THE FRENCH TRAPPER 63 



strength, snapped the attached sapling, and escaped. 

 A fox or beaver would have gnawed the imprisoned 

 limb off. The wolverine picks the trap up in his teeth 

 and hobbles as hard as three legs will carry him to the 

 hiding of a bush, or better still, to the frozen surface 

 of a river, hidden by high banks, with glare ice which 

 will not reveal a trail. But on the river the man finds 

 only a trap wrenched out of all semblance to its proper 

 shape, with the spring opened to release the impris 

 oned leg. 



The wolverine had been caught, and had gone to the 

 river to study out the problem of unclinching the 

 spring. 



One more device remains to the man. It is a gun 

 trick. The loaded weapon is hidden full-cock under 

 leaves or brush. Directly opposite the barrel is the 

 bait, attached by a concealed string to the trigger. 

 The first pull will blow the thief s head off. 



The trap experience would have frightened any 

 other animals a week s run from man s tracks ; but the 

 wolverine grows bolder, and the trapper knows he will 

 find his snares robbed until carcajou has been killed. 



Perhaps he has tried the gun trick before, to have 

 the cord gnawed through and the bait stolen. A 

 wolverine is not to be easily tricked; but its gluttony 

 and curiosity bring it within man s reach. 



The man watches until he knows the part of the 

 woods where the wolverine nightly gallops. He then 

 procures a savoury piece of meat heavy enough to bal 

 ance a cocked trigger, not heavy enough to send it off. 

 The gun is suspended from some dense evergreen, 

 which will hide the weapon. The bait hangs from the 

 trigger above the wolverine s, reach. 



