TREATMENT OF CUBS. 307 



court (which at that time was a very close 

 one) all died, one after the other, of the same" 

 disorder. 



Where rabbits are plentiful, nature will soon 

 teach them how to catch the young ones ; and, 

 till that period of abundance arrives, it may be 

 necessary to provide food for them.* Where 

 same is scarce, wet weather will be most fa- 

 vourable to them : they can then live on beetles, 

 chafers, worms, &c. which they will find great 

 plenty of. I think the morning is the best time 

 to turn them out : if turned out in the evening, 

 they will be more likely to ramble ; but if 

 turned out early, and fed on the earth, I think 

 there is little doubt of their remaining there. -f- 

 I also recommend to you to turn them into large 

 covers and strong earths: out of small earths 

 they are more liable to be stolen, and from 

 small covers are more likely to wander away. 



* If a sheep die, let it be carried to the earth, and it will 

 afford the cubs food for some time. 



t A more certain method, perhaps, might be to pale in 

 part of a copse which has an earth in it. It might be well 

 stocked with rabbits ; the young ones of which, the cubs 

 would soon learn to catch. You might have muses in 

 the pale, and let them out when capable of getting their 

 own food. Foxes turned out answer best when left to 

 breed. 



