ON A FOX TRAIL 



SOMETHING of the same charm that lures 

 the explorer and the pioneer is experienced 

 by the lover of outdoor life in following 

 the trail of a fox through snow-covered 

 country. I like to trace an unknown brook 

 to its headwaters, or follow a grass-grown 

 road until it fades away, perhaps, in some 

 distant upland pasture, or "dwindles into 

 a squirrel track and runs up a tree." Such 

 an excursion smacks of adventure and of 

 constantly renewed surprise. Expectation 

 is on tiptoe with every step ; one is sure of 

 something fresh and new all the way. But 

 best of all, I love to be the first one to follow 

 a fox's road after the fox himself. He 

 not only leads you through a succession of 

 the choicest bits of natural scenery, full of 

 unexpected peeps into nature's most hidden 

 corners, but makes interesting surprises for 

 you in the report of his own adventures, so 

 vividly recorded in the snow. 



Go forth some crisp midwinter morning 

 212 



