MARTEN AND OTHER SMALL MAMMALS 77 



generally about fifteen traps to the mile, until 

 one has about four or five hundred traps. This is 

 about as much as two men can keep in good order. 

 There are many ways of building these marten 

 traps, all depending upon the season and the 

 duration of one's trapping. If a man wants to 

 keep the same line of traps going for several sea- 

 sons, he will make all his line of stump traps. 



These are built as follows : a large tree of ten 

 inches or more in diameter is cut down, care 

 being taken to have the cut level and deep enough 

 from one side to reach within two inches of being 

 cut clear through. Then from the opposite side 

 mark a cut ten inches higher up on the tree. The 

 latter then falls easily on the side of the big cut- 

 ting, leaving a level stump with one projecting 

 side. From the fallen tree small pieces resembl- 

 ing shingles are split and sharpened at one end 

 and driven into the stump so as to form a small 

 enclosure of nine or ten inches deep and about 

 seven wide. A small piece of wood is fitted in 

 between the projection and the enclosure to hold 

 the pin and latch bait holder. The strangling 

 piece is then fitted over this, and a weight, a 

 small log of wood put on the str angler. To set 

 the trap, have a pin of three inches in length and 

 half an inch thick; then a latch of eight inches 

 long and of the same diameter as the pin. Fasten 

 the bait to one end of the latch, then lift the 



