506 WILD SCENES AND WILD HUNTERS. 
would have in walking through the echoing streets of a 
plague-depopulated city. I was greatly surprised when I 
found how analogous the case really was. On inquiring 
among the old hunters, I heard from them the reason. 
In the first place, the chickaree, or common red squirrel, 
is the only one, except the little chip squirrel, they have 
there at all as a resident variety—for although the gray 
squirrel has occasionally made its appearance for a little 
while, the black martin, which is very abundant, is said 
to enter its hole and destroy it, before it has time to breed 
much, while the hole of the chickaree is too small for it to 
gain admittance. Well, about twenty years ago, the country 
was literally overrun one summer by a plague of red squirrels, 
curiously enough, too, accompanied by great numbers of the 
little deer mouse or jumping mouse. The two united, 
destroyed nearly the whole of the standing crops of grain, 
and swarmed over the outhouses and even the dwelling- 
houses themselves, and along the fences by the roadside, 
and indeed through the woods every where. : 
The people were alarmed by the apprehension of great 
loss, and even a partial famine, when suddenly the curse 
was swept away in a most singular manner. The squirrels 
all at once began to act strangely; they were observed to 
drag themselves slowly along the ground across the roads, 
so that the people could crush them with their heels. Those 
on the fences would mope and stagger along the railg, or 
falling off, would be seen in dozens hanging by one claw, 
until they dropped dead to the ground. They could be 
killed by hundreds, with a small stick, and the very air 
became impure with the stench of their dead bodies. On 
examination, it was found they were literally covered over 
their whole bodies witn warty and vermillion-tolored pustules, 
which looked very foul and angry. The mice were visited . 
in the same way, and nearly all, if not all, died off; since, 
for several years after, not a creature of either kind was to 
