EARLY NOTICES OF tHE fiEAVER* 369 



as, he said there are now fifty-two ; -we have taken several of their houses ; they 

 are difficult to take, and those we have taken were by means of the rise of the 

 water on their houses from a strong wind which enabled us to stake them in, other- 

 wise they would have retired to their burrows which are very many. He 

 invited us to pass the night at his tent which was close by ; the sun was low and we 

 accepted the offer. In the tent was an old man almost his equal in age, with 

 women and children ; we preferred the open air and made a good fire to which 

 the old men came, and after smoking a while conversation began. I had always 

 conversed with. the natives as one Indian with another, and been attentive to learn 

 their traditions on the animals, on mankind, and on other matters in ancient times, 

 and the present occasion appeared favorable for this purpose. Setting aside 

 answers and questions which would he tiresome ; they said : — by early tradition, 

 of which they did not know the origin, the beaver had been an ancient people and 

 then lived on the dry land ; they were always beavers, not men, they were wise 

 and powerful, and neither man nor any animal made war on them. 



They were well clothed as at present, and as they did not eat meat, they made 

 no use of fire and did not want it. How long they lived this way we cannot tell 

 but we must suppose they did not live well, for the Great Spirit became angry, and 

 ordered Weesaukejauk to diive them all into the water, and there let them live, 

 still to be wise, but without power, to be food and clothing for man, and the prey 

 of other animals, against all which his defence shall be his dams, his house and 

 his burrows ; you see how strong he makes his dams ; those that we make for fish- 

 ing rivers are often destroyed by the water, but his always stand. His house is 

 not made of sand or loose stones, but of strong eai-th, with wood, and sometimes 

 small stones, and he makes burrows to escape from his enemies, and he has always 

 his winter stock of provisions secured in good time. When he cuts down a tree, 

 you see how he watches it, and takes care that it shall not fall on him. "But if 

 so wise, for what purpose does the beaver cut down large trees of which he makes 

 no use whatever ?" " "We do not know ; perhaps an itching of his teeth and gums." 

 Here the old Indian paused, became silent, and then in a low tone talked with the 

 other, after which he continued his discourse. " I have told you that we believe in 

 years long passed away, the Great Spirit was angry with the beaver, and ordered 

 "Weesaukejauk (the Hatter,) to drive them all from the dry land into the water : 

 and they became and continue very numerous ; but the Great Spirit has been and 

 now is, very angry with them, and they are now all to be destroyed. About ten 

 winters ago, Weesukejauk showed to our brethren, the Nepissings and Algonquins, 

 the secret of their destruction ; that all of them were infatuated with the love of 

 the Castoreum of their own species, and more fond of it than we are of fire water. 

 We are now killing the beaver without any labor ; we are now rich, but shall soon 

 be poor, for when the beaver are destroyed we have nothing to depend on to pur- 

 chase what we want for our families ; strangers now overrun our country with their 

 iron traps, and we and they will soon be poor." 



Some three years ago (1797), the Indians of Canada and New Brunswick, on 

 seeing the steel trap so successful in catching foxes and other animals, thought of 

 applying it to the beaver, instead of the awKward wooden traps they made, which 

 often failed ; at first they were set in the landing paths of the beaver, with about 



