TRAPS AND OTHER HINTS FOR TRAPPERS. 201 



self with the streams and the general surroundings, and prepare 

 some of your best sets for the mink and the fox. 



If you have a dog of good intelligence take him along, though 

 he may not be broken to the business of trapping. It is many a 

 fox and coon that my dog has saved for me when they have 

 escaped from footing or a broken chain. If the dog is of much 

 intelligence, and you use care in training him, you will soon find 

 that a dog will learn more about trapping than you supposed 

 possible. If you have long lines of traps your dog will inform 

 you more than once that you have passed a trap that chanced to be 

 a little off the main line. 



* * * 



Brother bear trappers, how do you like this style of bear trap 

 (see frontispiece) for toting through the woods three or four miles 

 from camp and at the same time tote a couple of sheep heads or 

 the head of a beef for bait? In times gone by I have carried 

 two or three Newhouse bear traps and bait to bait them with from 

 one to five miles in the woods to pinch old Bruin's toes. Such is a 

 pleasure to any red blooded man, who was born a real lover of 

 the open and the stimulating effect of obtaining that $30 or $40, 

 which the hide and meat of the bear brought, had on the trapper, 

 was nearly equal to the desire to be out in the tall timber. 



Now brother bear trappers, these traps that you see on my 

 shoulder are of my own make and are made with a half circle 

 bed piece instead of a straight bed piece, as the ordinary trap 

 is made. I wish to call your attention to how this trap fits the 

 shoulders and how much easier it is to carry than the trap with 

 the straight bed piece and note how much more readily you can 

 get your gun into shape for action. Many a deer has given me 

 the slip before I could drop the bear traps and get my gun ready 

 for action when I have been toting bear traps in the woods. But 

 with this style of trap your gun can be put in operation at once, 

 regardless of the traps. 



Boys, another thing that I have learned in the last five years' 

 experience in trapping in the south, (this was written Spring of 

 1913) is that it requires a trap a size larger to trap small fur 

 bearers in the south than it does in the north, owing to the differ- 



