Page:Short stories for little folks, or, Little tales calculated to excite juvenile minds to the love and practice of virtue.pdf/15

(15) whatever the branches afford. By conſuming the bark he ſoon deſtroys the life of the tree, and thus the ſource is loſt from which his fuſtenance is derived.

is the miſerable ſtate of this ſlothful animal. How different are the comforts and enjoyments of the induſtrious Beaver? This creature is found in the northern parts of America, and is about two feet long and one foot high. The figure of it ſomewhat reſembles that of a rat. In the months of June and July the Beavers aſſemble, and form a ſociety which generally conſiſts of more than two hundred. They always fix their abode by the ſide of a lake or river; and in order to make a dead water in that part which lies above and below, they erect with incredible labour, a dam or pier, perhaps fourſcore or a hundred feet long, and ten or twelve feet thick at the baſe. When this dike is completed, they build their ſeveral apartments, which are divided into three ſtories. The firſt is below the level of the mole, and is for moſt part full of water. The walls of their habitations are perpendicular, and about two feet thick: If any wood project from them, they cut it off with their teeth, which are more ſerviceable than paws. And by the help of their tails, they plaiſter all their works with a kind of mortar, which they prepare of dry graſs and clay mixed together. In Auguſt or