stopped until she had finished her winter home. Then she knew she must
go out and collect some food.

Her food consisted of plants, the bark of trees, and fruits of
different kinds; and then there were succulent roots and plants to be
found and dug out of the ground, and these provided both food and
drink, for the moisture was quite enough to quench the porcupine's
thirst.

After this Pero rested a little, for she was very, very tired.

It was September now, and by the end of the month or the beginning of
October she would be busy again.

So she made the most of her time, eating and taking things easy.
Having finished her work, she felt entitled to do this, and one
morning, when the bright, clear daylight penetrated the mouth of her
winter home, it fell on two funny little objects, and these funny
little objects were baby porcupines.

[Illustration: "BUT OH! WHAT HAVOC HE MADE!"]

They were not prickly like their mother, but just soft, helpless mites
with curiously-shaped bodies, and funny little heads and snouts, which
made them look very much like pigs.

An animal covered with hundreds of sharp quills, from ten to twelve
inches in length, each of which can pierce like a little stiletto,
does not sound like a particularly comfortable thing to have for a
mother. But the baby porcupines were quite happy, and their mother,