395 
American Agriculturist, December 8, 1923 
Handling Raw Furs—The Fur Outlook 
Returns from Furs Depend on How They Are Handled 
T he sum secured for a collection of raw 
furs depends to a great extent upon the way 
they have been handled. Furs that have 
actually been damaged in handling will grade 
way down, and fetch perhaps less than half 
the price of prime, No. 1 furs. Generally, 
properly handled furs will bring around 10 
per cent, higher prices than carelessly handled 
furs. This is quite a percentage on a large 
lot of furs. 
In the ordinary trapper’s collection, as ob¬ 
served by the writer in several years of fur 
buying, about 10 per cent, will run to blue or 
unprime, 10 per cent, damaged by tacks, nails, 
traps or dogs’ teeth; a smaller percentage 
damaged by improper curing, while as high 
as 50 per cent, will be shaped wrong in stretch¬ 
ing. Hence it will be seen that many things 
A Properly Stretched No. 1 Skunk Pelt 
. rust be considered in preparing raw furs for 
the market in such a manner as to obviate 
the possibility of the buyer “cutting the grade.” 
Any violation of these methods of preparing fur 
afford the dealer an excuse for deviating from 
his printed prices. If the furs are strictly 
prime, undamaged and properly cured and 
stretched, there is no leeway for grading down 
or cutting prices. The trapper or fur shipper 
may calculate to a dollar what his furs will 
bring, provided he is only fairly adept in judg¬ 
ing fur quality, and grading for size. 
No Excuse for Unprime Furs 
There is no excuse whatever for trapping 
unprime furs. Night hunters, using dogs, 
should not kill the animals before their hides 
are prime. Happily most States have laws 
that prohibit hunting and trapping before 
the winter season is sufficiently advanced to 
insure fur primeness. This means that trap¬ 
ping will start between the first and fifteenth 
of November, except in the extreme South, 
where furs are only prime during December and 
January. In the States bordering Canada, and 
in high altitudes, such as the Adirondacks and 
Rockies, furs may be prime by the twentieth 
of October and remain prime for six months, 
but this condition does not apply to farm¬ 
ing country. Where the climate will permit 
crops to mature, furs are never prime before 
November. 
To be on the safe side the trapper should not 
actually set his traps out until the tenth of 
November, which is the opening day of the 
season in New York State, where furs prime 
sooner than in any other State of the Union. 
Avoid Late Spring Trapping 
Spring trapping depends on the animal being 
taken. Trapping for skunks and foxes at 
least should stop at the end of February in 
the North and two weeks sooner in the South. 
Muskrats are at their primest in February and 
March. They are also prime in April in most, 
of the Northern States, and well up into May 
in the high altitudes and cold waters of the 
mountains. However, persistent trapping in 
By DICK DuBOIS 
late spring will do more toward exterminating 
the animal than shotgun and dynamite would 
in the fall. This is explained by the fact that 
the females are usually with young by May, 
and for this reason muskrats should not be 
trapped too late. 
Trappers living in the northernmost States 
complain that the lakes and streams remain 
frozen until almost the end of April, and even 
the first of May some years, and that they do 
have a chance to trap prime ’rats until the 
ice breaks. Which is true enough; yet these 
trappers might better be content with what 
winter ’rats they get than to endanger the 
future supply of the animal. It is better to 
be able to trap a hundred winter ’rats than ten 
spring ’rats. As a matter of fact, the winter 
’rat is very little short in quality of the spring 
’rat; however, the latter grade sells for about 
one-fourth more money than the former. 
Telling a Prime Pelt 
Primeness in the case of most furs is denoted 
by a creamy-white pelt and full, glossy fur. 
Unprime furs show blue or streaked on the 
pelt side, and under fur below the guard hairs 
will be short and thin. Prime muskrat skins 
are red to a whitish color-—blue ’rat skins 
grade “fall.” 
Toward spring many furs, notably skunk and 
fox, become rubbed or shedded, even before 
the pelt changes color. These grade down, 
for the rubbed spots must be cut out in the 
manufacturing process. Badly rubbed furs 
grade down as low as 3 and 4, slightly rubbed 
grade as 2. No. 1 pelts must be prime, of 
good quality and color and undamaged. Most 
fur lists quote three prices for No. 1 furs; large, 
medium and small. 
All farmland fur-bearers should be skinned 
“cased” except raccoon, coyote, badger and 
beaver. To skin an animal cased, cut the 
skin from heel to heel, cut around the tail 
and strip the hide down over the body, leaving 
all the fat possible on the carcass instead of 
on the skin. Use the knife gently around the 
forelegs, ears, eyes and nose- 
Green Skins May Need “Fleshing” 
The green skins may need a little “fleshing,” 
and after this is done, they should be stretched 
over a board shaped to conform with the skin. 
