Lobo, Rag and Vixen / Being The Personal Histories Of Lobo, Redruff, Raggylug & Vixen

ness, solitude, and grapes; the Snow Moon came with rosehips; and the Stormy Moon brought browse of birch and silver storms that sheathed the woods in ice, and made it hard to k

these grew with the growing cold, till the first snow had found him fully equipped with snowshoes and ice-creepers. The cold weather had driv

ek, with its banks of silver-birch, and Castle Frank, with its grapes and rowan berries, as well as Chester woo

in the high fence of Castle-Frank. So among these scenes he lived his life,

rough the winter's direst storms, till at length the waning of the Hungry Moon, our February, seemed really to lend some point to the ditty, and they redoubled their optimistic announcement to the world in an 'I-told-you-so' mood. Soon good support was found, for the sun gained strength and melted the snow from the southern slope of Castle Frank Hill, and exposed great banks of fragrant wintergreen, whose berries were a bounteous feast for Redr

RING HA

thin that chiefly seemed to move them. The chickadees went simply wild; they sang their 'Spring now,

nt rolling down the little valley, again and again, a thundering 'Thump, thump, thump, thunderrrr

f skimmed away in silence, nor rested till once more in Mud Creek Glen. And there he mounted the very log where first he had drummed and rolled his loud tattoo again and again, till a small boy

thumped and thundered to the woods; then strutted and admired his gorgeous blazing ruffs as they flashed their jewels in the sunlight, and then thunde

p, thunder-r

p, thunder-r

d again a

eye, and the clumsy snow-*shoes were wholly shed from his feet. His ruff grew finer, his eye brighter, and hi

ly seeking to hide. In a moment he was by her side. His whole nature swamped by a new feeling-burnt up with thirst-a cooling spring in sight. And how he spread and flashed his proud array! How came he to know that that would please? He puffed his plumes and contrived to stand just right to catch the sun, and strutted and uttered a low, soft chuckle that must have been just as good as the 'sweet nothings' of another race, for clearly now he

th him for hours, then take some stealthy chance to slip away and see him no more for hours or till next day, when his martial music from the log announced him restless for her quick return? There was a woodland mystery here he could not clear. Why should her stay with him grow daily less till it was down to minutes, and one day at last she never came at all. Nor the next, nor the next, and

le dashed to find the brood with claims far stronger than his own. But he soon accepted the chan