes hanging down in -long strips, which are at last rubbed off against the trees and bushes. - - -REINDEER AND CARIBOU - -A great many kinds of deer are found in different parts of the world, -perhaps the most famous of all being the reindeer. - -This is the only deer in which the does possess horns as well as the -stags. It is found in the northern parts of Europe and Asia and also of -North America, where it is called the caribou and generally -lives in large herds. During the winter and spring these herds remain in -the forests. But in summer they are so annoyed by flies that they make -their way to the hills, ascending to such a height that their insect -enemies cannot follow them, and there they remain until the autumn. A -number of herds usually join together when they are migrating in this -way, and the appearance of thousands upon thousands of the animals -traveling slowly along, each with its antlers uplifted, has been -compared to that of a moving forest of leafless trees. - -In Siberia, Lapland, and Norway, large herds of reindeer are kept as we -keep cattle, and are used as beasts both of draught and burden. A single -reindeer can carry a weight of about 130 pounds upon its back, or draw a -load of 190 pounds upon a sledge, and it so enduring that it will travel -at the rate of from eight to ten miles an hour for twelve hours -together. - -"The caribou," says Mr. Ingersoll, "has never been utilized by any of -the people of arctic America, although just across Bering Strait the -same animal was kept in large herds by the Chuckchis of Siberia. The -United States government has attempted to repair this deficiency by -introducing large numbers of Lapp reindeer among the Alaskans, and the -experiment is proving successful." (See also page 173.) - -During the summer reindeer can obtain plenty of food, but in the winter -they have to live upon a kind of white lichen, which grows in waste, dry -places. Very often, of course, this is covered with snow, which the -animals have to scrape away with their hoofs. But when a slight thaw is -followed by a frost they find it very difficult to do this, and -sometimes they actually perish from starvation. - -The color of the reindeer varies slightly at different seasons of the -year, the coat usually being sooty brown in summer and brownish gray in -winter. The nose, neck, hind quarters, and lower parts of the body are -always white or whitish gray. - -The people of Lapland, Finland, and Siberia have for a long time -domesticated reindeer, finding their flesh good to eat, and their hides, -horns, and sinews valuable for making clothing and implements of various -kinds. Their milk makes excellent cheese, which in those regions is an -important article of food. - - -THE ELK, OR MOOSE - -The elk, which is found in the same parts of the world as the reindeer, -is a much larger animal. Indeed, it is the biggest of all living deer, a -full-grown stag standing well over six feet in height at the withers, -and sometimes weighing as much as twelve hundred pounds. It is not at -all a graceful creature, for the neck is very short, and the head is -held below the level of the shoulders, while the antlers are so -enormously large that it hardly seems possible that the animal should be -able to carry them. - -One would think that when the elk was traveling through the forest these -huge antlers would be constantly getting entangled among the branches of -the trees. But the animal is able to throw them well back upon its -shoulders, so that they do not really interfere with its progress in the -least. - -In America this animal is known as the moose, and is generally found in -small parties, consisting of a buck, a doe, and their fawns of two -seasons. During the summer they live near swamps or rivers, where there -is plenty of rich, long grass. But as soon as winter comes on they -retire to higher ground and spend the next few months in a small -clearing in the midst of the thickest forest. These clearings are -generally called moose-yards, and you might think, perhaps, that when a -hunter had discovered one he would have no difficulty in shooting the -animals. But they are so wary that it is almost impossible to approach -them, either by day or by night, and many a hunter has followed them for -weeks without obtaining a shot. - -The Indians attract the moose within range by imitating the cry of the -doe, which they do so cleverly that if a buck is within hearing he is -sure to come up to the spot. Or they will rattle a moose's shoulder-bone -against the bark of a tree so as to make a sound like the call of the -buck, which any buck in the neighborhood is sure to take as a challenge -to fight. For these animals are very quarrelsome creatures, and wage -fierce battles with one another, sometimes using their antlers with such -effect that both combatants die from their wounds. - -The deer family is so large that we must content ourselves with briefly -mentioning a few of its members. First we will speak of three of the Old -World deer, and of these as they are seen in Great Britain, whose -literature has so much to say of them. - -[Illustration: THE ANTLERED DEER - - 1. Virginian, or White-tailed Deer. 2. East Indian Sambar. - 3. Moose; European Elk. 4. East Indian Jungle Deer. - 5. Roe Deer. 6. Wapiti; American Elk. 7. Caribou Reindeer. - -(All are stags)] - - -THE RED DEER - -This is the noblest object of the chase in Europe. The only part of -England in which it is now really wild is Exmoor, where it is still -quite plentiful. But in many parts of the Scottish Highlands it is -carefully preserved, large moorland districts being given up to it under -the title of deer forests. - -When the female deer has a little fawn to take care of, she generally -hides it among very tall heather, pressing it gently with her nose to -make it lie down. There it will remain all day long without moving, till -she returns to it in the evening. But she is never very far away, and is -always ready to come at once to its aid if it should be attacked by a -fox or a wildcat. - -The stag of this animal is a good deal larger than the doe, and may -stand as much as four feet high at the shoulder, while its antlers may -be more than three feet long. In color it is a bright reddish brown, -which often becomes a good deal paler during the winter. - - -THE FALLOW DEER - -This deer is not nearly so big as the red deer. It is never more than -three feet in height, while you can also distinguish it by the fact that -the antlers are flattened out at the tip into a broad plate, and that -the coat is spotted with white. - -This is the deer which is kept in so many English parks, where one may -often see a herd of a hundred or more of the pretty, graceful animals -moving about together. - -There is always a "master" deer in each of these herds, who has won his -post by fighting and overcoming all his rivals. He does not always -remain with the herd, but often lives apart for weeks together, -accompanied, perhaps, by three or four favorite does; and in his absence -the herd is led by some of the younger bucks. But whenever he makes his -appearance these make way for him, and no one disputes his sway until he -becomes too old and infirm to hold his position any longer. - -The male fallow deer is known by different names at different times of -his life. In the first year he is called a "fawn," in the second year a -"pricket," in the third a "sorrel," and in the fourth a "soare," while -when he is five years old he is described as a "buck of the first lead," -and when he is six as a "buck complete." - - -THE ROEBUCK - -This is quite a small animal, seldom exceeding twenty-six inches in -height at the shoulder. In color it is reddish or grayish brown above -and grayish white underneath, with a white patch on the chin and another -round the root of the tail. The antlers stand nearly upright, and throw -off one "tine," or spur, in front, and two more behind. - -There is only one part of England where the roebuck is found wild, and -that is Blackmoor Vale, in Dorsetshire. But it is common in many of the -Scottish moors and forests. It is never seen in herds, like the fallow -deer, but goes about in pairs, although when there are fawns they -accompany their parents. - -The roebuck sheds its antlers in December, and the new ones are fully -developed by about the end of February. Although they are seldom more -than eight or nine inches long they are really formidable weapons, more -especially as the deer is very powerful in proportion to its size. The -bucks are very quarrelsome creatures and fight most savagely with one -another, while more than once they have been known to attack human -beings and to inflict severe wounds before they could be driven away. - - -AMERICAN DEER - -Excepting the moose, caribou, and wapiti, often wrongly called an elk, -found in the western United States and some parts of Canada, the deer of -North and South America stand quite apart from those of the Old -World, and are placed in a genus of their own. Usually the tail is long, -and the brow-antler is always wanting. The most familiar species is the -common American deer, of which the Virginia or white-tailed deer is the -type. This deer is found in varying forms in both continents, and was -regularly hunted by the ancient Mexicans with trained pumas. - -The well-known Virginia deer found in Eastern North America, and -believed to range as far south as Louisiana, stands a trifle over three -feet in height, and weighs, clean, about one hundred and seventy-five -pounds. The coloration is chestnut in summer, bluish gray in winter. The -antlers are of good size, and usually measure from twenty to twenty-four -inches in length. As a sporting animal the white-tailed deer is not -popular. It has been described as "an exasperating little beast," -possessing every quality which a deer ought not to, from the sportsman's -point of view. "His haunts are river-bottoms, in choking, blinding bush, -and his habits are beastly. No one could ever expect to stalk a -white-tail; if you want to get one, you must crawl." Mr. Selous bagged -one of these deer somewhat curiously. "He was coming," he writes, -"through the scrubby, rather open bush straight toward me in a series of -great leaps, rising, I think, quite four feet from the ground at every -bound. I stood absolutely still, thinking to fire at him just as he -jumped the stream and passed me. However, he came so straight to me -that, had he held his course, he must have jumped on to or over me. But -when little more than the width of the stream separated us--when he was -certainly not more than ten yards from me--he either saw or winded me, -and, without a moment's halt, made a prodigious leap sideways. I fired -at him when he was in the air, and I believe quite six feet above the -ground." The deer, an old buck with a good head, was afterward picked up -dead. In different parts of America, as far south as Peru and Bolivia, -various local races of this deer are to be found. - - -THE MULE-DEER - -The mule-deer is found in most parts of North America west of the -Missouri, as far south as Southern California, stands about -three feet four inches at the shoulder, and weighs over two hundred and -forty pounds. It carries good antlers, measuring as much as thirty -inches, and in color is tawny red in summer, brownish gray in winter. It -is a far better sporting animal than the sneaking white-tailed deer, and -affords excellent stalking. This deer is still abundant in many -localities. It is commonly called "blacktail," but the true blacktail is -a similar but smaller species confined to the Northern Pacific coast. - - -THE WAPITI - -This is the largest and finest of American deer, originally numerous -everywhere west of the Appalachian Mountains, but now to be found only -in the mountains of the Northwest. It is much like the European red -deer, but very much larger, and is connected with it by a series of -stags, known as the maral, shou, etc., inhabiting Central Asia from -Persia to Kamchatka. It grazes like cattle, rather than browses; and in -the fall gathers into herds, which formerly contained many thousands and -spent the winter among sheltering hills. - - -MARSH-DEER - -In South America are to be found several kinds of marsh-deer, of which -the best known has its range from Brazil to the forest country of the -Argentine Republic. The marsh-deer is almost equal in size to the red -deer of Europe, but somewhat less stout of build; the coloring is bright -chestnut in summer, brown in winter; the coat is long and coarse, as -befits a swamp-loving creature; the antlers usually display ten points, -and measure more than twenty inches. - - -THE PAMPAS-DEER - -This species, closely allied to the marsh-deer, is of small size, -standing about two feet six inches at the shoulder. The antlers, usually -three-pointed, measure no more than from twelve to fourteen inches in -fine specimens. The pampas-deer is found from Brazil to Northern -Patagonia. - - -PERUVIAN AND CHILEAN GUEMALS - -These are small deer, found on the high Andes, and are somewhat inferior -in size to the Virginia deer. The males carry simple antlers forming a -single fork, and measuring about nine inches. The coat, yellowish brown -in hue, is coarse, thick, and brittle. The Chilean guemal is found also -in most parts of Patagonia; unlike the guemal of Peru, which delights in -altitudes of from 14,000 to 16,000 feet, it lives chiefly in deep -valleys, thick forest, and even the adjacent plains, to which it resorts -in winter. - - -BROCKETS - -Of these, several species are found in South and Central America and -Trinidad. They are small deer, having spike-like antlers and tufted -crowns. The largest is the red brocket, found in Guiana, Brazil, and -Paraguay, which stands twenty-seven inches at the shoulder. The body -coloring is brownish red. Like most of the group, this brocket is -extremely shy; but although fond of dense covert, it is found also in -open patches. The pygmy brocket, a tiny dark-brown deerlet, less than -nineteen inches in height, found in Central Brazil, is the smallest of -these very small deer. - - -PUDUS - -Two other diminutive deer, known as pudus, closely allied to the -brockets, are found in South America. These are the Chilean and Ecuador -pudus, of which the former is only about thirteen inches in height, the -latter about fourteen or fifteen inches. Little is known of the history -and life habits of these charming little creatures, one of which, the -Chilean species, has occasionally been seen in zoölogical gardens. - - -CAMELS - -We now come to a remarkably interesting animal. First let us tell you -how wonderfully the camel is suited to a life in the desert. - -[Illustration: CHILDREN'S PETS AT THE ZOO. - - 1. Guanaco and Young. 2. Dorcas Gazelle. - 3. Bactrian Riding Camel.] - -In the first place, it has great spreading feet. Now this is very -important, for if the animal had small, hard hoofs, like those of the -horse or the donkey, it would sink deeply into the loose sand at every -step, and would soon be so tired out that it would be quite unable to -travel any farther. But its broad, splay, cushion-like toes do not sink -into the sand at all, and it can march easily along, hour after hour, -where a horse could scarcely travel a mile. - -Then it can go for several weeks with hardly any food. All that it finds -as it journeys through the desert is a mouthful or two of dry thorns, -and even at the end of the day its master has nothing to give it but a -few dates. And on this meager diet it has to travel forty or fifty miles -a day with a heavy load on its back. - -But then, you must remember, the camel has a hump. Now this hump -consists almost entirely of fat, and as the animal marches on day after -day with scarcely any food, this fat passes back by degrees into its -system, and actually serves as nourishment. So, you see, while the camel -is traveling through the desert it really lives chiefly on its own hump! -By the time that it reaches its journey's end, the hump has almost -entirely disappeared. Little more is left in its place than a loose bag -of empty skin. The animal is then unfit for work and has to be allowed -to graze for two or three weeks in a rich pasture. Then, day by day, the -hump fills out again, and when it is firm and solid once more the camel -is fit for another journey. - -More wonderful still, perhaps, is its way of carrying enough water about -with it to last for several days. - -Except the camel, typical ruminating animals, or those which chew the -cud, have the stomach divided into four separate compartments, through -which the food passes in turn. These are called the paunch, the -honeycomb stomach or bag, the manyplies and the abomasum. In the camel -the third of these is wanting, and the first and second are provided -with a number of deep cells, which can be opened or closed at the will -of the animal. - -In these cells the animal is able to store up water. When it has the -opportunity of drinking, it not only quenches its thirst, but fills up -all these cells as well. In this way it can store up quite a gallon and -a half of liquid. Then, when it grows thirsty, and cannot find a pool or -a stream, all that it has to do is to open one or two of the cells and -allow the contents to flow out, and so on from time to time until the -whole supply is exhausted. - -In this way a camel can easily go for five or six days without requiring -to drink, even when marching under the burning sun of the desert. - -Two kinds of camels are known, neither of which is now found in a wild -state. - - -ARABIAN CAMEL - -The first of these is the Arabian camel, which only has one hump on its -back, and is so well known that there is no need to describe it. It is -very largely used in many parts of Africa and Asia as a beast of both -draught and burden. Camels for riding upon, however, are generally -called dromedaries, and may be regarded as a separate breed, just as -hunters are a separate breed from cart-horses. And while they will -travel with a rider upon their backs at a pace of eight or nine miles an -hour, an ordinary camel with a load upon its back will scarcely cover a -third of that distance in the same time. - -This camel is a bad-tempered animal. It gets very cross when it is made -to kneel down to be loaded, and crosser still when it has to kneel again -in the evening for its burden to be removed, and all day it goes -grunting and snarling and groaning along, ready to bite any one who may -come near it. And it is so stupid that if it wanders off the path for a -yard or two, in order to nibble at a tempting patch of herbage, it goes -straight on in the new direction, without ever thinking of turning back -in order to regain the road. - -Besides being used for riding and for carrying loads, the camel is -valuable on account of its flesh and also of its milk, while its hair is -woven into a kind of coarse cloth. - - -BACTRIAN CAMEL - -This camel, which comes from Central Asia, has two humps on its back -instead of one. It is not quite so tall as the Arabian animal, and is -more stoutly and strongly built, while its hair is much longer and more -shaggy. For these reasons it is very useful in rocky and hilly country, -for it can scramble about for hours on steep and stony ground without -getting tired, while its thick coat protects it from the cold. - - -LLAMAS - -Llamas may be described as South American camels. But they are much -smaller than the true camels, and have no humps on their backs, and -their feet are not nearly so broad and cushion-like, while their thick -woolly coat grows in dense masses, which sometimes reach almost to the -ground. - -There are four kinds of llamas, but we can only tell you about one of -them, the guanaco. - -This animal lives both among the mountains and in the plains. It is -generally found in flocks, consisting of a single male and from twelve -to fifteen females. But sometimes the flocks are much larger, and more -than once several hundred animals have been seen together. The male -always keeps behind the flock, and if he notices any sign of danger he -utters a curious whistling cry. The does know exactly what this means -and at once take to flight, while the male follows, stopping every now -and then to look back and see if they are being pursued. - -Usually, when two male guanacos meet, they fight, biting one another -most savagely, and squealing loudly with rage. When one of these animals -is killed, its skin is likely to be found deeply scored by the wounds it -has received from its numerous antagonists. - -If you go to look at the llamas in a zoo, we would advise you not to -stand too near the bars of their enclosure, for they have a habit of -spitting straight into one's face! When they are used for riding they -will often turn their heads round and spit at their rider, just to show -that they are getting tired. And if once they lie down no amount of -persuasion or even of beating will make them get up again, until they -consider that they have had a proper rest! - - -ZEBRAS - -There are three different kinds of these beautiful animals. The largest -and finest is known as Grévy's zebra, which is found in the mountains of -Somaliland. It has many more stripes than the other two, while the -ground color is quite white. The smallest is the mountain zebra, which -is only about as big as a good-sized pony, and has its legs striped -right down to the hoofs. This is now a very scarce animal, being only -found in one or two mountainous districts in South Africa, where no one -is allowed to interfere with it. And between the two is the Burchell's -zebra, which is about as large as a small horse, and has its legs white, -with only a very few markings. This animal is quite common in many parts -of the South African plains, and has often been domesticated, and taught -to draw carriages and carts. Indeed, in some districts of Southern -Africa, a coach drawn by a team of zebras instead of horses is not a -very uncommon sight. - -You would think that an animal, colored like the zebra would be very -easily seen, even by night, wouldn't you? But strange to say, these -creatures are almost invisible from a distance of even a few yards. -Indeed, hunters say that they have often been so close to a zebra at -night that they could hear him breathing, yet have been quite unable to -see him! - -This seems to be due to his stripes, for it has been found that while a -pony can be easily seen from forty or fifty yards away on a moonlight -night, it at once becomes invisible if it is clothed with ribbons in -such a way as to resemble the stripes of the zebra! - -Zebras are generally found in herds, and they have a curious habit of -traveling about in company with a number of brindled gnus and ostriches, -which all seem to be as friendly as possible together. - - -THE QUAGGA - -The quagga, which became extinct some time ago, never had a very -extended range, but once it existed in great numbers on all the upland -plains of Cape Colony to the west of the Kei River, and in the open -treeless country lying between the Orange and Vaal rivers. North of the -Vaal it appears to have been unknown. - -The quagga seems to have been nearly allied to Burchell's -zebra--especially to the most southerly form of that species--but was -much darker in general color. Instead of being striped over the whole -body, it was only strongly banded on the head and neck, the dark brown -stripes becoming fainter on the shoulders and dying away in spots and -blotches. On the other hand, in size and build, in the appearance of its -mane, ears, and tail, and in general habits, it seems to have nearly -resembled its handsomer relative. The barking neigh "qua-ha-ha, -qua-ha-ha" seems, too, to have been the same in both species. The -Dutch word quagga is pronounced in South Africa "qua-ha" and is of -Hottentot origin, an imitation of the animal's neighing call. To-day -Burchell's zebras are invariably called qua-has by both Boers and -British colonists. - - -WILD ASSES - -The true asses are without stripes on the head, neck, and body, with the -exception of a dark streak down the back from the mane to the tail, -which is present in all members of the group, and in some cases a dark -band across the shoulders and irregular markings on the legs. - -In Africa the wild ass is only found in the desert regions of the -northeastern portion of that continent. It is a fine animal, standing -between thirteen and fourteen hands at the shoulder. It lives in small -herds or families of four or five individuals, and is not found in -mountainous districts, but frequents low stony hills and arid desert -wastes. It is as a general rule an alert animal and difficult to -approach, and so fleet and enduring that excepting in the case of foals -and mares heavy in young, it cannot be overtaken even by a well-mounted -horseman. Notwithstanding the scanty nature of the herbage in the -districts they frequent, these desert-bred asses are always in good -condition. They travel long distances to water at night, but appear to -require to drink regularly. Their flesh is eaten by the natives of the -Soudan. The bray of the African wild ass, it is said, cannot easily be -distinguished from that of the domesticated animal, which is undoubtedly -descended from this breed. - -In Asia three varieties of the wild ass are found, which were formerly -believed to represent three distinct species; but all the local races of -the Asiatic wild ass are now considered to belong to one species, and it -is to them that reference is made in the description on pages 196 and -197. - -These wild asses have a wide range, and are met with from Syria to -Persia and Western India, and northward throughout the more arid -portions of Central Asia. Like their African relatives, the wild asses -of Asia are inhabitants of waste places, frequenting desert plains and -wind-swept steppes. They are said to be as fleet and enduring as the -others. - -The wild asses of the desert plains of India and Persia are said to be -very wary and difficult to approach, but the kiang of Tibet is always -spoken of as a much more confiding animal, its curiosity being so great -that it will frequently approach to within a short distance of any -unfamiliar object, such as a sportsman, engaged in stalking other game. - -Asiatic wild asses usually live in small families of four or five, but -sometimes congregate in herds. Their food consists of various grasses in -the low-lying portions of their range, but of woody plants on the high -plateaus, where little else is to be obtained. Of wild asses in general -the late Sir Samuel Baker once said: "Those who have seen donkeys only -in their civilized state can have no conception of the wild or original -animal; it is the perfection of activity and courage." - - -THE HORSE - -Like the wild camels, genuine wild horses are very generally believed to -be extinct. The vast herds which occur to-day in a wild state in -Europe, America, and Australia are to be regarded, say those who believe -in the extinction theory, as descended from domesticated animals which -have run wild. So far as the American and Australian horses are -concerned, this is no doubt true; but of the European stocks it is by no -means so certain. However, without giving you any theory of our own, we -will quote at some length from an interesting and instructive chapter on -the horse by A. B. Buckley. - -"There rose before my mind the level grass-covered pampas of South -America, where wild horses share the boundless plains with troops of the -rhea, or American ostrich, and wander, each horse with as many mares as -he can collect, in companies of hundreds or even thousands in a troop. -These horses are now truly wild, and live freely from youth to age, -unless they are unfortunate enough to be caught in the more inhabited -regions by the lasso of the hunter. In the broad pampas, the home of -herds of wild cattle, they dread nothing. There, as they roam with one -bold stallion as their leader, even beasts of prey hesitate to approach -them, for, when they form into a dense mass with the mothers and young -in their center, their heels deal blows which even the fierce jaguar -does not care to encounter, and they trample their enemy to death in a -very short time. Yet these are not the original wild horses; they are -the descendants of tame animals, brought from Europe by the Spaniards to -Buenos Aires in 1535, whose descendants have regained their freedom on -the boundless pampas and prairies. - -"As I was picturing them careering over the plains, another scene -presented itself and took their place. Now I no longer saw around me -tall pampas-grass with the long necks of the rheas appearing above it, -for I was on the edge of a dreary, scantily covered plain between the -Aral Sea and the Balkash Lake in Tartary. To the south lies a barren -sandy desert, to the north the fertile plains of the Kirghiz steppes, -where the Tartar feeds his flocks, and herds of antelopes gallop over -the fresh green pasture; and between these is a kind of no-man's land, -where low scanty shrubs and stunted grass seem to promise but a poor -feeding-ground. - -"Yet here the small long-legged but powerful tarpans, the wild horses -of the treeless plains of Russia and Tartary, were picking their morning -meal. Sturdy wicked little fellows they are, with their shaggy -light-brown coats, short wiry manes, erect ears, and fiery watchful -eyes. They might well be supposed to be true wild horses, whose -ancestors had never been tamed by man; and yet it is more probable that -even they escaped in early times from the Tartars, and have held their -own ever since, over the grassy steppes of Russia and on the confines of -the plains of Tartary. Sometimes they live almost alone, especially on -the barren wastes where they have been seen in winter, scraping the snow -off the herbage. At other times, as in the south of Russia, where they -wander between the Dnieper and the Don, they gather in vast herds and -live a free life, not fearing even the wolves, which they beat to the -ground with their hoofs. From one green oasis to another they travel -over miles of ground. - - 'A thousand horse--and none to ride! - With flowing tail and flying mane, - Wide nostrils--never stretched by pain, - Mouths bloodless to the bit or rein, - And feet that iron never shod, - And flanks unscarred by spur or rod, - A thousand horse, the wild, the free, - Like waves that follow o'er the sea.'[A] - - [A] Byron's "Mazeppa." - -"As I followed them in their course I fancied I saw troops of yet -another animal of the horse tribe, the kulan, or _Equus hemionus_, -which is a kind of half horse, half ass, living on the Kirghiz steppes -of Tartary and spreading far beyond the range of the tarpan into Tibet. -Here at last we have a truly wild animal, never probably brought into -subjection by man. The number of names he possesses shows how widely he -has spread. The Tartars call him kulan, the Tibetans kiang, while the -Mongolians give him the unpronounceable name of dschiggetai. He will not -submit to any of them, but if caught and confined soon breaks away again -to his old life, a 'free and fetterless creature.' - -[Illustration: WILD RELATIVES OF THE HORSE. - - 1. Northern or Grévy's Zebra. 2. Abyssinian Ass. - 3. Southern (or Burchell's) Zebra. 4. Przwalsky's Central-Asian Horse.] - -"No one has ever yet settled the question whether he is a horse or an -ass, probably because he represents an animal truly between the two. His -head is graceful, his body light, his legs slender and fleet, yet his -ears are long and ass-like; he has narrow hoofs, and a tail with a tuft -at the end like all the ass tribe; his color is a yellow brown, and he -has a short dark mane and a long dark stripe down his back as a donkey -has. Living often on the high plateaus, sometimes as much as fifteen -hundred feet above the sea, this 'child of the steppes' travels in large -companies even as far as the rich meadows of Central Asia; in summer -wandering in green pastures, and in winter seeking the hunger-steppes -where sturdy plants grow. And when Autumn comes the young steeds go off -alone to the mountain heights to survey the country around and call -wildly for mates, whom, when found, they will keep close to them through -all the next year, even though they mingle with thousands of others. - -"Till recent years the _Equus hemionus_ was the only truly wild -horse known, but in the winter of 1879-80 the Russian traveler -Przhevalsky brought back from Central Asia a much more horse-like -animal, called by the Tartars kertag, and by the Mongols statur. It is a -clumsy, thick-set, whitish-gray creature with strong legs and a large, -heavy, reddish-colored head; its legs have a red tint down to the knees, -beyond which they are blackish down to the hoofs. But the ears are -small, and it has the broad hoofs of the true horse, and warts on the -hind legs, which no animal of the ass tribe has. This horse, like the -kiang, travels in small troops of from five to fifteen, led through the -wildest parts of the Dsungarian desert, between the Altai and Tian-Shan -Mountains, by an old stallion. They are extremely shy, and see, hear, -and smell very quickly, so that they are off like lightning whenever -anything approaches them. - -"So having traveled over America, Europe, and Asia, was my quest ended? -No; for from the dreary Asiatic deserts my thoughts wandered to a far -warmer and more fertile land, where between the Blue Nile and the Red -Sea rise the lofty highlands of Abyssinia, among which the African wild -ass, the probable ancestor of our donkeys, feeds in troops on the rich -grasses of the slopes, and then onward to the bank of a river in Central -Africa where on the edge of a forest, with rich pastures beyond, -elephants and rhinoceroses, antelopes and buffaloes, lions and hyenas, -creep down in the cool of the evening to slake their thirst in the -flowing stream. There I saw the herds of zebras in all their striped -beauty coming down from the mountain regions to the north, and mingling -with the darker-colored but graceful quaggas from the southern plains, -and I half grieved at the thought how these untamed and free rovers are -being slowly but surely surrounded by man closing in upon them on every -side. - -"I might now have traveled still farther in search of the onager, or -wild ass of the Asiatic and Indian deserts, but at this point a more -interesting and far wider question presented itself, as I flung myself -down on the moor to ponder over the early history of all these tribes. - -"Where have they all come from? Where shall we look for the =first= -ancestors of these wild and graceful animals? For the answer to this -question I had to travel back to America, to those Western United States -where Professor Marsh has made such grand discoveries in horse history. -For there, in the very country where horses were supposed never to have -been before the Spaniards brought them a few centuries ago, we have now -found the true birthplace of the equine race. - -"Come back with me to a time so remote that we cannot measure it even by -hundred of thousands of years, and let us visit the territories of Utah -and Wyoming. Those highlands were very different then from what they are -now. Just risen out of the seas of the Cretaceous Period, they were then -clothed with dense forests of palms, tree-ferns, and screw-pines, -magnolias and laurels, interspersed with wide-spreading lakes, on the -margins of which strange and curious animals fed and flourished. There -were large beasts with teeth like the tapir and the bear, and feet like -the elephant; and others far more dangerous, half bear, half hyena, -prowling around to attack the clumsy paleotherium or the anoplotherium, -something between a rhinoceros and a horse, which grazed by the -waterside, while graceful antelopes fed on the rich grass. And among -these were some little animals no bigger than foxes, with four toes and -a splint for the fifth, on their front feet, and three toes on the hind -ones. - -"These clumsy little animals, whose bones have been found in the rocks -of Utah and Wyoming, have been called _Eohippus_, or horse of the -dawn, by naturalists. They were animals with real toes, yet their bones -and teeth show that they belonged to the horse tribe, and already the -fifth toe common to most other toed animals was beginning to disappear. - -"This was in the Eocene Period, and before it passed away with its -screw-pines and tree-ferns, another rather larger animal, called -_Orohippus_, had taken the place of the small one, and he had only -four toes on his front feet. The splint had disappeared, and as time -went on still other animals followed, always with fewer toes, while they -gained slender fleet legs, together with an increase in size and in -gracefulness. First one as large as a sheep (_Mesohippus_) had only -three toes and a splint. Then the splint again disappeared, and one -large and two dwindling toes only remained, till finally these two -became mere splints, leaving one large toe or hoof with almost -imperceptible splints, which may be seen on the fetlock of a horse's -skeleton. - -"You must notice that a horse's foot really begins at the point which we -call his knee in the front legs, and at his hock in his hind legs. His -true knee and elbow are close up to the body. What we call his foot or -hoof is really the end of the strong, broad, middle toe covered with a -hoof, and farther up his foot we can feel two small splints, which are -remains of two other toes. - -"Meanwhile, during these long succeeding ages while the foot was -lengthening out into a slender limb, the animals became larger, more -powerful, and more swift, the neck and head became longer and more -graceful, the brain-case larger in front, and the teeth decreased in -number, so that there is now a large gap between the biting teeth and -the grinding teeth of a horse. Their slender limbs too became more -flexible and fit for running and galloping, till we find the whole -skeleton the same in shape, though not in size, as in our own horses and -asses now. - -"They did not, however, during all this time remain confined to America, -for, from the time when they arrived at an animal called -_Miohippus_, or lesser horse, which came after _Mesohippus_ -and had only three toes on each foot, we find their remains in Europe, -where they lived in company with the giraffes, opossums, and monkeys -which roamed over these parts in those ancient times. Then a little -later we find them in Africa and India; so that the horse tribe, -represented by creatures about as large as donkeys, had spread far and -wide over the world. - -"And now, curiously enough, they began to forsake, or to die out in, the -land of their birth. Why they did so we do not know; but while in the -old world as asses, quaggas, and zebras, and probably horses, they -flourished in Asia, Europe, and Africa, they certainly died out in -America, so that ages afterward, when that land was discovered, no -animal of the horse tribe was found in it. - -"And the true horse, where did he arise? Born and bred probably in -Central Asia from some animal like the kulan, or the kertag, he proved -too useful to savage tribes to be allowed his freedom, and it is -doubtful whether in any part of the world he escaped subjection. In -England he probably roamed as a wild animal till the savages, who fed -upon him, learned in time to put him to work; and when the Romans came -they found the Britons with fine and well-trained horses. - -"Yet though tamed and made to know his master, he has, as we have seen, -broken loose again in almost all parts of the world--in America on the -prairies and pampas, in Europe and Asia on the steppes, and in Australia -in the bush. And even in Great Britain, where so few patches of -uncultivated land still remain, the young colts of Dartmoor, Exmoor, and -Shetland, though born of domesticated mothers, seem to assert their -descent from wild and free ancestors as they throw out their heels and -toss up their heads with a shrill neigh, and fly against the wind with -streaming manes and outstretched tails as the kulan, the tarpan, and the -zebra do in the wild desert or grassy plain." - - - - -CHAPTER XVII - -THE ELEPHANTS, RHINOCEROSES, HIPPOPOTAMUSES, AND WILD SWINE - - -There are three reasons, perhaps, why elephants interest us so greatly. - -The first is their enormous size. They are by far the largest of all the -animals which live upon land. "Jumbo," for instance, the famous African -elephant that we in the United States saw in the last century, was -nearly twelve feet in height, and weighed more than six tons. A height -of ten feet is quite common. - -Next, there is their wonderful docility. When wild, no doubt, they are -often very fierce and savage. Yet they are easily tamed; and it is a -strange sight to see one of these giant creatures walking about with a -load of children upon its back, and meekly obeying the lightest word of -a man whom it could crush to death in a moment by simply placing its -foot upon him. - -And then, once more, there is that marvelous trunk, so strong that it -can tear down great branches from the trees, and yet so delicate that it -can pick up the smallest scrap of food from the ground. When the -elephant wishes to feed, it seizes the food with its trunk and pokes it -into its mouth. When it wishes to drink, it fills the same organ with -water, and then squirts the contents down its throat. If it should be -hot, it can take a shower-bath by squirting water over its body instead. -And it breathes through its trunk and smells with it as well. So this -wonderful member is used for a great many different purposes. - -As it is so valuable, the elephant takes very great care of its trunk, -always curling it up out of harm's way, for example, if it should find -itself in any danger. - -Two different kinds of elephants are known, one of which is found in -Africa and the other in Asia. - - -THE AFRICAN ELEPHANT - -You can easily tell the African elephant by the great size of his ears, -which are so large that a man might almost hide himself behind one of -them. "Jumbo's" ear, indeed, measured no less than five feet five inches -from side to side. When the animal is excited these enormous ears stand -out at right angles to the head. Then the legs are much longer than -those of the Indian elephant, while the trunk, instead of having one -finger-like projection at the tip, has two, one in front and one behind. -Both the male and female animal, as a rule, possess tusks, while in -Indian elephants these weapons are only occasionally present in the -male, and hardly ever in the female. - -The tusks of the male elephant, however, are always much larger than -those of his mate, and sometimes they grow to a very great size. A -length of nine feet is not very uncommon, while tusks ten feet long, or -even more, have sometimes been recorded. Generally one tusk is several -inches shorter than the other, having been worn down in digging for the -roots on which the animal is fond of feeding; for elephants seem to dig -with one of the tusks only, and never with both. - -The ivory of which these tusks are composed is so valuable that the -African elephant has been most terribly persecuted, and in many -districts where it was formerly plentiful it has disappeared altogether. -It lives as a rule in herds, which seek the thickest parts of the forest -during the day, and come out at night to search for food and water. And -even a small herd of elephants will sometimes do a great deal of damage, -for they will uproot trees eighteen or even twenty feet high, in order -to feed upon the foliage of the upper branches, or snap off the stems -quite close to the ground. When the tree is a large one, it is said that -two elephants will unite in breaking it down. - -You would think that a herd of elephants would be very conspicuous even -in the thick forest, wouldn't you? Yet all hunters unite in saying that -as long as they remain still it is almost impossible to see them, while -they make their way through the bushes so silently that even -when they are moving it is not at all easy to hear them. - - -THE INDIAN ELEPHANT - -This elephant seldom exceeds nine feet in height at the shoulder, -although larger examples are sometimes found. It lives in the thick -jungle in herds of forty or fifty, which sometimes wander by night into -cultivated ground, and do terrible damage to the crops. Now and then, -however, a male elephant will live entirely alone. These solitary -animals are always very fierce, and will rush out and attack any one who -may pass by. For this reason they are known as "rogues." - -The Indian elephant is very often tamed, and is taught to perform all -kinds of heavy work, such as dragging timber or piling logs. It is also -used for riding, a howdah with several seats being placed upon its back, -while it is guided by a native driver, called a mahout, who sits upon -its neck and directs its movements by means of a spiked hook. It is -largely employed, too, in hunting the tiger. But for this purpose it has -to be most carefully trained, for elephants are naturally very much -afraid of tigers, and even after a long course of instruction will -sometimes take to flight when the furious animal springs at them with -open jaws and eyes flaming with rage. - -Elephants in India are mostly captured by being driven into a large -keddah, or enclosure of stout posts, from which they are unable to make -their escape. In this way a large herd of the huge animals are often -taken prisoners together. - -Next in size to the elephants are the great creatures known as -rhinoceroses, which are found both in Africa and in Asia. Five different -kinds are known altogether, but we shall only be able to tell you about -two. - - -THE INDIAN RHINOCEROS - -In this animal the hide falls into great folds upon the shoulders and in -front of the thighs, while there are smaller folds upon the neck and the -hind quarters. The sides of the body are marked with a large -number of round projections, sometimes as much as an inch in diameter, -which look very much like the rivets in the iron plates of a boiler. -When fully grown this animal stands rather over five feet in height at -the shoulder. - -The Indian rhinoceros has only one horn, which is generally about a foot -long. This horn, strange to say, is not connected in any way with the -bones of the skull, but is really a growth from the skin, although there -is a bony prominence under it on which it is set. By means of a sharp -knife, it could be cut away without difficulty. But it is a very -formidable weapon, and some of the rhinoceroses with longer horns have -been known to rush at a mounted hunter with lowered head, and then to -strike upward with such terrible force that the horn has actually -pierced the horse's body, and entered the thigh of the rider. Sometimes -a rhinoceros will rush along with its head bent downward so far that the -horn cuts a deep furrow in the ground. - -This animal is chiefly found in the swampy parts of the great -grass-jungles of India. It is very fond of taking a mud-bath, from which -it comes out with its whole body thickly caked with clay. This serves as -a great protection from flies and other insects, which persecute it -terribly, forcing their way under the thick folds of hide at the -shoulders and thighs, where the skin is thinner, and driving it nearly -mad by the irritation of their bites. - -In spite of its great size this rhinoceros is a rather timid animal, and -nearly always runs away when it is attacked. But if it is wounded or -brought to bay it becomes a terrible foe, charging with fury again and -again, and striking savagely with its horn, and sometimes with its tusks -as well. - -The African rhinoceroses are without the folds of skin which are found -in the Indian species, and have two horns on the head instead of one. -Sometimes these horns are of very great length. We have seen a -walking-stick that might serve a very tall man, which was cut from the -core of such a horn. - - -THE COMMON RHINOCEROS - -This is the better known of the two African species, and is found in -almost all the wilder districts from Abyssinia to Cape Colony. It lives -in the thickest parts of the forest, breaking away the bushes and the -lower branches of the trees so as to leave a clear space perhaps fifteen -or twenty feet in diameter. These retreats are called rhinoceros-houses, -and the animals remain in them during the heat of the day. - -The common rhinoceros is wonderfully quick and active for so large and -heavy an animal, and is said to be able to overtake a man riding a fast -horse. But it does not seem, as a rule, to be savage in disposition, and -very seldom attacks a human foe. One great hunter tells us that although -many rhinoceroses have advanced toward him to within twenty or thirty -yards, they always ran away if he threw stones at them, or even if he -waved his arms and shouted. When wounded, however, they will sometimes -attack furiously. But they never think of looking for their enemy in a -tree, and if he can climb on to a bough even three or four feet from the -ground he is perfectly safe. - - -THE HYRAX - -Oddly enough, one of the animals most closely related to the -rhinoceroses is much more like a rabbit, and actually lives in burrows -in the ground. This is the hyrax, or coney, as it is called in the -Bible, which almost anybody would mistake at first sight for a rodent. -Yet when one comes to look at its front teeth he sees at once that -instead of having flat, sharp edges, like a chisel, they are pointed; -and these teeth do not continue to grow all through life, like those of -the rodent animals. And besides this there are several other points in -its bodily structure which show us that it really is a relation of the -rhinoceroses. - -About fourteen different kinds of hyrax are known, some of which are -found in Africa, and the others in Arabia, Syria, and Palestine. They -all live in rocky districts high up on the sides of mountains, a great -number making their burrows close to one another, just as rabbits do in -a warren. They are very active and sure of foot, and scamper up and down -the sides of the rocks with the greatest ease. It is difficult to watch -them, however, for they are so shy that they will not leave -their holes if they think that any one can see them, while they only -come out to feed at night and very early in the morning. Sometimes, it -is true, they will lie out on the rocks during the day, enjoying the hot -sunshine. But one of them is always appointed to act as a sentinel, and -as soon as he notices the slightest sign of danger he gives the alarm, -and then they all disappear into their holes. - -[Illustration: PACHYDERMS AND TAPIR. - - 1. African Elephant. 2. African Rhinoceros. - 3. East African Hippopotamus. 4. Malayan Tapir.] - - -TAPIRS - -Very odd-looking animals are the tapirs, which are found both in Central -and South America, and also in some of the islands of the Malay -Archipelago. They are about as large as donkeys, but look more like very -big pigs. On the neck is a short, stiff, upright mane of black hairs, -and the upper lip is lengthened out into a kind of trunk, something like -that of an elephant, but on a very much smaller scale, and without the -odd finger-like organ at the tip. - -These curious animals live in thick forests near the banks of great -rivers, and come out from their retreats chiefly by night. By constantly -traveling backward and forward they make regular pathways through the -thickets. They swim very well, and are fond of gamboling in the water, -and also of rolling about on the muddy banks. But they are so timid that -it is very difficult to watch them; and it is said that they will run -away in terror from even a tiny dog. - -But if a mother tapir thinks that her little one is in danger she seems -to lose all sense of fear, and will even dash at a man and try to knock -him down. And if she succeeds she will trample upon him and even bite -him, just like the wild swine. - -In America the great enemy of the tapirs is the jaguar, which springs -upon them unexpectedly, and generally succeeds in tearing them to the -ground. But sometimes they manage to escape either by rushing at once -into the very thickest bushes, which sweep away their terrible enemy -from his hold, or else by plunging into the water, when he is obliged to -loose his grip for fear of being drowned. - -The American tapirs are sooty brown in color, but that which is found in -the Malayan Islands is white on the sides and the hinder parts of the -body, while the young animal is spotted and streaked with white all -over. - - -THE HIPPOPOTAMUS - -The hippopotamus, or river-horse, is perhaps the most awkward and -ungainly animal in the world. His huge body almost touches the ground as -he waddles clumsily along, while his short stout legs are set so far -apart that they actually make a double track through the herbage. So you -can easily understand that when a herd of twenty or thirty of these -enormous creatures find their way into a plantation they do terrible -damage, eating a good deal, and trampling down far more than they eat. - -Then what tremendous mouths they have! When they open their jaws wide, -their heads really look as if they were splitting in two right down into -their necks. And they have a most formidable array of tusks and teeth, -arranged in such a manner that they mow down the herbage almost like the -blade of a scythe. - -The hippopotamus is a native of Africa, and is found in great numbers in -many of the rivers and lakes. It spends a great deal of its time in the -water, often sinking its body so low that only its nostrils appear above -the surface. And it can dive for eight or even ten minutes at a time, -without requiring to breathe. When it rises again it generally begins to -blow out the exhausted air from its lungs just before reaching the -surface, whereby a column of spray is forced up into the air, just as it -is by a whale when spouting. - -When a mother hippopotamus has a little one, she generally carries it -about on her back. - -A writer tells us that the first hippopotamus that was ever brought to -the London Zoo was caught when it was quite young, on one of the islands -in the White Nile. As its mother had gone away to feed, the hunter who -found it picked it up in his arms and ran off with it toward the boat. -The skin of these animals, however, is thickly covered with a kind of -natural oil, and the result was that the little creature was so slippery -that it wriggled out of his arms just as he reached the water's edge, -and plunged into the river. But luckily the boat-hook was lying close -by, and with this he struck at the escaping animal, gaffed it as one -does a fish, and succeeded in capturing it again with nothing more than -a wound in its thick skin, which very soon healed. After a great deal of -trouble it was safely brought to England, and lived in the Zoo for -twenty-nine years. - -Another kind of hippopotamus, called the pygmy hippopotamus, is found in -Western Africa. It is a very much smaller animal, being only about as -big as a good-sized pig. - - -SWINE - -Next on our list come the swine, among the most famous of which is the -wild boar. - -Until about the middle of the sixteenth century this animal was -plentiful in the British Isles, and it is still found commonly in the -great forests of Europe. It is one of the fiercest and most savage of -animals, for it does not seem to know what fear is, and will attack over -and over again, even after receiving the most severe wounds. And its -tusks are so sharp and powerful that they have been known to rip up the -body of a horse at a single stroke. When removed from the jaw these -tusks are generally about eight or nine inches long. - -In India, where wild boars are very plentiful, they generally make their -lair among thick bushes in some marshy district, and often do a great -deal of mischief to cultivated crops in the neighborhood. They are fond -of roots, too, which they grub out of the ground with their snouts, and -in hot summers, when the ponds dry up, they are said to dig in the mud -at the bottom in search of the fish which have buried themselves until -the rainy season. The old boars generally live by themselves, like -"rogue" elephants, but the younger ones and the sows go about together -in droves of fifteen or twenty, all of which, most likely, are members -of the same family. - - -THE BABIRUSA - -This is one of the most curious of the swine. It is found in the islands -of Celebes and Borneo. In the boar of this animal the tusks in both jaws -spring upward, and then curve toward the eyes, so that there is a sort -of fringe, as it were, of tusks all round the face. Sometimes the upper -pairs are thirteen or fourteen inches long, without counting the part -that is buried in the jaw. These, however, are not very useful as -weapons. But very severe wounds can be inflicted by the lower tusks, -although they are a good deal smaller, and an enraged babirusa is a most -formidable foe. - -When fully grown, the babirusa stands about three feet six inches in -height in the middle of the back, which is always very much arched. The -color of the skin is dark ashy gray. - - -THE WART-HOG - -The wart-hog, or vlack-vark, which is found in Eastern Africa, is -certainly the ugliest of all the swine. Its head is enormously large in -comparison with its body, the muzzle is very long and broad, under each -eye is a great wart-like lump, with two others a little distance below -it, and on each side of the mouth two great stout tusks spring upward. -Altogether, it would be very hard to imagine a more sullen and -ferocious-looking animal. - -It is not nearly so savage as the babirusa, however, and if it is -attacked it nearly always runs away, and tries to take refuge in some -hole in the ground, such as the deserted burrow of an ant-bear. When it -takes to ground in this way, it always turns round just before entering, -and backs in tail foremost. Sometimes, if two or three men stand just -over the burrow and jump heavily up and down in time together, it can be -induced to bolt. But it is advisable to do so with a good deal of -caution, for the animal has a singular way of turning a kind of back -somersault just as it leaves its burrow, which lands it upon the top, -just where the hunters would most likely be standing. And if they -are not very careful one of them at least is almost sure to receive a -slashing cut from the terrible tusks, which will certainly cause a -severe wound, and may even render him a cripple for life. - -When it is running away from a pursuer, and wishes to see whether it is -gaining upon him, the wart-hog presents a most ridiculous appearance, -for its neck is so short that it cannot turn its head round to look -behind it. So it lifts its snout straight up into the air instead and -looks over its shoulders. Besides this, it always carries its tail -perfectly stiff and upright. - - -PECCARIES - -In South America, and in Mexico and western Texas, the wild swine are -represented by the peccaries, of which there are two different kinds, -the collared peccary and the less common white-lipped peccary. They are -not very large animals, being only about three feet in length, and -weighing not more than fifty or sixty pounds; but they are nevertheless -very dangerous creatures, for three different reasons. - -In the first place, they travel about in packs, sometimes consisting of -thirty or forty animals, which all attack a foe together. In the second -place, although their tusks are not nearly so long as those of the -preceding animals, they are almost as sharp as razors, and can inflict -most terrible wounds. Thirdly, the animals know no fear, and will go on -savagely attacking any enemy, over and over again, until the last of -them is killed. So if a hunter should meet with a herd of peccaries in -the forest, even if he be armed with a gun, his only chance of escape is -to climb into a tree and to stay there till they go away. - -When a herd of peccaries is not very large--consisting, perhaps, of only -ten or twelve individuals--they are very fond of taking up their abode -in the hollow trunk of some fallen tree. In this case they can be very -easily destroyed, for one animal is always placed at the entrance to act -as a sentinel; and if a hunter conceals himself in some convenient place -close by, takes careful aim, and shoots the watching peccary dead upon -the spot, the animal behind him will just push out his carcass and take -his place, to be himself shot in like manner. In this way the whole -herd may be killed one after another. - -Peccaries will eat almost any kind of food, and though they live as a -rule in the thickest parts of the forests, they will often wander to -long distances in order to feed upon the crops in cultivated ground. -There they sometimes do an immense amount of damage, and as they -generally come during the night, and leave again before daybreak, it is -very difficult to trap or shoot them. - - - - -CHAPTER XVIII - -EDENTATES, OR TOOTHLESS MAMMALS - - -The animals which belong to this order are distinguished by having no -front teeth, while some of them have no teeth at all. And in many other -ways they are very curious and interesting creatures. - - -SLOTHS - -The sloths live almost entirely in the trees, scarcely ever descending -to the ground. Not only that, they walk along underneath the branches -instead of upon them, suspending themselves by means of their great -hooked claws. So they actually spend almost the whole of their lives -upside down, with their backs toward the ground! - -Yet they manage to travel along from bough to bough and from tree to -tree with some little speed, and when there is a high wind, so that the -branches are blown together, they will often wander for long distances. -And they never seem to get tired, although even during the night they -still hang suspended, just as they do during the day. - -Sloths are very odd-looking creatures, and if you were to see one of -them hanging from a bough in its native forests you would find it rather -hard to believe that it was really an animal at all. For it looks much -more like a bundle of twigs overgrown with lichens. And the strange -thing is that it really is covered with lichens, which grow upon its -long, coarse hairs just as they do on the twigs of the trees. These give -the fur of the sloth a curious green appearance, which disappears soon -after death, so that one never sees it in a stuffed specimen in a -museum. - -When a sloth is hungry, there is always plenty of food close by, for -it feeds only upon the leaves and fruits and the tender young shoots of -trees. And as there is plenty of moisture in these, it never requires to -drink at all. - -There are two different groups of these singular animals, the first -consisting of those which have three toes on the front feet, and the -other of those which have only two. They are only found in the great -forests of Central and South America. - - -ANT-EATERS - -Equally curious, although in quite a different way, are the ant-eaters, -or ant-bears, as they are sometimes called, the largest of which is the -great ant-eater of tropical America. - -When fully grown this animal is about four feet long, without counting -the tail, while it is about two feet high at the shoulder. And it has -two strange peculiarities. - -In the first place, its head is drawn out into a kind of long, narrow -beak, with the little round nostrils at the very tip. Then its tongue is -very long and worm-like, and is exceedingly sticky, so that when it is -swept to and fro among a number of ants, or other small insects, -hundreds of them adhere to it and are carried into the mouth. This is -the way in which the animal feeds, and if you go to look as the -ant-eater in a zoo you may often see it poke its long tongue down -between the boards at the bottom of its cage and bring up a cockroach -which had vainly been seeking a place of refuge. - -The other peculiarity is the enormous size of the tail, the hair of -which is so long that when it is carried over the back it completely -covers the whole of the body, and makes the animal look just like a -haycock. - -On its front feet the great ant-eater has very strong curved claws, with -which it tears open the nests of the insects on which it feeds. When it -is walking, of course, these claws are rather in its way, and it is -obliged to tread on the sides of its feet instead of on the soles. But -it manages, nevertheless, to shuffle along with some little speed, -although its movements are very far from being graceful. And sometimes -it uses them as weapons, for while it always tries to hug an enemy with -its powerful forearms and squeeze him to death, the claws often enter -his body and inflict a serious or even a fatal wound. - -When a mother ant-eater has a little one to take care of, she always -carries it about on her back, and only allows it to get down just now -and then in order to feed. - -There is another kind of ant-eater called the tamandua, which lives in -the trees and has a prehensile tail, just like that of a spider-monkey. -It is much smaller than the great ant-eater, and has a shorter and -stouter head, while its tail is scarcely as bushy as that of a Persian -cat. In color it is yellowish white, with a broad black patch which runs -from the neck to the hind quarters, and then widens out so as to cover -the whole of the flanks. The tip of the snout is also black. The animal, -like the preceding, is a native of tropical America. - - -THE ARMADILLOS - -These are remarkable for having their bodies almost entirely covered by -a kind of natural armor, which consists of several bony plates growing -in the skin. There are three of these plates altogether, one covering -the head and shoulders, another protecting the back, while the third -clothes the hind quarters. And they are fastened together by means of -bony rings, so that when the animal rolls itself into a ball no gap is -left between them. You know what a millepede or thousand-legs looks like -when it rolls itself up, don't you? Well, imagine a thousand-legs as big -as a football, and you will have a very good idea of an armadillo. - -These animals do not appear to be in the least inconvenienced by their -singular armor, and are able to run with considerable speed. They are -able to dig very well, too, by means of the large and powerful claws -with which their front feet are furnished, and it is said that if a man -on horseback sees an armadillo running by his side, and leaps to the -ground to secure it, he will nearly always find that it has succeeded in -burying itself before he is able to seize it. - -The six-banded armadillo is so called because the horny plate upon its -back is broken up into six separate bands, all of which, -however, are closely linked together by bony rings. Sometimes it is -called the weasel-headed armadillo, because its head is thought to be -rather like that of a weasel. It is about sixteen inches in length, -without including the tail, and is found in Brazil and Paraguay. - -The giant armadillo is very much larger, growing to the length of nearly -a yard from the tip of the snout to the root of the tail. It lives in -Brazil and Surinam, and feeds chiefly on ants and termites. - -One of the most interesting of these creatures is the odd little -pichiciago, which is only about five inches long, and has a pink shield -upon its back, and fur of snowy white. It is found in the western parts -of the Argentine Republic, in open sandy places, but nowhere seems to be -very plentiful. It digs in a most curious manner. First of all, it -scratches away for a minute or two with its front feet, just to loosen -the soil. Then, supporting itself partly on its front feet and partly on -its tail, it uses the hind feet with the most astonishing rapidity, so -that it sinks down into the ground as if by magic. And, strange to say, -it does not leave its burrow open behind it when it has gone in, but -carefully closes the entrance, ramming the earth hard by means of the -bony shield at the end of its body. - - -PANGOLINS - -Among other animals called ant-eaters are the pangolins, which are more -remarkable still. They are called scaly ant-eaters, because their heads, -bodies, and tails are covered with large, pointed oval scales, which -overlap one another very much like the tiles on the roof of a house. -When they are alarmed they coil themselves up into balls, just as most -of the armadillos do, and their muscles are so wonderfully strong that -it is quite impossible to unroll them. - -Seven different kinds of pangolins are known, four of which live in -Africa, and three in Asia. They all feed chiefly upon ants and termites, -which they catch by breaking down the walls of their nests, and licking -up the insects with their long, worm-like tongues as they run about in -confusion. They live either in crevices among rocks, or else in burrows -which they dig for themselves in the ground. Sometimes these burrows are -of very great size, that of the Indian pangolin often running for ten or -twelve feet downward into the ground, and having at the end a -sleeping-chamber at least five or six feet in diameter. - -When a pangolin comes to the edge of an overhanging rock, and wishes to -descend to the ground below, it coils itself up into a ball and then -rolls over, alighting on the edges of its scales just as a hedgehog does -upon its spines. In this way it can drop ten or fifteen feet without -receiving any injury. - -The different species of pangolin vary a good deal in size, but the -largest of them, the giant pangolin, is between four and five feet long -when fully grown, including the tail. - - -THE AARD-VARK - -This name means earth-pig, and has been given to the animal by the Boers -of South Africa, because in general appearance it is rather like a pig. -But then it has ears like those of a hare, and a muzzle and tongue like -those of an ant-eater, while all its feet are furnished with long and -stout claws. So that altogether it is a very odd-looking creature. - -The aard-vark feeds entirely upon termites and ants, and is nearly -always to be found where the nests of those insects are plentiful. It -digs with great rapidity, and is said to be able to burrow into the -ground faster than a man armed with a spade can dig it out. So it has no -difficulty in tearing a hole through the walls of the termites' and -ants' nests, and then it licks out the insects in thousands. - -During the daytime the aard-vark is hardly ever to be seen, for it lies -fast asleep in its burrow, which it seldom leaves till after sunset. -Before digging this burrow, it mostly scoops out quite a number of -half-finished ones, scraping a hole two or three feet in depth, and then -leaving it and beginning on another. Why it does this nobody seems to -know. - -In former days it was thought that the lion and the elephant were in the -habit of hunting the aard-vark together, the elephant flooding its -burrow, by means of a stream of water from his trunk, and the lion -pouncing upon the animal as it ran out. - -When fully grown the aard-vark is rather over six feet in total length, -about one third of which is occupied by the tail. The body is very -heavily and clumsily built, and the back is a good deal arched in the -middle. In color it is yellowish brown, with a tinge of red on the back -and sides, while the lower surface is rather paler. - - - - -CHAPTER XIX - -THE MARSUPIALS - - -The last order of mammals is a very curious one, for in most of the -animals which belong to it there is a large pouch on the lower part of -the body of the female, in which she carries her little ones about for -several weeks, or even several months, after they are born. That is why -these creatures are called marsupials, for marsupial means pouched. Even -after the little animals are quite able to take care of themselves they -will hurry back to their mother and jump into her pouch in moments of -danger. - -It is quite true that in a good many marsupials this pouch is wanting. -But traces of it are almost always to be found, although sometimes they -are so slight that only a very careful observer would be likely to -notice them. - -In earlier days marsupial animals lived in almost all parts of the -world, for there are very few countries in which their fossil remains -have not been discovered. But now they are almost entirely restricted to -Australia, the only exceptions being the opossums, which are found in -America. - - -KANGAROOS - -The largest, and in some respects the most interesting, of the -marsupials are the kangaroos. In some ways they are rather like gigantic -hares. But their front legs are so much smaller than the hinder ones -that they cannot run on all fours, but travel by means of a series of -leaps, skipping about, in fact, instead of running. And besides this -they have very long and stout tails, which serve to support them when -they are sitting upright, and also help them to balance their bodies -when they are leaping. - -The male kangaroo, which is often known as the "boomer," or as the "old -man," is very much larger than the female, sometimes attaining to a -total length of eight feet six inches, or even nine feet, nearly half -of which is occupied by the tail. But when he is sitting upright he is -nearly as tall as a tall man. The female is about two feet shorter. - -Although it is obliged to hop along instead of running, the kangaroo is -a very swift animal, and can only be run down by fast and powerful dogs. -At every leap it covers about fifteen feet of ground, the distances -between the holes which its great claws make in the ground being as -regular as if they had been marked out with a measuring-tape. - -These huge claws are very formidable weapons, and the kangaroo well -knows how to use them. As a rule it is a very timid animal, and when it -is attacked its first idea is always to seek safety in flight. But if it -is driven to bay it takes up its post with its back against a tree, so -that it cannot be approached from behind, and quietly awaits the -onslaught of its enemies. Then, as soon as one of them comes within -reach, it kicks suddenly out with one of its hind feet, delivering its -stroke with such force that the great sharp claw has been known to rip -up the body of a large dog from end to end, and to stretch the poor -beast dying upon the ground. For this reason hounds which are used in -kangaroo-hunting are made to wear collars of twisted steel chain, to -protect them from the stroke of their quarry. - -Sometimes, too, when a hunted kangaroo finds that it cannot escape -simply by speed, it will wade into a pool or river, wait till the dogs -swim up to it, and then seize them with its fore limbs one after -another, and hold them under water till they are drowned. Although they -are not large, these front limbs are wonderfully strong, and if even a -powerful man were to be embraced by them he would find it very difficult -to make his escape. - -The female kangaroo, however, is not nearly so well able to defend -herself, and sometimes she has been known, when chased by hounds, to lie -down and die simply from fear. But sometimes she escapes by taking a -sudden leap sideways into thick bushes, lying perfectly still until her -pursuers have rushed past her, and then making off in the opposite -direction. - -As the mother kangaroo hops about, the head of her little one, or -"joey," as it is called, may often be seen poking out of her pouch. And -she is so clever that if an enemy should appear when the "joey" is -playing on the ground or feeding, she will snatch it up and put it into -her pouch even while she is hopping away, without pausing for a moment -in her retreat. - -[Illustration: TYPES OF MARSUPIALS - - 1. Australian Sugar Squirrel. 2. American Opossum. - 3. Australian Echidna. 