i6 



November 1748. 



I mot in the woods, had great numbers of 

 fleas. 



I have already mentioned that thefe 

 fquirrels are among the animals, which at 

 prefent are more plentiful than they for- 

 merly were, and that the infinitely greater 

 cultivation of maize, which is their favou- 

 rite food, is the caufe of their multiplica- 

 tion. However it is peculiar, that in fome 

 vears a greater number of fquirrels come 

 down from the higher countries into Pe?i- 

 fyhania, and other Englijh colonies. They 

 commonly come in autumn, and are then 

 verv bufy in the woods gathering nuts and 

 acorns, which they carry into hollow trees 

 or their ftore-holes, in order to be fuffici- 

 ently provided with food for winter. They 

 are io diligent in itoring up of proviiions, 

 that though the nuts have been extremely 

 plentiful that year, yet it is difficult to get 

 a conliderable quantity of them. The peo- 

 ple here pretended from their own experi- 

 ence to know, that when the fquirrels came 

 down in fuch numbers from the higher parts 

 of the country, the winter enfuing was un- 

 commonly rigorous and cold, and for that 

 realbn they always look upon their coming 

 down, as a fare iign of fuch a winter. Yet 

 this does not always prove true, as I experi- 

 enced in theautumn of the year 1749: at that 



time 



