214 CANADIAN PORCUPINE. 



CHAPTER XIII. 



Canadian porcupine — Picking fall berries in spring — Carrying wood to 

 summer quarters — Anticipating Fourth of July — Summer quarters in 

 winter — Capsized — Fox hunt on rackets — A mile of soft snow without 

 rackets. 



Thursday, March lo, I spent the day in skinning and stuffing 

 a porcupine, that was brought in to me by one of the neighbors, 

 and a most difficult task I found it. The Canadian porcupine 

 {Erethizon dorsatiim) is quite common all along the coast, and 

 in the interior of Labrador. It is an animal more or less peculiar 

 to this region, and is generally found in winter by following, on the 

 newly fallen snow, the impressions of its feet which look much like 

 the imprints of a small child's foot. It is found more frequently 

 in winter than in summer, when it comes out from its hiding places, 

 which are in caves, under rocks, and often in the hollows of trees, 

 and travels about for food. It lives on berries and the bark of 

 trees, gnawing them in such a manner that the hunter knows at 

 once when one of these animals is about, after having found its 

 cuttings. The animal returns to the same place each day to feed 

 until its supply ceases, when it seeks a new place. Though naturally 

 a sluggish aiiimal, the porcupine, when pursued, takes at once to 

 the tree-tops and is then very spry and agile. When caught upon 

 the ground it immediately rolls itself together into a sort of ball, 

 and with spines erected meets the intruder. Only the belly, and 

 extremities of the animal are destitute of these spines so that it can 

 be safely attacked only on these parts. The Indians kill it with 

 a blow from some stick which they carry for the purpose, or, if 



