_American Hare._――This species, improperly called rabbit, is found throughout the states, and in some parts is exceedingly common. Its flesh is much esteemed as an article of food. During the summer it is tough, but after the first frosts of autumn, it is fat and delicate. In the north, during winter the hare feeds on the twigs of pine and fir, and is fit for the table during the season. It never burrows in the ground, but in the day time remains crouched, within its form, which is a mere spot of ground cleared of grass and sheltered by an overhanging plant. Sometimes it lives in the trunk of a hollow tree, or under a pile of stones. It wanders out at night, and makes sad havoc among the turnip and cabbage fields, and the young trees in nurseries. It is not hunted in this country as in Europe, but is caught in a trap, or roused by a dog and shot. _Varying Hare._――This animal appears to inhabit a great portion of North America, as it has been found in Virginia, and as far north as fifty-five degrees, whilst eastward it is found on the great plains of the Columbia. It appears generally to frequent plains and low grounds, where it lives like the common hare, never burrowing, but not resorting to the thick woods. The _variabilis_ of Europe, on the contrary, is described as always inhabiting the highest mountains, and never descending into the plains, except when forced to seek for food, when the mountains are covered with snow. The American species is remarkably swift, never taking shelter when pursued, and capable of most astonishing leaps; Captain Lewis measured some of these, and found their length to be from eighteen to twenty feet. From the middle of November to the middle of April, this animal is of a pure white, with the exception of the black and reddish brown of the ears. During the rest of the year, the upper parts of the body are of a lead color; the under parts white, with a light shade of lead color. _Beaver._――The general appearance of the beaver is that of a large rat, and seen at a little distance, it might be readily mistaken for the common musk-rat. But the greater size of the beaver, the thickness and breadth of its head, and its horizontally flattened, broad, and scaly tail, render it impossible to mistake it for any other creature when closely examined. In its movements, both on shore and in the water, it also closely resembles the musk-rat, having the same quick step, and swimming with great vigor and celerity, either on the surface or in the depths of the water.[46] Illustration: Beaver.