142 WILD ANIMALS WORTH STALKING 



digging the soil may be, but always takes posses- 

 sion of one made by a Badger, or, in a neighbour- 

 hood where this animal does not exist, takes to a 

 Rabbit burrow, which she enlarges by following 

 up and clearing out the passages. In some locali- 

 ties where there are no Badgers, and the soil is too 

 heavy and wet for the Rabbit to make strong 

 burrows, vixens do not attempt to breed under- 

 ground, but lay up their cubs in a stub root of a 

 tree, or in any dry, suitable place. 



Some years ago a keeper acquaintance of mine 

 had occasion to visit some men who were cutting 

 underwood in a big wood in the Woodland 

 Pytchley country. At the time of his visit the 

 men were sitting round a big fire eating their 

 dinner. While speaking to them, he noticed a 

 slight movement in the dry leaves in a big Ash 

 stub only about five yards distant from where the 

 men were sitting. He stepped forward to see 

 what the stub contained, and there found six cubs 

 only a few hours old. The poles had been removed 

 that morning from the stub without the men 

 noticing anything there. I may add this was 

 February 5, and frozen snow three inches deep 

 was on the ground at the time. My friend was 

 very anxious as to the safety of this young family, 

 as Foxes were strictly preserved in the district. 

 He therefore at once had the fire put out and the 

 woodcutting operations put a stop to in that part 



