THE RODENTS, OR GNAWING ANIMALS 131 
and though they do some 
mischief in highly cultivated 
countries, they are among 
the most harmless of crea- 
tures. Most of them live on 
wild nuts and the kernels of 
fruit ; they suck eggs occa- 
sionally, and in Canada will 
come to the traps in ex- 
treme cold and eat the meat 
with which they are baited. 
@ 
“Tur Rep SouIRREL. 
This, the common squirrel 
here, is representative of the 
whole order. In old Scandi- 
navian legends the squirrel 
is represented as the mes- 
senger of the gods, who car- 
ried the news of what was 
going on in the world to 
the other animals. Together 
uith its close relations, it is 
che most graceful of all 
climbers of trees. With its 
long tail waving behind it, 
it races up or down the 
trunks and across the for- 
ests from branch to branch 
as easily as a horse gallops 
across a plain. It will de- 
scend the trunk head down- 
wards as fast as it runs up. 
Squirrels pair for life, and 
are most affectionate little 
creatures, always playing or 
doing gymnastics together. The squirrel builds a very good house, in which he shows himself 
far more sensible than the monkeys and apes ; it is made of leaves, moss, and sticks. The sticks 
come first as a platform; then this is carpeted, and a roof put on. No one who has seen com- 
mon squirrels at work house-building has ever described exactly how they do it; it is the best 
nest made by any mammal, thoroughly well fitted together and waterproof. In this nest the 
young squirrels are born in the month of June; that year they keep with the parents, and do 
not “set up for themselves” till the next spring. The red colour is very persistent in squirrels. 
One Chinese variety, black and red, has even bright red teeth. In cold countries the red squirrels 
make stores of food, but spend much of the winter asleep. 
It is a great pity that in England no ones tries to tame the squirrels as they do in America; 
there they are the greatest ornament of the parks of cities, coming down to be fed as tamely as 
our sparrows. The writer has known one instance in which a lady induced wild squirrels to pay 
daily visits to her bedroom for food; they used to climb up the ivy and jump in at the open 
window. The great enemies of squirrels near houses are the cats, which kill all the young ones 
Photo by A. S, Rudland & Sons 
FLYING-SQUIRREL 
The large flying-squirrels are mainly nocturnal. They can leap a distance of go feet with the aid 
of the parachutes of skin stretching from the fore to the hind limbs 
