178 



FOUR-FOOTED AMERICANS 



" Where do these Otters live, what kind of nests do 

 they make, and do they belong to a guild? " asked Nat. 



" They haunt wooded places near water ; sometimes 

 a mother Otter makes a home for her two or three 

 young in a hollow stump, or else in a hole under a bank, 

 scrajjing a few leaves together as a bed. It is always 

 within easy distance of the water, where the fish, upon 

 which they feed, can be caught, for they belong to the 

 guild of Flesh Eaters and like variety in their animal 

 food, sometimes helping themselves to chickens and 

 small game. They also have hiding-places in river 

 banks entered by a hole under the water. 



" (_)tters when not busy hunting food are very play- 

 ful animals, and one of their chief games is what Nez 

 calls 'coasting.' In summer they choose a smooth 

 bank stretching toward the water and deliberately lie 



Otter and Fisher, 



