THE SQUIRREL 193 
right in the middle of the road, sitting on its haunches 
and chewing at something which it is holding be- 
tween its front paws. Keep perfectly still and 
watch. Itis moving. Ah! It has caught sight of 
us and is rushing up that tree. It seems to be 
dodging us behind the trunk. What a leap! It 
must have sprung four or five yards in leaping 
from one tree to the other. Did you notice how its 
tail was stretched and spread out as it leaped ? 
One might call it a glider as well as a rudder. 
The Squirrel is as charming a little mammal as 
any we possess in these islands. I know of no 
animal that is more pleasing to the eye or more 
engaging in its ways. But I do hate to see the 
little creatures in captivity. It seems an awful 
thing to take such a denizen of the woods, such a 
creature as can only be happy in freedom, and 
confine it in a cage, its only exercise to be found 
in turning a wire wheel which always reminds me 
of a treadmill. Wild Nature must be won by kind- 
ness, and you can see an exhibition of what can 
be done in taming animals by sheer kindness and 
protection in the London parks. Quite recently I 
was passing through Regent’s Park on my way to 
the Zoological Gardens, and I was delighted with 
the tameness of the birds, the pigeons, and, above 
all, the Squirrels. I saw many of these winsome 
little animals grubbing about quite leisurely amongst 
the grass under the trees, and some of them made 
their way on to the broad road, where they were 
fed by visitors. It was nothing less than delightful 
to see the animals moving about undisturbed and 
unconcerned by the traffic. I should like to be on 
25 
