A TRIBE OF GNAWERS AND THEIR FOOD 69 



the fire and turn it over with a stick until the quills 

 are thoroughly singed; then roll it in the grass to 

 brush off the burnt quills. 



With a short knife slit the skin up the middle 

 of the belly from the tail to the throat, peel off the 

 pelt, cutting off the feet as you come to them. It 

 is 



THE RULE OF THE WILDERNESS 



to always burn porcupine skins, but scientists do 

 not always follow this rule and tenderfeet do not 

 know of its existence. Professor Elrod, of the 

 biologicaj surveying party, carefully preserved the 

 skin of the porcupine killed at Sin-Yale- A-M in 

 Lake so that it might be stuffed and mounted for 

 the university museum. During the process of pre- 

 serving the skin a number of the spines became 

 detached and lay around upon the ground where 

 we were accustomed to sit when we gathered for 

 songs at the evening camp-fire. 



After this occurrence, I spent six weeks in camp, 

 and during all that time I wore the same hunting 

 suit, only changing it for "store" clpthes when I 

 came East. When the trout season opened the next 

 year I put on my same old camping clothes and 

 went out to fish in a brook in Pike County, Penn- 

 sylvania. At noon time I selected a mossy stone 

 upon which I might sit while I ate my lunch. Pike 

 County is infested with rattle-snakes, so I looked 

 carefully around before taking my seat and al- 

 though I saw nothing suspicious, I sprang from 

 that stone with a yell, under the firm belief that I 



