shook the ground upon which it fell; and six 
times that night the thump was followed by 
the loud snap of a released trap. Every such 
snap meant that one more danger to the colony 
had been removed. 
The skill shown by those three old beavers 
in the locating of the traps was uncanny. Per¬ 
haps, they were able to pick the right spots 
by reason of the appearance of the ground 
where the traps lay buried. Perhaps, despite 
the use of castor-extract, the odor of steel was 
still perceptible to their keen noses. At any 
rate, Father Beaver and his two associates knew 
what to do, and did it. 
Dawn had almost come when the unex¬ 
pected happened. All but one of the traps close 
to the head of the canal had been sprung; but 
onto that one Uncle Castor stepped. The saw¬ 
like edges of the iron jaws were instantly 
clamped upon his foot, and he was a prisoner; 
a hopeless prisoner, too, for the foot by which 
he was held was a back one. There was nothing 
he could do to free himself. 
From the woods beyond the slashing, came 
scent and sound of an approaching man; and 
Father Beaver and Chisel-tooth, thwacked and 
dived, while Uncle Castor waited alone for 
his doom. 
123 
