2 LEAVES EROM THE 



was half grown, was great. It would drag along a large 

 sweeping-brusli, or a warming-pan, grasping the handle 

 with its teeth so that it came over its shoulder, and 

 advancing with the load in an oblique direction, till it 

 arrived at the point where it wished to place it. The 

 long and large materials were always taken first, and two 

 of the longest were generally laid crosswise, with one of 

 the ends of each touching the wall, and the other ends 

 projecting out into the room. The area formed by the 

 crossed brushes and the wall he would fill up with hand- 

 brushes, rush-baskets, books, boots, sticks, clothes, dried 

 turf, or anything portable. As the work grew high he 

 supported himself on his tail, which propped him up 

 admirably; and he would often, after la3dng on one of 

 his building materials, sit up over against it, appearing to 

 consider his work, or, as the country-people say, 'judge 

 it.' This pause was sometimes followed by changing the 

 position of the material 'judged,' and sometimes it was 

 left in its place. After he had piled up his materials in 

 one part of the room (for he generally chose the same 

 place), he proceeded to wall up the sj)ace between the 

 feet of a chest of drawers which stood at a little distance 

 from it, high enough on its legs to make the bottom a 

 roof for him ; using for this purpose dried turf and sticks, 

 which he laid very even, and filling up the interstices 

 with bits of coal, hay, cloth, or anything he could pick 

 up. This last place he seemed to appropriate for his 

 dwelling : the former work seemed to be intended for a 

 dam. When he had walled up the space between the 

 feet of the chest of drawers, he proceeded to carry in 

 sticks, clothes, hay, cotton- wool, &c., and to make a nest. 

 When he had done this to his satisfaction, he would sit 

 up under the drawers, and comb himself with the nails 

 of his hind feet. In this operation, that which appeared 

 at first to be a malformation was shown to be a beautiful 

 adaptation to the necessities of the animal. The huge 



