Worms which the operation would cause. To the EarthWorm, then, disgusting as it is to some of us, it is perfectly clear that we owe no small part of the fertility of our fields, and, therefore, of the comforts of our homes: green meadows make us fat cattle and rich milk, butter, and cheese; well turned ground gives us plentiful corn and wholesome vegetables, and in our gardens beautiful flowers -not one of our least pleasant possessions.-So much for you, old digger i' the earth!"

Frank put the Worm down gently on to the grass, and it wound its blind way slowly among the green stems.

"He will have to make himself a new house to-night," said Frank, "for he will never find his old one; from which, in fact, he must have had some good reason for getting away when we caught him. Most likely he heard a Mole tunneling towards him. He never comes entirely out of his hole except for some such cause; usually, when he is visible, he keeps the hinder part of his body within his hole, so as to be able to retreat on the least occasion of alarm. A very strange proceeding on the part of a myriad of Worms was observed somewhere down in the West of England, in the early part of 1836, after a heavy fall of snow. When the phenomenon was first noticed, it was thought that the snow was covered with a number of small twigs; but these objects, on being closely examined, turned out to be Earth-Worms, which, for some mysterious reason, had come up to the surface of the snow and were there writhing in agony. What could have impelled these Worms to sacrifice themselves in this extraordinary manner has never been explained."

"Never mind the Worm, Frank !-never mind the Worm!"-cried Bob, excitedly; "but look what's running up that oak-tree!"

CHAPTER XI.

WE ARE SURVEYED BY A SQUIRREL, AND EVIDENTLY DISTRUSTED;

ON THE OTHER HAND, OUR COMPANY IS SOUGHT BY A CLOUD OF GNATS, AND WE FORCE OURSELVES UPON THE NOTICE OF SOME LEECHES.

"A Squirrel!" cried Frank, as the little animal seen by Bob galloped up the trunk of the tree, stopped for a moment on the first large branch it reached and surveyed us, then-as if it did not at all like our close proximitycontinued its gallop up to the very topmost bough, taking pains to keep itself as much out of our sight as possible by keeping on the further side of the tree. "What a beauty!" cried Bob. "I think so, too," said Frank; prettiest wild creature in the country.

THE SQUIRREL.

"to my eye he is the

Let us go up close to the tree, or he'll quietly trot down and be off before we can get another glimpse at him—as he would have been even by this time if any other tree had been close to the

one he is on. It's a most amusing sight to see a family of Squirrels chasing each other about the light-leaved branches of a beech; for they are as playful as kittens-with forty times their activity. I have a great regard for Squirrels on account of the affectionateness they exhibit for one another; for Mr. and Mrs. Squirrel, after they have once paired, remain so for life-passing their existence in a

THE SQUIRREL.

6

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much more cozy manner than most other wild animals. They build their nest in a hollow between the larger branches of some old tree, and a charming nest it is, shaped with the most artistic skill as to form, and the most perfect appreciation of comfort as to materials-the form being nearly spherical, and the materials moss, leaves, grass, and other substances, woven together, the whole being impenetrable to rain, and no doubt as warm as a pie.' Not only do the happy pair make for themselves this snug dwellingplace, but they take care to provide for their creature comforts when their natural food is no longer to be found on the tree-boughs or in the field. During the weeks of Autumn when the hedge-nuts, the acorns, and beechmast are ripened and prepared to fall to the ground if not gathered, the Squirrel may be seen busier than a bee. The ripe nuts he examines with the eye of an epicure, in search of those in which there is no Weevil-hole; only the soundest and largest are chosen by him, and these he carries off, one by one, and buries in nooks and crannies near his nest-tree, to serve for winter food. How many nuts and acorns he thus stows away it is impossible to guess; but the fact that he never forgets the hiding-place of one of them-however many of them he may have hidden-seems to be beyond question. In the winter, when the snow covers the ground, he may be seen to run down from the hole in which his nest is built and scrape away the snow from the spots where his food-treasure is laid, never making a mistake-a power of memory that seems prodigious. I should like to believe that my little favourite confines himself to eating nothing but nuts, acorns, and grains of wheat; but the evidence is too strong against him that he occasionally sucks the eggs of birdsand, moreover, that he devours helpless fledglings in their

nests. He has repeatedly been seen to do both. But, as I don't know the final reason of all things-I try to think the best of whatever displeases me, and, therefore, do not give up my liking for this pretty little acrobat of the woods."

"Why do you call him an acrobat ?" inquired Charley. "Well, I'll call him a gynnast, if you prefer the title," said Frank; "but he is as well described by one name as by the other. His feats of leaping are astonishing. He will leap-when forced by danger-from a great height, and by spreading out his tail and forming with it a sort of parachute, descend to the ground without the least concussion. He has been known to leap from a second-story window and alight upon a gravel walk-and even upon a flight of stone-steps-without at all injuring himself. There is no doubt that he is, also, a very fair swimmer, though nobody now ought to believe that in crossing a piece of water he raises his bushy tail to serve him for a sail. I believe that while swimming he carries his tail turned back in the way he always carries it. For the beauty of his form and the gracefulness of his movements he is a favourite pet, but he is rarely well treated in confinement, and, therefore, rarely seen at his best. The tread-wheel cages in which he is generally kept are as cruel as they are ridiculous; the natural actions of a Squirrel are no more seen in one of those instruments of torture than those of a bird would be in a wine-bottle. The proper way to keep Squirrels--as Sir George Head humanely pointed out years ago-is to give them companions and confine them in large cages with plenty of bars for them to spring upon; they will then exhibit for the pleasure of their keepers, as Sir George said, ‘a combination of quickness, strength, and agility such as no

earthly creatures possess in more infinite variety.' Gilbert White mentions a nestful of young Squirrels that were brought up by a cat; but there is another and more circumstantial account of a single Squirrel which was taken from its nest and suckled by a cat. After a time the youngster was put to another cat who had two kittens. A curious circumstance in this case was that the first cat was very savage in her ordinary manner; she, however, treated the baby Squirrel with the utmost tenderness. The Squirrel's second foster-mother was particularly mildnatured, and took perfectly to the little red-coated stranger, who, on his side, showed great fondness for his milkmother. After a time, he was taken from her and kept in a cage, but upon being put back to her testified the liveliest pleasure by sitting up in front of her and licking her mouth, the old cat returning his caresses by licking him all over. With the two kittens he was equally at home, and took with them a jolly game at romps, rolling and tumbling over them with boundless fun. But, on repeating his visit, about a fortnight later, the two kittens sprung at him and would have killed him if he had not made a safe retreat; the old cat, however, seemed to recognize him, and made no attempt to hurt him. Several amusing anecdotes are told of the same Squirrel, one of which is, that he was fond of running about the clothes of a certain footman when he was dressed in his livery, but would take no notice of the man when he was otherwise habited. In America Squirrels abound, and sometimes play havoc with the maize-crops. They descend in droves upon the growing corn, run up the tall stems, and eat away the golden head. A reward of threepence a head was once offered for their destruction, and in the State of Pennsylvania alone eight thousand pounds, in American money,