SEVERE FROST 121 



severity any visitation of cold that even the old 

 marshman had witnessed. It set in whilst the 

 cubs were yet blind, and on the second night the 

 water near the nest was frozen thick enough to 

 bear the otter's weight, as were also the shallows 

 near the bar, for he landed on the ice there to 

 eat his supper. Before many days passed, strings 

 of wild-fowl arrived, causing great rejoicing to 

 the otters, who, far from regarding them as har- 

 bingers of famine, foresaw an agreeable change 

 in their usual fish diet. Nor had they occasion 

 to look with apprehension on the gradual en- 

 croachment of the ice, inasmuch as the breathing- 

 holes which they made and kept open enabled 

 them to range as freely as before the frost. Of 

 course, they had to bring their prey to the open 

 water ; but for the trouble this gave them they 

 found some compensation in the convenient land- 

 ing-place afforded by the edge of the ice, which 

 was soon dotted with the remains of their repasts. 

 Moreover, the great sheet of ice served them as 

 a playground when they were weary of gambol- 

 ling in the mere, and on it they cut mad capers 

 which held the mallard, widgeon, and teal at gaze. 

 Protected by their thick coats the creatures 

 enjoyed the biting cold, and the cubs, cuddled 

 together in the cosy nest, suffered no ill effects 



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