File:The house in the water- a book of animal stories (1908) (14765354035).jpg

Identifier: houseinwaterbook00robe (find matches)
Title: The house in the water: a book of animal stories
Year: 1908 (1900s)
Authors: Roberts, Charles George Douglas, Sir, 1860-1943
Subjects: Animals
Publisher: Boston, L. C. Page & company
Contributing Library: The Library of Congress
Digitizing Sponsor: The Library of Congress

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ar, he caught sight of a beaverswimming down the pond, towing a big branchover its shoulder; and his conscience smote himat the thought of the trouble and anxiety he wasgoing to inflict upon the diligent little inhabitants.His mind was made up, however. He wantedknowledge, and the beavers would have to furnishit, at whatever cost. A few minutes of vigorouswork with the axe, a few minutes of relentlesstugging and jerking upon the upper framework ofthe dam, and he had made a break through whichthe water rushed foaming in a muddy torrent.Soon, as he knew, the falling of the ponds levelwould alarm the house-dwellers, and bring them outto see what had happened. Then, as soon as dark-ness came, there would be a gathering of bothhouseholds to repair the break. Hiding in the bushes near by, he saw the waterslowly go down, but for half an hour the beaversgave no sign. Then, close beside the break, a bigfellow crawled out upon the slope of the dam andmade a careful survey of the damage. He dis-
Text Appearing After Image:
2>am IRepatrtna an& 2)am JSutlDtna 73 appeared; and presently another came, took abriefer look, and vanished. A few minutes later,far up the pond, several bushy branches came tothe surface, as if they had been anchored on thebottom and released. They came, apparently float-ing, down toward the dam. As they reached thebreak, the heads of several beavers showed them-selves above water, and the branches were guidedacross the opening, where they were secured insome way which the watcher could not see. Theydid not so very greatly diminish the waste, but theychecked the destructive violence of it. It was evi-dently a temporary makeshift, this; for in thenext hour nothing more was done. Then the Boygot tired, and went back to camp to wait for Jabeand nightfall. That evening the backwoodsman, forgetting thefatigue of his days cruising in the interest of theBoys story, was no less eager than his companion;and the two, hurrying through an early supper,were off for the pond in the first p

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