26 
DIMINUTIVE BEAVERS 
finger and cut them up into irregular lengths, as if 
contemplating the construction of a dam* 
The destructive industry revealed by the melting 
snow is phenomenal* The Sassafras has been one 
of the chief sufferers, its aromatic bark being a special 
temptation to the little marauders* Many promising 
young trees are completely girdled, and the deep 
abrasions extend in irregular patches up their 
trunks to the winter snow line* These mutilations 
show countless diminutive tooth-marks and tell of 
the voracious energy of the tireless rodents* They 
have not been content with gnawing at the odorous 
bark of the Sassafras* The white wood of the Alder 
shows in irregular girdling patches, contrasting with 
the smooth black bark* The Sumach, too, an unusual 
article of diet, has served for much feasting under the 
snow* The smaller branches, buried within reach, 
have been cut up into irregular short lengths &nd lie 
about in careless piles* All the bark has been eaten 
from these little logs, and the wood is often gnawed 
away to the soft pith* Where the piles lie in the dead 
grass there are well-preserved remains of comfortable 
nests under the snow, and regular runways are still 
clearly marked in the frozen ground* The Wild 
Raspberry is a still more unusual article of diet, and 
suggests a world of trouble over the problem of a 
food supply during the long winter* Many of the 
bushes have been cut down, and the bark and even 
