CIIAPTEE X. 



THAT FAMOUS ESSENCE PEDDLER, 

 The Shunk. 



"When the twilight wanes, and trees, bushes, and 

 fences become vaguely outlined in the gathering 

 dusk, a strange little animal, somewhat resembling 

 a black-and-white cat, ventures from his daytime 

 hiding place, and we are aware of his presence 

 in our immediate vicinity by a pungent and ofEensive 

 odor. So, with bated breath and the suggestive whis- 

 per of " Skunk!" we quicken our footsteps and warily 

 peer into the shadows on either hand ; but alas for 

 the luckless one who stumbles upon the little creature 

 in the hasty effort to evade it ! Nothing short of a 

 Turkish'bath and a complete change of clothing will 

 ever enable him to regain his self-respect. He is an 

 outcast from society, and, like the leper of old, must 

 consider himself exiled from all the world. 



The skunk {Mephitis mephitica)* another mem- 



* The Latin name means a foul-smelling foul smeller. 

 13 IGl 



