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 



