Jjhe RURAL NEW-YORKER 
155 
How to Trap a Fox 
Would you kindly tell me the best 
way to set traps for foxes? What kinds 
of bait should be used, and how to set the 
traps with each kind of bait, especially 
blue jay? What is the best way to take 
the man scent off the traps? l. k. s. 
Franklinville, N. Y. 
The best bait for foxes is a dead hen 
in connection with a nest of eggs, and 
the best scent for attracting them is hen 
manure. Select a good-sized bush, or a 
small tree, having branches clear to the 
ground. Suspend the hen by the neck 
'at a height of five or six feet from the 
ground, and in such a manner that it 
will appear as though she had naturally 
caught her head in the branches and had 
strangled. Then scoop out a shallow 
hole at the foot of the tree, where it will 
be partially concealed by the branches. 
Fashion it like a hen’s ne.st and deposit 
therein a few hen’s eggs. Kotten ones 
will answer the purpose as well as any, 
and. considering the present i)rices. a 
good deal better. Set your traps in such 
a position that the fox cannot reach the 
eggs without stepping over the traps. 
Set several, for he may not put his foot 
ju-st where you expect, and, again, he 
may set his foot squarely on the pan 
and detect its yielding nature quickly 
enough to withdraw his foot before the 
jaws close. So set two or more traps 
and cover them carefully with leaves. 
Scatter hen manure liberally around the 
nest, and over the traps, and near the 
entrance. Then, when a fox sees the car¬ 
cass of the hen. or gets a whiff of the 
manure, he will begin to investigate. lie 
will never touch a hen under .such con¬ 
ditions, but he will circle around the 
bush, gradually drawing closer, and, 
finally, when he sees the nest, he will 
forget a part of his caution, and make a 
straight dive for the (‘ggs. He might 
discover them without the presence of the 
hen ; but, if so, on approaching the nest, 
he would use such extreme caution in ap¬ 
proaching, that he would stand more tlnin 
an equal chance of escaping. 
But there are other points to be ob- 
•served : Don’t use a new, clean trap, fresh 
from the store, for no fox will go near 
it. Use an old trap, covered with black 
rust, and bury it for a few days in hen 
manure before .setting it. Don’t fasten it 
to a clumsily-driven wooden stake, for 
you will make the surroundings too un¬ 
natural and the fox will avoid them. 
Use a steel pin instead, and drive it out 
of sight in the ground, and then cover it 
and the chain with leaves and manure. 
Don’t touch the trap, or the bushe.s. or 
the eggs, or anything around them with 
the naked hands. Make a pair of mittens 
of fre.sh, untanned calf-skin, with the 
hair on the outside. Bury them for a 
day or two in hen manure, and wear 
them when handling anything that per¬ 
tains to the trap. Don’t set the trap 
where you must visit Lt every day to 
learn results. The fox may reconnoiter 
for a week before discovering or ap- 
pi'oaching the ne.st, and, if he finds your 
tracks near it, he may let it alone. Set 
the trap where you can see it from a dis¬ 
tance. Don't wear leather boots, \wheu j 
trapping foxes. A fox can detect human j 
foot.steps just as well by sight as by . 
scent; and, if he sees the sharp indenta- , 
tious made by boot heels, he will leave 
for parts unknown. Make a pair of moc- 
casims, similar to the mittens, get them 
well scented, and wear them instead. Let 
the hair point backward, and you can 
travel much easier in them. i 
The Indians who taught me these 
tricks, away up in \\'iscon.sin, nearly 40 
ydars agjo, used deerskin for ma,king 
their mittens and moccasins, and they 
told me that, when the moccasins were 
well scented, a fox would often follow 
their tracks directly to the traps. In the 
East, however, a deerskin is somewhat . 
hard to get. and a calfskin will answer 
just as well. Despite the provei’bial saga¬ 
city of the fox. I have often .seen Indians ' 
catch them in deadfalls. And there is I 
just one more caution : MTienever you ! 
go out after foxes, leave your pipe and ' 
tobacco, and whisky at home, and never 
spit when near the traps. Few things 
will send a fox kiting in the opposite 
direction more (juickly than a whiff of 
tobacco smoke in the air, or a dash of 
tobacco spittle on the ground. 
r. 0. ORMSREE. 
