There was some danger to be
defied in Rainbow Bottom, but not a sound must be made from his home.
The bark of a dog hurried me to the fence in time to see some hunters
passing in the bottom, but I thanked mercy they were on the
opposite side of the river and it was not probable they would
wade, so my birds would not be disturbed. When the squirrel felt
that he must bark and chatter, or burst with tense emotions, he
discreetly left his mate and nest. I did some serious thinking on
the `instinct' question. He might choose a hollow log for his
home by instinct, or eat certain foods because hunger urged him,
but could instinct teach him not to make a sound where his young
family lay? Without a doubt, for this same reason, the cardinal
sang from every tree and bush around Horseshoe Bend, save the
sumac where his mate hovered their young.
The matter presented itselfin this way. The squirrel has feet,
and he runs with them. He has teeth, and he eats with them. He
has lungs, and he breathes with them.
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