GROUND-SQUIRRELS 145 



varieties differ so much in size and tint that 

 the early naturalists made several species. 



''This squirrel," to quote the pleasant 

 phrases of Dr. Godman, ''is most generally 

 seen scudding along the lower rails of the com- 

 mon zigzag or 'Virginia' fences, which afford 

 him at once a pleasant and secure path, as, in 

 a few turns, he finds a safe hiding place be- 

 hind the projecting angles, or enters his burrow 

 undiscovered. When . . . his retreat is 

 cut off he . . . runs up the nearest tree, 

 uttering a very shrill cry or whistle, indicative 

 of his distress, and it is in this situation that 

 he is most frequently made captive by his per- 

 secuting enemies, the mischievous schoolboys. ' ' 



No animal is better prepared than the chip- 

 munk to withstand the cold and hunger of a 

 northern winter, for he has learned how to con- 

 struct a model home and to provision it well. 



The burrow and its furniture. This is a 

 burrow which usually begins beside a stone or 

 among the roots of a tree where it will not at- 

 tract notice, moreover all the earth that is taken 

 from the hole is scattered at a distance in order 

 not to betray the excavation. It is first carried 



