80 COLONEL HAJSGER TO 



miles I'roiii New York, and a very good 

 gardener and servant he was. Col. Phillips> 

 was requested to inquire, whether this man 

 was to be found within our lines. In a few 

 days he was found, and sent to head-quar- 

 ters'*. I attended him, to see that he per- 

 formed his duty: seven wooden fall-traps 

 were made ; such traps as are used to 

 catch vermin alive. These traps are called 

 hutch-traps, fall-traps, and box-traps : they 

 (jfTheTraps! should bc madc two feet eight inches long, 

 and of a proportionate height and breadth, 

 with a door at each end, and a bridge in the 

 middle with a trigger to it, which, when the 

 trap is set for catching, holds both the doors 

 up, by keeping the handles of the doors 

 close down to the top, by a string, v/hich is 

 fastened to the opposite side, and which is 

 fixed, by a flat piece of wood, to a notch iu 

 the trigger, when the trap is set for catch- 

 ing. These traps are to be set in the main 

 runs, in which the rats constantly travel from 



* 1 his rat-catcher's name was Maddison, which is 

 also the name of the present president of the United 

 States. 



