THE SKUNK 
T is in the rural districts throughout the 
greater part of North America that the 
skunk is best known; but being a wanderer 
of the night, he is not so familiar a sight as is the 
equirrel or the woodchuck. In respect to his nocturnal 
habits he holds the same relation to the mammals 
that the hawks and owls do to the birds. 
He is known in different localities by various 
names, such as polecat, essence-pedlar, and wood-pussy. 
‘““Wood-pussy” is pretty and probably derives its origin 
from the fact that after twilight the skunk may be 
casily mistaken by the uninitiated for a cat. The 
skunk is about the size of the cat, with long fur and 
a very bushy tail, the prevailing color being black and 
white. The black fur is the more valuable, but the 
coloring of fur is now so largely practised that it 
matters little how much white there is, for the skins 
all go through a dark dye to make them uniform in 
color. After dyeing, cutting, and making, few sus- 
pect that the fashionable “Alaska Sable” furs of the 
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