No beaver were seen, but
the fresh cut sticks, the floating branches peeled of all the
bark, and the long, strong dam in good repair were enough to tell
a practised eye that here was a large colony of beavers in
undisturbed possession.
In those days beaver was one of the most valued furs. The
creature is very easy to trap; so the discovery of the pond was
like the finding of a bag of gold. They skirted its uncertain
edges and Quonab pointed out the many landing places of the
beaver; little docks they seemed, built up with mud and stones
with deep water plunge holes alongside. Here and there on the
shore was a dome-shaped ant's nest with a pathway to it from the
pond, showing, as the Indian said, that here the beaver came on
sunny days to lie on the hill and let the swarming ants come
forth and pick the vermin from their fur. At one high point
projecting into the still water they found a little mud pie with
a very strong smell; this, the Indian said, was a "castor cache,"
the sign that, among beavers, answers the same purpose as the
bear tree among bears.
Although the pond seemed small they had to tramp a quarter of a
mile before reaching the upper end and here they found another
dam, with its pond.
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