HOW TO TRAP THE POCKET GOPHER. 59 



leaves open. I then dug in with my hand, and placed it 

 beyond where he began to drop the dnt, and so caught 

 him. This succeeded every time. 



And now I will tell you how to hunt him. Any where, 

 where you see his work, that is, little hills of fresh dirt 

 thrown up, you may go with a little stick, or whip stock, 

 and push it down around the hillock until you strike his 

 road. Right here, I want you to understand that you 

 can't dig into one of these hillocks and find the hole. He 

 so effectually closes it up that I never saw one opened 

 where it was first made. When you have struck the 

 track, dig down until you come to it, which is sometimes 

 as low as eight or ten inches. Then, with your hand, dig 

 it out large enough to slide in your trap, reaching your 

 arm in to the elbow. The best trap to use is the little 

 one spring kind, of the Xewhouse make. Having j^ushed 

 the trap in, go away, without further fixing, and perhaps 

 in an hour, perhaps in three or four days, you will catch 

 the lad. 



"When you cut the hole, he may be at one side of it or 

 at the other. K he is in the opposite end from where you 

 have set the trap, he may fill up the hole, and in that case 

 you must change the position of the trap. 



