52 BEACH GRASS 



only, and left until it was more tender eating. 

 The fox had kicked up sand over it and there 

 was the mark of his foot in the sand on the loon's 

 back. 



As one follows fox tracks through the dunes 

 one can sometimes notice the strong foxy odor 

 resembling closely that of a skunk. It is not a 

 pleasant odor, but, in recognizing it, one feels a 

 primitive sort of satisfaction in the keenness of his 

 perceptions. On a still cold day in the woods 

 of Castle Hill I smelt the foxy odor very plainly, 

 and noticed the fresh tracks of a fox in the light 

 dry snow. It was a perfect day for tracking 

 and I set out to follow. The chase led me up 

 and down hill, through woods and thickets and 

 open fields in the course of which I learned sev- 

 eral things. The tracks were clear-cut and slen- 

 der, pointed in front and showing the knob of a 

 hind toe behind. The back feet were so exactly 

 placed in the marks of the forefeet that the 

 prints appeared to be of only one foot. There was 

 no dragging nor scuffing. The signs at stumps on 

 one side or the other of the trail showed that it 

 was a male or dog fox that I was following. At 



