. Wild animals I have known : and 200 drawings . the little one, gnaw-ing at something—the clank of iron told what,it was that cruel chain. And Tip, the littleone, meanwhile was helping himself to a warmdrink. On my going out she fled into the darkwoods, but there by the shelter-box were twolittle mice, bloody and still warm, food for thecub brought by the devoted mother. And inthe morning I found the chain was very brightfor a foot or two next the little ones collar. On walking across the woods to the ruinedden, I again found signs of Vixen. The poorheart-broken mother had come and dug out th
. Wild animals I have known : and 200 drawings . the little one, gnaw-ing at something—the clank of iron told what,it was that cruel chain. And Tip, the littleone, meanwhile was helping himself to a warmdrink. On my going out she fled into the darkwoods, but there by the shelter-box were twolittle mice, bloody and still warm, food for thecub brought by the devoted mother. And inthe morning I found the chain was very brightfor a foot or two next the little ones collar. On walking across the woods to the ruinedden, I again found signs of Vixen. The poorheart-broken mother had come and dug out thebedraggled bodies of her little ones. There lay the three little baby foxes alllicked smooth now, and by them were two ofour hens fresh killed. The newly heaved earthwas printed all over with tell-tale signs—signsthat told me that here by the side of her deadshe had watched like Rizpah. Here she hadbrought their usual meal, the spoil of her night-ly hunt. Here she had stretched herself be-side them and vainly offered them their natural 216. There She had Lain—and Mourned. The Springfield Fox drink and yearned to feed and warm them as ofold ; but only stiff little bodies under their softwool she found, and little cold noses still andunresponsive. A deep impress of elbows, breast, and hocksshowed where she had laid in silent grief andwatched them for long and mourned as a wildmother can mourn for its young. But fromthat time she came no more to the ruined den,for now she surely knew that her little oneswere dead. Tip the captive, the weakling of the brood,was now the heir to all her love. The dogswere loosed to guard the hens. The hiredman had orders to shoot the old fox on sight—so had I, but was resolved never to see , that a fox loves and a dog willnot touch, had been poisoned and scatteredthrough the woods ; and the only way to theyard where Tip was tied, was by climbing thewood-pile after braving all other dangers. Andyet each night old Vix was ther
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, bookpublishe, booksubjectanimals