4. Australian Great Kangaroo. - 5. Tasmanian Devil.] - - -A JOYOUS MEETING - -Kangaroos are very affectionate animals, and a touching story is told of -a couple which lived together in captivity. They became the very best of -friends, but when they were sent from Australia to Philadelphia, they -had to travel by different ships. As soon as they were separated, they -became miserable, moping in their cages, refusing to take food, and -calling for each other all day long. "Jack," as the male was called, -reached Philadelphia first, and for a whole week seemed to be constantly -on the watch to see if "Flora," his mate, was coming. At last she -arrived, and both animals at once became madly excited, leaping in their -cages so wildly that at last they were put together, to prevent them -from injuring themselves against the bars. Then they cuddled up against -one another, licked each other with their tongues, and seemed so -overjoyed to meet that the keeper promised that they should never be -parted again. - - -VARIOUS SPECIES OF KANGAROOS - -Kangaroos generally live in droves, sometimes consisting of only a few -animals, sometimes of as many as a hundred and fifty, or even more. But -a "boomer" often lives during the greater part of the year quite alone, -like a "rogue" elephant. - -There are at least twenty-three different kinds of kangaroos, the -smaller ones being generally known as wallabies. And these are again -divided into large wallabies and small wallabies. - -The large wallabies are also called brush-kangaroos because they live in -the thick brushy jungle, called the bush, which occupies so large a part -of the Australian continent. The biggest of them is really quite a large -animal, for when fully grown it is six feet long, from the tip of the -muzzle to the end of the tail. Some of the small wallabies, however, are -very small, several of them being no bigger than rabbits. - -Then there are some of these animals which spend most of their life in -the trees and are called tree-kangaroos. Four of these creatures that -lived for some time in the London Zoo looked very odd as they sat on the -branches with their long tails hanging down behind them. But even when -they were on the floor of their cage one could not possibly mistake them -for ground-kangaroos, for their front limbs were almost as long as their -hind ones. - -The best known of these animals is found in Queensland. It spends the -day in sleep, only coming out from its retreat among the foliage when -darkness has set in, and it lives in the very thickest part of the bush, -which is hardly ever visited even by the natives. It does not seem to be -a very good climber, for it is rather slow in its movements, and appears -to be a little afraid of falling; for it clings so tightly to the branch -on which it is resting that it is difficult to force it to loose its -hold. - -The natives generally catch this curious kangaroo by climbing the tree -in which it is sleeping, jerking it from its perch by a violent pull at -its tail, and throwing it to the ground to be killed by the dogs below. -But if it reaches the ground unhurt it makes off with great speed, -hopping along with flying leaps like all the other members of the family. - - -KANGAROO-RATS - -These animals, often called potoroos, are quite small, even the largest -of them being scarcely as big as a rabbit. They do not jump so well as -the true kangaroos, and generally run on all fours in a kind of gallop. -But when they are at rest they sit upright on their hind quarters. - -One of these animals, known as the brush-tailed bettong, puts its tail -to a most curious use. It makes its nest of grasses and leaves in a -hollow in the ground, and when it is collecting materials for building, -it gathers them up into a bundle, twists the tip of its tail round them, -and then hops swiftly away, holding its little sheaf well away from its -body. It is a most clever little builder, for when it has chosen a -suitable hollow in the ground for its nest, it first of all enlarges it -until it is big enough for its requirements, and then weaves its -materials carefully together until the top of its little home is just on -a level with the herbage growing all round it. And whenever it goes in -or out, it pulls a tuft of grass over the entrance in order to prevent -it from being noticed. So well is the nest concealed, that you might -pass within a few feet and look straight at it without seeing it. - -This animal is also sometimes known as the jerboa-kangaroo. - - -THE SUGAR-SQUIRREL - -Among the Australian mammals we find a good many which are really -very much like those found in other parts of the world, and might -easily be mistaken for them if it were not for the presence of the -marsupial pouch. One of these is the curious sugar-squirrel, or -squirrel-petaurist, which is really very much like the flying squirrels -of Asia and North America. It has the skin of the sides and flanks -developed in just the same manner, and uses it in exactly the same way, -leaping from a lofty bough, spreading its limbs at right angles to its -body so that the skin is stretched out between them, and thus contriving -to skim for long distances through the air. And the big, bushy tail -serves partly to help it in keeping its balance, and partly to enable it -to keep a straight course. - -During the daytime sugar-squirrels are nearly always asleep in a hollow -tree, or in some other convenient retreat. But as soon as it grows dark -they all come out from their hiding-places and begin to frisk about, and -to leap from tree to tree, with the utmost activity. After a time they -will stop, in order to search for insects, or to feast upon the honey -which they find in the blossoms of the trees. But very shortly they -recommence their gambols, and so they go on, alternately playing and -feeding, till the dawn. - -The sugar-squirrel is a very pretty little creature, the fur being -brownish gray above, with a black stripe along the back, and a rich -brown edging to the umbrella-like skin of the sides. The lower parts -of the body are nearly white, and the tail is brown above and white -beneath. In length it is about nineteen or twenty inches, rather more -than half of which is occupied by the tail. - - -AUSTRALIAN BEAR - -There is an animal, much like a small bear, that is often known as the -Australian bear, although its proper name is the koala. When fully grown -it is about as big as a poodle. It has a stoutly built body, very short -legs, large and almost square ears, with a fringe of stiff hairs round -the edges, and no visible tail, while the fur is very thick and woolly. -In color it is ashy gray above and yellowish white under the body. - -The koala spends most of its life in the trees. Yet it is not a very -good climber, for its movements are curiously slow, and it always seems -to feel in danger of falling. On the ground it is slower and more -awkward still, for its feet are much more suited for grasping a branch -than for use upon a level surface. But it does not often come down from -the trees unless it wishes to drink, or to vary its diet of leaves and -buds by digging for roots. - -When a mother koala has a little one to take care of, she always carries -it about on her back, and even when it is nearly half as big as she is -it may sometimes be seen riding pickaback. - -The koala is a very gentle animal, and even when it is captured it -seldom attempts to scratch or bite. But sometimes it gets in a great -passion over nothing at all, and shows its teeth and yells and screams -in such a threatening manner that any one who did not know how harmless -it really is would most likely be afraid of it. - -Owing to the fact that it spends so much of its life in the trees, this -animal is sometimes called the Australian monkey; and it is curious to -find that it has pouches in its cheek in which it can store away food, -just as many of the true monkeys have. - - -THE WOMBAT - -The wombat might easily be mistaken for a rodent, for its front teeth -are formed almost exactly like those of the rabbit and the rat. But as -it possesses a marsupial pouch, there can be no doubt of the order it -really belongs to. It is not at all a handsome animal. In fact, it is -fat, awkward, clumsy, and heavy--something like a much overgrown -guinea-pig--and it seems to spend its whole life in eating and sleeping. -It can dig very well, however, and makes deep burrows in the ground, -with a large sleeping-chamber at the end. If in captivity, it will often -make its escape by digging its way out under the walls. - -When fully grown the wombat is about three feet in length, and its legs -are so short that its body almost touches the ground as it waddles -awkwardly along. Like the koala, it is very gentle in disposition, and -hardly even struggles when it is captured, although it is subject to -sudden fits of passion. If it is kept as a pet, it soon becomes very -affectionate, and likes to go to sleep on its owner's knees, like a cat. - -In color this animal is dark grayish brown. It is found in New South -Wales, Victoria, and South Australia. - - -THE BANDICOOTS - -There are about a dozen different kinds of these very odd-looking -animals. Perhaps we can best describe them by saying that if you can -imagine a rat with a snout drawn out like that of a shrew, very large -ears, three very long toes with still longer claws on each foot, -together with two toes with no claws at all, and a rather short, hairy -tail--then that is what a bandicoot looks like. - -Owing to the very odd way in which their feet are formed, bandicoots -cannot run like other animals, but travel along by means of a curious -mixture of running and jumping. They are common in most parts of -Australia--so common, in fact, that they are generally regarded as a -great nuisance. For they do a terrible amount of mischief both in -gardens and in cultivated fields, feeding both upon grain and fruits, as -well as upon the roots and bulbs which they scratch up out of the -ground. During the daytime they are hardly ever seen, for they hide away -in holes in the ground, or in hollow trees, and remain fast asleep till -after sunset. Some of them, however, make nests of dry leaves and -grasses which are so cleverly concealed among the herbage that it is -very difficult to find them. - - -THE TASMANIAN WOLF - -There are certain marsupial animals which look as though they belonged -to the dog and cat tribes. They are called dasyures, and are beasts of -prey. One of these is the Tasmanian wolf, or thylacine, as it is often -called, which is so wolf-like both in appearance and habits that it -fully deserves its name. But you can tell it from the true wolves at a -glance by the dark, zebra-like stripes upon its back, and also by its -long slender tail, which tapers down almost to a point. It is also known -as the zebra-wolf and the tiger-wolf. - -The Tasmanian wolf used to be very common indeed, for it was the most -powerful of all the Tasmanian animals, so that it had no natural foes, -while it was very seldom killed by the natives. But when white settlers -came to live in the country they found that it killed so many of their -sheep that it was necessary for them to do all that they could to -destroy it. So numbers of Tasmanian wolves were shot, and numbers more -were caught in traps, and by degrees the animal was driven back, until -now it is only found in wild and rocky districts among the mountains, -which are scarcely ever trodden by the foot of man. - -There are very few of the Australian animals which do not fall victims -to this fierce and savage creature. Even kangaroos are killed by it at -times. And it has been known to destroy and devour the echidna, which is -something like a small porcupine. But besides feeding upon living prey, -it will feed heartily upon any carrion that it may find, and will also -prowl about on the sea-shore in search of the various dead animals which -are flung up by the waves. - -The Tasmanian wolf is a nocturnal animal, remaining hidden all day long -in some deep recess among the rocks, into which no ray of sunshine can -ever penetrate. It does not like the daylight at all, and seems most -uneasy if it is brought out from its retreat. And, strange to say, it -has a kind of inner eyelid, which it draws across its eyes every moment -or two in order to keep out the light as much as possible. - - -THE TASMANIAN DEVIL - -Just as the Tasmanian wolf is like a dog, so the Tasmanian devil is like -a small bear--and a very wild, fierce, savage bear, too. Its name has -been given to it on account of its disposition, and there is perhaps no -animal which it is so difficult to tame. No matter how kindly it is -treated, it is always sullen and always ferocious. It will fly at the -very hand that gives it food. If you merely look at it as it lies in its -cage, it will dash furiously at the bars with its teeth bared, uttering -yells and screams of passion. You cannot help feeling that it would tear -you to pieces if only it had the chance. And its teeth are so sharp and -its jaws are so powerful, that there are very few dogs which could -overcome it in fair fight. - -The Tasmanian devil has its eyes protected just as the Tasmanian wolf -has, and like that animal it is seldom seen abroad by day. It is -extremely mischievous, for night after night it will visit the -hen-roosts and the sheepfolds, not only preying upon the poultry and the -young lambs, but seeming to kill for the very sake of killing. So it has -been almost as greatly persecuted as the Tasmanian wolf, and has -altogether disappeared from many districts where it used to be -plentiful, while in many others it is very seldom found. - -In size the Tasmanian devil is about as big as a badger, and in color it -is dull sooty black, with a white collar-like streak on the lower part -of the throat. - -Then the larger dasyures may be compared to cats, to which they are just -about equal in size. In Tasmania, indeed, they are called wild cats. -They live in trees, sleeping in hollows in the trunks during the day, -and prowling about in search of prey by night. And they are almost as -mischievous in poultry yards as the Tasmanian devil. But then, on the -other hand, they will learn to catch rats and mice if they are tamed and -trained, just as a cat will. - -There are several different kinds of these animals, but they all agree -in having grayish or grayish-brown fur, with a number of white spots on -the sides of the body. - - -POUCHED MICE - -Very pretty and graceful little creatures are these. There are a good -many different kinds of them. They are all small, the largest of them -being no bigger than a half-grown rat, while some of them are not equal -in size even to an ordinary mouse. And as they breed very freely, and -have quite a number of little ones at every birth, they are among the -most plentiful of all the Australian mammals. - -Pouched mice always spend much of their time in the trees, where they -seem quite as contented as they do on the ground. They run up and down -the trunk with the greatest activity, scamper along the branches, leap -from one bough to another, and never seem to miss their footing. And -they are continually poking their sharp little muzzles into the cracks -and crevices of the bark in order to search for tiny insects and -spiders. Their habits are not very much like those of mice, and one -cannot help thinking that they ought to be called pouched shrews. - - -THE MYRMECOBIUS, OR BANDED ANT-EATER - -This marsupial ant-eater is found in Southern and Western Australia. It -is a prettily marked little animal of about the same size as a squirrel, -with a pointed snout, a long slender body, and a rather long and bushy -tail. In color it is dark chestnut brown above and white below, while a -number of white stripes run across the hinder part of the back and -loins, beginning just behind the shoulders, and ending a little above -the root of the tail. - -The myrmecobius lives principally on the ground. But it is a very good -climber nevertheless, and can ascend trees and run about on the branches -with considerable activity. It feeds on ants and termites, catching them -by means of its long and worm-like tongue, which is so sticky that the -insects adhere to it as soon as they are touched. The marsupial pouch is -almost entirely wanting, so that one might almost be led to -suppose that the animal must be a true ant-eater. But then the -ant-eaters have no teeth at all, while the myrmecobius has no less than -fifty-two, or more than any other mammal with the exception of one or -two members of the whale tribe and the armadillo. - -This curious and pretty little animal is very gentle in disposition, and -never seems to bite or scratch even if it is taken prisoner. It makes -its home either in the decaying trunk of a fallen tree, or else in a -hole in the ground. - - -THE POUCHED MOLE - -This, one of the most curious of all the marsupial animals, was quite -unknown until a recent time. In size and shape it is very much like the -common mole, and it has its fore paws armed with enormous claws for -digging in just the same manner. In color it is pale yellow. It has no -outward ears, and its eyes are so tiny, and so deeply buried in the -skin, that it must be almost, if not quite, unable to see with them. And -in front of its snout is an odd kind of shield made of thick, horny -skin, which is evidently intended to protect the face as the animal -forces its way through the ground. - -This singular creature lives in sandy districts in the deserts of South -Australia. It appears to burrow through the soil for a few feet, then to -come to the surface and crawl for a little distance, and then to burrow -again. And as it creeps over the sand it leaves three tracks behind it, -one being made by the feet on either side, and the third by the stiff -and stumpy little tail, which appears to be pressed down upon the -ground. These tracks, of course, can only be seen after rain, for in dry -weather the sand very soon falls in upon them, and fills them up. - - -OPOSSUMS - -The next group of the marsupial animals is found, not in Australia, but -in America. - -There are several different kinds of opossums, most of which live in the -trees. They are excellent climbers, for they not only have their -hind feet made more like hands, with a thumb-like great toe which -enables them to grasp the branches, but are also the possessors of long -prehensile tails, like those of the spider-monkeys. So powerful is the -tail of an opossum that it can bear the entire weight of the body as the -animal swings from a branch to pluck fruit which would otherwise be out -of its reach. - -But opossums do not feed upon fruit alone. Indeed, there are very few -things which they will not eat. They are very fond of maize, or Indian -corn, for example, obtaining it sometimes by climbing up the stems of -the plants, and sometimes by cutting them down close to the ground. -Nuts, too, they devour in great quantities, together with acorns and -berries. Sometimes they dig up roots out of the ground. Then they will -search for birds' nests, and carry off the eggs or the unfledged little -ones. They will pounce upon a rabbit, too, or a young squirrel, and do -not disdain mice, or lizards, or frogs, or even insects. And the farmer -has very good cause for disliking them, for they not only get into his -fields and steal his grain, but find their way into his hen-roosts and -carry off the eggs and the young chickens. - -But then they are very easily caught, for they are attracted by any kind -of bait, and will walk into the simplest of traps. Yet in some ways they -are exceedingly cunning. If they are caught, for example, and are -injured in even the slightest degree, they will pretend to be dead, and -will allow themselves to be pulled about, or kicked, or beaten, without -showing any sign of life. Then the moment they think that no one is -looking at them they will rise to their feet and quietly slink away. -From this we get the proverb "playing possum." - -During the daytime the opossum is usually fast asleep in its nest, which -is sometimes made by itself, and sometimes is the deserted home of a -squirrel. So it has to be hunted by night. - -A moonlight night is always chosen for this purpose, and the animal is -first of all driven into a tree by dogs. One of the hunters then climbs -the tree and shakes it down from the branch to which it is clinging, and -the moment it reaches the ground it is pounced upon and destroyed by the -dogs. - -The opossum runs in a very curious manner, moving both limbs of the same -side together. - -When the little opossums are born, they are not only blind, like puppies -and kittens, but are quite deaf as well, and do not get their sight and -hearing for some little time. They remain hidden all of their infancy in -the mother's pouch, staying there five or six weeks, and afterward -riding about on her back. - -The common opossum is about as big as a cat. But it looks much more like -a very big rat, for its tail is long and scaly. It is found in North -America. In South America there is a different species, called the -crab-eating opossum, because it is so fond of the crabs and crayfishes -which abound in the salt creeks and the great swamps of Brazil. Then -Merian's opossum, in which the marsupial pouch is not developed, has a -most curious way of carrying its young about, for the little ones stand -in a row on their mother's back, with their tiny tails coiled tightly -round hers, to prevent them from falling off. And the yapock opossum -spends most of its life in the water, and lives upon fish, being such an -excellent swimmer that it is able easily to overtake them. - -Last of all, we come to two most extraordinary animals, which differ -from all other mammals in the fact that they lay eggs, while in some -parts of their skeletons they closely resemble the reptiles. - - -THE ECHIDNA - -The first of these creatures is called the echidna, and is also known as -the spiny ant-eater. It is from fifteen to nineteen inches in length, -and has the whole upper surface of the head and body covered with a -mixture of stiff hairs and short sharp spines, something like those of a -hedgehog. The head is drawn out into a very long, slender, beak-like -snout, at the tip of which the nostrils are placed, and the tongue is -long and worm-like and very sticky, just as it is in the true -ant-eaters. The feet are furnished with enormous claws, which are used -in tearing open the nests of the insects upon which the animal feeds, -and those of the hind feet, strange to say, are turned backward in -walking, so that they point toward the tail instead of the head. - -These claws are also used in digging, and can be used with such effect -that if the animal is surprised when on sandy soil it sinks into the -ground as if by magic. But if the ground is so hard that it -cannot use its claws, it rolls itself up like a hedgehog, and trusts to -its spiny coat for protection. - -The common echidna is found in Australia, Tasmania, and New Guinea. -Besides this there is another species, called the three-toed echidna, -which is found in New Guinea only. - - -THE DUCKBILL - -Even more curious still is the duckbill, or duck-billed platypus, which -not only lays eggs like a bird, but resembles a bird in several other -ways as well. - -It has a bill, for example, just like that of a duck--broad and flat, -with a number of grooves round the edges. And it feeds by taking a -beakful of mud from the bottom of a pond or ditch, squirting out the mud -itself through the grooves, and then swallowing the grubs and other -small creatures which are left behind. - -Then its feet are like those of a duck, the toes being joined together -by webbing, so that they can be used as paddles. And even the tail is -rather like that of a duck, for it is very broad and flat, so that it -can serve as a rudder when the animal is swimming. - -This remarkable creature is found in Southern and Eastern Australia, and -also in Tasmania. It is not at all uncommon, but is seldom seen, for it -spends most of its time in the water, or else in its burrow, which is -always made in the bank of a pool or stream. This burrow is generally a -long one, running to a distance of forty or even fifty feet, and -terminates in a large chamber, which is used as a nursery. And it always -has two entrances, one below the surface of the water and one above, so -that if the animal is alarmed in any way it can run in by one door and -out again by the other. - -Two eggs are laid by this most curious creature. They measure about -three-quarters of an inch in length, and are enclosed in a tough white -shell. How they are hatched nobody seems quite to know; but when the -little ones first make their appearance they are quite blind and quite -naked, and have hardly any beaks at all. - -When fully grown the duckbill is about eighteen inches long from the end -of the snout to the tip of the tail. - - - - -BIRDS - - - - -CHAPTER XX - -BIRDS OF PREY - - -We have now first to think of the great class of the birds, which are -distinguished from all other living creatures by having their bodies -covered with feathers. - -These feathers serve a double purpose. - -[Illustration: TYPICAL BIRDS OF PREY. - - 1. Red-tailed Buzzard. 2. Sparrow-hawk. - 3. Golden Eagle. 4. Great Horned Owl.] - -In the first place, they help to preserve the warmth of the body. Birds -are hot-blooded animals--indeed, their blood is a good deal warmer than -ours--and they often have to fly very fast through very cold air. So, -you see, it is most important that they should be clothed with some sort -of covering which is very warm and at the same time light. And nothing -is warmer, and at the same time lighter, than a coat of feathers. - -And then, in the second place, many of these feathers are most useful in -flight. Without them, indeed, a bird could not fly at all. If we want to -keep a tame bird from escaping, we have only to clip its wings, and then -it can no longer raise itself into the air. But it is not only the -feathers of the wings that are used in flight; those of the tail are -employed as well, for they assist in flight, especially in checking -speed, and serve as a rudder, enabling the bird to steer its way through -the air. - -Now birds are divided into orders and tribes and families, just as the -mammals are. But scientific men are not quite sure which of the orders -ought to be placed first. Among the birds of prey, however, we find some -of the largest and finest and most powerful of all the feathered race; -so that we cannot do better than place these at the head of our list. - -You can always tell a bird of prey by two points in its structure. The -first we find in its beak, which is always very large and -strong, and very sharply hooked. And the second we find in its talons, -which are specially made for seizing and killing the animals upon which -it feeds. Some persons think that an eagle or a hawk kills its victims -with its beak, but that is a great mistake, for the beak is only used -for tearing the flesh from off its bones after it is dead. The real -weapons are the talons, which are so sharp and so strong that they can -be pressed deeply into the vitals of a captured animal and kill it at -once. All the birds of prey, therefore, have very powerful legs and -large feet and claws. - - -VULTURES--SYMBOLS OF RAPACITY - -First among the birds of prey come the vultures. Yet very often, strange -to say, they never kill any prey at all, and the best naturalists -suspect that they should be placed in a class by themselves. They much -prefer to feed on carrion, so that if they can find the dead body of an -animal they will never take the trouble to seek and kill victims for -themselves. When an animal dies in a country in which vultures live, -several of these birds are sure to find its carcass almost immediately. -And in a very short time nothing will be left of it but just the bare -skeleton. - -So, you see, these birds are really very useful. They belong to the -great army of nature's dustmen, just like the jackals and the hyenas. -For by destroying these carcasses before they can putrefy, they help to -keep the air pure. In the cities of the Southern United States and of -the tropics our small American vulture, the turkey-buzzard, is really -depended upon as a scavenger. - -How vultures find the dead body of an animal is just a little doubtful. -Some naturalists have thought that they find it by means of sight, and -others that they do so by means of smell. It seems almost certain, -however, that when they are hovering high in the air they are really -watching one another; so that when one of them sees a carcass and swoops -down upon it, all the other vultures within sight notice what he is -doing, and come hurrying up for a share in the banquet. This explains -how it is that if an animal is killed when not a vulture is to -be seen, quite a number of these great, strong, ravenous birds will make -their appearance in a very short time. - - -THE LAMMERGEIER - -This is the finest of all the vultures. It is found in Southern Europe, -in Northern Africa, and in Western Asia, and is sometimes as much as -four feet in length from the tip of the beak to the end of the tail, -while its wings may measure more than ten feet across when fully spread. -It is one of the very few vultures which have the head and neck clothed -with feathers. Besides this, a curious tuft of bristle-like hairs covers -the nostrils, while a similar tuft grows just under the base of the -bill. For this reason the bird is sometimes known as the bearded -vulture. - -Lammergeiers are generally found among high mountains, where they prey -upon hares and marmots, and even upon rats and mice. They will visit the -flocks, too, which are feeding upon the grassy slopes, and carry off -kids and lambs. Chamois, when formerly they were more plentiful than -now, used to be attacked by them, and their favorite plan was to swoop -down upon them when they were standing on the brink of a precipice, -strike them over into the depths below by a stroke of their powerful -wings, and then descend to feed upon their mangled bodies. - -The plumage of the lammergeier is grayish brown above and nearly white -below. The feathers of the neck are white, and there is also a pale -streak running down the middle of those upon the back. - -The lammergeier makes a great clumsy nest of sticks, which is sometimes -placed on a ledge of a lofty cliff, and sometimes in the topmost -branches of a very tall tree. Two eggs are laid, which are dirty white -in color, with brownish blotches. - - -THE CONDOR - -The condor is another very large vulture, inhabiting the great mountain -chain of the Andes. There it may be seen soaring high in air, -its keen eyes intently scanning the ground beneath it; and it may fly to -and fro for hours, rising and falling and sweeping round in great -circles, and yet never once flap its wings! - -Condors live for the most part on llamas which have died a natural -death, or which have been killed by pumas and only partly devoured; but -two or three of them will unite together, when they are hungry, in order -to kill sheep or cattle. - -In color the condor is grayish black, with a ruff of white feathers -round the lower part of the neck. On the head of the male is a large -fleshy wattle. It makes no nest at all, but simply lays its two white -eggs on a rocky ledge high up on the mountainside. - -A variety of the condor inhabited Mexico and southern California until -recent years, but has now become almost or quite extinct. It differed -little from that of the Andes in either appearance or habits. - - -THE SECRETARY-VULTURE - -The African secretary-vulture was formerly regarded as a kind of crane, -on account of its long stilt-like legs, and owes its name to the curious -tuft of very long feathers at the back of its head, which cause it to -look rather as though it were carrying a number of quill pens behind its -ears. The two middle feathers of the tail, also, are exceedingly long, -so that when the bird is standing upright their tips almost rest upon -the ground. - -The secretary-bird spends its time on the ground, where it wanders over -the plains in pairs, and feeds upon small mammals, lizards, tortoises, -frogs, and locusts. It is also said to kill and devour even large -snakes, but whether it really does so is not quite certain. - - -EAGLES--SYMBOLS OF POWER - -Next to the vultures come the eagles, of which two examples may be -mentioned--the white-headed, or bald eagle and the golden eagle, or -war-eagle as the Indians called it. Both are known in various local -varieties in all parts of the world, and both have been regarded -with admiration by brave men in all ages. The bald eagle is the symbol -of the United States; and its cousin, the white-tailed, is to be seen -along all the coasts of the Old World except the arctic. The American -eagle frequents the shores of both oceans, and of our great lakes and -rivers, because its favorite food is fish, which it obtains mainly by -robbing the industrious fish-hawks. - -Of a nobler character, according to our human ideas, is the golden -eagle, and it is also larger, the female--which, in birds of prey, -usually exceeds her mate in size--sometimes measuring nearly three feet -in length and eight or nine feet across her outspread wings. This -magnificent bird may still frequently be seen in the remoter and more -mountainous parts of both continents, but in America is extremely rare -east of the Rocky Mountains and Lake Superior, and in Europe west of the -Swiss and German Alps. This was the eagle which by its bold mien so -impressed the early conquerors of Italy that they chose it to represent -them on their coins and standards, so that it came to be known -throughout a subject world as the Roman Eagle; and its image has -descended to the arms of Italy, Austria, Germany, Russia, and other -nations. - -The aerie, or nesting-place, of these grand birds is much the same in -both kinds--a rude heap of sticks sufficiently hollowed on the summit to -hold the brown-blotched eggs, and placed upon a ledge of rocks, or -perhaps in the top of some huge tree. It may serve the purpose of a home -for many years in succession. Eagles have been recorded on both sides of -the Atlantic as using the same aerie for nearly a century without -interruption; and in such cases the structure often becomes of -prodigious size. A nest found in Scotland was nine feet high, five feet -across at the top, and twenty feet in width at the bottom; so that it -was really as big as a good-sized haystack! - -Round this nest were the bones of between forty and fifty grouse, -besides those of a number of lambs, rabbits, and hares, which had been -brought there by the parent birds for the use of the young. - -Very often a ledge close to the aerie is used as a larder, where the old -birds put their victims as soon as they are caught, and leave -them until they are wanted. When they are hunting the two birds -generally work together, one dashing in among bushes and low herbage, -among which hares, partridges, or other animals are likely to be hiding, -and the other lying in wait to pounce upon them as they rush out in -alarm. - - -THE OSPREY AND OTHER HAWKS - -Not quite as big as the eagles, the fish-hawk, or osprey, is -nevertheless a large bird, for it measures nearly two feet in length and -between five and six feet in spread of wing. It is found in nearly all -parts of the world where civilization is not too destructive of its -privileges, and is numerous on all our great lakes and rivers as well as -by the coast. - -The osprey feeds almost entirely upon fish, and may be seen sweeping to -and fro over the water, keenly watching for its victims as they rise to -the surface. When it catches sight of a fish it swoops down upon it, -plunges into the water with a great splashing, and nearly always rises -again a moment or two later with the fish struggling in its talons. But -it does not always succeed in reaching the shore with it, for the -white-headed eagle is also very fond of fish, though it does not like -the trouble of catching them. So it lies in wait for the fish-hawk as it -returns from a fishing expedition, and beats it about the head with its -great wings until it is glad to drop its victim in order to escape, when -the eagle swoops down and catches the morsel before it reaches the -ground. - -These great birds may still be seen all along our coasts and beside our -lakes, where they live usually unmolested, although most other hawks are -likely to be shot at by every wandering man and boy with a gun. This -safety is due not only to the belief that they do no particular harm, -but to a feeling, especially along the eastern sea-coast, that it is a -lucky thing to have a pair build their nest near the home of a -fisherman, to whom they are thought to bring good fortune. This nest is -a big structure of sticks which is placed among the branches of a tree -near the water--preferably a tall tree, but sometimes, when these are -not handy, in a low one. Thus at the eastern end of Long Island, -New York, where the ospreys have been protected for many years, their -nests often rest on a small cedar or other tree close to the ground; and -in some places on the coast of New England men have erected little -platforms on the top of poles where the ospreys have made their homes. -All these nests are repaired and occupied year after year, and thus -sometimes grow to be of immense size. - - -FAMILIAR FALCONS AND HAWKS - -If one were to try to describe even half of the great number of -different kinds of falcons and hawks in the world, or even in America, -this book would not be large enough for the purpose. Among those most -often seen in this country are two large, softly plumaged, brown hawks, -with square, barred tails, of the group called buzzards. One is the -red-tailed, another the red-shouldered, and a third the broad-winged, -the several names denoting the specially noticeable features in each -case. All make their homes in the woods, constructing big nests in -trees, and early in the spring laying brown-blotched eggs. These hawks -fly heavily over the fields in search of frogs, small snakes, field-mice -(of which they catch great numbers), and once in a while seize a young -bird which cannot yet fly very well; but mostly they live on mice and -insects. The country people call all of them hen-hawks, and are likely -to shoot them when they can; but in truth they harm the poultry-yard -very little. - -The really dangerous "hen-hawks" are two or three much smaller and more -active falcons, such as the Cooper's and sharp-shinned hawks. They are -swift and fierce, and will dart down and snatch a bird from its perch or -pick up a small chicken with amazing suddenness and speed. These hawks -are sometimes called kestrels, after a well-known European falcon which -they resemble. - - -KESTRELS AND OTHER CHICKEN-HAWKS - -You may often see one or the other of these hovering high in the air, as -do the English kestrels, about three or four hundred feet from -the ground, and carefully watching for the mice upon which after all -they mainly feed. It has eyes like telescopes, so that as soon as a -mouse pokes its head out of its burrow it catches sight of it, swoops -down upon it, seizes it in its talons, and carries it off to be -devoured. The number of mice which it catches in this way is very large, -and it has been estimated that at least ten thousand of these -destructive little creatures are killed by every kestrel in the course -of every year. So we must look upon the bird as one of the best friends -of the farmer, in spite of the occasional loss of a chicken. - -When it cannot find any mice the kestrel will sometimes eat small birds, -and now and then it will feed upon cockchafers and other large insects, -catching them in its claws as they fly, and then passing them up to its -beak. - -Kestrels sometimes build in trees and sometimes in towers and old -buildings. But very often they make use of the deserted nest of a magpie -or a crow. From four to six eggs are laid, which are blotched with -reddish brown on a bluish-white ground. - -Two near relatives, inhabiting both the old and the new worlds, are the -pigeon-hawk and sparrow-hawk. They are much alike, and their plumage is -more varied in color and pattern than that of other falcons. Both are -rather shy, and not often seen in the open; but are so courageous that -they will sometimes attack large birds, like ducks or grouse. The -handsome sparrow-hawk is best known. It will often dash into a flock of -sparrows and carry one of them off in its talons. It will sometimes -swoop down into a farmyard, too, and snatch up a chicken or a duckling, -while numbers of young pheasants and partridges fall victims to its -ravages. In days of old it was sometimes captured and trained for -hawking, like the merlin and the falcon, and it is said that a single -tame sparrow-hawk would sometimes kill as many as seventy or eighty -quail in a single day. - -In Europe sparrow-hawks seldom take the trouble to build a nest of their -own, but nearly always make use of the deserted abode of a crow or -magpie, in which they lay three or four grayish-white eggs marked with a -number of dark-brown spots and blotches; but the American hawks -of this group make their homes in crannies in hollow trees, stuffing the -hole with a warm bed of grass and feathers. - - -OWLS, THE TERROR OF THE NIGHT - -Next in order come those very singular birds which we call owls, and -which are really hawks that fly by night. - -The eyes of these birds are very much like those of cats, being formed -in such a way as to take in even the faintest rays of light. Owing to -this fact owls can see on very dark nights, and can fly with as much -certainty and catch their prey with as much ease as other birds can in -the daylight. Moreover the prominence of their eyes, in the middle of -the great feathery disks, enables them to see in almost every direction -without turning the head. - -This is very important, for wild animals are always alarmed by motion, -while they hardly ever notice creatures which keep perfectly still. If -you sit or stand for a while without moving even a finger, rabbits and -squirrels will often come quite close to you, and never seem to see you -at all. But at your very first movement they will take fright and -scamper away. So if an owl had to be constantly turning its head from -side to side in order to look for prey, its victims would certainly see -it, and would make good their escape. But as its eyes are set in the -middle of those great feathery circles, and turn easily in their -sockets, there is no need for it to do so, for it can look out in almost -every direction without moving its head in the least. - -There are a good many different kinds of owls, several of which are -found in both continents. There is the long-eared owl, for instance, -which has two rather long feathery tufts upon its head; and there is the -short-eared owl, which has short ones. As a rule, these tufts lie flat -upon the head. But when the bird is excited they stand upright, and give -it a very odd appearance. Then there is the brown owl, which utters that -mournful hooting sound which one so often hears by night in wooded -districts. - -Very often as one is walking along a country lane in the evening one of -these birds sweeps suddenly by and disappears into the darkness. -It is busy searching for mice, and the number which it catches must be -very great. For it has been found that when a pair of these birds have -little ones, they bring a mouse to them about once in every quarter of -an hour all through the night! And, besides that, their own appetites -have to be satisfied; and owls seem always to be hungry. - -One day the late Lord Lilford, one of the foremost British -ornithologists of his time, tried to see how many mice a barn-owl really -could swallow. So he caught one of these birds and put it in a cage, and -gave it seven mice one after the other. Six of these it gulped down -without any hesitation; but though it tried hard to swallow the seventh -it could not quite manage to do so, and for about twenty minutes the -tail of the mouse was dangling from a corner of its beak. At last, -however, the tail disappeared; and three hours later the owl was -actually hungry again, and ate four more mice! - -None of the owls ever digest the bones and feathers or hair of their -prey; but these materials get packed into balls in the stomach, and -after a time are coughed up and thrown away. Very often large quantities -of these "pellets" are found in hollow trees in which owls have been -roosting, more than a bushel having been taken from a single tree, and -by examining them one may learn the character of the bird's daily fare. -The birds do not make a nest, but lay their eggs on a heap of these -pellets instead; and they have an odd way of laying them at intervals, -so that sometimes half-fledged little ones, newly hatched little ones, -and freshly laid eggs may all be found together. - -When the young owls are waiting for their parents to return with a -mouse, they always get very much excited and make most odd noises, -something like loud hisses followed by loud snores. And when at last one -of the old birds returns with a mouse in its talons the outcry grows -louder than ever. - -One of the oddest members of the family is the burrowing owl, or -coquimbo, as the South American form is known. This inhabits only the -open plains of Western North America and Southern South America, and as -it can find no trees or rocky niches in which to nest, it scratches out -shallow burrows in little banks of earth, or takes possession of -the deserted burrows of some digging animal. It is therefore a constant -citizen of the "towns" of the prairie-dogs of the North and viscachas of -the South, where numbers of burrowing owls may sometimes be seen, some -hunting about for beetles and grasshoppers, on which they chiefly feed, -and others sitting at the entrances of the burrows and surveying the -surrounding country. They are not at all timid, and if a man approaches -them they will remain where they are until he is quite close, bobbing up -and down from time to time as though they were politely bowing to him. -If he continues to walk toward them they will rise into the air, fly two -or three times round his head, screaming loudly as they do so, and then -settle down on another mound a few yards away and bow to him again. But -if he walks round them instead they will turn their heads to look after -him, without moving their bodies, until one would almost think that they -would twist them off altogether. - -When neither prairie-dogs nor viscachas live in the neighborhood, these -queer little owls will sometimes take up their quarters in the burrow of -a wolf, a fox, or a badger. They make a very rough nest of grass and -feathers, in which they lay from six to eleven white eggs. - - - - -CHAPTER XXI - -CUCKOOS, NIGHTJARS, HUMMING-BIRDS, WOODPECKERS, AND TOUCANS - - -In Europe the cuckoo is one of the most familiar and well-known birds, -and every one recognizes its note, and regards it as a sure sign that -summer is near. The bird usually reaches England about the second week -in April, and very soon after that time the cock bird may be heard -uttering his cry, which is one of the most familiar sounds of the -country, until two months later. Then the bird's voice breaks, and after -crying "cuck-cuck-cuck-oo" for a few days, instead of the simple -"cuckoo," he becomes quite dumb, and is quite unable to utter his note -again until the following spring. - -This cuckoo is famous for its singular habit of placing its egg in the -nest of some other bird, instead of making a nest of its own. The hen -bird seems, first of all, to lay her egg on the ground; then, picking it -up in her beak, she flies off to look for a suitable nest in which to -put it. Having found one, she waits her opportunity, when the occupant -is absent, and then slips in the egg and flies away. The owner of the -nest, strange to say, hardly ever seems to notice when she comes back -that there is a strange egg among her own, although very often it is not -in the least like them in color and markings. So before very long a -young cuckoo is hatched out, together with her own little ones. Then on -the very day of its birth the cuckoo seems to make up its mind that -before long there will be no room in the nest for any one but itself, -and actually pushes all its little foster brothers and sisters over the -side, one after the other! And, strange to say, the mother bird does not -seem to mind, but just gives all the food which her own young would have -eaten to the cuckoo, and takes the greatest care of it in every way -until it is able to fly. - -The cuckoo family is a large and varied one, with representatives in all -parts of the world, and few of them show this extraordinary disposition -to impose upon their neighbors, though all are careless home-makers. In -the United States we have two kinds of cuckoos, the black-billed and the -yellow-billed, which have much the same slim form and plain yet elegant -dress as their European cousin, but a different note, uttering a loud -rattling cry instead of the soft _cuck-oo_; and both of these make -nests, lay eggs in them, and rear their young as faithfully as other -birds. The nests, however, are merely loose platforms of twigs set among -the branches of some small tree, through which, often, the greenish-blue -eggs are distinctly visible. - - -NIGHTJARS - -The nightjars are another world-wide family, with great similarity in -both appearance and habit among its members. All are nocturnal, have big -heads, large eyes, and very small beaks, although the mouth opens very -wide. They hunt their food by night, resting during the day in shady -forests or caves; and like owls they have plumage so plainly brown and -gray, and so soft, that their flight is noiseless and almost invisible. -The name--which refers to its jarring cry, which is more or less -characteristic of the whole family--was given first to the British -species, which is often called fern-owl in England. Late in the evening -you may often hear it uttering its curious note--"chur-r-r-r-r-r"--which -sometimes goes on without any break for three or four minutes. - -This continuous calling is one of the most characteristic things about -our American nightjar, the whippoorwill, whose loud, musical cry is -heard in summer from almost every hillside in the land, during the -dusk of evening or morning or when the woods are whitened with -moonlight; and sometimes two or three birds will sing against one -another, as if in jealous rivalry, repeating the call several hundred -times without a pause. In the Western United States, and in tropical -America, are several kinds of whippoorwills; and in the Southern -States a bigger cousin which calls its name loudly through the -darkness--_chuck-will's-widow_. More nearly deserving the name -nightjar, however, is our night-hawk, or bullbat, which is often seen -flying swiftly about, high in the air, even before sunset, uttering -a hoarse scream, or a queer-booming note, as it rushes, open-mouth, -after unlucky insects. - -All the birds of this group are insect catchers and eaters, and their -mouths, which have only a tiny pretence of a beak, open exceedingly -wide, so that they may scoop in a dozen little flies at once, or seize -and swallow a great moth. Then the tongue is exceedingly sticky, like -that of an ant-eater; besides this, the sides of the beak are fringed -with long, stiff bristles. So, when the bird catches an insect, its -victim nearly always sticks firmly to its tongue, while, if it should -break away from that, the bristles act just like a cage, and prevent it -from escaping. - -The nightjars make no nest at all, but lay their eggs in a small hollow -in the ground, generally under the shelter of a fern, or a tuft of -bramble or heather. These eggs are never more than two in number, and -are grayish white in color, mottled and marbled with gray and buff. - - -SWIFTS - -In these arrangements and habits the nightjars show how nearly they are -related to the very differently appearing chimney-swifts, which look so -much like swallows that we often call them chimney-swallows, but this is -wrong. Before this country was inhabited by white men, the swifts dwelt -in companies in hollow trees, but as fast as the settlers built houses -and chimneys the swifts left the trees and made their homes in the -chimneys, where they fasten to the bricks little shelf-shaped nests -composed of their glue-like saliva and bits of twigs. In the East Indies -a kind of swift makes such a nest wholly out of its saliva, which -hardens into a whitish material like isinglass. This is fastened against -the wall or roof of some cave by the sea, and the Malays and Chinese -gather these nests at the peril of their lives, where they are built in -hundreds in dark caverns, and sell them as delicacies to be made into -bird's-nest soup. - -The swift feeds upon flies and small beetles, which it catches -in the air, and on any fine summer's day you may see it hawking for -prey. It well deserves its name, for it dashes through the air with most -wonderful speed, and is said to be able to fly at the rate of two -hundred miles an hour! And as it flies it keeps twisting and turning -after the fashion of a bat, and is evidently snapping up insect after -insect as it goes. - -Yet, strange to say, the bird never seems to be tired. It is often on -the wing before three o'clock in the morning, and is still darting about -as actively as ever after sunset. - -[Illustration: FOUR HANDSOME BIRDS. - - 1. American Pileated Woodpecker, or Logcock. 2. European Roller. - 3. European Kingfisher. 4. European Jay.] - - -HUMMING-BIRDS - -Although they are not very much like swifts, the humming-birds are -closely related to them, and have powers of flight which are really -almost as wonderful. Indeed, if you alarm one of these birds when it is -hovering over a flower, it will dart away with such astonishing speed -that it is almost impossible for the eye to follow its course. And even -while it is hovering the wings vibrate so rapidly that you cannot see -them, all that is visible being a faint blur on either side of the body. - -These exquisite little birds are found in Central and South America, in -the West Indies, and in the warmer parts of the United States. Several -very beautiful species are known west of the Rocky Mountains, but only -one, the ruby-throat, visits the Eastern States. As a rule they are most -beautifully colored, their plumage shining with metallic gold, and -copper, and bronze, and purple, and crimson, and blue, and green. - -Sometimes, too--for there are a great many different species--there is a -ruff round the neck, or long tufts upon the head; or perhaps two of the -tail-feathers may be produced until they are longer than the head and -body and the rest of the tail put together. - -As a rule, the beaks of humming-birds are very long, in order that they -may be poked into flowers in search of any insects which may be lying -hidden within them. And the bird will hover over a bush, and move on -from one blossom to another, until every one has been thoroughly -explored. - -The nests of humming-birds are nearly always very small and -cup-shaped, and are made of little bits of lichen and moss neatly -fastened together with the silken threads of certain spiders. Only two -eggs are laid, which are quite white, and so tiny that it seems -impossible that a bird could be hatched out of them. At least five -hundred kinds of these beautiful little birds have already been -discovered. - - -WOODPECKERS - -North America has a large population of woodpeckers, including -the biggest and finest one in the world. This is the great -ivory-bill--twenty inches in length, and jet-black, with white -wing-tips, a grand scarlet topknot, and a beak like an ivory pickax. It -used to be abundant all over the Southern States, but now is nearly -extinct. Almost as fine, and still frequently seen all over the eastern -parts of the United States and Canada, is the similar but smaller -logcock, or pileated woodpecker, as it is named in the books, whose -shrill scream may be heard half a mile. - -Most of our familiar woodpeckers, however, are much smaller, and their -plumage is a checker of black and white. Everywhere common in town, as -well as among the farmlands, are three or four species, of which the -most often seen, and the smallest, is the downy woodpecker, which gets -its name from the broad stripe of soft white feathers up and down the -middle of its back. It is not so large as a sparrow, and haunts the -woods, the farmer's orchards, the shade-trees along the rural roads or -beside the streets of our villages, and often makes itself a welcome -visitor to the city parks and gardens. From morning till night, and all -the year round, it scrambles up and down the trunks of the trees and -round and round their branches, cleverly finding and dragging out -insects or their young concealed under the scales of the bark; and -though it digs many pits none is deep enough to injure the tree, as the -only woodpecker which digs deep enough to do harm is the yellow-bellied -one, which appears only in the spring, going far north to breed, and -which country people call the sapsucker. The downy and its relatives, on -the other hand, are doing good every day. Especially welcome is this -active little visitor in winter, often with such small companions as the -chickadee and nuthatch, when birds, or any other sort of living -things are scarce, and we are longing for their return. - -If you sit down for awhile at the foot of a tree, and keep very still -indeed, without moving even so much as a finger, it will very likely -come and sit on the trunk of another tree close by and begin to peck -away with its long, sharp beak in search of insects. - -How it makes the chips fly! Its beak is just like a chisel, and when the -bird finds that a beetle or a grub has burrowed into the trunk, it does -not take very long to dig it out. And it also has an extremely odd -tongue, which is very long and slender, and very sticky, and has a -curious tip. By means of this tongue the bird can often drag an insect -out of its burrow without being obliged to dig right down to it. - -Sometimes woodpeckers make a most amusing mistake. They hear the humming -of a telegraph wire, and think that it must be caused by insects living -in the posts. So they set to work with the utmost energy to dig them -out, and are so diligent and so persevering that they have often been -known to cut a big hole right through a telegraph post before finding -out that there were no insects there after all! - -There is another thing that we wish you especially to notice about the -woodpecker, and that is the way in which it is enabled to sit on an -upright tree-trunk for a long time without getting tired. The fact is -that it really sits on its own tail, which serves as a kind of -camp-stool! If you look at a woodpecker's tail you will find that the -feathers are very short and very stiff, and that they are bent downward. -When the bird perches on the trunk of a tree the tips of these feathers -rest upon the bark and prop it up, so that there is very little strain -upon the muscles of the feet and legs. - -Downy, after the manner of its kind, uses its chisel-beak to form a deep -and safe home in some old tree or stump, and often has enough confidence -in its friends of the village or farm to choose a tall fence-post; and -therein it deposits its pure white eggs and shelters its babies. -Moreover, Papa Downy often digs near by a more shallow tunnel for -himself, where he spends the night in safety and comfort as his mate is -doing in her own snug chamber. - -The hairy woodpecker is very similar to the downy in dress, but one-half -larger, and by no means so numerous or familiar. There are several -northern and far-western kinds of checkered woodpecker such as the -three-toed, the arctic and others, but their habits are very similar, -and we may pass them by to speak of two species more notable in every -way. - - -THE REDHEAD AND THE FLICKER - -The redhead is most strikingly colored, for its whole head and neck are -scarlet, its shoulders and back black, its wing-quills and rump white, -and the tail black. It is a fairly large bird and a bold one, though -like all woodpeckers it will slip around to the other side of the tree -when it hears your step, and then peep out with comical caution to see -whether you are dangerous. If you keep quiet it is likely soon to -scuttle back and go on hammering, making the chips fly and the forest -ring with its busy search after some buried grub. The Indians made a -good deal of use of the scarlet feathers of this bird; and it is always -a tempting mark for the wandering gunner, so that it is no wonder it is -becoming rare in thickly settled regions. - -A much less handsome but more numerous woodpecker in all parts of the -country is the golden-winged, or flicker, or high-hole, for it goes by -many names among the boys who love to trace it to its nesting-hole in -some tall stub, and take, if they can, the pearly eggs that lie on a bed -of chips in the bottom of the cavity. This nesting-hole, with its -accurately round doorway and hall, goes straight into the tree-trunk for -two inches or so, and then turns downward sometimes to the depth of a -foot. This large woodpecker is not black and white, like most of the -others, but wears a dress of greenish brown with wing-quills that look -just as though they were gilded, and a small bonnet of red on the back -of its head where there is no crest. In fact, the flicker is a queer -sort of woodpecker generally, for it spends quite as much time in fields -and gardens as in the woods, and much of this on the ground in search of -insects--mostly ants. - -Woodpeckers are noisy birds, both in their hammering and in -their rough cries, and this one is perhaps the noisiest of all; but its -call is so joyous that one cannot hear it without a sense of cheer. - - -TOUCANS - -We now come to a group of really extraordinary birds. They are found in -the forests of Central and South America, and are chiefly remarkable for -their beaks, which in the first place are so enormous that they look as -if they had been intended for birds at least six times as big, and in -the second place are most gaudily colored. It is not very easy to -describe them, because there are a good many kinds of toucans, and each -has its bill differently colored. In one the beak is partly orange and -partly black, with a lilac base. In another it is light green, with the -tip and edges of the most brilliant scarlet. In a third it is half -scarlet and half bright yellow; while in a fourth it is creamy white -with a broad streak of crimson running along the middle; and in a fifth -is a most singular mixture of orange and blue and chocolate brown and -white. - -Owing to the great size of their bills these birds are most ungainly in -appearance, and one cannot help wondering how they manage to hold up -their heads. But in reality these huge beaks are not at all heavy, for -instead of being made of solid horn, the whole of the interior is broken -up into cells, the divisions between which are no thicker than paper--a -structure which gives them not only great lightness but great strength. - -Toucans live chiefly in the trees, and spend most of their time in the -topmost branches, where they are fond of gathering together in large -flocks. They are very noisy birds, for they not only utter hoarse cries -and loud yells in chorus, but have a way of clattering their beaks -together as well. Owing to this habit the natives of South America -sometimes call them "preacher-birds." - -When they go to sleep toucans double their tails over upon their backs, -just as though they had hinges at the base, and bury their great beaks -among the feathers of their shoulders. The consequence is that they do -not look like toucans at all, or even like birds, and seem to be -mere bundles of loose feathers. - - -HORNBILLS - -These are more extraordinary still, some of them having beaks so -enormous that they look as if they had been meant for birds twelve times -instead of only six times as big as themselves. And the strangest thing -of all is that upon the upper part is a great horny helmet, which in -some cases is quite as large as the beak itself. In the -rhinoceros-hornbill, indeed, the beak and helmet together are pretty -nearly as big as the body. - -Both beak and helmet, however, except in one species, are made just like -the bills of the toucans, so that in spite of their enormous size they -are not at all heavy. But _why_ they should be so big is more than -we can tell you. - -Hornbills are found in many parts of both Africa and Asia, and most of -them live in the trees. They nearly always hop from one branch to -another until they reach the very topmost boughs, where they will sit -for hours together, occasionally uttering a series of loud, roaring -cries, which can be heard for a very long distance. And when they fly -they keep opening and closing their beaks, and so making an odd -clattering noise which generally puzzles travelers very much when they -hear it for the first time. - -There are two kinds of hornbills which live on the ground. One of these -is found in South Africa, and the Kafirs have a curious idea about it, -due to the fact that after death its body smells very nasty. They think -that if one of these birds is killed and thrown into a river it will -make the stream feel ill, and that a heavy fall of rain will take place -in order that the carcass may be washed into the sea! So in times of -drought they always try to kill a ground-hornbill and fling it into the -nearest river. - -When one of these birds discovers a snake, its cries bring others to the -place, and then, it is said, three or four attack the snake and kill it. -Their plan is to advance upon it sideways with their wings spread out, -and to irritate it with the tips of the feathers until it -strikes. Then they all peck it together before it can recover itself, -and nearly always succeed in killing it in a very short time. - - -THE HOOPOE - -This is another odd-looking bird; but instead of having a horny helmet -like the hornbills, it has a crest of very long feathers. These -feathers, which can be raised or lowered at will, are tawny brown in -color, with black tips, just before which is a streak of white. The body -is grayish brown above and nearly white below, and the wings and tail -are black, barred with white. - -The real home of the bird is in the sandy deserts of Northern Africa and -Southern Asia. There its plumage harmonizes so well with the color of -the soil that it is very difficult to see it, and it is said that when a -hawk appears the hoopoe only has to flatten its body against the sand -and remain perfectly still, when it is quite sure to be overlooked by -its enemy. - -The hoopoe utters its cry in a very curious manner. First it puffs out -the sides of its neck, and then it hammers its beak three times upon the -ground. Each time that it does so some of the air in its throat escapes, -and the result is a noise like the syllable "hoo" three times repeated. - - -AN ARAB LEGEND - -The Arabs have an odd legend about the hoopoe. One day, so the quaint -old story runs, King Solomon was traveling through the desert, and was -much oppressed by the heat of the sun, till a large flock of hoopoes -came and flew just above his head, so as to protect him from its rays. -At the close of the day the grateful monarch wished to know how he could -reward them for their kindness, and the foolish birds asked that crowns -of gold might grow upon their heads. Their request was granted, and for -a few days they admired themselves immensely, and spent most of their -time in gazing at their reflections in pools of water. Very soon, -however, great numbers of them were snared by the fowlers for the sake -of their valuable ornaments, and it seemed as though in a short -time not one would be left alive. So at last the survivors went back to -King Solomon, and begged that their golden crowns might be taken away. -Once more the king listened to their petition, and gave them crowns of -feathers instead, and that is how hoopoes come to have crests upon their -heads. - - -KINGFISHERS - -One of the most beautiful birds of our country is the kingfisher, which -is deep blue with white markings, and a chestnut band across the breast. -Upon its head is borne a high crest, like a crown. As you walk along the -banks of a stream, you may often see them darting through the air, and -looking almost like streaks of colored light. And if you sit down and -keep perfectly still for a little while you may, perhaps, see one of -them fishing. It perches on a branch overhanging the water, and waits -patiently till a fish passes underneath. Then suddenly it drops into the -water like a stone, splashes about for a moment or two, and then returns -to its perch with its victim struggling in its beak. - -The kingfisher digs a deep hole into the face of some earthen bank or -cliff, and at the inner end hollows out a little cave where it lays -several pure white eggs, with almost nothing but a few fishbones for a -nest. - -A good many different kinds of kingfishers are found in various parts of -the world, one of them, which lives in Australia, being known as the -laughing jackass, on account of its singular cry. Everywhere there are -birds of brilliant plumage, and in some places they have been almost -wholly destroyed for the wicked purpose of getting feathers to use as -ornaments on ladies' hats. - - - - -CHAPTER XXII - -CROWS, BIRDS OF PARADISE, AND FINCHES - - -The crow tribe contains several most interesting birds, first among -which stands the raven, a bird once known in all the northern parts of -the world, but now exceedingly rare in the United States except in the -far West. Even in the mountainous districts of Scotland it is not nearly -so common as it was, for it is so fond of killing weak and sickly lambs -that the shepherds trap or shoot it whenever they have an opportunity, -and the gamekeepers dislike it quite as much, because of the numbers of -hares, rabbits, partridges, and grouse that fall victims to its terrible -beak. - -Ravens have often been tamed, and have even learned to talk almost as -well as parrots. But they are exceedingly mischievous birds, and, in -addition, are only too ready to peck any one who comes near them with -the full force of their sharp and powerful bills; so that they cannot be -at all recommended as pets. - -The nest of the raven is a rather clumsy structure of sticks, and is -nearly always placed in the upper branches of a very tall tree. When the -young birds are nearly fledged, they often tumble out of the nest, and -are found by the shepherds fluttering helplessly about on the ground. -Most of the ravens which are kept in captivity have been caught in this -way. - - -THE AMERICAN CROW - -The various crows of the world are like small ravens--jet-black, -sometimes marked with white; but our familiar American crow is wholly -black. These birds are fond of gathering into flocks, which sometimes -are very large; and they are sociable, liking to spend the night -roosting in some favorite grove in great companies. When near the sea, -or some large river or lake, the crows go down to the shore every -morning, and spend most of the day on or near the beach, where -they pick up most of their food. Crows, however, will eat almost -anything edible except grain; and the great European carrion-crow is -almost a bird of prey, for like the raven it feeds chiefly on the flesh -of dead animals. But it also preys upon such creatures as rabbits, -hares, mice, frogs, and lizards, while it will also search for the nests -of game birds and poultry, and carry off the eggs and the young. -Sometimes, too, it will visit the seashore, and feast upon the crabs, -limpets, and mussels which it finds among the rocks at low water. In -order to crack the shells of these creatures, it is said sometimes to -carry them up into the air and drop them upon a rock. - - -ROOKS - -Except that it places its rude, stick-built nest in scattered trees, -each pair by itself, instead of in a company, our American crow is -closely similar to the English rooks about which so much is said in -books about Great Britain. Everybody in England knows the rook by sight, -and everybody is familiar with the rookeries in which a number of these -birds nest together year after year. Indeed, they use the same nests -over and over again, just putting them into proper order shortly before -the eggs are laid. - -The scene when building operations begin is always a lively one, and all -day long the birds are very busy. But oddly enough, they never seem to -know when the winter is really over, and when a thaw comes after two or -three frosty days in December, or even earlier, they get as excited as -possible, setting to work and gathering sticks, and evidently thinking -that spring is beginning! - -Rooks have very strict rules when they are building. For one rook to -steal a stick from another rook's nest, for example, is a very serious -crime, and sometimes is punished even with death. And young birds are -not allowed to build in a tree outside the rookery, their nest being at -once pulled to pieces by the older ones if they attempt to do so. - -Crows of all kinds are extremely useful birds, for they devour enormous -quantities of mischievous grubs, more especially those which live at the -roots of cultivated plants, where other birds cannot get at them. -And you may often see them following the plow, and picking up their -victims in scores. Thus they more than pay the farmer for the stalks of -young corn or grain which they sometimes pull up in the spring. - - -THE JACKDAW - -Another famous European bird, taking a part in many familiar stories and -poems, is the jackdaw. It is a smaller bird than the rook, and is -generally found near houses, being very fond of nesting in church -towers, or in old ruins. But very often a colony of jackdaws will settle -in a lofty cliff, and build on rocky ledges far beyond the reach of even -the boldest climber. - -The jackdaw is easily tamed, and is a very interesting bird when kept as -a pet, soon learning to talk almost as well as a parrot. But it is -dreadfully mischievous, and if it finds any small glittering object is -almost sure to carry it off and hide it. Sometimes, too, it will play -very amusing tricks. We knew a tame jackdaw once which lived in a very -large garden. One day the butcher's cart drove up, and the butcher went -round to the kitchen entrance to take the orders. No sooner had he -disappeared than the jackdaw flew up on the box, and called out, "Gee -up!" Off started the horse at once, and if the gardener had not happened -to meet the cart as it was passing out of the gate, with only the -jackdaw inside, the butcher would certainly have been obliged to walk -all the way home. - -The nest of the jackdaw, like that of the rook, is built of sticks, and -is lined with hay, wool, and feathers. It generally contains five eggs, -which are bluish green, spotted with gray and brown. - - -THE JAY - -What a beautiful bird the jay is! And how very seldom one gets a really -good view of it! For it is one of the shyest of all birds, and never -allows itself to be seen if it can possibly help it. And the very moment -that it catches sight of one it flies off with a terrified squall which -can often be heard from nearly half a mile away. - -Other birds do not at all like the jay, for it is very fond of visiting -their nests and stealing the eggs. It will carry off young birds, too, -and devour them, and many a young partridge and pheasant falls victim to -its appetite. But it also eats caterpillars, moths, beetles, and other -insects, as well as fruit and berries; while sometimes it will visit a -kitchen garden early in the morning, and feast heartily on the young -peas. - -Our common Eastern American jay is light blue, with pretty white -markings; while in the far West and in the tropics are many kinds which -are rich dark blue or green; the European jay, however, is more varied. -In general color it is light reddish brown. On either wing is a patch of -azure blue banded with black, while the head is decorated with a crest -of gray feathers, with black spots, which can be raised and lowered at -will. Nearly all jays have tall crests. The quill-feathers of the wings -and tail are black. - - -THE MAGPIE - -Another famous member of this family is the magpie, which occurs in both -Europe and America, and may be recognized by its glossy black and white -plumage, its long tail, and its curious dipping flight. It is found in -most parts of the British Isles, but never wanders far away from the -shelter of large woods, where it knows that it is much safer from the -attacks of hawks than in the open country. - -The magpie is as mischievous out of doors as the jay, and as mischievous -indoors as the jackdaw; so that it cannot be said to bear a very good -character. But at any rate it makes a very amusing little pet, even if -it does steal any small object that it can carry away, and hide it in -some hoard of its own. But with a little careful instruction it soon -learns to talk quite well. In Europe, consequently, many tame magpies -are to be seen; but not so often in the United States. - -The nest of the magpie cannot be mistaken for that of any other bird, -for although it is made of sticks, like that of the jackdaw and the jay, -it is always domed above, and has the entrance at the side. It is -generally situated in a thorn or a pine tree, although now and -then the birds will build in a low bush quite close to the ground. There -are generally from five to seven eggs, which are bluish white in color, -blotched and dotted with brown. - - -BIRDS OF PARADISE - -Next in order to the crows, jays, and magpies come these. They include -some of the most beautiful of all the feathered race. They are nearly -all found in New Guinea and the Papuan islands, and there are altogether -about fifty different kinds. - -One of the most beautiful is the king bird of paradise, which it is very -difficult to describe in words. The upper part of the body is rich -chestnut, with a bloom of purple, the lower part pure white, and across -the breast runs a band of golden green, which deepens into blackish -brown, while the upper part of the head and neck is pale straw-color. -Most exquisite of all, however, are the great masses of long, slender, -drooping plumes, which spring from either side of the body under the -wings. These plumes are nearly two feet long, and are golden yellow, -darkening toward the tips into pale brown. This exquisite plumage is -only found in the cock bird, the hen being of a dull brown color all -over, without any plumes at all; and the birds have now become extremely -scarce because killed so incessantly for the cruel purpose of getting -their feathers to put on hats! - -Very little is known about the habits of birds of paradise, for few -people ever have the opportunity of seeing them in their native forests, -and they are almost unknown in zoölogical gardens because they usually -die almost immediately when placed in captivity in a strange country. - - -BOWER-BIRDS - -The bower-birds of Australia owe their name to their singular habit of -making bowers in which to play! These bowers are built of sticks and -long pieces of grass, arranged in such a way that they meet at -the top so as to form a kind of avenue, and are often three feet long. -Stranger still, they are ornamented with stones, brightly colored -shells, and the blue tail-feathers of parrakeets, which the birds -carefully fasten up among the sticks, evidently in order to make the -bower look pretty. Then, when it is finished, they run through it, round -and round, over and over again, chasing one another, and seeming to -enjoy their game immensely. - -There is one of these birds, found in Papua, which builds a hut about -two feet high instead of a bower, and then makes a sort of garden in -front of it. This garden is decorated with bright-colored flowers and -berries, and as soon as they fade the bird throws them away and puts -fresh ones in their place! It is called the gardener-bird. - - -THE STARLING - -This bird is almost as well known as the sparrow in Europe. You may see -it on the lawn, every now and then plunging its beak into the ground, -and pulling out a grub or a worm; and it is fond of building a great -untidy-looking nest in water-pipes and other places where it is not -wanted. It is beginning to be well known also in America, for colonies -are established near New York City. - -Starlings in Europe often travel about the country in great flocks, -which frequently consist of several thousand birds. Sometimes, too, -several of these flocks join together at night, and then separate again -next morning. We have seen a little copse so full of roosting starlings -that every branch of every tree was occupied from end to end, while -thousands more kept flying in, and trying to turn the first comers off -their perches! And they made so much noise that we could hear them -chattering and quarreling when we were more than a mile away. - -Each flight of starlings seems to have its leader whose orders are -instantly obeyed, for every bird in the whole flock swerves, and wheels, -and turns at the same moment--a maneuver seen equally in the vast -migratory flocks of red-winged blackbirds which gather in autumn on -every American marsh and are gradually spreading inland. A few -years hence the bird may be seen all over the United States. - -Starlings are useful birds, although they certainly steal a great deal -of fruit; for if it were not for their labors--together with those of -certain other birds--our corn and vegetable crops would certainly be -destroyed by the mischievous grubs which live at the roots. So we ought -to look on the fruit which starlings take as wages paid them for their -work. - -[Illustration: FINCHES AND WEAVER-BIRDS. - - 1. European Yellowhammer. 2. African Weaver-Bird (Male). - 3. African Weaver-Bird (Female). 4. European Goldfinch. - 5. Stonechat.] - - -FINCHES - -We now come to the great group of the finches, which can easily be -recognized by their short, stout, strong beaks. - -This is one of the most extensive families of birds, for it includes, -besides the finches properly so called, all the sparrows, grosbeaks, -buntings, and seed-eaters of the world, together with many other similar -birds known by various names. The small robust size, and especially the -cone-shaped beak, suitable for cracking seeds, or tearing the husks of -fruit to pieces, are the badges of the family. Sometimes this beak is -big and strong, as in our northern rose-breasted, or the southern -cardinal grosbeak, or the British bullfinch; sometimes small and -slender, as in the sparrows, such as our pretty visitor to the garden -lilacs and rose-bushes, the chipping-bird; sometimes queerly out of -shape, as in the crossbills, where the lower half, or mandible, of the -bill does not meet the upper one squarely at the tip, but the points -cross past one another. These birds dwell in the northern evergreen -forests, and subsist almost wholly on the seeds of the pine and spruce, -which they twist out from beneath the tough scales of the cones with -remarkable skill, apparently using the crossed bill like a pair of -pliers. - -These birds come south in winter, when their bright reddish coats and -fearless ways are enjoyed by everybody. The farm children in Germany -hear pretty stories about them, one of which is that the twist in the -bill was caused by one of these birds injuring it in kindly trying to -pull out the nails by which Jesus was fastened to the cross; so their -name "cross-bill" may be thought of in two ways. - - -SPARROWS - -Every roadside and field has its sparrows--brown, streaked birds which -usually keep near the ground and feed upon the seeds of grasses and -weeds, yet pick up innumerable insects, as do all the others of their -busy tribe. These sparrows make their nests mostly on the ground; but -most of the finches, rightly so called, nest in bushes and trees. All -the sparrows have pleasant voices, and most of them are fair singers, -while some excel in that accomplishment. Our song-sparrow, fox-sparrow, -the whitethroat and others are among the best of American singing birds. - -It has been said that these plain brown birds have been granted the gift -of voice to make up for lack of ornament; but this explanation doesn't -seem to amount to much, for if it were true we ought to find the richly -dressed birds songless. That this is not the case in this family, at -least, is plain when we remember that our finches--and it is equally -true of foreign ones--include some of the most brilliantly colored birds -we have, such as the goldfinch, the purple finch, the indigo-bird, the -exquisite blue and red nonpareil of Louisiana, and many others, all of -which are capital musicians. - -Some of these finches are among our most highly prized cage-birds, such -as the European bullfinch, which not only sings prettily when wild, but -if caught young can be trained to learn several tunes, and between -whiles pipes and chirrups gaily. The goldfinch, linnet, waxbill, and -several others belong to this interesting tribe. - - -CANARIES - -Canaries, too, are finches, and are plentiful in the islands from which -they take their name. But if you were to see them in their own home you -would hardly recognize them; for a wild canary that is yellow all over -is hardly ever seen. Our cage-canaries, in fact, are an artificial -breed, the natural color of the plumage being olive green, marked with -black and yellow. Neither would you recognize the song of the wild -birds, which is not nearly so powerful nor so varied as that of the -feathered pets which we all know so well. - -Now and then talking canaries have been known, which had learned to -utter a number of different words quite distinctly. - - -THE SKYLARK - -No bird is more celebrated than the skylark, which has inspired -countless poems. It is a plain brown little bird, like one of our -field-sparrows; and would attract little attention were it not for the -sweetly clear and varied music of its joyous song as it mounts higher -and higher in the air, till at last it looks a mere speck in the sky. -For nearly eight months in the year it sings, and one can scarcely take -a ramble in the country without seeing and hearing it. A small colony of -skylarks dwells on Long Island, in the edge of Brooklyn, N.Y., where the -song may be heard by many a person who cannot go to Europe to listen to -it. - -The skylark builds upon the ground, in some little hollow, and its nest -is so well hidden that one scarcely ever finds it. It is made of dry -grass, leaves, and hair, and contains four or five yellowish-gray eggs -speckled with brown. - - - - -CHAPTER XXIII - -WAGTAILS, SHRIKES, THRUSHES, ETC. - - -One can scarcely walk along the banks of a British stream in spring or -summer without noticing a pretty and graceful bird, sometimes running -along near the edge of the water, and stopping every now and then to -pick off an insect from the herbage, and sometimes rising into the air -to catch a fly or gnat. And one can easily understand why the name -wagtail has been given to it, for no matter whether it is flying or -running, its tail is never still. Sometimes, too, it may be seen in a -damp meadow, or even on a lawn in a garden; and where one wagtail is, -others are sure to be not very far off. - -The nest of this bird is usually placed in a hole in a river-bank, or -else among the spreading roots of a tree. It is made of dry grass, -withered leaves, and moss, and is lined with hair, wool, or feathers. - -This description applies excellently to a little American bird, known as -the water-thrush, although it is not a true thrush, but one of the -warblers, of which a great many sorts, some very beautiful, are seen in -our woods in the spring, on their way north; but just a few appear to -remain with us all the year round. - - -THE CREEPER - -Running about on the trunks and branches of trees, and looking very much -like a feathered mouse, you may often see the creeper. It is about as -big as a wren, and has a long, slender, and slightly curved beak, which -it is constantly poking into the cracks and crevices of the bark in -search of insects. It always begins its quest low down on the trunk, and -works its way gradually upward, peering into every little cranny, and -seldom remaining still for a single moment. The larger boughs are -examined in just the same way, and when the bird has reached the top of -the tree it flies down to another and begins again, and so on all -through the day. And in order to prevent it from getting tired, it has a -short, stiff tail like that of the woodpecker, which serves as a kind of -camp-stool, and supports the weight of the body. - -The nest of this quaint little bird is nearly always placed in a hole in -a tree-trunk. It is made of roots, twigs, fragments of bark, and grass, -and is lined with wool and feathers. From six to nine eggs are laid, -which are white in color, prettily spotted with yellowish red. - -[Illustration: AMERICAN INSECT-EATING SONG-BIRDS - - 1. Chimney Swift. 