Will-Am-Alone >The Will-Am-Alone Is a Quick Little Animal, Like a Squirrel
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Will-am-alone >The Will-am-alone is a quick little animal, like a squirrel, that rolls in its fingers in poison-lichens into balls and drops them into the ears and on the eyelids of sleeping men in the camp, causing them to have strange dreams and headaches and to see unusual objects in the snow. It is the hardest drinkers in the camp who are said to be most easily and most often affected by the poison. Can be fatal when mixed with those liquors made in prohibition states Side-hill winder >More odd than this animal is the side-hill winder, a rabbit-like creature so called because he winds about the steep hills in only one direction; and in order that his back may be kept level, the down-hill legs are longer than the uphill pair. He is seldom caught; but the way to kill him is to head him off with dogs when he is corkscrewing up a mountain. As the winder turns, his long legs come up on the uphill side and tip him over, an easy prey. His fat is the cure for diseases caused by will-am-alone, but to eat its flesh is to die a hard and sudden death. Ding-ball >much to be dreaded is the ding-ball, a panther whose last tail-joint is ball shaped and bare of flesh. With this weapon it cracks its victim's skull. There is no record of a survival from the blow of a ding-ball. In older traditions it sang with the voice of a human, thus luring the incautious from their cabins to have their sconces broken in the dark. It is fond of human flesh, and will sing all night for a meal of Indians. Hibou blanc >where the French Canucks are employed at chopping, you must look to see them all quit work if a white owl flies from any tree they are felling; and they must not look back nor speak to it, for it is a ghost and will trouble them unless they leave that part of the wood for fully thirty days. Windigo >But the worst of all is the windigo, that ranges from labrador to moosehead lake, preferring the least populous and thickest wooded districts. A Canadian Indian known as Sole-o'-your-foot is the only man who ever saw one and lived-- for merely to look upon the windigo is doom, and to cross his track is deadly peril. There is no need to cross the track, for it is plain enough. His footprints are twenty-four inches long, and in the middle of each impress is a red spot, showing where his blood oozed through the hole in his mocassin; for the windigo, dark and huge and shadowy as he seems, has yet a human shape and many human attributes. That belief in this monster is so genuine that lumbermen have secured a monopoly of certain jobs by scaring competitors out of the neighborhood through simple device of tramping past their camp in fur covered snow shows and dropping a bead of beef blood in each footprint. The stealthy stride of the monster makes every lumberman's blood run cold as the Androscoggin under its ice roof, and its voice is like the moaning of the pines. Gazerium and Snydae >From Maine comes news of two extinct creatures, the Gazerium and the Snydae. Both, according to Richard G. Kendall, a specialist in unearthly zoology highly esteemed in that state, were found only along the Kennebec river, and were favorite delicacies of the Kennebec Indians and had but two legs forward and only one aft, and that it fed chiefly upon the Snydae, which were minute forms of marine life. The Snydae, in turn, fed upon the eggs of the Gazerium, so the two species gradually exterminated themselves. He adds: "The Kennebec usually cooked the Gazerium in deep fat. It tasted something like French-Fried potato, with just a hint of flavor of cocktail sauce imparted to it by its died of Snydae. Come-at-a-Body >Reported by Mr. B. B. Bickford of Gorham, the N. H. Not found outside the white mountains. A short, stubby, rather small animal, resembling a woodchuck but having very soft, velvety, kitten-like fur. Harmless, but surprising. Has the terrifying habit of suddenly rushing directly at you from the brush, then stopping only a few inches away and spitting like a cat. A strong mink like scent is thrown, and the Come-at-a-Body rushes away. Tote-road Shagamaw >From Rangeley Lakes to Allegash and across in New Brunswick loggers tell of an animal which puzzled many a man, even those who were not strangers in the woods. Frequently the report is circulated that the tracks of a bear have been seen near camp, but a little later this is denied and moose tracks are reported instead. Heated arguments among the men, sometimes resulting in fist fights, are likely to follow. It is rightly considered an insult to a woodsman to accuse him of not being able to distinguish the track of either of these animals.To only a few of the old timber cruisers and rivermen is the explanation of these changing tracks is known. Gus Demo, of Oldtown, Maine, who has hunted and trapped and logged in Maine woods for 40 years, once came upon what he recognized as the tracks of a moose. After following it for about 80 rods it changed to moose tracks. It was soon observed by Mr. Demo that these changes took place precisely every quarter mile, and that these whatever made these tracks followed a tote road or a blazed line through the woods. Coming within sight of the animal, Gus saw a 20-foot-tall creature with the fore-legs of a bear, and the hind legs that of a moose. He observed it marching carefully with its long legs, stepping precisely at a yard a step, then stopping on a pivot, and switching to from its fore to its hind legs. He concluded that Tote-Road Shagamaw must have been originally a very imitative creature, developing to fool hunters. He reasoned that the Shagamaw can only count to 440; therefore it must invert itself every quarter a mile Whapperknocker >The Whapperknocker is somewhat larger than a weasel, and of beautiful brown colour. He lives in the woods on worms and birds; is so wild that no one can tame him, and, as he never quits his harbour in the day-time, is only to be taken by traps at night. Of the skins of these animals-- which are covered with an exceedingly fine fur-- are made muffs, at the price of thirty or forty guineas apeice; so that it is not without reason the ladies pride themselves on the possession of this small appurtenance of female habiliment. Cuba >The Cuba I suppose to be a peculiar to New England. The male is of the size of a large cat; has four long tushes sharp as a razor; he is very active in defending himself, and, if he has the first blow, will spoil a dog before he yields. His lady is peaceable and harmless, and depends for protection on her spouse, and, as he has more courage than prudence, always attends to moderate his temper. She sees danger, and he fears it not. She chatters at him while he is busy preparing for battle, and, if she thinks the danger is too great, she runs to him and clings about his neck, screaming her extreme distress; his wrath abates; and by her advice, they fly to their caves. In like manner, when he is chained and irritated into the greatest rage by an impertinent dog, his lady, who is never chained, will fly about his neck and kiss him, and in half a minute restore his calmness. he is very tender of his family, and never forsakes them till death dissolves their union. What further shows the magnanimity of this little animal, he never manifests the least anger toward his lady, though they are impertinent to him. I more readily suppose the Cuba to be peculiar to New England, not only from my never having yet seen the creature described, but also on account of its perverse observance of carnival and neglect of careme. Whippoorwill >The Whippoorwill has so named itself by its nocturnal songs. It is also called the Pope, by reason of its darting with great swiftness from the clouds to the ground and bawling out Pope, which alarms young people and the fanatics very much, especially as they know it to be an ominous bird. However, it has hitherto proved friendly, always giving travelers and others notice of approaching storm by saluting them every minute by Pope! Pope! It flies only a little before sunset, unless for this purpose of giving notice of a storm. It never deceives the people with false news,. If the tempest is to continue long, the augurs appear in flocks, and nothing can be heard but Pope! pope! The Whippoorwill is about the size of a cuckoo, has a short beak, long and narrow wings, a large head, and mouth enormous, yet not a bird of prey. Under its throat is a pocket, which it fills with air at pleasure, whereby it sounds forth the fatal word Pope in the day, and Whip-her-I-will in the night. The superstitious inhabitants would have exorcised this harmless bird long ago, as an emissary from Rome and an an enemy to the American Vine, had they not found out that it frequents New England only in the summer, and prefers the wilderness to a palace.