156 BEYOND THE PASTURE BARS 



marsupial family in North America and is hence of great in- 

 terest to nature-lovers. See the author's account of the opos- 

 sum's habits in "Wild Life Near Home," and of its ancestors 

 in his volume called "Winter." 



Page 83. 



Uncle Jethro was an old darky slave who ran away from his 

 master before the war and found a home with the author's 

 grandfather. 



Page 85. 



Br'er possum means ''Brother possum." 



Page 89. 



"Being thrown into a brier-patch," is from the story of the 

 Tar Baby in the tales by Uncle Remus by Joel Chandler Har- 

 ris. 



Settee: the name for a long settle with a cushion upon it 

 used in old-fashioned country homes. 



Page 90. 



Calabash-gourd: a large gourd the size of one's head that 

 dries with a hard horny shell, much used for dippers and bird 

 houses in the country. 



Page 92. 



Lupton's Pond: another pond near the boyhood home of 

 the author. 



Page 92. 



Chestnut-oak: a large oak tree with bark and leaves much 

 like the sweet chestnut's. 



Page 92. 



Trail: means the tracks or scent left by an animal's feet 

 which the dogs follow. 



Page 92. 



Coon: a short spelling for raccoon, a wild animal of our 

 woods, belonging to the bear family. See the author's story 

 of one called Mux in "Roof and Meadow." 



