The beaver, in a natural state, eats no animal substance excepting fish, and this but occasionally. The houses have but one opening, which is under the surface of the water, and always below the thickness of the ice; by this means they are secure from the effects of frost. The beavers seldom quit their residence in winter unless they are disturbed, or their provisions fail. They sometimes find that a musk-rat becomes a visitor, and takes up his abode with them; the otter also occasionally intrudes his company. The latter animal is a dangerous guest, for if provisions grow scarce, it is not uncommon for him to devour his host. When the beaver has remained three or four years in the same place, he frequently erects a new house annually, or sometimes merely repairs the old one; it often happens that they build a new dwelling so close to the former, that they cut a communication from one to the other, and thus may have arisen the idea of their having several apartments.

During the summer months they quit their habitations and ramble about the country, as is

the case with many animals who are social during winter. They then sleep under the covert of bushes near the water-side, and they have sentinels who by a certain cry give notice of approaching danger, when they betake themselves to the water for security. They can swim for a considerable distance under water, but not without frequently coming to the surface for air. In the banks near their dwellings, they make excavations, which are called washes; these are so enlarged within, that the beaver can raise his head from the water to breathe without being seen, and here he takes refuge when danger is apprehended.

Beavers produce their young ones towards the end of June, and generally have from two to five at a birth. The young ones continue with their parents till they are three years old, when they pair off and form houses for themselves. If, however, they are undisturbed and have plenty of provisions, they remain with the old ones, and thus form a double society. During the first year of their lives, the beavers are termed pappooshes by

the hunters; when two years old, small meddlers ; at three years, large meddlers. In their fourth year they are called beavers; and afterwards, great, or old beavers.

The young beavers, like those of most other animals, are playful, and their movements particularly interesting. They whine in a manner which closely resembles the cry of a young child.

In Captain Franklin's journey to the shores of the Arctic Sea, the following touching anecdote is related. One day a gentleman, resident in the Hudson's Bay country, espied five young beavers sporting in the water, leaping upon the trunk of a tree, pushing one another off, and playing a thousand interesting tricks. He approached softly under cover of the bushes, and prepared to fire on the unsuspecting group; but a nearer approach discovered to him such a similitude between their gestures and the infantile caresses of his own children, that he threw aside his gun and left them unmolested. The beaver has been known to become domesticated: Major Roderfort, of New York, related to Professor Kalm, that for a year and a

half he had in his house a tame beaver, which was suffered to run about like a dog. It fed on bread or fish. All the rags and soft things he could get hold of, he dragged into the corner where he was accustomed to sleep, and made a bed of them. The cat in the house, having kittens, took possession of his bed, and he did not attempt to disturb her. When the cat left her young family, the beaver would often take one of the kittens between his paws, and hold it to his breast to keep it warm. As soon as the cat returned, he always restored the kitten. He sometimes grumbled a little, but never attempted to bite. A pair of beavers were kept for some time at Exeter Change. They were very tame, and would suffer themselves to be handled. They often sat upright to look about them, and at times were very playful together. If anything movable was given them, they would push and drag it about, but in no instance were they known to use their tail for this purpose. Their habits were extremely cleanly. Although their disposition was so gentle, they could not, from their propensity to gnaw wood, be

allowed the full range of a room; they would soon have eaten their way out and escaped. The use which is made of their fine and valuable fur in the manufacture of hats, stockings, caps, and other articles of dress, causes the skins of these animals to be an important article of traffic, both with the northern countries of Europe and with America. Those skins of a black colour are preferred, particularly such as are taken during the winter season. The flesh is esteemed by the hunters to be good eating, though it is said to have a strong fishy taste. Mr. Gosse says, "that he has seen the beaver on the Alabama River and in the streams of Newfoundland, and can from experience confirm the testimony of Captain Cartwright, to the delicious flavour of its flesh, at least in the latter locality."

Mr. Gosse quotes an amusing account of the manners of the beaver in a state of captivity, from the "pleasant pen" of Mr. Broderip. The following is taken from it. The animal arrived in this country in the winter of 1825, very young. It was the sole survivor of five or six which were shipped at the same time, and it was in a very