Page:Babyhood of Wild Beasts.djvu/186

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THE BABYHOOD OF WILD BEASTS

getting them out, he is lucky. If they stick in his eyes they are apt to penetrate his brain and kill him instantly; and if they blind him he is left to the terrible fate of starvation. A blind Lynx is worse than no Lynx at all.

By autumn our babies are getting to be quite respectable looking young Lynxes. Smart black tassels are beginning to sprout at the tips of their ears, giving their round faces a piquant expression. A thick whisker under the chin gives character and dignity to their appearance. Their paws are big and broad and are well adapted to walking on the snow. Their hind quarters are big and powerful and their heads are round and very cat-like in aspect. They are becoming a shadowy grey in colour but are still woolly looking. On their sides the hair grows particularly long to protect them when they travel through the light snow.

Their big paws are set with long white claws, cruelly curved. The kittens stand on their hind-feet and sharpen the claws of their fore-feet on a tree trunk, getting them ready for business.

You know a Lynx's teeth are not adapted for