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THE STORY OF THE RABBIT . 
the open country on which most of the species dwell. A noteworthy feature 
is the pure white of the under surface of the upturned tail. This, in the 
case of the rabbit at least, serves the purpose of a guiding signal to other 
individuals in the presence of danger, so that when the leader of a flock is 
in full retreat towards its hole, the remainder at once see in which direction 
to follow. 
The mountain or Alpine hare is a species with a very wide distribution. 
SCENES IN THE LIFE OF A COTTON-TAIL RABBIT, AND A JACK-RABBIT CHASE. 
ranging over the greater part of Northern Europe and Asia, from Ireland 
in the west to Japan in the east, and also* met with in the Alps, the Pyrenees, 
and the Caucasus. It is represented by a variety known as the Polar hare 
in Arctic America, which extends as far south as Nova Scotia. In the 
British Isles this species is not met with except in Scotland and Ireland; 
and in the former country is commonly termed the blue hare. 
