some of his feline selfishness and hunt in 

 savage bands. Every seven years, especially, 

 Often Uptuee/US w j ien rabbits are scarce in the woods because 

 of the sickness that kills them off periodically, 

 you may stumble upon one of these pirate 

 crews haunting the deer yards or following 

 after the caribou herds ; but until the ferocious 

 line swept out of the purple shadows under 

 my very eyes I had no idea that these bands 

 are almost invariably, as I have since learned 

 family parties that hold together through 

 the winter, just as fawns follow the old doe 

 until the spring comes, in order that her wis- 

 dom may find them food, and her superior 

 strength break a way for them when snows 

 are deep and enemies are hard at heel. 



The big lynx in the middle was the 

 mother; the four other lynxes were her 

 cubs; and they held together now, partly 

 that their imperfect education might be fin- 

 ished under her own eyes, but chiefly that 

 in the hungry winter days they might com- 

 bine their powers and hunt more systemat- 

 ically, and pull down, if need be, the larger 

 animals that might defy them individually. 



