270 
FOX . 
and seldom stirs cut while pregnant/ but makes 
a bed for her young, and takes every precaution to 
prepare for tiieir production. When she finds the 
place of their retreat discovered, and that her 
young have been disturbed during her absence, 
she removes them one after the other in her mouth, 
and endeavours to find them out a place of bet- 
ter security. A remarkable instance of this ani- 
mal's parental affection happened in the county 
of Essex. A she fox that had, as it should seem, 
but one cub, was unkennelled by a gentleman's 
hounds near Chelmsford, and hotly pursued. In 
such a case, when her own life was in imminent 
peril, one would think it was not a time to consult 
the safety of her young ; however, the poor ani- 
mal, braving every danger, rather than leave her 
cub behind to be worried by the dogs, took it up 
in her mouth, and ran with it in this manner for 
some miles. At last, taking her way through a 
farmer’s yard, she was assaulted by a mastiff, and 
was obliged, to drop her cub, which was taken 
up by the farmer. The faithful creature escaped 
the pursuit, and at last got off in safety. 
The cubs of the fox are born bluid, like those 
of the dog ; they are eighteen months or two 
years in coming to perfection, and live about twelve 
or fourteen years. 
As the fox makes war upon all animals, so all 
others seem to make war upon him. The dog 
hunts him with peculiar acrimony ; the wolf is 
still a greater and more necessitous enemy, who 
pursues him to his very retreat. But the fox is 
not hunted by quadrupeds alone ; for the birds, 
who know him for their mortal enemy, attend 
him in his excursions, and give each other 
warning of their approaching danger. The daw, 
the magpye, and the blackbird, conduct him 
along, perching on the hedges as he creeps below* 
