THE SHORT-TAILED FIELD VOLE 



and excitement, so that she did not really 

 know what she was doing ? All I can say is 

 that she acted perfectly coolly and collectedly, 

 and appeared neither hurried nor flurried; 

 but how can we tell what her motives 

 were, or what caused her to act as she did 

 act? 



Fearing that if I looked at them the latter 

 family might come to a similar untimely end, 

 I did not even peep at the babies until they 

 crawled out of the nest of their own accord. 

 On the 3rd June a little vole toddled out. 

 It was clothed in a smooth thin coat of brown 

 fur, and was a very babyish little person. 

 Its head looked much its biggest part, and a 

 feeble attempt to sit up and wash its face 

 was a failure. But it managed to sit up and 

 eat some grass. Next day there were two or 

 three peeping out, and by the third day I was 

 convinced that the family was no small one. 

 On the 7th I knew there were at least nine, 

 but they grew so quickly, and were now so 

 active, that they were most difficult to count, 

 and you could not be sure to two or three. 

 Their mother no longer worried herself about 

 them ; they were able to eat well, and already 

 quite independent, so I made up my mind to 



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