878 HUNTING ADVENTURES. 



beaver-hous^x, which, as may be supposed from vl.at has been 

 already stated, is a task of some difficulty. The beavers, alarmed 

 at the invasion of their dwelling, take to the water and swim with 

 surprising swiftness to their retreats in the banks, but their en- 

 trance is betrayed to the hunters watching the holes in the ice, by 

 the motion and discoloration of the water. The entrance is in- 

 stantly closed with stakes of wood, and the beaver instead of find- 

 ing shelter in his cave, is made prisoner and destroyed. The 

 hunter then pulls the animal out, if within reach, by the introduc- 

 tion of his hand and arm, or by a hook designed for this use, 

 fastened to a long handle. Beaver-houses found in lakes or other 

 standing waters offer an easier prey to the hunters, as there is no 

 occasion for staking the water across. 



Among the Hudson's Bay Indians every hunter has the exclu- 

 sive right to all the beavers caught in the washes discovered by 

 him. Each individual on finding one, places some mark, as a poJe 

 or the branch of a tree stuck up, in order to know his own. 

 Beavers caught in any house are also the property of the dis- 

 coverer, who takes care to mark his claim, as in the case of the 

 washes.* 



The number of beavers killed in the northern parts of this 

 country is exceedingly great, even at the present time, after the 

 fur trade has been carried on for so many years, and the most in 

 discriminate warfare waged uninterruptedly against the species. 

 In the year 1820, sixty thousand beaver skins were sold by the 

 Hudson's Bay Company, which we can by no means suppose to 

 be the whole number killed during the preceding season. If to 

 these be added the quantities collected by the traders from the 

 Indians of the Missouri country, we may form some idea of the 

 immense number of these animals which exist throughout the vast 

 regions of the north and west. 



It is a subject of regret that an animal so valuable and prolific 



Lewis and Clark relate an instance which fell under their observation of one 

 beaver being caught in two traps belonging to different owners, it having one paw 

 In each. The proprietors of the traps were engaged in a contest for the beaver, 

 when the above named distinguished travellers arrived and settled the JispuM 

 between them by an equitable arrangjuijiit. 



