THE RABBIT. 237 



spent often more remarkable for the amount of 

 laughter it provokes than for the number of rabbits 

 finally sent to market. 



SNARES. 



Rabbit-snares are generally set with the bottom 

 of the loop the height of a man's clenched fist from 

 the ground, the fingers one above another, and the 

 thumb lying flat across the index-finger. (For a 

 hare, the bottom of the loop should be placed an 

 inch higher.) 



The whole art of snaring lies injudicious selection 

 as regards the position of the snare. The actual 

 setting of it is merely mechanical, and can be learnt 

 by any one, but it requires a huntsman's sixth 

 sense to guide one in choosing the very best place 

 for that deadly noose. At one time I used to set 

 snares daily, and could almost state before starting 

 out to inspect them just where rabbits would be 

 found imprisoned ; but returning to the same 

 country after some years, I found, on trying my 

 hand, that I had forgotten the art, or, at any rate, 

 lost that guiding sixth sense that most hunters 

 acquire in the special lines they follow. The old 

 trapper knows by the general look of things where 

 to make his sets, but he certainly could not tell 

 you just why he knows or what it is that guides 

 him. Constant practice, close observation, and 

 what might be termed ' poachers' instinct ' are the 

 only guides to successful snaring of any kind, and 

 the best way to acquire these is to be dependent 

 on one's sets for one's next meal, as is so often the 

 case when travelling in a pioneer country. 



It is a mistake to cover the whole ground with 

 snares ; use as few as possible, placing them only 

 on likely spots where they stand more or less 



