82 OUR BACKDOOR NEIGHBORS 



ever, was not surprised, though much amused 

 at the excitement of his small son. The door 

 to the trap was removed, and the polecat per- 

 mitted to go about his own business. 



The Naturalist now determined upon an 

 experiment, destined to extend over nearly 

 seven years of time. The stable and henhouse 

 were located on the spot desired for a wild 

 garden, so both were torn down. In order to 

 satisfy himself as to the extent that poultry 

 enters into the normal diet of the polecat, he 

 decided to make chicken the most easily avail- 

 able food for polecats, and to entice them 

 about the buildings. Accordingly, the hens 

 were housed in small coops only about three 

 feet high, on roosts not more than a foot or two 

 from the ground, with doors wide open except 

 in the most severe weather. He met the pro- 

 tests of the wife, who was interested in chick- 

 ens, but not in skunks, with the statement that 

 it was worth a lot of chickens to learn the facts. 



A single observation is not of much value in 

 determining a matter of this kind. Nearly 

 everybody can tell of instances where skunks 

 have killed chickens, but few are prepared to 

 say whether all would do so with a favorable 

 opportunity. Dozens of individual skunks 



