My Boyhood and Youth 



ners. I have seen gray squirrels dragging ears of 

 corn about as heavy as themselves out of our 

 field through loose snow and up a tree, balancing 

 them on limbs and eating in comfort with their 

 dry, electric tails spread airily over their backs. 

 Once I saw a fine hardy fellow go into a knot- 

 hole. Thrusting in my hand I caught him and 

 pulled him out. As soon as he guessed what I 

 was up to, he took the end of my thumb in his 

 mouth and sunk his teeth right through it, but 

 I gripped him hard by the neck, carried him 

 home, and shut him up in a box that contained 

 about half a bushel of hazel- and hickory-nuts, 

 hoping that he would not be too much fright- 

 ened and discouraged to eat while thus impris- 

 oned after the rough handling he had suffered. 

 I soon learned, however, that sympathy in this 

 direction was wasted, for no sooner did I pop 

 him in than he fell to with right hearty appe- 

 tite, gnawing and munching the nuts as if he 

 had gathered them himself and was very 

 hungry that day. Therefore, after allowing 

 time enough for a good square meal, I made 

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