::::;:::3e THE MAGIC POOLS Is:::;:::; 



among the dense underbrush. The first few times this 

 hapjjened near our tents, we looked out, fully expect- 

 ing to see that the animal which had leaped to our 

 camp niche, was as large as a Jaguar. 



The Ring-tailed Bassariscus is interesting on ac- 

 count of its relations to the raccoons. A study of its 

 skeleton shows that it is almost identical with certain 

 fossil dog:-like creatures which lived duringf the eeo- 

 logical age known as the Oligocene, perhaps over a 

 million years ago. These animals of ancient-days were 

 the direct ancestors of the modern raccoons. So it was 

 a hint of the far-distant past which squealed and 

 leaped about our tent at night. Through all the cen- 

 turies, this little animal has preserved the structure of 

 its ancestors, changing but little down to the present 

 day. 



It was a rather odd fact that all the creatures which 

 inhabited the caves of the harrancas had tails ringed 

 white and black ; — the upturned tails of the Canyon 

 Wrens, the coons' tails, the owls', and the remarkable 

 appendages of the Ring-tailed Cats. 



Within a few days after our tents were pitched, they 

 were accepted by the wild creatures as perfectly nat- 

 ural additions to their little world — perhaps an up- 

 heaval of whitish volcano stuff. At any rate they voted 

 the canvas roofs great fun, and the curious creatures 

 within as harmless. The moonlight shone through the 

 tent upon us, sharjily silhouetting every branch and 



<4 221 ■^ 