2. Barn Swallow. 3. Wood Thrush. - 4. Red-eyed Vireo. 5. Chestnut-sided Warbler. - 6. Maryland Yellow-throat. 7. Redstart. 8. Phoebe Pewee. - 9. Black-throated Green Warbler. 10. King-bird. - 11. Cedar Waxwing. 12. Oven-bird. 13. Bluebird. - -All adult males.] - - -THE NUTHATCH - -This is another bird that one may often see running about on the trunk -of a tree. It is shaped rather like a wren, but is a little bigger than -a sparrow, and has a bluish-gray head and back, a white throat and -breast. It has the curious habit of keeping head downward almost -continuously as it works. - -The European nuthatch is very fond of nuts, which it cracks in a most -curious way. First of all, it wedges a nut firmly in some crevice in the -bark of a tree. Then, taking up its stand on the trunk just above, it -deals blow after blow on the nut with its stout little beak, swinging -itself up into the air every time that it does so and giving a flap with -its wings, so as to add force to its stroke. It turns itself into a kind -of live pickax, and after a very few blows the nutshell is split open, -and the clever little bird is able to get at the kernel; but our -American nuthatch seems to have forgotten this habit, if it ever had it, -and lives almost wholly on insects. - -The nuthatch makes its nest in a hole in a tree, and it is generally -composed of small pieces of soft bark, lined with dry leaves. When the -mother bird is sitting on her eggs, which are white in color, spotted -with pink, she will peck most savagely at any enemy which may try to -enter, hissing as she does so, just like a snake. - - -TITMICE - -These birds can be seen almost everywhere, and very pretty and -attractive little birds they are as they run about on the trunks and -branches of trees, not seeming to mind in the least whether they are -perching on a bough, or hanging upside down underneath it. And all the -while they are searching every little chink and cranny in order to see -whether any small insects are hiding within it. - -It is a very good plan in winter to take a marrow-bone, or a little -network bag with a lump of suet in it, and hang it from the branch of a -tree for the titmice. Day after day the little birds will visit it, -clinging to it in all sorts of positions, and pecking vigorously away at -the suspended dainty. And they will like a cocoanut which has been cut -in half almost as well. - -Several other kinds of titmice are also found in the British Isles, of -which the great tit, the cole-tit, and the blue tit are plentiful almost -everywhere. They are all very much alike in habits, and they all build -in holes in trees, making their nests of moss, hair, wool, and feathers, -and laying six or eight white eggs, prettily speckled with light red. - -Titmice abound in all northern countries and, we have several American -species, one of which, the merry, courageous little black-capped -chickadee, is known by both eye and ear to every one who takes any -notice of birds. In the Southern States another familiar one is the -peto, or crested chickadee, who, when he lifts his pointed gray cap, -reminds one of a tiny jay. The Rocky Mountain region and Pacific coast -have several other kinds--all delightful. Our titmice all make their -nests in holes in trees and stumps, usually taking possession of the -last year's home of a woodpecker. - -In Europe there is a famous titmouse having a very different method. -This is the long-tailed tit, or bottle-tit, as it is sometimes called, -because its nest is shaped just like a bottle without a neck. It is -sometimes placed in the fork of a branch, but more generally in the -middle of a thick bush, and is made of wool, moss, and spider-silk, and -is lined with quantities of soft downy feathers. And although it is by -no means small it is very easily overlooked, for the clever little birds -cover all the outside with bits of gray lichen, so as to make it look as -much like the surrounding branches as possible. - -In this beautiful and cosy nest from ten to twelve eggs are laid, which -are white in color, with just a few very small reddish spots. When the -young birds are nearly fledged they quite fill up their nursery, and you -can actually see the walls swelling out and contracting again as the -little creatures breathe. And how they all manage to keep their long -tails unruffled in those narrow quarters nobody knows at all. - -In winter you may often see a whole family of these pretty -birds--father, mother, and ten or a dozen little ones--all flying about -together, for they never separate until the spring. - - -THE SHRIKE - -A notable bird is the shrike, which is also known as the butcher-bird, -owing to a most curious habit. It is a bird of prey, feeding upon all -sorts of small creatures, and it seems to know that though it can catch -plenty of these on warm, sunny days, they will all be hiding away in -their retreats when the weather is cold and rainy. So on a fine, bright -morning it will catch many more victims than it wants at the time, and -put them away in its larder! Sometimes you may find a thorn-bush with -four or five mice, half a dozen unfledged birds, two or three fat -caterpillars, a big beetle or two, and perhaps a bumblebee, all stuck -upon the thorns, like the joints of meat hung up in a butcher's shop. -Then you may be quite sure that you have discovered a butcher-bird's -larder. And by and by, when a cold and wet day comes, and the bird can -catch no prey, it just comes and takes some of these creatures from the -thorns, and so obtains plenty of provisions! - -There are two species of shrike in the United States--one which visits -us from the south in summer and the other from the north in winter. - - -THRUSHES - -The thrush family is spread all over the world, and contains some of the -most noted of singing birds. No one can read English poetry, or much of -the classic prose of our language, without meeting with the names of -such birds as the mavis, the blackbird, the blackcap, and especially the -nightingale, all European thrushes; even the English robin, after which -our larger American redbreast is named, is a sort of thrush, closely -related to our dear little bluebird. - - -THE ROBIN - -The robin is a great favorite with the people of Europe, because it is -so very trustful. We have actually seen one of these birds perching on a -man's knee for quite a minute, while it looked about for worms in a plot -of ground which he had just been digging. But it is by no means so -gentle a bird as many people think. In fact, it is a very quarrelsome -bird, for if two cock robins meet they are almost sure to fight, and -very often the battle goes on until one of the two is killed! - -A robin once took up his abode in Hereford Cathedral, and seemed to -think that it was his own private property. For one day, when another -robin came in, he was seen chasing it all over the building, and was at -last found sitting triumphantly on its dead body! - -You may find the nest of the robin in a hole in a bank or a wall, or -perhaps in the stump of a tree. It is made of dry leaves, roots, grass, -and moss, lined with hair, or wool, and contains either five or six -yellowish-white eggs, spotted with light brown. - - -THE NIGHTINGALE - -Perhaps no bird in the world is so famous as a songster as the -nightingale, largely because of its habit of singing in the night, for -its music is not preëminent above that of several other thrushes. The -nightingale spends the winter in Africa, returning to Central -Europe in April, and after that in the warmer parts of Great Britain and -the continent it may be heard every night for weeks, especially when the -moon shines; and sometimes nearly all day as well. - -If one passes near a bush in which a nightingale is singing, it is worth -while to stop and to whistle a few low notes. The bird imagines that it -is being challenged by another nightingale, and begins to sing louder -than before. Then it stops and listens; and if one whistles a few notes -more it becomes very much excited, and comes closer and closer, singing -all the time, till at last it finds out how it has been taken in. And -then it begins to scold, chattering away in the greatest indignation at -having been deceived! - -Only the cock nightingale sings, and even he is only able to do so for a -few weeks. For very soon after the eggs are hatched his voice breaks, -just as that of the cuckoo does, and the only note which he is able to -utter until spring comes round again is a harsh whistle, followed by a -hoarse croak. - -The nest of the nightingale is placed on the ground under a low bush, -and is made almost entirely of dead leaves. It contains either four or -five eggs, which are dark olive brown all over. - - -NORTH AMERICAN THRUSHES - -There is a long list of thrushes among our North American birds, and -some of them will compare well as songsters with any of the woodland -choristers of the world. The voice of our red-breasted robin carols -sweetly enough in the spring; but he is far excelled a little later in -the season by the wood-thrush, the hermit-thrush, the veery and certain -others which come from the south when the weather becomes warm. Some of -these species, as the hermit and its relatives, pass on into Northern -Canada to make their nests and rear their young; but fortunately -others--and among them queens of song--remain with us in the United -States all summer. - -Of these the most commonly seen and heard is that richest of woodland -musicians, the wood-thrush, whose serenely beautiful song, in four -parts, separated by brief pauses, floats to our ears from -orchard and grove and shady roadside as the quiet of the summer evening -draws on, and we begin to enjoy the coolness and peace of the twilight. - -This eloquent thrush is reddish brown or bright cinnamon above, -brightest on the head; and white below, thickly ornamented with rounded -black spots in lines from throat to thighs. It is the least shy of all -the thrushes except the robin, yet gracefully modest in its demeanor. It -constructs its nest on the low horizontal limb of some tree, always with -the peculiarity that its foundation is a layer of old sear leaves and -that black, thread-like rootlets are a favorite material for the walls. -The eggs are unspotted blue, smaller and lighter than the greenish -treasures in the mud-built cabin of the robin. - -Next in point of numbers, though not so often recognized, as the -wood-thrush is the oliveback, which is distinctly olive in color on the -back and flanks, and whose buffy underparts are unspotted save across -the breast. This species is highly variable, so that those of the -Pacific coast differ considerably from those of the Atlantic side of the -continent. - -The same is true of the hermit-thrush, which is heard only in the more -northern half of the continent in spring, when its rich, indescribable -fluting perhaps deserves the prize of superiority over all other -American bird-musicians. - -The veery, or Wilson's tawny thrush, is also noted for its song, which -has an extraordinary bell-like quality which excites first curiosity and -then admiration. - -The group of birds to which the thrushes belong is a very large one, and -includes many smaller and variously colored birds, among which are such -familiar American friends as the brown thrasher and its many cousins of -the Southwest; the saucy, mewing, catbird--a frequenter of every garden -and blackberry thicket in the land; those busybodies the wrens, and many -others. - - -WRENS - -One would not at first glance connect the great long-tailed brown -thrasher with the tiny garden-wren which stuffs a hole in one of -the barn timbers or a crevice in a broken tree with a mass of twigs -surrounding a soft little bed for the red-sprinkled eggs; but when you -closely compare the shape of bill and feet, and their general form and -manners, the resemblance becomes more plain. Then you are not surprised -to find the rough nest and speckled eggs of the big thrasher and the -tiny wren much alike, and to find a resemblance in their songs, much as -they differ in loudness. - -Wrens have a curious way of beginning to build nests, and leaving them -half finished. These are sometimes supposed to be the work of the male -bird alone, and are called cocks' nests; and certainly the cock does not -seem to take any part in building the true nest, for he simply sits on a -branch close by and sings, while the hen does all the work. Perhaps he -is lazy; or perhaps she thinks that she can build much better than he -can, and so will not let him help her. And therefore it may be that he -makes these cocks' nests just to show her what he can do. But as wrens -are very timid birds, and will often desert their nest if one even puts -one's finger inside, it seems rather more likely that they are nests -which the birds have left unfinished because they thought that some -enemy had discovered them. - - -THE DIPPER - -Not unlike a very big wren with a white throat and breast is the curious -and interesting dipper, well known to dwellers in the Rocky Mountains -and the ranges west of them. It is never found far from water, and you -may often see it perched upon a stone in the shallows of a river, -bobbing up and down every now and then just as though it were making a -courtesy. And every time that it does so it gives a quick little jerk to -its tail, just as the wren does. It also makes a nest of moss, somewhat -like that of the wren, which is placed in a hole in the bank of a -stream, or often in a crevice of the rocks behind a cascade. It feeds on -insects and water-shrimps, etc., and you may often see it busily hunting -for the little beetles which are hiding among the moss on the large -stones in the bed of a stream, where it actually walks on the bottom. It -can swim and dive perfectly well, and keeps itself beneath the -surface by flapping with its wings, while it searches for grubs in the -mud at the bottom of the water. The dipper has a very bright and gay -little song, and always seems happy, and busy, and active. - - -SWALLOWS AND MARTINS - -Swallows and martins form a very distinct group of small birds well -known to everybody, for no one can help noticing them as they sail -through the air in swift graceful circles or skim low over the water in -constant pursuit of the tiny flies which form their fare, and are so -small that vast numbers must be caught. Familiar, too, is their coming -in the spring, when they are welcomed as the special sign of returning -pleasant weather after the season of cold storms; and in autumn we -cannot but notice them gathering in large flocks along the telegraph -lines or over the marshes, preparatory to departing to their winter -retreat in the tropics. - -These characteristics, as well as their appearance--slender, -long-winged, dark-colored--belong to the swallows and martins all over -the world; and they are alike in all countries in their fearless -fondness for making close acquaintance with mankind when he dwells in -settled homes. - - -COMMON SWALLOWS - -Naturally, these birds are inhabitants of caves and rocky cliffs, or of -hollow trees; but, like the swifts, the moment a man builds a house or -barn in Europe, or Asia, or South America, there certain swallows are -sure to come to live with him, just as they do around our village and -farm houses in North America. Hence the English people call their common -species house-swallow, and we give the name barn-swallow to our similar -one. This is the very common species with the long, deeply forked tail, -which sets its nest of mud and straw on the beams of our barns or -plasters it against the walls or roof, always _inside_ the -building. Almost equally widespread and numerous is another barn-loving -kind, distinguished by its short square tail and its habit of -forming bulb-shaped nests wholly of mud, and of placing them in rows -_outside_ the building, close up under the eaves. These last are -better known as eaves-swallows. - -[Illustration: GAUDY TROPICAL BIRDS - - 1. Ara; Macaw. 2. Rose-Crested Cockatoo. 3. Senegal Parrot. - 4. Mexican Toucan. 5. African Hornbill.] - - -WELL-KNOWN MARTINS - -Martin is a name applied to various swallows, but with us it denotes the -big purple one which in the warmer parts of the country gladly takes -possession of the pretty bird-houses which many persons set on poles in -their gardens. - -Another smaller, sooty-brown martin, is the sand-martin, or -bank-swallow, which differs from all the rest in placing its eggs on a -little bed of straw and feathers at the end of a long burrow which it -bores into the face of a cliff of earth beside some river, where usually -a large company live as happy neighbors. This species is one of the few -birds known almost all over the world. - - - - -CHAPTER XXIV - -PARROTS, PIGEONS, PEA-FOWL, PHEASANTS, ETC. - - -The members of the parrot family are very interesting birds; in the -first place because they are generally so gaily colored, in the second -place because they are so easily tamed, and in the third place because -many of them are such capital talkers. They nearly all spend the greater -part of their lives in the trees, and if you look at their feet you will -see that the first and fourth toes are turned backward while the second -and third are directed forward. This gives the birds a great power of -grasp, and helps them in climbing. - -At least five hundred different kinds of these birds have been -discovered in different parts of the world, but we shall only be able to -tell you about a few of them. Let us take first a parrot, then a -parrakeet, then a cockatoo, then a macaw, and then a love-bird, as -representing the various groups. - - -THE GRAY PARROT - -We take this parrot because it is the one which we see most often in -cages. It comes from Central Africa, and, like most parrots, is -generally seen in large flocks, which fly about together. During the -daytime these birds often travel long distances in search of food, which -consists chiefly of fruits and nuts, but in the evening they always -return to their regular roosting-places. - -This parrot makes no nest at all, but just lays its eggs in a hole in -the trunk of a tree. Both birds sit in turns, and if danger threatens -they will defend their eggs or their little ones with the greatest -courage. And if they seem to be getting the worst of the fight, it is -said that the rest of the flock will come to their rescue, and will -nearly always succeed in driving the enemy away. - -When they are kept as pets gray parrots nearly always learn to talk -well, and sometimes make such suitable remarks that it really almost -seems as if they must understand what they say. That they live to a very -great age appears certain from the fact that they have sometimes been -kept in captivity for seventy or eighty years. - - -PARRAKEETS - -These birds are found in the hotter parts of Africa, Asia, and -Australia, being very plentiful, for instance, in the forests of India. -Perhaps the best known of them is the East Indian ring-necked parrakeet, -which is green in color, the male having a red ring round his neck, with -a black ring underneath it. The length of the bird is about seventeen -inches, of which almost exactly half is taken up by the tail. - -These parrakeets are dreadfully mischievous birds, for they visit both -fields and gardens, and devour enormous quantities of grain and fruit. -You can easily understand how much harm four or five hundred of them can -do in a short time, and flocks of this size are often seen, while -sometimes they are even larger still. They have regular roosting-places, -to which they always return at night; and they lay their three or four -white eggs in holes in trees. - - -COCKATOOS - -Cockatoos may easily be recognized by their feathery crests, which they -can raise and lower at will. We will take the sulphur-crested cockatoo -as our example. - -This favorite cage-bird comes from Australia, where it is found in -enormous flocks. Fancy seeing a thousand cockatoos flying about -together! And fancy what it must be to listen to their screams! Yet a -flock of this size is not at all uncommon. The birds are not as -plentiful as they used to be, however, for they did so much mischief in -the grain-fields that the planters shot them in large numbers; often, -indeed, a field would be so full of cockatoos that from a little -distance it looked as though it were deeply covered with snow. - -As talkers cockatoos are not nearly so clever as parrots, but they soon -learn to imitate all kinds of sounds, such as the barking of dogs, the -mewing of cats, the cackling of fowls, and the gobbling of turkeys. -Unfortunately, however, they are very fond of screaming, and make a -terrible outcry if they are annoyed in any way, so that they are apt to -be rather a nuisance if they are kept as pets. - - -MACAWS - -The macaws are large and handsome birds, their plumage being nearly -always very brightly and even gaudily colored. In the red and blue -macaw, for instance, which is one of the best known, the general color -is bright vermilion red, with a patch of yellow feathers on the upper -part of each wing. Then the lower part of the back, together with the -quills of the wings and the outside feathers of the tail, is blue, while -the central tail-feathers are scarlet with blue tips. But even this is -not all, for underneath the wings and tail are golden red, varied by -patches of yellow feathers tipped with green. This magnificent bird is -nearly three feet long, two-thirds of that length being occupied by the -tail. - -Macaws are found in large flocks in the great forests of tropical -America, where they may be seen sometimes flying high in air, and -sometimes sitting on the topmost branches of the tallest trees. Their -cries can be heard from a very long distance away. - -Macaws are just as mischievous in the cornfields as parrots and -cockatoos are in other parts of the world, and are much more difficult -to kill; for some, before settling down to feed, post sentinels in the -tops of tall trees near by, and steadily watchful, they give the alarm -as soon as they see the slightest sign of danger. - -Macaws lay their eggs in holes in tree-trunks, as parrots do, and are -said to enlarge the holes to suit their requirements by means of their -powerful beaks. They are not very wise birds, however, for when they are -sitting they often leave their long tails projecting out of the hole, to -be seen by every passer-by! - - -LOVE-BIRDS - -Of all the birds which belong to the parrot family the love-birds are -the smallest, being little bigger than finches. Seven different kinds -are known, all found in Africa south of the Desert of Sahara. - -These pretty little creatures are called love-birds because they seem so -very fond of one another. If two or three are kept in a cage together, -they always snuggle up as closely as possible, and will sit side by side -for hours, perfectly happy in each other's company. And often, if one of -a couple dies, the other will pine away in a short time and die too, -apparently from sorrow. - -In a wild state love-birds are generally seen in small flocks which fly -very rapidly, and constantly utter their sharp screaming cry. They do -not seem to make any nests for themselves, but make use of those of -other birds instead. Whether they turn out the rightful owners, however, -or merely take possession of nests which have been deserted, nobody -seems to know. - - -PIGEONS - -We shall only be able to tell you about two members of the great pigeon -family, the first of which shall be the wood-pigeon, or ring-dove, which -is interesting as the wild original that has given us our domestic -pigeons, so many varieties of which have been produced by fanciers. - -This is a very common bird in almost all parts of the British Isles, and -one can scarcely walk through a wood without startling it from its -retreat in the thick foliage of some tall tree, or ramble through the -fields without seeing at least one flock on its way to its -feeding-grounds. Unfortunately, it does a good deal of mischief, for it -has a most enormous appetite, and carries off immense quantities of -grain from the cornfields. Just to give you some idea of the amount of -food that it will eat, we may mention that no less than eight hundred -grains of wheat have been taken from the crop of a single wood-pigeon, -six hundred peas from that of another, and one hundred and eighty -beechnuts from that of a third; while one naturalist tells us that the -bird will sometimes pack away enough turnip-tops to fill a pint measure -when they are well shaken up! - -Our American turtle-dove, or mourning-dove, is much like this but nobody -minds the few bits of grain it picks up. On the other hand, the -wood-pigeon devours great quantities of the seeds of weeds; so although -it is mischievous in one way, it is useful in another. - -The nest of the wood-pigeon, which is mostly placed in the upper -branches of a tall tree, is very clumsily made. Indeed, it is very -little more than a platform of sticks, which are often so loosely put -together, that as you look up from below you can see the eggs through -the gaps between them! There are never more than two eggs, which are -perfectly white. - - -THE PASSENGER-PIGEON - -The passenger-pigeon, or wild pigeon of North America, is remarkable for -two reasons. - -In the first place, it is (or rather, used to be) found in the most -astonishing numbers. Flocks of these birds _many miles in length_ -have often been seen, while large tracts of forest were once so thronged -with their nests that all the smaller branches and many of the larger -ones were broken down. Fancy what that means when a nesting-place is -thirty miles long and several miles broad, while as many as a hundred -nests may be found in a single tree! - -In the second place, the bird is renowned as a traveler. That is why it -is called the passenger-pigeon. All over the length and breadth of the -country a few years ago these vast flocks would fly, coming no man knows -whence, going no man knows whither, roosting just for one night in one -place, and passing on again early next morning. The flocks are not so -large as they were, however, for many millions of the birds have been -destroyed; and as these pigeons never lay more than two eggs, they do -not multiply very fast. In fact, this pigeon is already a rare bird. - - -PEACOCKS - -What a magnificent bird the peacock is, with his great train raised and -spread, so as to show off all the beautiful eye-like markings! And -how _very_ proud of it he seems as he struts about to be admired, -as though knowing quite well that everybody is looking at him! - -People sometimes speak of this train as the "tail." But it really -consists of those feathers which are called the tail-coverts, the true -tail lying underneath it, and serving to support it when it is spread. - -Peacocks are natives of Asia, and are found most commonly, perhaps, in -India, where flocks of thirty or forty may often be seen, and one -traveler tells us that he once saw quite fifteen hundred of these -splendid birds all together! They are sometimes caught in a very curious -way. The hunter rides up quietly to within a short distance of them as -they are feeding on the ground, and then suddenly dashes at them at full -speed. Of course they at once rise into the air, and just as they are -passing out of reach he strikes at one of them with a very long whip, -which coils round its neck like a lasso. Then all that he has to do is -to pull it down to the ground. - -In some parts of India, however, these birds are regarded by the natives -as sacred, and no one is allowed to kill them, or even to take them -alive. - -[Illustration: AMERICAN GAME BIRDS - - 1. Wood-duck. 2. Pheasant. 3. Green-winged Teal. - 4. Yellow-legs; Tattler. 5. Widgeon Duck. 6. Canvas-back. - 7. Canada Grouse. 8. Blue-winged Teal. 9. Quail; Bobwhite. - 10. Wood-cock. 11. Virginia Rail. 12. Common Snipe.] - - -TURKEYS - -Everybody takes an interest in the turkey--more especially at -Thanksgiving and Christmas time!--and many people think that it comes -from the country of Turkey, but this is quite a mistake, for it is a -native of North America, in many parts of which it is still found in -great abundance. The domesticated turkey probably arose from the Mexican -variety rather than from the more familiar wild turkey of the Northern -States. - -Some of the flocks seem to consist of cock birds only, and others of -hens and young, the reason being that the cocks are very fierce and -quarrelsome birds, and will attack and even kill the young ones if they -have an opportunity. Until long after her little ones are fledged, -indeed, the mother turkey has to take the greatest care of them; for not -only are they in constant danger from their unnatural father, but all -kinds of other enemies, such as foxes, lynxes, and horned owls, -have to be guarded against as well. So she keeps them nearly always -under cover, and when at last they are big enough to be taken for a -little ramble, she never brings them back to the nest by the path by -which they left it. - -Turkeys often travel for very long distances. When they come to a broad -river they perch in the upper branches of the tallest trees they can -find, and then fly across together at a given signal. They are not very -strong on the wing, and usually some of them fall into the water. But by -spreading out their tails and paddling hard they generally manage to -make their way to shore. - - -PHEASANTS - -The pheasant is a native of Southeastern Europe and Asia Minor; but it -has lived in Western Europe for so long that it is fully entitled to -rank among British birds. It has so many enemies, however, that if it -were not carefully preserved it would very soon disappear. - -Pheasants nearly always live in woods, though they often venture out -into the open fields to search for food, which consists of acorns, -grain, beechnuts, seeds, and small insects. During the winter, however, -they have to be fed, or they would be very likely to die from -starvation. - -These birds do not make a regular nest, the hen merely scratching a -slight hollow in the ground, and there laying her ten to fourteen -olive-brown eggs. When she is sitting it is difficult to see her, for -her light-brown mottled plumage looks just like the dead leaves among -which she is resting, and even the sharpest eye might often pass her by. - - -THE RED GROUSE - -This bird is remarkable for two reasons. The first is, that it is found -only in the British Isles, and not in any other part of the world; and -the second is, that it varies so very greatly in color. Sometimes it is -almost entirely black, sometimes it is reddish chestnut, and -sometimes nearly all the feathers are broadly tipped with white. - -The red grouse is found on moors and mountainsides wherever there is -plenty of heath or heather, and where it can obtain the whortleberries, -cranberries, and tender shoots of cotton-grass and sedge upon which it -feeds. And though it has many natural enemies, such as hawks and crows, -foxes and stoats, and while it is shot in thousands by sportsmen, it -never seems to decrease in abundance. - -As a general rule the grouse does not fly much, but runs with great -swiftness among the heather. It makes a very rough nest of straws and -twigs in a hollow in the ground, and often sits so closely on its eggs -that it may almost be trodden on before it will move. When the little -ones are hatched they seem to know without being taught how to conceal -themselves in moments of danger, and if they cannot find cover will -flatten themselves against the ground, where they look so much like -stones that even the sharp eye of a hawk will pass them by. - -[Illustration: FOUR GREAT GAME-BIRDS. - - 1. American Wild Turkey. 2. European Great Bustard. - 3. European Blackcock. 4. South American Chaha.] - - -PARTRIDGES - -Partridges, of which our quail is an example, are found almost -everywhere, being carefully protected in most countries for purposes of -sport; and they lay so many eggs that they are scarcely likely to become -less plentiful. Few nests contain less than ten eggs, while fifteen or -even more are frequently laid; and instances have been recorded in which -as many as thirty-three eggs have been found in a single nest, but in -these cases two birds have most likely laid together. The mother bird -sits very closely--so closely, indeed, that when she has nested in a -meadow and the grass is being mown, she often fails to move out of the -way of the scythe in time, and is found lying on the ground with her -head cut off after the reapers have passed by. - -When the little ones are hatched, both parents go about with them, and -the covey, as it is called, keeps together all through the autumn and -winter. - - - - -CHAPTER XXV - -OSTRICHES, HERONS, CRANES, IBISES, ETC. - - -The ostrich is a very remarkable bird indeed. - -In the first place, it is by far the largest of all living birds, for a -full-grown male ostrich is taller than a very tall man. Then its head is -somewhat like that of a camel, and its neck like that of a giraffe--very -long and slender, with scarcely any feathers on it. Next, its wings are -so small that they cannot be used for flight. All that an ostrich does -with its wings, indeed, is to spread them out when it is running, so -that they may help it in keeping its balance. And, finally, its legs are -as stout and as strong as those of a horse, while it has only two toes -on each foot. - -Ostriches live in the great desert plains of Africa, where they are -mostly found in small flocks. Although they cannot fly, they can run -with very great speed, and in fair chase will distance even a swift -horse. But for some strange reason they always run in circles, so that -all that a hunter has to do is to notice whether they are swerving to -the right or to the left, and then to gallop across and cut them off. - -When an ostrich is running at full speed it takes most wonderful -strides, its toes scarcely touching the ground as it dashes along. By -careful measurement, indeed, it has been found that there is sometimes a -distance of no less than twenty-eight feet between its footmarks! - -The ostrich is rather a formidable bird, for it can kick forward with -terrific force. But if a man lies down when attacked by one he is fairly -safe, for the kick cannot be properly delivered at a height of less than -three feet. Or if he has a forked stick he can hold the bird back by -pressing the fork against its neck. - -Ostriches' eggs are so large that one of them will make a good meal for -eight men. The bird does not make a nest, but scoops out a hollow in the -sand about three feet across and a foot deep, and then arranges -its eggs in it, each egg standing upright, and being lightly covered -with sand. Twenty eggs or more are often hatched together, and in -addition to these the bird generally lays a number round the edges of -the hole, which appear to serve as food for the young. During the day -the hen sits, the cock taking her place by night. - -The appetite of the ostrich is proverbial, and it would really be -difficult to say what an ostrich will not swallow. Stones, coins, -bunches of keys, tobacco-pipes, newspapers done up for post, brickbats, -old shoes, and tenpenny nails have all been taken from its crop; and it -seems to be very seldom indeed that any of these things disagree with -it! Its natural food, however, consists chiefly of wild melons, which -also supply it with all the moisture that it needs. - -Ostriches are very valuable to man, on account of the beautiful plumes -which are obtained from the male. These birds are therefore kept in -great numbers in ostrich-farms so that the plumes may be regularly cut -once in every year. As this does not destroy the bird, it is proper to -make use of these beautiful feathers as ornaments. - - -THE EMU - -In Australia the place of the ostrich is taken by the emu. It is a -smaller bird, however, though a full-grown hen--which is bigger than the -cock--is often six feet in height. And it has three toes upon each foot -instead of two. - -The emu was formerly very common in many parts of Australia, but it has -been so terribly persecuted that it is fast becoming exceedingly scarce. -It is generally hunted with dogs, which are trained to spring at the -neck, so as to be out of reach of the terrible feet. For the emu does -not kick forward, as ostriches do, but strikes sideways and backward, -like a cow. - -The emu only lays six or seven eggs, which are of a beautiful dark-green -color, without any markings at all. They are laid in a hollow scooped in -the ground. During the nesting-season the female bird utters a loud -booming sound, which is due to a very curious pouch in the throat. - - -RHEAS - -There are also several ostrich-like birds in South America which are -known as rheas. They inhabit the Argentine plains, and are not nearly so -large as the ostrich and the emu, but are quite as swift of foot, so -that it is not at all easy for a man mounted on even a fast horse to -overtake them. They are generally hunted with the bolas which is a long -cord with a heavy ball as each end, and is flung at the bird in such a -manner as to wind round its neck and hold it prisoner. - -Rheas always lay their eggs in hollows in the ground, and the number of -eggs in a nest seems to vary from twenty to twenty-four. The male bird, -apparently, sits upon them, the hen taking no part in the task of -hatching them out. Neither does she seem to take any care of the little -birds when at last they make their appearance, for they always travel -about with the cock. - - -CASSOWARIES - -Of these there are a good many kinds. They are formed like the ostrich -and the emu, but have shorter necks, which are sometimes wattled and are -marked with patches of brilliant red and blue and green. The legs are -stout and the feet are perfectly enormous. But their most striking -feature is an odd bony crest upon the top of the head, which is covered -with naked skin. - -Cassowaries are found only in Australia, New Guinea, Ceram, and some of -the neighboring islands, and, unlike all the preceding birds, are -dwellers in the forest. They are so shy that they are very seldom seen, -so that we do not know very much about their habits. The Australian -natives, however, often keep them in captivity, and treat them almost as -we treat poultry. But they are rather dangerous creatures, for they can -kick very hard with their great, strong feet, and are very ready to -attack any one who is a stranger to them. - -Cassowaries only lay from three to five eggs, and it seems that the -cock bird alone sits on them, and that he also takes care of the little -ones after they are hatched. - - -KIWIS - -More curious still are the kiwis of New Zealand, whose wings are so very -small, and so completely concealed under the feathers of the body, that -practically they may be said to have none at all. Besides this, the beak -is so long and slender that it reminds one of that of a woodcock or a -snipe. The nostrils are placed at the very tip of this beak, which the -bird appears to use by plunging it deeply into soft ground, and then -smelling for worms. - -When it finds a worm it seems to coax rather than to pull it out of the -ground, and then throws up its head and swallows it whole. - -Kiwis have several times been brought to the London Zoo, but hardly any -one ever saw them, for all day long they were fast asleep among their -straw. If the keeper took them out and woke them they would just yawn -once or twice, opening their beaks to the widest possible extent, and -then fall fast asleep again. - -After dark, however, these birds become very lively, and will run with -such speed that even a dog can scarcely overtake them. This shows that -their natural habit is to go abroad and seek their food during the -night. - -The egg of the kiwi is enormously large. Indeed, it is almost a quarter -of the size of the bird itself, and when two eggs have been laid and the -bird is sitting on them, the ends project beyond the feathers on either -side of its body. - - -BUSTARDS - -The bustards also are able to run very well, and unlike the birds -belonging to the ostrich family, they are also able to fly. - -The finest of these birds is the great bustard, which until about the -year 1840 was found wild in Great Britain. The cock is between three and -four feet in height, and the head and body together are nearly -four feet long, while when the wings are fully spread they measure quite -eight feet from tip to tip. The hen is a good deal smaller. - -The great bustard lives in wild, open plains, and is so extremely wary -that it is almost impossible to approach within gunshot. Except during -the nesting season it is found in small flocks, and both by day and by -night two of the party act as sentinels and stand always on the watch, -ready to give the alarm at the first sign of danger. They have -wonderfully sharp sight, and will detect a man long before they can be -seen by him. Almost the only way to shoot them, indeed, is to dig a pit -in the ground and hide inside it, covered over with branches, until they -pass by. - -These magnificent birds are now found chiefly in the steppes of Eastern -Europe and Asia, where they feed upon seeds and grain, and also upon -insects and even upon small animals. They lay two or three eggs in a -hollow in the ground, in which sometimes, but not always, they place a -few grass-stems by way of a nest. - - -CRANES - -Another tall and stately bird is the crane. It is found in one or -another species in all quarters of the world, living on plains and -marshes, coming north to breed, and retiring southward again during the -winter. - -Cranes generally travel about in flocks, which nearly always fly in the -form of a wedge, each bird having its long legs stretched stiffly out -behind it. Each flock is under the guidance of a leader, and the birds -are most careful when they alight to do so in some open place where they -can see for a long distance in every direction, so as to guard against -the danger of being surprised by an enemy. - -Cranes are generally to be seen in marshy districts, where they can find -plenty of frogs, newts, and worms. But sometimes they will make their -way to a newly sown field and dig up all the grain. Their nests are -generally placed on the ground, among osiers or in reed-beds, though now -and then they will build on the very top of an old ruin. The little -brown crane of the western plains is the most familiar American species. - -The crowned crane, which is found in Northern and Western Africa, is a -very odd-looking bird, for it has a large bunch of upright golden -feathers on the top of its head, and a scarlet wattle on the throat. -From a little distance it really looks as if it were wearing a bright -yellow bonnet, tied with a bow of scarlet ribbon under its chin! - - -LAPWINGS - -The European lapwing, known to every one by the familiar reference in -Tennyson's "Locksley Hall," represents the world-wide family of plovers. -They are beautiful birds with their black and white plumage and the tuft -of long feathers at the back of the head, and very often one may see -hundreds or even thousands of them together. Early in the spring one may -find their four long, pointed eggs, which are olive brown in color, -spotted and blotched with brownish black, and are always laid in a -little hollow in the bare ground with their small ends inward in the -form of a cross. But somehow or other, although they are quite large -eggs, it is very difficult to see them, and you might pass close by a -dozen nests, and even look straight at them, and yet never notice the -eggs at all. - -Often, when some one happens to find a hen lapwing sitting on her eggs, -she will pretend to be wounded, and will flap and tumble along the -ground in the hope of making the intruder chase her, and so of leading -him away from her nest. - -Sportsmen know of many other plovers, such as the golden, the ringneck, -the killdee, or killdeer, and several more, both American and foreign. - - -THE CURLEW - -This is another plains-bird common to both continents, which may often -be noticed on moors or in marshes during the summer, or on the sea-coast -in the winter. But generally one only sees it in the distance, for it -is extremely wary, and takes to flight at the very slightest alarm. - -All through the winter months curlews live in flocks, and one may hear -them uttering their mournful cries in chorus together. But early in the -spring they separate, and each pair selects some little hollow in the -ground which may serve as a nest. In this they lay four pear-shaped -eggs, which are olive green in color, spotted with gray and brown. When -the eggs are hatched the parents take the greatest care of their little -ones, and often if any one comes too near the nest they will fly round -and round his head in the most excited manner, and do their very best to -drive him away. - -In color the curlew is pale brown above, with darker spots and streaks, -and grayish white beneath. Its total length is about twenty-four inches, -and the beak is long and slender, with a downward curve. - - -RUFFS - -The ruff, a relative of the curlew, is remarkable for three reasons. In -the first place, during the breeding-season, the male bird has a great -frill or ruff of long feathers round his neck, which he can raise and -lower at will. In the next place, two male ruffs are never colored -alike, while sometimes they look so wholly different that it is quite -hard to believe that they can really belong to the same species. And, in -the third place, they are so dreadfully quarrelsome when the -nesting-season begins, that two male ruffs can never meet without -fighting. More than that, they actually have regular fighting-places, to -which numbers of the birds resort when they want to settle their -quarrels! But although they fight very savagely, they never seem to do -each other much harm. - -Ruffs are hardly known in America, except in Alaska, but at one time -they were very common in the marshy parts of England. - - -THE WOODCOCK - -The woodcock is a bird of wooded swamps. It is valued by sportsmen, -because difficult to shoot and delicate to eat. They lay their eggs in -a hollow in the ground, which they line with dry grass and leaves. When -the mother bird is sitting it is almost impossible to see her, for she -nearly always nests among dead ferns, which are of exactly the same hues -as her own plumage. Generally, indeed, it is her eyes that are noticed, -and if she only had the sense to keep them shut she would probably never -be detected at all. - -Woodcocks are hardly ever seen unless they are disturbed, for they hide -during the daytime in thick bushes in woods, and only come out to feed -in the evening. Their food consists chiefly of worms, which they pull -out of soft, muddy ground by means of their long, slender beaks. - -If two male woodcocks meet during the nesting-season they almost always -quarrel, and will fight nearly as savagely as ruffs. - - -THE SNIPE - -In appearance and habits the snipe is something like the woodcock, but -it is considerably smaller, and is found in damp, marshy ground instead -of in woods. When it is flushed it flies away for a few yards quite -straight, and then begins to twist and turn about in a most -extraordinary way, changing the direction of its flight at almost every -yard. In consequence of this habit it is not at all an easy bird to -shoot. - -The male snipe is very fond of rising to a great height in the air, and -there uttering his curious cry of "chick! chick! chick-a!" over and over -again. At the same time he also makes a strange drumming sound, which -seems to be caused in some way by the motion of the wings, as it is only -produced while he is "stooping" down toward the ground. - -The snipe generally nests in the middle of a tussock of coarse grass or -rushes, where it lays four buff or olive-green eggs marked with -dark-brown blotches. - - -THE HERON - -One of our finest American birds is the heron, which you may often see -flying high in the air, with its long legs stretched stiffly out -behind it. And sometimes you may see it standing quite motionless in -the shallower parts of a stream, watching for the fishes on which it -feeds. After a time it will slowly stoop, plunge its long beak into the -water, and draw it out again with a minnow, or a perch, or a frog -struggling in its grip. Then it holds its beak almost upright, gives a -gobble and a gulp--and the fish or the frog disappears! - -The heron feeds largely on frogs, mice, insects, and worms, as well as -upon fishes. And more than once it has been known to capture and swallow -a small snake. - -Herons build their nests in the upper branches of tall trees, making -them of sticks and twigs, lined with grass and roots. A number of these -birds generally nest together in the same clump of trees, just as rooks -do, and in each nest are laid either three or four bluish-green eggs, -without any markings at all. - -If a heron is attacked, it uses its long, dagger-like beak with great -readiness, and always tries to strike at the eyes of its enemy. Herons -are of many kinds, the great blue one being the finest of the tribe. - - -STORKS - -The stork is found in most parts of Europe, and also in Asia and -Northern Africa, but no stork lives in America. - -When storks are migrating, they fly in great flocks, which sometimes -consist of many thousand birds. As soon as they arrive, they spread -themselves over the country, being especially fond of marshy districts, -where they can find plenty of frogs, toads, lizards, and the other small -creatures upon which they feed. But they also devour large quantities of -the offal which they find in the streets of the villages and towns. - -In Holland and Germany storks breed in great numbers. Their nests, which -are usually placed on the tops of chimneys, are little more than clumsy -piles of sticks, and as fresh sticks are added every year, they -gradually get bigger and bigger until at last they reach a very great -size. From three to five pure white eggs are laid, and the young birds -remain in the nest until they are well able to fly. - - -THE IBIS - -Very much like storks in some ways are the ibises, which are found in -many parts of Asia, Africa, and America. They are generally found in -flocks, which live in marshes or on the banks of rivers and lakes, where -they spend most of their time dabbling in the water with their long -beaks in search of food. - -One of these birds was worshiped by the Egyptians of old, who treated it -with the greatest reverence during life, and carefully embalmed its body -when it died. For this reason it is known as the sacred ibis, and in -every large art museum you may see ibis mummies, which were taken from -the tombs of the kings. In color this bird is snowy white, with a black -head and neck, and long black plumes on the hinder part of the back. You -may generally see it in a zoo, together with the beautiful scarlet ibis, -whose plumage is bright red in color, with black tips to the wings. - - - - -CHAPTER XXVI - -SWIMMING BIRDS - - -In the birds belonging to this group the feet are webbed, so that they -may be used as paddles. And some of them are very curious indeed. - - -FLAMINGO - -First of all, there is the well-known red and white flamingo, which is -quite an extraordinary bird, for it has extremely long, stilt-like legs, -and an extremely long, snake-like neck, which it can twist and coil -about as easily as if it were just a piece of rope. There is no part of -its body which a flamingo cannot reach with its beak, so that it can -preen its feathers quite easily. And when it wants to feed it wades into -the water, bends down its long neck, turns its head upside down, so that -its forehead rests upon the bottom, and scoops up great mouthfuls of -mud. Then, by means of the grooves at the sides of the bill, it gets rid -of the mud, while all the grubs, etc., which were lying buried in it, -are left behind to be swallowed. - -The nest of the flamingo is a cone-shaped heap of mud, sometimes as much -as two feet high, with a little hollow at the top to contain eggs. -Thousands of these birds nest together, and when they are sitting they -look just like a great rosy-white cloud resting upon the ground. And if -they are startled and fly away, their nests look as though hundreds of -children had been making big sand-pies on the beach and neatly arranging -them in rows. But such a sight as this can now be seen only in some -almost inaccessible tropical islands, for these birds have been greatly -persecuted by feather-hunters and others, and are rare everywhere near -civilization. They used to be common in Florida and all about the Gulf -of Mexico, where now only a few exist. - -Flamingoes are found in the warmer parts of all the great continents -except Australia. Nine different kinds are known, some of which stand -well over six feet in height. - - -GEESE, SWANS, AND DUCKS - -Of wild geese there are at least forty species, which are found in -almost all parts of the world. - -The graylag goose which breeds in the British Isles, seems to be the -ancestor of the domestic geese that we see in every farmyard. It lives -in flocks, which frequent marshes, lakes, and boggy moors during the -greater part of the year, but often visit the sea-coast in winter. -Sometimes, too, they may be seen near the mouth of a great river. They -are very shy birds, and when sportsmen wish to shoot them they have to -resort to all kinds of tricks in order to approach them without being -seen. - -When wild geese fly, they generally do so in the form of a half-opened -pair of compasses, with the angle in front. But now and then they may be -seen in the air in an irregular wavy line. As they fly they make a -curious "gaggling" cry, which can be heard from a very long distance. - -The nest of this goose is made of grass and flags, and is generally -placed at the base of a tussock of coarse grass. It usually contains six -plain white eggs. - -Swans, too, are found wild in many parts of the world, and used to be -almost as numerous as ducks or geese both on the inland lakes and along -the coasts of the United States, but now have become rare and shy. All -the species breed in the arctic regions, and appear among us only on -their migrations in spring and fall. - -Swans are most graceful birds in the water, and as their limbs are set -very far back they can swim with great ease. But for the same reason -they are very clumsy upon dry ground, and waddle along in the most -awkward way, seeming to find it very difficult to keep their balance. -All those in our parks are tame; but during the nesting-season the male -swan generally becomes very savage, and will attack any one who ventures -too near to his nest. And as a single stroke from his wing is -sufficient to break a man's arm, he is apt to be dangerous when -unfriendly. - -The nest of the swan is a very large structure of reeds, rushes, and -grass, and is generally placed quite close to the water's edge. It -contains six or seven large greenish-white eggs. - -A great many kinds of duck are known, but we can only mention the common -wild duck, which still visits rivers and lakes every winter in -considerable numbers, a few of which remain to breed. - -The male duck is called the mallard, and from October till May he is a -very handsome bird, with a dark-green head and neck, a white collar -round the lower part of his throat, brownish-gray wings, chestnut-brown -breast, and white hinder parts. But when he moults he puts off this -beautiful plumage, and for the next five months is mottled all over with -brown and gray, just like his mate. - -Wild ducks are found chiefly in marshes and fens, and on the borders of -rivers and lakes. But when they come over in the autumn they often spend -the daytime out at sea resting on the water. They make their nests of -grass, lined with down from the mother bird's own breast; and the little -ones are able to swim as soon as they leave the egg-shell. When they are -about half grown they sometimes use their wings in diving, and you may -see them flapping their way along beneath the surface, and really flying -under water. - - -CORMORANTS - -In Great Britain, due to its northern latitude, cormorants are commonly -seen where the coast is high and rocky; but in America they are less -often visible because they dwell mainly in the far north. They are very -odd birds. Sitting on rocks which overhang the water, every now and then -one will drop into the sea, splash about for a moment or two, and then -return to his perch. Then you may be quite sure that he has caught and -swallowed a fish. Sometimes you may see them swimming along with their -heads under water, watching for victims in the depths below. - -Cormorants are famous for their big appetites--perhaps it would be more -correct to say for their horrible greediness, for they will go on eating -till they simply cannot swallow another morsel, and yet will try hard to -catch every fish that comes near them. The little ones feed in a most -extraordinary way, for they actually poke their heads down their -mother's throat, and take as much food as they want from her crop! - -When these birds really feel that they have had enough to eat, they sit -upon a rock for an hour or two while they digest their dinners. They -also take this opportunity to dry their wings, and spread them out to -the fullest extent on either side, so that they look very much like rows -of black clothes hung out to dry! - -In China cormorants are often trained to catch fish for their masters, a -strap being fastened round the lower part of the neck to prevent them -from swallowing their victims. They were formerly used in England in -just the same way. - - -PELICANS - -More curious still are their cousins the pelicans, which have a pouch of -naked parchment-like skin under their long bills, capable of holding -quite two gallons of water. This pouch, as a rule, is folded closely up -under the beak, but when the bird is fishing, it packs victim after -victim into it until it is quite full, when it really looks almost half -as big as the body. - -In this way pelicans carry back food for their hungry little ones. But -on their way they are sometimes robbed, for there is a kind of large -hawk which is very fond of eating fishes, but is not at all fond of the -trouble of catching them. So he waits till he sees a pelican returning -home from a fishing expedition, and then dashes at it, and begins to -beat it about the head with his wings. The poor frightened pelican, -thinking that it is about to be killed, opens its beak to scream. This, -of course, is just what the hawk wants, and snatching a fish out of the -pelican's pouch, he flies off with it in triumph. - -Pelicans are very plentiful in many parts of the world, and are often -seen in vast flocks. We have two kinds in the United States and -Canada--the white and the brown. Both are more numerous on the marshes -and around the shallow lakes of the northwestern plains than anywhere -else, because they have been driven from their former coast-resorts. All -the birds in a flock will sometimes go out fishing together. Arranging -themselves in a great semicircle, about a yard apart, they all paddle -slowly forward, and in this way will drive a great shoal of fish into -shallow water, where they may be snapped up without difficulty. - - -SEA-GULLS - -These you know very well by sight, for they are common on all parts of -our coasts, and on many of our lakes, while numbers of them may be seen -even on the ornamental waters in the parks of New York and other -seaboard cities. In stormy weather, too, they often fly inland, and -sometimes great numbers of them may be seen in newly plowed fields, -hunting for worms and insects. Most of them go north for the -breeding-season, some visiting certain islands and rocky cliffs in -immense numbers, and making their nests of seaweed; while others, like -the black-headed gull, and the ringbill nest in marshes, merely -trampling down the broken tops of sedges and reeds, and so forming a -slight hollow in which to lay the eggs. - -At least fifty different kinds of gulls are known. But many of them are -very difficult to distinguish, for their summer plumage may be quite -unlike that with which they are clothed during the winter, while the -young birds are not marked like their parents till they are two or even -three years old. Those which are most common on the Atlantic coast are -two or three kinds of herring-gulls, which formerly bred in great -numbers on all our sandy shores and islets, but now have been driven to -quieter regions in the far north. On the western plains, around certain -shallow lakes, live great colonies of ring-billed and other small gulls, -breeding in the extensive marshes. - -Flying to and fro over the sea, or over a large inland lake, you may -sometimes see a number of birds which look like gulls, but are much -smaller, and have long, forked tails like swallows. These are terns, -or sea-swallows, as they are often called, and are most elegant and -graceful in their movements, gliding and sweeping through the air, and -twisting and turning with the most wonderful swiftness and ease. They -are summer visitors only, coming to us in May and flying south again in -September, and they breed on flat shores, generally laying their two or -three eggs in a small hollow in the shingle. They feed on small fishes -and shrimps, and also on the sandhoppers and the various insects which -are so plentiful upon the beach. - -[Illustration: AMERICAN WADING BIRDS. - - 1. Great White Egret. 2. Sandhill Crane. - 3. Great Blue Heron. 4. Whooping Crane. - 5. White Pelican (Male). 6. Snow Goose.] - - -GUILLEMOTS - -Very common are guillemots on some coasts where there are sea-fronting -cliffs, and freedom from disturbance. Thus they abound along the shores -of Labrador and Greenland, and many varieties are to be found along the -northern coasts of Alaska, and about the borders of the Arctic sea, -often thronging in great numbers together with puffins, kittiwakes, -petrels, and gannets, each kind occupying separate parts of the cliffs -and living on friendly terms with their neighbors. - -Guillemots feed entirely upon fishes, which they chase under water, -using both their wings and feet, just as dabchicks do. They do not make -any nest, but lay a single egg on a bare ledge of rock which is often -only a very few inches wide. One would think that this egg would be in -great danger of being knocked over the edge. But it is very large at one -end and very much pointed at the other, so that if it is struck it only -rolls round and round. In color it is green or blue, blotched and -streaked with black. - - -THE ALBATROSS - -One of the largest of all the sea-birds is the albatross, which is found -chiefly in the tropical seas. When the wings are fully spread, they -sometimes measure nearly twelve feet from tip to tip. Yet the entire -weight of the bird is not more than sixteen or seventeen pounds. It -often remains at sea for weeks or months together, sometimes remaining -in the air all through the night as well as all through the day, and -following ships for hundreds of miles in order to feed upon the refuse -which is thrown overboard. Its appetite is enormous, for it has been -known to gulp down a great piece of whale's blubber, weighing between -three and four pounds, and then to return almost immediately for more! - -Great numbers of albatrosses nest together on uninhabited islands, each -pair scooping together a quantity of clay, grass, and sedge, which they -arrange in a conical heap about ten or twelve inches high, with a little -hollow at the top. Only a single egg is laid, which is quite white, and -is rather larger than that of a goose. - - -THE PUFFIN AND THE PENGUIN - -Two most curious birds must be mentioned in conclusion. The first of -these is the puffin, which is found plentifully in one or another -species on all northern coasts where there are bold cliffs. An odder and -more quaint-looking bird it would be difficult to imagine, for it has a -beak quite large enough for a bird six times its size, while that beak, -which is banded with bright crimson, gray, and brilliant yellow, looks -just as if it had been stuck on with glue! More than that, it does not -appear to fit very well; so that altogether, with its short, squat body -and stout little legs, the puffin is by no means a graceful bird. It is -often known as the sea-parrot. - -On dry land, the puffin is very awkward, and can only waddle along -slowly and clumsily. But it is a good swimmer and diver, and can chase -and overtake small fishes with the greatest of ease. It is also able to -fly very well, and takes long journeys over the sea when it comes to us -in the spring, and again when it goes southward in the autumn. It makes -no nest, but finds a cranny, digs out a hole in the face of a cliff to -the depth of about three feet, and lays a single grayish-white egg at -the end of the hole. - -Odder still is the penguin, whose wings are but little more than -flippers, with scales on their upper edges instead of feathers! It -cannot fly, of course; but it uses its wings for two purposes. For if it -is frightened upon land it throws itself down on its breast and -scuttles along on all fours, just as though its wings were legs, and if -it wants to chase a fish in the sea it swims with them, just as though -they were paddles. - -There are a good many different kinds of penguins, all of which are -found in the southern hemisphere. On some of the islands in the Pacific -and Antarctic oceans they are found in immense numbers, and have a -curious way of standing side by side upon the shore in long rows, with -their flippers hanging down on either side of their bodies. From a -distance, indeed, they might almost be mistaken for lines of soldiers -standing at attention. When the breeding-season begins they become very -busy, picking up stones, carrying them about with a great deal of fuss, -and then carefully arranging them in position, every now and then -turning their beaks up to the sky, waving their flippers, and making a -curious gobbling noise. If a sitting hen leaves her nest for a little, -all the other hens become greatly excited, and peck at her as she passes -by in order to drive her back again, croaking loudly in chorus, and -evidently feeling extremely indignant with her for neglecting her -duties. - -When these odd birds are sitting on a ledge of ice, and want to get down -into the sea, they often throw themselves upon their breasts, and -"toboggan" down the slope into the water! - - - - -REPTILES - - - - -CHAPTER XXVII - -TORTOISES, TURTLES, AND LIZARDS - - -We now come to the cold-blooded animals, which are divided into three -classes. First we have the reptiles, whose hearts are formed of three -chambers, and which breathe air by means of lungs. Next come the -amphibians, which are like the reptiles in many ways, but which have to -pass through a tadpole stage before they reach the perfect form. And, -thirdly, there are the fishes, whose hearts are divided into two -chambers only, and which breathe water by means of gills. - - -TORTOISES AND TURTLES - -At the head of the reptiles stand the tortoises and turtles, whose -bodies are shut up in a kind of horny box, which we generally call the -shell. In reality, however, it is not a shell at all; for the upper -part, which we call the carapace, is a development of the spine and the -ribs, while the lower part, which is known as the plastron, is a -development of the breast-bone. These animals, in fact, have part of -their skeletons inside their bodies and part outside; so that they are -really shut up in their own bones! - -The so-called shell of a tortoise or a turtle is always very hard and -strong, so that you can stand upon quite a small tortoise without -hurting it in the least and in most cases the head and legs can be -tucked away inside it, so that the animal is safely protected from -almost every foe. - -None of the turtles and tortoises have any teeth. But the edges of their -jaws are so sharp and horny that they can often inflict a very severe -bite. Some of the larger turtles, indeed, could snap off the fingers of -a man's hand as easily as you could bite through a carrot! - -[Illustration: TYPES OF WATER-BIRDS - - 1. Mandarin Duck. 2. Penguin. 3. Heron. 4. Pelican. - 5. Bittern. 6. Flamingo. 7. Crane.] - - -LAND-TORTOISES - -The most famous of all the tortoises is the common land-tortoise, or -Greek tortoise, which is found in many parts of the south of Europe, and -also in Asia Minor. This is the animal which is so often kept as a pet, -and about which so much pleasant literary interest has gathered. It does -not grow to any great size, but will live in a garden for many years, -crawling about by night as well as by day. Early in the autumn it buries -itself underground, and falls into a deep sleep, from which it does not -awake until the spring. - -This tortoise is a vegetable-feeder, and is very fond of lettuce leaves, -more especially when they are quite crisp and fresh, so that it can -easily nip them to pieces with its sharp jaws. If they are rather old -and stringy, it will hold them down with its front feet while it tears -them asunder. And if you keep one of these animals as a pet, and want to -give it a great treat, there is nothing that it likes better than a -little milk. It is amusing to see how it drinks, for it first scoops up -a little milk in its lower jaw, just as if it were using a spoon, and -then holds up its head in order that the liquid may trickle down its -throat. - -There are a good many other kinds of land-tortoises, some of which grow -to a very great size. The largest of all comes from the Galapagos -Islands, and is quite a giant; for some of them are more than four feet -long, and weigh between eight and nine hundred pounds! These huge -creatures, however, are now nearly extinct. - - -TURTLES - -The turtles are distinguished from the tortoises by the structure of -their feet, which are flattened out in such a way as to serve as paddles -in the water. For this reason these reptiles hardly ever come upon land -except when they want to lay their eggs; and they can swim so -well that they are often met with many hundreds of miles out at sea. - -One of the best known of these creatures is the hawksbill turtle, which -is so called because its mouth is shaped just like the beak of a hawk. -The carapace is made up of thirteen large scales, which overlap one -another for about a third of their length, just like the slates on the -roof of a house. - -These scales are very valuable, for the best tortoise-shell is obtained -from them. When they are first taken from the animal they do not look -like tortoise-shell at all, for they are dull and crumpled and brittle. -But after they have been boiled, and steamed, and pressed for some hours -they quite change their character, and become so soft that they can -easily be molded into any required shape. - -The eggs of this turtle are laid in a hole which the mother scrapes in -the sand, and are hatched by the heat of the sun. As soon as the little -turtles make their appearance they hurry off as fast as they can toward -the water. But they are very good to eat, and a number of hungry animals -and birds are always on the lookout for them, so that a very great many -are snapped up and devoured before they can plunge into the waves. - -The famous turtle soup, which is considered so great a dainty, is made -from the flesh of the green turtle, which is found most plentifully off -the island of Ascension and in the West Indies. It grows to a great -size, for it is often four feet six inches in length and three feet in -breadth, while it may weigh nearly three-quarters of a ton. Of course it -is not at all easy to capture such big creatures. But they are generally -pursued when they come on shore to lay their eggs, and are turned over -on their backs by means of a lever. They are then perfectly helpless, -and can be left lying where they are until a number of others have been -overturned in the same way, when they are lifted into a boat one by one, -and are taken on board ship. There they thrive quite well if a pail of -water is thrown over them two or three times a day, and are generally in -very good condition when they reach this country. - -It is said that if one of these turtles has once begun to lay her eggs -in the sand, nothing will induce her to pause in her task until she has -finished it, and that even if the eggs are taken away from her as fast -as she lays them, she will still go steadily on just as if she were -undisturbed. - - -CROCODILES AND ALLIGATORS - -Of course you know what these huge creatures are like. They are just -enormous lizards, fifteen, or twenty, or even thirty feet long, with -very short legs, and very clumsy bodies, and very long tails. And their -great jaws are armed with rows of most terrible teeth. - -But what is the difference between crocodiles and alligators? Well, in -some ways they are certainly very much alike; but you can always tell -them by the shape of their heads, for the muzzle of a crocodile is -always narrowed just behind the nostrils, while that of an alligator is -not. And in the crocodiles the fourth lower tooth fits into a notch in -the edge of the upper jaw, so that you can distinctly see it even when -the mouth is closed. - -All these creatures live in the water, and spend a great deal of their -time lying motionless on the surface, when they look like floating logs. -One would think that they were fast asleep. But woe betide any animal -which comes to drink from the bank close by, for one of the great -reptiles instantly dives, swims swiftly along under water, and knocks it -into the stream by a blow from its mighty tail. - -There is scarcely any animal which does not fall a victim at times to -these giant lizards. And as soon as the unfortunate creature is knocked -into the water it is dragged beneath the surface, and held there until -it is drowned. You would think that the reptiles themselves would be -drowned, wouldn't you, as they have to remain submerged for many minutes -with their jaws widely opened? But they have a very curious valve at the -back of the throat, and as soon as the mouth is opened this closes so -tightly that not even the tiniest drop of water can find its way down -the throat. - -Both crocodiles and alligators swim with very great speed by waving -their powerful tails from side to side in the water. They can run, too, -with some little pace upon land. But it is very easy to avoid them, for -the bones of their necks are made in such a way that they cannot turn -their heads, and all that one has to do if pursued is to spring suddenly -to one side. But of course it is necessary to avoid the stroke of the -tail. - -The crocodiles always lay their eggs in the sand on the bank of a river. -The eggs are about as big as those of a goose, and are generally buried -at a depth of a couple of feet. The mother reptile always sleeps on the -top of the nest, and it is said that when the little ones are ready to -hatch out they utter a curious little cry. The mother hears this, and -scoops away the sand under which they are buried, in order that they may -have no difficulty in making their escape. - -Crocodiles are found in the warmer parts of Africa, Asia, America, and -Australia, and in some of the larger rivers are very plentiful. Just now -and then they venture down into the sea. Alligators, which also are -known as caymans and jacares, are only found in America and place their -eggs in holes dug in the mud or earth beside the water. In the colder -parts of the range they burrow under the mud of the banks and spend the -winter in sleep. - - -THE LIZARDS - -Lizards look at first glance like diminutive alligators, because most of -them have long-jawed heads, short legs wide apart, and long tails; but -really they are near relatives of the snakes, for not only their -internal structure but the coat of scales is snake-like; but an -important difference is that the jaws of the lizard are firmly hinged to -a solid skull, while the bones of the skull of the snake, including -those of the jaws, are connected by elastic cartilages which enable them -to spread apart and permit the swallowing of a mouthful astonishingly -large. But the lizards have no need of such a convenience, for they -subsist almost wholly on insects, or else are vegetable-eaters. Lizards -are almost entirely denizens of the tropics, and seem to rejoice in the -fiercest heat. They will lie contentedly in the desert at noonday on -rocks so hot that they would blister your hand if you touched them. -Therefore few are to be found in Europe or North America, except in the -extreme south. - - -THE BLINDWORM - -Two or three small kinds are to be found in the south of England, one of -which is curious as representing a tribe, largely represented in other -parts of the world, of legless burrowing lizards, which look much like -little snakes, for none of them are more than ten or twelve inches long, -while they are of the thickness of a lead-pencil. They look so shiny and -serpent-like that many people are afraid of them. - -But the blindworm, or slowworm, as this creature is called, is perfectly -harmless. It cannot bite you, for its teeth are far too tiny to pierce -the skin; and it cannot sting you, because it has no sting. There is its -odd little forked tongue, of course, which is always darting in and out -of its mouth, just like that of a snake. But this tongue is only a -feeler. Whenever a blindworm comes to an object it does not quite -understand, it touches it gently all over with the tip of its tongue, -just as we might touch it with the tips of our fingers. - -Notwithstanding its name, the blindworm has a pair of very good, though -rather small, beady black eyes; and, of course, it is not a worm. - -During the daytime the blindworm mostly lies hidden under a large stone; -and on turning such a stone over, one may sometimes find two or three of -these lizards all coiled up together. But in the evening they leave -their hiding-places, and go out to search for the tiny white slugs on -which they feed. - -When it is suddenly startled the blindworm sometimes behaves in a very -odd way. It stiffens its body, gives a kind of shudder and a twist, and -actually snaps off its own tail! Then the tail begins to writhe about on -the ground, wriggling and curling and even leaping up into the air in -the most curious manner; and while you are watching its antics, the -blindworm creeps away into some place of safety. You would think that it -must suffer a great deal of pain from this extraordinary injury, -wouldn't you, and that the blindworm would feel it quite as much as a -man would feel if his leg were cut off? But it does not seem to suffer -at all; and stranger still, a new tail very soon begins to grow -in the place of the old one, so that in the course of a very few weeks -the lizard is just as perfect as it was before! - - -SKINKS - -These are queer little lizards with four short legs and very stumpy -tails, which are found in many parts of Africa and Asia. They live in -sandy deserts, and are rather slow in their movements as a rule. But if -a fly should settle anywhere near them they will dart upon it with the -most surprising quickness, and will hardly ever fail to capture it. And -if they are alarmed they will burrow into the sand so rapidly that they -really seem to sink into it just as if it were water. In a very few -seconds, indeed, they will bury themselves to a depth of at least two or -three feet. - -In olden days skinks were very much used in medicine, and the powder -obtained from their dried bodies was thought to be a certain cure for -many diseases! It does not seem a very nice idea, yet even to this day -skinks are used for the same purpose in Eastern countries. - -There are several different kinds of these curious lizards, of which the -common skink, found in Northern Africa, is the best known. It is about -three inches and a half in length, and is yellowish brown in color, with -a number of darker bands on the sides of the body. - - -GECKOS - -Odder still are the geckos, which have their toes swollen out at the -tips into round sucker-like pads, by means of which they can climb a -wall or a pane of glass with the greatest ease, or even walk about like -flies on the ceiling. They are very fond of getting into houses, -generally remaining hidden in some dark corner during the day, but -coming out toward evening to search for insects, and continually -uttering their curious little cry of "geck-geck-geck-o." - -People used to be very much afraid of geckos, some thinking -that they could squirt out poison from the pads of their toes which -would act like the sting of a nettle, and others declaring that their -teeth were so sharp and strong that they could pierce even a sheet of -steel! But the real fact is that these lizards are perfectly harmless, -and cannot injure any living creature except the insects upon which they -feed. When they take up their quarters in a house they soon become -extremely tame, and will even climb up on the dinner-table to be fed. - -Geckos are found in almost all hot countries of the Old World, and -nearly three hundred different kinds have been found altogether. - - -IGUANAS - -American lizards are almost wholly members of the numerous iguana -family, which takes its name from the big examples found from Mexico -down into Brazil. The commonly known one when fully grown will measure -four feet from the tip of its blunt, top-shaped head to the end of its -long tapering tail. It looks rather forbidding, for a row of sharp -spikes runs right along its back, while under its chin is a great -dewlap. Yet it is not quite so terrible as it seems, for though it will -bite fiercely if it is driven to bay, and use its long tail like the -lash of a whip, it will always run away if it can, and will either climb -into the topmost boughs of a tree, or plunge into a stream and swim -away. - -This reptile is a very good swimmer, driving itself rapidly through the -water by waving its long tail from side to side, just like a crocodile -or an alligator. And it can dive beneath the surface and remain at the -bottom for a very long time without coming up to breathe. - -Iguanas live chiefly among the branches of trees which overhang the -water. Their flesh is very good to eat, for it is as tender as the -breast of a young chicken. Their eggs, too, which they bury in the sand -on the river-bank, are often used as food, and it is said that, no -matter how long they may be boiled, they never become hard. - - -VARIOUS AMERICAN LIZARDS - -The hot open plains which stretch from central Texas westward to the -Pacific Ocean, and northward in Utah and Nevada, abound in a great -variety of small lizards, none more than eighteen inches or so in -length. Some are fat and short-tailed, some slender and swift, with -tails like whiplashes. Some have gay colors and the power of changing -them more or less, while others are dull of hue and uninteresting or -repulsive to look at. Mostly they are insect-eaters, but some subsist -upon plants; and one of the latter is the big fat one known in southern -California as the "alderman." - -Another strange one is the broad, flat creature so frequently seen all -over the Southwest, and called horned toad, on account of its shape and -habit of sitting on its squat legs, with its tail tucked sideways out of -sight. It is covered almost all over with long and sharp spikes. Those -on its head, which are directed backward, are the longest; and from -these it gets its name of horned toad. But those on the back are very -nearly as long, while there are several rows upon the tail as well. Yet -it is perfectly harmless, for even when it is caught for the first time -it never seems to use either its spikes or its teeth. - -But it has another peculiarity which it sometimes uses as a means of -defence, and that is a very strange one indeed. It actually squirts out -little jets of blood from its eyes! That seems impossible, doesn't it? -Yet there is no doubt at all about it, for when these lizards have been -kept in captivity, and have been rather roughly handled, they have been -known to squirt several drops of blood at a time to a distance of twelve -or fifteen inches! Yet nobody seems to know how they do it. - - -THE GILA MONSTER - -This same region, however, contains a poisonous lizard--the only kind of -lizard in the world known to have sacs of venom in the mouth. This venom -enters any wound made by the animal's biting with certain teeth, and -acts upon the animal bitten like snake-poison. This is a -sluggish, round-headed, short-tailed creature which dwells in the sandy -plains along the Mexican boundary, and is called the Gila monster, or, -scientifically, the _Heloderma_. Its scales are rounded, so that -this lizard looks as if dressed in pebbled goatskin; and its colors are -black and yellow, in irregular blotches. The hunters and sheep-herders -are more afraid of it than need be, for it is sleepy and will never use -its poisonous teeth without great provocation, so that it is only -necessary to leave it alone in order to escape any harm. - - -THE FRILLED LIZARD - -This lizard is a native of Australia, and has round its neck a kind of -frill, or ruff, from six to eight inches in diameter! As a rule this -frill is folded round the throat, so that from a little distance one -would scarcely notice it. But as soon as the reptile is excited or -alarmed it spreads it out, sits on its hinder legs and its tail, raises -its head and body, and shows its teeth, just as if it were going to fly -at its enemy. This is only pretence, however, for though the lizard -grows to a length of nearly three feet, it is quite harmless. - -Another very curious habit which this lizard has is that of walking -upright on its hind legs, in the attitude of a dog when "begging." It -will even run in this position, and most odd it then looks. It is a -capital climber, and spends most of its life in the trees, to which it -always tries to escape when it thinks itself in danger. In color the -frilled lizard is yellowish brown mottled with black. - - -THE CHAMELEON - -Strangest of all strange lizards, however, is the chameleon. In the -first place, this lizard has a very long tongue, which it can dart out -to a really wonderful distance from its mouth. This tongue looks very -much like a worm, and is exceedingly sticky, so that all that a -chameleon has to do when it sees a fly settling near it is to dart out -its tongue and touch it with the tip. Then the fly adheres to -it, and is carried back into the mouth so quickly that it is almost -impossible to see what becomes of it. In this way it can catch a fly at -a distance of fully six inches. - -Then the chameleon has most extraordinary eyes. They are about as big as -peas; but instead of having lids which move up and down, as ours do, -they are entirely covered by the lids with the exception of just a tiny -round space in the middle. The lizard sees, in fact, through a hole in -the middle of its eyelid. That is strange enough; but what is stranger -still is that the animal can move its eyes in different directions at -the same time. They are hardly ever still for a single moment. But -instead of moving together, like those of all other animals, one may be -looking upward toward the sky and the other downward toward the ground; -or the right eye may be peering forward in front of the nose while the -left one is glancing backward toward the tail! Indeed, it would be very -difficult to find an odder sight than that of a chameleon when it is -moving its eyes about. They really look just as if they belonged to two -different animals. - -But the most wonderful fact of all about the chameleon is that it can -change its color whenever it chooses. - -How it does so no one quite knows. But the very same animal which is -brown all over as it sits upon a branch will become green all over if -you put it among leaves. The last thing at night, probably, you will -find that it is gray. Next day, perhaps, brown spots will appear upon -its body, and pinkish stripes upon its sides. And occasionally it may be -violet, and sometimes yellow, and sometimes nearly black. So that if you -were to go and look at a chameleon, and then go and look at it again -half an hour afterward, you might very likely take it for a wholly -different animal! - -Then the chameleon has very odd habits. If it is annoyed, for example, -it puffs out its body in the most extraordinary way till it is nearly -double its ordinary size and its skin is stretched almost as tight as -the parchment of a drum. When it is caught it hisses like a snake. And -really it must be the very laziest creature on earth. If it lifts a foot -into the air it will often wait for quite a minute before it puts it -down again, and for two or even three minutes more before it -takes a second step. Then it always has to rest for some little time -after uncoiling its tail from a branch, while when it coils it round -another it stops and rests again. It will hardly travel two yards, in -fact, in a day. - -Chameleons are found in many parts of Africa and Asia, and also in -Southeastern Europe. - - - - -CHAPTER XXVIII - -SNAKES - - -There are a great many different kinds of snakes; but before we read -about some of them, we must tell you some thing about the wonderful way -in which their bodies are made. - -In the first place, then, remember that snakes have a very large number -of those sections or pieces forming the spine which we call vertebræ. We -ourselves have only thirty-three of these little parts when we begin -life, and twenty-six afterward; this difference in number being caused -by the fact that five of the joints very soon unite into a bony mass at -the lower end, which we call sacrum, while four more unite into another, -which we call the coccyx. But some snakes have hundreds of these -vertebræ. The boas, for example, have no less than three hundred and -four! - -In the next place, remember that all these vertebræ are fastened -together by what we call ball-and-socket joints. That is, there is a -round knob at the back of each vertebra which fits into a socket in -front of the vertebra behind it. This gives to the spine of a snake -great strength, for a vertebra cannot be forced out of its place without -breaking the vertebra behind it. And it also allows the spine to be -curled and twisted about in almost any direction; so that a snake can -easily coil up its body like a spring, or even tie it into a knot. - -Then, remember that a snake has a great many ribs. We have twelve pairs -of these important bones, most of which are jointed to the breast-bone -in front. But a snake may have as many as two hundred and fifty-two -pairs of ribs, while it has no breast-bone at all; so that the tips of -all the ribs are free. And every rib is fastened to a vertebra of the -spine by a ball-and-socket joint, just like those which fasten the -vertebræ themselves together. Besides this, there are no less than five -separate sets of muscles connected with the ribs, so that the snake can -move those bones about quite easily. - -It is really by means of its ribs that a snake is able to glide over the -ground. If you were to look at the under side of a snake's body, you -would see that the scales are quite different from those on the upper -part. On the back and sides the scales are quite small, and are almost -oval, or oblong; but on the abdomen they are very long and very narrow, -and are set crosswise like the laths of a Venetian blind. - -[Illustration: CHARACTERISTIC FORMS AND MARKINGS OF AMERICAN BIRDS' EGGS - - SEA-FOWL:--13. Guillemot. 