MOTHS OF THE LIMBERLOST 



in Rainbow Bottom, but not a sound must be made from 

 his home. The bark of a dog hurried me to the fence 

 in time to see some hunters passing in the bottom, but 

 I thanked mercy they were on the opposite side of the 

 river and it was not probable they would wade, so my 

 birds would not be disturbed. When the squirrel felt 

 that he must bark and chatter, or burst with tense emo- 

 tions, he discreetly left his mate and nest. I did some 

 serious thinking on the "instinct" question. He miglit 

 choose a hollow log for his home by instinct, or eat certain 

 foods because hunger urged him, but could instinct teach 

 him not to make a sound where his young family 

 lay.^ Without a doubt, for this same reason, the car- 

 dinal sang from every tree and bush around Horse- 

 shoe Bend, save the sumac where his mate hovered their 

 young. 



The matter presented itself in this way. The squirrel 

 has feet, and he runs with them. He has teeth, and he 

 eats with them. He has lungs, and he breathes with 

 them. Every organ of his interior has its purpose, 

 and is used to fulfill it. His big, prominent eyes come 

 from long residence in dark hollows. His bushy tail 

 helps him in long jumps from tree to tree. Every i)art 

 of his anatomy is created, designed and used to serve 

 some purpose, save only his brain, the most complex 

 and complicated part of him. Its only use and purpose 

 is — to form one small "tidbit" for the palate of the 



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