52 OUTDOOR LIFE IN ENGLAND 



means exempt from the latter, nor can I, with 

 every desire to protect it, assert that it is entirely 

 innocent of wrong-doing. But its sins are 

 comparatively few ; so beautiful and graceful an 

 animal may surely be forgiven the minor offences 

 of which it is guilty, and, after all, a hundred 

 squirrels are not as destructive as a single hare 

 or rabbit. And so I can find it in my heart 

 to plead for these lovable Iktle animals, and it 

 grieves me sorely to see their dead bodies adorning 

 the keeper's tree or the barn-door, in company 

 of such miscreants as stoats, weasels, magpies, 

 etc. The chief misdemeanour of which squirrels 

 are guilty is the damage which they inflict on 

 young trees, larches especially, for they wantonly 

 attack the leading shoots, and so ruin the trees. 

 Still, they might be spared where the trees are 

 of such a description as to be exempt from their 

 attacks. As a rule, when there are plenty of 

 hazels, and nuts are abundant, they are less 

 mischievous. It is at the time when their winter 

 store is exhausted that their onslaughts on young 

 trees are most severe. It has been asserted 

 that squirrels lie dormant throughout the winter, 

 but this everyone conversant with the habits 

 of these animals is well aware is not the case. 

 I have frequently seen them skipping about in 

 the snow, even during the most severe weather, 

 in the North of England. They doubtless do 

 sleep a great deal in the winter months, but not 

 to the extent generally supposed. The brush of 



