146 THE PORCUPINE. 



There are several other species of marmot in America 

 One is called the Quebec Marmot, which lives a solitary life, 

 making an almost perpendicular burrow in dry ground at a 

 distance from water. 



The beautiful little, often-tamed Woodchuck, is another 

 American marmot. It makes a deep burrow in the sides of 

 hills, lining the chamber at the inner end with dry leaves 

 and grass. It may frequently be seen by the traveller run- 

 ning rapidly along the tops of fences, as if to keep company 

 with him — now getting ahead, then stopping and looking back 

 to see if he is coming, and then going on again, tilL growing 

 tired of the amusement, it gives a last stare and then scampei*s 

 back the way it has come. 



THE PORCUPINE. 



Unattractive as the fretful porcupine appears when con- 

 sidered as a means of satisfying man's hunger, it is hunted 

 throughout North America for the sake of its flesh, which 

 forms an especially dainty dish, not only in the opinion oi 

 the Indians, but in that of every European who has partaken 

 of it. The creature dwells in small caverns, either under a 

 pile of boulders, or amid the roots of large trees ; but it also, 

 with its sharp claws, easily climbs up the trunks, and may 

 sometimes be seen reposing on their very summits, where it 

 feeds on the bark of the young branches, or the berries when 

 they become ripe. 



The Canadian porcupine is also known as the cawquaw or 

 urson. It is nearly four feet long altogether, the head and 

 body measuring upwards of three feet, while the tail is about 

 three inches in length. It is less completely defended with 

 spines than the porcupines of other countries — part of its 



