THE SQUIRREL'S DISPOSITION 117 



might easily suppose that it is all in fun. In their 

 most truculent moods, in their fiercest fights, they 

 cannot cease to be graceful in all their motions. 



A common action of squirrels, when excited, of 

 throwing things down, has been oddly misinterpreted 

 by some observers who have written about it. Here 

 I have often watched a squirrel, madly excited at my 

 presence when I have stopped to watch him, dancing 

 about and whisking his tail, scolding in a variety of 

 . tones, and emitting that curious sound which reminds 

 one of the chattering cry of fieldfares when alarmed; 

 and finally tearing off the loose bark with his little 

 hands and teeth, and biting, too, at twigs and leaves 

 so as to cause them to fall in showers. The little 

 pot boils over in that way, and that's all there is 

 to be said about it. 



Walking among the oaks one day in early winter 

 when the trees were nearly leafless, I noticed a squirrel 

 sitting very quietly on a branch; and though he did 

 not get excited, he began to move away before me, 

 stopping at intervals and sitting still to watch me 

 for a few moments. He was a trifle suspicious, and 

 nothing more. In this way he went on for some 

 distance, and by-and-by came to a long horizontal 

 branch thickly clothed with long lichen on its upper 

 sides, and instantly his demeanour changed. He was 

 all excitement, and bounding along the branch he 

 eagerly began to look for something, sniffing and 

 scratching with his paws, and presently he pulled 



