. Wild scenes of a hunter's life; . THE OPOSSUM. CHAPTER LXI. HUNTING THE BEAVER AND OPOSSUM. URING the greater part of th«time since the settlement of Ame-rica by Europeans the Beaverhas been a favorite object withhunters. The general aspect ofthe Beaver is that of a very largemusk-rat. But the greater sizeof the beaver, the thickness andbreadth of its head, and its hori-zontally flattened, broad and scalytail, render it impossible to mistake it for any other creature whenclosely examined. In its movements both on shore and in thewater, it also closely resembles the musk-rat, having the sameq
. Wild scenes of a hunter's life; . THE OPOSSUM. CHAPTER LXI. HUNTING THE BEAVER AND OPOSSUM. URING the greater part of th«time since the settlement of Ame-rica by Europeans the Beaverhas been a favorite object withhunters. The general aspect ofthe Beaver is that of a very largemusk-rat. But the greater sizeof the beaver, the thickness andbreadth of its head, and its hori-zontally flattened, broad and scalytail, render it impossible to mistake it for any other creature whenclosely examined. In its movements both on shore and in thewater, it also closely resembles the musk-rat, having the samequick step, with great vigor and celerity, either on the surface, ofin the depths of the HUNTING THE BEAVER. 371 The beaver has long been the theme of the natural! :its admira*tion, on account of its apparent sagacity and skill in building itshabitation. They are not particular in the site they select foitheir dwellings, but if in a lake or pond where a dam is not re-quired, they are careful to build where the water is sufficiently-deep. The materials used in constructing their dams, are thetrunks and branches of small birch, mulberry, willow, poplar, & strength of their teeth, and their perseverance may be esti-mated by the size of the trees they cut down. Dr. Best informsus that he has seen a mulberry tree, eight inches in diameter,which had been gnawed down by the beaver. These are cut insuch a manner as to fall into the water, and then floated towardsthe site of the dam. The figure of the dam varies according asthe stream has a gentle or a rapid current. Along with the trunksand branches of trees they intermingle mud and stones, to givegreater security, and t
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