180 GLIMPSES OF WILD LIFE 



once on his guard against both man and beast. 

 The dog was a coward, and dared not face him. 

 When the coon's attention was diverted the 

 dog would rash in; then one of us would at- 

 tempt to seize the coon's tail, but he faced about 

 so quickly, his black eyes gleaming, that the 

 hand was timid about seizing him. But finally 

 in his skirmishing with the dog I caught him 

 by the tail, and bore him safely to an open 

 flour barrel, and he was our prisoner. Much 

 amusement my little boy and I anticipated 

 with him. He partook of food that same day, 

 and on the second day would eat the chestnuts 

 in our presence. Never did he show the 

 slightest fear of us or of anything, but he was 

 unwearied in his efforts to regain his freedom. 

 After a few days we put a strap upon his neck 

 and kept him tethered by a chain. But in the 

 night, by dint of some hocus-pocus, he got the 

 chain unsnapped and made off, and is now, I 

 trust, a patriarch of his tribe, wearing a leather 

 necktie. 



The skunk visits every farm sooner or later. 

 One night I came near shaking hands with one 

 on my very door-stone. I thought it was the 

 cat, and put down my hand to stroke it, when 

 the creature, probably appreciating my mistake, 

 moved off up the bank, revealing to me the 

 white stripe on its body and the kind of cat I 

 had saluted. The skunk is not easily ruffled, 

 and seems to employ excellent judgment in the 

 use of its terrible weapon. 



Several times I have had calls from wood- 



