was some of us did not get hurt either by the bears or the guns. We could make out by tracks and other marks that there were at least four bears in the gang, and they had an advantage over us in the woods and the darkness. I felt disappointed that I did not get a chance for a shot at one, but I felt some satisfaction in that I made the ar- rangements for the hunt, and that there were two bears less to do harm.

Bear skins are very heavy and the fur is fine. They make good sleigh robes and coats. The meat is good to eat, but is strong and heavy; it is about a cross between beef and pork, is tender. My stom- ach raised strong objections to taking it; about the same as to taking

castor oil. Foxes

Prince Edward Island is noted for its black foxes. We often saw them but seldom captured one. The red and patched were more plenti- ful, but not nearly so valuable. One man killed twenty-six in one win- ter. Sometimes we found their dens in the woods and got the little pups, but we seldom succeeded in raising them; we did not know how to take care of them. Some enterprising men succeeded in raising them and many poor men made fortunes out of them. The black ones are very nervous animals; if anything alarms the mother, when the pups are very young, she will kill them and bury them. The black fox fur is very beautiful and valuable. If the pups come when the weather is cold the mother draws them close up to her body and curls her big bushy tail around them; in this way they are as warm and comfort-

able as a babe in its crib.

Foxes are cunning thieves. They would get our hens and geese in spite of our watchfulness. A fox would catch a heavy goose by the neck and throw the body over his back and go off with it to the woods at a furious rate of speed. We had a little song, or rhyme, we sang about these fox raids:

"5 top the fox, stop the goose, Drop her rogue, let her loose. What will we do on Christmas day

I f our goose is stolen away?”

26