SOCIAL HABITATIONS. 
CHAPTER I. 
SOCIAL MAMMALIA. 
The Bzaver—Its form and aquatic habits—Need for water and means 
used to procure it—Quadrupedal engineering—The dam of the Beaver 
—Erroneous ideas of the dam—How the Beaver cuts timber—The 
Beaver in the Zoological Gardens—Theories respecting the Beaver’s 
dam—How the timber is fastened together—Form of the dam, and 
mode of its enlargement—Beaver-dams and coral-reefs—The house 
or lodge of the Beaver—lIts locality and structure— Use of a subter- 
ranean passage—How Beavers are hunted—Curious superstition— 
“ Les Paresseux.” 
WE will now describe the SociaL Hapirations, and give 
precedence to those which are constructed by Mammalia. 
Of the Social Mammalia, the Braver takes the first 
rank, and is the best possible type of that group. There 
are other social animals, such as the various marmots and 
others; but these creatures live independently of each 
other, and are only drawn together by the attraction of some 
favourable locality. The Beavers, on the other hand, are not 
only social by dwelling near each other, but by joining in a 
work which is intended for the benefit of the community. 
The form of the Beaver is sufficiently marked to indi- 
cate that it is a water-loving creature, and that it is a 
better swimmer than walker. The dense, close, woolly fur, 
