THE BEAVER. 567 
Their teeth are wonderfully powerful and sharp, and their jaws are possessed of singular 
strength, as may be seen by the accompanying engraving of a Beaver’s skull. 
So sharp are their teeth, and with such address does the animal use them, that a tame 
Beaver has repeatedly been seen to take a potato or an apple in his fore-paws, to sit up 
on his hind feet, and by merely pressing the apple against his lower incisors, and 
manipulating it dexterously, to peel 
it as really as if the operation had 
been performed by human hands 
with the aid of a knife. 
Not all the Beavers employ 
themselves in these united labours, 
for there are some which, like 
drones, refuse to take any part in 
the proceedings, and are technically 
called “Les paresseux,” or the Idlers, 
by the Beaver-hunters. These ani- 
mals make no dam and build no 
house, but content themselves with 
excavating long tunnels and taking 
up their abode therein. Several of 
these idlers inhabit the same bur- 
row, and as they are always males, 
it is supposed that they must have 
been conquered in the contests which take place between most male amanals while 
they ate seeking their mates, Ad that they must have retired into comparative solitude 
until they have gained sufficient strength and courage to renew the fight. These idlers 
are gladly welcomed by the hunters, for they are easily caught, and a skilful trapper 
thinks himself ill-used if he does not capture every idler that he may meet. 
We now must bestow a little time on the curious odoriferous substance which is called 
“eastoreum” by the learned, and “ bark-stone” by the trappers. This substance is secreted 
in two glandular sacs which are placed near the root of the tail, and gives out an extremely 
powerful odour. 
To the castoreum the trapper is mostly indebted for his success, for the Beavers are 
strangely attracted by this substance, and if their nostrils perceive its distant scent, the 
animais will sit upright, sniff about in every direction, and absolutely squeal with excite- 
ment. Taking advantage of this curious propensity, the hunter always carries a supply 
of castoreum, in a closed vessel, and when he comes to a convenient spot for placing his 
trap, he sets the trap and then proceeds to manufacture his bait. This process is simple 
enough, consisting merely of taking a little twig of wood about nine inches long, chewing 
one end of it and dipping it in the castoreum. The trap is now laid so as to be covered 
by about six inches of water, and the stick arranged so that its, perfumed tip projects from 
the water. Any Beaver which scents this bait will most certainly come to it, and will 
probably be captured in the trap. 
Connected with this strange mode of baiting a trap, is a habit which has only 
recently been brought before the public by the researches of Messrs. Audubon and 
Bachman. 
If two Beaver lodges are tolerably near each other, the inhabitants of the one lodge, 
which we will call lodge A, go to a little distance for the purpose of ridding themselves 
of the superabundant castoreum. The Beavers of lodge B, smelling the castoreum, go to 
the same spot, and cover the odoriferous substance with a thick layer of earth and leaves. 
They then place their own castoreum upon the heap, and return home. The inhabitants 
of lodge A then go through precisely the same process, until they have raised a mound 
some four or five feet in height. 
To return to the baited trap spoken of in the last paragraph but one. If the Beaver 
which smells the bait is a young one, it will almost certainly be captured; but if it should 
chance to be an old and experienced animal, it will not only avoid capture, but rebaer 
SKULL OF BEAVER. 
