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to judge whether our firfl traders were fimple enough 

 to let the Indians know what a valuable commodity 

 their old cloaths were. It was, however* impoffi- 

 ble to keep a fecret of this nature for any confider- 

 able time, being entrufted to a pafiion which imme- 

 diately betrays itfelf. About thirty years ago one 

 Guigues, who had had the farm of the beaver, find- 

 ing a prodigious quantity of this fur upon his hands, 

 bethought himfelf, in order to create a vent for it, 

 of having it fpun and carded with wool, and of this 

 compofition he caufed make cloths, flannels, flock- 

 ing, and other fuch like manufactures, but with fmall 

 fuccefs. This trial fhewed that the fur of the bea- 

 ver was only fit for making hats. It is too fhort to 

 be capable of being fpun alone, and a great deal 

 more than one half muft confift of wool, fo that 

 there is very little profit to be made by this manu- 

 facture. There is, however, one of this fort (till 

 kept up in Holland , where you meet with cloaths 

 and druggets of it 5 but thefe fluffs come dear, and 

 befides do not wear well. The beaver wool very 

 foon leaves it, forming on the furface a fort of nap 

 which deftroys all its luftre. The flockings which 

 have been made of it in France had the farne de- 

 fed. 



Thefe, Madam, are all the advantages the bea- 

 vers are capable of affording the commerce of this 

 colony : their forefight, their unanimity, and that 

 wonderful fubordination we fo much admire in them, 

 their attention to provide conveniences, of which 

 we could not before imagine brutes capable of per- 

 ceiving the advantages, afford mankind ftill more 

 important lefibns, than the ant to whom the holy 

 fcripture fends the flnggard. They are at leaft a- 

 mongft the quadrupeds, what the bees are amongft 

 winged infects, I have not heard perfons well in- 

 formed 



