248 FUR FACTS 



fisher, wolf, marten, white weasel, wolf and wild cat, should be cased 

 fur side out. To take the skin off cased cut it loose around the hind 

 feet, rip the skin down the back of the hind legs, and then peel the 

 skin carefully from the hind legs down to the tail. Then remove the 

 tail bone. This may be done by inserting a small stick in between 

 the top part of the tail bone and the skin of the tail and keep pulling 

 down around it and the tail bone. Do not split the tail if it can be 

 avoided. After the tail bone is removed draw the skin downward 

 from the body keeping it as clean of meat and fat as possible. 



Use a Funsten gambrel if you have one; if not, it is well to suspend 

 the carcass from the limb of a tree or other projection and make a 

 strong loop around the hind legs with a cord. The skin can then be 

 pulled off the carcass very easily. Care should be used when the 

 head is reached. Cut the skin loose from about the eyes and nose. 

 The skin will then be in the form of a long pocket with fur in. Stretch 

 the skin on a Funsten Universal Stretcher to its natural size, either 

 fur side out or pelt side out, as suggested. 



Remove all fat and meat, but do not scrape the pelt too closely, 

 as that will injure the roots of the fur. After you have placed the 

 skin on a stretcher tack it up or hang it in a cool place, sheltered from 

 rain to dry. Never dry a skin by the fire or in the sun. Never use 

 preparations of any kind for curing skins; simply stretch and dry 

 them as they are taken from the animals. It is only necessary to 

 have the skins dry enough to hold their shape in order for you to 

 ship them. 



See that the skins are clear of all burrs, mud, and superfluous 

 fat, etc. Furs are valuable and should be thoroughly cleaned and 

 made to look their best before they are packed for shipment. 



How to Ship Furs 



There was a time when the trapper or store keeper waited for a 

 traveling buyer to come along and put a price on his pelts, and usual- 

 ly sold them,- whether he had a few skins or a large quantity, in 

 preference to what he considered the bother of shipping them. 

 However, he has learned that he can turn his furs into cash quickly 

 and get considerably more money for his pelts, whether he has one 

 or two skins or a large quantity, by shipping them to market than 

 he can by selling them at home. The most successful city road buy- 

 er can cover only enough territory to allow him to take up a small 

 quantity, and he has to apply all of his traveling expenses, his own 

 salary and time against the cost of the fur, and then he in turn must 



