September 1749. 



fkfli is reckoned beft, if the beaver has 

 lived upon vegetables, fuch as the afp, and 

 the beaver-tree*; but when he has eaten 

 fifli, it does not tafte well. To day I tafted 

 this flefli boiled, for the firft time ; and 

 though every body prefent, befides myfelf, 

 thought it a delicious difli, yet I could pot 

 agree with them. I think it is eatable, but 

 has nothing delicious, It looks black when 

 boiled, and has a peculiar tafte. In ord-er 

 to prepare it well, it muft be boiled in $fc 

 veral waters from morning till noon, that 

 it may lofe the bad tafte it has. The tail 

 is likewife eaten, after it has been boiled in 

 the fame manner, and roafted afterwards $ 

 bat it confms of fat only, though they 

 would not call it fo ; and cannot be fyval- 

 lowed by one who is not ued to eat it, ^^\ 

 , r MucH has already been written concern- 

 ing the dykes, or houfes of the beavers j 

 jt is therefore unneceffary to repeat \t. 

 Sometimes, though but feldom, they catch 

 beavers with white Hair^ jn ^ 

 , a -j t WiNE is almoft the only li^i^tM^i^Ji 

 people above the vulgar are u fed to drink. 

 They make a kind of fpruce beer of the 

 top of the white fir -)-, which they drij*k 



* Magnolia gl0uca 9 Linn. 



f Epinette blanche. The way of brewing this beer is 

 defcribed at large in the Memoirs of the Royal A 

 Sciences, for the year^i, p. 190. 



