THE SHADOW DANCE. 6i 



mence to be lively, and at the opening of each small burrow, an active little fellow 

 will suddenly appear, and sitting upon his haunches, will attentively examine the 

 field before him. Apparently satisfied that all is right, he starts forward on his 

 first race for the. evening, and with the short, white tail erect over his back, bounds 

 over the grass in leaps so similar to those of the stately buck as to cause him to 

 be frequently called a small deer. Soon tired of his solitary excursion, as the moon 

 rises in the heavens, and floods the landscape with her silver .light, our lively friend 

 joins others of his companions, and their fun soon grows fast and furious. With 

 many a lofty leap, they bound over their fellow's back, and rapidly chase each other 

 around the fields. At times the males will stop suddenly in their race, and im- 

 patiently strike the earth with their hind-legs several times, and then bound away 

 again more swiftly than before. Their active forms are pictured in many fantastic 

 shapes upon the surrounding banks and rocks, while their shadows, as if caricatur- 

 ing the supple creatures, follow them everywhere and imitate their motions upon 

 the sward. And so this dance of shadows is continued for hours, until their 

 appetites, sharpened by the cool night and by their exertions, cause them to think 

 upon the evening meal, and in little groups they scatter over the field and com- 

 mence to crop the tender grass. Even when thus occupied they cannot altogether 

 repress their inclination for a romp, and ever and again some sprightly little fellow 

 will suddenly start forward, and after executing a few exceedingly intricate and 

 rapid evolutions, will settle gravely down once more and continue his repast. 



Rabbits have many enemies, and are preyed upon both by the birds of 

 the air and by the beasts of the field. Eagles and Owls seize and carry them 

 off to their nests by day and night, and many fall victims to the various cunning 

 four-footed creatures that prowl about the fields in search of some dainty morsel 

 for a meal. One of their most dreaded foes is the Fox, who is ever on the alert 

 to seize them as they gambol about in fancied security. His sharp nose easily 

 detects their whereabouts, and his ready cunning and fei'tility of resource enable 

 him to approach and fall upon them unawares. Even now,. one of these keen-scented 

 animals is apprised of the presence of such a little colony as we have described, 

 whose members are sporting together in the early morning, after a night of gambol- 

 ling and feasting. The thickets that intervene between him and his prey hide 

 them from his sight, but his nose tells him that there can be no mistake, and so he 

 crawls gradually towards them. How carefully he moves ! Crouched low towards 



