Beaux

Cecilia, an American artist, born in Philadelphia about 1877. She won nearly every prize for which she competed in America, and became a member of the National Academy in 1892, and also_of the Société des Beaux-Arts in Paris. Her work is exclusively portraiture, Beaver, a quadruped of the order Rodent i a, or gnawers, the only species of its genus. It is very widely dis- = Ls Pog BEAVER. tributed, being found in the N. parts of Europe, Asia, and America, nowadays most abundantly in the N. and thinly peopled parts of North America, dwelling in communities on the banks of rivers and lakes, At one time immense numbers of these animals were killed for their fur, which was largely used in making hats, but in more recent times they have suffered le persecution on this account, their fur now not being held in the same estimation. The beaver is about two feet in length; its body thick and heavy; the head compre ed, and somewhat arched at the front, the upper part rather narrow; the snout much so. The eyes are placed rather high on the head, and the pupils are rounded; the ears are short, elliptical, and almost concealed by the fur. The skin is covered by two sorts of hair, of which one is long, rather stiff, elastic, and of a gray color for two-thirds of its length next the base, and terminated by shining, reddish-brown points; the other is short, thick, tufted, and soft, being of different shades of silver-gray or light lead color. The hair is shortest on the head and feet. The hind legs are longer than the fore, and are completely webbed. The tail is 10 or 11 inches long, and, except the part nearest the body, is covered with hexagonal scales.