- 2 - 



But, the manufacturers also make another kind of coat. They malce a coat 

 they call "Hudson seal." Hudson seal is just niuskrat skin clipped and dj'-ed. 



Then, we also use rauskrat skins for a lot of other odds and ends such as 

 gloves, and hats, and tri.wings. 



The trade in muskrat fur ordinarily nms into millions of dollars a year, 



'ATien muskrat pelts brought a dollar and a half to two dollars apiece, the 

 sales of raw muskrat pelts proDahly ran from 20 to 30 million dollars. To-day, 

 with muskrat pelts selling for 80 cents, or 60 cents, or even less, the figure 

 would run considerably lower. But trapping and selling rauskrat skins is a big 

 business even no^v. 



T7e get most of our muskrat skins from prefessional trappers. 



Many other folks throughout the country also trap muskrat s as a kind of 

 side line. Farmers, for instance. Farmers in many sections trap muskrats diir- 

 ing the winter months and thus add a few dollars to their income. 



Then, we have regular muskrat farms. 



But muskrat forms are not like, say, the silver-fox farms. Muskrats 

 don't seem to thrive very well when you pen them up. They don't reproduce so,t- 

 isfactorily — and they fight among themselves and die off. Moreover, you don't 

 get a high enough price from the pelts to pay for the feed, and equipment, and 

 labor.- 



Folks who run muskrat farms sim.ply set aside and protect marsh areas, and 

 swamps, and ponds, and other places where muslcrats naturally live?. 



You find a number of muskrat farms in Louisiana, and along the Eastern 

 Shore of Maryland, and in New York. These farms do good business in normal 

 times. 



But, of course, the rauskrat- fur business, like the rest of the fur in- 

 dustry is feeling the effects of low prices. 



The fur business in general is one of the first industries to feel the 

 pinch of depression. But Ashbrook tells me part of the trouble with the fur 

 busines~ is of a mu.ch more deep-seated nature. Ever since 1917 and 1918, the 

 number of pelts of all kinds toicen in this country has been falling off. Right 

 now, we're producing only aboiit half as many pelts as we did a few years ago. 

 Muskrat fur production has fallen off along with the other furs. 



You can easily guess why. The story of the fur-bearing animals is the 

 same as the story of much of our other wild life; we've been very thoughtless 

 and short-sighted about the resource. 



For one thing, we've gone ahead with our work of clearing and draining 

 marshes and woodland without providing for the birds and animals we routed out. 



Then, of course, our hunters have kept a restless finger on the trigger. 

 And our trap"oers have trapped the woods and marshes too closely. 