My method is to flesh the skins after they are 
stretched on the boards. I use a dull knife 
and only take off the gobs of thick fat that 
would cause “sweating.” Besides fat on 
hides weigh up into pounds when it comes to 
shipping a hundred or so by parcel post or 
express. 
Cased skins should be hung up by the nose 
end of the boards in a shady, airy place. 
Never attempt to cure raw furs by the use of 
salt, alum, sunshine or artificial heat. 
Skinning the Tail 
The tail bone should be removed from the 
tails of all animals except opossum and musk¬ 
rat; leave the tails on the carcasses of these 
latter animals. The tails are easily skinned 
by slitting one-third way, then using a split 
stick to skin the rest. If the tail of greasy furs 
like skunk should start to taint, use salt lib¬ 
erally to save them. A hole should be punc¬ 
tured in each tail to allow for circulation of air, 
and draining. 
“Open skins” are cut down the belly and 
peeled off like a beef skin is taken off. They 
should be fleshed and tacked up on the inside 
walls of a shed or barn to cure. A skin will 
cure in about four days, unless the weather is 
damp. 
There are several books on trapping that 
illustrate the proper shapes and sizes for stretch¬ 
ing boards; and some fur houses sell patterns 
for boards. Others sell steel stretchers, and 
while they cost .more than wooden ones, they 
will last longer, are more compact and cure 
the furs quicker. They are much more port¬ 
able than wooden ones. 
THE WINTER FUR MARKET 
ISAAC MOTES 
I HAVE just been interviewing a number of 
Chicago raw fur buyers in regard to the 
prospects for good prices this winter, and what 
kinds of furs are likely to be in greatest de¬ 
mand. Some of the information I gained is so 
important that I want to pass it on to young 
trappers at once. 
No fur buyer will make any definite predic¬ 
tion this early in the season (Nov. 5th) as to 
what the fur market will be this winter. They 
all say that whether certain furs are to be high 
or low in price will depend upon the demand for 
these furs. It is all a question of which furs 
fashion decrees shall be most popular with 
American women. From present indications, 
however, some buyers think muskrat and 
skunk fur will range low in price, as the de¬ 
mand for these furs is not strong at present. 
The American woman doesn’t take kindly to the 
thought of wearing skunk fur. But when these 
pelts are dressed, dyed, etc., and then fashioned 
into attractive scarfs or capes, they are sold 
under the name of black marten, and the de¬ 
mand may be good later in the season under 
this trade name, despite the handicap of the 
animal’s real name. 
It is to be hoped that this may prove to be 
the case, for the skunk is one of our most widely 
distributed fur bearers in North America, it is 
easily caught, and with care it may be killed in 
the trap and skinned without its discharging 
its scent. 
Some fur buyers with whom I talked seem 
to think the demand will be good this winter 
for pelts of the mink, opossum and coon, also 
the weasel, both white and brown; also all of 
the foxes, as well as the finer furs like pine 
marten, beaver, otter and fisher. Some of these 
finer furs are not very widely distributed over 
the United States, and are becoming very 
scarce. However, there are many of the more 
common foxes, also mink, opossums, coons and 
skunks, so perhaps the farm and ranch boys 
who trap this winter will find it to their ad¬ 
vantage to concentrate their efforts largely 
upon these five species of animals and allow 
muskrats to increase their number for a while. 
Fashion is fickle, and muskrat fur may be in 
great demand within another twelve months. 
The very best grades of Canadian muskrat 
pelts are even now in demand. These fine pelts 
are sheared—that is, the ends of the longer fur 
are cut off to an even length with the main mass 
of the fur—then dyed and made into meduim 
priced “sealskin” coats known to the trade as 
Hudson seal. 
Ship Furs Early 
Every raw fur buyer with whom I talked 
advised marketing early caught furs early in 
the season, as soon as they are sufficiently dry 
to be sent to market. They will bring better 
prices now, buyers say, than iater in the season, 
because they will not grade up as well then in 
comparison with better furs caught in mid¬ 
winter, which will then be coming upon the 
market. They will bring a better price now, 
because there are no very fine raw, furs being 
placed upon the market. Every trapper knows 
that pelts taken in January and February are 
better than those taken in November and early 
December. 
, So don’t delay sending your catch to market 
early because it makes but a small package. 
