THE SAGACITY OF THE WHITE FOX. 47 



that manner, carefully coil it so as to hide his meat. 

 On moving away, satisfied with his operation, he, of 

 course, had drawn it after him again ; and sometimes, 

 with great patience, repeated his labours five or six 

 times, until, in a passion, he has been constrained to 

 eat his food without its having been rendered luscious 

 by previous concealment. Snow is the substitute for 

 water to these creatures, and on a large lump being 

 given to them, they break it in pieces with their feet, 

 and roll on it with great delight. When the snow 

 was slightly scattered on the decks, they did not pick 

 it up, as dogs are accustomed to do, but by repeatedly 

 pressing with their nose, collected small lumps at its 

 extremity, and then drew them into the mouth with 

 the assistance of the tongue." 



The sagacity of the same white fox is thus de- 

 scribed : " He was small and not perfectly white ; 

 but his tameness was so remarkable that I could not 

 afford to kill him, but confined him on deck in a small 

 hutch with a scope of chain. During the first day, 

 finding himself much tormented by being drawn out 

 repeatedly by his chain, he at length, whenever he 

 retreated to his hut, took this carefully up in his 

 mouth, and drew it so completely after him, that no 

 one who valued his fingers would endeavour to take 

 hold of the end attached to the staple." 



The Arctic fox feeds on sea-birds and their eggs, 

 which it finds on the coast, on the bodies of dead 

 fishes, and on marine insects. In Norwegian Lapland 

 it preys on the lemming, of which it is especially fond ; 

 and when there is a migration of the lemmings from 

 the northern fjelds to the south of Norway, many Arc- 

 tic foxes follow in pursuit of them. 



