33 
THE BEAVER. 
Castor fiber. 
THERE is no reason to doubt that, within historic 
times, the Beaver was an inhabitant of Britain, 
although, like the Bear, the Wolf, and the Wild Boar, 
it has long been exterminated before the advance of 
civilization. 
The earliest notice we find of it is contained in 
the code of Welsh laws made by Howel Dha 
(A.D. 940), and which, unlike the ancient Saxon codes 
and the Trish Senchus Mor, contains many quaint 
