THE OOLOGIST 



55 



but a few minutes when happening to 

 look off up the ridge which had quite a 

 good undergrowth of low laurel, I saw 

 a large dark looking animal. I couldn't 

 make out the shape or exact size at 

 the distance because of so much 

 la'urel, but at once thought of a bear 

 as the leaves under many chestnut 

 and beech trees were all pawed about 

 where bear had been searching for 

 nuts. 



I had started to slip in a couple of ball 

 cartridges to welcome him w'ith when 

 1 saw it was too small for a bear sy 

 turned my attention the other directioii 

 thinking someone was coming with a 

 black dog. In a few moments 1 

 looked that way again and made the 

 alarming discovery that the supposed 

 dog was a large and very dark 

 colored fox, that he was coming right 

 past and that I was sitting in plain 

 sight. There was just one thing to do 

 and this I did. I sat perfectly still 

 and never batted an eye. That fox 

 passed just 25 paces from me. About 

 50 feet from me was a large oak and 

 this was my chance. The instant his 

 head went out of sight as he passed 

 the other side of this big tree, I 

 leveled my gun and as soon as he was 

 well past the tree and all was clear I 

 smashed him in the shoulders with a 

 charge of No. 6 shot. The little sixes 

 had landed on him hard, some going 

 almost through his body besidas 

 l)reaking the left fore leg in two place.s. 



This was an old dog fox and meas- 

 ured up larger than an adult Red. His 

 throat, underparts and legs were black. 

 Tail very large and bushy and jet 

 black with large white tip Upper 

 parts very dark with the long hairs all 

 silver-tipped. On each side of both 

 shoulders was a very small red patch. 



Personally 1 have no use for a hou-,e 

 cat but my mother had one for a num- 

 ber of years that she was so fond of 

 that I had to let it live. This cat 



wculd prowl about at night, bringing 

 her catch in the house, play with it 

 rnd bounce around until I got up. 

 Many times I got up and found ner 

 playing with a mouse or bird. 



One night late in November, 1906, 1 

 heard puss making an unusual racket. 

 Investigation showed the victim to be 

 a flying squirrel, which I fixed up in a 

 cage until morning as it seemed to be 

 badly hurt. Next day it was dead and 

 as I was about to throw it away I 

 noticed that it had a' peculiar look, be- 

 ing much larger and browner than the 

 ordinary flyer. Comparison with a 

 mounted flying squirrel showed a 

 great difference in size and color. I 

 soon had it placed as the Canadiian 

 flying squirrel, and after it was 

 mounted and dried I sent it for posi- 

 tive identification to the Academy of 

 Sciences of Philadelphia, to S. N. 

 Rhoads. author of "Mammals of Penn- 

 sylvania and N. J." 



He pronounced it the first authentic 

 record for this state. The specimen 

 was afterwards returned to me. 



In all my ramblings I never but 

 once met a living Saw Whet Owl, in 

 the young of the year plumage. I al- 

 ways suspected this little Owl was a 

 breeder and used to be on the watch 

 for signs of nesting. Once, several 

 years ago in June, I peered into a 

 thick clump of low hemlock looking 

 for a possible Warbler's nest and 

 there within a few feet of my face I 

 saw what I least expected, a young 

 Acadian. I succeeded in killing it 

 with a stick and securing it. It was 

 full grown and very pretty but ab- 

 solutely different in color to the old 

 birds. 



For a number of seasons I hum r[ a 

 great deal for waterfowl on the river, 

 spring and fall, and was always on 

 the watch for a Duck Hawk. As year 

 after year passed I concluded this Rap- 



