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the protection of t-^ood. la".7S -'ell-' enforced these beaver? nniltiplied, "'ontil today 

 there are 10,000 beavers in PennsyXVania, and most of the '/ild land is '.veil 

 stocked. So lauch so that trapping is to be resmed and 2,500 beavers 'Till be 

 permitted to be taken during a short season next month and many '7ill be caught 

 alive in traps and sold for breeding purposes. Mr. Bailey himself designed the 

 original type of trap used in capturing beavers alive and uninjured. 



Beavers ha.V3 also long since been gone from our Southeastern States, 

 'vhere there '^ere plenty in colonial days. Yet there is a lot of land not \7orth 

 cultivating and not earning anything, ^/hich I.ir. Bailey thinks might be raa.de 

 profitable ^ith a light stock of about 100 beavers to a 1,000 acres. It is 

 better to have them scattered out. You ccn't crov^d beavers too much. In 

 building their dojas, they sometimes flood lo'^ ground and kill great areo-s of 

 valuable trees. Sometimes they cut choice timber trees for food and building 

 material. As c. rule, hov7evor, in the northern states, beavers cut mostly aspens 

 and cottonvfood and other trees of little value for timber. 



The trees most favored in the northern range are not those uvon vhich 

 the beavers will have to depend for food in the South. T7h<?,t trees they prefer 

 in that region is not knorm. That is one of the things the foresters and 

 no.turalists 'vant to find out by observation of this neu experimental colony. 

 Ho'7 'Till the beavers thrive in an environment "'here they don't ho,vc to store 

 rvood for '.7inter as they do in the North? ^ill beavers prove a profitable asset 

 on land being reforested? These and many other questions r/ill be ans^7ered by 

 close observation of the noTi planting of beavers. 



Mr. Bailey sa;;-s that in all beaver colonies under control and observation 

 as -.7011 as in r.ieny rjlaces in the '.7ild, he has observed a great naste of food. 

 The beavers often cut trees in close stands and '7hen cut manj' lodge aga,inst 

 others instead of falling to the ground rrherc the beavers can cut them up and 

 use them. Often half of the timber cut is '.Tasted that '.my. The bea,vers try 

 hard to get the trees dovrn but often "Tithout success. 



You kno-:7, in their cutting, and building, and transporting of timber, 

 they sho'7 reLiarlcable ability, but not the great engineering skill some na,ture 

 fakers have a.ttributed to them. 



iJr. Ba-ilcy says patience, and persistence, and strength, and industry 

 a,re more important factors in beaver rrork than quick 'vit or versatile mentality. 



They seldom go far from -Jater in their search for food and building 

 material, because they are rather sIc.t travelers on Irnd, r/here they are ea.sily 

 tired ajid get out of breath quickly. Tliey are built for life in the "/ater 

 rather than on l-^nd. In fact, their equipment for Torking under -rater is re- 

 markable. Their ears are equipped '7ith valves that close as they dive and open 

 instantly as they come to the surface. Their nostrils are also smr.ll and 

 valvular, and close under "rater. Host strikir^g of all, hc-xever, is a beaver's 

 mouth. It ha,s hairy lips, -fhich close ba.ck of its protruding chisel-like cutting 

 teeth, so it cax use its teeth in cuttirig or tearing up roots cr sticks bclo^ 

 the surfa.ce •7ithout getting rrater in its mouth. And the grinding teeth ba.ck 

 of valvular lips can be used for che-7ing v^hile the lips are closed in front to 

 keep out the '.Tater. 



Most of the digging a, beaver does, and he does a plenty, is under ■''atcr. 

 Beavers usually deepen their ponds by taicing mud and earth from the b-^tto:. to 



