188 THE TRAPPER 



nect two or more lakes. He had twelve traps 

 set in such locations, strong double-spring traps 

 of the size known as No. 2. Those traps were 

 chained to a pole about six feet long and of calcu- 

 lated weight to prevent an animal from travel- 

 ling far, while at the same time it would give if 

 severe strain was put upon it ; this latter to pre- 

 vent the fox from obtaining sufficient direct 

 purchase on the trap in endeavour to break its 

 foot clear when caught. When a favourable spot 

 had been chosen, the log was carefully buried 

 beneath the surface of the snow, and the trap 

 set, with a fine sheet of tissue paper carried 

 for the purpose, and obtained at the Fur Post 

 laid over the pan and jaws to prevent snow 

 filling below, where it would choke the drop, and 

 the whole then covered with a light powdering 

 of snow until every sign of human disturbance 

 was erased. A few morsels of meat or frozen 

 fish were then spread near, but not necessarily 

 directly at, the trap, for it often allays suspicion 

 of a trap's actual presence to allow the animal 

 to find food in safety during its first timid ap- 

 proach, when it naturally then becomes more 

 bold. The situation of the trap was usually 

 near the top of a small mound of snow, natural, 

 or made up with snow, and somewhat resem- 

 bling a buried stone, for it is known that foxes are 

 prone to investigate such objects, probably in 

 the hope that it is a snowed-over carcass of 

 some kind, or retains the scent of a comrade who 

 has passed before. 



Twice Gullfoot's fox-traps were set in the 

 neighbourhood of a Caribou carcass, and one of 



