222 The Cross Fox, 



five of these skins are procured in a season at any one of the posts in the fur 

 countries. 



This Fox presents considerable variations, both in size and colour. — 

 Some of them are brilliant black, "with the exception of the end of the tail, 

 which is invariably white. Other specimens are bluish grey, and many are 

 tinged with a ciuerous colour on the sides ; it perhaps is most commonly 

 obtained, with parts of its fur hoary ; the shiny black coat being thickly 

 interspersed with white or silvery blue tipped hairs. 



Three years since, in the spring of 1853, Mr. Clarke, of the Township 

 of Osgoode, near the City of Ottawa, discovered a burrow of Silver Grey 

 Foxes in that Township, and succeeded in capturing two of the young ones. 

 His dog caught one of the old ones, and Mr, Clarke endeavoured to secure 

 it, but it bit him so severely that he was obliged to let it escape. One of the 

 young animals was intensely black over every portion of his body, except the 

 point of his tail, in which there were a few white hairs only. The other was 

 a. beautiful silver gi-ey. This fact proves that the Silver Grey Fox and the 

 Black Fox are only varieties of the same species, since both, in this well 

 authenticated iiiStance, were the progeny of the same parents and at the 

 same birth. These two animals were exhibited with some other animals by 

 the members of the Mechanics Institute and Athenaeum, at their exhibition 

 an the occasion of the visit of Lord Elgin in 1853. They were afterwards 

 purchased by Mr. J. Dennison, Fur Dealer in Ottawa, for £15. The Silver 

 Grey hung himself with his chain, and the Black one, owing to his having 

 en more than one occasion nearly succeeded in making his escape, was killed. 

 Mr. Dennison informs us that he afterwards sold the two skins for £30. He 

 is a fortunate trap-^er who can display among the contents of his pack a couple 

 of good Silver Grey Foxes. 



This Fox is chiefly found in the colder portions of the British Territories. 

 They are only rarely to be met with south of the St. La^\Tence. 



The Grey Fox of the Southern States (Vulpes Yirginianus,) in a very 

 different animal, and its fur is not so valuable. There is no fur produced in 

 North America so precious as that of the Silver Grey Fox. The habits of 

 the animal appears to be in no respect different from those of the Common 

 Red Fox. 



VuLPES FULVUS, (vflr. decussatas,) The Cross Fox. 



Characters. — A c/ass on the neck and shoulders, and a longitudinal 



s'ripe on the muler surface black ; [Decussatus) Latin, 



crossed. 



Sir John Eio^ardson, and in fact most naturalists, hunters, and Indians, 



resrard the Cross Fox as a mere varietv of the Red Fox. He says I found on 



inquiry that the gradations of colour between characteristic specimens of the 



Cross and Red Fox, are so small that the hunters are often in doubt with 



respect to the proper denomination of the skin ; and I was frequently told, 



" this is not a cross Fox yet, but becoming so." It is worthy of remark, 



moreover that the European Fox (Tw/pe5 vulgaris,) is subject to similar 



