;u7 



animal moving about in the grass near my intended patli. I 

 soon found on nearer approach it was a lialf-grovvn Skunk; 

 so coming to a stand I watched its methods of getting a liveli- 

 hood; it wandered first one. way and then another until it 

 came within a few feet of me standing quite still; it never took 

 the least notice of me. It was searching for grasshoppers as 

 was evident from its actions. Walking with its short steps it 

 made a sort of stiff, wrigglelike progress; when it came across 

 a grasshopper, stiffened by cold and dew after night-fall, which 

 would hop but two or three inches, it gave a short spring 

 placing both paws on the "hopper which it proceeded to eat at 

 leisure. I watched this Skunk until too dark to see its opera- 

 lions any longer and his method of capturing was always the 

 same — catching the insect with his paws first. When a Skunk 

 however, acquires a taste for hen eggs and young chickens, 

 death alone, I believe, will stop his ravages in the poultry yard, 

 and I have had annoyance given me by them; but the death is 

 easily affected; an egg containing strychnine proves very tempt- 

 ing and he commits suicide. I believe that could the Polecat be 

 educated to abandon the habit of using perfumery and eating 

 a chance chicken (which might afterwards die of gapes) which 

 might come in his way, he would become a highly beneficial 

 and useful animal to mankind. 



DR. WALTER VAN FLEET, West Grove: 

 Skunks beneficial; stomach usually filled with insects. 



CLEARFIELD COUNTY. 



J. BLAIR READ, Clearfield: 

 Injurious. Destroying poultry. 



JAMBS THOMAS, Curwensville: 



I had forty young and an old turkey killed in three succes- 

 sive nights by a Skunk. I trapped it and it was not a very 

 large one either. 



ABRAHAM NEVELING, Coalport: 

 Skunks are injurious; they destroy poultry and eggs. 



E. GARD EDWARDS, Ramey: 



Skunks are more injurious than otherwise on account of deji- 

 redations on poultry. 



