136 SQUIRRELS AND OTHER FUR-BEARERS 



along the top of the ground to the tree that bore 

 the nuts, shoot up it as before, seize the fruit, 

 and then back again to his retreat. 



Never did he fail during the half hour or 

 more that I watched him to take an observation 

 on his way both to and from his nest. It was 

 " snatch and run " with him. Something seemed 

 to say to him all the time : " Look out ! look 

 out!" "The cat!" "The hawk!" "The 

 owl ! " " The boy with the gun ! " 



It was a bleak December morning ; the first 

 fine flakes of a cold, driving snowstorm were just 

 beginning to sift down, and the squirrel was 

 eager to finish harvesting his nuts in time. It 

 was quite touching to see how hurried and anx- 

 ious and nervous he was. I felt like going out 

 and lending a hand. The nuts were small, poor 

 pig-nuts, and I thought of all the gnawing he 

 would have to do to get at the scanty meat they 

 held. My little boy once took pity on a squirrel 

 that lived in the wall near the gate, and cracked 

 the nuts for him, and put them upon a small 

 board shelf in the tree where he could sit and 

 eat them at his ease. 



The red squirrel is not so provident as the 

 chipmunk. He lays up stores irregularly, by 

 fits and starts ; he never has enough put up to 

 carry him over the winter ; hence he is more 



