THE BLACK SQUIRREL. 



{Sciu?-us niger. 



Mrs Black Squirrel sat in the top of a tree; 



" I believe in the habit of saving," said she; 



" If it were not for that, in the cold winter weather 



I should starve, and my young ones, I know, altogether; 



But I'm teaching my children to run and lay up 



Every acorn as soon as it drops from the cup, 



And to get out the corn from the shocks in the field — 



There's a nice hollow tree where I keep it concealed. 



We have laid up some wheat and some barley and rye, 



And some very nice pumpkin seeds I have put by; 



Best of all, we have gathered, in all that we could 



Of beechnuts and butternuts grown in the wood; 



For cold days and hard times winter surely will bring. 



And a habit of saving's an excellent thing. 



" But my children — you know how young squirrels like play- 



' We have plenty, great plenty, already,' they'll say. 



'We are tired of bringing in food for our store; 



Let us all have a frolic and gather no more!' 



But I tell them it's pleasant when winter is rough, 



If we feel both to use and to give we've enough; 



And they'll find ere the butternuts bloom in the spring 



That a habit of saving's an excellent thing." 



The squirrels are found in all parts 

 of the globe except Australia, where, 

 however, there is a far worse pest of 

 the agriculturist, the abundant rabbit. 

 All the varieties, according to the au- 

 thorities, correspond so closely in form, 

 structure, habits and character that it 

 is sufficient to describe the common 

 squirrel and its habits, in order to gain 

 sufficient knowledge of the whole tribe. 

 Thebodyof the true squirrel is elongated, 

 tail long, and its fur evenly parted 

 lengthwise along the upper surface. 

 The eyes are large and prominent, the 

 ears may be either small or large, scan- 

 tily covered with hair or are furnished 

 with tufts. The fore-legs are shorter 

 than the rear. The fore-paws have four 

 toes and one thumb, the hind-paws 

 have five toes. 



The time to see the squirrels is in the 

 early morning when they come to the 

 ground to feed, and in the woods large 

 numbers may be seen frisking about on 

 the branches or chasing up and down 

 the trunks. If alarmed the squirrel 

 springs up a tree with extraordinary ac- 

 tivity and hides behind a branch. This 



trick often enables it to escape its en- 

 emy the hawk, and by constantly slip- 

 ping behind the large branches fre- 

 quently tires it out. The daring and 

 activity of the little animal is remark- 

 able. When pursued it leaps from 

 branch to branch, or from tree to tree, 

 altering its direction while in the air by 

 means of its tail, which acts as a rudder. 



It is easily domesticated and is very 

 amusing in its habits when suffered to 

 go at large in a room or kept in a spa- 

 cious cage, but when confined in a little 

 box, especially in one of the cruel wheel 

 cages, its energies and playfulness are 

 quite lost. The ancient Greeks were 

 fully aware of its attractive qualities, 

 and we are indebted to them for its 

 scientific name. That name signifies 

 "he who is under the shadow of his 

 tail," and everyone who knows the 

 meaning of the Greek word sciiirus 

 "must involuntarily think of the lively 

 little creature as it sits on the loftiest 

 branches of the trees." 



The favorite haunts of the squirrel 

 are dry, shady forests. When fruits 

 and nuts are ripe it visits the village 



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