A LITTLE BROTHER OF THE BEAR 



THE raccoon is a truly American animal, even to 

 its name. Captain John Smith, in his report upon 

 Virginia, mentions " a beast they call Aroughcun, 

 much like a badger, but vseth to Hue on trees 

 as Squirrels doe." The rapid Americans quickly 

 shortened these sonorous syllables to "raccoon," 

 with the emphasis thrown strongly on the last 

 syllable, and now we usually cut even that down 

 to 'coon. 



Truly if you were to dock his tail to a mere 

 scut, and not compare the markings on his face 

 too closely, he is "much like a badger" as the 

 observant Smith said ; but this is an accidental 

 and outward likeness soon forgotten, for the sharp, 

 flexible nose, the delicate, flat-soled feet, the arched 

 hind quarters, and the long ringed tail quickly im- 

 press themselves upon a new acquaintance. You 

 soon see that he is really a miniature Bruin 

 "that brief summary of a bear," as Burroughs 

 styles him. In fact the early zoologists simply 

 put him in the genus Ursus, and had done with 

 it ; but closer examination of his anatomy, while 



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