THE BEAVERS OF NORTH AMERICA 27 



hard to say where one begins and the other ends) 

 of eighteen feet in length and about six inches in 

 diameter at the larger end are frequently used, and 

 shorter pieces of from one foot in length upwards 

 and having a diameter of eight or nine inches are 

 not uncommon. Just what purpose these short 

 and very heavy pieces serve is difficult to say. 

 They certainly add weight, but is that much 

 advantage? They cannot be said to add to the 

 structural strength, but perhaps when the mud 

 freezes and they become very firmly locked in they 

 offer an insurmountable obstruction to any animal 

 that may attempt the difficult task of digging into 

 the lodge. 



As a rule the bulk of the material employed con- 

 sists of long sticks of one to three inches in diameter 

 at the larger end and a great deal of short stuff of 

 variable size which forms an irregular network. 

 Fibrous roots add greatly to the strength of the 

 work by binding together all the loose material 

 so solidly that it is a task of the utmost difficulty 

 for a man to pull it apart unless he is armed with 

 a pick-axe or crowbar. A well-built lodge will 

 even withstand the destructive power of running 

 water. In Newfoundland I noticed one house 

 while it was being built and remarked on the 

 thoroughness of the work. During the following 

 spring the heavy rains and melting ice and snow 

 caused a flood, which raised the river about eight 

 or ten feet above the normal level. Needless to 



