382 VERTEBllATA. 
male castoreum is of tlie same value, ten pairs of bags of either kind being reckoned to an Indian 
as equal to one beaver-skin. Tlie castoreum is never adulterated in the fur countries." 
It appears that the castoreum, which is called hark-stone by the traders, is used by the hunters 
in baiting their traps, because the beavers are exceedingly fond of the odor. The end of a small 
stick, chewed or crushed, is dipped in the castoreum, which is kept in a horn; it is then set in the 
water, with the anointed end above the surface, and the trap beneath. The beavers scent the 
castoreum for a hundred yards or more, and so much are they delighted, that they draw in a long 
breath, and utter a cry of joy as they imbibe the delicions fragrance. On approaching the delu- 
sive bait, they are caught in the trap. 
The traveler we have just quoted gives the following account of the flesh, which, as much has 
been said of its delicacy as food, is interesting: "The flesh of the beaver is much prized by the 
Indians and Canadian Yoyagers, especially when it is roasted in the skin, after the hair has been 
singed off. In some districts it requires all the influence of the fur-trader to restrain the hunters 
from sacrificing a considerable quantity of beaver fur every year to secure the enjoyment of this 
luxury; and Indians of note have generally one or two feasts in the season, wherein a roasted 
beaver is the prime dish. It resembles pork in its flavor, but the lean is dark-colored, the fat oily, 
and it requires a strong stomach to sustain a full meal of it. The tail, which is considered a great 
luxury, consists of a gristly kind of fat, as rich, but not so nauseating, as the fat of the body." 
Of the sagacity, ingenuity, and social polity of this animal many wonderful tales have been 
told; except its instinct of building, however, it is not distinguished for intelligence. The follow- 
ing excellent account, by Hearne, the traveler in North America, though it dissipates these fic- 
tions, presents many curious and interesting details. "The beaver," he says, "being so plentiful, 
the attention of my companions was ehiefly engaged on them, as they not only furnished delicious 
food, but their skins proved a valuable acquisition, being a principal article of trade, as well as a 
serviceable one for clothing. The situation of the beaver-houses is various. Where the beavers 
are numerous, they are found to inhabit lakes, ponds, and rivers, as well as those narrow creeks 
which connect the numerous lakes with which this country abounds; but the two latter are gen- 
erally chosen by them when the depth of water, and other circumstances, are suitable, as they 
have then the advantage of a current to convey wood and other necessaries to their habitations, 
and because, in general, they are more difficult to be taken than those that are built in standing 
water. They always choose those parts that have such a depth of water as will resist the frost in 
winter, and prevent it from freezing to the bottom. The beavers that build their houses in small 
rivers or creeks, in which Avater is linble to be drained off when the back supplies are dried up by 
the frost, are wonderfully taught by instinct to provide against that evil by making a dam quite 
across the river, at a convenient distance from their houses. 
"The beaver-dams differ in shape according to the nature of the place in which they are built. 
If the water in the river or creek have but little motion, the dam is almost straight; but when the 
current is more rapid, it is always made with a considerable curve, convex toward the stream. 
The materials made use of are drift-wood, green willows, birch, and poplars, if they can be got; 
also, mud and stones, intermixed in such a manner as must evidently contribute to the strength 
of the dam ; but there is no other order or method observed in the dams, except that of the work 
being carried on with a regular sweep, and all the parts being made of equal strength. In places 
which have been long frequented by beavers undisturbed, their dams, by frequent repairing, be- 
come a solid bank, capable of resisting a great force, both of water and ice ; and as the wil- 
low, poplar, and birch generally take root and shoot up, they by degrees form a kind of regular 
planted hedge, which I have seen in some places so tall that birds built their nests among the 
branches. 
"The beaver-houses are built of the same materials as the dams, and are always proportioned 
in size to the number of inhabitants, which seldom exceeds four old, and six or eight young ones; 
though by chance I have seen above double the number. Instead of order or regulation being 
observed in rearing their houses, they are of a much ruder structure than their dams; for, not- 
withstanding the sagacity of these animals, it has never been observed that they aim at any other 
convenience in their houses than to have a dry place to lie on: and there they usually eat their 
