620 



Life-histories of Northern Animals 



Then a new thought came. Lumber cruisers in the pineries 

 got lost from time to time, and armed only with a blazing axe, 

 they must starve or find a Porcupine. As these animals grew 

 rare the men did starve. So a new law exists to-day, the 

 thorny rodent is protected under grievous penalties, and none 

 but the starving may molest it. Furthermore, since its chief 

 enemy is also the enemy of its enemies, and has killed off the 

 Fishers, the Spiny race is prospering again. 



This is its use to man to-day. But in days gone by it 

 rendered a more aesthetic service. The quills — always the 

 quills — were sought after by the Indian women for their fancy 

 work, they were ready-made laces with a ready-made needle 

 at one end; dyed with roots, berries, barks, and lichens to a 

 white, brown, black, red, green, and yellow, or left their natural 

 white, they proved excellent material for the gorgeous em- 

 broidery of coats, moccasins, robes, and canoes that are famous 

 now as the Redman's art— an art that we believe was far too 

 true to die, and yet will wield its influence in our modern world, 

 even though it was the savage outcome of a savage's idea, 

 expressed in the spines of a stupid beast, stained in dyes of the 

 plants that it fed on. 



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