Friends in Feathers and Fur, and Other Neighbors: For Young Folks Part 14

1. Here comes the squirrel--the little fellow that frisks and gambols so prettily over trees and hedges, and that chatters to us as we take a walk in the woods or fields. He is afraid to let us touch him; but he will let us come quite near, as he knows he can easily get away.

2. As we see him scampering along on the fences or trees, the first thing that we notice is his long bushy tail, which he coils up over his back.

3. But we will find one in a cage, and then we will take a closer look. We find that he has chisel-teeth, like the rat and rabbit, and then we know that Mr. Squirrel eats something that he must gnaw.

4. His toes are not strong, like those of the rat or rabbit, but they are long and slender, and we know that he does not dig holes in the ground. The nails are not strong enough to catch prey, but are long, thin, sharp, and bent at their tips.

5. Then we find that the squirrel can turn all his toes around so that the nails point backward, and we see that he is made for running up and down trees, where he has his home.

6. Now we see what he does with his sharp cutting-teeth. He lives upon nuts, and his teeth are for gnawing through the hard sh.e.l.l, to get at the kernel inside.

7. The ears of the squirrel are of moderate size. The rabbit and hare live upon the ground, and, if they did not have large ears and sharp hearing, they would be killed by dogs and other enemies. But the squirrel has his home in trees, out of reach of animals that can not climb; so it does not need such sharp hearing to save itself.

8. When in his home in the trees, the squirrel feels safe; so he curls his tail over his body and head to keep warm, and goes to sleep.

LESSON x.x.xVIII.

_MORE ABOUT SQUIRRELS._

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1. As the squirrel is made to climb trees and live on nuts, he builds his nest there, and makes the tree his home. He finds some hollow place in the tree, or he builds where some large limb branches off, so that his nest can not well be seen from below.

2. His nest is made of dried leaves and bits of moss. His summer home is high up on the tree, where he has plenty at air; but his winter nest is as snug in some hole as he can make it.

3. In the fall, the squirrel gathers nuts and corn, and stores them up near his winter nest. Then, when cold weather comes on, he crawls into his bed of leaves, curls up, and goes to sleep.

4. Now and then, in the winter, he wakes, crawls to his store and has a dinner, and then goes to sleep again. When the warm days of spring come on, he wakes up fully, and is ready for his summer's work and play.

5. When the squirrel eats a nut, he takes it in his paws, sits up straight, with his tail curled over his back, and nips off the sh.e.l.l in little bites, turning it about as easily as we could with our hands.

6. The squirrels that we see most often are the little chattering red squirrel, and the gray squirrel, which is about twice as large. In the West and South, a large squirrel, that is partly red and partly gray, is called a fox-squirrel. All these squirrels have fine little rounded ears, and large eyes, so placed that they can look all around.

7. The English squirrel is most like our red squirrel. It is of the same color, but a little larger, and has pointed ears, with a long tuft of hair standing up from the top.

8. The teeth of the squirrel grow, and he wears them off by gnawing nuts. If, when not in his winter's sleep, he should stop gnawing something hard for a week or two, his teeth would become so long that he could not use them again.

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LESSON x.x.xIX.

_THE FLYING SQUIRREL._

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1. Here we have the most curious squirrel of all--one that can fly or sail through the air. It is about the size of the common red squirrel, and nearly of the same color, but lighter upon the lower part of its body.

2. It has a loose skin on each side, running from its fore legs to its hind ones. When it is at rest, or when it walks and runs, this skin hangs like a ruffle. But when Mr. Squirrel wants to go fast, or on a long journey, he scampers to the top of a tree and spreads out his legs, drawing the loose skin tight like a sail.

3. He then gives a leap, and away he sails into the air, striking near the foot of another tree a long distance away. He runs up to the top of this tree, and away he goes again, so fast that nothing can catch him.

4. As he sails through the air, he falls toward the ground; but he can carry his legs and tail in such a way that, just before he strikes, he shoots upward a little way, and lands on a tree, some distance above the ground.

5. The flying squirrel is covered with soft, fine fur, but the covering of the flying-sail is finer than that of any other part. It has large eyes, for seeing in the night. It sleeps most of the day, and comes out after sunset in search of food.

6. A squirrel makes a pretty pet, and sometimes it becomes so tame that it runs about like a dog. A squirrel was once found in its nest before its eyes were opened, and brought to the house.

7. It became very tame, and, after it grew up, it would watch its master when he went out, and get into his pocket, where it would stay and peep out to the people it met.

8. When they came to a country place, the squirrel would leap out, run along the road, climb to the tops of the trees, nibble the leaves and bark, and then scamper after his master, and nestle down into his pocket again.

_THE OWL._

An owl sat in a hollow tree, And cried the whole day through: "I can not see; the sun blinds me.

Ah, what am I to do?"

When night was dark, the owl looked out, And thought he'd leave his house: For "light," said he, "has come to me-- I'll go and catch a mouse."

The mouse he caught, and then he cried: "What next am I to do?

The woods shall ring, I'll sit and sing, Too-whit, too-whit, too-whoo!"

LESSON XL.

_BO-PEEP AND THE SQUIRREL._

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Little Bo-peep said to her sheep, "In the wood there is tender gra.s.s growing; And as you're so good, you shall dine in the wood, By the brook that is quietly flowing."

Then a squirrel hard by looked down with a sigh, And said, "Oh, please go away, ma'am!

The acorns are mine, and the nuts too, so fine; And in the woods always I play, ma'am."