278 THE SQUIRREL. 



gang, fixing his teeth in the extreme tip of the 

 boy's nose, and there he hung for a second before 

 another leap took him to the safety of the woods. 

 If ever there existed a band of demoralised and 

 entirely routed warriors, it was that little band of 

 backwoods urchins ; and as they escorted their 

 blubbering and wounded leader homewards, one 

 of them summed up the general verdict in the 

 sentence, ' Squirrels and such-like varmints ain't 

 worth meddlin' with I ' 



NESTING. 



Squirrels usually nest in trees, very often select- 

 ing a high holly-bush, and placing their abode in 

 a fork of the main stem twelve or sixteen feet from 

 the ground. The nest is globular, having a side- 

 entrance, like the nest of a dipper. The entrance 

 is often difficult to find, owing to the fact that it is 

 overhung with a brow of fabric, which prevents rain 

 and wind from driving in. The nest is called the 

 ' dray ' when built thus, and many country dwellers 

 have doubtless wondered why it is that not one 

 in fifty of these nests is occupied. There are 

 several reasons, the chief being that a dray made 

 and used one season remains in the tree for several 

 years ere finally it drops to bits. Another reason 

 is that squirrels, like wrens, make several nests 

 ere finally one is constructed that meets their 

 requirements ; so, what with old nests and dummy 

 nests, one may search far ere one ultimately finds 

 the builder at home. Nevertheless, these structures 

 are used for nursery purposes, the young occupying 

 them till the space proves insufficient. At other 

 times the squirrel builds its home inside a hollow 

 tree, or even among rocks, where, of course, it is 

 quite invisible and difficult to locate. 



