i6o 



THE fRETFUL PORCUPINE. 



You may have heard the belief, common in many quarters, that this creature, 

 when attacked, defends itself by throwing its quills at its assailant. While 

 tnis is an error, yet it is a natural one, since there is reasonable ground for the 

 belief. 



Horses that have shown too much curiosity in snuffing about the odd-looking 

 creature, have come away with a number of the needle-like spines sticking in 

 their noses, where they were believed to have been thrown by the porcupine. 



How this mistake originated was clearly brought out by Dick Brownell within 

 a few minutes after the discovery of the creature. Understanding its nature quite 

 well, for he had seen specimens in his own country, he felt no 

 fear when he stooped down and extended his hand toward 

 animated burr. 



" Have a care," admonished his 

 cousin, still acting the part of a guard 

 over the approaches to the under- 

 ground home. 



" He isn't a very nice thing to 

 handle, but I guess I can do it," replied 

 Dick, reaching carefully toward the por- 

 cupine. 



The most venturesome person 

 might well hesitate as to the best man- 

 ner of seizing the creature, and the 

 youth's hand was an inch or two from it, 

 when he snatched it back with a cry of 

 pain. As he did so, several of the 

 spines were seen to be clinging to his 

 palm. It looked for all the world as 

 if the porcupine had flung them at him, 

 but such was not the fact. 



At the moment when the hand was closest to its body, the specimen of the 

 hystrix cristata (whose head, you will remember, was turned away from the 

 youth) made a sudden leap backward a few inches, bringing its longest spines rn 

 sharp collision with the hand. 



These animal javelins are loosely imbedded in the skin, besides which it 

 probably was on the point of shedding some of them, so that when Dick drew his 

 hand away, the quills stuck to it. 



The wounds inflicted were enough to cause any one to cry out, for the sharp 

 points brought blood, which trickled from Dick's palm as he gave it such a flirt 

 that the quills flew a number of feet. 



"Confound it," he muttered. " I didn't expect him to do business in that style." 



"Look out ! he's coming again !" 



The porcupine, aware of the effective blow it had struck, was making ready to 



AN AWKWARD PET. 



