BEAVERS IN THE SOCIETY'S GARDENS. 



103 



In the warmer months of the year the beavers seem to be 

 pervaded with a restless energy, driving them to work with the 

 materials at hand, whether there was anything to achieve or not. 

 Their industry is certainly wonderful ; but 1 was equally struck 

 by the amount of absolutely aimless work they put in. Time and 

 again I have seen a beaver, with infinite labour, haul a log out of 

 the pond, pull it over the rough ground up to the top of the 

 burrow and lay it there ; then seizing it again, tug it back to 

 the spot he started from. I have never seen any indication of 

 intelligent co-operation between two beavers in shifting a log 

 too heavy for one. If two get hold of the same log they do not 

 work together and haul it in one direction, but tug and push in 

 such a way that the efforts of the one counteract those of the 

 other." 