It costs but little for express charges to send 
a compact little bundle of pelts like muskrat, 
house cat, opossum, weasel or skunk, and still 
Coon Skins Drying Flat 
less by parcel post, the latter method of mar¬ 
keting being the cheapest and safest for very 
small packages, but in every case you should 
have the package insured, which means but a 
very little additional cost—from 3 to 5 cents, 
I believe. It is best to send skunk pelts by 
express, especially if any unpleasant odor 
attaches to them. The postal employees might 
refuse to receive them in such cases. 
A point impressed upon my mind by the fur 
dealers was that there is a market for many of 
the cheaper pelts which some boys would not 
take the trouble to skin carefully, or which 
(Continued on page 1^00) 
TRAPPERSr* 
Ship To 
Good reasons—we pay top prices, 1 
give best New, York grading, send 
returns same day we receive 
shipments. We pay parcel post j 
and express charges. No com¬ 
mission deducted. 
If you want a good house to ship 
In this season, write now for 
price list. Don’t delay. 
BENJAMIN DORMA 
sra w aurs, a/A/se/vG, ere. \ 
/47 West Z4**ST. A/ewYork 
A SQUARE 
RAW 
FURS 
O UR price lists 
don’t show 
the highest 
prices, but our 
checks sent in ex¬ 
change for furs 
have more than 
satisfied hun¬ 
dreds in the last 
thirteen years. 
Get up a sample shipment, send it in to 
us, the check you’ll receive will make 
you another one of our dependable regu¬ 
lars. If you are not satisfied, return the 
check and your furs will be shipped back 
to you. A square deal is yours for the 
trying—all to gain and nothing to lose. 
In the mean time FREE for the asking 
-7-our price lists, shipping tags, instruc¬ 
tions,' and a list of our satisfied trapper 
friends. Your name and address on a 
postal card will do. 
SOL WARENOFF & CO., Inc. 
167 West 25th St. New York 
1 
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I 
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I 
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J 
LET US TAN 
YOUR HIDE. 
Horse or Cow hide. Calf or other skins 
with hair or fur on, and make them 
into coats (for men and women),robes, 
rugs or gloves when so ordered; or we 
can make your hides into Oak Tanned 
Harness or Slaughter Sole or Belt Leath¬ 
er ; your calfskins into Shoe Leather. 
Colors, Gun Metal, Mahogany, Russet or 
lighter shade. Calfskins tanned in the 
lighter shades of shoe leather, also 
make elegant stand and table covers; 
great for birthday, wedding and holi¬ 
day gifts. 
LET US FIX YOUR 
WORN FURS 
freshen, repair and reshape them 
needed, Furs are very light weight, 
therefore it would cost but little to send them in to ua 
by Parcel Post and get our estimate of cost; then we 
will hold them aside awaiting your decision. If you say 
"go ahead, ’* very well; we will do so and hold them 
free of storage until you want them. If you say “no,** 
we will return them post-paid. 
Our illustrated catalog and style book combined gives 
a lot of useful information. It tells how to take off 
and care for hides. About our ssfo dyeing process on 
cow and horse hides, eaifand fur skins. About dressing 
fine fur skins and making them into neckpieces, muffs 
and garments. About taxidermy and Head Mounting. 
The Crosby Frisian Fur Company, 
571 Lyell Ave., Rochester, N. Y. 
Green’s Trees 
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Send for Green’s money-saving 
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Save money and be assured of strong, healthy 
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Our 64-page catalog Is worth having. Send for 
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1272 Green St. Rochester, N. Y. 
from NURSERY to You 
Aged Owner’s 210 Acres with 23 Cattle, Tools, Crops; $1,600 Cash. 
High class farming section convenient fine R. R. town; 
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quantity wood; 30 apple trees, pears, plums, cherries, 
grapes, berries; fine 2-story 7-room house, furnace, 
running water, 80-ft. basement barn, granary, garage, 
hog and poultry houses. Low price $8500; horses, 18 cows, 
5 heifers, poultry, implements, tools, vehicles, 150 bu, 
oats, 100 bu. buckwheat, 75 bu. corn, 100 bu. potatoes, 
35 T. hay, etc. included if taken now. Only $1600 needed. 
STROUT, 95 Chenango St., Binghamton, N. Y. 
KITSELMAN FENCE 
“I Saved 26j£e a Rod,” says i. E. 
Londry, Weedsport, N. Y. You also save. 
We Pay the Freight. Write for Free 
Catalog of Farm, Poultry, Lawn Fence. 
KITSELMAN BROS. Dept.203 ftiUNCIE, INO. 
