A HERMIT'S WILD FRIENDS 



Here she reared two baby squirrels. Bismarck 

 did not take much interest in his family 

 through the summer. He spent most of the 

 time in the dooryard, sleeping in his own nest 

 by night. By day his time was occupied in 

 fighting the crows, and in driving squirrels 

 and birds from the dooryard. 



There was always a good lot of food for 

 Bismarck to choose from, and I thought he 

 would give up hard work and lead a life of 

 ease. But I did not know the thrifty ways 

 of the red squirrel. When the harvest season 

 for hazelnuts drew near, Bismarck buckled 

 down to hard work. He began his new life 

 by calling often on his family in the hemlock- 

 tree. One day I found Bismarck and his wife 

 digging beneath a pine-tree that grew on the 

 high land just out of the swamp. They 

 brought out a great quantity of pine rootlets 

 during the next two days. There was not 

 much soil, which indicated that the squirrels 

 had discovered a natural cavity, partly filled 

 with pine rootlets. The third day, about four 

 o'clock in the afternoon, the work stopped. 

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