60 THE STORY OF THE BEAVER. 



second toe of the hind-foot, probably used in dressing the fur. The portion 

 of the muzzle surrounding the nostrils is naked, as are the soles of the feet, 

 while the ears are scaly. Both the ears and the nostrils are capable of being 

 closed. The fur is peculiarly thick and soft, its general color being reddish 

 brown above, and grayer beneath. Occasionally a white beaver is met with, 

 but they are very rare. 



At the time of the discovery of America, the beaver of this continent 

 had a wider distribution than any other mammal except the puma (mountain 

 lion). Its range extended from Alaska and the Hudson's Bay district in the 

 north, along the Atlantic seaboard as far south as Georgia and Northern 

 Florida, and thence along the Gulf of Mexico as far as the Rio Grande in 

 Texas, and also some distance into Mexico; while on the Pacific Coast it 

 extended to California and Arizona. 



The young, usually from three to four in a litter, are produced at the 

 close of the winter or early in the spring, in the shelter of the burrow or 

 lodge, but it is not yet ascertained whether they are born with their eyes 

 open or closed. Beavers do not hibernate, rn the strict sense of the term, 

 although during the depth of the winter they sleep longer, and move about 

 much less than at other times. 



In summer beavers generally forsake the neighborhood of their lodges to 

 travel up or down the stream; occasionally taking considerable journeys on 

 land. With the advent of early autumn they return to their winter quarters, 

 and at once set about the necessary repairs to the dam and lodges, and the 

 collection of a supply of food for the wdnter. 



The Hudson's Bay Company has wisely assigned certain islands in its ter- 

 ritory as beaver-preserves, where a certain number of the animals are killed 

 every third year only. It has been proposed to establish "beaver-ranches" 

 in America, but the attempts hitherto made to domesticate these animals 

 do not hold out much encouragement as to the success of the project. It is 

 true that beavers live and become fairly tame in menageries (where, from 

 their nocturnal habits, they are but rarely seen), but they rapidly deteriorate, 

 losing the brilHant gloss of their coats, and acquiring dull, listless habits. 



In the early days of the northwest beaver skins were the chief articles of 

 traffic between the Indians and the traders. My father was a trader for the 

 American Fur Company and I have often listened with wonder to his stories 

 of adventure in going from one Indian village to another and exchanging a 

 few glass beads and small quantities of powder and ball for valuable Ijeaver 

 skins. 



