160 FOUR-FOOTED AMERICAXS 



through his thick tail he gets no icy air to give him a 

 sore throat." 



" Isn't it wonderful," said Rap, as if he could hardly 

 understand it all. " I know by myself," he added, 

 " that you can go longer without being hungry when 

 you are asleep than when you're awake. Sometimes 

 I've slept twelve hours, but when I'm awake I eat 

 breakfast, dinner, and tea all in twelve hours." 



'• The streams are not frozen yet, even the little ones," 

 said Mr. Blake ; " it ought to be a good season for the 

 Skunks, who are great drinkers. Does Nez do much 

 trapping? Of course now there can be very little to 

 take hereabouts." 



" He catches Skunks, Rabbits, Minks, and a few Foxes 

 and ( )tters," said Olaf. " Up to tliis week he has done 

 well on Coons, — his place looks something like a fur- 

 trading post. A'ez is bound to catch something wherever 

 he camps. There's a Vox been eating up a lot of fowls 

 that belonged to an old woman dow n in the hollow, and 

 he has to l)e caught, or the poor old body will starve. 

 This Fox is tdo cute to trap, so Nez planned to watch 

 for it to-night. He lias a good dog and thought you 

 might like to go nut, for old times" sala-, though a Fox 

 is small game after Panthers and drizzlies." 



" Full moon, too, nothing could be better," said the 

 Doctor, adding with a boyish laugh, "it's a duty to 

 kill a. Fox that steals a pnor woman's poultry, isn't it, 

 Jack ? " 



" It's a [locir s[)r)rtsman who ever lacks an excuse for 

 fair hunting." Then the men began disoussinff Foxes 

 so earnestly that Xat had to speak twice before he was 

 heard. 



