332 AN ENGLISH GAMEKEEPER. 



pay me fourpence a head for all the vermin I 

 killed, but, as I had very few traps, I devised 

 a method of snaring, of which he approved 

 after inspecting it, being assured that it would 

 not catch foxes. My snaring-box (for it was 

 more box than trap) consisted of a wooden box 

 or trunk, two feet long, and two and a half 

 inches wide, open at each end so as to receive 

 two snares. Having put an ordinary snare in 

 at each end, I hung up the box off the ground 

 by means of a bow stick bent half double like 

 a fishing rod. 



I have caught a great quantity of vermin by 

 snares in a magpie's nest. The magpie builds 

 its nest with a hole in the side of it, something 

 like a barrel-down tit's or wren's nest. Set a 

 horse hair snare in this hole, and put five or 

 six eggs in the nest ; the magpies, jays, and 

 crows, will then go to suck the eggs and so get 

 caught. Instead of horse hair you may use a 

 brass or copper wire snare, but in this case you 

 must smoke the wire to take off the brightness 

 of it. 



For ground vermin, such as stoats and 



