THE MEPHITIS-MEPHITICA 287 



considered " game," either big or little, and yet he is 

 indeed game to the core. 



A member of this famous species, mephitis-mephitica, 

 had taken possession of the earth beneath the floor of 

 our first cabin on the Bear Kiver, and as she was like 

 her sisters (for this one was a female and a mother at 

 that) nocturnal in her habits, she annoyed us very much 

 by knocking on the floor, in some manner unknown to 

 us, at sundry times in the night loud enough to awaken 

 a very sound sleeper, and none of us took credit for 

 being anything but light sleepers. 



Our guide, being by profession a trapper, set a trap 

 which he felt sure would catch the oifender, and then 

 he and the writer left the camp to be gone a day and 

 a night. Dr. W. E. Hughes, our genial scientist, 

 elected to remain indoors, as he was a bit under the 

 weather. Upon our return, as our boat rounded a 

 curve in the river, we looked up to the cabin which 

 stands on the brow of a high hill, and we distinctly 

 saw a vision of black and white moving with rapidity. 



We knew at a glance that it was the mephitis, and 

 that she was in the trap. Standing in the doorway 

 was our scientist with glasses on, watching out of the 

 corner of his right eye the gyrations of this novel 

 moving-picture show. 



He had a rifle in his hand, and was cogitating deeply 

 as to whether he could shoot the top of the agile 

 mother's head off, without giving her a chance to 



