had been with you. Yt4, under such circumstances, 

 the Skunk should not be too severely censured; the 

 chances are he would suffer more from the unexpected 

 meeting than you. 



Remember, also, the Skunk tribe should not be per- 

 secuted because you may on one occasion have been 

 unfortunate enough to h:ive srotten a good supply of 

 perfume when "a wooing you would go." 



INTERESTING AND VALUABLE CONTRIBUTIONS. 



The informatitm on succeeding pages of this paper 

 under the caption, "What Farmers, Poulterers and 

 Sportsmen Say About Slcunks," is both interesting 

 and instructive, although it shows a wide difference 

 of opinion as to the good or evil which these mam- 

 mals do. 



While it is true that many of these contributors, 

 who have kindly taken the trouble to send their views 

 on the food-habits of Skunks, condemn them, it is a 

 fact wo'rthy of note, in this connection, to observe that 

 no one of these correspondents who has examined the 

 stomachs of any considerable number of Skunks is 

 found denouncing th(^m. According to my experience 

 Skunks, cither alive or dead, are very disagreeable to 

 handle, and to this fact, no doubt, must be largely 

 attributed the censure so many persons heap on them. 

 Furthermore, Skunk's are most active in the night 

 time and the many good deeds they do about the farm- 

 er's possessions are not nearly so easily seen as are the 

 rc'snlts of their occasional predatory visils when they 

 liill rhickens o^r suck eggs. 



THE SNE.\KING CAT AND CUNNING RAT. 



I am a lover of birds — game, song, insectivorous, and 

 raptorial kinds — and with the exception of a few, en 

 22-11 



