"O, no. Marmots live together in families in the summer-time, and when the time comes for a long rest, a whole family enter the burrow and stretch themselves out close together on the hay."
"Where does the hay come from?" asked one of the visitors.
"Why, the marmots carry it into the burrow and line it as carefully as birds prepare their nests."
"I have heard," said Rudolf, "that one marmot lies on his back and holds a bundle of hay between his legs, while two or three others drag him through the long tunnel into the burrow. That is the reason the hair is worn off the backs of so many of them."
Fritz held his sides with laughter.
"Did you believe such a silly story as that, Rudolf? I thought you knew more about the animals of our mountains than that, surely.
"When a marmot's back is bare, you may know it is because the roof of his burrow is not high enough. His hair has rubbed off against it as he moved while asleep."
"How large do the marmots grow?" asked Carl. "Are they pretty creatures, uncle; and are they clever?"
"They are rather stupid, it seems to me, Carl, and they are not as pretty as squirrels. They are larger, however. The colour of their fur is a yellowish-gray. Their tails are short, like those of rabbits. They move about in a slow, clumsy way."
"Why are they so hard to catch, if that is so?" said Carl's mother.