﻿300 
  ANNUAL 
  REPORT 
  SMITHSONIAN 
  INSTITUTION, 
  1922. 
  

  

  home, 
  or 
  at 
  least 
  the 
  site 
  of 
  the 
  parent 
  colony, 
  of 
  the 
  beavers 
  who 
  

   built 
  the 
  canal. 
  

  

  The 
  river 
  wanders 
  much 
  through 
  this 
  part 
  of 
  its 
  course, 
  and 
  in 
  the 
  

   not 
  distant 
  past 
  has 
  veered 
  and 
  shifted 
  and 
  migrated 
  so 
  that 
  the 
  

   cottonwood 
  forest 
  springing 
  up 
  along 
  its 
  successive 
  beds 
  has 
  pro- 
  

   duced 
  an 
  unusually 
  broad 
  piece 
  of 
  woodland 
  at 
  this 
  point, 
  especially 
  

   to 
  the 
  south 
  of 
  the 
  present 
  course 
  of 
  the 
  river, 
  and 
  there 
  are 
  many 
  

   of 
  the 
  little 
  open 
  parks, 
  twisting 
  lines 
  of 
  trees 
  marking 
  former 
  

   channels, 
  shallow 
  depressions, 
  and 
  narrow 
  swales 
  bordered 
  by 
  willow 
  

   thickets. 
  Straight 
  back 
  into 
  this 
  native 
  tangle 
  the 
  beavers 
  have 
  

   found 
  occasion 
  to 
  build 
  their 
  canal. 
  Although 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  best 
  

   traveled 
  ranch 
  roads 
  of 
  the 
  time 
  led 
  through 
  a 
  large 
  park 
  im- 
  

   mediately 
  west 
  of 
  the 
  canal, 
  while 
  not 
  a 
  great 
  way 
  to 
  the 
  east 
  was 
  

   a 
  much-used 
  sheep 
  shed, 
  so 
  swiftly 
  and 
  unobtrusively 
  did 
  the 
  beavers 
  

   carry 
  out 
  their 
  work 
  when 
  once 
  engaged 
  upon 
  it 
  that 
  in 
  the 
  spring 
  

   of 
  1916, 
  when 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  ranch 
  boys 
  happened 
  to 
  stumble 
  into 
  it, 
  the 
  

   canal 
  had 
  been 
  completed, 
  we 
  know 
  not 
  for 
  how 
  long 
  previously, 
  

   and 
  was 
  being 
  abundantly 
  utilized. 
  There 
  are 
  two 
  reasons 
  for 
  be- 
  

   lieving 
  that 
  at 
  this 
  time 
  the 
  canal 
  of 
  a 
  fact 
  had 
  not 
  been 
  in 
  existence 
  

   so 
  very 
  long. 
  In 
  the 
  first 
  place, 
  when 
  discovered 
  it 
  was 
  at 
  the 
  very 
  

   acme 
  of 
  structural 
  perfection, 
  indeed 
  was 
  so 
  finished 
  in 
  detail 
  and 
  

   so 
  well 
  kept 
  that 
  some 
  of 
  those 
  who 
  first 
  saw 
  it, 
  who 
  happened 
  to 
  

   be 
  ignorant 
  of 
  beaver 
  structures, 
  had 
  no 
  thought 
  of 
  it 
  as 
  possibly 
  

   of 
  other 
  than 
  human 
  origin, 
  and 
  expressed 
  a 
  wonder 
  as 
  to 
  who 
  could 
  

   be 
  running 
  so 
  well 
  constructed 
  an 
  irrigation 
  ditch 
  through 
  that 
  par- 
  

   ticular 
  piece 
  of 
  forsaken 
  jungle, 
  and 
  more 
  especially 
  how 
  it 
  could 
  

   have 
  been 
  constructed 
  without 
  their 
  knowing 
  it 
  — 
  an 
  amusing 
  state- 
  

   ment 
  to 
  make, 
  but 
  not 
  surprising 
  considering 
  the 
  original 
  symmetry 
  

   of 
  the 
  canal. 
  In 
  the 
  second 
  place, 
  when 
  the 
  present 
  writer 
  first 
  vis- 
  

   ited 
  the 
  canal, 
  on 
  the 
  succeeding 
  29th 
  of 
  July 
  to 
  be 
  exact, 
  the 
  princi- 
  

   pal 
  tree 
  fellings 
  adjacent 
  to 
  the 
  middle 
  and 
  upper 
  reaches 
  of 
  the 
  

   canal 
  were 
  in 
  the 
  main 
  quite 
  fresh. 
  Many 
  fellings 
  were 
  in 
  progress 
  

   at 
  the 
  time 
  and 
  similar 
  work 
  continued 
  all 
  through 
  that 
  summer. 
  

   The 
  canal 
  was 
  revisited 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  times 
  that 
  season 
  and 
  likewise 
  

   during 
  the 
  summer 
  following 
  by 
  the 
  writer 
  and 
  others, 
  but 
  it 
  was 
  

   not 
  until 
  August 
  25, 
  1918, 
  that 
  it 
  was 
  thoroughly 
  explored, 
  its 
  real 
  

   extent 
  appreciated, 
  and 
  the 
  entire 
  system 
  as 
  carefully 
  measured 
  and 
  

   plotted 
  as 
  was 
  feasible 
  in 
  the 
  absence 
  of 
  a 
  surveying 
  equipment. 
  

   Most 
  of 
  the 
  notes 
  forming 
  the 
  principal 
  basis 
  of 
  the 
  present 
  account 
  

   likewise 
  date 
  from 
  that 
  time. 
  

  

  The 
  general 
  trend 
  of 
  the 
  canal, 
  together 
  with 
  its 
  succession 
  of 
  con- 
  

   tributory 
  works, 
  is 
  practically 
  south 
  to 
  north. 
  Principally 
  as 
  a 
  direct 
  

   result 
  of 
  disturbing 
  variations 
  in 
  the 
  character 
  of 
  the 
  terrain 
  which 
  

  

  