THE FORESTS OF OREGON 



and earned fame, and, by their knowledge of 

 the topography of the vast West then unex- 

 plored, have been able to render important 

 service to the country ; but most of them laid 

 their bones in the wilderness after a few short, 

 keen seasons. So great were the perils that be- 

 set them, the average length of the life of a 

 ''free trapper" has been estimated at less than 

 five years. From the Columbia waters beaver 

 and beaver men have almost wholly passed 

 away, and the men once so striking a part of 

 the view have left scarcely the faintest sign of 

 their existence. On the other hand, a thou- 

 sand meadows on the mountains tell the story 

 of the beavers, to remain fresh and green for 

 many a century, monuments of their happy, 

 industrious lives. 



But there is a little airy, elfin animal in these 

 woods, and in all the evergreen woods of the 

 Pacific Coast, that is more influential and 

 interesting than even the beaver. This is the 

 Douglas squirrel {Sciurus Douglasi). Go where 

 you will throughout all these noble forests, you 

 everyivhere find this little squirrel the master- 

 existence. Though only a few inches long, so 

 intense is his fiery vigor and restlessness, he 

 stirs every grove with wild life, and makes 

 himself more important than the great bears 

 that shuffle through the berry tangles beneath 



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