though hardly visible beyond the lips, are double-edged, extremely 

 sharp, and curved in such a manner as to be capable of inflicting 

 most serious wounds. Our northern species seldom uses these 

 weapons against larger game than the reptiles and birds upon which 

 he feeds, seeming when attacked to prefer escape by flight, if possi- 

 ble. 



An old and experienced boar usually leads the small drove of 

 ten or a dozen peccaries in its wanderings through the forests in 

 search of fruits, nuts, seeds, roots, etc. True to the established 

 reputation of hogs, these wild members of the same family are 

 greedy eaters and do not scruple to appropriate to their own use 

 any crop of grain they may be lucky enough to find in their rambles. 

 They, at least, partly pay for the treat, however, by the large num- 

 ber of worms and insects they manage to consume. For a resting- 

 place the drove usually chooses some hollow in a tree, or possibly 

 the deserted burrow of another animal. Into this retreat they enter 



56 



