PEPACTON 



to manage a single section of a leaf large enough, 

 when rolled up, to form it, and so is obliged to 

 construct it of smaller pieces, such as she can carry, 

 lapping them one over another. 



A few days later I saw a smaller species carrying 

 fragments of a yellow autumn leaf under a stone 

 in a cornfield. On examining the place about sun- 

 down to see if the bee lodged there, I found her 

 snugly ensconced in a little rude cell that adhered 

 to the under side of the stone. There was no pollen 

 in it, and I half suspected it was merely a berth in 

 which to pass the night. 



These bees do not live even in pairs, but abso- 

 lutely alone. They have large baskets on their legs 

 in which to carry pollen, an article they are very 

 industrious in collecting. 



Why the larger species above described should 

 have waited till October to build its nest is a mys- 

 tery to me. Perhaps this was the second brood of 

 the season, or can it be that the young were not to 

 hatch till the following spring? 



THE WEATHERWISE MUSKRAT 



I am more than half persuaded that the muskrat 

 is a wise little animal, and that on the subject of 

 the weather, especially, he possesses some secret 

 that I should be glad to know. In the fall of 1878 

 I noticed that he built unusually high and massive 

 nests. I noticed them in several different localities. 

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