gun. Well,
never mind! Your time will come, I dare say."

Yes, the squirrel had escaped from his terrible enemy for that time. He
and his family were safe as long as they remained in their castle, and
they had still sufficient food in their hoard to stand a pretty long
siege, though I cannot tell what they would have done for want of
water. But then how miserable it would be, to be kept close prisoners
for days, or even weeks; for how could they ever be certain that their
enemy was not still in the neighbourhood, or perhaps lying in wait for
them behind some branch of their own oak-tree? Truly a very pitiable
situation indeed!

It is wonderful how we become accustomed to dangers of all kinds, and
yet those who have often risked their lives in battle will tell you,
that this is really the case. In his first trial the young soldier will
perhaps be so terribly frightened that nothing but the certainty of
being disgraced prevents his running away. But after some years spent
amid dangers, the coward becomes by degrees a bold fellow, who can hear
bullets whistle around him, and see bright steel flash before his eyes,
if not with indifference, at least, with perfect coolness and
steadiness.

But what has all this about soldiers to do with the poor prisoners in
the oak tree? There does not appear to be much connexion between the
two subjects, certainly; but I was going to say that our _squirrels_
resembled _soldiers_ in one respect. I mean, that _they_ became rather
more courageous by being accustomed to live in continual danger. For
the first day or two after the chase, they were afraid to venture more
than a few yards from the nest; but they rambled further by degrees,
though, whenever they returned to the oak, they took care to stop in a
tree at a little distance, that they might see if the enemy was not
lying in ambush for them near the hole. In this manner many days
passed, and they were beginning to hope that the wild-cat had quite
left the neighbourhood, when they had a conversation with Leatherwing
about this dreadful animal.

It was really surprising what a vast deal of information this funny
little fellow had picked up; but, perhaps, as he said himself, his
having lived so much in towns and villages, where he could overhear the
conversation of Man, might partly account for his cleverness.

From him the squirrels learned that these terrible wild-cats were
formerly very common in the neighbouring forests,[7] but