6 ROMANCE OF THE BEAVER 



to leave the protection of his well-built house. A 

 long swim under water brought him to the middle 

 of the pond which he and his family had made. 

 From this point he could inspect the encircling 

 hiUsides, and the friendly currents of air would 

 perhaps carry to his keen nose the scent of any 

 human enemy who might be lurking in the 

 neighbourhood. Apparently the evening breeze 

 was untainted by man-scent. But the beaver 

 considered it wise to make still more sure, so he 

 swam a short distance, and then disappeared 

 beneath the water so softly that scarcely a ripple 

 marked the place where he had dived. A few 

 minutes later, he quietly reappeared close to the 

 shore on the lee side of the pond. Once more he 

 remained as still as a floating log, his nose pointed 

 toward the almost imperceptible breeze, his dark 

 rounded ears raised to catch the slightest sound. 

 Then slowly and silently he swam round the pond 

 closely following the irregular shore line. No sign 

 of danger could he find. Evidently no stranger 

 had come near his home since he had entered his 

 house that morning. So when he came to where 

 the water was very shallow he cut off a small 

 willow branch and proceeded to nibble the bark for 

 his supper. 



In the stiUness of the evening the grating sound 

 of his sharp teeth cutting through the bark sounded 

 loudly. His family in the lodge at the further end 

 of the pond heard it and knew that they could 



