CENSORED NATURAL HISTORY NEWS 221 



pents, if they ever existed, are extinct; but the 

 " Petrified Man," too, still draws crowds although 

 no petrified man has ever been discovered. 



The wolves of the United States have not been 

 ferocious for generations, if ever so. Their keen 

 senses are ever alert to avoid coming close to peo- 

 ple and in keeping out of sight. Yet a number of 

 times each year telegrams appear in the news- 

 papers telling of an attack of wolves on people. 

 Such accounts discourage outdoor life and help keep 

 natural history safe for hypocrisy. The following 

 was printed in a newspaper in February, 1919: 



"Wolves are attacking children on their way 

 home from school in my county and have treed 

 people, keeping them in trees all night. . . . 

 They attack men and are killing sheep, cattle, and 

 hogs. One man recently saved his life by killing 

 a wolf after it had jumped into a sleigh in which 

 the man was riding." 



The cow for story purposes is more picturesque 

 than the grizzly bear. How interesting it might 

 be if someone would write a story of the capers of 

 a cow that chased strangers up trees then climbed 

 after them! Such a story might be justified as a 

 work of art and the author honoured as a clever 

 entertainer, but the fact remains that neither the 

 cow nor the grizzly bear climbs trees. 



"Working like a beaver" is a proverb sometimes 

 applied to people, with compliment intended. It 

 is interpreted to mean great industry — working 



