66 SrORT IN NORTH AMERICA. 



" Si natnra expellas," &c., and certainly the Beaufort 

 raccoon demonstrated to us the truth of the adage. 



One more story ahout a 'coon. I was shooting 

 one morning with my friend O., a distinguished 

 professor, and much beloved by all the cadets in 

 the United States Military Academy. We were 

 in a cedar wood on the banks of a little river 

 not far from West Point (New York), and a pack 

 of fine dogs had put up a raccoon. The cunning 

 creature fled before the hounds and managed to 

 put them off the scent. He disappeared as if by 

 magic, close to a wooden bridge wliich crossed the 

 stream. The dogs were evidently bafiled, and stood 

 growling and barking, as if they did not know what 

 to do. We encouraged them with voice and gesture, 

 and were at last going to give it up as a bad job, 

 when a Yankee labourer came up and offered, with 

 a sly wink, to show us the fugitive if we would give 

 him a dollar for his trouble. We agreed to the 

 bargain, and handed over the money. " There he 

 is, then," quoth the Yankee. " Look up that ar 

 tree, and you may see his tail hangin' out of the 

 crow's nest." There he was, sure enough : the 

 raccoon had sprung upon the parapet of the bridge 

 and from that he had gained the tree, and so by the 

 help of his claws he had climbed up to the deserted 

 crow's nest, where he lay as snugly as possible, 

 forgetting, the rascal, that his long striped tail would 

 betray him. No doubt the hiding-place was well 