14. Tern. 21. Skimmer. - WATER-FOWL:--9, 16. Ducks, WADERS. 7. Heron. 11. Gallinule. - 12. Snowy Plover. 23. Stilt Sandpiper. 24. Ring Plover. - GAME-BIRDS:--6. Partridge. 19. Ptarmigan. - BIRDS OF PREY:--3. Owl. 17. Buzzard-hawk. 20. Falcon - CUCKOOS:--8. Cuckoo. 10. Roadrunner. - SONG-BIRDS:--1. Mockingbird. 2. Towhee Finch. 4. Sparrow. - 5. Oriole. 15. Blackbird (grakle). 18. Flycatcher. - 22. Rosbin (Thrush). 25. Woodhouse's Jay.] - -Now the tips of every pair of ribs in a snake's body are fastened to one -of these long abdominal scales in such a manner that when the snake -moves the ribs forward the edge of the scale is raised--very much as you -can raise the laths of the Venetian blind by pulling the cord at the -side; and the snake travels by moving forward its ribs in turn, and -catching hold of the ground with the edges of the scales, using first -the ribs of one side and then of the other. - -When a snake is crawling, however, it does not curve its body into -upright loops as inaccurate pictures sometimes represent, but keeps it -pressed flat upon the ground, so that the scales may be able easily to -take hold of any little roughness upon the surface. And when it climbs a -tree it does not twine its body round and round the trunk, but crawls -straight up it, just as it crawls along the ground. - -The mouth of a snake is very curiously made. We are not speaking now of -the fangs of the poisonous serpents; we will tell you about these by and -by. But remember that the mouth must be made in a very strange way, in -order to allow these creatures to swallow their victims, which are often -a good deal larger round than their own throats. - -It sounds impossible, yet the snake can swallow an animal larger in -diameter than its own throat, because the bones of its jaws, instead of -being firmly fastened together as ours are, can be forced a long way -apart, so as to make room for the carcass to pass. - -Besides this, it has no less than six separate jaw-bones, four in the -upper part of the mouth and two in the lower, every one of which is set -with sharp, hooked teeth; and the points of these teeth are directed -toward the throat. Now every one of these jaw-bones can be moved -backward and forward at will. So when a snake wishes to swallow -the body of a victim, it first of all seizes it in its mouth, and then -pushes one of the jaw-bones forward and takes a firm hold with the -teeth. Then it pushes another forward, and then a third, and then a -fourth; and so it goes on, each time taking a fresh hold with the hooked -teeth, till at last the carcass is forced into the mouth. Then the bones -separate, so as to make plenty of room for it to pass, and the alternate -action of the jaws goes on as before till the carcass is forced into the -throat. And then the flesh of the throat, which is very elastic, -stretches out too, till before very long the carcass disappears -altogether. - -Then the eyes of snakes are made in a very curious way, for the eyelids, -which are quite transparent, do not open and shut as ours do, but cover -the eyes altogether. So a snake cannot blink; and it looks at you -_through_ its own eyelids, which are very much like little -spectacle-glasses fastened into the skin! - -When a snake throws off its skin, which it always does once in a year, -and sometimes oftener, the eyelids are thrown off with it, and a pair of -new ones are found lying below all ready to take their place. Just while -this is happening (and it may take a day or two) the creature is trying -to look through a double layer of eye-coverings, and can see very poorly -until the outer one slips off. This is the explanation of the popular -saying that snakes are blind in August (the usual skin-changing time). - - -HARMLESS SNAKES - -All serpents may properly enough be divided into two sections--the -non-poisonous ones, which are "harmless," so far as their bite is -concerned; and the poisonous ones, which inject a more or less deadly -venom into wounds made by certain long weapon-teeth called fangs. - -Let us consider first, for a moment, the harmless ones. The great -majority of them--of the common snakes of the whole world--belong to a -single family called colubers; and this family far outnumbers all other -serpents. Most of its members are of small size; few exceed two yards in -length, one of the exceptions being our handsome king-snake of Texas and -westward, which is a variety of the northern milk-snake. All are -slender, agile, sometimes remarkably swift, with small heads, tapering -and unarmed tails, and little or no means of defence, although some of -them make such a show of fighting that they terrify many an enemy into -leaving them alone. - -To this great family belong our various blacksnakes, or blue racers, -which occasionally are more than six feet long, and are among the worst -robbers of birds' nests, eating both eggs and young, and the mother bird -as well if it is small, and is not quick enough in seeking to escape. -This is the snake about which stories of so-called _fascination_ -are told; we do not think there is much truth in them, but that the bird -is simply reckless in her efforts to drive away the robber, and flies -too near its darting jaws. The blacksnakes are exceedingly swift runners -and agile climbers. Another excellent climber is the slender greensnake, -which is so near the color of the leaves that it will not be noticed -easily as it hangs in loops upon the branches of a bush, waiting quietly -for some insect to come within reach. Most of our snakes, however, spend -their time mainly on the ground, searching about the grass, among the -tussocks of a swamp, or amid dense thickets, after frogs, toads, -tadpoles, ground-nesting birds, mice, and especially insects, which last -form the principal food of the smaller kinds. Among these probably the -most often seen are the striped garter-snakes which abound in meadows -and about haystacks and old barns, where they search holes and corners -for mice and beetles. The warm, soft soil of old barnyards is a favorite -place for the laying of their eggs by snakes, most of which bury them in -such places and leave them to be hatched by the warmth of the sunshine. -Nearly every pond, marsh, and slow stream abounds also in water-snakes, -which are ugly in disposition as well as in color, and feed mainly on -fishes, both dead and alive. Of this kind is the only snake to be found -in England except the viper. - -Perhaps the most curious of the colubrine snakes is the egg-eating snake -of South Africa. It is quite a small snake, not more than two feet long, -and scarcely thicker in body than a man's little finger; yet it will -swallow pigeons' eggs quite easily, and, if it is very hungry indeed, -will dispose of a hen's egg! This, of course, is owing to the way in -which the bones of the mouth are made. But if you were to watch one of -these snakes as it was eating an egg, you would see a very strange thing -happen. The egg would pass down the throat, and for a few inches you -would be able to watch its outline as it moved along toward the stomach. -Then, quite suddenly, the swelling would disappear! The fact is this. -About thirty of the vertebræ have each a long, slender spine springing -from the lower surface, and the tips of these spines pass through the -upper part of the throat and project inside it, just like a row of -little teeth in the wrong place. Just as the egg, while it is being -swallowed, comes against these teeth, the snake contracts the muscles of -its throat. The result is that the teeth pierce the egg from end to end -and cut it in two. Then the contents flow onward down the throat, while -the two halves of the shell, nearly always packed one inside the other, -are shortly afterward spit out of the mouth. - - -PYTHONS - -The pythons are very formidable snakes, not because they are -venomous--for they have no poison-fangs--but owing to their immense size -and strength. When fully grown they may measure as much as thirty feet -in length, while their bodies are as big round as a man's thigh; and -even when they are only half as long they are still most dangerous -creatures, for they could crush a man to death in two or three minutes. - -When a python attacks, it seizes its victim with its jaws, flings its -coils one over another around it, and then squeezes so hard that in a -very few minutes the bones fly into splinters, and the body is reduced -to pulp. And a large python can swallow a half-grown sheep or a -good-sized dog without any difficulty at all. - -After the snake has swallowed its victim it becomes very drowsy, and -often sleeps heavily for several days. - -Another very curious fact with regard to the python is that it actually -hatches its eggs by the warmth of its own body. It first collects the -eggs into a little pile, and then coils itself round them, after which -it remains perfectly still for nearly two months. During the whole of -that time its bodily heat is much greater than usual, and at last the -egg-shells split, and out from each comes a baby python. A fortnight or -so later they change their skins, and then are quite large and strong -enough to kill and swallow small birds. - -Pythons inhabit nearly all the hotter parts of Africa, Asia, and -Australia, and are sometimes known as rock-snakes, on account of their -living much in rocky places. - - -BOAS - -The boas, one kind of which, the boa-constrictor, has long been famous -among monsters, are much like the pythons, but are found only in -tropical America and in Madagascar, and spend the greater part of their -lives in the trees. They are quite as large as the pythons, and quite as -formidable. It is said, indeed, that the anaconda, which is the largest -of all, sometimes reaches a length of forty feet; and there is a stuffed -skin, twenty-nine feet long, in the Natural History Museum at South -Kensington, London. One can easily imagine what a terrible enemy such a -snake as this would be, and how helpless even a strong man would find -himself when wrapped in its mighty coils! - -The anaconda is very fond of lying in the water with only just its head -raised above the surface, and there waiting for some animal to swim -within reach. But most of the boas lie in wait for their prey on one of -the lower branches of a tree, in readiness to strike at any small -creature that may pass beneath. - -Some years ago a most singular accident happened in the reptile house at -the London Zoo. Two boas, one eleven feet long and the other nine feet, -were living in the same cage, and always seemed on the very best of -terms. One night a couple of pigeons--one for each snake--were put into -the cage, and the house was shut up as usual. Next morning, however, -when the keeper opened it, the smaller snake had disappeared, and there -was no hole in the cage through which it could possibly have escaped. At -first the keeper was puzzled; but soon he noticed that the larger -serpent was not coiled up as usual, but was lying stretched out -straight upon the ground. Then he understood what had happened. The big -snake had swallowed the smaller one during the night, although it was -only two feet shorter than itself! - -Most likely both snakes had seized the same pigeon at the same moment. -Before very long, of course, their jaws would have met in the middle. -Now when one of these big snakes has once seized its victim it cannot -let go, because of the way in which its jaws and teeth are made, but -must go on trying to swallow it. So, you see, when the jaws of the two -snakes met in the middle of the pigeon neither could give the bird up to -the other, because neither could withdraw its teeth, and the larger one, -in fact, could not help swallowing the smaller! And since that time two -or three other accidents of the same character have been prevented only -by the constant watchfulness of the keeper. - - -POISONOUS SNAKES - -In all these reptiles the poison-fangs are two in number, and are -situated in the upper jaw. They are very sharp indeed, and are almost as -brittle as glass. So while they are not in use they are folded back out -of harm's way upon the roof of the mouth. But if by chance they should -be broken, there are three or four other pairs lying ready for use -behind them which will quickly grow forward to take their place. - -Generally there is a tiny hole just under the tip of the fang, which -opens into a narrow passage running right through the center. But in -some snakes there is only a groove outside the fang. In either case, -however, the muscles which surround the poison-bag are arranged in such -a way that as soon as the snake strikes its victim a drop of poison is -squirted down each of the fangs, and so into the wound. - - -VIPERS - -The only poisonous snake found in Europe is the viper, or adder. It is -not by any means a large snake, for it is seldom more than twelve or -fourteen inches long. It has a zigzag chain of black, lozenge-shaped -markings all the way along its back. - -Vipers are generally found on heathy commons and moors, and are very -fond of lying on a patch of bare, sandy ground, and enjoying the warmth -of the sun. They never attempt to bite unless they are interfered with, -but always try to crawl away, if alarmed, into a place of safety. Their -poison is not strong enough to kill a man, unless he happens to be in a -very bad state of health at the time when he is bitten; but it would be -quite sufficient to cause the bitten limb to swell up to double its -size, and to lead to a great deal of suffering and sickness. - - -COBRAS - -Far more deadly is the bite of the cobra, which is found plentifully in -India. Any one who is bitten by this formidable snake is almost sure to -die within two or three hours. - -The upper part of a cobra's neck is widened out into what is called the -hood, which can be spread out or folded up at will by the action of the -ribs. On the upper part of this hood is a dark mark, which looks almost -exactly like a pair of spectacles. When a cobra is about to strike it -always raises its head and neck and spreads this hood before darting at -its foe. - -In many parts of India cobras are caught and tamed by men who are called -snake-charmers, and who sometimes capture them by playing an odd tune -upon a sort of wooden pipe. This music seems to fascinate the snake, -which comes out of its hole, rears up its head and neck, and begins to -sway slowly from side to side. Then, still playing, the charmer moves -his right hand very slowly indeed until it is just behind the snake's -head, when he suddenly grasps the reptile round the neck. It is now, of -course, quite helpless, and is quickly transferred to his bag. - -Many charmers carry cobras about with them, which they handle quite -freely. But in these cases the poison fangs have been carefully -extracted, so as to render the reptiles harmless. - -Cobras are very fond of eggs, and if they can find a rat-hole which -opens into a hen-house they will often take advantage of it in order to -rob the nests. But sometimes, when they have swallowed several eggs, and -the hole happens to be a small one, they cannot crawl out again, and are -found and killed when the house is opened in the morning. - - -THE PUFF-ADDER - -Quite as deadly is the puff-adder, of Africa, which has a way of lying -almost buried in the sand, so that it is not easily seen; and if it is -disturbed it does not crawl away, as most poisonous snakes will do, but -remains quite still, merely drawing back its head in order to strike. -When fully grown it is about six feet long, and its poison is so deadly -that even a horse has been known to die within two or three hours of -being bitten. - -This snake is called the puff-adder because it draws in a very deep -breath when it is annoyed or irritated, and puffs out its whole body to -nearly double its proper size. It then allows the air to escape -gradually, with a kind of sighing noise, draws in another deep breath, -and so on over and over again. - - -PIT-VIPERS - -Australia, also, has some snakes whose bite is very deadly; and in -general the tropics abound in these dangerous reptiles. This is as true -of America as elsewhere, but all the American venomous serpents are of a -kind peculiar to this continent, called pit-vipers. Some of them have -rattles at the end of the tail and some lack this appendage, but all are -much alike. Certain of the most dreaded, such as the fer-de-lance and -the bushmaster, belong to the West Indies and Northern South America; -but really the worst of the whole bad lot, because of its great size and -sullen ferocity, is the huge diamondback rattlesnake of the Southern -States. It is in some cases longer and heavier than any other known -venomous snake; and its bite, if the wound is well poisoned, means -almost immediate paralysis and death. - - -RATTLESNAKES - -Several different species of rattlesnakes are scattered over the United -States, and in some places, as on the hot dry plains of the Southwest, -and in the arid mountains of Utah and California, are numerous enough to -be troublesome. The cutting away of forests, draining of swamps, and -cultivation of prairies, soon destroy these pests in thickly settled -regions; but where rocky hills occur they linger for a long time, -because the breaks and little caves among the ledges offer them secure -retreats, winter homes where they sleep in safety, and proper nurseries -for the young, which are not produced from eggs, as in the coluber -family, but are born alive. - -The rattles from which these serpents take their name, are a number of -hollow, horny, button-like structures at the tip of the tail, which -rattle together, with a peculiar humming sound, when the creature shakes -its tail, as it is sure to do when disturbed or angry. It thus gives a -warning to the man who might not have noticed the sluggish creature in -his path in time to jump aside. Not all of the tribe have a rattle, -however; and one of the reasons why our water-moccasin and copperhead -are so much dreaded is that they possess no rattle, and therefore sound -no "keep-off" warning. - -All our American venomous snakes are too heavy and slow to climb trees. -They get their prey--mice, gophers, snakes, etc.--by going to a place -where it is likely to be running about, and then patiently waiting until -something comes within striking distance. - - - - -CHAPTER XXIX - -AMPHIBIANS - - -You will remember that the amphibians are distinguished from the true -reptiles by having to pass through a tadpole stage before they obtain -their perfect form. A good example is the frog, which in one kind or -another exists in all parts of the earth except the very coldest. No -doubt, you have often seen great masses of its jelly-like spawn floating -on the surface of ponds early in the spring; and you must have wondered -how such small creatures as frogs could possibly lay such enormous -batches of eggs. - -But the fact is that when these eggs are first laid they are very tiny. -Each egg is only about as big as a small pin's head. Instead of having -shells, however, they are covered with a very elastic skin, while at the -same time they soak up water. So, as soon as they pass into the pond -they begin to swell, and very soon each egg is as big as a good-sized -pea. - - -TADPOLE AND FROG - -In the middle of each egg is a round black spot, which increases in size -every day. This is the future tadpole, and after a time the egg-skin -splits, and out it tumbles into the water. - -It is an odd-looking creature--just a big round head with a tiny pair of -gills and a little wavy tail, and nothing else at all. But it manages to -swim by wagging its tail, and it feeds on the tiny scraps of decaying -matter which are always floating about in the water of the pond. Before -long a little pair of legs begin to show themselves just at the base of -the tail. A few days later another pair begin to grow in front of them. -Then, by slow degrees, the tail passes back into the substance of the -body, and so do the gills, while lungs are developed and nostrils are -opened. And by the time that all these changes have taken place the -tadpole has ceased to be a tadpole and has turned into a frog. - -It leaves the water now and lives upon land, feeding upon small insects, -which it catches in a most curious way. Its tongue is turned, as it -were, the wrong way round; for the root is just inside the lips, while -the tip is down the throat. Besides this, the tongue is very elastic and -very sticky. So the animal catches its victims just as the chameleon -does, flicking out its tongue at them and just touching them with the -tip, to which they adhere. And as the tongue is drawn back into the -mouth it pokes them down the throat; so that frogs do not even have to -take the trouble of swallowing their dinner. - -If you look at a frog's hind feet, you will notice that the toes are -joined together by webbing. This allows them to be used in the water as -well as upon dry land. It is generally said that frogs swim. But if you -watch them in the water you will see at once that they do not really -swim at all, but leap along, just as they leap along the ground. And -each leap carries them through the water for some little distance. - - -TOADS - -In some ways toads are like frogs; but you can tell them at once by -their rough, dry skins, which are covered with warts like glands. And -they crawl over the ground, instead of leaping as frogs do. They are -very common almost everywhere, and you may often find them hiding under -logs or large stones during the daytime. - -Toads do not lay their eggs in great masses, as frogs do, but arrange -them in strings about four feet long and an eighth of an inch wide. Each -of these strings consists of two rows of eggs fastened side by side -together. The tadpoles are very much like those of the frog, the chief -difference being that they are rather smaller and blacker. - - -NEWTS - -All through their lives newts keep their tails, instead of losing them -when they cease to be tadpoles. - -You can find newts in plenty all through spring and summer by -fishing with a small net in any weedy pond; but you will find that they -are not all alike. Some have wavy crests running all along their backs; -others have none; and some are brightly colored while others are plain -olive green all over. Often in the woods in certain parts of the United -States you will meet with little newts traveling about on the damp old -leaves; and they are very conspicuous because of their brilliant -vermilion color. These are young green newts which come out of the -water, live ashore for a year or so in the red suit, and then go back to -the water and a green coat. - -Newts lay their eggs in a very curious manner. They do not fasten them -together in great batches, like the frog, or in long, narrow strings, -like the toad. They lay them one by one. And the mother newt takes each -egg as she lays it, places it in the middle of the narrow leaf of some -water-plant, and then twists the leaf neatly round it with her little -fore feet, so as to wrap it up in a kind of parcel! The tadpole which -hatches out of this egg is very much like that of a toad or a frog; but -the front legs are the first to appear, instead of the hind legs, while -the tail, of course, does not pass back into the substance of the body. - -Newts swim with their tails, and very pretty and graceful they look as -they move through the water. When they cease to be tadpoles, of course, -they breathe air, just as toads and frogs do, and have to come up to the -surface every two or three minutes to obtain it. And as long as they -live in the pond they feed upon grubs and worms and tiny water-insects. - - -SALAMANDERS - -The curious creatures known as salamanders are related to the newts, and -begin their lives in just the same way. But after they have ceased to be -tadpoles they only visit the water for two or three weeks in the spring. - -The most celebrated member of this group is the spotted salamander, -which is found in Central and Southern Europe, and also in Algeria and -Syria. When fully grown it is about eight inches long, and may be known -at once by the two rows of large yellow blotches which run down from -the back of its head, right along its body, to the very tip of its tail. - -In days of old it was thought that the salamander had the power of -walking through fire without being burnt! And it was also supposed, if -it were attacked, to spring upon its enemy, bite out a piece of his -flesh, and then spit fire into the wound! As a matter of fact it is -almost harmless, and may be picked up and handled without the slightest -danger. But the glands on its skin, like those on the toad's head and -back, contain a rather poisonous fluid, which is squirted out if they -are squeezed. So that if a dog were to pick up a salamander he would be -quite sure to drop it again very quickly, and would most likely foam at -the mouth for some little time. - -Salamanders are very slow and timid creatures, and generally spend the -whole of the day concealed in some crevice, or in the hollow trunk of a -tree, or perhaps under a large stone. They feed upon slugs and small -insects. - -There are several kinds in North America, some of which, as the -hellbender, are a foot or more in length. - -The giant salamander, which is sometimes nearly a yard long, is found in -the rivers of China and Japan, and spends the whole of its life in the -water. It feeds chiefly upon fishes. - - -THE AXOLOTL - -This is one of the most singular of all the amphibians. It is found in -North America. Sometimes it develops into its perfect form, and -sometimes it remains a tadpole all its life, and yet lays eggs just as -though it were adult! - -In the lakes of the southern Rocky Mountains the life of this creature -is just like that of any other batrachian. That is, it is hatched out of -the egg as a tadpole, grows first one pair of legs and then another, -loses its gills by degrees, and at last appears in a lizard-like form, -leaving the water and living upon dry land. But in the lake which -surrounds the city of Mexico it never becomes anything more than a big -tadpole, keeps its gills throughout its life, and does not leave the -water at all. - - -THE OLM - -The olm, or proteus, is found only in the underground lakes of Carniola -and one or two other parts of Central Europe. It is about a foot long -when fully grown, and has a slender, snake-like body, with a pair of -tiny legs just behind the head, and another pair at the base of the -tail. It is perfectly blind, the eyes being hidden under the skin, and -yet cannot bear light. For if it is kept in captivity it will always -hide in the darkest corner that it can find. And it has been known to -live in confinement for five years without once taking any food. - -What the habits of this extraordinary animal are in nature no one knows, -as it has never been found except in these underground lakes. - -In color the olm is pinkish gray, with bright-red gills, and there are -from twenty-four to twenty-seven grooves upon either side of its body. - - - - -FISHES - - - - -CHAPTER XXX - -FRESH-WATER FISHES - - -The lowest class of the vertebrate animals consists of the fishes. These -are easily distinguished. Some of the reptiles, it is true, are very -fish-like. But then they have three chambers in their hearts, while the -true fishes only have two. Then fishes never have limbs, the place of -which is taken by fins; and further, they breathe water by means of -gills. There are other differences as well; but these are quite -sufficient to show us that reptiles and fishes cannot possibly be -mistaken for one another. - -Between the two, however, come several very curious creatures, which -seem to be partly reptiles and partly fishes; for they have four slender -members which hardly seem to be legs, though they cannot possibly be -described as fins, while they possess not only gills but lungs as well. - - -THE MUD-FISH - -One of these is the odd mud-fish of the African rivers. In general -appearance this animal looks something like an eel, and it grows to a -length of about three feet. Its four long ray-like limbs seem to be -quite useless to it, and it swims by means of its tail, along the upper -part of which runs a narrow fin. It is a creature of prey, feeding upon -other fishes, and when food is plentiful, it just takes one bite out of -the lower part of their bodies and no more. - -In summer the rivers in which it lives often dry up altogether, and the -mud at the bottom is baked as hard as a brick by the rays of the sun. -So, as soon as the water begins to get shallow, the animal -burrows deep down into the mud, curls itself up like a fried whiting, -and falls fast asleep for several months, just as hedgehogs and dormice -do during the winter in cold countries. Then, when the rainy season -comes and the rivers fill up again, it comes out from its retreat and -swims about as before. It is from this habit that it gets its name of -mud-fish. - -Now we come to the true fishes; and perhaps our best plan will be to -read about some of the fresh-water fishes first, and afterward about -some of those which live in the sea. - - -STICKLEBACKS - -Let us begin with a little fish which is very common in almost every -pond, but is nevertheless very curious and very interesting. When fully -grown, the stickleback is about three inches long, and you can tell it -at once by the sharp spines on its back, which it can raise and lower at -will. It uses these spines in fighting. For the male sticklebacks, at -any rate, are most quarrelsome little creatures, and for several weeks -during the early part of the summer they are constantly engaged in -battle. - -At this season of the year they are really beautiful little fishes, for -the upper parts of their bodies are bright blue and the lower part rich -crimson, while their heads become pale drab, and their eyes bright -green! And apparently they are very jealous of one another, for two male -sticklebacks in their summer dress never seem able to meet without -fighting. Raising their spines, they dash at one another over and over -again with the utmost fury, each doing his best to swim underneath the -other and cut his body open. When one of them is beaten he evidently -feels quite ashamed of himself, for he goes and hides in some dark -corner where nobody can see him. And, strange to say, as soon as he -loses the battle his beautiful colors begin to fade, and in a very few -hours they disappear altogether. - -About the beginning of June, all the male sticklebacks which have not -been beaten set to work to build nests. These nests are shaped like -little tubs with no tops or bottoms, and they are made of tiny scraps of -grass and cut reed and dead leaf, neatly woven together. As soon as they -are finished the female sticklebacks lay their eggs in them. -Then the males get inside, and watch over the eggs until they hatch. - -[Illustration: NORTH AMERICAN FOOD AND GAME FISHES] - - -PERCHES - -Another very handsome fresh-water fish is the perch, which is plentiful -in almost every river and lake in the warmer parts of the whole world. -In color it is rich greenish brown above and yellowish white below, with -from five to seven upright dark bands on either side of its body, while -the upper fins are brown and the lower ones and the tail bright red. - -The front fin on the back of the perch, which can be raised or lowered -at will, is really a very formidable weapon, for it consists of a row of -very sharp spines projecting for some little distance beyond the -membrane which joins them together. Even the pike is afraid of these -spines, and it is said that although he will seize any other fresh-water -fish without a moment's hesitation, he will never venture to attack a -perch. - -Early in the month of May the mother perch lays her eggs, which she -fastens in long bands to the leaves of water-plants. Their number is -very great, over 280,000 having been taken from quite a small perch of -only about half a pound in weight! - -The climbing perch of India, notwithstanding its name, is not a true -perch, but belongs to quite a different family. It is famous for its -power of leaving the water and traveling for a considerable distance -over dry land. It does this in the hot season if the stream in which it -is living dries up; and if you were to live in certain parts of India -you might perhaps meet quite a number of these fishes shuffling across -the road by means of their lower fins, and making their way as fast as -possible toward the nearest river! - -But how do they manage to remain out of the water for so long? - -Well, the fact is that fishes can live for a long time out of the water -if their gills are kept moist. In some fishes, such as the herring, this -is not possible, because their gills are made in such a way that they -become dry almost immediately. But the climbing perch has a kind of -cistern in its head, just above the gill-chambers, which -contains quite a quantity of water. And while the fish is traveling over -land this water passes down, drop by drop, to the gills, and keeps them -constantly damp. - -When this fish has been kept in an earthenware vessel, without any water -at all, it has been known to live for nearly a week! - - -THE CARP - -Another fish which will live for quite a long time out of the water is -the carp, which has often been conveyed for long distances packed in wet -moss. - -This fine fish is a native of the Old World, where it is found both in -rivers and lakes, but prefers still waters with a soft muddy bottom, in -which it can grovel with its snout in search of food. During the winter, -too, it often buries itself completely in the mud, and there hibernates, -remaining perfectly torpid until the return of warmer weather. It is not -at all an easy fish to catch, for it is so wary that it will refuse to -touch any bait in which it thinks that a hook may be concealed. And if -the stream in which it is living is dragged with a net, it just burrows -down into the mud at the bottom and allows the net to pass over it. - -Owing to this crafty and cunning nature, the carp has often been called -the fresh-water fox. - -The carp is a very handsome fish, being olive brown above, with a tinge -of gold, while the lower parts are yellowish white. It sometimes weighs -as much as twenty-five pounds, and has been known to lay more than -700,000 eggs! It is domesticated in many parts of North America and -other countries. - - -THE BARBEL - -Found in many Old World rivers, the barbel may be known at once by the -four long fleshy organs which hang down from the nose and the corners of -the mouth. These organs are called barbules, and may possibly be of some -help to the fish when it is grubbing in the soft mud in search of the -small creatures upon which it feeds. It spends hours in doing this, and -a hungry barbel is sometimes so much occupied in its task that a swimmer -has dived down to the bottom of the river and caught it with his -hands. From this curious way of feeding, and its great greediness, the -barbel has sometimes been called the fresh-water pig. - -In color this fish is greenish brown above, yellowish green on the sides -of the body, and white underneath. When fully grown it weighs from ten -to twelve pounds. - - -THE ROACH - -This is one of the prettiest of the European fresh-water fishes, which -is found in many lakes and streams. The upper part of the head and back -are grayish green, with a kind of blue gloss, which gradually becomes -paler on the sides till it passes into the silvery white of the lower -surface. The fins and the tail are bright red. - -The roach does not grow to a very great size, for it seldom weighs more -than two pounds. It lives in large shoals, and in clear water several -hundred may often be seen swimming about together. - - -THE PIKE - -One of the largest and quite the fiercest of the British fresh-water -fishes is the pike, which is found both in lakes and rivers. In America -we have no pike proper, but in some of the great western lakes a very -large relative of similar habits known as the maskinonge; and our -pickerels are only small pikes. Wonderful tales are told of the ferocity -of the pike. He does not seem to know what fear is, and his muscular -power is so great, and the rows of teeth with which his jaws are -furnished are so sharp and strong, that he is really a most formidable -foe. All other fresh-water fishes are afraid of him, while he gobbles up -water-birds of all kinds, and water-mice, and frogs, and even worms and -insects. And no matter how much food he eats, he never seems to be -satisfied. - -When the pike is hungry, he generally hides under an overhanging bank, -or among weeds, and there waits for his victims to pass by. - -The young pike is generally known as the jack, and when only five inches -long has been known to catch and devour a gudgeon almost as big as -itself. With such a voracious appetite, it is not surprising that the -fish grows very fast, and for a long time it increases in weight at the -rate of about four pounds in every year. How long it continues to grow -nobody quite knows; but pike of thirty-five or forty pounds have often -been taken, and there have been records of examples even larger still. - -In color the pike is olive brown, marked with green and yellow. - - -TROUT - -Perhaps the greatest favorite of all anglers is the trout, which, in one -or more of its various species, is to be caught in almost every swift -stream and highland lake throughout the temperate zone, except where the -race has been destroyed by too persistent fishing. This happens -everywhere near civilization, unless protective laws regulate the times -and places where fishing may be done. Similar laws are required to save -many other kinds of fishes from quick destruction at the hands of the -thoughtless and selfish, and they should be honestly obeyed and -supported in spite of their occasionally interfering with amusement. - -Trout are graceful in form and richly colored, most of them having -arrangements of bright spots and gaily tinted fins. The common trouts of -Europe and the eastern half of the United States and Canada are much -alike; but in the Rocky and other mountains of the western shore of our -continent others quite different are scattered from the Plains to the -Pacific. One of the most interesting and beautiful of these, the -rainbow-trout, has been brought into the East, and has made itself at -home in many lakes and rivers of the Northern States and Canada. - -The trout is an extremely active fish, and when it is hooked it tries -its very hardest to break away, dashing to and fro, leaping, twisting, -and fighting, and often giving the angler a great deal of trouble before -he can bring it in. In small streams it seldom grows to any great size, -but in some of the Scottish lochs and lakes of Maine trout weighing -fifteen or even twenty pounds are often taken. It is sometimes -considered, however, that these belong to a different species. - - -THE SALMON - -More famous even than the trout is the salmon, the largest and finest of -all our fresh-water fishes, which often reaches a weight of forty-five -or fifty pounds, and sometimes grows to still greater size. - -It is hardly correct, however, to speak of it as a fresh-water fish, for -although salmon are nearly always caught in rivers, they spend a -considerable part of their lives in the sea. - -Salmon are of two kinds--the Atlantic and the Pacific species; and the -life-history of each is a very curious one. - -During the winter the parent fishes of the Atlantic salmon, which used -to be exceedingly numerous in all our northern rivers emptying into the -Atlantic, and still haunt the rivers of Northeastern Canada, and of -Scotland, make their way as far up a clear and gravelly river as they -possibly can, till they find a suitable place in which to lay their -eggs. The mother then scoops a hole at the bottom of the stream, in -which she deposits her eggs in batches, carefully covering up each batch -as she does so. At this time both parents are in very poor condition, -and the males are known to anglers as "kelts." For a time they remain in -the river, feeding ravenously. Then in March or April they travel down -the river and pass into the sea, where they stay for three or four -months, after which they ascend the river again, as before. - -Meanwhile the eggs remain buried in the gravel for about four months. At -the end of that time the little fishes hatch out, and immediately hide -themselves for about a fortnight under a rock or a large stone. You -would never know what they were if you were to see them, for they look -much more like tadpoles than fishes; and each has a little bag of -nourishment underneath its body on which it lives. When this is -exhausted they leave their retreat and feed upon small insects, growing -very rapidly, until in about a month's time they are four inches long. -They are now called parr and have a row of dark stripes upon -their sides, and in this condition they remain for at least a year. -Their color then changes, the stripes disappearing, and the whole body -becoming covered with bright silvery scales. - -The little fishes are now known as smolts, and, like their parents; they -make their way down the river and pass into the sea. There they remain -until the autumn, when they ascend the river again. By this time they -have grown considerably, weighing perhaps five or six pounds, and are -called grilse. And it is not until they have visited the sea again in -the following year that they are termed salmon. - -When salmon are ascending a river and come to a waterfall, they climb it -by leaping into the air and so springing into the stream above the fall, -trying over and over again until they succeed. When the fall is too high -to be climbed in this way, the owners of the river often make a kind of -water staircase by the side of it, so that the fishes can leap up one -stair at a time. This is called a salmon-ladder. - - -NORTH PACIFIC SALMON - -Now this description would not at all fit the case of the salmon which -live in the North Pacific and ascend the rivers of California, British -Columbia, and Alaska, and of Siberia and Japan on the other side of the -ocean. These are the salmon which supply the whole country, and many -other countries, with their pink flesh, boiled, and sealed in cans, so -that it may be sent long distances and kept many months without -spoiling. Every spring and summer, at different times according to the -locality and the species--there are five kinds of importance, caught for -the trade--vast numbers of them enter the mouths of the rivers and begin -to make their way up-stream in their effort to reach the shallow head -waters of each river, and of every one of its tributaries. It is at this -time that they are caught by spearing, netting, and various -contrivances; but laws prevent any general obstruction which would -altogether stop the advance of the host, so that while tens of thousands -are taken great numbers escape and pass on, as it is necessary they -should do in order to lay eggs and so keep up the race. - -This takes place far up at the heads of the streams in the foothills of -the mountains; and having deposited the spawn, late in summer, the spent -fish begin to drift down stream again. But all this time they have been -eating nothing, they are worn with the long struggle against the rapids, -often wounded by sharp rocks, and are good for nothing to catch or eat. -In fact, so fagged out and weak are they that all of them die before any -reach the mouth of the river. It is a strange fact that of all the vast -host of salmon which each summer climb the rivers not a single one gets -back to the sea. - -A year later, however, the young hatched from the eggs which were left -behind them at the heads of the streams swim down the rivers and enter -the ocean. There they remain, probably not very far from land, for two -or three years, feeding and growing until they are of full size and -strength; and each season a class of them, having reached the right age -and condition to spawn, force their way up to the spawning-grounds, to -leave their eggs and then die, as did their parents before them. - - -EELS - -The only other fresh-water fishes which we can notice are the eels, -which look more like snakes than fishes, for they have long slender -bodies, with a pair of tiny fins just behind the head, a long one -running along the back and tail, like a crest, and another, equally -long, under the body. And they are clothed with a smooth, slimy skin -instead of with scales. - -These curious creatures live in ponds and even in ditches as well as in -rivers, and are very plentiful in all parts of the northern hemisphere. -During the daytime, although they will sometimes bask at the surface in -the warm sunshine, they generally lie buried in the mud at the bottom of -the water, coming out soon after sunset to feed. And when the weather is -damp, so that their gills are kept moist as they wriggle through the -herbage, they will often leave the water and travel for some little -distance overland. - -They frequently do this when they are traveling toward the sea. -For it is a strange fact that, although they are fresh-water fishes, -eels both begin and end their lives in the sea. - -In the first place, the eggs are laid in the sea--generally quite close -to the mouth of a river. When the little elvers, as the young eels are -called, hatch out, they make their way up the river in immense shoals. -In the English river Severn, for instance, several tons of elvers are -often caught in a single day; and about thirty million elvers go to the -ton! After being pressed into cakes and fried, these little creatures -are used for food; but they are so rich that one cannot eat very many at -once. - -When they have traveled far enough up the river, most of the elvers -which have escaped capture make their way to different streams and pools -and ditches, and there remain until their growth is completed. They then -begin to journey back to the sea, and when they reach it they lay eggs -in their turn. After this, apparently, they die. - -In the rivers of South America a most wonderful eel is found which has -the power of killing its victims by means of an electric shock, -wherefore it is called the electric eel. The electricity is produced and -stored up in two large organs inside the body, but how it is discharged -nobody knows. If the fish is touched it merely gives a slight shudder. -But the shock is so severe that quite a large fish can be killed by it, -while a man's arm would be numbed for a moment right up to the shoulder. - - -LAMPREYS - -The lamprey, which is found plentifully in many northern rivers, is very -much like an eel in appearance. But it has no side fins, and instead of -possessing jaws, it has a round mouth used for sucking, and resembling -that of a leech; and on either side of its neck it has a row of seven -round holes, through which water passes to the breathing-organs. - -Lampreys seem to spend the greater part of their lives in the sea, but -always come up the rivers to spawn. They lay their eggs in a hollow in -the bed of the stream, which they make by dragging away stone after -stone till the hole is sufficiently deep. Very often a large -number of lampreys combine for this purpose, and make quite a big hole, -in which they all lay their eggs together. - -The length of the lamprey is generally from fifteen to eighteen inches, -and its color is olive brown. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXI - -SALT-WATER FISHES - - -We now come to the fishes of the sea; and at the head of these we may -place the sharks. - -These savage and voracious creatures are found in all oceans, the larger -ones wandering very widely, while the smaller ones are restricted to -limited parts of the sea. Among the latter are the various small sharks -called dogfish, from eighteen inches to six feet long, found on both -sides of the North Atlantic. Though small, and harmless to man, the -dogfish really is a shark, and for its size is very formidable, being -able easily to fight and kill fishes quite as large as itself. - -It is called the dogfish because it follows shoals of fish in the water, -just as a wild dog will follow the animals on which it preys upon dry -land. - -When you are staying at the seaside you may sometimes find the dead body -of a dogfish lying on the beach, where it has been flung by a very high -wave. And you will notice how coarse and rough its skin is. This skin is -often used for covering the handles of swords, as it gives such an -excellent grip; and also for putting on the sides of match-boxes instead -of sandpaper. - -But even if you do not find the dogfish itself lying on the beach, you -may often find its eggs, which are very curious little objects. They are -something like oblong horny purses, of a yellowish-brown color, with a -long twisted appendage at each corner, very much like the tendrils of a -vine. By means of these the egg is anchored down to the weeds at the -bottom of the sea, and they hold so firmly that they are hardly ever -torn away, except during a violent storm. - -At each end of this singular egg is a narrow slit, through which water -can pass to the gills of the little fish which is lying inside it. And -one end of the egg is made in such a manner that when the fish is ready -to hatch it can easily push its way out. - - -THE BLUE SHARK - -A much larger and more dangerous fish, which often visits northern seas, -is the blue shark, which sometimes grows to a length of fifteen or -sixteen feet. It does not often attack human beings, however, but is -very destructive in our fisheries, snatching away fishes which have been -hooked, and even swimming along the outside of the nets as they are -being drawn in, and biting great holes through them, in order to get at -the pilchards or herrings within. So the fishermen always kill a blue -shark if they have the chance of doing so, and sometimes destroy eight -or ten in a single day. - -But it is not very easily caught, for if it is hooked it will often bite -the line asunder, and if it cannot do this will roll round and round in -the water coiling the line round its body, when it will snap with a -sudden jerk. Even when it is caught, the blue shark is not killed -without much difficulty, for it thrashes its great powerful tail about -in such a manner that it cannot be approached without danger. So the -first thing that the fishermen always try to do when it is captured is -to chop off its tail with an ax. - -The color of this shark is slaty blue above and white beneath. - - -THE WHITE SHARK - -Even larger and more dangerous still, the great white shark, or -Rondeleti's shark, is one of the most formidable creatures that roam the -seas. It often grows to a length of thirty-five or even forty feet, and -weighs ten or twelve tons, while one snap of its huge jaws will shear -off a man's legs or cut his body in two. - -This enormous fish is found in all the warmer parts of the sea; and in -general sharks, and especially the large ones, belong to the tropical -rather than to the colder seas. - - -THE HAMMERHEAD - -A huge and much-to-be-dreaded creature, of curious appearance, this fish -has its head formed just like that of a hammer, the eyes being -placed at each end of the projecting lobes. It grows to a length of -fifteen or sixteen feet, and is very fierce and savage, attacking human -beings without the least hesitation. It is nearly always found in the -tropical seas, but has been several times captured off the coasts of New -England. - - -THE THRESHER - -Growing to a length of ten or twelve feet, the thresher is a remarkable -shark. It is common in the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. It -feeds chiefly upon herrings, darting into the midst of a shoal and -snapping them up in hundreds. - -What it is specially famous for, however, is its habit of attacking -whales. For this purpose several threshers will unite together, leap up -into the air, and strike tremendous blows with their long tails upon the -whale's body as they fall back into the sea. This naturally terrifies -the whale, and he dives under water in order to escape from his -tormentors. Knowing that he must very soon rise again, however, they -wait for his reappearance, and then attack him again in the same way. -This happens again and again, until he is quite worn out by his -exertions, and by the impossibility of remaining long enough at the -surface to breathe properly. Then if any swordfishes happen to be in the -neighborhood, they come and attack him too, driving their long swords -deep into his body. Before long the whale is dead, and both threshers -and swordfishes are tearing great strips of flesh from the carcass and -greedily devouring them. - - -SAW-FISHES - -Next to the sharks come the saw-fishes, which have the upper jaw drawn -out into the form of a long, narrow beak, set on either side with a row -of large, pointed teeth. So it really looks very much indeed like a saw. -The fish uses this curious weapon by dashing into the midst of a shoal -of smaller fishes and striking them right and left with its saw. In this -way it is sure to disable a good many, which it then swallows leisurely -one after the other. - -Saw-fishes are found in all the warmer seas, and sometimes grow to a -length of fifteen or twenty feet. - - -RAYS - -The rays have broad flattened bodies, and very long and slender tails. -In consequence of this structure they cannot swim by means of their -tails, as nearly all other fishes do, but travel slowly through the -water by waving their side fins, after the manner of soles and -flounders. - -One of the best known of these fishes is the skate, which when fully -grown sometimes measures as much as six feet in length from the snout to -the tip of the tail, and five feet in width of body. As it cannot swim -fast enough to overtake other fishes, it preys chiefly upon crabs, -lobsters, and shell-bearing mollusks, which it finds on the bottom and -is able easily to crunch up, shells and all. - -The eggs of this fish may be found in great numbers on the sea-shore. -They are very much like those of the dogfish, but are nearly black in -color, and instead of a long twisted tendril at each corner, they only -have a blunt projection about an inch long. They remind one, in fact, of -a hand-barrow, and consequently the fishermen often call them -"skate-barrows." - -In color, the skate is grayish brown above and grayish white beneath. - -Another very curious ray is the torpedo, which is an electric fish, -having a kind of electric battery inside its body, from which a very -powerful shock can be discharged at will. This battery, in appearance, -is something like a honeycomb, consisting of a number of six-sided -columns, which run from the skin of the back to that of the lower -surface of the body. Each of these columns is divided into a number of -cells, or chambers, by thin walls of membrane; and each cell contains a -liquid which seems to consist chiefly of salt and water. - -The electricity produced and stored up in these organs seems to be -discharged along four great nerves, which run from the battery up to the -brain. The shock is sufficiently strong to kill a duck; and not only has -an electric bell been rung by it, but an electric spark has been -actually obtained. And when five persons held one another's hands, and -the person at each end laid his finger upon the torpedo, every one of -the five persons felt the shock. - -Even more formidable, though in quite a different way, is the sting-ray. -At the base of its long whip-like tail this fish has a bony spine set -with sharp teeth, like a saw; and its favorite mode of attack is to coil -this tail round the body of its victim and then to drive the spine into -his flesh, working it backward and forward in such a manner as to cause -a very serious wound always followed by severe inflammation. - -Some of the rays in the warmer seas grow to a very great size; indeed, a -ray measuring over eighteen feet in length has more than once been -captured. They are dangerous creatures to meddle with, for a fish of -this size is quite strong enough to overturn a boat, while if a man were -once seized by one of them, he would have very little chance of escape. - -These huge creatures are generally known as devil-fish. - - -THE STURGEON - -This fish belongs to quite a different group, which may be distinguished -by two points. In the first place, its skeleton is made not of bone, but -of gristle; and in the second place, five rows of shield-like bony -plates run along the back and sides of the body, forming a kind of -natural armor. - -The sturgeon is often eight or nine feet long, and weighs three or four -hundred pounds. It spends most of its life in the sea, but ascends the -rivers in order to spawn, like the salmon. It is not so common as -formerly in American waters, although sturgeon are taken in nearly all -our larger rivers from time to time; but in some parts of Europe, and -especially in Russia, it is very plentiful. - -Caviare is made from the sturgeon's roe. The membranes which separate -the eggs from one another are all removed, and the eggs are then salted -and pressed into small barrels, being afterward eaten as a kind of -preserve. - -The best isinglass is made from the sturgeon's swimming-bladder, -which has so much gelatine in it that, if a small quantity is dissolved -in a hundred times as much boiling water, it will form a stiff jelly -when it is cold. - -The sturgeon's flesh is very good to eat, for it is not only -well-flavored, but is so firm and solid that it is almost like beef. - -In England the sturgeon is known as a "royal" fish, because, in days of -old, when one of these fish was caught in an English river, it was -always kept for the table of the king; and even now, if a sturgeon is -captured in that part of the Thames which is under the control of the -Lord Mayor of London, it belongs by right to the Crown. - - -THE BEAKED CHÆTODON - -A great many fishes are very odd to look at, and this is one of the -oddest. Imagine a fish with an almost circular flattened body, with five -brown bands edged with white running round it, huge round eyes, enormous -triangular fins both above and below the body, a broad tail, which looks -as if it were tied in by a piece of ribbon at the base, and a mouth -drawn out into a long slender beak! And this fish has a habit which is -even odder still, for when it sees an insect sitting on a leaf which -overhangs the margin of the sea, it takes careful aim, squirts a drop of -water at it from out of its long beak, and nearly always succeeds in -knocking it into the water below! - -This fish lives in the Indian and Polynesian seas, and is sometimes kept -as a pet by the Japanese, who amuse themselves by fastening a fly to the -end of a piece of stick and holding it over the bowl in which the fish -is living, in order to see it knocked off its perch by a pellet of -water. - - -THE COD - -Throughout the northern seas the cod is found, and in some parts it is -taken in immense numbers. The largest and finest of all, which sometimes -weigh more than one hundred pounds, come from the banks, or shallows in -the sea, off the shores of Newfoundland, but very fine ones have been -taken elsewhere; and extensive cod-fisheries are maintained in -the North Pacific, near Alaska. - -Cod are mostly captured by means of long lines, each about forty fathoms -in length, to which a number of smaller lines are fastened at intervals. -The hooks are placed on the side lines, and are generally baited with -whelks, and then the long lines, or trawls, as the fishermen call them, -are anchored in shallow parts of the sea where codfishes, halibut, and -the like abound. Each boat carries about eight miles of these lines, -with nearly five thousand hooks, so that the work of baiting, lowering, -and raising them is very heavy indeed. The fishing takes place in the -winter, and the boats are generally out in all weathers for several -months at a time. - -One would think that with so many boats engaged in cod-fishing, each -with so many miles of line, nearly all the cod in the sea would soon be -caught. But to offset this, a single cod in a single year will often lay -eight or nine million eggs, so that notwithstanding the immense number -of these fishes which are taken, they still seem as plentiful as ever. - - -FLATFISH - -The so-called flatfishes, such as the sole, the plaice, the flounder, -and the dab, form an interesting group. Although we call them "flat," we -ought really to call them "thin," because what we always consider as the -back of a sole is really one of its sides, and what seems to be the -lower surface is the other side. - -The explanation is this: when these fishes are quite small, they swim -upright in the water, just as other fishes do, and drive themselves -along by means of their tails. But when they are about a month old a -strong desire comes over them to go and lie down on the mud at the -bottom of the sea, and then three remarkable things happen. - -First their color changes. Up till now, both sides of their bodies have -been nearly white. But if a white fish were to lie down on dark-brown -mud, of course it would very easily be seen, and most likely would very -soon be devoured by one of its many enemies. So as soon as the -little fish lies down at the bottom of the water its upper surface -begins to grow darker, and before very long it exactly resembles the hue -of the surrounding mud. Or if the fish should lie upon sand, as the -plaice does, then its upper surface becomes colored like the sand. So as -long as it keeps still its enemies may pass quite close to it without -noticing it. - -The next thing that happens is that the little fish changes its way of -swimming. Hitherto it has driven itself through the water by means of -its tail; now it uses what were formerly its upper and lower fins, but -have now been turned into side fins. And by a very graceful waving -movement of these fins it winds its way, as it were, through the water. - -But the third change is the strangest of the three. One of the eyes -would now seem to be useless, since it is on the lower surface of the -head as the fish lies on the sea-bottom, and would be completely buried -in the mud. But as soon as the fish goes and lies down at the bottom of -the sea, this eye actually begins to travel along the lower surface of -the head, till at last it works its way round and settles down by the -side of the other! - -If you look at the flounders the next time you pass by a fish-market, -you will observe that both eyes are placed quite close together above -the same corner of the mouth. That is because the lower eye traveled -round the head till it found a resting-place by the side of the other. - -In habits, all these fishes are very much alike. They are found in -almost all seas, except those of the polar regions, and in most parts of -the world are exceedingly plentiful, and everywhere form a cheap and -excellent food. - - -THE SWORDFISH - -A very odd-looking creature is this. It abounds in the Atlantic and also -in the Mediterranean. Its chase affords one of the finest summer sports -to be enjoyed along the south coast of New England, where it is taken by -spearing from swift sailboats. - -In this fish the upper jaw, which has hardly any teeth in it, is drawn -out into a long, slender, pointed beak. With this "sword" the -fish impales its victims, which are often of considerable size; but how -it gets them off its beak again in order to eat them nobody seems to -know. - -This fish sometimes drives its way through the water with such -tremendous force that it has been known to pierce the planking of a boat -with its sword, which it had to snap short off in order to release -itself. - -In the Natural History Museum at South Kensington, London, there is part -of a beam taken from the hull of a ship, into which one of these fishes -had driven its sword to a depth of twenty-two inches. - - -MACKEREL - -One of the best known of all the salt-water fishes is the mackerel. This -fish lives in enormous shoals, which are always traveling from place to -place, and visit the same parts of our coasts at about the same season -in every year. Sometimes they are caught in most extraordinary numbers, -so that they can be purchased at very small prices. In some cases, -indeed, the catch has been so heavy that it has been found quite -impossible to draw in the nets, which had to be allowed to sink to the -bottom with the fishes still in them. - -These nets are generally made with rather large meshes, not quite wide -enough to allow the fishes to swim through. When the mackerel are caught -they try to force their way through the meshes, but find that they -cannot do so. They then attempt to back out. In doing this, however, the -thin twine of which the net is made is almost sure to become entangled -with their gill-covers, so that they are held prisoners until the net is -lifted from the water. - -When fully grown the mackerel is about sixteen inches long, and weighs -perhaps two pounds. - - -SUCKING-FISHES - -Of the sucking-fishes, or remoras, there are about a dozen different -kinds, distinguished by the odd sucker-like disk on the upper -part of the head, by means of which they can attach themselves firmly to -any object to which they wish to cling. They often fasten themselves in -this manner to the hulls of ships, and also to the bodies of sharks and -the shells of turtles, and so are carried for long distances without any -exertion of their own. - -So firmly do these odd little fishes cling, that it is most difficult to -remove them without injuring them, and the sharks and turtles have no -means of forcing them to loose their hold. - -It is a very odd fact that the coloring of the sucking-fishes is just -the opposite of that which we find in almost all other fishes. Instead -of the upper surface being dark it is light, and instead of the lower -surface being light it is dark. But when one of these fishes is clinging -to a shark it is the lower surface which is seen, not the upper one; for -_that_ is pressed against the body of the shark; and in order to -prevent its enemies from seeing and eating it, the lower parts of its -body are colored just like the skin of the shark. - - -WEEVERS - -Strange little fishes are the weevers, two kinds of which are found on -the coast of Europe. - -Both are highly poisonous, a prick from the spines of the upper fin or -the gill-cover being almost as serious as the sting of a scorpion. The -poison lies in a deep double groove on each spine, and as the fishes -have a habit of burying themselves in the sand at the bottom of shallow -water, with only just the sharp spines projecting, they are rather apt -to be trodden upon by bathers. - -Accordingly, when a fisherman catches a weever-fish he always cuts off -its back fin and the spines of its gill-covers at once; while in France -and Spain he is compelled to do so by law. - - -THE ANGLER - -The angler, or all-mouth, is the name of a hideous creature--about five -feet long when fully grown--with a huge mouth, a great broad body shaped -very much like that of a seal, two big round eyes which look almost -straight up into the water above, and a row of long, slender -spines on the back instead of the usual fins. The first of these spines -has a broad, tufted, glittering tip, used for a most singular purpose. - -It is a creature of prey, feeding entirely upon other fishes; and it has -a most enormous appetite, which is hardly ever satisfied. But, at the -same time, it is so slow in its movements that if it were to try to -chase its victims it would never get anything to eat. It seems to know -perfectly well, however, that fishes are very inquisitive creatures, and -that they are always greatly attracted by any object that glitters. So -when it feels hungry it lies down at the bottom of the sea, stirs the -mud gently up with its side fins, so as to conceal itself from view, and -dangles the glittering spine up and down in front of its open mouth. -Before very long some passing fish is sure to come swimming up to see -what this strange object can possibly be; and then the angler just gives -one snap with its great jaws, and that fish is seen no more. - -Just to show you how successful it is in its fishing, we may tell you -that from the body of a single angler no less than seventy-five herrings -have been taken, while another had swallowed twenty-five flounders and a -John-dory! - -There is another kind of angler which lives down at the bottom of the -deep sea, where it is always perfectly dark. There, of course, a -glittering spine would be useless, for the other fishes would not be -able to see it. So this angler has a spine which shines at the tip like -a firefly, so that it can be seen from a considerable distance as the -fish dangles it up and down! - - -GURNARDS - -These, too, are remarkable fishes, having square heads, which look ever -so much too big for their bodies, and the first three rays of their -pectoral or breast fins made like fingers. These breast-fins are used -like fingers, too, for they serve as organs of touch, while the fish -also walks with them along the sand at the bottom of the sea. - -At least forty different kinds of gurnards have been discovered, but -nearly all dwell along foreign coasts. The handsomest of these, perhaps, -is the red gurnard, which grows to a length of twelve or -fourteen inches, and is bright red above and silvery white below. - - -FLYING FISHES - -Though objects of never-ending interest to every one who journeys -through the warmer seas, flying fishes do not really fly. They merely -skim for long distances through the air, just as the flying squirrel and -the flying dragon do; but instead of having a broad parachute-like -membrane to buoy them up, they are supported in the air by the pectoral -or breast fins, which are very large. These fins do not beat the air, -like the wings of a bird. They merely support the body. And the power of -the so-called flight is due to a stroke of the tail just as the fish -leaves the water. - -The reason why these fishes take their long leaps through the air -appears to be that they are much persecuted by other fishes, bigger and -stronger than themselves, and that they know quite