THE BEAVER. 59 



so that it is with great caution they can be approached 

 near enough to see what they are doing. They are 

 under cover all day from seven o'clock in the morn- 

 ing till seven in the evening. When one comes out, 

 it floats on the surface of the water, carefully survey- 

 ing the whole scene around, sniffing the air, and if no 

 danger is apprehended it dives and disappears. In 

 two or three minutes, a number of the colony begin 

 to appear and disperse themselves, some to swim and 

 sport about in the dam, while others go in quest of 

 food. If one of them espies danger it strikes one 

 sharp, loud stroke on the water with its tail, when 

 all of them that are out come tumbling into the dam 

 and disappear. 



" I have seen them wrestle in playfulness and fight 

 in anger, and also when the mother was feeding and 

 the young one sporting about in the dam, I have seen 

 it go and begin to tease her, when, if she did not wish 

 to be troubled with it she would strike and shake it, 

 and pitch it from her in the dam. They will allow 

 of no laziness in any member of the colony ; if any 

 such there be, they are beaten and driven out to live 

 as best they may. These so driven out generally 

 roam about, making a burrow here and there, where 

 they live for a few months and die." 



This is not the only experiment which has been 

 made of late years in the reintroduction of Beavers 

 into this country. A similar attempt was previously 

 made in Suffolk. Some Beavers were turned down 

 by Mr. Barnes, of Sotherley Park, Wangford, and, 

 on their dams being destroyed as an eye- sore, they 



