THE AMERICAN JERBOA, OR DEER MOUSE. 
161 
arranges them, and utters a shriek so horrid that 
the woods around echo to .its dismal sound. 
Now, it seems as if you heard the barking of a 
cur ; again, the notes are so rough and mingled 
together, that they might be mistaken for the 
last gurglings of a murdered man, striving in 
vain to call for assistance; at another time, 
when not more than fifty yards distant, he utters 
his more usual ' Hoo ! Hoo ! Hoo-e /' in so peculiar 
an undertone, that a person unacquainted with 
the notes of this species might easily conceive 
them to be produced by an owl more than a 
mile distant." 
The food of the great horned owl, according 
to the authority quoted above, consists prin- 
cipally of halt-grown wild turkeys, pheasants, 
domestic poultry of all kinds, together with 
several species of ducks, young hares, opossums, 
field or deer mice, and squirrels; and whenever 
chance throws a dead fish in his way, it is 
seized upon, and with equal avidity is devoured. 
Notwithstanding his encroachments upon the 
poultry yard, this bird destroys an immense 
number of vermin, such as squirrels, mice, in- 
sects, worms, and any other animals he can 
master, and probably, on the whole, he does 
about as much good as harm. 
When the sun shines brightly, the great horned 
owl is nearly blind, and may readily be ap- 
proached and killed; but if the weather be 
cloudy, he is always on the alert, and at the 
least noise, rises on the wing and is soon out of 
reach. 
THE AMERICAN JERBOA, OR DEER MOUSE. 
adjoining cut, are much longer than the fore 
ones, and it usually moves by long leaps, simi- 
lar to the kangaroo. Its tail is very long, which 
also aids it in its leaps. Its fore legs, though 
usually extended when erect, it rests upon the 
ground, when not disturbed. It forms its nest 
under heaps of stones, the loose foundations of 
old stone walls, or piles of fence rails, and occa- 
sionally, but not often, in stacks of grain. It is 
believed to become torpid during the winter, as 
individuals have been dug up in an apparently 
lifeless state, from about eight inches below the 
surface, which have been revived by exposure 
to warmth. 
These mice feed chiefly on the roots of grass, 
grain, and seeds of various kinds; yet their in- 
jury to man is comparatively small. They 
evince a timid but gentle disposition, and are 
never seen in clear daylight unless disturbed, 
usually coming out between sunset and dark, 
after which they are exceedingly active, chirp- 
ing like sparrows during the rest of the night, 
and often become the prey of the great horned 
owl. 
a w 
^& 
PLANTING INDIAN CORN. » 
As the corn-planting season is coming on, I 
wish to call the attention of the cultivators of 
this most valuable grain, to a cure for the cut 
worm, crow and blackbird depredators. 
Let the corn be soaked 12 hours in a warm, 
not hot, strong solution of Glauber salts ; then 
rolled in plaster of Paris, and planted in damp 
weather, not in drouth, and the seed will, in a 
great degree, be free from the attacks of the 
worm, and I believe, wholly so from 
that of birds. The salts and plaster 
will, at the same time, act as pow- 
erful fertilisers, and bring forward 
the corn many days sooner, than 
when planted dry ; but it does not 
answer well to sow or plant any 
soaked grain in a dry time. 
I have come to the conclusion, 
that the best manure for corn, is 
wood ashes and lime from the 
stone, in which magnesia forms a 
component part, as much of the lime 
stone is of this kind in Pennsylva- 
nia, and this state. 
R. L. C. 
Paterson, N.J . 
American Jerboa or Deer Mouse. — Fig. 50. 
The American jerboa, (Meriones americanus,) 
although, from its nocturnal habits, rarely seen, 
is not uncommon throughout the northern parts 
of the United States, and in the British possess- 
ions, as far as latitude 62° north. This curious 
little quadruped was called by the Mohegan In- 
dians, wah-peh-sous, or the " animal jumping like 
a deer," from the remarkable property it pos- 
sesses of jumping 10 or 12 feet to each leap, 
which circumstance has also occasioned it to be 
called the "jumping mouse." 
This beautiful and agile little creature is of a 
bright fawn color above, and pure white be- 
neath. Its hind legs, as will be seen by the 
Trimming the Ears of a Horse. — A corres- 
pondent asks if it is best to permit this. Cer- 
tainly not. The hair is placed there by nature, 
to protect the orifice and drum of the ear from 
insects, floating matter, and sudden changes of 
the weather ; it should therefore be left untouch- 
ed. Some persons are in the habit of singing 
the hair in the ears, with a candle, or hot iron. 
This is barbarous and cruel, for it cannot be 
done without burning the skin. If people will per- 
sist in removing the hair, let them cut it out with 
sharp scissors. This inflicts no pain. The hair 
on the legs of horses should be left to grow dur- 
ing winter, as a protection against the scratches. 
