The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1868-02-19
BOOK NOTICE.

The AMERICAN BEAVER AND HIS WoRxs. BY
Lewis Ii. Morgan, author OF the League of the
Iroquois." Philadelphia: j. B. Eippncott &
Co. 1865.
This beautiful octave volume of $50 pages lber-
ally illustrated printed In large clear type on supe.
rior quality OF paper, Of rich creamy tnt-very
FRS, class London book in .he excellent style Of ia
chanicai execution So much 10. the publishers The
author IL entitled TO . lengtheY notice. He has evil
deny had his heart In this work. and he has reason
be proud OF u. How he came 10 undertake il he tells
In his preface. In 1852 he engaged In the
pioratlon Of route for railroad 10 the rich iron
region the south side Of Lake Superior, and IL
$50 happened" he says, 'fhat this railroad passed
through n beaver district more remarkable. perhaps
than any other Of equal found IN any part
OF North America BY opening this wilderness in ad.
OF settlement tho beavers surprised
TO speak, the midst OF their works which at the same
nc rendered accessible FOR minute aud deliberate
investigation In a manner altogether unusual" Our
course in passing up and down carp river abb
stuc,ed by beaver dams ., short intervals from two 10
three feet high above the waier over which We were
compelled to draw our boat, Their numbers and mag.
nitude could not fail TO surprise 80 we'll a. interest
any observer Although constructed in the solitude or
the wilderness whore ths forces Of nature were sl
actively at work. II was evident that they had existed
and been maintained for centuries by the permanent
impressions produced upon the rugged features OF the
country" ''rne streams bordsrei continuously
with beaver meadows formed By ovornows from these
DAMS which had destroyed tho timber upon tho ada.
cent lands Fallen trees sxcavasd canals lodges and
burrows filled up the measure OF their works" map
Of Carp rivor trout brook, represents twenty
beaver dams along the stream the limit OF ten
miles Another engraving represents a skeleton dam
some two hundred and City feet long across the Quite,
of small lake. a dam which has the appearance OF
long pile Of frewood cut from small and careessy
set up bv the woodchoppers. Another dam is described
Of four hundred aud eighty Eight feet in length.
The general argument OF tho book embraces the char.
nceristcs and habitat OF the beaver which extends
from the Arctic Sea 10 tho Gulf Of Mexico, and his
position In the animal kingdom; The anatomy OF the
beaver; tho beaver dams including the intesced stick
dam and the solid bank dam, mode OF construction,
mode or dischargng surface water, &C. beaver lodges
and burrows subsistence OF beavers bark, wood
and plants provisions for winter their mode OF telling
trees &c beaver canals. meadows and trails; mode
OF trapping beaver: tame beavers nursed by Indian
women; statistics OF the fur trade. &C. including mel
dentay great variety OF information on the game Of
the Wild regions traverssd by the author and others
contrbutuz 20 this work. the resources OF
those regions tho business and game laws Of the Hud
sons Bag Company toge,her with many amusing inch
dents and adventures
We cannot conclude this brief notice without the fol-
lowing sxtract:-"In Montana Territory ~. 1911 three
beaver dams have bsca discovered p pstrined state
They fo,nd upon small stream that runs through
the Point Nsuf canon and emptss into the Snake river
one OF the tributaries OF the Columbia The canon Ia
about three hundred miles north OF Salt Lake City In
length these dams from ATTY 10 sixty feet with fall
or water over two OF them the Of about one
foot They not tina, complete and final state OF
psrfaction which involves the change OF every particle
Of The original woody material but rather incrussd with
lime, which, penetrating end soidifying the entire
structures, had given 10 them permanently durable
bus was born.
The book may be pronounced m expansive and stand
ard work the American beaver and valuable contri
button science The habitat Of tho autnor Mr, Nor.
gau. 10 Rochester, N "