well that they will -be overtaken if they remain in the water. They do not usually rise to a -height of more than a few feet above the surface, and the greatest -distance to which they can travel without falling back into the water -seems to be about two hundred yards. Whether they can alter the -direction of their course while they are in the air is uncertain. Some -observers say that they can, while others declare that they cannot. But -it is possible that they may sometimes do so by just touching the crest -of a wave with their tails. - -Flying fishes are found in all the warmer parts of the sea, and are very -common in the Mediterranean and the West Indies. - - -THE HERRING - -Like the mackerel, the herring is one of those fishes which live in vast -shoals and are of great value as a cheap and nutritious food. These -shoals consist of millions upon millions of fishes, and when they are -swimming near the surface of the sea their presence can generally be -detected by the numbers of sea-birds which follow them and devour them -in countless thousands. Whales, too, often follow the shoal for -days together, and sharks and many other big fishes do the same. Yet -nothing seems to lessen their numbers. - -These shoals generally appear in the same parts of the sea, year after -year, at the same season. But sometimes the herring will desert their -favorite haunts without any apparent cause. During spring and early -summer they remain in deep water; but in June and July they come in -nearer the coast in order to spawn. - - -GOBIES - -There are still several very curious and interesting fishes about which -we should like to tell you; and among these are the gobies. Many -different kinds of these odd little creatures are found in different -parts of the world other than North America; but perhaps the best known -of all is the black goby, which is very common off British coasts. You -can often catch it by fishing with a small net in the pools which are -left among the rocks as the tide goes out. And if you look into these -pools from above, you may often see it clinging to the rocks round the -margin. It does this by means of the fins on the lower part of its body, -which are made in such a manner that when they are placed side by side -together they form a kind of sucker. And if you keep the fish in an -aquarium, it has an odd way of suddenly darting at the side of the tank, -clinging to it with its fins, and staring at you through the glass. - -Some of the gobies make nests in which to bring up their little ones, -just as the sticklebacks do. One of them, the spotted goby, which is -found rather commonly in the lower reaches of the Thames, nearly always -takes one of the shells of a cockle for this purpose. First it turns the -shell upside down; then it scoops out the sand from beneath it, and -smears the surface of the hollow with slime from its own body; and then -it piles loose sand over the shell, so as to keep it in position. -Lastly, it makes a little tunnel by which to enter the nest from -outside. This work is always performed by the male. When the nest is -quite finished the female comes and lays her eggs in it, after -which the male keeps guard over them until they hatch, about eight or -nine days later. - - -MUD-SKIPPERS - -More curious still are these fishes, which are found on the coasts of -the tropical seas, and often make their way for some little distance up -the estuaries of rivers. They have singular eyes, which are set on the -upper surface of the head, and can be poked out to some little distance -and drawn back again in the oddest way. And besides that, these eyes -have eyelids. Then the lower fins are made just like those of the -gobies, but with an even greater power of clinging, so that the fish can -climb by means of them. Often these queer little creatures leave the sea -altogether and skip about on the muddy shore, or even climb up the -trunks of the trees which overhang the water. Sometimes they will rest -for quite a long time on the spreading roots, snapping at the flies and -other small insects which come within reach. They do not look like -fishes at all as they do so. They look much more like rather big -tadpoles. And if they are suddenly startled they go hopping and skipping -back into the water, not diving at once, but leaping along over the -surface, very much as a flat stone does when thrown sideways from the -hand. - -Some of these fishes were kept for some time at the London Zoo, and when -they were out of the water they had an odd way of lying at full length -and raising their heads and the front part of their bodies by means of -their lower fins, so that they reminded one very much of a man with his -elbows resting upon the table. - - -PIPE-FISHES - -The pipe-fish has its mouth drawn out into a very long snout, so that it -forms a kind of tube; the body is sixteen or eighteen inches long, yet -scarcely stouter than an ordinary drawing-pencil; and the only fin, -besides a small one on the back, is a tiny one at the very tip of the -tail. Besides this, the whole head and body are covered with bony -plates, which form a kind of coat of mail. And the fish is even -odder in habits than in appearance, for when the eggs are laid they are -put into a pouch in the lower part of the body of the male, and are kept -there until they hatch! It is even said that after the little ones are -hatched and are able to swim about in the water, they will return into -the pouch of the parent in moments of danger, just as young kangaroos -will into that of their mother. But this does not seem to have been -proved. - -Pipe-fishes are not uncommon on our coasts, and you may often find them -in the pools among the rocks when the tide is out. They swim half erect -in the water, and if you watch them carefully you may see them poking -their long snout-like mouths in among the seaweeds in search of food, -standing on their heads among the eel-grass, in which position they are -hard to see, or blowing furrows in the sand at the bottom of the pool in -order to turn out any small creatures which may be lying hidden in it. - - -THE SEA-HORSE - -Closely related to the pipe-fish is the sea-horse, which reminds one of -the knight in a set of chessmen. It has a long and slender tail, which -is prehensile, like that of a spider-monkey; and by means of this organ -the fish anchors itself firmly down to the stems of seaweeds, or to any -small object which may be floating on the surface of the water. - -The eyes of this fish can be moved independently of each other, like -those of a chameleon; and if you keep one of these creatures in a bowl -of sea-water and watch it for a few minutes, you will find it hard to -believe that it is not purposely "making faces" at you! - -The male sea-horse, like the male pipe-fish, has a pouch underneath his -body, in which the eggs are placed as soon as they are laid, and are -kept until they hatch. - -The sea-horse swims by means of a single fin on its back, which acts on -the water very much like the screw of a steamboat. Just at the back of -its head are two more fins, and when these are thrown forward they look -like the ears of a horse, increasing the queer resemblance of -its long head to that of a pony. - -Sea-horses are found in most of the warmer seas, and in summer float -north with the Gulf Stream, so that they are frequently seen near New -England. - - -CONGERS - -Just as there are eels which live in the fresh water, so there are eels -which live in the sea. These are known as congers, and very often they -grow to a great size. A conger eight feet long is by no means uncommon; -and a fish of this length will weigh at least one hundred pounds. - -Congers generally live in rather shallow water off a rocky coast, where -there are plenty of nooks and crevices in which they can hide during the -daytime. It is rather curious to find that those which live in muddy -places are nearly always dark brown or black in color, while those which -lie upon sand are light-colored, and sometimes almost white. - -These eels are generally caught by means of long lines, which are set at -intervals with short "snoods" just like those which are used in catching -cod. The hooks are generally baited with pilchards, or else with pieces -of the long arms of cuttles. When the congers are lifted on board the -scene is usually an exciting one, for they are very powerful and active, -and go twisting and writhing about in the most extraordinary manner, -slapping vigorously on all sides with their long tails. These tails, -too, to some extent, are prehensile, and sometimes the fishes will seize -the gunwale of the boat, and then, with a sudden effort, pull themselves -over the side and drop back into the water. As soon as they are lifted -on board, the fishermen always try to stun them by a heavy blow on the -lower side of the body, after which, of course, they can be easily -killed. - -Congers feed, as a rule, upon mollusks, which we wrongly call -shell-fish, devouring them shells and all. They will also eat small -fishes, however, and sometimes they are cannibals; for inside the body -of one of these fishes a young conger was found that was three feet in -length! - - -AMPHIOXUS, OR LANCELET - -In this we see a creature so curiously formed that a good many -naturalists have doubted whether it ought to be ranked among the fishes -at all. For in appearance it is much more like a slug; and it has no -skull, and no brain, and no bones, and no eyes, and no gills, and no -heart! It has a fin running along its back, however, and although it has -no spine, it possesses a spinal cord. So it is considered as the very -lowest of all the fishes, and as a kind of link between the animals with -bones and those without them. - -This strange little creature is about two inches and a half long when -fully grown, and is so transparent that one can almost see through its -body. It is very active, and can wriggle and twist about in the water, -or on the mud, with considerable speed. It spends most of its life -concealed under large stones, or lying almost buried in the muddy sand -at the bottom of the sea. And it seems to feed upon those minute atoms -of decaying animal and vegetable matter which are always floating about -in countless millions in the waters of the sea. - - - - -INVERTEBRATES - - - - -CHAPTER XXXII - -INSECTS - - -We now come to the second of the two great divisions of the animal -kingdom, namely, the invertebrates, which includes all those creatures -which have no bones. This division in its turn consists of a good many -classes, just as that of the vertebrates does; and among these is that -of the insects, the peculiarity of which is that they must pass through -three stages of development before they reach their perfect form, -namely: first the egg; then the grub, or caterpillar; and then the -chrysalis, or pupa. - -You can easily tell an insect when you see it by remembering one or two -simple rules. - -In the first place, its body is always divided into three principal -parts, which are known as the head; the thorax, or chest; and the hind -body. - -In the second place, it always has six legs. Spiders have eight legs. -Centipedes and millepedes have many legs. But an insect never has more -nor less than six. And each of these limbs is made up of a thigh, a -lower leg, and a foot; while the foot itself has from two to five little -joints, the last of which usually has a pair of tiny claws at the tip. - -Besides these, there are several other ways in which insects differ from -the rest of the vertebrates. We need only tell you about one of them, -however, and that is that in some form or other they always have four -wings. Sometimes, it is true, you cannot see these wings. That is -because they are not developed and cannot be used for flying. But still -they are there, and by means of the microscope it is almost always easy -to detect them. - -These wings, however, take all sorts of forms. The wings of a butterfly, -for example, are very different from those of a beetle or a bee; and -because of these differences in the wings, insects are divisible into -several smaller groups, which we call orders. - - -BEETLES - -First comes the order of the beetles. These are called -_Coleoptera_, or sheath-winged insects, because their front wings, -instead of being formed for flight, are turned into horny or leathery -sheaths, or elytra, which cover up and protect the lower pair while not -in use. - -At least 150,000 different kinds of beetles have already been discovered -in various parts of the world, of which America possesses tens of -thousands; and probably quite as many more remain to be distinguished. -Of these we can only mention a few of the most interesting. - -The tiger-beetles are so called because they are such fierce and -voracious insects, spending most of their time in chasing and devouring -other insects. The commonest of them is about half an inch long, and is -bright green above and coppery below. You may often see it darting about -in the hot sunshine, and if you try to catch it you will generally find -that it flies away as quickly as a bluebottle. - -Ground-beetles are common in gardens. One often seen is about an inch -long, and is deep black in color, with a narrow band of violet running -round the outer edge of its wing-cases. This, too, is a creature of -prey. It cannot hurt you; but if you pick it up it will make your -fingers smell very nasty. For it can pour out from its mouth a drop or -two of a dark-brown liquid which has a horrible odor. - -Then there are a good many beetles which live in streams and ponds, and -are called water-beetles in consequence. They can swim and dive very -well, and are also able to fly. Almost every night they go for long -journeys through the air. And when they want to go back into the pond -they hover above it for a moment, fold their wings, and drop into the -water with a splash. Only sometimes they fly over the roof of a -greenhouse, and mistake that for a pond; and then you can imagine the -result! - -The cocktails are beetles with short wing-cases and very long, slender -bodies, which they carry turned up at the rear end. Some of them are -quite large, like the ugly black "coach-horse," but many are very small. -Indeed, most of the "flies" which get into one's eyes on warm sunny days -in England are really tiny cocktail beetles, and the reason why they -make one's eyes smart so dreadfully is that they pour out a little drop -of an evil-smelling liquid from their mouths, just like the purple -ground-beetle. - - -SCAVENGERS - -The burying-beetles are so called because they bury dead animals. Have -you ever wondered why we so seldom find a dead mouse or a dead bird, -although these creatures must die in thousands every day? One reason is -that as soon as they are dead a couple of "scavengers" are almost sure -to come and bury them. They are big black beetles, sometimes with two -broad yellow stripes across their wing-cases, and they dig by means of -their heads, scooping out the earth from under the carcass till it has -sunk well below the surface of the ground. Then they lay their eggs in -it, come up to the surface, shovel back the earth till the dead body is -quite covered over, and then fly away. And when the eggs hatch, the -little grubs which come out from them feed upon the carcass. - -Among the largest beetles are those called stag-beetles because the jaws -of the male look very much like the horns of a stag. Those of the female -are much smaller, but are so sharp and strong that they can really give -a rather severe bite. These occur in various parts of the world, and are -fond of flying slowly about on a warm summer evening, generally about -twenty or thirty feet from the ground. - -The cockchafer is common everywhere in spring, and if you shake a young -birch-tree, or a hazel-bush, three or four of the great clumsy insects -will very likely come tumbling down. They are rather more than an inch -long, very stoutly and heavily built, and are chestnut brown in -color, while their bodies are drawn out into a kind of point behind. The -grubs of these beetles live underground, and do a great deal of mischief -in fields and gardens, for they feed upon the roots of the plants, and -very soon kill them. - -Dor-beetles, too, are very common everywhere. You may often see them -flying round and round in great circles on warm summer evenings, making -a loud humming noise as they do so. They often blunder in at open -windows, attracted by the lamplight, and children are afraid of them, -but they can do no harm. If you catch one you will find that it is -nearly black. You will also see that its front legs are broad and -strong, and that they are set with a row of stout horny teeth. With -these legs the beetle digs, using them with such address that in the -course of an hour or two it will sink a hole in the ground ten or twelve -inches deep, in order to lay its eggs at the bottom. - -The famous Scarabæus of Egypt, which in days of old some of the people -of that country used to revere, because they thought it a symbol of -immortality, is really a kind of dor-beetle. - - -SKIPJACKS AND GLOWWORMS - -Skipjacks, too, are beetles. You may know them by their long, narrow, -glossy bodies, and by the fact that the head is hidden under the thorax, -so that you can hardly see it from above. One very odd thing about them -is that they are constantly losing their footing and rolling over on -their backs; and their bodies are so shiny, and their legs are so short, -that when they do so they cannot get up again in the ordinary manner. -But after lying still for a moment they arch themselves into the form of -a bow, resting only upon their heads and the very tips of their tails, -and suddenly spring into the air, making an odd clicking noise as they -do so. And as they fall they turn half round, and so alight upon their -feet. For this reason they are often known as click-beetles. - -These insects are the parents of the well-known wireworms, which often -do such mischief in our fields and gardens, living underground -for three or even four years, and feeding upon the roots of the crops, -and of such bushes as the currant. - -Then the glowworm is a beetle. Perhaps you may have seen its little pale -green lamp shining in the grass on a summer evening. The light comes -from a liquid inside the hind part of the body, the skin of which is -transparent, and forms a kind of window, so that it can shine through; -and the insect has the power of turning on its light and shutting it off -at will. The lamp of the female beetle is very much brighter than that -of the male, and while the male has both wing-cases and wings, and can -fly very well indeed, those of the female are so small that one can -hardly see them. Indeed, she looks much more like a grub than a beetle. - - -DEATHWATCHES AND OIL-BEETLES - -Deathwatches are small brown beetles which burrow into dead wood and -call to one another by tapping with their horny heads. You may often -hear them if you happen to be lying awake at night in a room in which -there is old woodwork; and in former days people were silly enough to -think that when this sound was heard it was a sign that somebody in the -house was going to die! That is why these beetles are called -deathwatches. They are quite small, and are brown in color, with rather -long feelers and legs. - -Crawling on grassy banks in the warm sunshine on bright spring days, you -may often see a number of oil-beetles. These are large bluish-black -insects which have an odd habit, if you pick them up, of squeezing out -little drops of a yellow oily liquid from the joints of their legs! This -oil has a pungent smell, and no doubt prevents birds, etc., from eating -them. You will notice that the female beetles have enormous hind bodies, -which they can hardly drag along over the ground. This is because they -contain such a very large number of eggs, thirty thousand often being -laid by a single beetle. She places them in batches in holes in the -ground, and very soon afterward they hatch, and odd-looking little grubs -with six long legs come out of them. No sooner have they left the -egg-shells than these tiny creatures hunt about for a flower -with sweet juices, which is likely to be visited by a wild bee. When -they find one, they climb up the stem and hide among the petals. Then, -when the bee comes, they spring upon it and cling to its hairy body, and -so are carried back to its nest, where they feed upon the food which the -bee had stored up for its little ones. - - -WEEVILS AND OTHER BEETLES - -A great many beetles have a long beak in front of the head, with the -jaws at the very tip. These are called weevils, and many of them are -very mischievous. Grain of various kinds, for example, is destroyed in -enormous quantities by the wheat-weevil and the rice-weevil, while the -nut-weevil is the cause of those "bad" nuts which no doubt most of you -know only too well. The mother beetle bores a hole through the shell of -the nut while it is small, and the little grub which hatches out from -the egg she leaves inside it feeds upon the kernel, leaving nothing -behind but a quantity of evil-tasting black dust. - -One of the handsomest of European insects is the musk-beetle, which you -may often find sunning itself on the trunks and leaves of willow-trees -in England in July. Often you can smell it long before you find it, for -it gives out a strong odor much like that of musk. This beetle is -sometimes nearly an inch and a half long, with long legs and still -longer waving black feelers. In color it is rich golden green with a -tinge of copper. But if you put one of its wing-cases under the -microscope, it looks like a piece of green velvet studded all over with -diamonds, and rubies, and sapphires, and emeralds, and topazes, which -seem to turn into one another with every change of light. - -The grub of this beetle lives inside the trunks of dying willow-trees, -and feeds upon the solid wood. - -Then there are the turnip-fleas, little black beetles with a yellow -stripe on each wing-case, which skip about just as fleas do, by means of -their hind legs. They are only too common in turnip-fields, and often do -most serious mischief, nibbling off the seed-leaves of the young plants -as soon as they push their way above the surface of the ground, -and so destroying the greater part or even the whole of the crop. - -And, lastly, there are the ladybirds, common everywhere. But perhaps you -did not know that they are among the most useful of insects. The fact is -that both as grubs and as perfect insects they live upon the green -blight, or greenfly, an aphis which is terribly mischievous in fields -and gardens, and destroy it in thousands of thousands. Indeed, if it -were not for ladybirds, and for one or two other insects which help them -in their task, we should find it quite impossible to grow certain crops -at all. - -[Illustration: INSECTS INJURIOUS TO AMERICAN MAPLE TREES. - - BORING BEETLE (Plagionotus): 1, place where egg was laid; 2, borer - or grub in September from egg laid same season; 3, nearly fully - grown borer; 4, adult beetle (black and yellow); 5, hole through - which beetle escaped from its chrysalis in the burrow; 6, dust of - borings packed in a burrow. - - MAPLE-TREE PRUNER (Elaphidium): 7, 7a, grubs or borers in burrows; - 8, pupa; 9, beetle (brown). - - COTTONY SCALE (Pulvinaria): 10, active young (pink); 11, adult - female scales, each concealing many eggs under the woolly mass; 12, - leaf with young scale-insects on its under side.] - - -EUPLEXOPTERA - -Next after the beetles comes the order of the _Euplexoptera_, which -means beautifully folded wings. This order contains the earwigs. We do -not know much about these insects in the United States; but they are so -constantly spoken of in books about England, where they are numerous, -that it will be well to describe them. - -Perhaps you did not know that earwigs have wings; and certainly one does -not often see these beetles flying. But nevertheless they have very -large and powerful wings, only, during the daytime, while they are not -being used, these organs are folded away in the most beautiful manner -under the tiny wing-cases. By night, however, earwigs often fly; and -when they settle, they fold up their wings most cleverly by means of the -horny pincers at the tail-end of their bodies, and then pull the -wing-cases down over them! - -That is the real use of the pincers, although the earwig is able to give -quite a smart pinch with them if it is interfered with. - -Another very curious fact about the earwig is that the mother insect -heaps her eggs together into a little pile, and sits over them until -they are hatched. If you turn over large stones early in the spring you -may often find a mother earwig watching over her eggs in this odd -manner, and she will allow herself to be torn in pieces rather than -desert her charge. - - -ORTHOPTERA - -Next comes this order, the name of which means straight-winged insects, -so-called from the way in which the wings are folded. This order -contains many very well-known insects. - -There is the cockroach, for example, which is so common and so -mischievous in our houses. It is often called the black beetle, although -it is not a beetle at all, and is not black, but dark reddish brown. It -is remarkable for several reasons. One is that while the male has large -wing-cases and broad, powerful wings, those of the female are very small -indeed, so that she cannot possibly fly. And another is that the eggs -are laid in a kind of horny purse, about a quarter of an inch long, with -a sort of clasp on one side. These little purses are hidden away in all -sorts of dark corners, and if you open one you will find two rows of -little eggs inside it, arranged rather like the peas in a pod. - -The crickets, too, belong to this order. - -Of course you have often heard the big black cricket chirping merrily -away in the fields; and in Europe they have a kind called the -house-cricket, which comes into the house, and is often spoken of as -"the cricket on the hearth" in the kitchen. It is not correct, however, -to speak of the "note" or "song" of this insect, for it is not produced -in the throat at all, but is caused by rubbing one of the wing-cases -upon the other. You will notice, on looking at a cricket, that in each -wing-case there is a kind of stout horny rib, which starts from a -thickened spot in the middle. Now in the right wing-case this rib is -notched, like a file, and when it is rubbed sharply upon the other the -loud chirping noise is produced. - -The feelers of the cricket are very long and slender, and at the end of -the body of the male are two long hairy bristles, which seem almost like -a second pair of feelers, warning the insect of danger approaching from -behind. At the end of the body of the female is a long spear-like organ, -with a spoon-like tip. This is called the ovipositor, and by means of it -the eggs are laid in holes punched in the soil. - -Crickets have large wings, and fly rather like the woodpeckers, rising -and falling in the air at every stroke. - -Another kind of cricket lives in holes in the ground, which it digs by -means of its front legs. These limbs are formed almost exactly like the -fore feet of the mole, and for this reason the insect is known as the -mole-cricket. It is generally found in sandy fields, and scoops out a -chamber almost as big as a hen's egg at the end of its burrow, in which -to lay its eggs and where it lies, showing only its jaws and great front -legs until some small creature comes near upon which it may pounce for -food. - - -GRASSHOPPERS - -Right here has come a mixing up of names between the English, as spoken -and written in Great Britain, and that used in the United States. When -an Englishman speaks of a grasshopper he means the related insect which -we call a cicada, or katydid, and this _we_ call a locust; but when -_he_ says "locust" he refers to what _we_ call "grasshopper." -We suspect he is nearer right than we are, who have unfortunately fallen -in with the mistake of some ignorant early settler. At any rate the -locusts of which we read in the Bible, and in books of travel in desert -regions, are all of the same race as our grasshoppers. None of the -cicada tribe could ever do so much damage. - -Grasshoppers (to stick to our own name) abound in all warm countries, -especially in those which in summer, at least, are hot and dry, such as -Egypt, or Syria, or parts of India. They feed exclusively on leaves, -blades of grass, and the like, and are strong fliers; and in countries -that are favorable to them, where they are always very plentiful, -certain species sometimes become excessively abundant, and then spread -over the land, and swarm away to neighboring countries, in such immense -numbers that they devour every green leaf and every blade of grass, or -spear of grain, until they leave the ground as bare as if it had been -swept by fire. - -Nor is this the worst, for wherever they go the females push -quantities of eggs down into the ground. The following summer these eggs -hatch, and the devastation of the previous year is repeated, for where -before dense clouds of flying grasshoppers descended from the sky, now -enormous armies of grubs march over the ground, climb all the plants and -bushes, and devour all that has newly sprung up. - -Millions may be killed by fire or other means, but it has little effect, -and the farmers and grazers of a region so visited are all but -ruined--perhaps wholly so. - -When, in the last century, men began to settle on the prairies of the -far West, they met this plague; and between 1870 and 1880 the gardens -and farms and young orchards of Kansas, Nebraska, and other western -districts, were ruined again and again. The government sent out several -of the wisest entomologists it could employ to study the insects, and -they found that these destructive red-legged grasshoppers had their home -in the dry foothills of the Rocky Mountains, especially toward the -north. They learned a great deal about the habits of the insects, and -reported that there seemed no remedy just at hand; but that the more the -West was settled and cultivated, the more grass and other food would be -provided for the grasshoppers, so that they would not have to make those -wide flights, and the more the plowing of the land and burning of -rubbish would destroy their eggs, so that gradually the pest would -become less and less, until finally it would cease to be troublesome. -This has turned out to be true, and already the fear of grasshoppers has -departed. The same thing is taking place in Egypt and some other -improving countries, which no longer suffer from the plague of locusts -as they used to do. - -The wonderful walking-stick and the leaf-insects also belong to this -order. They are so marvelously like the objects after which they are -named that as long as they keep still it is almost impossible to see -them. They seem to know this perfectly well, and will remain for hours -together without moving, waiting for some unwary insect to come within -reach, for they are among the insects of prey. They are found in all the -warmer parts of the world. - -Equally curious, too, is the praying-mantis, which also is very much -like a leaf. It has very long front legs, with a row of sharp teeth -running along their inner margin, and when it is hungry it holds these -limbs over its head, in very much the attitude of prayer. That is why it -is called the praying-mantis. Then when an insect comes within reach it -strikes at it, and seizes it between the upper and lower parts of these -limbs, so that the long spike-like teeth enter its body and hold it in a -grip from which there is no escape. These occur in various parts of the -world, including the warmer parts of America. - - -DRAGON-FLIES AND MAY-FLIES - -The dragon-flies belong to another division of the _Orthoptera_. -You must know these insects very well by sight, with their long slender -bodies and their broad gauzy wings; for they are common in almost all -parts of the country, and you can hardly go for a ramble on a sunny day -in summer or autumn without seeing them in numbers. There are a good -many different kinds. Some have yellow bodies, some blue ones, and some -red ones, and the loveliest of all perhaps are the graceful demoiselles, -whose wings are rich metallic purple. You may sometimes see these -beautiful insects flitting to and fro over streams and ditches. - -All the dragon-flies spend the earlier part of their lives in the water. -The grubs are very curious creatures and catch their prey in a curious -way. Underneath the head is an organ called the mask. This consists of -two horny joints, which fold upon one another while not in use. At the -end of the second joint is a pair of great sickle-shaped jaws, and when -the grub sees a victim it swims quietly underneath it, unfolds the mask, -reaches up, and seizes it with the jaws. Then it folds the mask again, -and by so doing drags the prisoner down against the true jaws, by means -of which it is leisurely devoured. - -This grub swims, too, in a singular manner. At the end of its body you -will notice a short sharp spike. Now this spike really consists of five -points, which can be opened out into the form of a star; and in the -center of this star is a small round hole, which is really the entrance -to a tube running right through the middle of the body. And the -grub swims by filling this tube with water, and then squirting it out -again with all its force, so that the escaping jet pushes, as it were, -against the surrounding water, and drives the insect swiftly forward by -the recoil. - -Dragon-flies are voracious, and always seem to be hungry. They feed -entirely upon other insects, and spend almost all their time in chasing -and devouring them. - -The May-fly, or June-fly, also belongs to this order. One sometimes sees -it in thousands, dancing, as it were, up and down in the air toward -evening on warm spring days, in the neighborhood of water. You can -always tell this insect by the three long thread-like bristles at the -end of its body. - -Most people think that this insect only lives for a single day. This, -however, is not strictly true, for in damp weather many May-flies live -for three or four days. Before they become perfect flies, however, they -have lived for nearly two years in the muddy banks of rivers and ponds, -in the form of long slender-bodied grubs. These grubs always make their -burrows with two entrances, in the form of the letter U turned sideways, -so that they can easily leave them without having to turn round. - - -TERMITES - -The most wonderful of all the insects which belong to this order, -however, are the termites. Often these creatures are known as white -ants, and although they are not really ants, they are certainly very -much like them. In Africa they make marvelous nests of clay, which are -often twelve or fourteen feet high, and are so very large that a church, -a parsonage, and a schoolroom have been built of clay slabs cut from the -walls of a single termites' nest! These nests are made up of a wonderful -series of chambers and galleries, and in the middle is the royal cell, -in which the "king" and "queen" live. For in every termites' nest there -is one perfect male and one perfect female, which are treated with very -great respect, and have a kind of palace, as it were, all to themselves. -And the rest of the insects in the nest are either imperfect -males, which are called soldiers, or imperfect females, which are called -workers. - -The "king" is quite a handsome and graceful insect, with broad and -powerful wings; and the "queen," at first, is very much like him. But -they never take more than one flight in the air, and as soon as that is -over they actually break off their own wings close to their bodies! Then -they burrow into the ground and begin to form a nest. Before long, the -workers build the palace for the royal couple; and as soon as they have -been shut up inside it the body of the queen swells to a most enormous -size, so that she can no longer walk at all. This is because of the vast -number of eggs, developing within her body, which she at once begins to -lay at the rate of many thousands in a single day. As fast as she lays -them they are carried off by the workers, which also take care of the -little grubs that hatch out from them, just as bees do. - -The duty of the soldiers, as their name implies, is simply to fight, and -if a hole is broken in the side of the nest they hurry to the spot at -once, and begin to snap with their jaws at the foe. And these jaws are -so sharp and so powerful that they can really give a very smart bite. -The workers are a good deal smaller, and they have to build the nest and -keep it in repair, to find food for the grubs, and take care of them, -and wash them, and feed them, and do everything else that is necessary -for the welfare of the colony. - -The grubs of these insects are fed upon dead wood, which is generally -obtained from the trunks and branches of trees. But termites are -sometimes very troublesome in houses, for they will devour the woodwork -and the furniture and the books, leaving nothing but a thin shell of -wood or paper behind them. - -There are a good many different kinds of these wonderful insects, and -they are found in warm countries in all parts of the world. - -The North American termites do not build great clay hills or houses -above ground, but some species make extensive galleries beneath the -surface, while others hollow out a dead stump, or the dying branch of a -tree, or even an old fence-post or telegraph pole, until it becomes a -mere sponge, with a thin outside shell. - - -NEUROPTERA - -The _Neuroptera_, or nerve-winged insects, form an order whose -wings are divided up by horny nerves, or nervures, into such numbers of -tiny cells, that they look as if they were made of the most delicate -lace. - -The caddis-flies belong to this order--brownish insects with long -thread-like feelers and broad wings, which are folded tentwise over the -body when they are not being used. They are very common near ponds and -streams, in which they pass the earlier part of their lives, living down -at the bottom in most curious cases, which cover them entirely up with -the exception of their heads. - -These cases are made of all sorts of materials. Some caddis-grubs merely -fasten two dead leaves together, face to face, and live between them. -Others make a kind of tube out of grains of sand, or tiny stones, or -little bits of cut reed, all neatly stuck together with a kind of glue -which resists the action of water. But the oddest case of all is made of -tiny living water-snails, and you may sometimes see fifteen or twenty -little snails all trying to crawl in different directions, while the -grub is unconcernedly pulling them along in another! - -The grubs never leave these cases, but drag them about with them -wherever they go. And when they find that their odd little homes are -becoming too small, they just cut off a little piece at the end and add -a little piece on in front, rather larger in diameter. And so they -always manage to keep their homes of exactly the proper size. - -Most likely, too, you have heard of the ant-lion fly, which is a rather -large fly with a slender body and four long narrow wings, and is found -in many parts of the south of Europe, as well as in America. But the -interest lies in the grub, or "ant-lion" proper, which has a most -singular way of catching its insect victims. It digs a funnel-shaped pit -in the sand, about three inches in diameter and two inches deep, by -means of its front legs and its head. Then it almost buries itself at -the bottom, and lies in wait to snap up any ants or other small insects -which may be unfortunate enough to fall in. And if by any chance they -should escape its terrible jaws and try to clamber up the sides, it -jerks up a quantity of sand at them, and brings them rolling down again -to the bottom, so that they may be seized a second time. - -A relation of the ant-lion is called the lacewing fly, and is a pretty -pale-green insect with most delicate gauzy wings, over which, if you -look at them in a good light, all the colors of the rainbow seem to be -playing; and its eyes glow so brightly with ruby light that one can -scarcely help wondering if a little red lamp is burning inside its head. -You may often see it sitting on a fence on a warm summer day, or -flitting slowly to and fro in the evening. - -This fly lays its eggs in clusters on a twig, or the surface of a leaf, -each egg being fastened to the tip of a slender thread-like stalk. The -result is that they do not look like eggs at all; they look much more -like a little tuft of moss. When they hatch, a number of queer little -grubs come out, which at once begin to wander about in search of the -little greenfly insects upon which they feed. And when they have sucked -their victims dry, they always fasten the empty skins upon their own -backs, till at last they are covered over so completely that you cannot -see them at all! - - - - -CHAPTER XXXIII - -INSECTS (Continued) - - -We now come to a very large and important order of insects indeed--that -of the _Hymenoptera_. This name means membrane-winged, and has been -given to them because their wings are made of a transparent membrane -stretched upon a light horny framework. It is not a very good name, -however, for many insects which do not belong to this order at all have -their wings made in just the same way. All the _Hymenoptera_, -however, have the upper and lower wings fastened together during flight -by a row of tiny hooks, which are set on the front margin of the lower -pair, and fit into a fold on the lower margin of the upper ones. - - -BEES - -The bees belong to this order, and most wonderful insects they are--so -wonderful, indeed, that a big book might easily be written about them. -They are divided into two groups, namely, social bees and solitary bees. - -The social bees are those which live together in nests; and our first -example, of course, must be the hive-bee. - -In every beehive there are three kinds of bees. First, there are the -drones, which you can easily tell by their stoutly built bodies and -their very large eyes. They are the idlers of the hive, doing no work at -all, and sleeping for about twenty hours out of every twenty-four. For -six or eight weeks they live only to enjoy themselves. But at last the -other bees become tired of providing food for them. So they drive them -all down to the bottom of the hive and sting them to death one after -another. And that is the end of the drones. - -Next comes the queen, the mistress of the hive. You can easily recognize -her, too, for her body is much longer and more slender than that -of the other bees, and her folded wings are always crossed at the tips. -The other bees treat her with the greatest respect, never, for example, -turning their backs toward her. And wherever she goes a number of them -bear her company, forming a circle round her, in readiness to feed her, -or lick her with their tongues, or do anything else for her that she may -happen to want. Her chief business is to lay eggs; and she often lays -two or three hundred in the course of a single day. - -Lastly, there are the workers. There are many thousands of these, and -they have to do all the work of the hive, making wax and honey, building -the combs, and feeding and tending the young. - -The comb is made of six-sided cells, and is double, two sets of cells -being placed back to back. Some of these cells are used for storing up -honey. But a great many of them are nurseries, so to speak, in which the -grubs are brought up. These grubs are quite helpless, and the nurse-bees -have to come and put food into their mouths several times a day. - -Fastened to the outside of the combs, there are always several cells of -quite a different shape. They are almost like pears in form, with the -smaller ends downward. These are the royal nurseries in which the queen -grubs are brought up. - -Bees feed their little ones with a curious kind of jelly, made partly of -honey and partly of the pollen of flowers. This is called bee-bread; and -it is rather strange to find that one kind of bee-bread is given to the -grubs of the drones and the workers, while quite a different kind is -given to those of the queens. - -You will want, of course, to know something about the sting of the -bee--though perhaps you already know enough of the pain it can give! -This is a soft organ, enclosed in a horny sheath, with a number of -little barbs at the tip. When a bee stings us, it is often unable to -draw the sting out again, because of these barbs. So it is left behind -in the wound, and its loss injures the body of the insect so severely -that the bee very soon dies. The poison is stored up in a little bag at -the base of the sting, which is arranged in such a way that when the -sting is used a tiny drop of poison is forced through it, and so enters -the wound. - -Then, no doubt, you would like to know how bees make honey; but -that neither we nor any one can tell you. All we know is, that the bee -sweeps out the sweet juices of flowers with its odd brush-like tongue -and swallows them; that they pass into a little bag just inside the hind -part of its body, which we call the honey-bag; and that by the time the -bee reaches the hive they have been turned into honey. But how or why -the change takes place no one knows at all. - -Bumblebees, or humblebees, are also social bees; but their nests are not -quite as wonderful as those of the hive-bee, and their combs are not so -cleverly made. - -One of these bees is called the carder, and you may sometimes find its -nest in a hollow in a bank. But it is not at all easy to see, for the -bee covers over the hollow with a kind of roof, which is made of moss -and lined with wax. And this looks so like the surrounding earth that -even the sharpest eye may often pass it by. When this roof is finished, -the bee makes a kind of tunnel, eight or ten inches long and about half -an inch in diameter, to serve as an entrance; and this is built of moss -and lined with wax in just the same way. - -On a warm sunny day in spring you may often see one of these bees flying -up and down a grassy bank searching for a suitable burrow in which to -build. Then you may be quite sure that she is a queen. For among -bumblebees the drones and workers die early in the autumn, and only the -queens live through the winter. - -Solitary bees are very common almost everywhere, and you may find their -nests in all sorts of odd places. One kind of solitary bee, for example, -builds in empty snail-shells, and another in small hollows like -keyholes. A third gnaws out a burrow in the decaying trunk of an old -tree, or in the timbers of a barn or house-porch and makes a number of -thimble-shaped cells out of little semicircular bits of rose-leaf, which -it cuts out with its scissor-like jaws. Haven't you noticed how often -the leaves of rose-bushes are chipped round the edges, quite large -pieces being frequently cut away? Well, that is the work of the -leaf-cutter bee, as this insect is called, and very often not a single -leaf on a bush is left untouched. - -But the commonest of all the solitary bees burrows into the -ground. As you walk along the pathway through a meadow in spring, you -may often see a round hole in the ground, just about large enough to -admit an ordinary drawing-pencil. That is the entrance to the burrow of -a solitary bee; and if you could follow the tunnel down into the ground -you would find that it was about eight or ten inches deep, and that at -the bottom were four round cells. In each of these cells the bee lays an -egg. Then it fills the cells with flies, or spiders, and caterpillars, -or beetles, for the little grubs to feed upon when they hatch out. For -solitary bees do not nurse their little ones, as social bees do, and -feed them several times a day. But at the same time the grubs are quite -helpless, and cannot possibly go to look for food for themselves. So the -mother bee has to store up sufficient to last them until the time comes -for them to spin their cocoons and pass into the chrysalis state. These -are only a few examples of a large number of interesting ways in which -the solitary bees in various parts of the world provide for their young. - - -WASPS - -Wasps make nests which are almost as wonderful as those of the hive-bee. -That of the common yellow-jacket wasp is generally placed in a hole in -the ground, or in a cavity under a stone, and is made of a substance -very much like coarse paper, which the wasps manufacture by chewing wood -into a kind of pulp. You may often see them sitting on a fence, or on -the trunk of a dead tree, busily engaged in scraping off shreds of wood -for this purpose. When the nest is finished it is often as big as a -football, and of very much the same shape; and inside it are several -stories, as it were, of cells placed one above another, and supported by -little pillars of the same paper-like material. These cells are -six-sided, like those of the hive-bee, but they are squared off at the -ends, instead of being produced into pointed caps, and they always have -their mouths downward. In a large nest there may be several thousands of -these cells, and very often three generations of grubs are brought up in -them, one after the other. - -The hornet, which is really a kind of big wasp, makes its nest in just -the same way, but places it on a beam in an out-house, or in a hole -which the sparrows have made in the thatched roof of a house, or in a -hollow tree, or perhaps hangs it in the open air to the bough of a tree. - - -ANTS - -Even more wonderful than bees and wasps are the ants, which sometimes do -such extraordinary things that we are almost afraid to tell you about -them, for fear that you might not believe us. There are ants, for -example, which actually take other ants prisoners and make them act as -slaves, forcing them to do all the work of the nest, which they are too -lazy to do themselves; and there are ants which keep large armies, -sometimes more than one hundred thousand strong; and there are many ants -which harvest grain and store it away in underground barns! Many ants, -too, keep little beetles in their nests as pets, and fondle and caress -them just as one might pat a dog, or stroke a favorite cat. They even -allow them to ride on their backs; while, if the nest is opened, the -first thing they think of is the safety of their pets which they pick up -at once and hide away in some place of safety, even before they carry -off their own eggs and young. They also pet tiny crickets and small -white wood-lice in just the same way. - -Then ants have little "cows" of their own, which they "milk" regularly -every day. These are the greenfly or aphis insects which do so much harm -in our gardens and fields, plunging their beaks into the tender shoots -and fresh green leaves of the plants, and sucking up their sap -unceasingly. And as fast as they do so they pour the sap out again -through two little tubes in their backs, in the form of a thin, sticky, -very sweet liquid which we call honeydew. Now the ants are very fond of -this liquid, and if you watch the greenfly insects which are almost -always so plentiful on rose-bushes, you may see the ants come and tap -them with their feelers. Then the little creatures will pour out a small -quantity of honeydew from the tubes on their backs, which the ants will -lick up. That is the way in which ants milk their little cows, -and they are so fond of the honeydew that they will carry large numbers -of these aphides into their nests and keep them, like a herd of cattle, -all through the winter, so that they may never be without a supply of -their favorite beverage! - -Ants, like bees and wasps, almost always consist of drones, queens, and -workers. Only the drones and queens have wings, and these are seldom -seen until the end of August. But then they make their appearance in -vast swarms, which are sometimes so dense that from a little distance -the insects really look like a column of smoke. They only take one short -flight, however, and when this is over they come down to the ground and -snap off their wings close to their bodies, just as termites do. - -One of the most curious of all these insects is the parasol-ant, of -South America, which makes enormous dome-shaped nests of clay. But as -the clay will not bind properly by itself, the insects work little -pieces of green leaf up with it. These pieces of leaf are generally -obtained from an orange plantation, perhaps half a mile distant. And -when the ants are returning from their expedition, each holds its little -piece of leaf over its head as it marches along, just as if it were -carrying a tiny green parasol! - -Another very famous ant is the African driver, which owes its name to -the way its vast armies drive every living creature before them. -Insects, reptiles, antelopes, monkeys, even man himself, must give way -before the advancing hosts of the drivers; for it is certain death to -stand in their path. - - -SAW-FLIES - -The saw-flies also belong to the order of the _Hymenoptera_. These -flies are so called because the female insects have two little saws at -the end of the body, which work in turns, one being pushed forward as -the other is drawn back. With these they cut little grooves in the bark -of twigs, or in the midribs of leaves, in which they place their eggs by -means of the ovipositor between the saws. - -Some of these insects are extremely mischievous. The grub of the -turnip saw-fly, for instance, often destroys whole fields of turnips, -while the currant saw-fly is equally destructive to currants and -gooseberries. One often sees bushes which it has entirely stripped of -their leaves. - -You may always know a saw-fly grub by the fact that it has no less than -twenty-two legs--three pairs of true legs on the front part of the body, -and eight pairs of false legs, or prolegs, as they are often called, on -the hinder part. - -There is one little family of saw-flies, however, which are quite unlike -all the rest, for instead of having saws at the ends of their bodies, -they have long boring instruments, very much like brad-awls. With these -they bore deep holes in the trunks of fir-trees, in order to place their -eggs at the bottom; and the grubs feed, when they hatch out, on the -solid wood. - -These insects are known as horn-tailed saw-flies, and one, which is very -common in pine woods, is very large, sometimes measuring an inch and a -half from the head to the tip of the tail, and very nearly three inches -across the wings, while the boring tool is fully an inch long. It is a -very handsome insect, and looks rather like a hornet, the head and -thorax being deep glossy black and the hind body bright yellow, with a -broad black belt round the middle. The feelers are also yellow, and the -legs are partly yellow and partly black. - - -GALL-FLIES - -Another group of the _Hymenoptera_ consists of the gall-flies. -These are all small insects, which lay their eggs in little holes which -they bore in roots, twigs, and the ribs and nervures of leaves. In each -hole, together with the egg, they place a tiny drop of an irritating -liquid, which causes a swelling to take place, on the substance of which -the little grub feeds. Sometimes these galls, as they are called, take -most curious forms. The pretty red and white oak-apples of course you -know; and no doubt, too, you have often found the hard, woody, -marble-shaped galls which are so common on the twigs of the same tree. -Then some galls look like bunches of currants, and some look like -scales, and some look like pieces of sponge. And if you cut one -of them open you will find perhaps one little grub, or perhaps several, -curled up inside them. - -[Illustration: LEAF-EATING INSECTS OF SHADE-TREES. - - TUSSOCK MOTH: 1, caterpillar (black and yellow, head red); 2, male - moth (mottled gray); 3, wingless female laying eggs on her recently - vacated cocoon; 4, cocoons; 5, cast skins of young caterpillars; 6, - work of youth caterpillars under the surface of a leaf; 7, male - pupa; 8, branch girdled by caterpillar; 9, broken end of girdled - twig. - - FOREST TENT-CATERPILLAR: 10, female moth (buff); 11, male moth - (rust-red); 12, egg-belt; 13, fully grown caterpillar, or - "maple-worm" (dull blue, red-streaked); 14, cocoon in leaf; 15, - pupa; 16, cast skins.] - - -ICHNEUMON-FLIES - -This is the last group of _Hymenoptera_ that we can mention. These -insects lay their eggs in the bodies of caterpillars or chrysalids, and -sometimes in those of spiders, boring holes to receive them by means of -their little sting-like ovipositors. Before long the eggs hatch, and the -little grubs at once begin to feed upon the flesh of their victims. For -some little time, strange to say, the unfortunate creature seems to -suffer no pain, or even discomfort, but goes on feeding and growing just -as before, although hundreds of hungry little grubs may be nibbling away -inside it. Sooner or later, however, it dies; and then the little grubs -spin cocoons and turn to chrysalids, out of which other little flies -appear in due course, just like the parents. - -Millions of caterpillars are destroyed by these little flies every year. -Out of every hundred of those which do so much damage to our cabbages -and cauliflowers, for example, at least ninety are sure to be "stung." -Indeed, if it were not for ichneumon-flies we should find it quite -impossible to grow any crops at all, for they would all be eaten up by -caterpillars. - - -LEPIDOPTERA - -Next we come to the butterflies and moths, which are called -_Lepidoptera_, or scale-winged insects, because their wings are -covered with thousands upon thousands of tiny scales. If you catch a -butterfly, a kind of mealy dust comes off upon your fingers, and if you -look at a little of this dust through a microscope, you find that it -consists simply of little scales, of all sorts of shapes. Some are like -battledores, and some like masons' trowels, and they are nearly always -most beautifully sculptured and chiseled. These scales lie upon the wing -in rows, which overlap one another like the slates on the roof of a -house. And sometimes there are several millions on the wings of a single -insect. - - -BUTTERFLIES - -It is possible here, of course, to mention only a few of the most -striking forms of butterflies, out of the many hundreds of species -counted as North American. It may be said that these insects are much -alike in general features all round the northern half of the globe, the -same families being represented, so that, at first glance, European or -Asiatic examples of such butterflies as the great yellow, black-striped -swallowtail seem the same as American examples. - -Among the handsomest of all northern butterflies is the purple emperor, -which you may sometimes see flying round the tops of the tallest trees -in large woods in the south of England. Far commoner, however, are the -large, small, and green-veined whites, whose caterpillars are so -destructive to cabbages; the scarlet admiral, with broad streaks of -vermilion across its glossy black wings; the peacock, with its four -eye-like blue spots on a russet ground; the tortoise-shells, mottled -with yellow and brown and black; and the pretty little blues, which one -may see in almost every meadow from the middle of May till the end of -September. Then there are the brimstone, with its pale yellow wings, -which with the blues dance along the roadways in little whirling -companies all summer; the meadow-brown and the large heath, to be seen -in thousands in every hayfield; the small heath and the small copper, -even more plentiful still; the fritillaries, some of which live in -woods, and some on downs, and some in marshy meadows; the pretty -orange-tip, with pure white wings tipped with yellow; and the odd little -skippers, which flit merrily about grassy banks in the warm sunshine in -May and again in August--besides several others, which are so scarce or -so local that hardly anybody ever sees them. - - -MOTHS - -You can easily tell moths from butterflies by looking at their antennæ, -or feelers, which have no knobs at the tips, as those of -butterflies have. Their number also is very great, and we can mention -only a few of the most remarkable. - -First among these is the splendid death's-head sphinx, or hawk, the -largest of all the insects, which sometimes measures five inches from -tip to tip of its wings when they are fully spread. It owes its name to -the curious patch of light-brown hairs on its thorax, which looks just -like a skull. The caterpillar is a huge yellowish creature, often nearly -six inches long, with a blue horn at the end of its body, and seven blue -stripes, edged with white, on either side. It lives in potato-fields, -hiding underground by day and coming out at night to feed upon the -leaves. And it is an odd fact that both the caterpillar and the perfect -insect have the power of squeaking rather loudly. The moth appears in -October. - -The humming-bird hawk-moth flies by day, and you may often see it -hovering over flowers in the garden, with its long trunk poked down into -a blossom in order to suck up the sweet juices. As it does so it makes -quite a loud humming noise with its wings, like the little bird from -which it takes its name. And sometimes you may see a bee-hawk, which has -transparent wings, hovering in front of rhododendron blossoms in just -the same way. - -The swifts fly between sunset and dark, and the largest of them is very -curious indeed. For although it has glossy white wings, so that one can -see it quite clearly in the dusk, it will suddenly disappear. The fact -is that although its wings are white above they are yellowish brown -below; so that when it suddenly settles, and folds them over its back, -it at once becomes invisible. - -The goat-moths are large, heavily built insects, with brownish-gray -wings marked with a number of very short upright dark streaks. The -caterpillar is a great reddish-brown creature with a broad chocolate -band running down its back. It lives for three years in the trunks of -various trees, and then spins a silken cocoon in which to turn to a -chrysalis. - -Tiger-moths have brown fore wings streaked with white, scarlet hind -wings with bluish-black spots, and bright scarlet body. The caterpillar, -which is very common in gardens, is generally called the woolly -bear, because of the long brown hairs which cover its body. - -Very beautiful indeed are the burnets, which have dark-green front -wings, with either five or six large red spots, and crimson hind wings, -edged with black. You may often see them resting on flowers and -grass-stems by the roadside in the hot sunshine. And in some parts of -the country the cinnabar-moth is almost equally plentiful. You can -recognize it at once by the crimson hind wings, and by the streak and -the two spots of the same color on the front ones. The caterpillar, -which is bright orange in color, with black rings round its body, feeds -upon ragwort. - - -THE CURIOUS VAPORER - -The vaporer-moth is very common toward the end of summer, and even in -London one may often see it dashing about in the hot sunshine with a -strange jerky flight. But one only sees the male, which is a bright -brownish-yellow insect measuring about an inch across the wings; for the -female is much more like a grub than a perfect insect, and has wings so -small that they are hardly visible. Of course she cannot fly; and her -body is so big and clumsy that she cannot even walk. So she spends her -life clinging to the outside of the cocoon in which she passed the -chrysalis state, and covers it all over with her little round white -eggs. And when she has laid the last of these she falls to the ground -and dies. - -Very handsome indeed is the emperor-moth, which has a big eye-like spot -in the middle of each wing, something like those of the -peacock-butterfly. But its caterpillar is even more beautiful still, for -its body is of the loveliest grass-green color, sprinkled all over with -little pink tubercles, each of which is enclosed in a ring of black, and -has a tuft of glossy black hairs sprouting from it. This caterpillar -feeds on bramble and heather, and when it reaches its full size it spins -a light-brown cocoon among the leaves of its food-plant, and then turns -to a chrysalis, from which the perfect moth hatches out in the following -April. - -Very often one finds caterpillars which look just like little bits of -stick, and which walk in a most curious fashion by hunching up -their backs into loops, and then stretching them out again, just as if -they were measuring the ground. These caterpillars are called loopers, -and they turn into moths with large broad wings and very slender bodies. - -There are a great many kinds of these moths. One, called the -swallowtail, may often be found hiding among ivy in July. It has large -wings of a pale-yellow color, with little tails upon the hinder pair. -Then there are the sulphur, a smaller insect with wings of a brighter -yellow; the emeralds, of the most delicate green; the magpie, which has -wings of the purest white, marked with streaks of orange and numbers of -almost square black spots and blotches; and many others far too numerous -to mention. If you ever shake a bush in summer-time you may see quite a -dozen of them flying away to seek for some fresh hiding-place. - -Then there is a large moth known as the puss, because it is colored -rather like a brindled gray cat. The caterpillar is bright green, with a -big hump in the middle of its body, and two long thread-like organs at -the end of its tail, with which it will sometimes pretend to be able to -sting you. But in reality it is perfectly harmless. You may often find -it feeding on the leaves of willow-trees in August, and when it is fully -fed it spins a hard, oval cocoon in a crack in the bark. And there are -three smaller moths belonging to the same family, which are known as -kittens! - -Another very large group of moths is that of the _Noctuæ_, or -night-fliers. But we so seldom see these unless we go out specially to -look for them that we shall pass them by without further mention. - - -HOMOPTERA - -The next order is that of the _Homoptera_, or same-winged insects, -which are so called because their upper and lower wings are just alike. - -The froghoppers all belong to this order. Do you know them? They are -little brown or gray insects, sometimes marked or marbled with white, -which carry their wings folded tentwise over their backs, and hop about -with really wonderful activity. It has been calculated that if a -man of ordinary height could leap as well as a froghopper, in proportion -to his greater size, he would be able to cover nearly a quarter of a -mile at a single jump! - -But if you do not know the froghoppers by sight you must at any rate -know something of their grubs; for these are the creatures which cause -the cuckoo-spit of which one sees so much during the early summer. Very -often the weeds and long grass in a meadow, or by the roadside, are -almost covered with the odd little masses of froth, so that one's feet -get quite wet as one walks through the herbage. And in the middle of -each mass is a fat little grub, which is sucking up the sap of the plant -upon which it is resting, and pouring it out again in frothy bubbles. - -The mischievous little aphides, or greenfly insects, also belong to this -order. There are many different kinds, some of which do terrible damage -to hops and corn and all sorts of cultivated plants. We have already -mentioned these when describing the habits of ants, and you will -recollect that they have sharp little beaks, which they thrust into -young shoots and tender leaves in order to suck up the sap; and that as -fast as they do so they pour it out again through two little tubes upon -their backs in the form of the thin, sweet, and very sticky liquid which -we call honeydew. You will remember, too, how fond ants are of this -liquid, and how they "milk" the tiny insects just as if they were little -cows. - -So, you see, the aphides injure plants in two ways. First, they draw off -all their sap, which is really their life-blood; and then they drop this -sticky honeydew on to the leaves below, and choke up the little holes by -means of which they breathe. And the worst of it is that these insects -multiply so rapidly. Where there is one to-day there will be five and -twenty to-morrow; and two days later there will be five and twenty times -five and twenty; and two days later still there will be five and twenty -times five and twenty times five and twenty! Indeed, if it were not for -ladybirds and lacewing flies and one or two other insects which feed -upon aphides, every green leaf would be destroyed by them in a few -months' time. - -A very curious fact about these insects is that as long as they -can find plenty of food they do not grow any wings. But as soon as the -sap becomes scanty or thin, wings make their appearance, so that they -can fly away and seek for better food elsewhere. - - -HETEROPTERA - -The order of the _Homoptera_, or same-winged insects, is followed -by that of the _Heteroptera_, or different-winged insects, in which -that part of the wings nearest to the body is hard and leathery, while -the rest is softer and thinner, and is generally almost transparent. -Some of these live upon land, while others spend most of their lives in -the water. - -The curious bishop's-miters belong to the former group. There are a good -many kinds, and some of them are very common. You may see them sitting -upon flowers, or resting upon raspberries and blackberries in the -sunshine. But although they are sometimes very pretty, we do not advise -you to handle them, for they have the power of pouring out a liquid -which will make your fingers smell very nasty indeed. And you should be -most careful not to eat any fruit on which they have been resting, for -they leave a horrible flavor behind them, which is even worse than the -smell. - -Among those which live in the water there are several most interesting -insects. There are the water-striders, for example, which you can see -running about on the surface of any pond, and which look like -narrow-bodied long-legged spiders. But you will notice that they only -have six legs, whereas true spiders always have eight. They skim about -on the water by means of the middle and hinder limbs, the front pair -being used in catching prey. And when they have caught a victim they -suck its juices through their sharp little beaks. - -Then there is the water-boatman, which always swims on its back. The -reason why it does so is that when its body is in that position it is -shaped just like a boat, while its long hind legs serve as a pair of -oars. So the little insect really rows itself through the water. On a -bright sunny day you may often see it resting on the surface of a pond, -with its hind legs thrown forward in readiness for a stroke. And -if even your shadow falls upon it, or it feels the vibration of a heavy -footstep, it will dive down in a moment to some hiding-place among the -weeds. - -If you ever catch a water-boatman, be careful how you handle it, or it -will give your finger a very painful prick with its sharp beak. - -The water-scorpion, too, is very curious. It is a flat, oval insect, of -a dirty-brown color, which looks very much like a piece of dead leaf. It -seems to know this quite well, for when it is hungry it always hides -among dead leaves down at the bottom of the water, and keeps perfectly -still. Then the other insects do not notice it, and as soon as one of -them comes within reach it seizes it with its great jaw-like front legs, -and plunges its beak into its body. - -This insect is called the water-scorpion because it has a long spike at -the end of its body, which looks something like a scorpion's sting. It -is really a breathing-tube, however, the top of which is poked just -above the surface of the water while the insect is lying at the bottom, -so as to enable it to breathe quite easily. - - -APHANIPTERA - -The order of the _Aphaniptera_, or unseen-winged insects, is a very -small one, consisting only of the fleas. The name has been given to them -because their wings are so tiny that, even with the microscope, they can -hardly be seen at all. - -There are a good many different kinds of fleas, all of which suck the -blood of animals through their sharp little beaks. Some of them are able -to leap to a really wonderful distance, by means of their powerful hind -legs. And they are so wonderfully strong that if a man were equally -powerful, in proportion to his greater size, he would easily be able to -drag a wagon which a pair of cart-horses could scarcely move! - - -DIPTERA - -The last order of insects is that of the _Diptera_, or two-winged -flies, which seem to have two wings only instead of four. But if you -look at them closely, you will see a pair of little knob-like -organs just where the hind wings ought to be. And these little organs, -which we call balancers, are really the hind wings in a very much -altered form. - -Although they are so tiny, and look so useless, these balancers are used -in some way during flight; for if they are damaged or lost the insect -can no longer balance itself or direct its course in the air. - - -THE MOSQUITO - -The mosquito is a troublesome insect which most of us know only too -well; for there are very few of us who have not suffered from the wounds -caused by its beak. Its life-history is very interesting. The eggs, -which are shaped just like tiny skittles, are laid in the water, and the -mother gnat fastens them cleverly together in such a way that they form -a little boat, which floats on the surface. After a time a little door -opens at the bottom of each egg, and a tiny grub tumbles out into the -water. It is a very odd-looking little creature, with a very small head, -a very big thorax, and a very long tail; and it mostly floats in the -water with its head downward, and the tip of its tail resting just above -the surface. - -These grubs feed on the little scraps of decaying matter which are -always floating in the water of the pond, and they wriggle their way -about in the strangest manner, by first doubling up their bodies and -then stretching them out, over and over again. After a time they throw -off their skins and change to chrysalids, and out of this, a few days -later, the perfect gnats make their appearance. - -The mosquito is a gnat that has many relatives, some very troublesome, -like the black fly. Some gnats have very big bushy feelers, just like -big plumes. These are the males, and you need not be afraid of them, for -they have no beaks and cannot bite. - - -CRANE-FLY AND DRONE-FLY - -Then there is the crane-fly, whose balancers you can see quite easily. -This insect lays it eggs in the ground, and the grubs which -hatch out from them are called leather-jackets, because their skins are -so very tough. They feed upon the roots of grass, and sometimes do a -great deal of mischief in pastures. Indeed, if it were not for such -birds as the crow and meadow-lark, which destroy them in enormous -numbers, we should find it almost impossible to grow any grass at all. - -The drone-fly really does look rather like a bee; but it only has two -wings instead of four, while its body is much more stoutly built, and it -has no sting, so that you need not be in the least afraid of it. You may -often see it sitting on flowers on sunny days in autumn, and it is -especially fond of those of the ragwort. - -The grub of this fly spends its whole life buried head downward in the -mud at the bottom of some shallow pool--thick, black mud, which is -largely made up of decaying leaves--and never comes out of it even to -breathe. But at the end of its body it has a long tube, the tip of which -rests just above the surface of the water, so that it can draw down as -much air as it requires. And this tube is made something like a -telescope, so that if a heavy fall of rain should raise the level of the -water, all that the grub has to do is to push out another joint, when it -can breathe just as easily as before. This grub is often known as the -rat-tailed maggot. - - -HAWK-FLIES, ETC. - -As you walk through a wood in summer, you may often see a black and -yellow fly hovering in mid-air. If you move, it darts away so swiftly -that the eye cannot follow its flight. But if you stop, and remain -perfectly still, it will come back again in a moment or two, and hover -just as before. - -This is a hawk-fly, and it is very useful, for the mother insect always -lays her eggs on twigs and leaves which are swarming with aphides. On -these insects the grubs feed, so that as soon as they hatch out they -find themselves surrounded with prey, and destroy the little insects in -great numbers. - -The house-fly and the bluebottle fly also belong to the order of the -_Diptera_. They are not very pleasant insects, but while they are -grubs they are really most useful, for they feed upon all sorts -of decaying substances. And another insect, called the flesh-fly, is -even more useful still, for it is the parent of from sixteen to twenty -thousand grubs: so that if even a single fly finds the carcass of a -small animal and leaves her eggs upon it, the little ones that soon -hatch out will devour it in a very short time. In a few days all these -grubs turn into perfect flies, and in their turn become the parents of -thousands of grubs: so that it has been said that three of these flies -could devour a dead ox as fast as a lion could! - -The last insect that we can mention is a brown and gray fly known as the -warble. It is very troublesome indeed to cattle, for the mother fly lays -her eggs upon their backs. Then as soon as the grubs hatch, they burrow -underneath the skin of the poor animals, and form large swellings there, -in which they spend the whole of their lives. When they are fully fed -they wriggle out through a hole in the hide, drop to the ground, burrow -into it, and turn to chrysalids, from which the perfect flies appear a -few months later. