JOURNAL AND PROCEEDINGS 69 
at-home” felines. This bush ranger frequently visited poultry 
coops during the night in the role of an egg-stealer, and also had a 
habit of killing kittens in the maternal nests, and fiercely overpow- 
ering the said kittens’ natural defenders. In an instance that was 
well attested, one of these tramp felines visited a dog kennel wherein 
were a litter of puppies with yet unopened eyes and in wantonness, 
slew the whole of them ! 
The striped marking on some grey household cats are about 
as well defined as are those on Mr. Lynx, and the white or black 
spots on the end of the tail is no indication of a generic difference, 
as the same occurs at times in house cats. Then the tree climbing 
habit, being much extended in pursuit of bird or squirrel prey, and 
necessarily increased activity in habits and food hunting instincts, 
must tend to an increase of bodily size and muscular develop- 
ment. 
The fact, too, of the common minx having usually a small 
white spot on its body, and the peculiarity of the situation of the 
said white mark being usually near the base of the lower jaw where 
it is most likely to escape observation, gives a wide field for conjec- 
fnre as to the wherefore and design of such symbolism. ‘This small 
spark of albinism brings to mind a story that was very current in 
these parts four or five years ago, that some boys in an adjoining 
township had captured a family of young white racoons, four in 
number. To what prenatal influence could such extraordinary 
phenomena be attributed? The word “freak” seems unsatisfac- 
tory and not quite conclusive, though there is an instance near here 
of albinism having seemingly become hereditary in poultry, for one 
of our acquaintances possesses a flock of white guinea fowl which 
are prized and admired on account of that eccentric trait. 
Some time ago the writer of this was asked to give an opinion 
as to the agencies of production of a peculiar boulder or agglomera- 
tion of fragments of rock found near the surface of a neighboring 
field by the operation of the plough. The object is about the size 
of a bushel measure and would probably weigh 160 pounds. There 
is a mass of various fragments of rock cemented in a firmly coher- 
ing mass, as if angular pieces of rock of varying size and geologic 
age and structure had been held in a frame, mould or crevice pro- 
miscuously, and then a semi-fluid geologic “porridge,” evidently 
