Page:Babyhood of Wild Beasts.djvu/235

Rh families. He is a fat, woolly little baby, full of fun and pranks, and expressing keen enjoyment in the bleak Arctic climate. He's a square built, thick set, sturdy fellow, with a practical mind from the very beginning.

He soon learns to dig under the deep snow for lichens and Arctic mosses. He is a weather prophet too, and makes preparations against blizzards with a fore-sight uncommon in one so young. We wonder if that psychical sense is inborn or if it develops by communication from the older animals. Baby Musk Ox is wide-eyed and innocent in appearance, but he gives us such startling shocks sometimes by his deep rooted intelligence that his appearance quite belies him. He is gentle and makes a fine pet if taken when young.

The purpose of the musky odour is to enable the animals to find each other in heavy storms and during the long, dark Arctic nights. The flesh of the Musk Ox is excellent food, consequently they are hunted assiduously by the Eskimos with their wolf dogs. Their skins are highly desirable for the making of clothing and robes, and the flesh is