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXIV - -SPIDERS AND SCORPIONS - - -Most people think that spiders are insects. But this is a very great -mistake, for they are just about as unlike insects as they can possibly -be. - -Insects, for example, always have distinct heads. But spiders never do, -for their heads are so sunk and lost in their chests that you cannot -possibly tell where the one leaves off and the other begins. So that -spiders have their bodies divided into two parts only instead of into -three, as is always the case in the insects. - -Then insects always have six legs; spiders always have eight. Insects -have wings; spiders have none. Insects have feelers; spiders have none. -Insects nearly always have a great many eyes, which are six-sided; -spiders never have more than eight eyes, which are round. And while -insects may have biting jaws, or sucking jaws, or a trunk, or a beak, -spiders always have poison-fangs, which no insect ever possesses. - -So you see that as far as the outside of their bodies is concerned, -spiders are very different indeed from insects. And the differences -inside the body are just as great. Insects have no hearts, the only -blood-vessel in their bodies being one long tube which runs along the -back; but spiders have quite a big heart, and a good many arteries as -well. Insects have no lungs, but breathe by means of slender tubes which -run to every part of the body; but spiders have quite big lungs, in -which the blood is purified just as it is in our own. Insects have no -brains, but only bunches of nerves in different parts of their bodies; -but spiders have quite big brains. And besides this, while all insects -which spin silk produce it through their mouths, spiders always do so by -means of organs at the very end of the body. So that inside, as well as -outside, there is hardly any respect in which spiders and insects really -resemble one another. - -The silk-organs of a spider are very wonderful indeed. Remember, in the -first place, that the silk, as long as it remains in the body of the -spider, is a liquid--a kind of thick gum, which is produced and stored -up in six long narrow bags, or glands. Then if you look at the end of a -spider's body through a good strong magnifying-glass--or, better still, -through a microscope--you will see several little projections, which we -call spinnerets. Now each of these spinnerets is covered with hundreds -of tinier projections still, every one of which has an extremely small -hole in the middle. And all these holes communicate, by means of very -slender tubes, with one of the silk-glands. - -So what a spider does when it wants to spin its line is to squeeze a -little drop of silk into one of the spinnerets. It then just touches the -object to which the line is to be fastened, and draws its body away. And -as it does so a delicate thread comes out from every one of the -projections on the spinneret; and all these threads unite together into -one stout cord. That is why a spider's thread is so strong. It really -consists of several hundred separate threads all firmly fastened -together. And if the spider wants to spin a stronger line still, it can -unite all the threads coming from several spinnerets into one, so as to -make a very stout cord indeed. - -Spiders use this silk for all sorts of different purposes. In the first -place, they use it for snaring insects. - - -THE GARDEN-SPIDER - -Let us take for an example, the web of the common garden-spider. It is -to be seen in every garden, resting in the middle of its web; and you -may always recognize it by the white cross upon its back. But I don't -suppose that you have ever seen it spinning its net. For it always does -so very early in the morning, generally beginning before sunrise, so -that it may be quite ready for use as soon as the insects begin to fly. - -First of all, the spider makes a kind of outer framework of very strong -silken cords, and fastens it firmly in position by stout guy-ropes of -the same material. Next, she carries a thread right across the -middle and fixes it down on either side. Then, starting from the center, -she carries thread after thread to the margin, carefully testing the -strength of each by giving it two or three smart pulls, and fastening it -firmly down. When she has finished this part of her task, the web looks -like a badly shaped wheel. - -The next thing that the spider does is to spin a little silken platform -in the middle of her web to sit upon. And as soon as she has done this -she begins to spin the spiral thread. Beginning from the center, she -goes round and round and round, fastening the thread down every time -that it crosses one of the straight cords--the spokes, as it were, of -the wheel--until at last the web is finished. Then she goes to the -little platform in the middle, and there remains, upside down, waiting -for an insect to blunder into her net. - -By and by, perhaps, a bluebottle fly does so. Then she shakes the web -violently for a few moments, so as to entangle it more thoroughly, -rushes down upon it, seizes it, and plunges her fangs into its body. But -if she catches a wasp or a bee she nearly always cuts it carefully out, -drops it to the ground, and then patches up the hole in her web. For she -knows perfectly well that wasps and bees can sting! - -Would you like to know why it is that flies stick to the web as soon as -they touch it? The microscope shows us. All the way along, the spiral -thread is set with very tiny drops of liquid gum. So tiny are these -drops indeed, that there are between eighty and ninety thousand of them -in a large web! And would you like to know why it is that the spider -does not stick to the web as the flies do? Well, the fact is that only -the spiral thread is set with these little gummy drops, and that as the -spider runs about over her web she is most careful to place her feet -only on the straight threads, and never on the spiral line. Other -spiders, however, snare their prey in quite a different way. - - -THE MARMIGNATTO - -This small spider, found on our western plains, is remarkable for -feeding on large insects, such as grasshoppers and field-crickets, which -it catches in an ingenious manner. It stretches a few silken threads -across a narrow path way, quite close to the ground, along which these -insects are likely to pass, and lies in wait just opposite until a -grasshopper or a cricket approaches. When it comes to the threads the -insect is sure to get at least one of its feet entangled. Then it stops, -and tries to shake itself free. The only result of its struggles, of -course, is that its other feet become entangled too; and while it is -struggling the marmignatto springs upon its back, fastens a silken -thread to it, springs down again, and fastens the other end to a -grass-stem close by. Over and over again it does this, and before very -long the unfortunate insect is firmly fastened down by hundreds of -threads, and is quite unable to break free, or even to move one of its -legs. Then the spider leaps upon its back once more, plunges its fangs -into its body, and proceeds to suck its blood. - - -HUNTING-SPIDERS - -Perhaps you may have seen little hairy black spiders, with white -markings upon the upper part of their bodies, running about in an odd -jerky way on sunny fences and walls. These are called hunting-spiders, -because they hunt their prey instead of snaring it. You may see them -gradually creeping up to a fly, so slowly that they hardly seem to move, -and then suddenly leaping upon it when they are about two inches away. -Then spider and fly, locked in one another's embrace, go falling toward -the ground together. But they never reach it, for wherever a -hunting-spider goes it always trails a rope of silk behind it, and -fastens it down at intervals. So when it springs from the fence it is -brought up at once by its own thread, and swings in the air till its -victim is dead. Then it just climbs up its thread, and so gets back to -the fence. - - -BIRD-SPIDERS - -These great spiders of the tropics hunt for prey in much the same way. -Only instead of catching flies on walls they prowl about the -branches of trees in search of small birds, springing upon them when -they are roosting at night, and killing them almost immediately by a -smart bite from their venomous fangs. These spiders, of course, are very -large. Indeed, the body of a full-grown bird-spider is as big as a man's -fist, while its great hairy legs cover nearly a square foot of ground -when they are fully spread out. - - -TRAP-DOOR SPIDERS - -These famous spiders are found more or less commonly in all warm -countries. They all live in tunnels in the ground, which they dig by -means of their fangs; and as they do not want the situation of their -nest to be discovered, they carry the earth away to a little distance as -fast as they dig it up, and carefully hide it. Very often the hole which -they dig in this way is eighteen inches or two feet deep. And at the -bottom it always turns sideways for an inch or two, so that the general -shape of the burrow is very much like that of a stocking. - -This hole is always dug in the side of a bank, so that when there is a -heavy fall of rain the water may run away without flooding it. - -When the burrow is finished, the spider lines it throughout with two -sheets of silk. The outer sheet, which comes next to the earth, is -rather coarse in texture, and is quite waterproof, in order to keep the -tunnel dry. The inner one is very much finer and softer, so that the -little home may be as comfortable as possible. - -As soon as the lining process is completed, the spider sets to work on -the trap-door. This she makes in the cleverest manner possible. First -she measures the doorway most carefully by the aid of her feelers. Then -she spins a thin silken pad of exactly the same size and shape. This is -sticky on the top, like the spiral thread of the web of the -garden-spider: and she sprinkles it all over with very small scraps of -earth. Upon this she fastens another silken pad, which she sprinkles -with earth in the same way. And then comes another and then another, and -so on till the door is sufficiently thick. Finally, she fastens it in -position by means of a hinge, which is also made of silk; and -she always places this hinge on the upper side of the doorway, so that -the door may fall down behind her by its own weight whenever she leaves -the burrow. She is rather a lazy creature, you see, and does not want to -have the trouble of shutting the door for herself! And if she left it -open, every passer-by would find out where she had made her home. - -The door always fits most wonderfully into its place, and the spider -carefully covers the top with little bits of moss and small scraps of -earth and stone, so as to make it exactly like the surface of the ground -all round it. Indeed, unless one happens to see the spider push it open, -it is almost impossible to find it. - -When one of these spiders is in her burrow, she always fastens about -half a dozen silken threads to the inner side of the door, carries them -down to the bottom, and sits with one of her feet resting upon each. No -one can then try to force her door open without her knowledge, and as -soon as she feels the least pull upon the threads she rushes up the -burrow, clings to the walls with her hind feet, seizes the door with her -front ones, and pulls it downward with all her might. And if the door is -forced open in spite of her efforts, she slips into a sort of side -tunnel which she always makes near the top of her burrow, and stays -there until the danger is past. - - -THE RAFT-SPIDER - -There are several spiders which live on or in the water. One of these is -the raft-spider, which is found in the fen districts of England. If you -should happen to meet with it you can recognize it at once, for all -round the upper part of its body is a narrow band of yellow, and inside -this is a row of small white spots. - -This spider is about an inch long, and owes its name to the fact that it -actually makes a little raft on which to go out searching for -water-insects. Collecting together a quantity of little bits of leaf and -cut grass and reeds, it fastens them firmly together with silken -threads, just as shipwrecked sailors might lash planks together with -ropes in order to escape from a sinking vessel. In this way it makes a -small floating platform, perhaps a couple of inches in diameter. -When the raft is finished, the spider gets upon it, pushes off from the -shore, and allows the current to carry it along. By and by, perhaps, it -catches sight of some water-insect floating at the surface, or of a -drowning fly which has fallen into the stream. Then it leaves its raft, -runs along over the surface of the water, seizes its victim, and carries -it back to the raft to be devoured. And if it should be alarmed, or -think itself in danger, it gets under the raft and clings to the lower -surface, so that it cannot be seen from above. - - -THE WATER-SPIDER - -More curious still is the water-spider, which actually makes its nest -under water. This spider, which is almost black in color, and has a very -hairy body and legs, is common in ponds and canals, and spends almost -the whole of its life beneath the water. Its little silken nest is -shaped like a thimble, with the mouth downward, and is placed among -weeds, to which it is firmly fastened down by guy-ropes, also of silk. -And when it is finished the spider fills it with air. She does this in a -most curious manner. Rising to the surface, she turns upside down, pokes -her long hind legs out of the water, and crosses the tips. Then she -dives again, carrying down a big bubble of air between these hairy legs -and her equally hairy body as she does so. She next gets exactly -underneath the entrance to her nest and separates her legs. The result -is, of course, that the air-bubble floats up and occupies the upper -part. Another bubble is now brought down in the same way, and so the -spider goes on, fetching bubble after bubble, until at last her little -nest is completely filled with air. Then she gets inside it, and watches -for the grubs of water-insects to swim by. - -In this wonderful nest the spider lays her eggs and brings up her -family. When the little ones have been hatched, of course, the air in -the nest very soon becomes too impure to breathe. Then the little -spiders cling tightly to the walls, while the mother gets outside and -tilts the whole nest sideways, so that all the exhausted air floats up -in one big bubble to the surface. Then she pulls the nest back into -position, hurries up to the top of the water and brings down a -bubble of air, and then another, and so on until the nest is filled with -air all over again. - -If you ever catch one of these spiders, and keep it for awhile in a jar -of water with a little piece of water-weed, you may see it spinning its -wonderful nest, and filling it with air, perhaps half a dozen times a -day. - - -GOSSAMERS - -Before we leave the spiders altogether, we must tell you something about -the wonderful little creatures called gossamers. These are really the -young of a good many different kinds of spiders. It often happens, of -course, that several families, with perhaps five or six hundred little -ones in each, are all living quite close to one another. The result is -that there is not sufficient food for them all. So they make up their -minds to go out into the world and seek their fortunes; and this is how -they do it. - -Choosing a warm, sunny morning in the early part of the autumn, all the -little spiders climb the nearest bush, and each one makes its way to the -very tip of a leaf. Then, clinging firmly to its hold, it begins to pour -out a very slender thread of silk from one of its spinnerets. You know -that on warm, sunny days the air near the ground soon becomes heated and -rises, as hot air always does; and in rising it carries up these -delicate gossamer-threads, as they are called, with it. Still the little -spiders hold on, and pour out their lines, till at last each has several -feet of thread rising straight up into the air above it. Then suddenly -they all let go, and are carried up into the air at the ends of their -own threads. So they go on, up and up and up, till at last they meet a -gentle breeze, which carries them along with it. So, perhaps, they -travel for thirty, forty, or fifty miles, or even farther still. And -when at last they make up their minds to descend, all that they have to -do is to roll up the threads which have been supporting them, and down -they come floating gently back to earth. One good name for them is -ballooning spiders. - -Haven't you sometimes found on a warm autumn morning that all the trees -and bushes, and even the grass and low plants, are quite covered -with threads of silk? The next time you see such a sight look carefully, -and you will find that on every thread a little baby spider is sitting. -Then you may be quite sure that all these little spiders set out early -in the morning to seek their fortunes, and that, borne up by their -slender threads, they have traveled for many long miles through the air. - - -SCORPIONS - -These formidable creatures are closely related to the spiders. They are -found in all warm countries, with the exception of New Zealand, and may -easily be known by two facts. In the first place, in front of the legs -they have a pair of great, strong claws, which look very much like those -of a crab. And in the second place, the last five joints of the body are -narrowed into a long, slender tail, at the end of which is a claw-like -sting. When they attack an enemy, or seize a victim, they grasp it with -the claws, turn the tail over the back, and force the sting into its -body. And the poison which is introduced into the wound is so powerful -that the sting of a large scorpion is almost as severe as the bite of an -adder. - -During the daytime scorpions hide away under stones and logs, or in -crevices in the ground, or perhaps under the loose bark of dead trees. -But very soon after sunset they come out from their retreats and prowl -about all night long in search of insects; and it is at such times that -they invade camps and houses, get into shoes, etc., and persons get -stung unless they are very careful. - - -CENTIPEDES AND MILLEPEDES - -One can easily recognize centipedes by the great number of their feet. -The name centipede, indeed, means hundred-footed. None of these -creatures, however, have exactly a hundred limbs. Some only have fifteen -pairs of legs; some have as many as one hundred and twenty-one pairs. -But whether they be many or few, the number of pairs is always odd. - -Another very curious fact about centipedes is that they have no -less than four pairs of jaws. But the fourth pair take the form of -fangs, which are very stout and strong, and very much curved, while at -their base, just inside the head, is a little bag of poison. In the -northern centipedes, which are quite small, the fangs are not large -enough, nor the poison sufficiently strong, to cause a serious wound. -But some of the tropical species, which grow to the length of nearly a -foot, are quite as venomous as the largest scorpions. - -The food of these creatures consists chiefly of worms and insects. But -the larger ones will kill lizards, and even mice, and have been known to -prey upon victims actually larger than themselves. - -The eggs of centipedes are laid in little clusters on the ground in some -dark, damp nook, and when they have all been deposited the mother -centipede coils herself round them, and there remains guarding them -until they hatch. - -Millepedes, in some ways, are very much like centipedes; but they only -have two pairs of jaws instead of four, and they are nearly all -vegetable-feeders. The long, smooth, and slender _Julus_ millepedes -are plentiful in every garden. And in tropical countries they sometimes -grow to a length of six inches. Even the largest, however, are perfectly -harmless, for they have no poison-fangs as the centipedes have, and the -only way in which they ever attempt to defend themselves is by pouring -out a small drop or two of a fluid which smells rather nasty, and no -doubt protects them from the attacks of birds. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXV - -CRUSTACEANS - - -We now come to a very important class of animals, which includes the -crabs, the lobsters, the shrimps, and the prawns. These creatures, -together with the mollusks, are often called shell-fish, although the -"shell" of a crab is not in the least like the shell of an oyster, for -example, or like that of a whelk, or a snail. It is only a sort of crust -upon the skin, made chiefly of carbonate of lime. That is why these -animals are called _crust_aceans; and instead of growing, like true -shells, this coat never increases in size at all. - -But crabs and lobsters grow? Yes: but not as other animals do, a little -every day. They only grow, as a rule, once a year; and they get a whole -twelvemonth's growth into about two days! - -When, in warm weather, the proper time approaches, they hide away in -some crevice among the rocks, where none of their enemies are likely to -find them. This is because they are going to throw off their so-called -shells; and they know that when these are gone they will be deprived of -their natural armor, and of their weapons too, and so will be quite at -the mercy even of foes much smaller than themselves. Then a very strange -thing happens. Part of their flesh actually turns to water! Sometimes, -if you happen to take up a crab in a fish-market, and shake it, you will -hear water swishing about inside it. This is a "watery" crab, and is not -good to eat; for it was just about to change its "shell" when it was -caught. A good deal of its flesh has actually turned to water. - -Now this always happens a few days before the "shell" is thrown off; and -the animal wriggles and twists about inside it, in order to loosen the -attachments which bind it to its body. It also rubs its feelers against -its legs, and its legs against one another, in order to loosen their -hard coverings in the same way. This goes on, perhaps, for three or four -days. Then, suddenly, the "shell" splits across, and the animal, -with a tremendous effort, springs right out of it, while the "shell" -closes up again, and looks just as it did before. One might really think -that there were two crabs instead of only one. - -For some little time the animal now lies perfectly still. It is -exhausted by its efforts, and its muscles are so cramped that they feel -quite hard to the touch. This cramp soon passes off, however; and then -at once the animal begins to grow. It grows very fast. Indeed, you can -almost _see_ it grow, for a whole year's increase in size has to -take place in about forty-eight hours. Then a fresh crust is gradually -formed upon the skin, and two or three days later the animal is once -more clad in a coat of mail, and is ready to leave its retreat and face -its enemies. For a whole twelvemonth after this it grows no bigger. But -at the end of that time the process is repeated, and so on, year after -year, until at last the animal reaches its full size. - - -FORMS OF CRUSTACEANS - -The bodies of the crustacean animals are made up of a number of rings, -or segments, like those of the insects. But there are always twenty of -these rings, instead of thirteen; six forming the head, while there are -eight in the thorax and six in the hind body. - -Then--again like the insects--crustaceans have feelers, or antennæ, upon -their heads. You can see these very well indeed in a lobster or a -shrimp. But instead of having one pair of these organs, as insects have, -they always possess two pairs. And it is rather curious to find that at -the base of the front pair there are two little organs which seem to be -ears, specially formed for hearing in the water, while at the base of -the second pair are two other little organs which seem to serve as a -nose, specially made for smelling in the water. - -And--once more like the insects--crustaceans have to pass through -several different forms before they reach the perfect state. They are -hatched in the first place from eggs, which the mother animal carries -about with her for some little time firmly fastened to the hairs -of the swimmerets, which we find under the hind part of her body. You -will often find a shrimp with quite a large bunch of these eggs; and if -you look at them carefully with a good strong magnifying-glass, you will -see that they are all glued down to hairs. - -Inside each of these eggs an odd little creature is formed, which is -called the nauplius. Sometimes it is hatched while still in that state, -and swims about through the water. But in almost all the higher -crustaceans a change takes place before it leaves the egg, and it -appears at last in the form of a zoëa. - -This is a kind of crustacean caterpillar, and a very odd little creature -it is. A great naturalist once described it as an animal "with goggle -eyes, a hawk's beak, a scorpion's tail, a rhinoceros' horn, and a body -fringed with legs, yet hardly bigger than a grain of sand!" Certainly it -does not look in the least like the crab, or lobster, or shrimp into -which it is going, by and by, to turn. And it swims in the oddest way -possible, by turning endless somersaults in the water! - -These zoëas are sometimes found in immense shoals, the surface of the -sea being quite thick with them for miles. And they are useful little -creatures, for they feed on the tiny scraps of decaying matter which are -always floating about in the sea, just as tadpoles and gnat-grubs do in -ponds, thus helping to keep the water pure. But a very great number of -them are devoured by whales. For when whalebone-whales are hungry, they -swim with open mouths through a shoal of these little creatures, and -then strain them out of the water by means of the whalebone fringe which -hangs down from the upper jaw. - -After a time the zoëa throws off its skin and appears in quite a -different form. It is now called a megalopa, or big-eyed creature, -because it has very large eyes, which are usually set on foot-stalks, -and project to quite a long distance from the sides of the head. And as -the zoëa is a kind of crustacean caterpillar, so the megalopa is a kind -of crustacean chrysalis. It generally has a long, slender body, made up -of several joints. And it swims by flapping this to and fro in the -water. - - -CRABS - -First among the crustaceans come the crabs, of which there are a great -many different kinds. They are distinguished by having the tail tucked -under the body, and firmly soldered, so to speak, to the "shell" on -either side. - -You can find several kinds of these creatures by hunting among the rocks -on the sea-shore when the tide is out. There is the common shore-crab, -for example, which is green in color. It is generally to be found hiding -under masses of growing seaweed. But sometimes you may see it prowling -about in search of prey. It is wonderfully active, and will even pounce -upon the sandhoppers as they go skipping about, just as a hunting-spider -will pounce upon flies, seldom or never missing its aim. It will catch -flies, too, leaping upon them when they settle, and shutting them up, as -it were, in a kind of cage formed by its legs. Then it pokes one claw -carefully into this cage, seizes the prisoners, pulls them to pieces, -and pokes the fragments into its mouth. - -Swimming about in the pools, too, you may often find a fiddler-crab, -which is so called because its movements in the water rather remind one -of a man who is playing the violin. You will find that its hind legs are -very much flattened, and are fringed with stiff hairs, so that they may -be used as oars. In fact, the animal rows itself through the water. Both -these crabs, sad to say, are cannibals, and are always ready to attack -and devour their own kind. - -Then there is the edible crab, or blue crab, which is common on many -parts of our coasts. The edible crab of Europe is somewhat different. -You are not likely to meet with the larger examples, which live in -deeper water. But even the smaller ones can give a very sharp nip with -their great claws, and you will find it as well to be very careful in -handling them. The best plan is to seize them with the thumb and finger -just behind these claws, then they are perfectly harmless. The larger -crabs, which sometimes weigh as much as twelve pounds, are extremely -powerful, and in more than one case a man has been killed by -them, having been seized by the wrist as he was groping among the rocks, -and held in a grip from which he could not break away until he was -drowned by the rising tide. - -These crabs are captured by means of crab-pots, made of basketwork, -which have the entrance so formed that while the crabs can easily enter, -they cannot possibly get out again. These pots are baited with pieces of -fresh fish, and are then weighted with stones, and lowered to the bottom -of the sea among the rocks, at a depth of from three to about twenty -fathoms. They are also caught on lines baited with meat. No hook is -needed, for the crab clings to the meat till it reaches the surface of -the water, when it must be flung into the boat or somehow captured -quickly, before it has time to let go and sink. - -Some crabs live on dry land, sometimes at a distance of two or three -miles from the sea, which they only visit at intervals. Among these are -the famous calling-crabs, found in many of the warmer parts of the -world. These crabs obtain their name from the fact that one of the great -claws of the male is very much larger than the other. So big is it, -indeed, that it has to be held aloft over the body when the animal is -running, in order to prevent it from losing its balance and toppling -over. And as soon as the crab begins to move this huge claw is jerked up -and down, just as if the creature were "calling," or beckoning, to its -companions. The calling-crabs live in burrows in the sand, which are -often placed as close to one another as those in a rabbit-warren. - - -HERMIT-CRABS - -Next we come to those small, curious creatures known as hermit-crabs, -which form a kind of connecting link between the crabs and the lobsters, -for their tails, instead of being firmly soldered down underneath their -bodies, are quite free. - -But the odd thing about these animals is that their tails have no shelly -covering. The front part of the body is protected by a coat of mail, -just as it is in all the other crabs; but the hind part is quite bare -and soft. The consequence is that a hermit-crab is always very -nervous indeed about his tail. He is dreadfully afraid that one of his -many enemies may creep up behind, and bite it when he is not looking. So -he always tucks it away in an empty shell like that of a whelk or a -sea-snail, which he drags about with him wherever he goes! - -You may often find these curious crabs by hunting for them in the pools -among the rocks at low water. The crab always sits just inside the -entrance of the shell, which he closes and guards with one of his great -claws. And if you try to pull him out, you will find that you are quite -unable to do so, for he has a pair of strong pincers at the end of his -body, by which he holds the shell so firmly that you can tear him in two -without forcing him to loose his grip. - -Sometimes you will find that a sea-anemone has fastened itself to the -edge of a shell in which a hermit-crab is living. This is a great -advantage to the crab; for while there are many fishes which would be -quite ready to crunch him up, shell and all, no fish will ever meddle -with a sea-anemone. So as long as the anemone remains on his shell he is -perfectly safe. - -And this plan is also a great advantage to the anemone, which is sure to -get plenty of food without any trouble. For when the crab finds the dead -body of some small creature, and begins to pull it to pieces, a quantity -of small fragments is sure to float upward in the water. And the anemone -catches them with its spreading tentacles and feeds upon them. - - -THE ROBBER-CRAB - -One of the most extraordinary crustaceans is this, which is found in -many of the islands in the Indian Ocean. It is like the hermit-crabs in -some ways, but the tail is covered with shelly plates, just like the -rest of the body; and instead of living in shells in the sea, it lives -in deep burrows on dry land. - -But the oddest thing of all with regard to this crab is its food. What -do you think it feeds upon? Cocoanuts! That seems impossible, doesn't -it? One would imagine that the crab could never get the nuts open. But -it manages in this way: First of all, it pulls away the fibers from that -end of the nut at which the three eyeholes are situated. With -one of its stout claws it then hammers away at one of these till it -breaks its way through. And finally, after allowing the milk to run -away, it pokes its hind claws, which are very slender indeed, through -the opening and picks out the white fleshy part of the nut a little -piece at a time. - -It is said, too, that this crab sometimes opens a nut by poking the -smaller joint of one of its claws into the hole, and then striking it -over and over again upon a big stone. - -The burrow of the robber-crab is rather a deep one, and is nearly always -situated beneath the roots of a tree. And at the end of the burrow is a -large chamber, in which the crab piles up a quantity of cocoanut fiber -to serve as a bed. - - -LOBSTERS - -Of course you know the lobster very well by sight; and perhaps you know -that until it is boiled it is black, not red. But do you know how it -swims? If so, you know that it has two different ways of swimming. When -it is not in a hurry it swims slowly forward by means of its swimmerets, -of which it has five pairs under the hinder part of its body. But if it -is startled or alarmed it swims swiftly backward by means of its tail. - -If you look at a lobster's tail, you will see that it is very broad and -flat, and that on either side of it are two plates, which are quite as -flat, and, if anything, are rather broader. So, when these are spread, -the tail looks like a fan. And the animal swims by first stretching out -its body almost straight, and then doubling it suddenly with all its -force. As it does so, the tail and the tail-plates spread out, and act -very much like a broad oar. And the result is that the lobster darts -swiftly backward through the water. Shrimps and prawns swim in exactly -the same way. - -Lobsters are very quarrelsome creatures, and are constantly fighting; -and it very often happens that in these battles they pull off one -another's limbs. They seem to feel very little pain, however, from such -an injury, and before very long new legs begin to grow in place of the -old ones, so that in course of time the wounded creatures are as perfect -as ever. - -Sometimes lobsters will throw off their limbs when they are not attacked -at all. They do so, for example, if they are suddenly frightened; and it -is said that if a heavy gun is fired near the surface of the water, -every lobster for a long way round will shed its great claws in alarm. - -You will notice, on looking at a lobster, that one of the great claws is -a good deal smaller than the other; and sometimes people think that this -is a new claw which is growing in place of one that has been lost, and -that it has not yet reached its full size. This, however, is a mistake, -for one of the claws is always much bigger than the other; and the -reason is that they are used for different purposes. The larger claw is -intended as a weapon, and with this the lobster fights. But the smaller -one is chiefly employed as a kind of anchor, by means of which the -animal can cling to the weeds or rocks at the bottom of the sea. - -Lobsters are caught in pots made of basketwork, just as crabs are. But -they are not nearly so dainty as crabs, and do not mind whether the bait -is fresh or putrid. They are always very much attracted, too, by any -object that glitters, and many a lobster has been lured to its death -merely by one or two oyster-shells hung up inside the pot in such a -manner as to show the shining pearly interior. - - -CRAYFISH - -The crayfish is a kind of fresh-water lobster, which is found commonly -in many parts of the world, and numerously in the central and southern -parts of the United States. Most species hide all day long under the -projecting edges of big stones, or in holes in the bank, only coming out -after nightfall to search for food. The British crayfish is said to be -particularly fond of the deserted burrow of a water-vole, and as it sits -inside it always guards the entrance with its great claws, striking -fiercely at any enemy which may be bold enough to come within reach. - -One, at least, of the American kinds sinks its own burrows, in the form -of round holes in the soil of damp meadows. These holes go down to -water, which the animal cannot live long away from; and a part of the -soil dug out is piled about the mouth of the hole in a little -tower or chimney, sometimes several inches high. - -In Europe crayfish are eaten and regarded as a delicacy when properly -cooked; and there is no reason why the American ones should not be -equally good, but they are rarely if ever used as food by us. The flesh -tastes like that of the lobster, but is more tender. - - -SHRIMPS AND PRAWNS - -These are really only tiny lobsters, and if you examine them carefully -you will find that their bodies are made in exactly the same way. They -swim, too, by means of their tails, and dart about so swiftly that it is -almost impossible to follow their movements. You may often find them in -numbers in the pools which are left among the rocks by the retreating -tide. But as they are almost colorless until they are boiled, it is very -difficult to see them, and they look just like shadows darting to and -fro in the water. - -You can easily tell a prawn from a shrimp, for the beak which projects -in front of its head is covered with sharp points, which are almost -exactly like the teeth of a saw. It feeds upon the bodies of the various -small creatures which die by millions every day. In this way it helps to -keep the water of the sea pure. It feeds in a curious way, tearing off -tiny scraps of flesh with the little pincers at the tips of the second -pair of legs, and poking them into its mouth one after another. The -sides of these limbs are covered with hairs, so that they form little -brushes; and with these the prawn carefully cleans its body and limbs, -rubbing off every little speck of dirt which may happen to cling to -them. - - -SANDHOPPERS - -You can hardly walk along a sand shore when the tide is rising without -seeing sandhoppers leaping and twisting about in thousands. If you turn -over a bunch of seaweed which has been flung up by the waves just above -high-water mark, you are almost sure to find forty or fifty of -these odd little creatures hiding under it. In some ways they are rather -like shrimps. But they differ from them in having their eyes set on the -head itself, instead of on little foot-stalks projecting from it. And -they have no carapace, or shelly shield, covering the middle part of the -body. - -How do these creatures hop? By first doubling up their bodies, and then -straightening them out again with a kind of jerk. It is exactly -opposite, in fact, to the way in which shrimps and lobsters swim. - -Sandhoppers do not follow the retreating tide, but bury themselves in -the sand very soon after the waves have ceased to break over them. Even -when the surface of the sand is quite dry you can find their burrows by -stamping with your foot, when a number of little round holes will -suddenly open all round you. - -These creatures have wonderfully sharp little teeth, and if you allowed -a swarm of them to rest for a little while on your handkerchief you -would most likely find that it was full of tiny holes when you took it -up. They will eat almost anything, either animal or vegetable, and are -quite as useful as the shrimps and prawns in helping to keep the -sea-water pure. But they have a great many enemies, for sea-birds, -land-birds, crabs, and all sorts of other creatures, destroy them -literally in millions. - - -THE FRESH-WATER SHRIMP - -This shrimp is very much like the sandhopper in some ways. You may find -it in numbers in almost any small stream or rivulet. It hides under -stones, or in little crevices in the bank, darting out now and then to -seize one of the tiny creatures upon which it feeds, and then hurrying -back with it to its retreat. When it is in the water it travels along by -a series of jerks; sometimes swimming with its back uppermost, and -sometimes on one side. But if it is placed on dry ground it is perfectly -helpless, for its legs are not nearly strong enough to carry it, and the -only result of its struggles is to turn it round and round in a -screw-like manner without forcing it forward at all. - - -WOODLICE - -These odd little creatures are really crustaceans, although they belong -to quite a different group from that about which you have just been -reading. They simply swarm in all damp places. Under logs, in heaps of -decaying leaves, and under the bark of dead trees, they are always -extremely plentiful, and you may also find them in hundreds in cellars -and outhouses. There are several different kinds, one of which rolls -itself up into a ball when it is touched or alarmed. This is called the -pill-woodlouse, or pill-armadillo. Another one is remarkable for the -fact that the mother carries her little ones about with her in a pouch -underneath her body for some little time after they are born. - - -BARNACLES - -You would hardly think that barnacles were crustaceans, would you? Yet -they are; though certainly they are very unlike any of those about which -we have been telling. You can find them in countless thousands upon the -rocks which are left bare by the tide at low water, and very often the -hulls of ships are so covered with them that the vessels have to be -taken into dry dock and thoroughly cleaned before they are fit to start -upon a voyage. - -These animals fasten themselves down to their hold by a kind of -foot-stalk, which is firmly attached by a very strong cement. The upper -part of the body becomes covered with a shell, consisting of several -pieces, or valves; and between these, six odd little limbs can be poked -out at will. These limbs are very hairy, and are always waving about, so -as to sweep into the mouth any tiny scraps of food which may be floating -in the water. - -There are a great many kinds of barnacles, some of which look very much -like acorns, and grow to a considerable size. These are known as -acorn-barnacles. And there is another, shaped rather like a piece of -round tube, which burrows into the skin of whales, in which it spends -all the remainder of its life! Sometimes it bores its way down -so far that it actually reaches the blubber. - -The young of these strange creatures pass through several -transformations, just like those of the lobster and the crab. First, -there is a nauplius, then a zoëa, and then a megalopa, all of which swim -freely about in the water, never fastening themselves down until they -are ready to pass into the perfect form. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXVI - -SEA-URCHINS, STARFISHES, AND SEA-CUCUMBERS - - -Next in order to the crustaceans comes a group of animals which live in -the sea, and which are known as echinoderms, which simply means -spiny-skins. This group includes the sea-urchins, the starfishes, and -the sea-cucumbers. - -[Illustration: LIFE ON THE SEA-BOTTOM. - - 1. Sticklebacks. 2. Carp. 3, 5, 6, 13, 17. Sea-Anemones. - 4. Shrimps. 7. Prawn. 8. Fiddler Crab. 9. Starfish. - 10. Sea-horses. 11. Edible Mussels. 12. Serpula Worm. - 14. Hermit-Crab in Whelk's Shell. 15. Sea-urchins. 16. Rock Crab. - 18. Polyzoan (Flustra). 19. Corallines (Gorgonia).] - - -SEA-URCHINS - -You can find a good many of these creatures when you go to the seaside, -by hunting about on the beach at low water. In some places on rocky -coasts sea-urchins are very common. Sometimes they are known as -sea-eggs, and in many countries they are actually boiled and eaten as -food, just as we eat the eggs of fowls and ducks. And their shells are -so thickly covered with spines that they look just like little hedgehogs -which have rolled themselves up into balls. - -When the animal is alive it can move these spines at will, each of them -being fastened to the shell by a ball-and-socket joint, just like those -which we described to you when we were telling about the vertebræ of the -snakes. But after it has been dead for a few days they are nearly always -knocked off by the action of the waves, so that the shell is left quite -smooth and bare. - -By means of these spines a sea-urchin can bury itself in the sand at the -bottom of the sea in a very short time, only just a little funnel-shaped -pit being left to show where it is hiding. And in some of the larger -kinds they are really formidable weapons, for they grow to a length of -eight or ten inches, and are so sharp and strong that they can actually -pierce the sole of a stout shoe. Besides this, they have poison-glands -connected with them, so that they can easily inflict a really serious -wound. - -In the shell of a sea-urchin are a number of little holes, through which -the animal pokes out most curious sucker-like feet when it wants -to climb about over the rocks. By means of the suckers on the upper part -of the shell it often clings to small stones, which it sometimes gathers -up in such numbers as to conceal itself entirely from sight. - -Just inside the mouth of the urchin are five very large chisel-like -teeth. These are formed just like the front teeth of the rodent animals, -and grow as fast as they are worn away. - -Sea-urchins are not numerous on the Atlantic shores of North America, -because these shores are not rocky except in the cold north. One small -flat kind, however, occurs in the deep waters off this coast, and its -cases are often cast up on the beaches and are called sand-dollars. On -the Pacific coast, however, sea-urchins are common and well known; and -the Indians of the northwest coast boil them and eat them greedily. - - -STARFISHES - -More plentiful on both coasts, and extremely numerous and harmful in all -the bays and sounds from Florida to Maine, are the starfishes, or -fivefingers, as the oystermen call them. But although they are so -abundant, very few people seem to know what curious creatures they are. - -The starfish has hundreds of little sucker-like feet, just like those of -the sea-urchin. You cannot see these, as a rule, because the starfish -keeps them tucked away inside its skin. But when it wants to use them it -can poke them out in a moment. - -If you want to look at these odd little feet, the best way to do so is -to take a live starfish, put it at the bottom of a pool of sea-water, -and then wait patiently for ten minutes or a quarter of an hour. By the -end of that time you are almost sure to see that the animal is slowly -moving. Then snatch it out of the water, turn it upside down, and you -will see hundreds of little white objects waving about on the lower -surface of its body. These are its feet, and if you look at them through -a good strong magnifying-glass, you will see that they are shaped just -like wine-glasses, each having a kind of fleshy cup at the end of a -slender stem. And at the end of the cup is the sucker. - -In the very middle of the lower part of the body of a starfish is its -mouth. This is generally rather large, for the animal feeds chiefly on -shell-bearing animals which it swallows whole, shells and all. Then, -when it has digested the bodies of its victims, it turns their empty -shells out again through its mouth. That is an odd way of feeding, isn't -it? But sometimes it feeds in an odder way still, for when it finds a -creature which is too big to be swallowed, it will actually turn its own -digestive organs out of its mouth, wrap them round its victim, hold them -there until it is digested, and then drag them in again and go off to -look for another victim! - -Starfishes eat a great many oysters in this way. So many do they destroy, -indeed, that they are the very worst foes with which oyster-fishers have -to deal, and the damage done by them in one single oyster-bed on the -coast of North America is estimated at no less than fifty thousand -dollars every year. - -There are a great many different kinds of starfishes. One, for example, -has twelve rays instead of five, and looks very much like a live -sunflower. This is called the sun-star. Another has its five rays all -joined together by webbing, very much like the toes on a duck's foot, -and is known as the bird's-foot star. It is a very handsome creature, -for while the greater part of its body is bright yellow, it has a broad -band of crimson running all the way round the outer margin, and another -stripe of the same color down the outer edges of each ray, while the -membrane between them is fringed with yellow hairs. But you are not very -likely to find it, for it lives in rather deep water, and is hardly ever -caught except by means of that useful net which is called a dredge. - -Odder by far than any of these, however, are the brittle-stars, which -owe their name to their extraordinary habit of breaking themselves to -pieces! They nearly always do this if they are touched or alarmed. In -fact, they are so ready to do so that it is very difficult indeed to -obtain a perfect brittle-star for a museum. The creature just gives a -kind of shudder, and its five rays all drop off and break up into little -pieces, all that is left of the animal being just the central disk. But -it does not appear to suffer any pain, and loses hardly any blood. -And before very long new rays grow in the place of the old ones, -so that in a few weeks' time the starfish is just as perfect as ever! - -The brittle-stars have five very long and very slender rays, which are -generally fringed on either side with yellow hairs. And these rays are -hardly ever still, but twist and writhe and curl about so actively that -they really look almost like so many centipedes! It is by no means so -numerous as the fivefinger, and is so easily broken that it is hard to -find a whole one on the beach. - -Very curious, too, is the basket-star, which at first sight does not -look like a starfish at all. The reason is that, close to its body, each -of the five rays divides into two. Then each of the branches divides -into two again, and each of those into two more, and so on over and over -again, till sometimes there are more than eighty thousand little arms -altogether! - -The basket-star catches its prey by means of these wonderful rays, which -it wraps all round it in the form of a circular basket. It is not at all -a common creature, and is only found in deep water. - -But perhaps the oddest of all these creatures is the rosy feather-star, -which actually grows on a stalk while it is young, and looks just like a -flower with its petals spread. The stalk, which is fastened down to a -rock at the bottom of the sea, is made up of a great number of tiny -joints, and grows longer and longer. And when it reaches its full length -the animal breaks itself free and swims away, leaving the stem behind. - -The rosy feather-star lives in rather deep water, from which it is -sometimes brought up by means of the dredge. It can crawl about on the -ground by means of its sucker-like feet, and can swim through the water -with some little speed. And very often, to save itself trouble, it will -cling by means of its rays to a piece of floating wood, and allow itself -to be carried for long distances by the waves. - -In Great Britain these may often be found near shore, but the American -feather-stars all live in very deep water. They are all that remain of a -large class of such animals which abounded in the very ancient seas, -whose fossil remains are called stone-lilies. - - -SEA-CUCUMBERS - -These are really relations of the starfishes, although they do not look -in the least like them; for they closely resemble the vegetable after -which they are named. In front of the slit at one end of the body, -however, which serves as a mouth, there is a feathery tuft. This -consists of delicate little tentacles, or feelers, by means of which the -animal fishes for its food, and which can be drawn back inside the body -when it is not hungry. And if it were not for this tuft one really might -almost mistake the animal for a grayish-white cucumber. - -We saw just now that the brittle-star breaks off its own rays at the -slightest alarm. But the sea-cucumber, in this way, is even odder still, -for if it eats anything which disagrees with it, as it sometimes does, -it turns all its digestive organs out of its mouth, cuts them off, and -allows them to float away! Then for three or four months it is very -little else than a bag of empty skin, with just a slit at one end and a -tuft in front of it. But at the end of that time new digestive organs -begin to grow in the place of the old ones, and very soon the -sea-cucumber is as perfect as ever! - -Isn't that a remarkable way of curing indigestion? - -Some of the sea-cucumbers grow to a very great size. One indeed, when -fully grown, is nearly six feet long. And in China they are largely used -as food, under the name of trepang, and are looked upon as a great -dainty. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXVII - -MOLLUSKS - - -The class of the mollusks is a very large one, for at least fifty -thousand different kinds of these creatures are already known, while new -ones are constantly being discovered. They may be described as -soft-bodied, boneless animals, which are enclosed in a tough muscular -skin called the mantle. And they are divided into five orders, the first -of which includes the singular creatures known as squids, or cuttles. - -You may sometimes find these animals hiding in the pools which are left -among the rocks when the tide goes out; and you can recognize them at -once by the long, fleshy tentacles, or arms, which spring from the upper -part of the head. Some of them have ten of these arms, and are called -decapods; the rest have only eight and are known as octopods. And the -lower surface of each arm is furnished with a row of circular suckers, -the grip of which is so powerful that the tentacle may even be torn in -two without causing it to release its hold. Indeed, if quite a small -cuttle were to seize you with one of its arms, you would not find it at -all easy to make it let go again without killing it. - -The cuttles employ these suckers for two purposes. In the first place, -they use them in walking. When a cuttle is crawling along at the bottom -of the sea it pushes one or two tentacles forward, takes firm hold of a -rock or a large stone with the suckers underneath them, pulls up the -body, and then thrusts them forward again. And in the second place, they -use them in catching their prey. Quite large victims are often seized by -cuttles, and when once the deadly suckers have fastened upon them there -is no hope of escape. In spite of their struggles one tentacle after -another comes closing in, till they are completely surrounded by the -long, slimy arms, soft almost as jelly, yet strong as steel. Then they -are pushed down against the sharp, strong beak, by which they are -quickly torn in pieces. - -On the upper part of the head of the cuttle there is another -curious organ known as the siphon, which consists of two tubes lying -side by side together, like the barrels of a double-barreled gun. This -organ is used in three different ways. - -First, it is used in breathing. The cuttles, like the fishes, breathe -water, by means of gills. These gills lie inside the head, and the water -passes down to them through one of the siphon-tubes, and then out again -through the other. - -Next, it is used in swimming. When cuttles are not in a hurry they crawl -along by means of their long tentacles, as we told you just now. But if -they are startled, or alarmed in any way, they fold all their tentacles -together in a straight line, fill both the siphon-tubes with water, and -then squirt it out again as hard as they possibly can. The result is, of -course, that they are driven rapidly backward by the recoil, just like -the dragonfly grub, of which we have read. - -But the third use of the siphon-tubes is the most curious. If you -discover a small cuttle hiding in a rock-pool, you will very likely find -that the water all round it suddenly grows dark as night, just as if a -quantity of ink had been poured into it. The fact is this. Inside its -body the cuttle has a bag filled with a quantity of a deep-black liquid -called sepia. This bag is surrounded by strong bands of muscle, and -opens into the siphon-tubes. So, you see, when the animal suddenly -contracts the muscular bands, the sepia is squirted out through the -siphon into the water, which is immediately darkened for some little -distance all round. And under cover of the darkness the animal escapes. - -The eggs of the cuttle are laid in a very curious way, for they are -fastened by little stalks to a stem of seaweed, so that they look very -much like a bunch of grapes. Fishermen, indeed, nearly always speak of -them as "sea-grapes." - -The cuttles which are found in the British seas are always quite small. -But in some parts of the ocean these creatures grow to a giant size. -Fragments of the tentacles of an enormous cuttle, for instance, have -been found lying on the coast of Newfoundland; and by careful -calculation it was shown that if the animal to which they belonged had -stretched them out at right angles to its body, they would actually have -measured more than eighty feet from tip to tip! - -These huge creatures seem to form the principal food of the -spermaceti-whale. - - -THE CHAMBERED NAUTILUS - -This animal is a near relation of the cuttles. It lives in a shell, -which cannot increase in size. The mollusk itself grows, however, and -soon becomes too big to live in its home; so it forms a second and -larger compartment outside the first one. Time after time this happens, -till at last the shell consists of about thirty-six chambers, only the -outside one being inhabited by the nautilus. - -This shell is often more than a foot in diameter. But if you were to see -it when it is first taken out of the sea you would never think that it -was a shell at all. Indeed it looks much more like a big shapeless lump -of blubber, for the animal covers it entirely with its muscular mantle, -so that the shell itself is completely concealed. - -Very little is known of the habits of the chambered nautilus, for it -lives at the bottom of the sea, at a depth of two or three hundred -fathoms. It is found in various parts of the Indian and Pacific oceans. - - -GASTROPODS - -A great many well-known creatures belong to this large group, first upon -the list being the slugs. We need not describe these animals, but -perhaps you will be surprised to hear that they have shells! These -shells are very small, however, and are entirely covered over by the -mantle, so that they cannot be seen unless the body is dissected. - -Slugs have the most wonderful power of stretching out and drawing up -their bodies. You may see one of these creatures crawling about on a -damp evening, and measuring fully five inches in length. But at the -slightest touch it begins to contract, and in a few seconds it is just a -shapeless lump, scarcely half as long as it was before. The odd little -tentacles are drawn back into the head, and the head is drawn back into -the body so that if you did not happen to know what it was you -might easily mistake it for a pebble. - -On the right-hand side of a slug's body, as it crawls along, you will -notice a rather large and almost round hole. This is the entrance to the -breathing-organs, which lie just behind the head and underneath the -mantle. - -During the daytime slugs remain in hiding, lying behind the loose bark -of dead trees, or under logs and large stones, or in heaps of decaying -leaves. And if the weather is very hot and dry they do not come out even -at night, for they very soon die if they are deprived of moisture. But -on warm, damp evenings they travel for long distances in search of food, -which is almost entirely of a vegetable character. In Europe every -gardener knows what injury they do to gardens there, but in America the -slugs are practically harmless. - -A good many different kinds of slugs are found in Great Britain. The -largest of all is the great gray slug, which often grows to a length of -more than six inches. Then the black slug is very common in many parts -of the country. It is not always black, however, for one may often find -examples which are brown, or yellow, or gray, or even white. The milky -slug, which has a thick creamy slime, is plentiful everywhere. And -sometimes one may dig up a very curious slug--testacella--which feeds on -earthworms, and follows them down to the very bottom of their burrows. -When the weather is cold, this slug makes a kind of cocoon of earth and -slime, and lies fast asleep inside it, often for many months at a time. - - -SNAILS - -In many ways snails are very much like slugs, but they have a shell -large enough to contain the entire body when the animal withdraws inside -it. Several hundred different kinds of snails are found in North -America, and many more in other parts of the world, varying in size from -that of a small pinhead to that of a big walnut. Some are exceedingly -numerous, others so rare and singular in their living-places that they -are highly prized by conchologists. All snails lay eggs, usually in damp -soil; and if you will turn over an old log in the woods in -summer, you will be almost certain to find some of the minute shining -globules. When winter draws near all the snails go into hiding, and they -have a most curious way of closing the entrances to their shells by -making little doors across them, composed partly of slime and partly of -very small fragments of earth. This is in order to prevent the frosty -air from getting in and killing them. But it would never do, of course, -to keep all the air out, for in that case they would be unable to -breathe. So they always leave a tiny hole in the middle of each door, -through which just enough air can pass to prevent them from being -suffocated. - -Among the largest of all is the edible snail, which is largely used for -food in many parts of Europe and is imported into the United States and -pickled, to be eaten by those who like this delicacy. - -Most of the gastropod mollusks, however, live in the water, some -inhabiting ponds and streams, while others dwell in the sea. - -In almost every brook and every ditch, for example, you may find -water-snails of different kinds. Some are quite flat, and some are -conical and pointed. Some are as large as land-snails, and some are so -tiny that they are almost always overlooked. Most of them feed upon -decaying leaves, and they have an odd way of traveling by floating -upside down at the surface of the water, each with its broad fleshy -"foot" expanded, so as to convert themselves into tiny boats. You may -sometimes see quite a fleet of these little creatures being carried -along by the stream. But if you throw a stone into the water they all -sink down to the bottom at once, and do not resume their journey until -many hours or even days afterward. - -The eggs of this snail are laid in long jelly-like ribbons, which are -generally fastened either to the stems and leaves of water-plants, or -under the edges of large stones lying at the bottom of the stream. A -very large number of gastropods live in the sea. One of the best known -of these is the whelk, of which one reads in all books of English -natural history. On almost every sandy and shingly beach, in Western -Europe, one may find it lying about in hundreds; and even in large -inland towns one often sees whelks for sale, both in fishmongers' -shops and on barrows at the corners of the streets. Its eggs are -one of the curiosities of the sea-beach--small, yellowish-white objects -about the size of peas, made of tough, parchment-like skin, and fastened -together in bundles about as big as cricket-balls. You may often find -these bundles on the shore in dozens; and most likely you will wonder -how the whelk ever managed to lay a batch of eggs a good deal bigger -than itself. - -But the fact is that the eggs of the whelk are just like those of the -frog. When they are first laid they are very tiny; but the tough skin of -which they are made is very elastic, so that it will stretch almost like -a piece of india-rubber. Besides this, it has the curious property of -allowing water to soak in from the outside, but not to pass out again. -So as soon as the eggs are dropped into the sea they begin to swell, and -before very long they are quite twenty or thirty times as large as they -were when they were first laid. - -We do not have these whelks in North America, but we have a variety of -small gastropods, whose shells are sometimes rough and coiled in a -spiral form, sometimes round like land-snails, and of various sizes. One -of them is the purpura, which has many ribs, and broad dark and light -stripes running spirally. The purpura of the Mediterranean is famous for -the purple dye obtained from its body; but our species yields such a dye -also in small quantity. This was the dye anciently known as Tyrian -purple. It is contained in a little bag behind the throat, which holds -just one small drop of liquid, and no more. And if you were to see it -you would never think that it was dye at all, for it looks only like -rather yellowish water. But if it is squeezed out on a sheet of white -paper, and laid in the sunshine, it very soon begins to change color. -First it becomes green, then blue, and then purple. And it is really the -dye which the ancient Romans valued so highly that no one who did not -belong to the royal family was allowed to dress in purple raiment. - - -BORERS - -In many parts of our eastern coast occur in great numbers two or three -kinds of small, rough, spiral gastropods, called borers by the -fishermen, who hate them because of the great number of oysters they -kill. Each of these spends its whole life in seeking and devouring other -shell-bearing mollusks. It kills and eats these in a very curious way. -Like all the gastropods, it possesses what we call a tooth-ribbon--that -is, a narrow strip of very tough gristle in its mouth; set with row upon -row of sharp, notched, flinty teeth. There are some times more than six -thousand of these teeth, and although they are so small that they cannot -be seen without the aid of a powerful microscope, they are nevertheless -very formidable. For every tooth is hooked, with the points of the hook -directed toward the throat. - -The tooth-ribbon is used in this way: When a borer meets with a victim, -it fastens itself to it by means of its fleshy, muscular "foot." Then it -bores a round hole through its shell, as neatly as if it had been -pierced by a drill. And then it pokes the tooth-ribbon down into the -body of the creature inside, and draws it back again. As it does so, of -course the hooked teeth tear away little bits of the victim's flesh. The -borer swallows these, and then pokes down its tooth-ribbon once more. -And so it goes on, over and over again, until the shell of its victim -has been completely emptied, when it goes off to look for another. - - -PERIWINKLES - -These are common on rocky parts of the coast, and you may find them -crawling about on the weed-covered rocks in thousands when the tide is -out. They have tooth-ribbons just like that of the borer, but they do -not use them in the same way, for they feed only upon seaweeds. And they -are remarkable for having the foot divided by a kind of groove, which -runs right down the middle. When a periwinkle crawls, it moves first one -side of this foot forward, and then the other side, so that although it -has no legs it may really almost be said to walk. - - -THE COWRY - -One of the prettiest of the gastropod shells, is that of the cowry, in -some parts of Africa used as money. It would seem strange to -earn one's living just by picking up money on the sea-shore, wouldn't -it? And perhaps you might think that every one who lived near those -parts of the coast where cowries are found must be very well off. But -then sixteen hundred of these shells are only worth about a quarter of a -dollar, so that you would have to hunt for a very long while and stoop a -great many times in order to obtain sufficient even to buy food. And it -must be very awkward to have to carry several sacks of money when one -goes out marketing! Many of them, however, are extremely beautiful. - - -LIMPETS - -Commoner still are the limpets, which you may find in thousands clinging -to the rocks that are left bare when the tide goes out. They fasten -themselves down by means of the broad, fleshy foot, which acts as a big -sucker. And so firmly do they hold that it is almost impossible to pull -them away. - -After a time, the edges of a limpet's shell cut a circular groove in the -rock to which it clings, so that even the sea-birds cannot drive their -beaks underneath and force it from its hold. And though, when the tide -is up, the mollusk will wander to a distance of two or even three feet -in search of food, it always seems to return to its resting-place before -the retreating waves again leave the rock uncovered. - - -AMPHINEURANS - -This order of mollusks contains the curious creatures which are known as -chitons. These may be described as sea-armadillos, for they are covered -with a kind of shelly armor, consisting of a series of plates, and can -roll themselves up into balls, in order to protect themselves from the -attacks of their enemies. - -One of these mollusks is called the prickly chiton, because it is -covered all over with sharp spines, like a hedgehog. It grows to a -length of nearly six inches. But long before it reaches its full size -the spines are rubbed off, so that a large example of this -creature is nearly always perfectly bare. The chitons live among muddy -rocks at low-water mark, and are not common outside the tropics or in -shallow water. - -The order of the amphineurans is quite a small one, and so is that of -the scaphopods, which consists only of the tooth-shells, which are very -common on the sandy coasts of the Northern Pacific, and look rather like -very tiny elephants' tusks. The Indians of the Puget Sound region used -to string them as ornaments, and valued them highly. - - -BIVALVES - -The order of the bivalves is a very large and important one. All these -creatures have their shells made of two parts, or valves, which are -fastened together by means of a hinge. They have no heads, and the -mantle forms a kind of flap on either side of the body. They are found -both in fresh and salt water. Every one knows the "fresh-water clams," -or mussels, which abound in our lakes and rivers. In the central and -southern parts of the United States they are exceedingly numerous and of -many kinds, some rough, others smooth. All are lined with -mother-of-pearl, and pretty buttons and other ornaments are made from -them. Moreover, pearls are very frequently discovered inside their -shells, and sometimes they are of great value. - - -THE PEARL-OYSTER - -Pearls are obtained chiefly, however, from the pearl-oyster, which is -found in warm seas in many parts of the world, the principal fisheries -being in Ceylon, the Persian Gulf, the South Sea Islands, and off the -northeast coast of Australia. They are deposited by the mantle, and it -is most likely that they are really due to a grain of sand, which has -lodged inside the shell and set up irritation. Indeed, it has been found -that if small objects, such as tiny stones, are forced between the -valves of one of these oysters, they become covered with layers of pearl -in a very short time. The best mother-of-pearl is also obtained from the -shells of the pearl-oyster. - - -OYSTERS - -The ordinary oyster belongs to another family of bivalves, in which one -part of the shell is a good deal larger than the other. - -The early life of this mollusk is very curious. The spawn is known as -spat, and is produced in enormous quantities. This spat looks at first -like very fine gray dust, and remains for some little time within the -shells of the parent. But one day in early summer the oyster opens its -valves a little way, and squirts it out like a cloud into the water. For -a few weeks the little oysters are able to swim, and they generally -travel backward and forward with the tide. But after a while they attach -themselves to some object at the bottom of the water, and there they -remain without moving any more for the rest of their lives. - -One would think that, since a family of oysters is so enormously large, -these creatures must be the most plentiful mollusks in the sea. But by -far the larger number are destroyed by other creatures before they are -able to settle down; while even after that they have a great many -enemies. We have already told you how mischievous starfishes are in the -oyster-beds. Then borers and dog-whelks are almost equally troublesome, -and besides these there is a curious kind of sponge, called the cliona, -which burrows into the shells of the mollusk and gradually destroys -them, sometimes actually causing them to fall to pieces. - - -BLACK MUSSELS - -Two or three kinds of black mussels live in vast numbers on almost all -coasts, clinging to rocks and submerged timber. The way in which a -mussel fastens itself to its hold is very curious, for instead of -turning the whole of the foot into a big sucker, as the limpet does, it -spins a number of very strong threads from that part which lies nearest -to the hinge; and every one of these threads is separately fastened to -the support, so that the creature is moored down, as it were, by a kind -of cable. These threads are known as the byssus, and hold so firmly that -it is not at all easy to pull them away. Some of these mussels -are good to eat, but are not as much used in the United States as in -Europe. - - -THE COCKLE - -This is another very well-known bivalve. Its heart-shaped shells, -covered with low ridges, you must know by sight. It is one of the -burrowing mollusks, spending its life buried in sandy mud. It is -especially common at the mouths of large rivers, where enormous -quantities are collected to serve as human food. And its large muscular -foot is not only used in digging, but also enables it to leap to a -considerable height. It is to this family that the quahog or hard clam -of our markets belongs. - - -RAZOR-SHELLS - -These, too, are inhabitants of the mud, and if you want to find their -burrows all that you have to do is to visit a patch of sandy mud when -the tide is out, and stand quietly watching it. Before long you are sure -to see a little jet of water spurt out of the mud to a height of three -or four inches. Now this water has been squirted out of the siphon-tubes -of a razor-shell, and if you walk to the spot, treading very carefully, -you will find a tiny hole in the mud. This is the entrance to the -burrow, and if you want to get the animal out, the best way to do so is -to drop a little salt down the hole. For it is a very strange fact that -although the razor cannot live in mud at the bottom of fresh water, it -does not like pure salt at all, and is sure to come up to the surface -and try to get rid of it. But if you fail to seize it at once it will -retreat to the very bottom of its burrow, and no amount of salt will -persuade it to come up again. The soft clam, which is sold in our -markets in such enormous quantities, is a near relative of the razor. - - -THE PIDDOCK - -One of the most wonderful of all the bivalves is the piddock, as it is a -boring mollusk, living buried in the solid chalk or limestone. -If you should examine the rocks which are left bare at low water along -the shore of the Mediterranean, or some other warm sea, you would often -find that they are pierced by numbers of rather large round holes. These -are the entrances to the burrows of piddocks; and if you could split the -rock open you would find several of these creatures lying in their -tunnels. - -Sometimes, when they are boring, their burrows become choked up behind -them with the material which they have scraped away. Then they just -squirt out a jet of water from their siphon-tubes, and so wash the -passage clear. - -It is really owing to the work of the piddocks that chalk and limestone -cliffs are so much cut away by the sea. The waves by themselves can do -very little in this way. For when they wash up against the face of the -cliff they leave the spores of seaweeds behind them; and these very soon -grow and cover the whole surface with a mantle of living green, which -almost entirely prevents the cliff from being worn away. But the -piddocks drive their burrows into the rock just below the surface of the -water, boring backward and forward till it is completely honeycombed by -their tunnels, which only have just the thinnest of walls left between -them. Then the sea washes into the burrows, and breaks these walls down, -so that the whole foundation of the cliff is cut away. Very soon, of -course, there is a landslip, and hundreds of tons of chalk or limestone, -as the case may be, come falling down. Then the piddocks begin working -again a little farther back, and the process is repeated; and so on over -and over again. - -On many parts of the south coast of England long stretches of rocks run -ever so far out into the sea, and are only partly left bare at low -water. Those rocks were once the bases of cliffs, which the piddocks and -the waves together have cut away. And it even seems almost certain that -the Strait of Dover was cut in this manner, and that if it had not been -for the labors of the piddocks, carried on day after day for thousands -upon thousands of years, Great Britain even now would not be an island, -but would still form part of the continent of Europe, as we know that it -did in ages long gone by! - - -THE TEREDO - -There is a bivalve mollusk which burrows into submerged timber, such as -the hulls of wooden ships, or the beams of piers and jetties. This is -called the teredo, or ship-worm, and certainly it does look much more -like a worm than a mollusk, for it has a cylinder-shaped body something -like a foot in length, with a forked tail, while the shell only covers -just a little part at one end. How it burrows into the wood nobody quite -knows. It is generally supposed to do so by means of the foot. But in a -very short time it will honeycomb a great beam of timber with its -burrows, which it always lines with a kind of shelly deposit, weakening -it to such a degree that at last it gives way beneath the slightest -pressure. - -Like a great many other mollusks, the teredo passes through a kind of -caterpillar stage before it reaches its perfect form. While it is in -this condition it is able to swim freely about in the water, and looks -rather like a very tiny hedgehog, being almost globular in shape, and -covered all over with short projecting hairs. It is by means of the -action of these hairs upon the water that it is able to swim. