156 CAPTAIN CARTWRIGHT'S 



and by so doing kill a prodigious number of trees 

 of all sorts; tliougb tliey prefer the silver-fir to 

 all others. In spring, they are very fond of the 

 leaves of the larch, and in the autumn, they eat 

 a bad species of mushrooms, which grow here in 

 tolerable plenty. This creature is a good deal like 

 the beaver, in size and shape; the only difference 

 is in the tail and feet. They both sit up, and make 

 use of their fore feet to feed themselves with. 

 The porcupine readily climbs trees, for which pur- 

 pose he is furnished with very long claws; and, 

 in winter, when he mounts into a tree, I believe 

 he does not come down till he has eaten the bark 

 from the bottom to the top. He generally makes 

 his course through a wood, in a straight direction ; 

 seldom missing a tree, unless such as are old. He 

 loves the young ones best, and devours so much, 

 eating only the inner part of the rind, that I have 

 frequently known one porcupine ruin near a hun- 

 dred trees in a winter. A man who is acquainted 

 with the nature of these animals, will seldom miss 

 finding them when the snow is on the ground, if 

 he can but hit upon the rinding of that winter; 

 by making a circuit round the barked trees, he 

 will soon come upon his track, unless a very deep 

 snow should chance to fall after his last ascent. 

 Having once discovered that, he will not be long, 

 ere he find the animal. The belly of a porcupine 

 is covered with coarse fur, but all the rest of him, 

 with sharp prickles; the longest and strongest 

 of which are on his rump and tail. It is a received 

 opinion, that a porcupine can dart his quills at 



