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Show WINTER ) Personal Expcriencci of Animal v Life in New York Suburbi. Two summers ngo 1 took up inv residence resi-dence In one of the thickest tracts of woodland on the Pullsadis I wns so pleased with udvniitngis It presented for the study of nnlmnl life that, us autumn came on, 1 still stayed there, und when winter. In Its turn, succeed! d, 1 decided to remain Indeed, I live theru. now. happy In having acqulnd maio luw Ideas In regard to tho wills of nnlmnls In winter. win-ter. everyone knows how the gray squirrel In summer time infjea for himself n lust of twigs or leaves In the blanches of trees nnd retires to It In his leisure to sleep or gnnw nt tho nuts that he has gather. . I in the vicinity During the summer I saw near my homo mani such nests und I taught glimpses or their minus cupeling along tlie branches, or peeping nt me cautlousli, showing oulv noses and js over somo thick limb or from behind sumo evtereseenco on the tree trunk When the nights began to get cool, nnd long before the frost sit In, tho gray squirrels changed their suinnur quarters and made tor themselves nests In holes high up In tho larger trees 1 knew many of these retreats for oftentimes 1 would see tho squirrels near tin m and they would run Into theso veri holes If 1 unduly un-duly nlarmed them. One day In October, while sitting very still for n long time on u ruck unilir some thick bushes, I saw a gray minim 1 very busy on the trunk of it dead lednr tree. Ho was stripping off tho fibrous bark. He would rull a largo wisp or it In his teeth nnd carry it off to the great hollow oak which he had chosen for hi? v Inter dwelling, dwell-ing, 1 sat thero w'atihlng him for nearly two hours, nnd In that time he ninrto three Journeys for cedar bark. I natuiully concluded that Hint gray squirrel would continue to live In tho oak all winter, but when the frost grew severe he moved to some warmer place. Where his new retreat was 1 could not lenrn. Thus, he made nt lenst three chnnges of habitation, habita-tion, all according to the condition of tho weather. Of the red squirrels I got much more exact nnd Interesting Information All through the summer there was u whole colony of them In the tries around my house. After much wntchlng In the month or October I located what 1 supposed sup-posed to be the winter retreats of two parties of them. One nest w us In a hollow hol-low beech, and It had several dwellers In common. The other was In n hickory, ami far ns I could learn, there never wns In It more thnn one squirrel, nnd he lived thero nil through October anfl November. No-vember. These nests were not more than seventy or eighty yards from my windows, win-dows, so I kept continual watch on them. At last there enme a heavy fall of snow, nccompanled by a frosty wind, nnd the red squirrel In the hickory tree moved. Ho did not move alone, but went with six others, probably those from ths beech tree, to a large chestnut thirty arils nearer my door. In the ground under this chestnut tree thero Is a hole nbout ns large as n rat hole, nnd Into this the red squirrels flocked to puss the stverest part of winter. Tho nest of the red squirrel, like that of Its gray brother. Is made of cedar bark. I saw fragments or tho bark on the sides or the hole under the chestnut tree. Twenty times during Hie winter I put a handful of nuts at the mouth of this hole. If I put them there nt midday, they often remained there untouched nil day nnd through the night, but they were In-vnrlably In-vnrlably tnken awa within half nn hour after sunrise. I found that nil squirrels come out of their nests nbout sunrise. On many das they go back In less than an hour and do not come out ngnln nil day. My cellar has served as n winter retreat for many nnlmnls. Late In the tall some garter snnkes came In there to hibernate, and I lert them to sleep In peace. Whm snow (.nine a mink nlso took up hlB nbode there. He soon discovered nnd nte several sev-eral of the gnrter snnkes. Two shrews put In un appearance, and they came out on sunny days, through a. little holo In rront of the door, to enjoy tho warmth of the winter sun. They had n regular time for appearing, usually about twenti minutes to , and on theso occasions they took away the little morsels of ment which I placed by the door for them. Munv other creatures Inst winter shnnd my dwelling with me, numerous lnrge-cicd lnrge-cicd wood mice being among the number that kept me company. Ono evening n gentlemnn called to see me, I had Just finished tea nnd laid the tray with tho ten things upon It on top of a snake's cage nenr my elbow. "Look nt our elbow," snld my visitor. Thero was a large brownish-red wood mouse sitting upon the edge of the teacup that 1 had been drinking from. "Hit still," said I, "he Is an old friend and will take his ten if wo don't senro I had hardly said the words when the wood mouse went down Into the cup nnd licked up n few drops of ten nnd the undissolved un-dissolved sugnr thnt remained nt the bottom. bot-tom. In every room In my house I met those benutlful wood mice, but ns they have none of the objectionable, characteristics of the common nnd repulsive house mice, being, on the contrary, pretty In coloring and tnme and gentle. I liked to hnve them as fellow-lodgers, nnd I hope they will ln"nd mv house this winter. During the first summer 1 spent in tho woods 1 cnught seienteen flying squirrels I gave nway nil except six, which 1 kept in n cage In my snnkeroom. I.lttlo did i drenm nt the time I was scouring tho woods for these squirrels thnt In tho fnll I would hnve n colony of them In n little wooden pavilion nt the bnck of my house In n cavity In the roof of this pavilion two or moro of them mndo n nest. 1 would often henr them whllo rending In the pavilion, and would sometimes see them In tho evening nnd on moonlit nights, for they nre nocturnal In their habllB. Frequently I would put nuts out to them, which they always took nwny. 1 thought that they would remnln all tho winter, but, llko the red nnd tho Krny squirrels, they had n third nnd warmer retreat. It happened thnt for my cnged flying squirrels I had a largo btskct of hickory nuts In a little room off tho dining-room. After It grow cold I seldom went Into this room, but ono day on entering It 1 was surprised to find that rnts wero earning ear-ning away my hickory nuts. A trnp caught all the rats, but tho hickory nuts continued to go, so I put tho basket upon a shelf near tho celling, whero the rats could not possibly climb. 1 thought that they were safe on tho shelf, but when I went to the basket some time later 1 found It nearly empty. Where the nuts had gone I could not tell. Now. there was In that room n lounge, upholstered In hair cloth, with n spring bottom. One day it was necessary to move this lounge. I lifted one end nnd gave It a vigorous pull. Tho rattle of some loose objects rolling about Inside of it surprised me, so I gave the lounge n good shake, whereupon two flying squirrels squir-rels Jumped out and ran Into a hole under the stairs. They had stolen my hickory nuts and made their winter storehouse and dwelling In the lounge. On cutting open tho haircloth nnd stuffing. stuff-ing. 1 found union the springs the nuts that they had purloined. Bo big a collection collec-tion had they mado that 1 filled n largo bandbox and two hats besides. After that the filing squirrels lived In the wall of my snakaroom. where the stove kept It warm, nnd during the night they enmo out und took away the nuts which I placed for them In tho evening. O. It. O'ltcllly. In Los Angeles '1 Imes. |