of 



These were dragged to the top of the addition, 

 laid down, and trampled in the mud. Meantime 

 the mud-carriers kept steadily at their work; 

 again willows were brought, but this time four 

 beavers went, and, as before, each was inde- 

 pendent of the others. I did not see how this 

 work could go on without some one bossing the 

 thing, but I failed to detect any beaver acting 

 as overseer. While there was general coopera- 

 tion, each acted independently most of the time 

 and sometimes was apparently oblivious of the 

 others. These beavers simply worked, slowly, 

 silently, and steadily; and they were still work- 

 ing away methodically and with dignified delib- 

 eration when darkness hid them. 

 - Most beaver houses are conical and round of 

 outline. This house originally was slightly ellip- 

 tical and measured forty- one feet in circumfer- 

 ence. After enlargement it was almost a flattened 

 ellipse and measured sixty-three feet in circum- 

 ference. Generally I have found that small 

 beaver houses are round and large ones elliptical. 

 One of the last large interesting works of the 

 Moraine Colony was the making of a new pond. 



44 