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXVIII - -ANNELIDS AND COELENTERATES - - -The important class of the annelids contains those creatures which we -generally call worms. There are a great many of these, but we shall only -be able to mention one or two. - - -THE COMMON EARTHWORM - -This worm is really a most interesting as well as a most useful animal. -The way in which it crawls is decidedly curious. On the lower part of -every one of the rings of which its body is made up, with the sole -exception of the head, are four pairs of short, stiff, little bristles, -projecting outward from the skin. The worm really hitches itself along -by means of these bristles. First it takes hold of the ground with those -underneath the front rings, then it draws up its body and takes hold -with those underneath the hind ones, and then it pushes its head forward -and repeats the process; and so on, over and over again. - -If you take a worm and pass it between your finger and thumb from the -tail-end toward the head, you can feel these little bristles quite -easily. - -A worm does not often leave its burrow, however, but generally keeps the -tip of its body just inside the entrance, so that it can retreat in a -moment in case of danger. - -Worms make their burrows in a very odd manner, for they actually eat -their way down into the ground, swallowing mouthful after mouthful of -earth until their bodies can contain no more. Meanwhile they have been -absorbing nourishment from this soil; but presently they come up to the -surface and pour out the mold which they have swallowed in the form of -what we call a worm-cast, after which they go down again and swallow -more, and so on until the burrow is sufficiently deep. - -You will be surprised, we think, to hear how much earth is swallowed by -the worms in this way. Just think of it. Every year, in every acre of -agricultural land all over the country, worms bring up from below, on an -average, and spread over the surface in the form of worm-casts, no less -than fourteen tons of earth, or about seven large cartloads! - -This is why worms are such useful creatures. They are always, as it -were, digging and plowing the soil. After a time the earth at the -surface becomes exhausted. Nearly all the nourishment is sucked out of -it by the roots of the plants. But the worms are always bringing up -fresh, rich, unused soil from below, and spreading it over the surface -in the form of what farmers call a top-dressing. They are doing, in -fact, exactly what we do when we dig our gardens or plow our -fields--burying the used-up soil that it may rest, and bringing up fresh -mold to take its place. - -But, besides turning the soil over, they manure it; for almost every -night from early spring to late autumn worms are busy dragging down -leaves into their burrows. With some of these leaves they line their -tunnels, with some they close the entrances, and on some they feed. And -most of them decay before very long and turn into leaf-mold, which is -just about the very best manure that there is. So you see, the worms do -not merely turn the soil over, they enrich it as well, and help very -largely indeed to keep it in such a condition that plants can continue -to grow in it. - - -THE LUGWORM - -The similar lugworm lives in sandy mud on the sea-shore; and when the -tide is out you may often see its casts in thousands. It is very largely -used by fishermen as bait. When it is carefully washed it is really -quite a handsome creature, for sometimes it is deep crimson in color, -and sometimes dark green, while on its back are twenty-six little -scarlet tufts, arranged in pairs, which are really the gills by which -the worm breathes. - -The burrows of the lugworm are not quite like those of the earthworm, -for as its tunnels through the sand it pours out a kind of glue-like -liquid, which very soon hardens and lines the walls, so as to form a -kind of tube and prevent the sides from falling in. - - -THE TEREBELLA - -This worm forms very much stronger tubes. It is common on many parts of -our coasts. But it is not very easily found, for at the slightest alarm -it retreats to the very bottom of its burrow, which nearly always runs -under large stones and rocks. - -The terebella makes its tube by means of the little feelers, or -tentacles, which spring from the front part of its body. These have a -most wonderful power of grasp, and one after another little grains of -sand are seized by them, and carefully arranged in position. And when -the tube is quite finished, the animal constructs a little tuft of sandy -threads, so to speak, round the entrance, which you may often see in the -pools left among the rocks by the retreating tide. - - -THE SEA-MOUSE - -Looking far more like a hairy slug than a worm, the sea-mouse also -belongs to the class of the annelids. You can easily find this creature -by hunting in muddy pools among the rocks just above low-water mark; and -most likely you will consider it as one of the dingiest and most -unattractive-looking animals that you have ever seen. But if you rinse -it two or three times over in clean water till every atom of mud has -been washed out of its bristly coat, you may change your opinion. For -now you will see all the colors of the rainbow playing over it--crimson, -purple, orange, blue, and vivid green--just as if every hair were a -prism. It would be difficult, indeed, to find any creature more -beautiful in the waters of the sea. This bristly coat is really a kind -of filter, which strains out the mud from the water that passes to the -gills. - - -LEECHES - -Leeches, too, are annelids, living in fresh water instead of salt water. -They are famous for their blood-sucking habits, and when we examine -their mouths through a microscope we find that they are provided with -three sets of very small saw-like teeth, which are set in the form of a -triangle. When a leech wants to suck the blood of an animal, it fastens -itself to the skin of its victim by means of its sucker-like lips, and -then saws out a tiny triangular piece of skin. That is why it is so -difficult to stop the bleeding after a leech has bitten one. An actual -hole is left in the skin, which does not heal over for some little time. -And a great deal of blood is generally taken by the leech itself, which -will go on sucking away until its body is stretched out to at least -double its former size. - -That is rather a big meal to take, isn't it? But then such meals come -very seldom. Indeed, when a leech has once gorged itself thoroughly with -blood, it will often take no more food at all for a whole year -afterward! - -Leeches lay their eggs in little masses, called cocoons, which they -place in the clay-banks of the pools in which they live. In each of -these cocoons there are from six to sixteen eggs. - -We now come to the last great class of animals about which we shall be -able to tell you--that of the coelenterates. It contains three most -interesting groups of creatures. - - -JELLYFISHES - -You may have seen plenty of jellyfishes if at any time you have been -staying at the seaside, for they are often flung up on the beach by the -retreating tide. But if you were to go and look for them two or three -hours after seeing them, on a bright sunny day, you would find that they -had disappeared. All that would be left of them would be a number of -ring-like marks in the sand, with just a few threads of animal matter in -the middle of each. The reason would be that they had evaporated! That -sounds rather strange, doesn't it? But the fact is that the greater part -of the body of a jellyfish is nothing but water! It is quite -true that if you cut it in half the water does not run away. But then -that is equally true of a cucumber; and cucumbers, too, are made almost -entirely of water. The reason is the same in both cases. The water is -contained in a very large number of tiny cells; and when you cut either -the animal or the vegetable across, only a few of these cells are -divided, and only a small quantity of the water escapes. - -Round the edge of the disk of a jellyfish which has just been flung up -by the waves you will find a number of long, slender threads. These are -its fishing-lines, with which it captures its prey, and they are made in -a very curious manner. All the way along they are set with a double row -of very tiny cells, in each of which is coiled up an extremely sharp and -slender dart. These cells are so formed that at the very slightest touch -they fly open, and the little darts spring out; and, besides this, the -darts are poisoned. So as soon as any small creature swims up against -these threads a number of the venomed darts bury themselves in its body, -and the poison acts so quickly that in a very few seconds it is dead. -Then other threads come closing in all round it, and in a very short -time it is forced into the mouth and swallowed. - -Some jellyfishes are so poisonous that they are most dangerous even to -man. Only one of these, however, is found in the North Atlantic, almost -all the jellyfishes that one finds lying about on the beach being -perfectly harmless. But if, when you are bathing, you see a -yellowish-brown jellyfish about as big as a soup-plate swimming near you -in the water, be sure to get out of its way as fast as you possibly can; -for if its threads should touch any part of your body, you are almost -sure to be very badly stung. There is very little doubt, indeed, that -many swimmers have been killed by these creatures; while thousands of -unwary bathers have been laid up for days, or even weeks, from the -effects of their poison. - - -SEA-ANEMONES - -What beautiful creatures are these--just like flowers growing under the -sea! Some are like dahlias, some like chrysanthemums, and some -like daisies, of all shades of crimson, and purple, and orange, and -green, and it is very hard to believe that they are really living -animals. - -The tentacles of these creatures, which look so like the petals of -flowers, are set with little cells containing poisoned darts, just like -the fishing-threads of the jellyfishes. They can be spread out or drawn -back into the body at will, and when they have all been withdrawn the -anemone seems to be nothing more than a shapeless lump of colored jelly. - -Anemones spend the greater part of their lives clinging to the surface -of a rock at the bottom of the water, the broad base of the body acting -just like a big sucker. They can crawl about, however, at will, and -sometimes they will rise to the surface of the sea, turn upside down, -hollow their bodies into the form of little boats, and then float away, -perhaps for quite a long distance. - -But few sea-anemones are seen on our eastern coast, because, except in -the cool north, there are few rocks. On the warmer and rockier shores of -California and northward, however, these lovely creatures occur in great -variety. - - -CORALS - -Last upon our list come those most wonderful little creatures which are -known as corals. - -These are often called coral insects, but that is a great mistake. For -they have nothing to do with insects at all, and are as different from -them in every way as they can possibly be. They are properly called -polyps, and we can best describe them, perhaps as very small -sea-anemones. But they have one property which the anemones do not -possess, namely, the power of extracting lime out of the sea-water and -building it up round themselves in the form of coral. - -These creatures may be roughly divided into two groups, the one -consisting of the simple corals, which only live together in very small -numbers, and the other of the reef-builders, which live in vast -colonies, and build up masses of coral of enormous size. The latter are -by far the more interesting, and the way in which they build up -immense banks of coral is very wonderful indeed. - -Remember, first of all, that these animals multiply in two different -ways--sometimes by eggs, and sometimes by little buds, so to speak, -which grow out of the body of the parent. The polyps which hatch out -from eggs swim about for some little time quite freely. But after a few -days they fasten themselves down to the surface of a submerged rock, and -after that they never move again. Other polyps soon come and settle down -by them, and before very long there will be thousands upon thousands of -the little animals all growing, as it were, close together, and all -gradually building up coral underneath and round the margins of their -bodies. - -When they reach their full size they begin to multiply by "budding." -Baby polyps sprout out all over their bodies, and these, instead of -swimming about for a few days like those which are hatched from eggs, -remain fixed where they are for the whole of their lives. Then they, in -their turn, begin to deposit coral, and as they have nowhere else to put -it they place it on the bodies of their parents, which before very long -are completely covered in. Now, you see, there is a second layer of -coral on the top of the first. Then in due course of time a third layer -is formed upon the second, and a fourth layer upon the third, each -generation being built in by the one that comes after it, till at last -the coral bank rises above the surface of the water. Then the work has -to stop; for these little creatures cannot live unless the waves can -constantly break over them. But although the bank cannot be raised -higher it can still be extended on all sides; and so the little polyps -go working on, year after year, till at last the results of their labor -are almost too wonderful to realize. - - -CORAL BANKS - -These coral banks take three different forms. - -First, there are the fringing reefs. These are great banks of coral -surrounding the shores of a tropical island, or running for long -distances on the coasts of the mainland. The island of Mauritius, for -example, is entirely surrounded by a fringing reef. These reefs -often spread out for miles into the sea, and they are only broken here -and there by narrow passages, where some river or stream is flowing out. -For the polyps cannot live in fresh water. - -Next, there are barrier reefs. These are great walls of coral at a -distance from the shore, with deep water between the two. For the polyps -are unable to work at a greater depth than about thirty fathoms, or one -hundred and eighty feet, below the surface; and it often happens that -while there is deep water close to the shores of a tropical island, -there is shallow water farther out. In such a case the polyps have to -build out at sea, instead of close into the land, and there is a kind of -moat between the coral bank and the shore. In this case the bank is -called a barrier reef, and sometimes it is of enormous size. The Great -Barrier Reef, for instance, runs for no less than 1250 miles along the -northeast coast of Australia. - -Then, thirdly, there are coral islands, or atolls. There are thousands -of these wonderful islands in the Pacific and the Indian oceans, and -others are still being slowly pushed up out of the sea. They always take -the form of more or less circular rings, in the center of which is a -lake of sea-water called a lagoon. The coral bank of which they consist -is seldom more than a few hundred feet wide, but sometimes the islands -are very large indeed. The biggest of all is ninety miles long and sixty -miles broad, while several others are not very much smaller. Soon after -they rise to the surface of the sea a kind of soil is deposited upon -them, made up partly of powdered coral, ground up by the action of the -waves, and partly of decaying vegetable matter which has been flung up -on them. Then sea-birds bring mud upon their feet from the mainland, or -from another island at a distance, and leave some of it behind them when -they settle down to rest; and in that mud are seeds of plants, which -soon begin to sprout and grow. So in a very few years the island is -covered with low vegetation. Then one day, perhaps, a floating cocoanut -is flung up, and that, too, takes root and grows, so that in course of -time there is a palm-tree. Other palm-trees, of course, follow; and the -result is that the first glimpse which a traveler gets of a coral island -is nearly always that of a row of palm-trees upon the horizon. - -The simple corals live in almost all parts of the ocean. Some of them -are occasionally dredged up off our coasts, and can live in very cold -water. But the reef-builders are only found in warm seas, and are never -found working far outside the boundaries of the tropics. - -How wonderful it seems that tiny creatures such as these polyps, which -really do not appear to be much more than little lumps of living jelly, -should be able to build up these vast masses of coral from out of the -depths of the sea! One cannot help wondering what the results of their -work will be if the world should last for a few thousand years longer. -It would really seem that by that time the tropical seas will be choked -up with coral islands, and the lagoons inside them will be filled up -with coral too; so that not merely islands, but continents, will have -been raised from the ocean by some of the smallest and weakest and most -insignificant of all living animals! - -[Illustration: NORTH AMERICAN SEED-EATING SONG-BIRDS - - 1. Scarlet Tanager, or Black-winged Redbird. 2. Song Sparrow. - 3. Baltimore Oriole. 4. Rose-breasted Grosbeak. 5. Cowbird. - 6. Cardinal Grosbeak. 7. Purple Finch. 8. Indigo Finch. - -All are adult males.] - - - - -WALKS WITH A NATURALIST - -Suggestions for Teacher and Pupil in Nature Study - - -I - -SPRING - -Let us suppose that we are taking four country walks together, and -trying to use, in actual experience in the field, the information we -have been reading. The first shall be in the spring, the second in -summer, the third when autumn leaves are falling, and the last in -midwinter. We will go along the field-path, follow the lane through the -woods to the creek, then down the stream to the road, and so homeward. - -There is plenty to be seen, this bright spring morning. The birds are -very busy, of course, for they have nests to build, and eggs to lay, and -little ones to take care of; so they are hard at work from the very -first thing in the morning till the very last thing at night. Almost -every sparrow that we see has a feather or a piece of straw in its beak, -and the robin which has just flown out of that tree with a terrified -squall has already finished building, and was most likely sitting upon -her eggs. Yes, there is her nest, you see, right on the lowest limb, -with four greenish blue eggs. - -See that catbird, all lead-color, with a black cap. See her dodge into -that bush just beyond us. It is just the place for her nest; and, sure -enough, here it is. It is a rough affair, but she mews as pitifully at -us as if it were the finest of homes, and half a dozen other birds are -already screaming their sympathy. Let us just look at the eggs, and -remember that they are a deep polished green, and then walk on, for the -poor mother is very unhappy. We have no use for the eggs, and it -would be shameful to rob her; and, besides, we should thus destroy the -coming lives of four catbirds, who will be too useful as insect-hunters -in our gardens to be wasted. - -This path is dusty, and we notice a great many pinhole doors of the -little black ants. The ants are running in and out of them, and if we -should carefully dig up the ground we would find a labyrinth of narrow -passages, here and there widening into chambers, and so learn that these -tiny holes are entrances to an ant-city whose streets are all subways. - -Here are some larger ants--three times as big--a regular procession of -them going and coming out from under that half-buried stone, winding -through the grass, and then trotting up and down this tree-trunk. A lot -of them go out along that low limb. Let us climb upon the fence, and try -to see what it is that attracts them. Ah! This is the secret. Clustered -thickly on the bark are hundreds of minute green creatures, smaller than -pinheads. They are busily sucking the sap from the bark, and seem to -interest the ants greatly, for they are stroking these bark-lice -(aphids) with their feelers, and if we had a magnifying-glass we could -see that they were licking up a honey-like liquid which oozes out of two -short tubes on the back of each aphid. - -A little distance beyond the ant's apple-tree a young maple stretches -one of its branches out to the sunlight just above our heads, where the -sharp eyes which young naturalists must keep wide open when they walk -abroad will notice a bird's nest hung under the shelter of its broad -outermost leaves. It is one of the loveliest nests in the world. A slim, -graceful, olive-green little bird glides out from beneath the -maple-leaves as we approach, perches near by and watches us silently. -Though she does not mew and scream as did the catbird, she is just as -anxious, you may be sure. Be easy, dear little vireo--for we know your -name--we shall not ruin your home. Let us pull the branch gently down a -little. Now we can see that the nest is a round hammock, woven of -grapevine bark and spider-web, and hung by its edges. It seems too -fragile to hold the weight of the mother, slight as she is; and in it -are three white eggs with a circle of pink and purple dots around their -larger ends. But here is also a fourth egg, much larger, grayish -white, and speckled all over with brown. - -That is the egg of the cowbird, a sort of purple, brown-headed blackbird -which you may almost always see in pastures where there are cattle. The -cowbirds, like the European cuckoos, never build any nests of their own, -but put their eggs into those of other birds, and leave them to be -hatched. And they are very fond of choosing the nest of a vireo. One -would think that the mother would notice at once that a strange egg had -been placed in her nest, and would throw it out. But she never seems to -do so, but sits on the cowbird egg as well as on her own, so that in -course of time she hatches out three or four little vireos and one young -cowbird. Then what do you think the stranger does? Why, as soon as the -mother vireo goes out to look for caterpillars for food, it begins to -wriggle underneath the other little birds, and soon shoves them out of -the nest, one after another. Still more strange is it, that when the -vireo comes back she never seems to care that her own little ones are -all lying dead on the ground below, but gives all the food that they -would have eaten to the cowbird. And the greedy cowbird eats it all! -Until it is fledged she feeds it in this way, and takes the greatest -care of it, and even after it has left the nest and is able to fly about -she will come and put caterpillars into its beak. - -Look at the trunk of this tree. Why has so much of the bark fallen away -from the wood? And what is this curious pattern engraved, as it were, -upon the wood--a broad groove running downward, and a number of smaller -grooves branching out from this on each side? - -Ah! that is the work of a very odd little beetle, with a black head and -reddish-brown wing-cases. About eighteen months ago, probably, a mother -beetle came flying along, settled on the tree, and bored a hole through -the bark, just big enough for her to pass through. Then she began to -burrow downward between the bark and the wood, cutting the central -groove which you see in the pattern. As she did so she kept on laying -eggs, first on one side of the groove and then on the other, in the -short branch-tunnels, which she cut out as she went along. In this way -she laid, perhaps, eighty or ninety eggs altogether. When the last had -been laid she turned round, climbed up her burrow again, passed into the -hole by which she came in, and--died in it! And by so doing she blocked -up her burrow with her dead body, and so prevented centipedes and other -hungry creatures from getting in and eating up her eggs. - -Early in the following spring all the eggs hatched, and out came a -number of hungry little grubs with hard, horny heads and strong, sharp -little jaws. Every one of these grubs at once began to make a burrow of -its own, boring away at right angles to the groove made by the mother -beetle, and cutting away the fibers which bind the bark to the wood. The -consequence was, of course, that by the time they were fully grown quite -a big piece of bark had been cut away. And very likely if we were to -come and look at the tree again in two years' time we should find that -the whole of the trunk had been completely stripped. - -"Then these little beetles are very mischievous?" Oh, no, they are not; -for they never touch a healthy tree. They only attack those trees which -are sickly or diseased. - -Here we are on the banks of the stream. Let us make our way home by the -path which lies beside it. - -Ah! Did you see that flash of blue and white and orange that went -darting by, almost like a streak of many-colored light, sounding a loud -rattling call as he flew? It was a kingfisher, and if we stand quite -still for a minute or two, without moving so much as a finger, we shall -very likely see him again. Yes, there he is, sitting on that branch -overhanging the stream, and peering down into the water beneath. He is -watching for little fishes, upon which he feeds. There, he has caught -sight of one, and down he drops into the water, splashes about for a -moment or two, and then rises with a minnow in his beak. Back he flies -to his perch, slaps the little fish against the branch once or twice to -kill it, jerks it up into the air, catches it head foremost as it falls, -and then swallows it with one big gulp. A moment later he is peering -down into the water again on the lookout for another. - -That hole in the face of the steep bank across the stream is the doorway -of the kingfisher's home. If we could get there, and should try to dig -it, we would find it a hard task; for from that round door a tunnel runs -into the ground probably six or eight feet, and ends in a -chamber where lie half a dozen pure white eggs, resting upon the bones -of fishes and scraps of every sort, which make a very ill-smelling place -for the young kingfishers to be born in; but they do not mind that. - -The butterfly that has just floated by is a small tortoise-shell, and it -has lived through the winter, which kills nearly all of the butterfly -tribe. That is why its wings are faded and chipped, for it had six or -eight weeks of active life before it hid itself away, last of all, in a -hollow tree, and entered upon a six-months' slumber. Sometimes, on a -warmer day than usual, these and certain other butterflies will be -roused up, and will flutter about in the sunshine, so that now and then -you may capture a tortoise-shell even in the Christmas holidays. - -The warm May sunshine is enticing out many a minute insect--gnats and -flies especially. Dancing companies of small sulphur yellow and other -companies of blue butterflies whirl about one another over the rapidly -growing grass. - -Have you noticed among the May flowers how many are yellow? There are -dandelions, and yellow violets, and the modest fivefinger low in the -herbage, while above them tower great tufts of wild mustard and indigo, -the buttercups, the marsh-marigold, and many another. - -The frogs and toads are less noisy than a month ago, and one sees fewer -masses and strings of eggs in the roadside ditches than in April; but in -their place the pools swarm with tadpoles, and it will be well worth -your while to keep watch of their growth. Try to find out what they eat, -and what eats them. Observe when the tail begins to disappear, and how -it is lost; when the legs begin to appear, and which pair first shows -itself. You may learn a lot of interesting facts about frogs and toads -before the summer is done, if you are diligent. - -In this stream are a few turtles. Can you tell when and where they lay -their eggs? Keep careful watch of the little sandy beaches, and perhaps -you may see one digging a hole in which to bury her set of sixty or so, -leaving the sun to supply a better warmth than she could give them. - -May is a month of activity for snakes. They have thrown off the -stiffness and drowsiness of their long winter torpidity, and, grown -thin after five months of fasting, are running about in search of food. -Let the frogs and toads, the beetles and young ground-sparrows and -mice--also weak from their winter trials--take heed, for the swift -blacksnake or sly garter, or rapacious water-snake will seize them -before they have time to squeal! - -The water in the stream is still cool, but the fishes are struggling up -the current, pickerel are spawning in the weedy shallows, and among the -pebbles of the bottom a host of young creatures are beginning to grow -vigorous. - -None among them is more active than the larval caddis-flies, or -case-worms, as anglers call them. Here is a caddis-fly now, its gauzy -wings folded tentwise over its back. All its earlier life was spent in -the water, and when it was a grub it lived in a very curious case, which -it made by cutting up a rush into short lengths, and sticking them -together by means of a kind of natural glue. When once a caddis-grub has -made one of these cases it never gets out of it again, but drags it -about wherever it goes. And if you try to pull it out you will find that -you cannot do so without killing it. For at the end of its body it has a -pair of strong little pincers, with which it holds on so firmly and so -doggedly to its case that you might actually pull it in two without -forcing it to loose its hold. - -There are different kinds of caddis-flies, however, and the grub of one -kind fastens grains of sand together to make a case, while that of -another sticks two dead leaves face to face, and lives between them. - -It would be an interesting task for a boy or girl to see how many -different kinds of caddis-flies, judging by their cases, lived in the -stream, and to keep them alive in an aquarium, and watch their behavior -and changes. - - -II - -SUMMER - -A walk in midsummer is a stroll through what seems a quiet world -compared with the noise and brightness of May. Then every leaf was green -and crisp, every bird in full song, and the world seemed to have -an air of gay youth, like a vigorous boy or girl full of eagerness and -activity. - -Now as July draws toward its end the eagerness has subsided and the -year, like a lad grown a little older and more serious, has settled down -to regular work. Had our walk been taken before breakfast, we should -have heard no end of birds singing, it is true; but about the time the -dew dried from the grass most of them ceased their music. One reason, -besides the noonday heat, is that they are too busy to sing, for the -husband and father--and he is the singer of the family--must now help -his mate feed her young. We fear, however, he is not a very good -provider after the fledglings quit the nest, leaving most of their -support and schooling to the mother. At this season one may often come -upon and watch a little family group of this kind, and perhaps we may do -so. - -Meanwhile let us sit down for a moment on this grassy bank--not too near -that fence-post, for do you not see twined about it that vine with the -reddish hairy stem, and the shining leaves in groups of threes? That is -the poison-ivy, which may cause an itching rash to break out upon your -skin if you touch it. You must learn to recognize and avoid this -"ivy"--which is not a true ivy, but a kind of climbing sumach--before -you go poking around in the fields, or you will be sorry. Do you notice -the delicious beeswax-like odor in the air? That comes from the big -yellow branches of blossoms on another and perfectly harmless kind of -sumach--that scraggly sort of bush just beyond the fence. - -See how the bees are humming about it--some of them honey-bees from a -farmer's hive, others big bumblebees and small burrowing kinds. All are -in search of the minute drops of sweet liquid which each of the tiny -flowers in the blossom-head contains, and which turns into honey after -it has been carried a little while in the insect's crop, or lower part -of the throat, where it lodges. Then it is suitable to be really -swallowed, or to be coughed up and fed to the young bees at home, or -stored away in the cells of such bees as store up honey, for many wild -bees do not make such stores. - -Besides its nectar, however, every flower contains a quantity of small -particles, like dust, which are produced in the heads of the little -thread-like interior parts of the blossom called the stamens; and in -order that the flower shall turn to a seed it is needful that some -grains of this dust, or pollen, shall fall upon another hollow part -called the pistil, and so pass down into its base. It is much better -that the pollen of one flower shall get into the pistil of another than -into its own. The wind manages this to some extent--especially for the -grasses--by shaking or blowing the loose pollen out of one flower and -into another. - -But the bees help this process greatly, and so may be said to pay for -the sweets they use. Watch this one buzzing in front of that clump of -jewelweed. Suddenly the loud humming ceases, and the bee crowds herself -into the hanging, bell-like blossom, searching for the nectar. Now she -is backing slowly out, and you may see how her furry body is -half-powdered with yellow dust. That is pollen; and when she dives into -another "jewel" she will brush some of it off against the pistil there, -which is right in her way, and is very glad to accept her gift. So the -bees and other insects humming about the flowers in this hot sunshine -are not only getting their living but helping the plants to keep -vigorous and produce lots of healthy seed. - -Now let us move on. The sky is filled with swallows. There are the -fork-tailed ones that make their nests inside the barn; the -square-tailed ones that form their curious bottle-shaped nests of mud on -the outside, under the eaves; and the purple martins that live in our -bird-house in the garden. They are darting and dashing and skimming -about in mid-air as though they did not know what it is to be tired; and -if only they were a little closer we should see that every one of them -has its mouth wide open. The reason is that these birds have very sticky -tongues, and that all the time they are in the air they are chasing -flying insects, bothersome gnats and mosquitoes among the rest. As soon -as one of these insects is touched by the tongue, it sticks to it. Then, -without swallowing it, the bird tucks it away in the upper part of its -throat, and goes off to hunt for another. After a time it has quite a -ball of little bugs packed away in this curious manner, and can carry no -more; so it flies off to its nest, and divides them among its little -ones. - -Do you see that small olive-green bird sitting very erect on that -fence-post? There--it suddenly springs into the air, flutters up and -down for just half a moment, and then returns to the post. It is a -flycatcher, and for hours together it will go on catching insects just -in that same way. As it alights it tells us its name, calling -_Phoe-e-be, Phoe-e-be_ in a sad sort of voice, though there is -no reason to think it is sorrowful at all. If we should go down to that -bridge over the stream in the valley we would find its solid nest of -moss and mud among the stones of one of the piers. - -The woodland path is not so good a place for birds as are more open -spaces; but one hears here the distant cooing of a dove, the -_chip-chur-r-r_ shout of the scarlet tanager, as red as fire -everywhere except on its black wings and tail, and often the tapping of -a woodpecker. There is one at work now on that tall dead stub. If you -want to see him you must keep perfectly still, for if he notices that he -is watched he begins to think some harm may follow, and either flies -away or stops work, scrambling around the trunk and peering out from -behind it with one eye to see what you mean to do next. See how firmly -he clings to the trunk. If you were close enough you could see that two -of the large-clawed toes at the end of his short strong legs and feet -were straight forward and two straight backward; and that he is also -propping himself up by means of his short stiff little tail, which is -bent inward, and really serves as a kind of natural camp-stool! Now he -is pecking away at the bark with his strong chisel-like beak, and making -the chips fly in all directions. Most likely the grub of some burrowing -beetle is lying hidden in the wood below, and he is trying to dig it -out. But he will not have to dig down to the very bottom of its tunnel, -for he has a very long slender tongue with a brush-like tip; and this -tip is very sticky. And with this, after he has enlarged the mouth of -the burrow, he will lick out the little grub which is lying hidden away -within it. - -Now let us make our way to the path by the side of the stream. - -What a number of galls there are on these oak-trees--some on the leaves, -some hanging down from the twigs in clusters, like currants, and some -growing on the twigs themselves! Do you know what causes them? - -Well, a very tiny fly pricks a hole in a leaf, or a young shoot, by -means of a kind of sharp sting at the end of her body, and in that hole -she places an egg, together with a very small drop of a peculiar liquid. -This liquid has an irritating effect on the leaf, or twig, and causes a -swelling to grow; and when this has reached its full size, and become -what we call a gall, a little grub hatches out of the egg, and begins to -feed upon it. Sometimes there are several grubs in one gall. If we were -to cut one of those large red and white "oak-apples" to pieces, probably -we should find as many as a dozen, each lying curled up in a hollow -which it had eaten out. - -If a naturalist had to choose some one place in which to carry on his -outdoor studies, he could find none better than the course of a small -rural river, and a year's work would not exhaust it. Just now, in -midsummer, he would be most interested in the nesting of the sunfish and -minnows. Let us steal quietly to the brink, where the turf forms a -little bank, a foot or so high, to which the bottom slopes up in clear -sand and gravel, with here and there a clump of bulrushes. Let us lie -down and scan this bottom through the clear water rippling gently by, -keeping very quiet, so as not to alarm any fishes which may swim near, -for they are the very fellows we wish to see. - -Here comes a little one--a common shiner--no, a golden one--stealing -cautiously toward an open space. A much smaller fish--not so big as your -little finger--shoots past him and stops as suddenly as if it had run -against a wall, then an instant later is off again so swiftly you can -hardly see it move. No wonder it is called Johnny Darter! Meanwhile the -shiner, a minnow in a scale-armor of burnished gold, moves slowly on. -Where is he aiming? Ah! look over there. Do you see that low ring of -sand, about as large as a dinner-plate, running about some clear gravel, -as though the plate were strewn with small pebbles? - -That is a nest of a sunfish; and look! did you see the swoop of that -gray shadow from the bulrushes? The shiner turned and fled like a bright -streak through the water; and now the gray shadow is poised over the -dish-like nest, and we see that it is the blue-eared sunfish, or -"punkin-seed," as you say the boys call it when they go a-fishing. - -See how with its breast-fins it fans the gravel among which its eggs are -lying. They are so small and transparent that we cannot see them, but -they are there, and must be kept clean. So the fish stirs the water and -the current sweeps away everything which may have lodged there while the -owner was away for a few minutes. But he never goes far, for he must -guard his treasures against enemies like the shiner and other fishes, -salamanders, water-bugs, and the like, which would eat them if they -dared. - -Butterflies innumerable greet us and dance along the roadside, as if to -see us safely home. Many are small and yellow, or white and yellow, with -handsomely bordered wings, and they are greatly interested in the -clover. Then we see plenty of little blues, very regular in outline, and -with them various coppers, distinguished by their orange and brown -colors, each with a coppery tinge and set off by black markings. The -hair-streaks are brown, too, with delicate stripes for ornaments on the -lower surface, which are shown neatly when the wings are closed upright -above the back. Did you know this was one of the distinctive marks of a -butterfly? A moth never holds its wings on high in that fashion. - -But it is the larger butterflies that first catch the eye, such as the -monarch and the viceroy, the fritillaries, fox-red and black, with -trimmings of silver; the red admiral, and other anglewings, beautiful in -outline as well as in colors; the delicately pretty meadow-browns, and -the magnificent swallowtails and mourning-cloaks. - -Don't you think it would be interesting and delightful to study these -exquisite creatures? - - -III - -AUTUMN - -It is a bright warm day in October; and once more, as we go for our -ramble, everything seems changed. The autumn flowers are blooming, the -autumn tints are in the leaves; and again there are different animals, -and different birds, and different insects almost everywhere around us. - -We hardly take ten steps before there is a sudden commotion in a clump -of tall grass by the path, and a red-backed mouse leaps almost over our -toes and dives down a little hole which otherwise we should not have -noticed. Doubtless he carried a mouthful of grass-seeds to add to his -granary under ground. All over the country mice and gophers and -squirrels are doing the same thing. There's a big gray squirrel, now, -scratching a hole in the ground as busily as a terrier who thinks he -smells a mole. Suddenly he stops, drops a hickory-nut into the little -grave, paws the dirt and leaves over it, pats them down, and canters -away. All day he is burying nuts so that when, next winter, the trees -are bare, he may dig them up and feed upon their meat. Sometimes he -doesn't need to, or forgets, and then a tree may spring up. Many a fine -hickory or chestnut was planted in this way by squirrels. - -[Illustration: CHICKADEE AND WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCH.] - -What is that red squirrel doing under the chestnut-tree by the side of -the lane? He is hard at work collecting chestnuts, stuffing his big -cheeks with them and carrying them away to hide for use next winter. He -seems to realize that although he will sleep in his bed under the stone -fence almost the whole time from Thanksgiving to Easter, he will wake up -now and then, on warm days, and will feel dreadfully hungry. But then -there will be little to be found in the way of food. So he is now -gathering nuts and acorns and dry mushrooms, and hiding them away so as -to be prepared. Some he puts in a hole in the trunk of a tree, others in -crevices in the stone wall; others he takes into his hole underground, -where his cousin, the saucy chipmunk, stores all of _his_ savings. - -Notice how the pretty little animal uses his bushy tail as he scampers -along a branch. Do you see that he holds it stretched out behind him, -and keeps on turning it slightly first to one side and then to the -other? The fact is that it helps him to keep his balance. When a man -walks upon the tight rope he generally carries in his hands a long pole, -which is weighted at each end with lead. Then if he feels that he is -losing his balance, he can almost always recover it again by tilting up -his pole. The squirrel's tail serves _him_ as a sort of -balancing-pole, and by turning it a little bit to one side, or a little -bit to the other, he can run along the slenderest branches at full speed -without any danger of falling. - -Everywhere we go we hear the whirring of grasshoppers, the chirping of -black crickets, and the shrill declarations of the katydids. A blind man -who could not see the scarlet of the maples, the deep crimson and purple -of sumachs, the pepperidge and the blackberry thickets, or the golden -glow in the birches as the sunlight strikes through them, would know the -season of the year by the sounds. - -How do the insects make their noise--for one can hardly call it singing? -That will be a good subject for you to look up in your books. The air is -filled with the droning and humming of other insects; how are these -sounds produced? - -We notice the insect-noises more, perhaps, because other animals are so -quiet. It is rare to hear the croak of a frog, or the piping of a -tree-toad or the note of a bird. What has become of the birds? When we -see a few they are in flocks, and seem very intent on traveling -somewhere. The truth is they are gathering in companies and journeying -away to the south, where winter, with its cold and snow and hunger, -cannot follow them. Next spring they will come back again, to spend the -summer with us. - -Only those birds remain which can live upon seeds, or pick up rough fare -along the sea-shore. A band of small winged friends are flitting about -among the weeds ahead of us. Do you not know them? Look closely. Aren't -the canary-like form and black wings familiar? You would say they were -goldfinches if they were more yellow, wouldn't you? Now you see that -that is what they are, but in an olive dress. The fact is that all birds -molt their feathers twice a year. In spring the new feathers come out in -bright colors, and in autumn there worn gay coats are lost, and feathers -of duller hue take their place. Thus the brilliant yellow and black -goldfinch of summer becomes a quiet Quaker in winter. Such a change is -very advantageous to the birds--how, you may study out for yourselves. - -Butterflies are scarce, too, but these have died, not run away, as the -birds are doing. One sees a good many sluggish caterpillars, however; -and sharp eyes may begin to find cocoons hanging from the bushes, or -tucked into crevices of bark, or plastered against rocks and the boards -of old fences. If you were to keep account of all the different kinds -you could find, you would soon have a long list; and if you were to -learn how to keep them properly and care for the butterflies and moths -which will come out of them in the spring, you could start an admirable -cabinet. - -Here is a patch of milkweed. Examine each plant thoroughly because there -may be a gift for you hidden among the leaves. You have found "something -pretty," you say? What is it like? "Like a green thimble, with rows of -gold buttons on it." That is a pretty accurate description; only your -thimble is closed at the top, where it hangs by a short thread, and it -is heavy and alive, for it is the lovely chrysalis of the milkweed -butterfly. Next summer you must learn the appearance of that species, -which you can easily do, for it is one of our largest and commonest -ones. - -Where the milkweeds grow you are pretty sure to see also masses of -goldenrod, and towering high above them the great, flowering pillars of -joepye-weed. Such clumps are good hunting-places for autumnal insects. -There gather the soldier-beetles, brilliant in uniforms of yellow and -black. They are sometimes so numerous as to bend down the plants by -their weight, and are in constant motion, crawling about the blossoms, -or flying from spray to spray. Here, too, come locust-boring beetles, -black with a line of yellow V's on the back, whose eggs are laid in the -soft inner bark of locust-trees; and fat short-winged blister-beetles, -or oil-beetles, which leave such a bad odor on the hands when touched. -This is due to an acrid oil which oozes out of the joints of the -beetle's legs when it is handled and thinks itself in danger. It is a -protection, for it both smells and tastes so nasty that no bird will -ever attempt to eat an oil-beetle. And its body is so very big because -it lays such an enormous number of eggs. How many eggs do you think an -oil-beetle will lay? Why, something like thirty thousand! She lays them -in batches in little holes in the ground, and a few days afterward a -tiny little grub hatches out of each egg, and begins to hunt about for -some flower that bees are likely to visit. When it finds one, it climbs -up the stem, hides among the petals, and waits. Then as soon as a bee -settles upon the flower it springs upon her and clings to her hairy -body. The bee is very busy collecting nectar and pollen, and the grub is -very tiny; so she never seems to notice that the long-legged little -creature is clinging to her, and carries it back with her to her nest. -Then the grub lets go, and proceeds to eat all the "bee-bread" which the -bee had stored up so carefully for her own little ones. - -How is it that all the trees, bushes, and plants are covered with -threads of spider's silk, which often annoys us by getting on our hands -or faces? Let us help you to an answer. This is the time of year when -spiders are most numerous and most active; and many a spider trails -behind it a thread of gossamer wherever it goes, and leaves it there. On -many of the plants, bushes, trees, and fences you may see, if you look -closely, very small spiders resting. Those little spiders have been -taking a journey through the air--a sort of balloon trip. During the -summer a number of spiders, all living near one another, had big -families--a hundred or more in each. Perhaps you noticed in July and -August spiders dragging about large white bundles: they were packets of -eggs from which the young hatched. So many coming into the world -together made it difficult to find food. So, one by one, the little -spiders climbed low bushes or tall plants, and perched themselves on the -tips of the topmost leaves. Then each poured out from the end of its -body a slender thread of silk, which floated straight up in the warm air -rising from the heated ground. - -At last each little spider had seven or eight feet of thread rising up -into the air above it. Then suddenly it loosed its hold of the leaf, and -mounted into the air at the end of its own thread, higher, and higher, -and higher, till it had risen several hundreds of feet into the air. -Then it met a gentle breeze traveling slowly overhead, and traveled -along with it, mile after mile, still resting on its thread. And when it -wanted to come down, all that it had to do was to roll up the thread -till there was not quite enough left to support it, and so it came -floating gently down to the ground below. Then, having no more use for -the thread, it broke loose from it and left it lying like a fallen -telegraph wire across the tops of the bushes and fences and other -things, where our faces brush against it. - -What a pretty green fly this is sitting upon the fence, with delicate -gauzy wings looking like the most delicate lacework! - -Yes, that is a lacewing fly. Just notice what wonderful eyes it has. -They look like little globes of crimson fire, and it is quite difficult -to believe that a tiny lamp is not alight inside the head. This fly lays -its eggs in a most curious way. Settling on a twig, she pours out a drop -of a kind of thick gum from the end of her body. Then, jerking her body -suddenly upward, she draws out this gum into a slender thread, which -hardens as soon as it comes into contact with the air; and just as she -lets go she fastens an egg to the tip. She then lays another egg in the -same manner, and then another, and then another, and so she goes on till -she has laid quite a little cluster of eggs--perhaps ninety or a hundred -altogether. You would not think that they were eggs if you were to see -them. You would be almost sure to think that the little cluster was a -tuft of moss. Indeed, for a great many years even botanists thought that -these eggs were a kind of moss, and put pictures of them in books of -botany accordingly! - -Look at these odd little black and white spiders. How jerkily they run; -never moving more than an inch or so at a time, then stopping to rest, -and then generally darting off again in a different direction. They are -hunting-spiders, and are so called because they hunt for insects instead -of trying to catch them in a web. You may see one of these spiders -"stalking" a fly very much as a cat creeps up to a bird, and then -suddenly springing upon it and leaping into the air with its victim firm -in its grip. - -Slowly the days grow shorter, the rains come more frequently, flowers -wither, and the herbage shrivels. Insects die off, the birds one by one -disappear quietly, or gather in flocks to journey southward, and the -woods grow quiet and gray. - - -IV - -WINTER - -As we look out of the window on a landscape of snow, or of half-bare -earth, frozen roads, and leafless trees, the world seems lifeless. But -one who starts out for a walk, anxious to discover whether all nature is -really dead, will soon find that it is very much alive, though much of -it is buried in slumber. Let us test it. - -As we take the well-accustomed path we cannot but contrast the bareness -and silence with the activity and color and cheerful noise about us when -a few weeks ago we strolled this way. The thought saddens and -discourages us a little, when suddenly there comes to our ears - - "_Chick-chick-a-dee-dee!_ Saucy note, - Out of sound heart and merry throat, - As if it said: 'Good day, good sir! - Fine afternoon, old passenger! - Happy to meet you in these places - Where January brings few faces.'" - -There is the singer--half a dozen of them in fact--fluffy little gray, -black-capped birds not much bigger than a man's thumb, dodging busily -about the limbs of that old apple-tree, swinging with desperate clutch -at the tip of a twig, hanging head downward to get at a morsel on the -under side of the bough, and chattering all the time as though cold -weather were no hardship at all. - -What do they find to eat? Keep your eyes on one, and see if you cannot -guess. He is pecking here and there at the bark, and swallowing -something so minute we cannot recognize it. But do you not remember how, -last summer, we watched the procession of ants climbing this very tree -to get honey from a "herd" of aphids on the branches? Those bark-lice -are still there, each hidden under a sort of scale, like a winter -blanket; and it is these that the chickadees are pulling off and eating. -It takes a great many of them to make a meal, and the birds must keep -very busy. Perhaps that is one reason why they seem so happy. A busy -person is usually a cheerful one. - -When you meet a winter group of these merry tomtits it is well to wait -quietly for a little while, since you are pretty sure to find others -following them. There! do you hear that sharp tapping? Turn your head -and you will see a small woodpecker with its checkered black and white -coat, and a broad white stripe down the back, hewing away at the thick -bark of that oak. He is tremendously in earnest, and let us hope he -finds a good fat grub. - -Gliding down the next tree-trunk comes something which for an instant we -take for a mouse--it is so bluish and furtive; but it is a bird--a -nuthatch--which has a straight slender bill almost like a woodpecker's, -and which digs into the cracks and crannies for eggs and hiding grubs of -small insects, now and then smashing a thin-shelled acorn for the wormy -meal it contains, or tearing to pieces the fuzzy cocoon of a -tussock-moth. It has an odd habit of working almost always head -downward, and now and then lifts its head and squeaks out a sharp -_nee-nee-nee_, as though it said "Never-mind-me. 'Tain't cold!" - -Quite likely on the next tree a brown creeper--sedate brown little lady -of a bird--is gliding about the trunk, very daintily picking and -searching with her long slender and curving beak for similar hidden -food. She is a dear little creature. - -Even prettier are the kinglets that often form one of this little -company of winter workers. They are the smallest of all American birds -except the hummers, and are olive green with tiny crowns of gold and -rubies, as one might say. They have the activity and nimbleness of the -chickadees, and toward spring cheer us with a brilliant song. These -lovely pygmies are cousins of the wrens; and one may sometimes see -flitting about the brush a real wren, which in summer flies away to the -far north, letting us hear for a few days in March, before he leaves, -specimens of the exquisite song with which he will make the Canadian -woods ring when next June he meets his mate and builds his nest among -the great pines and spruces. - -Most of our birds, you know, flee southward, when cold weather -approaches, but some, like the crow, many birds of prey, as hawks and -owls, some game-birds, such as Bob White and the grouse, several of the -seed-eating sparrow tribe, and some others, such as the little fellows -we have been watching, stay with us, because they find plenty of food. -If we should go out every day of the winter we could make a long list of -these by the time All Fools' day came around. To it might be added a -goodly list of birds whose proper home is in Northern Canada, but which -in midwinter come south to a country which is less snowy if not less -cold. The snowbirds, with their satiny feet and ivory bills, dressed -like gentlemen in lead-colored coats and white vests, to which you toss -crumbs from the breakfast table every morning, are in this class. -Doubtless we shall see others as we turn down the wooded lane that leads -to the creek. - -Here among these bushes is a good place to look for cocoons of moths and -butterflies. One is pretty sure to see at once a few of those of the big -Promethea moth folded within a large leaf, the stem of which is lashed -by silk threads to its twig so that it will not fall or be blown away. -Very likely on the same bush will hang a similar big cocoon, but this -one fastened all along the under side of the twig, so that it is -hammock-shaped. Search about among the heaped-up leaves beneath the -bush, and you may find the cocoons of the great Polyphemus silkworm-moth -and of that exquisite pale-green luna-moth which flits like a ghost to -our lighted windows on summer nights. - -But these are the giants of their race. Hundreds of smaller cocoons and -chrysalids--papery, fuzzy, leathery, or naked and varnished to keep out -the damp, may be discovered in the crevices of the old fence, upon and -beneath the rough bark of trees, rolled up in leaves little and big, and -buried in the ground, where the moles hunt for them when the ground is -not frozen too hard, and the skunks dig them up. - -How about the moles and the skunks? Well, the moles are by no means as -active as in summer, though they move around somewhat under the frozen -layer of top-soil, in search of the earthworms which have been driven -deep down by the frost. As for the skunks, they, like the woodchucks, -the chipmunks, and the red squirrels, are deeply sleeping in underground -beds; but plenty of four-foots are wide awake. See how that gray -squirrel is making the snow fly as he paws his way down to the nut he -buried three months ago! Only the tip of the plume of his tail waves -above the drift. - -Do you see that double row of holes punched in the snow? Every country -boy knows them as the track of a rabbit, and would tell you how fast the -rabbit was going. But what embroidered on the glistening snow-sheet this -lovely chain that extends wavily from this tree to that stone wall? A -weasel. Little cares he for cold, in his white ermine coat; and many's -the careless sparrow, and snugly tucked-in mouse that falls to his quick -spring and sharp white teeth. The weasel's nearest cousin, the mink, is -working for his living, too, these winter days, haunting the warm -spring-holes in hope of catching eels or other fish. Perhaps we shall -see some signs of his work along the creek. - -And now we have come to the end of the last of our rambles. But don't -think that we have seen nearly all that there is to be seen. If we had -been able to spend a little more time in the fields, or the lane, or the -wood, or on the banks of the stream, we should have noticed a great many -more animals and birds and reptiles and insects, quite as curious and -quite as interesting as any of those which we have met with. And if we -had taken a dozen rambles together instead of only four, each time we -should have found fresh creatures to look at, and fresh marvels to -wonder at, and fresh beauties to admire. For wherever we go nature -always has something new to show us; and the world is full of wonderful -sights for every one who has eyes to see. - - - - -NATURE-STUDY AT THE SEASIDE - - -Introduction - -Many very curious and interesting creatures are to be found on the -seashore, and we dare say you would like to know something about them. -So let us take, in thought, four rambles along the shore together. First -we will go for a stroll on the sandy beach, which is left quite dry for -some little time when the tide goes down. Next, we will pay a visit to -the stretches of mud just above low-tide mark, left bare in the coves -for perhaps a couple of hours twice each day. For our third ramble we -will wander about among the rocks, and examine the creatures which are -crawling about on them, or burrowing into them, or hiding underneath the -great masses of seaweed with which they are covered. And then, lastly, -we will search in the pools which lie between the rocks, where we shall -probably find some of the most interesting animals of all. - -We will suppose that these walks are on our Atlantic coast, for we have -not time now to explore the shores of the Pacific and describe its -animals, many of which are very different from those of the Eastern -coast. - - -I - -ALONG THE SANDY BEACH - -As all the coast of the United States south of New York, and Cape Cod -and Long Island besides, are formed of soil and pebbles ground off the -tops and sides of the Appalachian ranges of mountains, the ocean beaches -and the bottom of the sea near shore are all of sand, constantly swept -by currents, and moved by storms. On such a plain of shifting sand not -many plants or animals can live save those which are able to swim or to -bury themselves; and not nearly so long a list can be made as among the -rocks which give root-hold and shelter, or where the bottom is muddy, as -we shall see later; yet a walk will enable us to find a good many things -about which you ought to know something. - -Here, for instance, are a lot of shells, the hard outer coats of the -soft boneless creatures we call mollusks, such as you know very well on -land as snails. When you have filled your little basket, if we asked you -to sort them into two kinds, you would be almost sure to put those which -consist of two pieces, attached together, into one pile, and those which -are in one solid piece, and more or less twisted like a snail, into the -other. This would mark a real division, for the first heap would have -the clam-like mollusks which we call bivalves, and the second would have -those coiled gastropod mollusks that we may call sea-snails. - -The bivalves scattered along the beach are all dead and mostly broken, -for they have been washed up from muddy places; but many of the -sea-snails may be found alive and belong here on the sand, and so we may -look first at them. - -Here is a big one to begin with which the southern fishermen call a -conch and the northern oystermen a winkle. It is shaped like a pear, and -pushing out of its shell a very tough muscular part of its body called -the foot, it plows along in the sand, or even burrows into it, small end -first, searching for food, which consists of animal matter, either dead -or alive. It finds this by its sense of smell, and when it comes to it, -thrusts out of its head, near the forward end of the foot, a long -ribbon-like tongue, covered with hundreds of minute flinty teeth, and -rasps away the flesh. Winkles are numerous everywhere and are of great -service in devouring dead fish, etc., which would pollute the water; but -they also eat a great quantity of oysters, as we shall see presently. -You will find two kinds, and should note how their shells differ. - -Very likely you will find among the long rows of dead eel-grass and -drift-stuff marking the reach of high tides a twisted string of most -curious objects, each about as big as a cent, feeling as if made -of yellow paper and strung together like a necklace on a stiff cord. -These are the eggs of a conch, or more truly, the egg-cases, for in each -cent-like capsule was placed an egg. You can prove it by opening some of -them. In the dry ones you will probably find only dead young shells, -hardly bigger than pin-heads, which have hatched from the eggs; but now -and then you may pick up a soft and elastic set, and in these, which are -alive, or have only lately been torn from the weeds in deep water and -thrown upon the beach, you will find much larger baby conchs, which by -and by would have found a way out and begun to travel about. - -We have already picked up several different sorts of slender, twisted -sea-snails of small size, and a few as big as a walnut and almost as -round, save for the circular opening out of which the animal pushes its -foot. His name is Natica, and he is one of the worst foes of the clam, -whose shell he bores. Here, half buried in the wet sand at the edge of -the gentle surf, is a living one, and we can see the grooved trail -behind him showing where he has traveled. We will pick him up, and see -how hastily he shrinks back into the armor of his shell, and shuts his -door with a plate growing upon the tip-end of his foot. All these -sea-snails have such a plate, sometimes thin and horny like this one, -sometimes thick and shell-like; and if you try to pry it away you will -have to tear it to pieces, for the frightened animal will not let go its -strong hold. He knows better than to open his door and let you pick him -out. Even if you did you would have to tear his body out piecemeal, for -he would by no means uncoil it from around the central post of his house -and let himself be dragged out whole. This door is a good protection, -then, against the claws of crabs and the nibbling teeth of fishes and -various small parasites which would like to get at him. It is called an -operculum. - -Just lift up some of that seaweed and stuff which the waves have piled -up. Why, the sand underneath it is simply alive with sandhoppers, -besides various jumping and crawling insects, sand-bugs, spiders, etc. -But the sandhoppers are most numerous--there must be a hundred, all -skipping about so actively that it is quite difficult to follow their -movements. They were feeding upon the seaweed, and their sharp -little jaws are so powerful that if you were to tie up a few sandhoppers -in your handkerchief and carry them home, you would be almost sure to -find that they had nibbled a number of little holes in it by the time -that you got there! But surely such little creatures as sandhoppers -cannot do very much good, even by eating decaying seaweed. Ah! but there -are so many of them! Wherever the shore is sandy they live in thousands, -and even in millions. If you walk along the edge of the sea, sometimes, -when the tide is rising, you will see them skipping about in such vast -numbers that the air looks as if it were filled with a kind of mist for -a foot or eighteen inches from the ground. And though many of the -shore-birds feed upon them, and some of the land-birds do so, too, and -the shore-crabs eat a very great many, yet their numbers never seem to -grow less. - -These sandhoppers are small cousins of the crabs with which we shall get -acquainted when we go to the mud-flat; and a search would find many -others, such as beach-fleas of various kinds. Here and there are strange -grooves, and--look! one of them is growing longer under our very eyes. -Dig away the sand just ahead of it, and see what you can find. There it -is--a small ivory-like creature, about twice as big as a pumpkin-seed. -It is a sand-bug, or hippa, and it burrows along just under the surface, -searching for minute particles of food among the grains and letting the -sand fall in behind it, for it does not mean to make a tunnel. - -One of the waste objects you tossed aside was a piece of wood which the -waves have flung up, and which no doubt once formed part of a wrecked -vessel. - -"And I don't wonder!" some one exclaims, "if all the timbers were as -rotten as that!" - -The bit of timber is certainly ruined--but what has happened to it? It -is full of long round burrows, each about big enough to admit a -lead-pencil, and so close together that the walls between them are very -little thicker than paper; and every burrow seems to be lined with a -kind of glaze. - -That is the work of a curious creature known the world over as the -ship-worm, which often does a great deal of mischief by burrowing into -the hulls of ships and the timbers supporting wharfs and harbor-side -buildings. It has a soft round body no bigger than a piece of stout -string, and often nearly a foot in length. But it is really a -shell-bearing mollusk, like the cockle and the clam. And if you were to -look closely at the fore end of its body you would see its bivalve -shells, although they are so very small that they might easily be -mistaken for jaws. - -When first this animal hatches from the egg it is not in the least like -its parents. It is just a little round-bodied creature covered almost -all over with hairs, by waving which up and down it manages to swim -about in the water. But it does not keep its shape very long, for if you -were to look at it about thirty-six hours later you would find that it -was oval instead of round. Twenty-four hours later still it would be -almost triangular, while next day it would be almost round again. And so -it would go on changing its form day after day, till at last it fastened -itself down by its fleshy foot to a piece of sunken timber and began to -burrow in it. And then at last it would take the form of its parents. -The birth and growth of most of the bivalves is similar to this; and it -must be remembered that these changing larval forms are hardly large -enough to see. - -Another timber-destroyer all along the New England coast is the gribble, -a crustacean related to the sandhoppers, which is not bigger than a -grain of wheat, and looks like a pill-bug. It devours wood wherever it -finds it under water, and will gradually honeycomb and weaken until they -fall to pieces the bases of piles, boat-stairs, and other timbers under -water which are not sheathed with copper or filled with creosote. -Therefore it is much hated. - -A sandy beach is not the place for crabs in general, but there is one -kind which we ought to find here. There is one now, but one might wager -something that you can't discover it in its hiding-place unless shown to -you. Do you see those two little round objects on short stems sticking -half an inch out of the sand by that old winkle-shell? Yes? Well, please -go and get one or both of them. What! is it alive? some sort of crab, -buried in the sand? All right--pick it up, but look out it doesn't nip -you! Those claws are powerful, for with them the crabs must seize and -firmly hold struggling, slippery fish and other animals, until it can -subdue and eat them. Notice how the hind legs are flattened into strong -paddles to enable it to swim swiftly upon its prey. In spite of these -fierce qualities we call this one a lady-crab, because of its richly -ornamented costume--greenish yellow profusely marked with purple rings. -It spends most of its time crawling or swimming in the sea where the -bottom is sandy and the water shallow, but now and then comes ashore and -buries itself in the dry sand, all but its stalked eyes, as we found -this one. - -A smaller, lighter-colored, and more square-bodied cousin of this -crustacean, called the ghost-crab, is very common on southern beaches, -where it digs slanting burrows deeply into the sand. Prof. A. G. Mayer -tells us that it is a scavenger, feeding on dead animals, and also -catching and eating beach-fleas. It is at night that they are most -active. "As they flit rapidly about in the moonlight their popular name -of ghost-crab seems remarkably appropriate. As one approaches they dash -off with great rapidity, and will often rush into the water, although -the gray snappers are swimming close along the shore in order to devour -them." - -What have you found now? It appears to be a horseshoe-shaped skillet, or -frying-pan, made of brown parchment, with a long spike loosely hinged to -one side for a handle, and a big crab lying on its back in the pan. No -wonder you are surprised. The first white men who came to this country -were equally so, for nothing of the sort is to be seen in any other part -of the world, except in the Malayan islands. If we search we are likely -to find one alive and creeping about, and then we shall see that the -skillet is a broad shield covering the back of an animal, and that what -we thought was the crab inside it, is its body and legs. When you come -to study natural history more deeply you will learn many very -interesting things about this strange inhabitant of our beaches, which -is known as a horseshoe-crab, or king-crab, and also as limulus. It is -the sole remnant of a great tribe of sea-animals called trilobites, -which became extinct ages ago. - -One more curiosity must be mentioned before we quit this first short -walk upon the open beach--what the fishermen call the mermaid's-purse, -of which, see, you have found several. - -It is an egg, but you never would have suspected it, would you? Examine -it. It is about two inches long, and made of a hard, black, leathery -substance, and at each of the four corners there is a little projection -about an inch in length. It is the empty egg of a skate--a fish of the -shark tribe with a broad, flat body and a long whip-like tail--from -which one of these curious fishes has just escaped. How do you think it -got out of the egg when the time came for it to be hatched? Just look at -this empty case, and you will see. At one end there is a slit running -across it almost from one side to the other, made in such a manner that -the little fish could easily push its way out, while none of its enemies -could push their way in. So the baby skate lay in its cradle in safety -till the time came for it to pass out into the sea. - -But here is an egg made in just the same way, with one little -difference. Instead of having a short straight projection at each -corner, it has a long, coiled, twisted one, much like the tendril of a -grapevine. That is the egg of one of the small sharks called dogfish, -which are so called because they swim about in parties or packs of fifty -or sixty together, driving herring and other fishes before them, as dogs -drive deer. The skin of a dogfish is as rough as a piece of sandpaper. - -When the eggs of this fish are first laid, the twisted projections at -the ends coil themselves round the stems of weeds growing at the bottom -of the sea, and hold them so firmly that they cannot be washed away; and -at each end there is a small hole, so that a current of water may always -flow through this egg-case and over the little fish inside--something of -just as much importance to it as is a supply of air to a land-baby. - - -II - -SEARCHING THE SHORE AT LOW TIDE - -The shore of the eastern United States, at least south of New York, is -formed of a line of long narrow islets whose outer beaches, and the -sea-floor for miles out, are pure sand. They support very little life, -as has been said. Behind them, however, are shallow bays and sounds, in -which the water, though salt, is usually warm and still; mud gathers -upon the sand, and eel-grass and other water-weeds grow in abundance. -Here is excellent ground for naturalists, old or young, and in a single -walk you can discover enough to surprise you greatly. We must go when -the tide is low, and it will be a good idea to take our rubber boots, so -that we may not be afraid of the wet mud. We will also take a small -spade or strong trowel, and some boxes and bottles. - -What a lot of clam-shells are lying about the shore! There are two -kinds, the soft clam and the hard clam; but none of them are alive. - -How is this? We have already learned, you will remember, that the clams -are bivalves; that is, the shell is in two pieces, hinged together by an -elastic ligament over the back, and covering each side of the animal. -The soft body is attached to each shell by a strong muscle, by which the -creature can pull the shells tight together, and so cover itself -completely. When it wishes, however, it lets the shells spring open -somewhat, so that it may put out from between their lower edges its -muscular "foot," and perhaps move about, while out of the front end it -stretches a double-barreled tube, called its siphon. Down one of the -tubes is sucked a stream of water which not only bathes the animal's -gills, or breathing organs, but carries minute floating particles of -food into its stomach, after which the waste water is forced out of the -other tube. - -Now you will understand what we shall see, and are ready for the answer -to our question. You never find live clams crawling about the sand, -because they live buried in the mud. - -Now let us put on our boots and look about on the surface of the wet -mud. Do you see ahead of us those little jets of water come spouting up -into the air as if squirted out of tiny syringes? Every one of these -little jets is thrown up by a soft clam, which lies perhaps several -inches deep in the mud, with its siphon stretched up to the surface and -held full of water, waiting for the tide to come in and refresh it. When -it feels the jarring of our footsteps it squirts the water out; and -you must dig deep and fast if you want to catch it. This is what those -men are doing out there on the flat--digging out clams with long spades, -and filling their baskets for market. Thousands of little ones lie in -the mud, not yet big enough to eat. - -The soft clam is a shapeless sort of mollusk, with a thin chalky shell, -not at all pretty; but the hard clam, or quahog, is thick-shelled and -regular in outline; and in an end-on view takes the shape of an ace of -hearts, like the Venus-shell, or the cockle, which is so commonly eaten -in Europe. This species likes much deeper water than the soft clam, and -is gathered mostly from boats, by a kind of rake; but we shall no doubt -find a few up here. Do you see that scratch in the mud? It looks like a -trail, and there at the end is the traveler himself, standing upright in -the mud like a half-buried wedge. - -This shows another difference between the two clams; for while the soft -clams and their relatives, such as the pretty razor-fish, and the "old -maid" of English bays, never leave the burrow where they begin life, the -quahogs slowly wander about all the time. As for the scallops, they -fairly skip and jump. - -What are scallops? Well, we shall hardly see much of them, for they live -in deep water; but their half-shells are to be seen cast up everywhere, -for they also are bivalves. Our common ones are usually about the size -of a silver dollar, and fan-shaped, the thin shell ribbed like the -sticks of a fan, and the margin crinkled, and they are variously -colored, but mostly in tints of reddish and yellow. - -Several small bivalves and sea-snails may be added to our collection -from this uncovered bay-bottom, and here and there spaces are fairly -sprinkled with little blackish fellows about the size of hazelnuts. When -we have gathered a handful we shall find we can sort out three or four -kinds. - -A very curious denizen of the tide-flats of our Southern States is the -pinna, a large bivalve with thin horny shells shaped like a slightly -opened fan, which lies deeply buried, point down. The edges of its shell -come just at the surface, and are exceedingly sharp, so that barefooted -persons have to be very careful how they step where pinnas are common, -as on the Gulf coast of Florida, and it is no wonder the people there -call them razor-fish. Lying there in the mud, with its shells parted, -and a current of water always sucking down what we may call its throat, -it forms a regular trap for little fishes and other small creatures. The -instant one swims between the shells, they close and the unfortunate -curiosity-seeker finds himself in a prison from which there is no escape. - -When a young pinna settles down in its place it at once anchors itself -to some rock or fixed thing below it by throwing out from near its -lower, narrow end a bunch of very strong threads, which hold it down so -firmly that it takes a very hard pull to tear them away. This -anchor-cable is called a byssus. - -A short distance from us a narrow stream wriggles through the salt -marsh, and we can get into a rough little boat and paddle down toward -that old wharf whose weedy piles are covered with interesting things, -which we may examine now that the ebbing tide has left them uncovered -for a few hours. The peaty banks, with their growth of harsh salt-grass -and algæ, will keep our eyes busy as we float along the black and -winding creek. - -Now we shall get acquainted with some of the crabs. Look sharply down -into the water and you will see the large "blue" crabs which we buy in -the market, and eat, swimming near the bottom or crawling over the mud -near the banks. There is one, now. He doesn't look very blue, nor very -appetizing, does he? His back is brown and muddy, to be sure; but his -big claws and lower plates have much more blue upon them than has any of -the other large crabs, and so he gets the distinguishing name. - -But, you say, you have heard of "hard-shell" and "soft-shell" crabs, and -want to know the difference? It is simply a difference of condition. If -you will turn to page 397, you will find described that extraordinary -process by which crabs grow, by throwing off their stiff old skins and -expanding to fill the elastic new one which has formed underneath. -Before this change, the creature is a "hard-shell" in fishermen's -language, and just afterward, when he is large and tender, he is -naturally a "soft-shell"; and then is the time to eat him. - -Notice how the black masses of peat along the banks are honeycombed with -holes, as if somebody had been pushing down the point of his umbrella. -They are the homes of little fiddler-crabs, which scuttle into them by -the hundred as we approach, and then creep up to peer out after we have -passed by, and make sure it is safe to go abroad again. In other holes -live two other sorts of burrowing crabs. One is the little mud-crab -(_Panopæus_), which is a peaceful cousin of the fiddler; and the -other is the sand-crab (_Ocypoda_) whose peculiarity it is to be -perfectly sand-colored, so that it is almost impossible to see him until -he moves; consequently he is commonly found only in the sandy places. - -As we float nearer to the mouth of our winding creek, we begin to notice -bunches of mussel-shells, clinging closer to each other than grapes in a -bunch; and when we try to pick one up we find it quite immovable. In -fact, they are anchored to the roots of the grasses, and to each other, -by a bunch of byssus threads from each mussel, like those of the pinna; -and these threads are so strong that they can hold the mussels firm -against the beating of the waves, so that a shore which is thickly -covered with mussels is safe from wearing away. You may see an example -of this in the tideway at the mouth of this very creek, and masses of -mussels strengthen the supports of that wharf we are approaching. If you -were to go near the town of Bideford, England, you would see a bridge of -twenty-four arches, which runs across the Torridge River close to the -place where it joins the Taw. Now that bridge is held together by -clusters of mussels! The force of the stream is so great, that if mortar -is used to repair the bridge it is very soon washed away. So from time -to time large boat-loads of mussels are taken to the spot and shot into -the water, and they fasten themselves so firmly to the bridge by means -of their byssus threads, that they actually hold together the stones of -which it is built! - -These binding mussels are mostly of the smooth, dark-blue sort which are -found on both sides of the Atlantic, and in Europe are gathered and -eaten. When our people become a little wiser and more economical, we -also will take advantage of this great stock of excellent food right at -our doors. - -But in the bunches which are scratching the side of the boat as we glide -along close to the bank are some which are much larger, though smooth, -like the edible mussels. They are an American species. Then here and -there in peat you may see a sort whose shell is rough, with ridges -spreading out toward the large end, and these you may call -horse-mussels. - -Now we have got down to the boat-landing toward which we have been -lazily drifting, and we will twist the chain around one of the piles -that support it, and stop long enough to take a look at one of them. -Most of the time each pile is under water, and therefore is overgrown -with a thick "fur" of plants and animals. - -You will see that most of this fur consists of seaweeds, but their -leaves are often the resting-place of several sorts of lowly animals. -Indeed, you must look sharp to make sure whether some of the feathery -tufts that droop from a dank old post, or spray out so beautifully in -the ripples at its foot, are plants or animals. We will not talk about -that just now, but wait till we take our excursion to the rocky shore, -where we shall find barnacles and corallines and sea-mats and polyps -bigger and better than here. - -But do you see between those green fronds that roundish yellow object -about as big as a filbert? Touch it gently. Did you see tiny jets of -water squirt out of two little nozzles on its surface? That gives it the -name of sea-squirt. Into one of the nozzles, when the tide comes over -it, is constantly sucked a current of sea-water which passes into a -stomach-like cavity, where the minute particles of food in the water are -caught and digested; then the water passes on through another cavity -where the blood receives its oxygen, as in our lungs or a crab's or -fish's gills, and then rushes out. So this little object is a real -animal, with heart, blood, stomach, and something in the way of -nerves--enough, at any rate, to feel your touch, shrink, and squirt out -all the water in its bag-like body. - -There are a good many kinds and forms of these ascidians, as naturalists -call them, some larger, some waving about on the summit of stalks like -lily-buds, and some clustered into colonies grown together, which form -bands around the stems of plants, or make masses called "sea-pork" by -the fishermen, or float in chains, by millions, on the surface of the -open sea. - -Here, too, are small red and yellow sponges; some coarse little -sea-anemones, etc.; and wandering over the whole, feeding upon one or -another of these, and cleaning the polyps and polyzoans off the algæ, -are a sort of marine daddy-long-legs, called no-body crabs, because they -seem all legs and look crab-like. - -It isn't very sweet-smelling under this damp old wharf, where the rising -tide is beginning to bathe the piles, and one after another plants and -animals are expanding as they feel the refreshment of the water around -them; and we will move away as soon as we have dug a few things out of -the mud, soon be hidden by the tide. - -Let us run the bow of our boat up on that soft black slope, and see what -we can find by leaning over the side. Just look at this hairy object, -for