LITTLE BEASTS OF FIELD AND WOOD 



rather surprising that the black ones managed to 

 hold their own so well against the Indians and 

 hawks for untold generations. In the primeval 

 forest, however, hiding must have been a com- 

 paratively easy matter, and perhaps the blackness 

 of their fur served them in good stead in ways 

 we know not of. For, if we can believe the 

 scientists, the mere instance of a majority of 

 squirrels thinking black fur more beautiful than 

 gray, and so being attracted by it in the mating 

 season, would alone be enough to offset a long 

 list of dangers. 



I have sometimes wondered just what law of 

 ownership exists among squirrels regarding their 

 hidden stores : if they really possess any sense 

 of honour in the matter, or whether, as on the 

 whole seems more probable, each has to depend 

 on his skill at hiding and defending his treasures 

 against all comers. 



And when a squirrel is killed, how long a time, 

 I wonder, is likely to elapse before his stores are 



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