SOME EASY WAYS OF GETTING BIRDS 297 



must have been nearly a thousand pounds. As 

 most of these birds are very shy I am quite sure 

 that a dozen good guns could not have secured half 

 that quantity. I think such traps would be spe- 

 cially useful to parties going on exploring trips 

 in northern countries. Prominent points of land 

 along a coast line or on lakes should be selected to 

 set the trap on. Where there are no trees at all, 

 the pole or stake need not be more than three or 

 four feet high. In a case of need, aquatic birds, 

 such as geese and black ducks, are easily trapped 

 by placing the traps on their feeding grounds or 

 where they congregate on the shore to sun them- 

 selves. Gulls also can be trapped by using a bait 

 and setting traps near it, or tying the bait 

 on the pan. These birds are often caught 

 by cod fishermen and Indians, by baiting 

 the small hooks with some fat substance that 

 will float. Cod livers are mostly used, but 

 any other fat will do. On sand banks small 

 fish or mussels, in fact anything edible, will 

 answer. Most of the latter kind of birds are not 

 considered worth eating, being classed as oily 

 and fishy. Such little fancies as these do not 

 stand much in the way of a hungry stomach. To 

 persons not reduced to such straits, but desirous 

 of having a little game for a change, I would ad- 

 vise as follows: Clean the birds (removing intes- 

 tines) as soon as possible after killing; then hang 

 by the legs for from a few hours to two or three 



