LAKE DWELLERS. 181 



river-shore, and these placed at several hundred yards 

 apart from each other. 



With respect to the number of animals living together 

 in the same house, our Indians, who had lived in this 

 neighbourhood and hunted beaver from their youth, 

 corroborated the fact, often stated by naturalists, of 

 three generations living together — the old pair, the last 

 progeny, and the next eldest (they generally have two 

 at a birth) ; the latter leaving every summer to set up 

 for themselves. 



At the time of our visit the beavers were returning 

 from the summer excursions up and down the rivers, and 

 setting to work to repair damages both to houses and 

 dams. This work is invariably carried on during the night ; 

 and the following is the modus operandi: — Kepairing 

 to the thickets and groves skirting the lake, the beaver, 

 squatting on his hams, rapidly gnaws through the stems 

 of trees of six or even twelve inches diameter, with its 

 powerful incisors. These are again divided, and dragged 

 away to the house or dam. The beaver now plunges into 

 the water, and brings up the mud and small stones from 

 the bottom to the work in progress, carrying them closely 

 under the chin in its fore paws. The vulgar opinion that 

 the broad tail of the beaver was used to plaster down the 

 mud in its work, has long since been pronounced as erro- 

 neous. Its real use is evidently to counterpoise, by an 

 action against the water in an upward direction, the 

 tendency to sink head foremost (which the animal would 

 otherwise have) when propelling itself through the water 

 by its powerful and webbed hind feet, and at the same 

 time supporting the load of mud or stones in its fore 

 paws under the chin. Our Indians laughed at the idea 



