BISMARCK, THE RED SQUIRREL 



tice, but the squirrel was justified, when we 

 consider the circumstances. For several years 

 prior to the famine, Bismarck had dropped 

 the habit of storing corn, and only gnawed 

 out the germ, leaving the mutilated grain for 

 the blue jays and chipmunks. Now Bismarck 

 undertook to store corn, hiding it as of old, 

 but I vetoed the act, by withholding the corn. 

 The squirrel then turned his attention to a 

 black cherry-tree, and with the aid of a chip- 

 munk, soon stripped it of fruit. I think the 

 chipmunk gathered the fruit for the stone. 

 He gathered an enormous quantity, and surely 

 could not make use of the soft part. The red 

 squirrel may have gathered for immediate use 

 and also for a winter supply. 



Bismarck's next move was a great surprise. 

 I caught him carrying bones to his storehouse. 



One summer I saw Bismarck sitting on a 

 stone wall, apparently eating a bone. After 

 he got through he hid the bone in the wall. 

 I found that the bone was old and partly de- 

 cayed. I smashed up similar bones, and Bis- 

 marck seemed to relish a meal three or four 



