260 THE inVE OF THE BEE-HUNTER. 



" hung up," as soundly as if slipping his hold did not 

 depend upon his own will. This '' tail hold ". is so firm, 

 that shooting the animal will not cause him to let go, 

 even if you blow his head off; on the contrary, he will 

 remain hung up, until the birds of prey and the elements 

 have scattered his carcass to the winds ; and yet the 

 tail will remain an object of unconquered attachment to 

 its last object of circumlocuting embrace. 



An old backwoods " Boanerges " of our accjuaint- 

 ance, who occasionallj^ threw down his lap-stone and 

 awl, and went through the country to stir up the people 

 to look after the " consarns of their latter end," en- 

 forced the necessity of perseverance in good works, by 

 comparing a true Christian to an opossum up a tall 

 sapling, in a strong wind. Said he, " My brethren, 

 that's your situation exactly ; the world, the flesh, and 

 the devil, compose the wind that is trying to blow you 

 off the gospel tree. But don't let go of it ; hold on as 

 a 'possum would in a hurricane. If the fore legs of 

 your passions get loose, hold on by your hind legs of 

 conscientiousness ; and if they let go, hold on eternally 

 by your tail, which is the promise that the saints shall 

 persevere unto the end." 



As an animal of sport, the opossum is of course of 

 an inferior character ; the negroes, however, look upon 

 the creature as the most perfect of game, and are much 

 astonished that the fox and deer should be preferred ; 

 and the hilarity with which they pursue the sport of 



