VOL.  LI.  No  2194.  NEW  YORK,  FEBRUARY  13,  1892. 
PRICE,  FIVE  CENTS. 
$2.00  PER  YEAR. 
A  Western  New  York  Sktjnk  Farm. 
A  PROFITABLE,  IF  NOT  A  PERFUMED  BUSINESS. 
Black  skunk#  wanted ;  skunk  breeding  an  intricate  busi¬ 
ness  ;  iu>t  suitable  fot •  a  village  backyard ;  must  be 
on  a  hillside ;  skunks  are  vwctunml  workers  ;  dead 
animals  useful ;  digging  and  killing  skunks ;  big 
returns  from  otherwise  worthless  land. 
Probably  no  one  of  our  wild  North  American  animals 
has  lived  in  such  constant  disrepute  since  the  day  of 
his  discovery  by  white  men,  as  the  skunk.  Not  only 
is  he  looked  upon  as  a  robber  of  hen-houses,  but  for 
certain  urgent  reasons  he  is  always  given  a  wide  berth 
by  man  and  beast  alike.  Many  cannot  even  think  of  a 
to  the  skunk  a  yellowish  liquid  is  secreted.  This 
powerful,  pungent,  and  nauseous  fluid  can  be  thrown 
a  distance  of  six  or  eight  feet  toward  the  offensive 
object.  Hooks  upon  natural  history  are  not  agreed  as 
to  the  number  of  distinct  varieties  in  the  skunk  family. 
A  number  are  found  in  the  Southern  States  and  some 
range  into  South  America.  The  common  black,  or 
black  and  white,  is  the  one  with  which  we  have  to  do 
at  present;  it  ranges  from  the  Hudson  Hay  on  the 
north,  into  Central  America  on  the  south.  The  skins 
which  bring  the  highest  price  in  market  are  the  coal 
black  kind. 
The  black  skunk  could  hardly  be  classed  as  a  dis¬ 
tinct  variety,  it  is  a  sport  perhaps  from  the  striped. 
is  Mr.  Henry  Gurnsey,  of  Lima,  N.  Y.  Mr.  Gurnsey 
lias  been  for  a  number  of  years  a  dealer  in  skunk  and 
other  furs,  and  about  six  years  ago  determined  to 
attempt  the  breeding  of  skunks  in  confinement.  He 
first  inclosed  a  portion  of  his  back  yard  by  a  tight 
board  fence,  and  sank  planks  in  the  ground  below  the 
fence.  Then  he  trapped  or  bought  a  few  pair  of 
skunks,  and  placed  them  in  the  inclosure.  The  experi¬ 
ment  was  a  success  from  the  first.  The  skunks  in¬ 
creased  so  rapidly  as  to  become  at  length  somewhat  of 
a  nuisance  within  the  corporate  limits  of  a  village,  and 
Mr.  Gurnsey  decided  to  remove  them  to  some  point  in 
the  country  where  he  could  engage  in  skunk  farming 
on  a  scale  worthy  of  the  name.  He  found  a  suitable 
A  WESTERN  NEW  YORK  HILLSIDE  SKUNK  FARM.  Fig.  65. 
skunk  without  strong  feelings  of  disgust.  His  name  is 
even  against  him,  and  can  hardly  be  mentioned  in 
polite  society.  It  is  no  wonder  that  the  skunk  is 
mercilessly  slaughtered  whenever  it  can  be  done  with 
safety,  his  really  valuable  fur  being  often  a  secondary 
consideration,  and  in  consequence  he  is  now  only 
seldom  found  in  a  wild  state — in  the  settled  por¬ 
tions  of  New  York  State,  at  least.  This  much  maligned 
animal  hardly  deserves  to  be  regarded  with  such  uni¬ 
versal  antipathy.  He  possesses  a  gentle,  docile  dis¬ 
position,  and  is  seldom  disposed  to  flee  at  the  approach 
of  man. 
Many  anecdotes  are  related  of  persons  who  have 
mistaken  the  animal  for  a  cat  on  account  of  the  dark¬ 
ness  or  their  ignorance.  Unpleasant  consequences 
have  followed  their  handling  and  petting  the  supposed 
cat  only  after  the  animal  had  received  real  or  fancied 
abuse.  There  is,  however,  a  close  connection  between 
the  gentle  and  peace-loving  disposition  of  the  skunk 
and  the  efficient  method  of  defense  that  Nature  has 
provided  for  him.  In  a  formation  of  glands  peculiar 
In  their  native  haunts  the  blacks  are  a  rarity,  but 
skunk  farmers  by  breeding  carefully  can  perpetuate 
them.  They  are  entirely  of  a  sable  hue,  with  the 
exception  of  a  tuft  of  white  on  the  top  of  the  head. 
The  possibility  of  producing  black  skins,  together  with 
the  lucrative  prices  they  bring,  has  led  a  number  of 
persons  in  different  parts  of  the  country  to  attempt 
breeding  skunks  in  captivity.  In  this,  as  in  all  other 
legitimate  enterprises,  success  depends  upon  a  thorough 
knowledge  of  the  business.  Experience  is  the  principal 
teacher,  there  being  but  little  data  to  draw  from,  and 
much  of  the  work  has  been  decidedly  up-hill. 
It  is  perhaps  on  account  of  the  difficulties  surmounted 
that  breeders  of  skunks  are  somewhat  reluctant  to 
part  with  the  knowledge  they  have  acquired  with  so 
much  difficulty,  but  there  is  but  little  danger  of  an 
over-supply  of  fine-quality  pelts,  as  the  nature  of  the 
business  will  naturally  deter  many  from  going  into  it, 
while  the  skunk  in  its  wild  state  is  doomed  to  gradual 
extinction. 
One  of  the  pioneers  in  the  skunk  breeding  industry 
location  about  three  miles  east  of  Lima  village,  and 
formed  a  partnership  with  Mr.  W.  Shaddack,  who  owns 
a  part  of  the  land  now  occupied  by  the  farm  and  who 
assists  in  caring  for  the  animals. 
About  five  acres  were  inclosed.  A  trench  was  dug 
in  line  with  the  proposed  fence,  and  planks  were  sunk 
in  it  a  depth  of  two  feet ;  then  it  was  filled  in  on  both 
sides  of  the  fence  with  small  stones,  which  were 
covered  with  earth.  The  part  of  the  fence  above 
ground  is  tight  and  four  feet  high.  On  a  recent  visit 
to  this  farm  a  faint  but  characteristic  odor  warned  us 
of  the  proximity  of  the  “  ranch.”  On  arriving,  it  be¬ 
came  evident  at  once  that  a  steep  sidehill,  underlaid 
by  a  tenacious  clay  subsoil  and  which  would  be  worth¬ 
less  for  other  purposes,  is  the  proper  thing  for  skunk 
breeding.  It  is  only  on  steep  land  that  the  burrows 
can  be  made  with  ease,  and  all  of  them  have  good 
drainage.  The  hill  rises  to  a  height  of  perhaps  150 
feet  above  the  road  which  runs  along  the  base. 
The  face  of  this  incline  is  honeycombed  all  over  its 
surface  by  hundreds  of  skunks’  “nests,”  but  during 
