ALONG THE HIGHWAY OF THE FOX 13 



a sudden thing at any time of day, but so early in 

 the morning, and when everything was wrapped in 

 silence and ocean fog, the double explosion was 

 extremely startling. 



The fox jumped, as naturally he would. When, 

 however, he turned deliberately around and looked 

 all over the end of the barn to see where I was fir- 

 ing from, and stood there, until I shouted at him — 

 I say it was irritating. 



But I was glad, on going out later, to find that 

 neither charge of shot had hit the coop. The coop 

 was rather large, larger than the ordinary coop ; 

 and taking that into account, and the thick, uncer- 

 tain condition of the atmosphere, I had not made 

 a bad shot after all. It was something not to have 

 killed the hen. 



But the fox had killed eleven of the chicks. One 

 out of the brood of twelve was left. The rascal had 

 dug a hole under the wire ; and then, by waiting as 

 they came out, or by frightening them out, had 

 eaten them one by one. 



There are guns and guns, and some, I know, that 

 shoot straight. But guns and dogs and a dense pop- 

 ulation have not yet availed here against the fox. 



One might think, however, when the dogs are 

 baying hard on the heels of a fox, that one's chickens 

 would be safe enough for the moment from that par- 

 ticular fox. But there is no pack of hounds hunt- 

 ing in these woods swift enough or keen enough to 



