66 



THE SNOW-WALKERS. 



makes little effort to conceal himself, usually squatting 

 beside a log, stump, or tree, and seeming to avoid rocks 

 and ledges where he might be partially housed from 

 the cold and the snow, but where also — and this 

 consideration undoubtedly determines his choice — he 

 would be more apt to fall a prey to his enemies. In 

 this as well as in many other respects, he differs from 

 the rabbit proper {Lefins sylvaticus)\ he never burrows 

 in the ground, or takes refuge in a den or hole, when 

 pursued. If caught in the open fields, he is much con- 

 fused and easily overtaken by the dog ; but in the 

 woods, he leaves him at a bound. In summer, when 

 first disturbed, he beats the ground violently with his 

 feet, by which means he would express to you his sur- 

 prise or displeasure ; it is a dumb way he has of scold- 

 ing. After leaping a few yards, he pauses an instant, 

 as if to determine the degree of danger, and then hurries 

 away with a much lighter tread. 



His feet are like great pads, and his track has little 

 of the sharp, articulated expression of Reynard's, or of 

 animals that climb or dig. Yet it is very pretty, like 

 all the rest, and tells its own tale. There is nothing 

 bold or vicious or vulpine in it, and his timid, harm- 

 less character is published at every leap. He abounds 

 in dense woods, preferring localities filled with a small 

 undergrowth of beech and birch, upon the bark of 

 which he feeds. Nature is rather partial to him, and 

 matches his extreme local habits and character with a 

 suit that corresponds with his surroundings, — reddish- 

 gray in summer and white in winter. 



