THE BADGER. 181 



man, and forced to make a stand amidst surround- 

 ings and conditions new to it, a good badger will 

 hold its own for an indefinite period against entirely 

 hopeless odds ; and fighting amidst its own chosen 

 environment, uninterrupted by man, it would very 

 speedily wear out and probably kill a terrier handi- 

 capped by the conditions that were in the badger's 

 favour. In other words, let Brock choose his own 

 ground and do not interfere, and it will go badly 

 with the terrier facing him, even though the latter 

 be of the best fighting blood obtainable. 



The front part of a badger's skull is extremely 

 strong, like that of a bear. (In bear-hunting one 

 never shoots at the head of the beast, as the thick, 

 slanting skull is very apt to deflect the bullet, and 

 a blow on the skull has the effect of sending a 

 bear temporarily mad. The neck is the proper 

 target, as one then stands a chance of severing the 

 jugular vein or of paralysing the animal by injur- 

 ing the spine.) The back part of a badger's head, 

 however, is extremely poorly protected, and a 

 blow behind the ears stretches him out instantly. 



How TO IDENTIFY HIS WHEREABOUTS. 



The best way to locate any animal is, of course, 

 by its tracks. Learn to read the writing of the 

 woods, and half their secrets are yours. The 

 spoor of the badger is easily recognised by what 

 keepers call the ' bar.' This is the oblong or oval 

 tread of the ball of the foot, which in most other 

 animals leaves a round, or almost round, indenta- 

 tion. Also, a badger-track is considerably larger 

 than that of any other wild beast likely to be 

 sharing its environment, and once the track has 

 been seen, there is no mistaking it, as it is so 

 distinctly sui generis. 



