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24 up on their haunches, hold the twigs in their little hands, and eat the bark. Long before he is out of childhood, he begins gnawing on bits of wood with his new teeth and exercising his jaws on everything he can reach. He carries small sticks in his mouth as soon as he begins to swim, and long before he is full-grown he begins gnawing trees.

The building instinct is strong in him. He leads the mammals of the world in mechanical and engineering skill. Our beavers are architects, carpenters, masons, lumbermen, log-cutters and dam-builders, and are the most versatile animals known. He is always on the job, and pays no attention to the unions.

The most expert lumber-jack is inferior to the Beaver as a tree feller. He cuts down trees in the most scientific way. He can fell a tree so it will fall toward the pond where he wishes to construct his home, thus saving himself unnecessary work.

After the trees are felled, the construction work begins. He works chiefly by night, for he is a nocturnal prowler. The moon is his lantern; the