82 
III. 
FEBRUAKY 15th. 
Masses of Snow on the Evergreens. — Foot-marks of Field Mouse. 
Squirrel. — Wolf. — Anecdotes. — Description of Black Wolf. — Fero- 
city of Carnivorous Animals. — Puma. — Lynx. — Otter. — Beaver. — 
Musk-rat. — Equalization of Blessings of Providence. — Tokens of ex- 
treme Cold. — Sunset. — Northern Lights. . 
Charles. — How clear and cloudless is the sky^ and how 
exhilarating is the atmosphere after last night's snow ! There 
is not a breath of air even to stir the hemlocks and spruces, 
whose flat branches are clothed with a thick mantle of pure 
unsullied snow. 
Father. — I much admire the soft-woods after a heavy 
fall of snow : the form of the boughs causes it to appear like 
hanging drapery, and the great contrast between the sombre 
foliage and the brilliant whiteness of the masses of snow, has 
a fine effect. 
C. — Here are some tiny tracks in the snow ; little feet 
must have made these ; their path is not more than half an 
inch wide. 
F. — They are probably made by the Field Mouse ( Ar- 
vicolaVennsylvanicus), though I have once seen the domes- 
tic mouse in the snow at a considerable distance from a house. 
But here our well-known nimble little friend, the Red Squirrel 
( Schirus Hudsonms), has crossed the road : he makes a very 
singular trail ; his two fore feet being so short, make their 
marks close to each other, while the hind footsteps are quite 
