MYSTERIES OF TBAPPING. 331 



that a lesser bird or beast shall tug at it with impunity. 

 There is one animal and one only that completely baffles 

 the trapper, and that is carcajou, surnamed the " Indian 

 devil." This evil beast if he strikes upon a sable line goes 

 calmly from one end of it to the other robbing every trap. 

 For some animals traps are baited, for others, as for ex- 

 ample otters, they are set unbaited in their roads. The 

 baits used are various, ,fish, flesh, and fowl. Then again 

 the trapper must be a connoisseur of scents not RimmeFs 

 nor Lubin's but of those that attract fur. The castor bag 

 and the oil bag of the beaver seem to possess a universal 

 attraction. Valerian has charms for some, rum for others, 

 so have pepper, onions, aniseed, asafoetida, &c. In my 

 trapping days I carried a bottle loaded with a mixture 

 so potent that when the cork was drawn everyone sneezed 

 within a radius of 50 yards. Even the steel trap requires 

 skill in the setting, for instance it is quite useless to catch 

 a beaver by the hand or fore foot, the trap must be set in 

 such a way and in such a position as to catch him by the 

 hind foot. In fact the secrets of trapping are endless and 

 can only be understood by practical experience. 



When the fur season ended (about the 1st of June), I 

 was quite sorry to say goodbye to the old smoke-stained 

 camp that had been my home for nearly ten months, and 

 on my return to civilization I felt as shy as a beaver, and 

 often caught myself involuntarily looking on the streets for 

 " tracks." To this day I look back upon my year's trap- 

 ping with the greatest satisfaction. On that year I solved 

 the problem which has puzzled many a vagabond, viz. to- 

 make both ends meet. Besides skins, trophies, &c., that I 

 kept or gave to friends, I sold upwards of 100/. worth of fur. 



