BEAVER 



Castor canadensis. 



Although formerly, widely distributed throughout North Amer- 

 ica, the beaver has been hunted so persistently that he is now prac- 

 tically extinct except in the northeastern part. His value consists 

 in a beautiful soft thick grayish brown underfur, which remains 

 after the long chestnut-colored hairs have been removed and is 

 highly prized for ladies' coats, hats, fur trimmings, etc. While 

 he is one of the largest of our rodents, measuring about forty inches, 

 including the ten-inch paddle-shaped tail so useful to him in swim- 

 ming, he is best known, not by his size, but by his skill in building 

 the dams, which take first rank among all feats performed in the 

 animal world. 



The purpose of these great dams, which may reach several 



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