A DANGEROUS SITUATION 155 



even disabled ; indeed he was none the worse 

 for his dive, the snow having completely broken 

 his fall. On feeling the ground beneath his 

 pads he moved forward, and had advanced some 

 twelve yards when he found himself confronted 

 by the huge heap of loose rock which the 

 quarrymen had piled there. It barred his way, 

 threatening to prevent his escape, until presently 

 he found a small opening, and through it 

 squeezed to a narrow tunnel-like passage which 

 led to a chamber littered with the remains of 

 rabbits, mice, eels, and frogs. It was a polecat's 

 den — the den, indeed, of the polecat that had 

 chased him, the den where she and her kittens 

 had slept after the pursuit. He crossed the 

 foul lair and tried to pass through the narrow 

 space between two rocks on the farther side. 

 This looked like courting destruction, for he 

 ran the risk of being jammed and unable to 

 extricate himself; but he could hear the foxes 

 behind him ; he must go that way or perish. 

 With a struggle he forced his head and shoulders 

 through ; then he was fixed, he could not clear 

 his hindquarters, tug and strain as he might. 

 As he stopped to recover his breath, he caught 

 the patter of his pursuers' pads : they were 

 approaching the den : in a few seconds Grey 

 Fox's jaws would close on him and the rocks 



