The Head Resembles The Squirrel In Every Respect,
Except That The Ear Is Shorter; The Tail Like That Of The Ground Squirrel;
The Toe Nails Are Long, The Fur Is Fine, And The Long Hair Is Gray."
Great confusion has been caused in the minds of readers on account
of there being another burrowing animal, called by
Lewis and Clark "the
burrowing squirrel," which resembles the petit chien in some respects.
But the little animal described here is now well known as the prairie-dog, - an
unfortunate and misleading name. It is in no sense a species of dog.
The creature commonly weighs about three pounds, and its note resembles that
of a toy-dog. It is a species of marmot; it subsists on grass roots and other
vegetable products; its flesh is delicate and, when fat, of good flavor.
The writer of these lines, when crossing the great plains, in early times,
found the "prairie-dogs" excellent eating, but difficult to kill;
they are expert at diving into their holes at the slightest signal of danger.
The following days they saw large herds of buffalo, and the copses
of timber appeared to contain elk and deer. "just below Cedar Island,"
adds the journal, "on a hill to the south, is the backbone of a fish,
forty-five feet long, tapering towards the tail, and in a perfect
state of petrifaction, fragments of which were collected
and sent to Washington." This was not a fish, but the fossil
remains of a reptile of one of the earliest geological periods.
Here, too, the party saw immense herds of buffalo, thousands in number,
some of which they killed for their meat and skins.
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 29 of 362
Words from 8286 to 8566
of 110166