If it isnl an Kastman, 
it isn't a Kodak. 
Every article of real merit .sells best under its 
real name. 
If it is genuinely good the salesman has no 
reason to camouflage its identity by giving it the 
name of a competing article. 
When you ask at the store for a Kodak cam¬ 
era, or Kodak film, or other Kodak goods and are 
handed something not of our manufacture you are 
not getting what you specified, which is obviously 
unfair to you. 
“ Kodak” is our registered 
mark and cannot be rightly 
of our manufacture. 
EASTMAN KODAK COMPANY, 
ROCHESTER, N. Y. 
and commonlaw trade- 
applied except to goods 
WELL 
DRILLING 
PAYS 
WELL 
Own a machine of your own. Cash or easy 
terms. Many styles and sizes for all purposes. 
W’rite for Circular 
WILLIAMS BROS.. 432 W. State St., Ithaca. N. T. 
Steel Wheels 
will make ycmrold farm wagon n AA|f 
as good as new. Save money be- 
cause they never need repairs. 
Write for our big free book tell- pDFp 
ingail about them and how they • 
pay. Empire Mlg. Co.. BoaTeeQHtney. (lit 
SEEV5®r 
LIMESTONE 
You Can Do It! 
The food situation brings the farmer to the 
front. Not only must the farms produce 
their limit of crops this year, but for a 
period of years. Each crop takes energy 
from the soil which must be restored. 
To restore soil fertility, you must use lime; 
and the lime which will show biggest re¬ 
turns is Solvay Pulverized Limestone — the 
highest test and purest form of lime. 
Safest to use, non-caustic, ground to the 
finest form, making it available at once 
for this season’s crops as well as for later 
years. Remember to order Solvay Pulver¬ 
ized Limestone—“Always the Best”. 
FREE BOOKLET: About lime and 
how to use it. Free on request. 
THE SOLVAY PROCESS CO. 
501 Milton Avenue Syracuse, N. Y. 
&imim 
Farm, Garden and OreLard Tools 
Answer the farmer’s big questions: 
How can I grow more crops with 
least expense? How can I cultivate 
more acres and bavd cleaner fields? 
will help you do this. Has pivot wheels and gangs 
with parallel motion. Adjustable to any width 
of row. Every tooth can be rais^, lowered or tunied 
to right or left. Lever 
adjusts balance of frame 
to weight of driver. 
Light, strong and com¬ 
pact—the latest and best 
of riding cultivators. We 
make a complete line of 
potato iachmery,garden 
tools, etc. Write ua to¬ 
day for free booklet. 
2D ,Grenloch,N J. 
iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiirifliiiinjiiiiiirifiHiHiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiuiiwiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiHiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiaiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiH 
KITSELMAN FENCE 
HORSE-HIGH, BULL- 
STRONG, PIG-TIGHT. 
Hade Of Open Hearth wire 
heavily nlvanlxed—a strong 
durable, long-lasting, rust-re- 
I Blstlng fence. Sold direct to the 
' Farmer at wire mill prices. 
Here’s a few of our big values 
2e-lneh Hog Fene* • 2Ulfe a rod 
47-inch Farm Fence- 31Xa a rod 
_ .B-ineh Poultry Fence-SdHo a rod 
I n... Barbed Wira 
Our big Catalog of fence values shows lOO styles 
and heights of FVirm, Poultry and Lawn Fence at 
reduced money-saving prices. It’s free. Write today. 
KITSELMAN BROS. Bos 230 Muncls, Ind. 
The Threshing Problem 
Solved 
Threshes 
from the 
cowpeas and soy beans 
mown vines, wheat, oats, 
rye and barley. A perfect combina¬ 
tion machine. Nothing like it. "The machine I 
have been looking for for 20 years." W. F. Massey. 
"It will meet every demand." H. A. Morgan, Di¬ 
rector Tenn. Exp. Station. Booklet 29 free. 
ROGER PEA & BEAN THRESHER CO., 
Morristown. Tsnn. 
