THE GROUSE. 12}

of their resort. The small acorns of the
dwarf oaks, and various kinds of wild
fruits, as strawberries, whortle-berries,
and partridge berries, with occasional in-
sects, abounding in wooded thickets, ap-
pear to be the principal inducement to
their residence; from which they rarely »
wander at any season, unless compelled
by a failure of their usual food, and so
become, notwithstanding the almost in-
accessible nature of the ground, a sure
prey to the greedy and exterminating
hunter. In the western states, where
they appear as an abundant species, they
are, at times, observed to traverse the
plains and even cross extensive rivers in
quest of the means of subsistence.