MARCH. 
55 
same manner^ it probably resembles them in its food^^^eating 
various kinds of nuts and seeds^ as well as green herbs. It is 
said also occasionally to peel off the bark from apple and other 
trees. A singular mode of taking small furred animals 
out of hollow treeS;, logs, Sec. is practised in the souths called 
twisting." I once saw it performed on a rabbit (so called) ; 
the dogs had tracked him and driven him to his hole in the 
bottom of a hollow hickory tree. The hole was too small to 
admit the hunter's hand with convenience^ so we made the 
negroes cut down the tree^ which was soon effected. When 
it fell^ we watched the butt^ to see that the rabbit did not 
run out, but he did not make his appearance. The hunter 
then got some long slender switches^, and probing the hollow^ 
found that the rabbit was at the farther end^ several feet up 
the trunk. He now commenced turning the switch round 
in one direction^, a great many times^ until the tip of it had 
become so entangled in the animal's fm% as to bear a strong 
pull. He then began to pull steadily out^ but the rabbit 
held on as well as he could,, and made considerable resistance^ 
crying most piteously^ like a child : at last the skin gave 
way, and a great mass of fur and skin came out attached to 
the switch^ pulled off by main force. He now took a new 
switch^ and commenced twisting again^ and this time pulled 
the little thing down^ but the skin was torn almost com- 
pletely off the loins and thighs of the poor little creature^ and 
so tightly twisted about the end of the sticky that we were 
obliged to cut the skin to get the animal free. I thought it 
a curious^ but cruel expedient. 
C. — What large cloven-footed animal has made this 
trail ? 
jp. — It is probably nothing more than some stray cow ; 
but the footmarks have been enlarged by the late thaw^ 
without losing their shape. I was once deceived by a simi- 