instance, which has been left by the retreating waves. It seems like -a big brown slug covered with bristles and is not very pleasant to -handle; but you needn't be afraid of it, and you mustn't be squeamish. -Just dip up some water in that pail, and rinse it till you have washed -every scrap of mud from its bristly coat, and then look at it in the -sunlight. Do you think it is dull and dingy now? Did you ever see a more -beautiful creature? This animal is called the sea-mouse, although really -it is a kind of sea-worm and if you will turn back to page 429 you will -find it described. The reason why its coat is always so dirty is that -the bristly hairs which cover it act as a sort of filter, and strain out -the mud from the water which is passing to the gills. But these hairs -have another use as well. Each one is really a sort of slender spear, -with a barbed tip, the edges being set with a number of sharp little -points, all directed backward, forming a capital protection from such -creatures as the fishes, a great many of which would be glad to feed -upon sea-mice if it were not for their coating of spines. - -Do you see those twisted little coils of muddy sand scattered about on -the mud? Those are the casts of lugworms, which are made in the same way -as the casts of earthworms seen in our garden-paths on damp mornings; -in fact, these lugs are just marine earthworms (see page 427), and like -them eat their way down into the mud, swallowing mouthful after mouthful -for the sake of nourishing particles in it, and then voiding the useless -remainder. - -Perhaps you wonder how it is that the burrows of the lugworms remain -open. Why doesn't the mud close in behind the animal? The fact is that -the worm is always pouring out from its skin a sticky slime which -quickly becomes quite hard and firm. And this binds the sandy mud -together as the worm forces its way down, and forms a kind of lining to -its burrow, just like the brickwork with which we line our railway -tunnels. - -You would scarcely suspect what interesting and often beautiful worms -lie buried in the mud or muddy sand of sea-beaches and salt marshes. -They occur elsewhere, too, as upon weedy rocks, while a great many kinds -dwell upon or within the bodies or coverings of other animals, from -whales to periwinkles and crabs. - -Most of the beach-worms belong to the highest class of the tribe, called -annelids because their bodies are made up of ring-like segments (a -little ring in Latin is _annellus_), as you can easily see by -examining one of the angleworms you dig in the garden for fish-bait. The -red lugworm, or "red thread," as it is often called, is another plain -example of this structure. - -Digging down by low-water mark we are likely to unearth one or more of -the ribbon-worms which, when they are large, seem rather terrible. Their -bodies are flat, so that when they swim they move through the water like -a floating ribbon, and they have been found five or ten feet long and as -wide as your palm. Such big ones are rare, however, and we are more -likely to have to deal with one two or three feet long and less than an -inch broad. They are active creatures, burrowing into and through the -mud in search of other worms upon which they feed, and which they seize -by thrusting out a sticky proboscis. There is also a smaller one, pink -in color, while the bigger species is yellowish. - -Though we may not dig up a ribbon, we are pretty sure to turn out a -nereis, or clam-worm, as the fishermen call it--a reddish creature a -foot or two long, looking like a centipede, for there is a pair of -minute feet on each ring, and every foot is feathered with a gill. This -also is a ravenous enemy of all other worms or animals it can overcome; -and young clams, limpets, starfish, and other protected creatures must -be thankful for their armor when it comes crawling near them. Its rich -green and salmon coat has no charm in their eyes, you may be sure. But -the nereis itself must have its fears, for it is not only hunted by -ribbon-worms, by a big active annelid called "four-jawed," and by -winkles and dog-whelks, but is well liked by various fishes; and, last -misfortune of all, it is constantly sought by fishermen for bait. In -spite of all this, clam-worms of all kinds remain immensely numerous all -along the coast. On calm summer nights they leave their burrows, swim up -to the surface at high tide, and cast out vast numbers of eggs, from -which presently hatch little pear-shaped larvæ, which swim about a short -time, when the few that have survived settle down, change to the -worm-like form, and burrow into the mud. - -When we come to explore the rocky places, and peer into the still pools -left by the ebb-tide among the reefs and boulders, we shall make the -acquaintance of some other worms that display themselves in such places -as in a natural aquarium. - - -III - -ON THE ROCKY LEDGES - -There are practically no rocks on our Southeastern coast, so that we -must imagine ourselves now somewhere in New England--let us say on the -southern shore of Rhode Island. All along the north side of Long Island -Sound, about Buzzards and Narragansett bays, and then from Boston Harbor -right up to Labrador, the shore is rock, with many headlands, reefs, and -islets, separated by shallow coves or by swift tidal runways. This is -good hunting-ground for the seaside naturalist, and one visit to the -space left uncovered at low tide will be no more than a glance at what -might easily keep us busy and interested a whole summer through. - -As the water ebbs away, the tops of the ledges and boulders emerge like -the hairy heads of some sea-monsters, for they are mostly overgrown with -long tresses of olive-brown rockweed and green ribbons of sea-cabbage, -(_Ulva_), which trail, wet and shining, down their sides. Step -carefully, for it is all extremely slippery. Do you hear that continual -popping under your feet? That means that you are crushing the little -bladder-like swellings strung like big beads on the stems of the -rockweed. They are filled with air, and keep the long and heavy stems -and leaves of the weed afloat, as you may see if you look down where it -is swishing back and forth in the lapping waves. These plants must be -exceedingly strong to resist the pulling and pounding of the surf in a -storm; and their power to keep afloat by means of these gas-filled -"bladders" is of assistance, not only in enabling them to hold together, -but to form a breakwater which protects the rocks and ledges they cover -from being beaten to pieces by the surf. - -Underneath and upon these masses of seaweed hide a great quantity and -variety of small plant and animal life, some of which we shall be able -to find and study, though a large part of it requires more thorough work -than we have time for, and the aid of a microscope. - -But first let us look at some of the bare places, where there is no -seaweed. Here is a black rock with white patches of rough little things -growing upon it by the hundred. They are not mollusks, however, but -rock-barnacles (see page 407), which English boys call acorn-shells. -They are small and distant cousins of the crabs. - -The story of these barnacles is a very curious one. When first they -hatch from the eggs which older barnacles have cast out into the sea, -they are not in the least like their parents, but are queer little -round-bodied creatures, smaller than pin-heads, with six feathery legs -by which they paddle about, one round black eye, and two feelers. Every -two or three days they throw off their skins, as caterpillars do, and -appear in the new ones which have formed underneath; and every time they -do this they change their shape, so that sometimes they are round, and -sometimes oblong, and sometimes almost triangular! - -At last they reach their full size. Then they cling with their feelers -to the first rock, log, or other hard thing they come to, and pour out a -drop or two of a very strong cement, which hardens around them and -fastens them firmly down. After this they never move again; but a day or -two later they change their skins once more, and appear as perfect -acorn-shells. - -Now look at one of them carefully through this magnifying-glass. Do you -see that there is a little hole in the top of the shell, which is made -of several pieces? That is the hole through which the animal inside -fishes for food. If you were to watch it when the rocks are thinly -covered with water, you would see that it kept poking out a net-like -scoop, and then drawing it in again. This net really consists of the -hairy legs; and as they wave to and fro in the water they collect the -tiny scraps of decaying matter on which the little creature feeds. They -also bear the gills by which the barnacle refreshes its blood. - -You must be very careful not to knock your hand against these shells -when you are hunting about among the rocks, for their edges are so sharp -that they cut almost like knives. - -"Another sort of barnacle," you say you have found? No: there _are_ -other sorts--the strange goose-barnacle, for instance, which attaches -itself to the bottoms of ships--but what you have found is one of the -limpets, and that is not a crustacean, but a gastropod mollusk. It is -shaped like a tiny rough mountain, or rather like a volcano, for you see -there is a hole in its summit; and we call it the keyhole limpet on -account of the shape of that hole. Pick it up. Oh! you can't, eh? Of -course not. Pull and push as hard as you like, you won't be able to move -it, nor can the heaviest waves wash it off. - -Would you like to know why? - -Well, the reason is that a limpet clings to a rock by turning the whole -lower surface of its body into one big sucker; it presses it tightly -against the rock and then lifts the middle part. The consequence is that -a chamber is formed in which there is nothing at all--no water, not even -air; and, as happens when you lift a brick with a small leather sucker, -the weight of the atmosphere presses down upon it so strongly -that no force you can bring to bear will pull it off. - -However, a limpet is not gripping the rock all the time with such vigor; -he would literally be tired to death, and starved to death, too, if he -didn't ease up most of the time. It is only when he is alarmed by a -touch that he clamps down. If you want to get him free, just wait till -he loosens up, then hit him a sudden sharp blow on one side with a stick -or stone, and knock him off. Then you will be able to examine the soft -body and see how he is built. - -Limpets are vegetable-feeders, and when the water is still, or absent, -they creep slowly about the rock, nibbling the tiny vegetation on its -surface. Another interesting fact in limpet-life is told on page 421. - -Another kind of limpet is very common on those rocky shores, which is -shaped somewhat like a loose round-toed slipper or a French -_sabot_. This is the slipper-limpet, or half-deck, as fishermen -call it. - -On the lower rocks near the water, and hidden in among the wet seaweeds, -lie many small spiral gastropods which we call periwinkles. Two of the -commonest kinds are littorinas, marked with fine lines and colors in -various ways. Another, reddish with chestnut bands, is named -_Lacuna_; and you may pick up several kinds of small blackish ones, -such as _Bittium_, or of light-colored ones, as _Rissoa_, -which is prettily mottled; while numerous in some places is the -purple-shell or _Purpura_, which is interesting because it belongs -to the European shores as well as to ours, and because from it the -ancients gathered some of their purple dye, although another mollusk -(the murex) furnished most of it. But in old times the coast people, -both of old England and New England, obtained from this little mollusk -an indelible violet ink with which to mark their clothes. - -Would you like to see a little of this dye? - -Very well, you can easily do so. Look! Hold the purpura over this sheet -of white paper, and give the animal a little poke with the head of a -pin. There! It has squirted out a drop of liquid upon the paper. It does -not look much like purple dye, does it? It looks very much more like -curdled milk. But lay it in the sunshine and notice what -happens. Do you see? It is turning yellow. Now a blue tinge is creeping, -as it were, into the yellow, and turning it to green. The blue gets -stronger and stronger, till the green disappears. And at last a crimson -tinge creeps into the blue, and turns it to purple. - -Another curious thing about the purpura is the way in which it lays its -eggs. It fastens them down to the surface of the rock by little stalks, -so that they look like tiny egg-cups with eggs inside them; therefore -when these eggs hatch, several little purpura come out of each cup. - -All the small periwinkles feed upon the algæ, but with the purpura, -which seems to live mainly on young barnacles, we come to a lot of -flesh-eaters--small mollusks of prey, as we might say. - -There are several spiral sorts, mostly from one to two inches long, -whitish and heavily ribbed, which are sometimes called dog-whelks; but -the worst one, which lives by thousands on the beds of planted oysters -scattered all along the shore of Long Island Sound, is known to the -oystermen as the drill, or borer. It is particularly fond of the flesh -of oysters, and cares nothing for their shells, as it carries in its -mouth a drilling instrument (see page 419) by which it can bore a round -hole through the poor oyster's armor. In this way it destroys many -thousands of dollars' worth of valuable oysters every year. - -It was pretty certain we should find a starfish down near low-water -mark, and here is a fine one. - -Starfishes are among the oddest of sea-animals; for one reason, because -they have so many legs. Perhaps you did not know they had any legs at -all; certainly you can see none when you pick up a dead specimen on the -beach. The fact is that a starfish keeps its legs inside its body, where -there are a lot of organs protected by its hard, limy hide; and when it -wants to use them it pokes them out through little holes on its under or -grooved side, and fills them with water. - -You would like to see its legs, no doubt. Very well; you shall. This -starfish is still alive: we can easily see that, for when we pick it up -its rays stand stiffly out; but if it were dead they would be quite soft -and flabby, and would hang down. So we will put it into a shallow pool -of clear sea-water, and see what happens. There! did you notice that it -moved one of its rays? See, the one in front is being slowly pushed -forward. Now the rays behind are being drawn up; and now that they have -taken a fresh hold the front one is being pushed forward again. The -starfish is really walking! What will it do when it comes to a stone? -Why, walk over it! What will it do when it comes to rock? Why, climb up -it! Now take the starfish out of the water. Turn it over on its back. -There! do you see? On the lower surface of every ray are hundreds of -little fleshy objects waving about in the air. Those are its "feet," or -at least its means of walking; and each has a sort of cup at the end -which acts as a sucker. By means of these the starfish can cling tightly -to the surface of a stone. So by using first the little sucker-legs on -one or two of its rays, and then those on the others, the starfish is -able to crawl about quite easily. - -The starfishes live upon animal food--mainly other mollusks, which they -kill in a very curious manner. When, in crawling about, they come upon a -whelk or clam or oyster, they creep over it and clasp it in their five -arms in a murderous embrace from which there is no escape. Even if the -creature can move off, its captor clings to it with its hundreds of tiny -suckers, and rides along with it like that Old Man of the Sea in -Sindbad's story. - -Now if you look again at our specimen you will see on its under side, a -small pit in the center of its body, closed by five points. This is the -mouth, and the points are sharp. As soon as the starfish has a grip upon -its victim the mouth opens and there is gradually pushed out a strong -membrane which is the creature's great loose stomach. This envelops the -animal, shell and all, or as much of it as possible, and soon begins -actually to digest the flesh. When the meal is finished the starfish -draws back its stomach and leaves only the empty shell of its prey. - -These voracious starfish are a worse enemy to the cultivated oysters -than are the drills; and, having an abundance of food on the thickly -planted beds, they become extremely numerous, so that it costs the -owners of the beds much money each year to gather them off the beds by -means of a sort of great rake called the tangles. Otherwise the oysters -would soon be wholly destroyed. The men used simply to tear to pieces -what they caught and throw them overboard again; but they soon learned -that this was worse than useless, because each half, or even a single -arm, would not only go on living but would reproduce all the missing -parts; so that in trying to kill one starfish they had brought to life -two or perhaps even five, which was very discouraging. Nowadays, -therefore, all captured starfishes are brought ashore and left there, -and often are made use of by being ground up with oyster-shells, -fish-bones, etc., into an excellent fertilizer. - -What is that greenish-gray object covered all over with spikes? It is -clinging in a little hollow of the rock, half hidden in seaweed of the -same color. - -Ah! that is a sea-urchin, and although it looks so very unlike them it -is really a kind of first cousin to the starfishes. Here is a dead one -from which the spines have been knocked off. Just look at it carefully, -and you will see that it is very much like a starfish rolled up into a -ball. See, you can trace the five rays quite easily, and if you look at -it through a strong magnifying-glass you will find that its surface is -pierced in hundreds of places with tiny holes through which it can poke -out little sucker-feet, just as the starfishes do. - -Look again at the shell from which the spines have been knocked away. Do -you see that it is covered all over with little pimples? Now on every -one of these pimples a spine was fastened by a kind of ball-and-socket -joint, the pimple being the ball, and the socket lying inside the base -of the spine; and by means of special muscles the animal could move the -spines about, just as though it were a kind of hedgehog. In fact, this -is the reason why it is called sea-urchin, for urchin is an old name for -hedgehog. So, when a sea-urchin crawls about, it does so partly with its -sucker-feet, and partly with its spines as well. - -Sometimes, however, these creatures use their sucker-feet for quite a -different purpose. They poke them out as far as they can from among -their spines, and then take hold of little stones, small pieces of -broken shell, and other bits of rubbish which they find at the bottom -of the sea, and cling to them very tightly. The consequence is that you -cannot see the animal at all, for it is quite concealed by this curious -covering, and unless you were to take it out of the water, you would -never have the least idea what it really was. - -Now look at the mouth of this spiky sea-urchin. You will find it in the -very middle of the lower part of the body. Do you see what great teeth -it has? There are five of them arranged in a circle as in the mouth of a -starfish, and they are made in just the same way as the front teeth of a -rat or a rabbit, that is, they never stop growing all through the life -of the animal, so that as fast as they are worn away from above they are -pushed up from below, and thus always keep just the proper length and -sharpness. - -Sea-urchins are rather few and small along the shores of southern New -England, but more numerous northward, and on rocky bottoms offshore. On -the offshore bottom there lives also a queer sort whose shells are often -cast up and are well known to the children as sand-dollars. - -These are about the size and shape of one of mother's cookies, and are -covered with a stiff brown fur of short spines. On one side--the under -one--is the little mouth, and around it the faint outlines of five -radiating arms, each sketched, as it were, by a double row of -"pin-pricks" where the almost invisible feet are pushed out. These -sand-dollars are creeping about at the bottom in myriads where the water -is a few fathoms deep; and storms cast up thousands upon the beaches or -into the tide-pools, where very likely we may find some in the course of -our next visit to the ocean-side. - - -IV - -BETWEEN TIDE-MARKS - -We must start early on our walk today, as soon as the tide falls away -from the piece of rocky shore we have in mind, so that we may have -plenty of time; for the field which we have left until the last is -the richest the seaside naturalist has to explore. - -As the sea sinks away it uncovers not only the weedy ledges which we -studied the other day, but also spaces between them of low rocks and -loose stones half sunk in mud and sand. There is much to interest the -botanist, too, but he will have to look out for himself. We have more -than enough to do to look after the animals. - -Many dead shells are lying about, showing the various species of -shell-fish which inhabit this shore or the waters of the offing. Some of -them we already know, and others we can never expect to get alive except -by dredging. Such are the scallops, which rarely come up as far as -low-water mark, in spite of their wandering habits; and the jingleshells -or goldshells, although these, like the young oysters to which they are -closely related, may usually be found clinging to stones, where they -seem swollen scales or "blisters" of thin amber, or gold-colored horn. -There is one--let us examine it. We can't pick it off, or even pry it -off; but when we slip a knife-blade slowly beneath it, it comes loose, -and we discover that this queer creature is a bivalve mollusk looking -(and tasting) like an oyster, and with a small flat shell underneath the -bulging top one. In this undershell is a large hole, through which -passes a stout stony stalk which anchors this creature as firmly as an -oyster is fixed by the cementing of its undershell to whatever it has -attached itself when young. - -The jingleshells are extremely numerous all along the coast south of -Cape Cod, wherever the water is no more than about seventy feet deep, -especially in Long Island Sound; and the oystermen gather them from the -beaches and from their dredgings, and scatter their shells over the -floor of the sound as "seats" for young oysters. They are especially -useful for this purpose because they are so slight and brittle that -when, as often happens, two or three minute oyster-larvæ settle down on -one of these shells, they will, as they grow, break it apart by the -strain, and then each oyster, relieved from the crowding of its mates, -will form a round, nicely shaped shell instead of a narrow or misshapen -one, and consequently be more valuable when it comes to be dredged up, -after a couple of years or so, and offered for sale. - -This rough space between tide-marks is a fine place for crabs. We have -seen some of these creatures already, elsewhere; and our book (see -Chapter XXXV) has already instructed us as to the general -characteristics of crustaceans. Here, scrambling about the ledges just -under water, are big rock and Jonah crabs, but not so many of them as -you might see in Maine. Both are eaten when "soft-shells," but are not -so good as the blue crab. Here, too, are lively and pugnacious fiddlers -and some green or stone crabs, wonderfully active little creatures, -which in England are sent to market, but on this side of the ocean are -used only for bait. - -Still more comical and interesting is one of the spider-crabs, which may -be called thornback. It has a little body, but very long legs, so that a -big male thornback might cover eighteen inches in the stretch of its -legs. - -Do you see how long his great claws are, and how his back is covered all -over with tiny hooked spines? It is quite easy to understand why the -name of thornback was given to him. But how is it that all those tufts -of seaweed are growing on the upper part of the shell? - -Well, the answer is a very odd one. The crab planted them there himself! -The fact is that when he is lying down at the bottom of a pool he does -not want to be seen, for fear that the animals upon which he preys -should take alarm, and escape before he can catch them. So he actually -pulls up a number of little sprigs of seaweed, and plants them on his -back one after the other, pressing the roots down with his claws till at -last they are held quite firmly by the little hooked spines with which -his shell is covered! Then as long as he keeps quite still he is -perfectly invisible, and his victims may even crawl over him without -suspecting that they are in any danger. - -Stranger still, if a thornback crab which has covered his back with -seaweeds should be placed in a tank in which sponges are growing, he -will soon find out that he is not nearly so well hidden as he would like -to be, and will get very uneasy. Before long he will discover what the -reason is, and will actually pull all the sea weed off his shell, and -plant sponges on it instead. - -Here, too, scampering and rattling about among the pebbles, are lots of -hermit-crabs, dragging after them the shells in which they have -ensconced their soft hind bodies, as is described on page 402. And under -the stones--turn them over and you will see--are dozens of strange -little half-transparent creatures which you might easily believe were -insects, but which really are diminutive cousins of the crabs and -crayfish named amphipods and isopods, and so forth. You may find under -some stone one of the tubes made by a certain species, composed of -grains of sand glued together by sticky threads much like spiders' silk. -These minute crustaceans exist in vast multitudes near the surface of -the ocean at certain seasons, and form the principal food of the -whalebone-whales, which gulp them down wholesale. Some of them, also, -are parasitic on fishes. - -But what is the curious little creature clinging flat upon this rock -among the weeds? It looks like some sort of pill-bug half an inch long, -doesn't it? - -Ah! that is a chiton. It is really a kind of shell-bearing mollusk, like -the whelk and the periwinkle; only instead of having its shell made all -in one piece, it has eight shelly plates on its back, which overlap one -another just like the slates on the roof of a house. Just touch it with -your finger. There! Do you see? It has rolled itself up into a ball, -just like those pill-millepedes which you may find in the garden. It -always does this if it is frightened. And its shell is so stout and hard -that as long as it is rolled up it is quite safe from nearly all its -enemies. - -If you were to hunt about among the rocks quite close to the water's -edge when the tide is at its lowest, you would most likely meet with a -number of chitons, and you would be surprised to find how much they vary -in color. Some are ashy gray all over; but a great many are streaked and -spotted with brown, and pink, and orange, and lilac, and white. But the -strangest thing of all about chitons--there are far larger ones in the -warmer parts of the world--is that some of them have nearly twelve -thousand eyes scattered about all over their shells! - -But we are lingering too long by the way, for our real destination -to-day is that fine pool over there. It is a basin among the ledges, -filled with quiet sea-water left by the retreat of the tide, -half-floored with sandy mud, and its edges fringed with feathery -seaweeds, corallines, and hydroids. Here is a capital home for the -little folk of the sea, where there is always fresh clear water, but -where only a part of the time do the surges pound, and then never with -full force; furthermore, a wall of rocks protects the nook, and enemies -can rarely enter to destroy the peaceful society. - -In warmer parts of the coast, as in the Gulf of Mexico, or upon the -Pacific coast, or most of all in some of the tropical islands which now -belong to the United States, such a pool would be brilliantly carpeted -with sponges, sea-anemones, coral-polyps and corallines, of which you -may read on pages 431 to 435. The water of the North Atlantic, and the -winters of its American coast, are too cold, however, to allow any but a -very few hardy species of these lowly sea-flowers to grow in our pool; -but there are quite enough to keep us busy during the hour or two left -before the returning tide creeps over the jagged rim of the basin and -drives us away. - -Here, for instance, is half an oyster-shell looking as if it had been -bored full of holes with bird-shot. It could hardly have been any boy's -target though; for, see, we can find many such fragments. There is one -under water. Take it out and you will find every one of the hundreds of -little pits filled with a yellow spongy material. It is real sponge, -called the boring-sponge, because it riddles all sorts of old shells -until they fall to pieces. This is a good thing, for then they are -gradually ground to powder and dissolved in the water, and so help to -keep it supplied with the lime needed by living animals for their -shells. - -But other sponges help in this work. One is a brilliant crimson, and -spreads a velvety mantle over the shell, from which rise branches as big -as your fingers. We may probably discover among others here the pretty -urn-sponges, like clusters of yellow or gray goblets about half an inch -high. On the reefs of the Gulf coast of Florida, you know, several sorts -of sponges grow to great size and are gathered and prepared for use--a -trade which furnishes employment to hundreds of men. - -But this clear pool holds more beautiful things than sponges. If we are -fortunate we may find a sea-anemone. Do not fancy from its name that it -looks anything like the pretty pink and white anemones that delight you -in the woods in the spring. It does, indeed, look something like a -clove-pink, or some sorts of chrysanthemum, when it is fully expanded, -yet it is not a flower at all, but a true animal. - -Its body is shaped like a barrel, or sometimes more like a tube, with a -large throat leading into a big stomach which is held in position in the -center of the body by six partitions radiating like the spokes of a -wheel from the stomach to the tough outer skin. Between these are other -shorter partitions extending inward from the skin, but not reaching the -stomach. - -This is the type of structure in the polyp family, which the -sea-anemones represent; and the stony coral-polyps are built on the same -plan, only there the outer wall and the radiating inside partitions -become hardened plates of lime as the animal grows, and form, when many -grow into a solid mass, the immense coral reefs described on page 433. - -The New England coast has several small sea-anemones, and one handsome -one, sometimes as big as a teacup, a few of which dwell in our pool. -Just come, very quietly, over to this side, and gaze down through the -clear water upon that reddish block of stone. Do you not see that large -brown tuft, quivering and moving like a chrysanthemum each petal of -which was alive? That is the brown sea-anemone; but some specimens show -much brighter tints. - -Ah!--did you notice how that minnow turned and fairly flew as he felt a -touch of one of those waving petals? No wonder he was in such a hurry to -escape from its clutches, since he knew quite well that the grasp of -those arms means death. For every one of them is set with scores and -scores of tiny oval cells, made in such a way that they spring open at -the slightest touch. And inside each cell is a slender poisoned dart, -which leaps out as soon as it is opened. - -So, if the minnow had waited a few minutes longer hundreds of these -little darts would have buried themselves in the soft parts of his body -and stung him to death, and then the anemone would have swallowed him! - -Now just touch the anemone with the tip of your finger. You need not be -afraid to do so, for its little poisoned darts are not nearly strong -enough to pierce your skin. There! do you see how its arms at once come -closing in? It seems to be pushing them right down into the very middle -of its body. Now they have entirely disappeared, and you cannot see them -at all. The animal looks just like a shapeless lump of jelly. - -Yes, it always does that when it is frightened, and also if it is left -high and dry when the tide goes out. And when it catches a good-sized -victim and swallows it, it generally remains closed up for at least a -couple of days. - -Now let us tell you another curious thing about the anemone. It looks as -if it were growing out of the rock, doesn't it? If you try to push it -loose, you will probably kill it before you succeed. Yet it can release -it's sucker-like grip, and move about if it wishes to. This is only one -of many very interesting things to be learned about these lovely -creatures. - -And here is another very beautiful thing which you must not miss. One -would think the dark rock under the water had blossomed out into a small -bed of filmy bluish pinks, only what you see is even more delicate and -feathery. That is a patch of true corals; and it is most fortunate it -was found here, for it is rarely seen, except when brought up in a -dredge from water several fathoms deep. - -Now let us see whether we cannot find some of the tube-worms which in -feathery beauty are rivals of even the anemones and coral-polyps. Look -down to the very bottom of the pool. Do you see that bunch of long, -twisted tubes, which seem to be fastened to one of those big stones? - -They are made by a very common sea-worm called the serpula, or -shell-worm, for they are quite as often found attached to shells as to -stones. This worm never leaves the tube it forms about it out of the -limy mucus thrown out of its skin, so that it has no use for feet; -consequently these have become simply a row of bristles along its sides, -by which the animal can hitch itself up and down, or forward and -backward, within its case. Sometimes it may want to draw itself -back into its tube very quickly, to save its head being bitten off by -some fish or ravenous worm. So along its back it has a row of between -thirteen and fourteen thousand little hooked teeth, with which it can -take a firm hold of the lining of its tunnel. And if it is suddenly -alarmed it just raises these teeth, and then jerks itself back into its -tunnel with such wonderful speed that you can scarcely see what has -become of it. - -Now let us lift the bundle of tubes out of the water, and examine them a -little more closely. Do you see that each one is closed, just a little -way below the entrance, by a kind of scarlet stopper? That shows that -the worm inside is alive. The stopper is shaped just like a tiny cork, -and whenever the serpula retreats into its tube it pulls this odd little -stopper in after it, and so prevents any of its enemies from getting in -and devouring it, just as gastropods close the aperture of their shells -with the operculum. - -If you were to put this bunch of tubes back into the water and watch it -carefully for an hour or so, you would most likely see all the stoppers -come out, one after another; and a few moments later you would see a -bright scarlet tuft projecting out of the mouth of each tube. These -tufts are the gills, by means of which the serpulas breathe. But at the -slightest alarm the tufts would all disappear, and in less than a second -every tube would be tightly corked up again, just as before. - -On the Gulf coast of Florida, and throughout the West Indies, lives a -larger relative of the serpula called "sea-flower," which secretes its -tube upon the surface of large coral-heads, so that the tube becomes -covered by the coral, leaving the opening still at the surface. "This -opening," says Dr. Mayer, "is protected by a sharp spine, and is closed -by the operculum of the worm when it withdraws its gills. When expanded -these gills resemble a beautiful pink or purple passion-flower, about -three-quarters of an inch wide." - -In such pools, and in the mud among the stones near low-tide mark, lie -buried several kinds of worms which poke their heads up into the water -above them when the tide comes in, and expand tufts of pink, or crimson, -or yellow gills and tentacles, the latter used to catch minute -floating food--mainly the microscopic larvæ of various mollusks, worms, -etc.--and also, in some cases, to drag to them the grains of sand out of -which they construct their tubes. One of these is the fringed worm -(_Cirratulus_) whose gills are like long orange-colored threads; -and another the similar "blood-spot" (_Polycirrus_) whose great -cluster of crimson tentacles about the mouth looks like a clot of blood -on the sand. More often turned out by the naturalist's spade, however, -is the tufted worm (_Amphitrite_) which dwells in a house made by -itself, by taking a number of good-sized grains of sand, and sticking -them together by means of a kind of glue which it pours out of its -mouth, and which very soon "sets" and becomes quite hard, even though it -is under water. This glue is so tough and strong that you can take the -tube and give it quite a smart pull without tearing or hurting it in the -least. And when the tube is finished Amphitrite makes that little fringe -round the entrance by taking a number of very tiny grains and fastening -them together in the form of threads. - -There is one in this nook of our pool, now; and you may see the three -pairs of blood-red tentacles which, with many pale yellow ones, the worm -has thrust out into the clear water, breathing by means of some (the -gills), and with the others capturing the invisible creatures upon which -it mainly feeds. - -The tubes of these worms usually run for several inches down into the -sandy mud at the bottom of the pool, and are often carried down under -the rocks, or big stones. So you will not find it very easy to dig them -up. And if you startle Amphitrite herself, she will always wriggle at -once down to the very bottom of her tubular fortress. - -There! our four rambles are over, and although we have met with a great -many interesting creatures, we have not seen nearly all that there is to -be seen, either on the beach, or in the mud, or on the rocks, or in the -pools which lie among them. But all the curiosities of the seashore may -be found by those who have patience and know how to use their eyes. - - - - -OUR WICKED WASTE OF LIFE - -A Plea to Women for Consistency - - -One of the most puzzling things in life is why almost all our mothers -and sisters and aunts and "dear teachers" continue to trim their hats -with feathers. - -They give their boys and girls books about birds, and teach love of -nature in the schools, and sing and march on Bird Day, and pay money to -missionaries to convert South Sea Islanders from wearing feather -head-dresses, and then go down-town and buy bird-skins to deck their own -heads! This confuses the boys and girls a good deal. How, they ask, can -a mother preach against cruelty and vanity to her children when she -continues to load her hat and theirs with feathers every one of which -represents a crime against the laws of both God and man? The reason why -lawmakers find it so difficult to enforce protective legislation is that -the women demand dead birds, careless whether of useful species or not, -no matter by what gory slaughter and violated laws obtained, as -ministers to their vanity--and the law be hanged! - -They will even wear these evidences of cruelty and crime to church, and -listen unabashed to exhortations and prayers which others think ought to -shrivel them with shame. A recent writer in "Hampton's Magazine" -describes his impressions of a scene of this kind in a Chicago church, -whose preacher that morning had chosen Christian gentleness as his -theme. This writer indulgently believes that the bird-bedecked listeners -"did not know at what a cost, not in life alone, but in hard dollars and -cents, they, and other persons equally careless and equally reckless, -were securing the transient satisfaction of their immediate desires." -And he expresses himself as "equally sure that, if they did know, they -would never again appear in public so savagely adorned." - -We are sorry to be obliged to disagree with him. If they do not know, it -is because they do not read and listen, and few American women, gentle -or simple, are chargeable with negligence in that respect. The officers -of the Audubon Societies, who have been laboring for years as vigorously -as they know how, tell us there is no lack of information; but that, in -general, women don't care, and can't be made to care what hat-birds cost -either themselves or the country so long as they are "in style." -Apparently the only way to stop the ruin of our bird-life is for the -general government to prohibit absolutely both import and export of any -kind of bird-skins or feathers (except of the ostrich) intended or -liable to be used in millinery; and for the States to stamp out dealing -in feather trimmings by a prohibitive licensing tax. Appeals to the -women are useless. The only way is to attack the trade. - -Nevertheless, let us make one more effort. Here are four cardinal facts, -for instance, relating to the aigrettes, or "ospreys" which you covet, -showing what they cost: - -(1) Aigrettes are produced only by white herons, and only during the -breeding-season; therefore (2) the parent birds must be shot in order to -obtain the plumes; hence (3) the young birds in the nests must starve, -in consequence of the death of the parents; consequently (4) all -statements that the plumes are manufactured or are gathered after being -molted by the adult birds are false. - -Here is a picture of how they are got, and it can be verified by -photographs: - -"Notwithstanding the extreme heat and the myriads of mosquitos, I -determined to revisit the locality during my holidays, in order to -obtain one picture only--namely, that of a white crane, or egret, -feeding its young. When near the place, I could see some large patches -of white, either floating in the water or reclining on the fallen trees -in the vicinity of the egrets' rookery. This set me speculating as to -the cause of this unusual sight. As I drew nearer, what a spectacle met -my gaze--a sight that made my blood fairly boil with indignation. There, -strewn on the floating water-weed, and also on adjacent logs, were at -least fifty carcasses of large white and smaller plumed egrets--nearly -one-third of the rookery, perhaps more--the birds having been shot off -their nests containing young. What a holocaust! Plundered for their -plumes. What a monument of human callousness! There were fifty birds -ruthlessly destroyed, besides their young (about two hundred) left to -die of starvation! This last fact was betokened by at least seventy -carcasses of the nestlings, which had become so weak that their legs had -refused to support them, and they had fallen from the nests into the -water below, and had been miserably drowned; while, in the trees above, -the remainder of the parentless young ones could be seen staggering in -the nests, some of them falling with a splash into the water, as their -waning strength left them too exhausted to hold up any longer, while -others simply stretched themselves out on the nest and so expired. -Others, again, were seen trying in vain to attract the attention of -passing egrets, which were flying with food in their bills to feed their -own young, and it was a pitiful sight indeed to see these starvelings -with outstretched necks and gaping bills imploring the passing birds to -feed them. What a sickening sight!" - -A like gruesome story is given by William L. Finley, agent of the -National Association of Audubon Societies, after he had explored the -region about Lake Malheur, Oregon, where formerly thousands of white -herons bred, but now none are to be found--all absolutely exterminated -by plume-hunters. In Florida an agent of this Association was lately -murdered while trying to defend a rookery from plume-hunters. - -Every aigrette--and almost every other wild-bird's feather you -wear--represents a broken law, and in buying it you become a voluntary -partner in crime. - -The manufacturing milliners and dealers realize this, and consequently -resort to all sorts of lies and disguises and subterfuges, which your -buying encourages, for it sustains the bloody business of the illegal -feather-hunters. Some dealers assert that none but imported feathers are -now sold by them. This is not true, but if it were, the wearing of them -is wrong, not only because it encourages the devastation of other -countries, but also because it keeps up the general fashion. The same -may be said in answer to the plea of the milliner that her ornaments -were "made up" of chicken-feathers. You can't be sure of that, and you -are setting a harmful example. - -"Here, of course," remarks Reginald W. Kauffman, in the illuminative -"Hampton's" article already quoted, "is involved merely a question of -individual ethics, but if the trifling life of a bird is a matter of -small moment even to the gentler sex--so long as the eyes of that sex -are not outraged by an actual sight of the bloody slaughter--at least a -matter of very great moment is the fact that the rise in the price of -your foodstuffs, the yearly increase in your market-bill, is the direct -result of those feathers in your bonnet, those plumes upon your -daughter's hat.... - -"Difficult as the figures are to get, such as may be acquired are -appalling. Surely you cannot read them and remain unmoved. England, by -importing the bird of paradise at the rate of six thousand a year, has -practically exterminated that species. In four months one London house -disposed of eight hundred thousand East and West Indian bird-skins; the -United States alone sends to the British Isles four hundred thousand -humming-birds every twelve months, which helps bring the English grand -total up to thirty million birds a year. - -"And we keep a comfortable figure for home consumption. In one year a -single Chicago dealer has been known to handle 32,000 humming-birds in -one consignment, 32,000 gulls, and the wings of 300,000 other birds. In -all, the National Audubon Association puts our total at about -150,000,000 birds a year. The European continent repeats this, and so -you have the women of the 'civilized' world, with the omission of our -South American cousins, wearing 300,000,000 birds every year. - -"Legislation is here, as always, powerless in the face of fashionable -womankind." - -Another point of view is that of good taste. A single large feather or a -shapely wing--in themselves beautiful objects and well adapted to -decorative effect--may be so applied as really to adorn a lady's hat, or -a man's for that matter, very pleasingly; and if it is the trophy of the -skill of some friend, obtained in fair sport, it may embody a delightful -sentiment as well. It was in this simple, wasteful, and unobjectionable -manner that feathers were originally employed as trimmings. But fierce -trade competition among milliners catering to the foolish cry for -"novelties" regardless of becomingness in any sense, has developed -absurdities of head-gear which often make their wearers utterly -ridiculous. - -What possible justification in art or common sense is there in setting a -dead animal on a hat? If any can be found, surely the effigy should be -lifelike and not some horrible travesty. If ribbons and flowers are not -enough ornaments to set off pretty faces, why not wind shining -snake-skins about the crown of the hat; or utilize our resplendent moths -and beetles as trimmings? They are elegant in form and color, varied, -preservable, and by no means costly. Moreover, the general destruction -which would follow the entry of such a fashion would reduce the insect -enemies of our crops and garden-plants--but women seem to care nothing -about that aspect of the case. - -"The insects kill the crops," remarks Kauffman, "the birds kill the -insects, and we--for the most part in order to trim your hats for -you--kill the birds. A study of the government reports will show that -crop losses from insects are rarely less than 10 per cent. and sometimes -as high as 50." - - -We may now turn to another phase of our subject--the waste of game, -fur-bearing animals, and other useful or beautiful creatures. - -When Europeans first came to this continent the bison and elk roamed -everywhere west of the Blue Ridge. By the middle of the nineteenth -century all had disappeared east of the Great Plains, as completely as -had the salmon which used to throng in our eastern rivers. And here, a -few years later, both were almost utterly destroyed by wretched -pot-hunters. - -The moose, elk, antelope, mountain sheep and goats, beaver, sea-otter, -and many other game and fur animals of North America have also suffered -so terribly under relentless persecution that they now are found only in -small numbers in very remote places. The sea-otter, of which at the -beginning of the nineteenth century more than 15,000 were killed every -year, has become so scarce that its coat, in good condition, is now -worth $1,000 to the hunter. - -The horrible stories of the butchery of the fur-seals and the -passenger-pigeon need not be recited. The building up of great cities -made a market for game and fish, and coincident therewith the -market-hunter and the market-fisherman came into existence. Under these -conditions the destruction went on merrily, until, in the early -eighties, observant sportsmen and naturalists began to realize that -extermination threatened such game-birds as the prairie-chicken, the -quail, the ruffed grouse, the wood-duck, the canvasback duck, and even -the well-known mallard and teal. - -"Coincident with this great hegira to the woods," we are told by G. O. -Shields, in a late number of "Collier's Weekly," "there appeared on the -scene a type of man that has become known and recognized everywhere as -the American game-hog. This depraved creature developed a fondness for -killing every living thing he could find, whether edible or not, or -whether he needed it for food or not. All he cared for was to kill, -kill, kill. He loved to stop a beautiful animal in its flight and put it -to death, or to see a bird double up in the air and fall with -shot-pellets through its body. - -"The competition became so strong between these game-hogs that they got -to challenging one another to combats in the field, and contests were -arranged weeks ahead, large stakes being deposited on the result.... The -nineteenth-century 'side-hunt' became a feature of many rural districts. - -"Is it any wonder, then, that decent men came to rebel against this -savage slaughter? Good sportsmen, naturalists, and laymen became so -disgusted with it that they went before their legislatures and demanded -that it be stopped. Laws were accordingly enacted in many States ... and -recently legislation for the preservation of the game has become a -science, and a few men are devoting their best thought and their best -energies to it. - -"But the game-hog and the fish-hog bid defiance to all game-laws, -written and unwritten. No State employs enough game-wardens to police -all of its territory, so the ravaging of the wild went on." - -To the correction of this evil no one has contributed more energetically -than Mr. Shields and some other editors of periodicals devoted to -field-sports and recreation. They have given the game-hog so disgraceful -a notoriety, and have brought down upon his head such scorn from decent -sportsmen, that he has been largely suppressed. - -Here, too, mothers, wives, and sisters, are largely at fault; but they -may plead ignorance much more plausibly than in the case of their own -sins of hat-trimming. Why should they applaud useless slaughter, -dictated by vanity and blood-lust, in the men over whom they have -influence? Is it a manly or an admirable thing? - -These ignorant and thoughtless women have still time to repent and force -their men-folks to behave like gentlemen. There is still game enough to -bring about a revival of plenty for all reasonable sportsmen of the next -generation as well as this. There are laws enough, too, to protect it, -but between the ignorance of the legislators and their fear of offending -the very game-butchers against whom the laws are directed (who -unfortunately have votes), they will not appropriate the money necessary -to provide game-wardens and other means of enforcing the laws properly. -Here is where the influence of every fair-minded woman and patriotic man -can be tellingly exerted. Show the lawmakers that the good opinion of -the decent half of the community is better worth having than that of the -meaner half; and see that _your_ men-folks are not in the latter -class. - -When you have done this, let your boys understand the position they must -take on this subject if they wish to be regarded as "true sportsmen," -not to say gentlemen. Their training should begin early. Little boys are -fond of bean-shooters--a forked stick, or "crutch," with a rubber band -hurling a bean or a pebble. Insist that they do not use it for knocking -over birds. - -All boys, also, pass through a season of "collecting specimens," when -they are enthusiastic toward preparing a cabinet of natural history. -Encourage them to do so, but without taking life, or robbing birds' -nests. Give them an opera-glass instead of a shotgun. Show them how they -can learn more, and get more amusement, by watching the bird family in -its home than by arranging dead shells on a string or in a box. (Watch -the birds yourself a while, and then see how you feel about your hat!) -There is no scientific need or excuse, nowadays, for private collections -of the skins or eggs of birds, and the stopping of all birds'-nesting is -of the utmost importance for the same reasons as the stoppage of -millinery murder; and both are the immediate duty of all parents. - -Nor must there be forgotten, in considering this matter, the disastrous -effect of recklessness as to waste and suffering on the mind of the -game-hog, the birds'-nester, and the aigrette-wearer. Cruelty cannot be -practiced without crushing and blighting the best insects. As Burns -says: - - "It hardens a' within - And petrifies the feeling" - -A child that is cruel to animals, disdainful of their sufferings when in -pursuit of his pleasure, cannot be trusted to be kind to a younger -sister, a weaker companion, or a valued pet. Cruelty is a vice of the -basest and most cowardly--a mark of the savage and criminal. Let the -mother remember this, not only in her precepts, but in the example she -gives her children. "Even the birds of the air," wrote the German critic -Harnisch, "bear an accusation to their Creator against those who with -wanton cruelty, destroy helpless innocence." - - - - -LIST OF BEST BOOKS FOR YOUNG NATURALISTS - - * In many cases the authors mentioned have written - other books equally interesting and procurable. - - - ABBOTT, C. C.* _Days out of Doors_ - - BAKER, SIR S.* _Wild Beasts and their Ways_ - - BASKETT, J. N. _The Story of the Fishes_ - - BASKETT, J. N. _The Story of the Reptiles and Batrachians_ - - BATES, W. H. _The Naturalist on the River Amazon_ - - BEEBE, W. C.* _The Bird_ - - BIGNELL, EFFIE _A Quintette of Gray Coats (Squirrels)_ - - BLATCHLEY, W. S.* _A Nature Wooing_ - - BULLEN, F. T.* _Denizens of the Great Deep_ - - BURROUGHS, JOHN* _Squirrels and other Fur-bearers_ - - BURROUGHS, JOHN _Wake Robin_ - - CHAPMAN AND REED _Color Key to N. A. Birds_ - - COMSTOCK, J. H.* _Insect Life_ - - CRAM, W. E. _Little Beasts of Wood and Field_ - - DAMON, N. E. _Ocean Wonders_ - - DARWIN, CHARLES* _A Naturalist's Voyage_ - - ECKSTROM, MRS. F. H.* _The Bird Book_ - - EGGELING AND EHRENBERG _The Fresh-Water Aquarium_ - - EMERTON, E. S. _Spiders_ - - GIBSON, W. H.* _Blossom Hosts and Insect Guests_ - - GIBSON, W. H. _Sharp Eyes_ - - HOLDER, F. C.* _Along the Florida Reefs_ - - HOLLAND, W. J. _The Butterfly Book_ - - HOLLAND, W. J. _The Moth Book_ - - HORNADAY, W. T.* _American Natural History_ - - HOWARD, L. O.* _The Insect Book_ - - HUDSON, W. H. _British Birds_ - - HUDSON, W. H. _Idle Days in Patagonia_ - - HUDSON, W. H. _The Naturalist in La Plata_ - - INGERSOLL, ERNEST* _Life of Mammals_ - - INGERSOLL, ERNEST _The Wit of the Wild_ - - INGERSOLL, ERNEST _Wild Life of Orchard and Field_ - - KELLOGG, VERNON _American Insects_ - - KEYSER, L. S. _Birds of the Rockies_ - - LOTTRIDGE, S. A. _Animal Snap Shots and How Made_ - - LUCAS, F. A. _Animals of the Past_ - - MATTHEWS, S.* _Familiar Life of the Roadside_ - - MERRIAM, FLORENCE* _A-birding on a Bronco_ - - MILLER, MRS. O. T.* _Little Brothers of the Air_ - - MORLEY, MARY W. _The Bee People_ - - MORLEY, MARY W. _Wasps and their Ways_ - - OSWALD, FELIX _Zoölogical Sketches_ - - PACKARD, A. S. _Half-hours with Insects_ - - PORTER, J. H. _Wild Beasts_ - - REED, C. A. _North American Birds' Eggs_ - - ROBINSON, R.* _New England Fields and Woods_ - - ROOSEVELT, THEODORE* _The Wilderness Hunter_ - - SAMUELS, E. _Birds of New England_ - - SCUDDER, S. H. _Everyday Butterflies_ - - SHARPE, D. L.* _Wild Life near Home_ - - STANDARD LIBRARY OF NATURAL HISTORY (5 vols.) - - STANDARD (OR RIVERSIDE) NATURAL HISTORY (6 vols.) - - STONE AND CRAM _American Animals_ - - TODD, ADA J. _The Vacation Club_ - - TORREY, B.* _Everyday Birds_ - - WATERTON, C.* _Wanderings in South America_ - - WHITE, GILBERT _Natural History of Selborne_ - - WILSON, ALEX _American Ornithology_ (_Brewer's Edition_) - - WOOD, J. G.* _Homes without Hands_ - - WRIGHT, MRS. M. O.* _Bird-craft_ - - WRIGHT, MRS. M. O. _Four-footed Americans_ - - - - -INDEX - - - A - - Aard-vark, 216 - Aard-wolf, 74 - Acorn-barnacles, 407 - Adder, puff, 319 - African elephant, 202 - " rhinoceros, 204 - Agouti, 152 - Albatross, 296 - Alderman lizard, 307 - Alligators, 302 - American crows, 254 - " eagle, 236 - " foxes, 88 - " lizards, 307 - " monkeys, 16 - " tapirs, 206 - Amphineurans, 421 - Amphioxus, 353 - Anaconda, 316 - Anemones, sea-, 431 - Angler, 346 - Ant-bears, 213 - Ant-eaters, 213 - " banded, 227 - " great, 213 - " scaly, 215 - " spiny, 230 - Antelopes, 174 - Ant-lion, 367 - Ants, 373 - " driver, 374 - " parasol, 374 - Aoudad, 165 - Apes, 1 - " Barbary, 15 - Aphides, 381 - Arabian baboon, 11 - " camel, 190 - Arctic fox, 86 - Argali, 162 - Armadillos, 214 - " giant, 215 - " pichiciago, 215 - " six-banded, 214 - Arui, 165 - Asses, wild, 193 - Aswail, 108 - Aurochs, 159 - Australian bear, 223 - Axolotl, 324 - Aye-aye, 24 - - - B - - Babirusa, 209 - Baboons, 7 - " Arabian, 7 - " chacma, 7 - " drill, 9 - " gelada, 10 - " mandrill, 9 - Bactrian camel, 191 - Badger, 97 - Bald chimpanzee, 3 - Banded ant-eater, 227 - Bandicoots, 224 - Barbary ape, 15 - Barbel, 329 - Barnacles, 407 - " acorn, 407 - Barn-owl, 241 - Bats, 26 - " flying foxes, 31 - " horseshoe, 29 - " kalong, 32 - " pipistrelle, 29 - " vampire, 30 - Beaked chætodon, 34 - Bear-cat, 110 - Bears, 102 - " ant, 213 - " aswail, 108 - " Australian, 223 - " black, 107 - " brown, 103 - " grizzly, 106 - " polar, 102 - " sea, 118 - " sloth, 108 - " sun, 108 - " white, 102 - Beavers, 142 - Bees, 369 - " bumble-, 371 - " carder, 371 - " hive, 369 - " leaf-cutter, 371 - " social, 369 - " solitary, 371 - Beetles, 355 - " burying, 356 - " coach-horse, 356 - " dor, 357 - " ground, 355 - " musk, 359 - " oil, 358 - " soldier, 449 - " stag, 356 - " tiger, 355 - " water, 355 - Beluga, 129 - Bettong, brush-tailed, 221 - Bighorn sheep, 163 - Binturong, 71 - Bird, butcher, 266 - " humming, 246 - " love, 276 - Birds, bower, 258 - Bird's-foot starfish, 411 - Birds of paradise, 258 - Bird-spiders, 390 - Bishop's-miters, 382 - Bison, 158 - Bivalves, 422 - Black-backed jackal, 85 - Black bear, 107 - Blackbird, 267 - Blackcap, 267 - Blackfish, 131 - Black goby, 349 - Black mussels, 423 - Black rat, 148 - Black saki, 19 - Black slug, 417 - Black-tailed deer, 187 - Blindworm, 304 - Bluebottle fly, 385 - Blue shark, 338 - Blue tit, 265 - Boa-constrictor, 316 - Boar, wild, 208 - Boatman, water, 382 - Bobcat, 62 - Borers, 419 - Bosch-katte, 60 - Bottle-nosed dolphin, 133 - Bottle-nosed whales, 125 - Bottle-tit, 265 - Bower-birds, 258 - Brindled gnu, 178 - Brittle-stars, 411 - Brockets, 188 - Brown bear, 103 - Brown hyena, 77 - Brown owl, 240 - Brown rat, 148 - Brown thrasher, 269 - Brush-kangaroo, 220 - Brush-tailed bettong, 221 - Buansuah, 78 - Buffalo, American, 158 - " Cape, 159 - " Indian, 159 - Bullbat, 245 - Bullfinch, 261 - Bumblebees, 371 - Bunting, 260 - Burchell's zebra, 192 - Burrowing owl, 241 - Burying-beetle, 356 - Bush-cat, 60 - Bustards, 284 - Butcher-bird, 266 - Butterflies, 377, 440, 446 - Buzzards, 238 - - - C - - Cachalot, 124 - Caddis-flies, 367, 441 - Caffre cat, 62 - California sea-lion, 117 - Calling-crabs, 401 - Camels, 189 - " Arabian, 190 - " Bactrian, 191 - " dromedary, 190 - Canada lynx, 65 - Canaries, 261 - Cape buffalo, 159 - Capybara, 152 - Caracal, 63 - Carder-bee, 371 - Caribou, 182 - Carp, 329 - Carrion-crow, 255 - Cassowaries, 283 - Cat, Caffre, 62 - " Egyptian, 61 - " jungle, 63 - " marbled, 59 - " tiger, 61 - " wild-, 62 - Catbird, 269, 437 - Cats, larger, 47 - " smaller, 60 - Caymans, 303 - Centipedes, 395 - Chacma, 7 - Chætodon, beaked, 34 - Chambered nautilus, 416 - Chameleon, 308 - Chamois, 174 - Chaus, 63 - Chetah, 65 - Chimpanzees, 1 - " bald, 3 - " common, 2 - Chinchilla, 151 - Chipmunk, 140 - Chipping-bird, 260 - Chitons, 421 - " prickly, 421 - Cicada, 362 - Civets, 68 - " Indian, 70 - " palm, 70 - Climbing perch, 328 - Clouded leopard, 58 - " tiger, 58 - Coach-horse beetle, 356 - Coati, 111 - Cobras, 318 - Cockatoos, 274 - Cockchafer, 356 - Cockle, 424 - Cockroach, 361 - Cod, 342 - Cole-tit, 265 - Colubers, 313 - Colugo, 33 - Condor, 234 - Congers, 352 - Cony, 154 - Coquimbo, 241 - Coral banks, 433 - Corals, 432 - Cormorants, 293 - Cougar, 57 - Couxia, 19 - Cowbird, 438 - Cowry, 420 - Coyotes, 83 - Crab-eating dog, 80 - " macaque, 15 - " opossum, 230 - Crabs, 397, 400 - " blue, 400 - " calling, 401 - " common shore, 400 - " edible, 400 - " fiddler, 400 - " hermit, 401 - " robber, 402 - Crane-fly, 384 - Cranes, 285 - " brown, 286 - " crowned, 286 - Crayfish, 404 - Creeper, 263 - Crested seal, 119 - Crickets, 361, 448 - " house-, 361 - " mole, 362 - Crocodiles, 302 - Crossbills, 260 - Crows, American, 254 - " carrion, 255 - Crowned crane, 286 - Cuckoos, 243 - Cucumbers, sea, 413 - Curlew, 286 - Currant saw-fly, 375 - Cuttles, 414 - - - D - - Dab, 343 - Dasyures, 225 - Death's-head sphinx-moth, 378 - Deathwatches, 358 - Deer, 181 - " American, 185 - " black-tailed, 187 - " brocket, 188 - " caribou, 182 - " elk, 183 - " fallow, 184 - " marsh, 187 - " moose, 183 - " mule, 186 - " pampas, 187 - " pudu, 188 - " red, 184 - " rein-, 181 - " roebuck, 185 - " wapiti, 187 - Desman, 40 - " Pyrenean, 40 - " Russian, 40 - Devil, Tasmanian, 226 - Devil-fish, 341 - Dhole, 78 - Diana monkey, 14 - Dingo, 79 - Dipper, 270 - Dog, crab-eating, 80 - " hunting, 90 - " hyena, 90 - " prairie, 141 - Dog-faced monkeys, 7 - Dogfish, 337 - Dogs, 78 - Dolphins, 128 - " bottle-nosed, 133 - " common, 133 - " fresh-water, 132 - " Gangetic, 132 - " sea, 133 - Dor-beetle, 357 - Dormouse, 144 - Douroucoulis, 20 - Dove, mourning, 277 - " turtle, 277 - Dragon-flies, 364 - Drill, 9 - Driver ant, 374 - Dromedary, 190 - Drone-fly, 385 - Duck, wild, 293 - Duckbill, 231 - Duck-billed platypus, 231 - Dugong, 133 - - - E - - Eagles, 235 - " American, 236 - " bald, 236 - " golden, 236 - " white-tailed, 236 - Earth-pig, 216 - Earthworm, 427 - Earwigs, 360 - Echidna, 230 - " common, 231 - " three-toed, 231 - Edible crab, 400 - " snail, 418 - Eel, 334 - " conger, 352 - " electric, 335 - Egg-eating snake, 314 - Egyptian cat, 61 - " mongoose, 73 - Eland, 174 - Electric eel, 335 - Elephant, sea, 119 - Elephants, 201 - " African, 202 - " Indian, 203 - Elephant-shrew, 39 - Elk, 183, 187 - Emperor-moth, 379 - Emu, 282 - Ermine, 93 - - - F - - Falcons, 238 - Fallow deer, 184 - Fennec, 89 - Ferret, 94 - " polecat, 94 - Fiddler-crab, 400 - Field-mouse, 149 - Field-vole, 147 - Finches, 260 - " purple, 261 - Fin-whales, 127 - " sharp-nosed, 128 - Fish, black, 131 - " devil, 341 - " dog-, 337 - " flat-, 343 - " flying, 348 - " jelly-, 430 - " mud, 326 - " pipe, 350 - " saw, 339 - " sucking, 345 - " sword-, 344 - Fish-hawk, 237 - Fivefingers, 410 - Flamingo, 291 - Flatfish, 343 - Fleas, 383 - " turnip, 359 - Flesh-fly, 386 - Flicker, 249 - Flounder, 343 - Fly, bluebottle, 385 - " caddis, 367, 441 - " currant saw, 375 - " dragon-, 364 - " drone-, 385 - " flesh, 386 - " gall, 375, 445 - " green-, 360, 381 - " hawk, 385 - " horn-tailed saw, 375, 445 - " house, 385 - " ichneumon, 376 - " June, 365 - " lacewing, 368, 451 - " May, 365 - " saw, 374 - " turnip saw, 375 - Flycatcher, 444 - Flying colugo, 33 - " fish, 348 - " foxes, 31 - " squirrel, 139 - Fossa, 68 - Foumart, 94 - Foxes, 85 - " American, 88 - " arctic, 86 - " flying, 31 - Fox-sparrow, 261 - Fresh-water dolphins, 132 - " fishes, 326 - " shrimp, 406 - Frilled lizard, 308 - Fritillaries, 377, 446 - Frog, 321 - Froghoppers, 380 - Fur-seal, 118 - - - G - - Gall-fly, 375, 445 - Galls, 444 - Gangetic dolphin, 132 - Garden-spiders, 388 - Gastropods, 416 - Gaur, 157 - Geckos, 305 - Geese, 292 - Gelada, 10 - Gemsbok, 176 - Genets, 70 - Giant armadillo, 215 - " pangolin, 216 - " salamander, 324 - Gibbons, 5 - " hoolock, 6 - " lar, 6 - " siamang, 6 - Gila monster, 307 - Giraffes, 179 - Glowworm, 358 - Glutton, 96 - Gnats, 384, 440 - Gnus, 177 - " brindled, 178 - " white-tailed, 178 - Goat-moth, 378 - Goats, 166 - " Persian wild, 169 - " Rocky mountain, 172 - Goby, black, 349 - " spotted, 349 - Golden eagle, 236 - Goldenrod, 449 - Goldfinch, 261, 448 - Goose, graylag, 292 - Gorilla, 3 - Gossamers, 394 - Grampus, 131 - Grasshoppers, 362, 448 - Graylag goose, 292 - Gray parrot, 273 - Great ant-eater, 213 - " bustard, 284 - " gray slug, 417 - " horseshoe bat, 30 - " tit, 265 - Greek tortoise, 300 - Greenfly, 360, 381 - Greenland whale, 127 - Green monkey, 13 - " turtle, 301 - Grévy's zebra, 192 - Grizzly bear, 106 - Grosbeak, 260 - Ground-beetles, 355 - Groundhog, 142 - Grouse, red, 279 - Guanaco, 191 - Guemals, 188 - Guenons, 13 - Guillemots, 296 - Guljar, 163 - Gull, sea, 295 - Gurnards, 347 - - - H - - Hair-seals, 116 - Hammerhead shark, 338 - Hamster, 145 - Hanuman, 12 - Hares, 154 - Harvest-mouse, 149 - Hawk, fish, 237 - Hawk-flies, 385 - Hawks, 237 - " chicken, 238 - " night, 245 - " pigeon, 239 - " sparrow, 239 - Hawksbill turtle, 301 - Hazel-mouse, 144 - Hedgehog, 34 - Hermit crab, 401 - Heron, 288 - Herring, 348 - Hippopotamus, 207 - " pygmy, 208 - Hive-bee, 369 - Hog, sea, 130 - " wart, 209 - Honey-ratel, 97 - Honey-weasel, 97 - Hooded seal, 119 - Hoolock, 6 - Hoopoe, 252 - Hornbill, 251 - " rhinoceros, 251 - Horned toad, 307 - Hornet, 373 - Horn-tailed saw-fly, 375 - Horse, 195 - " river, 207 - " sea, 120, 351 - Horseshoe bat, great, 30 - House-cricket, 361 - House-fly, 385 - Howlers, 17 - Humblebees, 371 - Humming-bird, 246 - " " hawk-moth, 378 - Hunting-dog, 90 - Hunting-leopard, 65 - Hunting-spider, 390 - Hyena-dog, 90 - Hyenas, 75 - " brown, 77 - " laughing, 77 - " spotted, 77 - " striped, 76 - Hyrax, 205 - - - I - - Ibex, 169 - " Nilgiri, 171 - Ibis, 290 - " sacred, 290 - " scarlet, 290 - Ichneumon-flies, 376 - Iguanas, 306 - Indian buffalo, 159 - " civet, 70 - " elephant, 203 - " mongoose, 72 - " pangolin, 216 - " rhinoceros, 203 - Indigo-bird, 261 - Insect-eaters, 33 - Insects, 354 - Ivory-bill woodpecker, 247 - Ivy, poison, 442 - - - J - - Jacares, 303 - Jackals, black-backed, 85 - " common, 84 - " side-striped, 86 - Jackass, laughing, 253 - Jackdaw, 256 - Jack rabbits, 156 - Jaguar, 56 - Jay, 256 - Jelly fishes, 430 - Jerboa-kangaroo, 222 - Jerboas, 145 - Joepye-weed, 449 - Johnny Darter, 445 - Julus millepede, 396 - Jumping shrew, 39 - June-fly, 365 - Jungle-cat, 63 - - - K - - Kalan, 101 - Kalong, 32 - Kangaroo-rats, 221 - Kangaroos, 218 - " brush, 220 - " jerboa, 222 - " tree, 221 - Katydid, 362 - Kestrels, 238 - Kholsun, 78 - Killer-whale, 131 - King bird of paradise, 258 - Kingfishers, 253, 439 - Kinkajou, 112 - Kiwis, 284 - Koala, 223 - Kudu, 175 - - - L - - Lacewing fly, 368, 451 - Ladybirds, 360 - Lammergeier, 234 - Lampreys, 335 - Lancelet, 353 - Land-tortoises, 300 - Langurs, 13 - Lapwings, 286 - Lar gibbon, 6 - Laughing hyena, 77 - Laughing jackass, 253 - Leaf-cutter bee, 371 - Leather-jackets, 385 - Leeches, 430 - Lemmings, 147 - Lemuroids, 23 - Lemurs, 21 - " ruffed, 22 - " slender loris, 23 - " tarsier, 23 - Leopard, 54 - " clouded, 58 - " hunting, 65 - " snow, 55 - Limpets, 421 - Linnet, 261 - Lion, 49 - " ant, 367 - " California sea, 117 - " Patagonian sea, 116 - " sea, 116 - Lizards, 303 - " alderman, 307 - " American, 307 - " frilled, 308 - Llamas, 191 - Lobsters, 403 - Locust, 362 - Logcock, 247 - Long-eared owl, 240 - Long-tailed tit, 265 - Long-tongued vampire, 30 - Loris, slender, 23 - Love-birds, 276 - Lugworm, 428 - Lynx, 64 - " Canada, 65 - " pardine, 65 - - - M - - Macaques, 14 - " crab-eating, 15 - Macaws, 275 - Mackerel, 345 - Magot, 15 - Magpie, 257 - Malayan tapir, 206 - Manatees, 133 - Mandrill, 9 - Mangabeys, 14 - Mantis, praying, 363 - Marbled cat, 59 - Marco Polo's sheep, 163 - Margay, 61 - Markhor, 170 - Marmignatto spider, 389 - Marmosets, 21 - Marmots, common, 142 - " prairie, 142 - Marsupials, 218 - Martens, 95 - Martins, 271 - Mavis, 267 - May-fly, 365 - Meerkats, 73 - Megalopa, 408 - Merian's opossum, 230 - Mice, pouched, 227 - Milkweed, 449 - Milky slug, 417 - Millepede, 395 - " Julus, 396 - Mole, common, 40 - " pouched, 228 - Mole, star-nosed, 45 - Mole-cricket, 362 - Mollusks, 414 - Mongoose, Egyptian, 73 - " Indian, 72 - Monkeys, American, 16 - " aye-aye, 24 - " Barbary ape, 15 - " black saki, 19 - " couxia, 19 - " diana, 14 - " dog-faced, 7 - " douroucouli, 20 - " green, 13 - " guenons, 13 - " hanuman, 12 - " howlers, 17 - " howlers, red, 18 - " langurs, 13 - " macaques, 14 - " magot, 15 - " mangabeys, 14 - " marmosets, 21 - " night, 20 - " ouakari, 18 - " proboscis, 11 - " spider, 16 - Moose, 183 - Morse, 120 - Mosquito, 384 - Moth, 377 - " bee-hawk, 378 - " burnet, 379 - " cinnabar, 379 - " death's-head sphinx, 378 - " emerald, 380 - " emperor, 379 - " goat, 378 - " humming-bird hawk, 378 - " kitten, 380 - " luna, 454 - " magpie, 380 - " Polyphemus, 454 - " Promethea, 454 - " puss, 380 - " sulphur, 380 - " swallowtail, 380 - " swift, 378 - " tiger, 378 - " vaporer, 379 - Mouflon, European, 161 - Mountain zebra, 192 - Mourning dove, 277 - Mouse, 149, 447 - " field, 149 - " harvest, 149 - " hazel, 144 - " pouched, 227 - " sea, 429 - Mud-fish, 326 - Mud-skippers, 350 - Mule-deer, 186 - Musk-beetle, 359 - Musk-ox, 160 - Muskrat, 147 - Musquaw, 108 - Mussels, black, 423 - Myrmecobius, 227 - - - N - - Narwhal, 128 - Nauplius, 408 - Nautilus, chambered, 416 - Newts, 322 - Night-fliers, 380 - Night-hawk, 245 - Nightingale, 267 - Nightjars, 244 - Night-monkeys, 20 - Noctuæ, 380 - Nuthatch, 264 - Nut-weevil, 359 - - - O - - Ocelot, 60 - Oil-beetles, 358 - Okapi, 180 - Oliveback, 269 - Olm, 325 - Opossums, 228 - " common, 230 - " crab-eating, 230 - " Merian's, 230 - " yapock, 230 - Orang-utan, 4 - Osprey, 237 - Ostriches, 281 - Otters, 100 - " sea, 101 - Ouakari, 18 - Ouistiti, 21 - Ounce, 55 - Owls, barn, 241 - " brown, 240 - " burrowing, 241 - " long-eared, 240 - " short-eared, 240 - Ox, musk, 160 - Oxen, wild, 157 - Oysters, 423 - " pearl, 422 - - - P - - Painter, 58 - Palm-civets, 70 - Panda, 110 - Pangolins, 215 - " giant, 216 - " Indian, 216 - Panther, American, 58 - " or leopard, 54 - Paradise, birds of, 258 - " king bird of, 258 - Parasol-ant, 374 - Pardine lynx, 65 - Parrakeets, 274 - " ring-necked, 274 - Parrots, 273 - Partridges, 280 - Passenger-pigeon, 277 - Patagonian sea-lion, 116 - Peacocks, 277 - Pearl-oyster, 422 - Peccaries, 210 - Pelicans, 294 - Penguin, 297 - Pen-tailed tree-shrew, 39 - Perch, 328 - " climbing, 328 - Periwinkles, 420 - Persian wild goat, 169 - Petaurist, squirrel, 222 - Pheasants, 279 - Phoebe, 444 - Pichiciago, 215 - Piddock, 424 - Pig, earth, 216 - Pigeons, 276 - " passenger, 277 - " wood, 276 - Pike, 330 - Pine-marten, 95 - Pipe-fishes, 350 - Pipistrelle, 29 - Pit-vipers, 319 - Plaice, 343 - Platypus, duck-billed, 231 - Poison-ivy, 442 - Polar bear, 102 - Polecat, 94 - " ferret, 94 - Polyps, 432 - Porcupines, 150 - Porpoise, 130 - Potoroos, 221 - Pouched mice, 227 - Pouched mole, 228 - Prairie-dogs, 141 - Prawns, 405 - Praying-mantis, 363 - Prickly chiton, 421 - Proboscis-monkey, 11 - Pudus, 188 - Puff-adder, 319 - Puffin, 297 - Puma, 57 - Purpura, 419 - Puss-moth, 380 - Pygmy hippopotamus, 208 - Pyrenean desman, 40 - Pythons, 315 - - - Q - - Quagga, 193 - - - R - - Rabbits, 154, 455 - " jack, 156 - Racoons, 110 - Raft-spider, 392 - Rat, black, 148 - " brown, 148 - " kangaroo, 221 - " water, 146 - Ratel, 97 - " honey, 97 - Rattlesnakes, 320 - Ravens, 254 - Rays, 340 - Razor-shells, 424 - Red and blue macaw, 275 - Red deer, 184 - Red-faced ouakari, 18 - Red grouse, 279 - Red gurnards, 347 - Red howler, 18 - Reindeer, 181 - Rheas, 283 - Rhinoceros, African, 204 - " common, 204 - " Indian, 203 - Rhinoceros-hornbill, 251 - Rice-weevil, 359 - Ring-necked parrakeet, 274 - Ring-tailed lemur, 22 - River-horse, 207 - Roach, 330 - Robber-crab, 402 - Robin, 267 - Rock-snakes, 316 - Rocky Mountain goat, 172 - Rodents, 136 - Roebuck, 185 - Rondeleti's shark, 338 - Rooks, 255 - Rorqual, common, 127 - " lesser, 128 - Rosy feather-starfish, 412 - Ruffed lemur, 22 - Ruffs, 287 - Russian desman, 40 - - - S - - Sable, 95 - Sacred ibis, 290 - Saki, black, 19 - Salamanders, 323 - " giant, 324 - " spotted, 323 - Salmon, 332 - " North Pacific, 333 - Salt-water fishes, 337 - Sandhoppers, 405 - Saw-fishes, 339 - Saw-flies, 374 - Scaly ant-eater, 215 - Scarabæus, 357 - Scarlet ibis, 290 - Scarlet tanager, 444 - Scavengers, 356 - Scorpion, water, 383 - Scorpions, 395 - Sea-anemones, 431 - Sea-bears, 118 - Sea-cucumbers, 413 - Sea-dolphins, 133 - Sea-elephant, 119 - Sea-gulls, 295 - Sea-hog, 130 - Sea-horse, 120, 351 - Sea-lions, 116 - Sea-mouse, 429 - Sea-otter, 101 - Sea-unicorn, 128 - Sea-urchins, 409 - Seals, 113 - " common, 115 - " fur, 118 - " hair, 116 - " hooded, or crested, 119 - Secretary-vulture, or secretary-bird, 235 - Serval, 60 - Shark, blue, 338 - " hammerhead, 338 - " Rondeleti's, 338 - " thresher, 339 - " white, 338 - Sharp-nosed finner, 128 - Sheep, 161 - " bighorn, 163 - " Marco Polo's, 163 - Shells, razor, 424 - Shiner, 445 - Ship-worm, 426 - Shore-crab, 400 - Short-eared owl, 240 - Shrews, 36 - " elephant, 39 - " jumping, 39 - " pen-tailed tree, 39 - " tree, 39 - " tupaia, 39 - " water, 37 - Shrike, 266 - Shrimps, 405 - " fresh-water, 406 - Siamang, 6 - Side-striped jackal, 86 - Sirenians, 133 - Six-banded armadillo, 214 - Skinks, 305 - Skipjacks, 357 - Skippers, mud, 350 - Skunk, 99, 454 - Skylark, 262 - Slender loris, 23 - Sloth-bear, 108 - Sloths, 212 - Slugs, 416 - Snails, 417 - " edible, 418 - " water, 418 - Snakes, 311, 440 - " black-, 314 - " egg-eating, 314 - " garter, 314 - " green-, 314 - " harmless, 313 - " king, 313 - " milk, 314 - " poisonous, 317 - " rattle-, 320 - " rock, 316 - " water, 314 - Snipe, 288 - Snow-leopard, 55 - Soldier-beetle, 449 - Sole, 343 - Solitary bee, 371 - Sparrow-hawk, 239 - Sparrows, 261, 437 - Sperm or Spermaceti whale, 124 - Spider-monkeys, 16 - Spiders, 387, 450 - " bird, 390 - " garden, 388 - " gossamer, 394 - " hunting, 390 - " marmignatto, 389 - " raft, 392 - " trap-door, 391 - " water, 393 - Spiny ant-eater, 230 - Spotted goby, 349 - " hyena, 77 - " salamander, 323 - Springbok, 176 - Squids, 414 - Squirrels, 137, 447 - " chipmunk, 140 - " flying, 139 - " gray, 139 - " sugar, 222 - Stag-beetle, 356 - Starfish, 410 - " basket, 412 - " bird's-foot, 411 - " rosy feather, 412 - " sun, 411 - Starling, 259 - Star-nosed mole, 45 - Sticklebacks, 327 - Stoat, 93 - Storks, 289 - Striped hyena, 76 - Sturgeon, 341 - Sucking-fishes, 345 - Sugar-squirrel, 222 - Sulphur moth, 380 - Sun-bear, 108 - Sunfish, 445 - Sun-star, 411 - Suricate, 73 - Susu, 132 - Swallows, 271, 443 - Swallowtail moth, 380 - Swans, 292 - Swifts, 245 - " chimney, 245 - Swine, 208 - Swordfish, 344 - - - T - - Tadpole, 321, 440 - Taguan, 140 - Tahr, 171 - Tamandua, 214 - Tanager, scarlet, 444 - Tapirs, American, 206 - Tapirs, Malayan, 206 - Tarsier, 23 - Tasmanian devil, 226 - " wolf, 225 - Tawny thrush, Wilson's, 269 - Terebella, 429 - Teredo, 426 - Termites, 365 - Testacella, 417 - Thousand-legs, 214 - Three-banded douroucouli, 20 - Three-toed echidna, 231 - Thresher-shark, 339 - Thrushes, 267 - " hermit, 269 - " North American, 268 - " oliveback, 269 - " Wilson's tawny, 269 - " wood, 268 - Thylacine, 225 - Tiger-beetle, 355 - Tiger-cat, 61 - Tiger-moth, 378 - Tigers, 51 - " man-eating, 52 - " tree, 59 - Tiger-wolf, 77 - Tit, blue, 265 - " bottle, 265 - " cole, 265 - " great, 265 - " long-tailed, 265 - Titmice, 265 - Toads, 322 - " horned, 307 - Tomtits, 452 - Torpedo, 340 - Tortoises, 299 - " Greek, 300 - " land, 300 - Toucans, 250 - Trap-door spider, 391 - Tree-kangaroo, 221 - Tree-shrew, 39 - Trout, 331 - Tupaia, 39 - Turkeys, 278 - Turnip-fleas, 359 - Turnip saw-flies, 375 - Turs, 168 - Turtle-dove, 277 - Turtles, 300, 440 - " green, 301 - " hawksbill, 301 - - - U - - Unicorn, sea, 128 - Urchins, sea, 409 - Urial, 165 - - - V - - Vampires, 30 - Vaporer-moth, 379 - Veery, 269 - Vipers, 317 - " pit, 319 - Vireo, 437 - Viscacha, 151 - Vlack-vark, 209 - Vole, field, 147 - " water, 146 - Vultures, 233 - " secretary, 235 - - - W - - Wagtails, 263 - Wah, 110 - Walking-stick, 363 - Wallabies, 220 - Walrus, 120 - Wapiti, 187 - Warblers, 263 - Wart-hog, 209 - Wasps, 372 - Water-beetle, 355 - Water-boatman, 382 - Water-rat, 146 - Water-scorpion, 383 - Water-shrew, 37 - Water-snail, 314 - Water-spider, 393 - Water-striders, 382 - Water-thrush, 263 - Water-vole, 146 - Waxbill, 261 - Weasels, 91, 455 - " honey, 97 - " least, 93 - " New York, 93 - Weevers, 346 - Weevils, nut, 359 - " rice, 359 - " wheat, 359 - Whales, 121 - " bottle-nosed, 125 - " fin, 127 - " Greenland, 127 - " killer, 131 - " rorqual, 127 - " sperm, 124 - " whalebone, 126 - " white, 129 - Whelk, 418 - Whippoorwill, 244 - White bear, 102 - White shark, 338 - White-tailed gnu, 178 - Whitethroat, 261 - Wild asses, 193 - " boar, 208 - " duck, 293 - " oxen, 157 - Wildcat, 62 - Wildebeests, 177 - Wilson's tawny thrush, 269 - Wireworms, 357 - Wishtonwish, 141 - Wolf, aard, 74 - " common, 81 - " coyote, 83 - " Tasmanian, 225 - " tiger, 77 - Wolverene, 96 - Wombat, 223 - Woodchuck, 142 - Woodcock, 287 - Woodpecker, 247 - " flicker, 249 - " ivory-bill, 247 - " logcock, 247 - " redhead, 249 - Woodlice, 407 - Wood-pigeon, 276 - Worm, earth-, 427 - " lug-, 428 - " ship, 426 - Wrens, 269 - - - Y - - Yak, 158 - Yapock opossum, 230 - - - Z - - Zebra, 192 - " Burchell's, 192 - " Grévy's, 192 - " mountain, 192 - Zoëa, 408 - - - * * * * * - - - - -TRANSCRIBER'S NOTES: - - -1. Passages in italics are surrounded by _underscores_. - -2. Passages in bold are indicated by =bold=. - -3. In this etext an 'a' with macron is represented as [=a]. - -4. Certain words use oe ligature in the original. - -5. Images have been moved from the middle of a paragraph to the closest -paragraph break. - -6. The following misprints have been corrected: - - "CHIPMANZEES" corrected to "CHIMPANZEES" (page 1) - Added missing period after "siamang" (page 6) - "mountian" corrected to "mountain" (page 8) - Added missing quotation mark after "water." (page 41) - "mischevious" corrected to "mischievous" (page 44) - Added missing period after "Canada Lynx" (facing page 48) - "mountians" corrected to "mountains" (page 56) - Added missing quotation mark after 'Jock,' (page 80) - "yeilded" corrected to "yielded" (page 132) - Removed partial paragraph indenting from sentence starting - "Sometimes a rhinoceros...." (page 204) - "pecarry" corrected to "peccary" (page 210, last paragraph) - "miliped" corrected to "millepede" (page 214) - "They will" corrected to "they will" (page 226) - "noisest" corrected to "noisiest" (page 250) - Added missing period after "Bluebird" (facing page 264) - Removed comma from "the mewing, of cats" (page 275) - Changed "burrow, 6" to "burrow; 6" (facing page 360) - Added missing period after "chrysalis state" (page 372) - Changed "September, Then" to "September. Then" (page 377) - "wine-glasess" corrected to "wine-glasses" (page 410) - "mullusks" corrected to "mollusks" (page 420) - Added missing period after "Eastern coast" (page 457) - "bivavle" corrected to "bivalve" (page 479) - "It's body" corrected to "Its body" (page 483) - "trimimngs" corrected to "trimmings" (page 491) - Added missing quotation mark before "Even the birds" (page 494) - "Coaiti" corrected to "Coati" (page 499) - "Ivorybill" corrected to "Ivory-bill" (page 502) - "ivorybill" corrected to "ivory-bill" (page 508) - Replaced named index entries on the beginning of page (continuing - from previous page) with quotation mark (pages 498, 501, 503, - 504, 508) - -7. Other than the corrections listed above, printer's inconsistencies in -spelling, punctuation, and hyphenation have been retained. - - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Animal World, A Book of Natural -History, by Theodore Wood - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE ANIMAL WORLD *** - -***** This file should be named 42414-8.txt or 42414-8.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/4/2/4/1/42414/ - -Produced by Juliet Sutherland and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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