A VISIT TO A SKUNK FA KM 



'43 



"MR. JUNE AND HIS GRANDDAUGHTER HAVE DELIGHTFUL TIMES WITH THESE CHARM- 

 ING PETS." 



knocked them on the head with a club 

 or my grandmother kicked them away 

 from the kitchen stove and expressed 

 herself in a fair portion of the contents 

 of the dictionary. Mr. June and his 

 granddaughter have delightful times 

 with these charming pets. I suspect 

 that it is not the dollars that induce 

 them to keep the pets, but real liking 

 for these animals of curious habits. It 

 shows us that things are not always 

 as bad as they seem. If we do not 

 bring to the skunks steel trap, dog or 

 club they respond in kind, love for love, 

 kindness for kindness, and if we do not 

 fight them they do not attack us in 

 their peculiar manner. Before visiting 



the skunk farm I had wondered if I 

 had not better take a telephoto lens and 

 at a distance of several rods bring the 

 picture to the camera by magnification, 

 but I found that the telephoto was not 

 needed. The skunks may be freely 

 handled, provided they are not too sud- 

 denly seized. A frightened skunk is not 

 pleasant but the "kitty, kitty, kitty" 

 method of handling the animal is not 

 so bad as grandmother thought it was. 

 Mr. June and his granddaughter have 

 proved that skunks may be safely cared 

 for, and that one may, as the little girl 

 expressed it, live in a tent with them, 

 without a suggestion of odoriferous re- 

 lations. 



