362 



FOUR-FOOTED AMERICANS 



" SpermopMle means seed lover, and these little beasts 

 eat seeds of every description, and are cannibals to boot. 

 I have merely a bowing acquaintance with them, but 

 the Chief of the Wise Animal Men at AVashingtou 

 says : ' Scarcely a seed or grain grows where they live 

 that is not eaten by them . . . wheat, oats, barley, 

 rye, corn, etc. . . . But their food is by no means 

 restricted to seeds, for they are fond of fruits, roots, 

 and insects . . . eat lizards, mice, or any kind of fresh 

 meat. ... If one of their own species is found dead, 

 it is promptly eaten, thus proving that they are canni- 

 bals. . . :' Thejr do eat harmful insects also, but not 

 enough to pay for the crops of corn and grain, which 

 the}^ commence to devour as soon as the seed is planted. 

 And they keep on, with the ear in the milk and the ripe 



I,// 





.■I'i 



Stkiped Spekmophile. 



