with his feet and
toes by the hour, while a young pup can have a great game with only a
dry bone, or by chasing his shadow on the wall. Rabbits come out in
evenings on the sand-hills to play hide-and-seek with their young, and
squirrels never weary of this universally popular game. I know of a
young fox that used to come from a nearby woods every evening to play
with a young fox-terrier. They became great friends and were often seen
in the woods together.

A friend who owns a ranch in Texas once raised two young wolves that
romped and played with the neighbour's dogs just as if they were dogs
themselves. There are other animals, like the weasels, that will also
play with strange friends. But they prefer their own kind as playmates.
They take the greatest delight in playing with their parents, and
nothing is more beautiful or strange than to see several of them playing
in a valley on a sunny day. Out pops one little head, with twinkling
eyes glancing from side to side, and then as if from nowhere, the little
brothers and sisters begin to appear, chasing each other as though they
were playing tag. These exercises give them much agility which they will
need in later life.

I once owned a tame raccoon, and often kept him chained in the back
yard. When he could not find a young chicken or duck to torment, he
devised all kinds of schemes to relieve the monotonous hours. He would
pile up a number of small stones, and carefully await his chance to
fling one into a group of young chickens. He seemed to understand that
he was more apt to make a hit when he threw into a crowd than when
aiming at a single chick. At other times he would lie on his back, madly
waving his tail as though he were signalling for some one to come near.
If we chanced to pass by without speaking, he would growl or whine in
some way to attract attention. After hours of self-amusement he would
lie down as if life were useless, and wait until something or somebody
came along to amuse him. His greatest delight was in fishing things out
of a pan of water, and he would wash every pebble or plaything that he
owned and carefully lay it out to dry. One day he pounced upon a rooster
who insulted him by drinking from his water vessel, and plucked a long
feather from his tail so quickly that we could hardly realise what had
taken place. He then had great fun in attempting to stick the feather in
his head or by planting it upright in the ground. Another day, in
winter