178 JOURNEY TO THE SHORES 



a hole in the ice, which permits them to go 

 into the water in search of the roots on 

 which they feed. In severe winters when 

 the small lakes are frozen to the bottom, 

 and these animals cannot procure their 

 usual food, they prey upon each other. In 

 this way great numbers are destroyed. 



The beaver (ammislc) furnish the staple 

 fur of the country. Many surprising stories 

 have been told of the sagacity with which 

 this animal suits the form of its habitation, 

 retreats, and dam, to local circumstances ; 

 and I compared the account of its manners, 

 given by Cuvier in his Regne Animal, with 

 the reports of the Indians, and found them 

 to agree exactly. They have been often 

 seen in the act of constructing their houses 

 in the moon-light nights, and the observers 

 agree that the stones, wood, or other mate- 

 rials, are carried in their teeth, and generally 

 leaning against the shoulder. When they 

 have placed it to their mind, they turn 

 round and give it a smart blow with their 

 flat tail. In the act of diving they give a 

 similar stroke to the surface of the water. 



