The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1888-10-27
PASTURE STUDIES.
The Amusing Ways OF the Chipmunk and
the Independent Woodchuck.

Tho Amusing Ways OF the ChIpmunk ana
the Independent Woodchuck.
Among the rocks and hollows Of the
pasture, society Is. perhaps, as nearly
upon communistic basis as we can find
It in Nature outside the bee-cell and the
ant-hill. There are no rich holdings.
The thin blonde grass is free to all,
and gives nourishment to tho cows,
who spend the long day in threading
their way between rocks and bushes.
cropping mouthf,ils of It's sweetness as
they go, and weaving network Of
objectless paths through the swampy
growths and sweet-fern. The chip
munks keep house under the powders,
and scamper out to sun themselves, In
kittenish attitudes, on rocky lodges.
In summer they vary their diet OF nuts
by an occasional berry. watched
one lately helping himself to the low
est raspberry from a low-hanging
branch, picking 1t daintily with his
forepaws, and holding it up to eat as il
itwere nut. They are the tamest of
our wild creatures. have known one
to come daily from his hole In the gar
den wall to join the chickens at neal
time; by degrees he became ventures
some, and once or twice he crossed the
threshold OF the farmhouse, and picked
up from the kitchen floor crumbs that
must have had new flavor to his
palate.
Another pasture mammal, though he
is also denizen of the meadow, and
was christened in the cops, is the wood
chuck. He is not to be lured by the
wiles of civilization; he takes kindly to
its fruits, but will none Of it's yoke. I
held an interview, brief but half inti-
mate, with woodchuck the other day,
in which my fancy was captivated by
that idea of possible kinship with
wild four-footed things that haunted
Hawthorne and Thoreau; but could
perceive that the comradeship was all
on one side, and that my companion
received but small pleasure, and had no
intention of imparting any. 1t was on
q logging road which struck away from
the pasture into wood. A half-grown
woodchuck advanced from under the
trees to the edge of the path, and
stopped on seeing me. He held three
leaves in his teeth. / also called halt.
and we stood looking at each other.
His little nose quivered with motion
all it's own, and his round body rose
and fell in longer waves of respiration.
Both of us shirked the initiative for a
time; at last withdrew little to give
him confidence and an opportunity to
resume his way, but he did not bulge.
He may have been paralyzed in his lit
tie woodchuck heart, but he did not
look frightened. At the risk of being
set down as unpoetic in my conclusions,
will say that he looked like u shrewd
Yankee woodchuck, who waited to see
his neighbours pile before making his
own. Impelled by a curiosity to see
how far his terror or his courage would
go, 1 stepped up to him and took one
of the leaves from between his teeth.
He made a little snap at my hand, then
drew himself together and chartered
at me with wild CLEAN in his eye, "a
countenance more" in anger than ex-
pressive of fear or any other sentiment.
1t was not till had removed to dis
tance and waited for some moments
that he took to his heels, and then they
"a pace which put further intercourse
out of the question. kirk, IN
atlantic.