78 DAN BEARD'S ANIMAL BOOK 



As for these animals' well-known predaceous 

 habits, while in a wild state, and their vicious 

 treatment of their beautiful long tail gray cousins, 

 I offer no defense, but can say that the red squir- 

 rel is a plucky, pugnacious little animal, and that 

 after it is tame it makes a good pet. 



Somebody started a discussion in one of the 

 New York papers about the habits of the chip- 

 munk, claiming this rodent did not climb trees. 

 It was done as a joke, but many of us were sur- 

 prised to find how ignorant city people are about 

 the habits of this little striped animal. 



It is a popular belief that most of the men in 

 the city originally came from farms, but this can 

 scarcely be true, for every country boy knows all 

 about the habits of the chipmunk, and I seriously 

 doubt the ability of some of the people who rushed 

 into the newspaper discussion, to tell the difference 

 between the chipmunk and a skunk. 



Every season, for many years, I have watched 

 the chipmunks at Wild Lands, and have frequently 

 seen them climb to the top of trees 60 to 70 feet 

 high. They may have done this in play, but I 

 am sorry to say that I am inclined to believe that 

 these gentle little animals are 



SOMETIMES BLOODY MINDED. 



Last summer I saw a white-eyed vireo dart at 

 a couple of chipmunks on a white oak tree and 

 knock them both from their perch twenty feet or 

 more to the ground, this act aroused the suspicion 



