Basic Readers Five 08 - The little American woodcutter

这套Basic Readers，我看得很认真，每篇文章后的习题也会去做，但是英文阅读水平有限，会碰到对答案不确定的时候，于是想这里把自己的答案记录下来，希望能够遇到同样认真读这套书的亲们，一起核对讨论更好的答案、交流看这套书的心得。

1. Give 2 reasons why the beaver cuts wood. 

My answer: 1) To use the log and wood branches to build the dam and house. 2) To use the skin as their food in winter when their the river and their house are frozen. 

2. To see whether you know how a beaver builds a dam, answer these questions:
(a) Where does he build it?
(b) What does he use for materials?
(c) In what 2 ways does he keep it from being swept away by the water?

My answer: 
a). A spot in a valley which has steep hills or banks on each side at the lower end, and his dam usually curves upstream in the middle. 
b). They use tress and logs and wood branches as backbone for the dam, and then he fills in with stakes and small logs and finally plasters up all the holes with mud and sod. 
c). He provides a waste waterway which runs around one end of the dam, so when the water is high, it flows around the end instead of washing away. Also, he is very watchful of the dam and he investigates it at once if the dam begins to leak. 

3. What 2 things did the beaver lakes do to help the settlers of our country?

My answer: 1) The beaver do most of the land-clearing for the white man that he take away the tress which would rot and decay then die in water. 2) The spring freshets bring down rich mud and plastered it all over the bottom of the lake. 

4. To see what you know about a beaver's house, tell what word belongs where each letter is in the sentences below. 

The beaver builds his house on an (a) island . 
He uses (b) mud  and (c) sod  plastered on a framework of (d) trees or logs. 
His house is especially strong in (e) winter . 

5. Why do men hunt beavers?

My answer: Beaver's fur is valuable. 2) Beaver's hides and bones can be made useful to man. 

6. Name three other animals hunted for the same reason. 

My answer: 1) The bison, 2) The American Indian. 

7. Don't forget to use the Glossary. Did you know the meaning of available, decay, freshets, repealed, sleek?

My answer: 
Available: at hand. 
Decay: rot, fall to pieces. 
Freshets: the overflowing of a stream or river caused by heavy rains or melting snow. 
Repealed: cancelled, done away with. 
Sleek: smooth and shiny.