THE GOSPEL OF NATURE 



treat one another as rivals, or associate for mutual 

 protection. One cow will lick and comb another in 

 the most affectionate manner, and the next moment 

 savagely gore her. Hate and cruelty for the most 

 part rule in the animal world. A few of the higher 

 animals are monogamous, but by far the greater 

 number of species are polygamous or promiscuous. 

 There is no mating or pairing in the great bovine 

 tribe, and none among the rodents that I know of, 

 or among the bear family, or the cat family, or 

 among the seals. When we come to the birds, we find 

 mating, and occasional pairing for life, as with the 

 ostrich and perhaps the eagle. 



As for the rights of property among the animals, 

 I do not see how we can know just how far those 

 rights are respected among individuals of the same 

 species. We know that bees will rob bees, and that 

 ants will rob ants; but whether or not one chip 

 munk or one flying squirrel or one wood mouse will 

 plunder the stores of another I do not know. Prob 

 ably not, as the owner of such stores is usually on 

 hand to protect them. Moreover, these provident lit 

 tle creatures all lay up stores in the autumn, before 

 the season of scarcity sets in, and so have no need to 

 plunder one another. In case the stores of one squir 

 rel were destroyed by some means, and it were able 

 to dispossess another of its hoard, would it not in 

 that case be a survival of the fittest, and so condu 

 cive to the well-being of the race of squirrels? 

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