358 ANIMAL INTELLIGENCE. 



forward on one side of a hedge and returning by the other, with 

 only the breadth of the hedge between itself and its enemies, is of 

 frequent occurrence, and it has even been known to select its swat 

 close to the walls of a dog-kennel. This latter circumatance, 

 however, is illustrative of the principles of reflection and reason- 

 ing ; for the fox, weasel, and polecat are to the hare more dan- 

 gerous enemies than the hound ; and the situations chosen were 

 such as those ferocious creatures were not likely to approach. 

 A gentleman was engaged in the amusement of coursing, when 

 a hare, closely pressed, passed under a gate, while the dogs fol- 

 lowed by leaping over it. The delay caused to her pursuers by 

 this manoeuvre seems to have taught a sudden and useful lesson 

 to the persecuted creature ; for as soon as the dogs had cleared 

 the gate and overtaken her, she doubled and returned under the 

 gate as before, the dogs again following and passing over it. 

 And this flirtation continued backwards and forwards until the 

 dogs were fairly tired of the amusement ; when the hare, taking 

 advantage of their fatigue, quietly stole away. 



The following note, by Mr. Yarrell, is significant of a 

 process of reasoning derived from observations of the 

 course of nature, such as would do no discredit to a higher 

 race of creatures : — 



A harbour of great extent on our northern coast has an 

 island near the middle of considerable size, the nearest point of 

 which is a mile distant from the mainland at high water, and 

 with which point there is frequent communication by a iferry. 

 Early one morning in spring two hares were observed to come 

 down from the hills of the mainland towards the sea-side ; one of 

 which from time to time left its companion, and proceeding 

 to the very edge of the water, stopped there a minute or two, 

 and then returned to its mate. The tide was rising, and after 

 waiting some time, one of them, exactly at high water, took to 

 the sea, and swam rapidly over, in a straight line, to the oppo- 

 site projecting point of land. The observer on this occasion, 

 who was near the spot, but remained unperceived by the hares, 

 had no doubt they were of difierent sexes, and that it was the 

 male (like another Leander) which swam across the water, as 

 he had probably done many times before. It was remarkable 

 that the hares had remained on the shore nearly half an hour ; 

 one of them occasionally examining, as it would seem, the state 

 of the current, and ultimately taking to the sea at that precise 

 period of the tide called slackwater, when the passage across 

 could be effected without being carried by the force of the stream 



