THE CUBS' BIRTHDAY 59 



Fights at courting times among wild creatures are 

 usually due either to a local or temporary preponder- 

 ance of males, or to some special attraction of par- 

 ticular females. At this time of year, it might 

 appear that fighting and courtship went naturally 

 together ; but we doubt if wild creatures who pair 

 are given very much to fighting and quarrelling. 

 It is when one has many wives, as the cock pheasant 

 or the stag, that the most desperate fighting is done. 



A majority of fox cubs are born about March 25, 

 five or six to a litter. With such crafty .parents 



there is small chance that they will go 

 T^ short of food, and fortunately they come 



Birthday ^ n ^ ^ ne wor ld J us ^ when baby rabbits are 



most plentiful. Much else than rabbit 

 goes down their throats, as the entrance to any fox's 

 earth makes evident there you see remains of 

 quantities of frogs, mice, rats, hares, and, of course, 

 of countless pheasants and partridges, and of many a 

 fowl. The dog fox is not one to show any great 

 attention to his mate : he pays her many visits, 

 but he enjoys himself in his own way. Nor could he 

 be expected to take a deep interest in the welfare 

 of his half-dozen families, several miles apart. But 

 some foxes make better fathers than others ; one 

 we have known to rear a litter of cubs on the death 

 of the vixen. Of course a dog fox could do little if 



