Daily Yellowstone journal., 1886-03-31
MusKRAT HUNTING IN MARYLAND.

Thousands of These Rodents Killed for
Their Fur and for Their Meat.
Along the lowlands of Dorchester
county, Maryland, bordering Fishing bay
and its numerous tributaries, notably the
Blackwater and Transquakin rivers, is
found class Of hardy trappers, or musk
ratters, as they are locally known, who
depend entirely upon hunting and trap
ping for livelihood. The marshes
which they frequent in quest of musk
rats and offers embrace portions of
Lakes, Straits. Drawbridge, and Buck
town districts, and in an area covering
thousands Of acres. The marsh in sum-
mer affords excellent pasturage for cat
tie and hogs, which are only half tame,
and many Of them can only be captured
when the winter drives them to the up
lands for food. Looking from any point
on the edge of the upland the eye has an
unobstructed and almost unlimited range
to the horizon over what resembles a
vast prairie. Through these marsh lands
small rivers and innumerable little
streams permeate, occasionally emptying
into large lagoons or lakes before reach
ing Fishing bay. At times the lakes are
filled with wild ducks and geese, afford
ing rare sport to gunners. Keeping well
away from the lagoons, the marsh fur
nishes solid footing, but as the streams
are approached margin of several hun
dred yards of treacherous bogs and quag-
mires is encountered, which is a terror
to the foreign huntsmap, who sometimes
finds himself waist deep in the mire, the
result of single unwary step.
1t is among these bogs that the trapper
plies his skill most successfully. He may
be seen making a circuit Of the ponds on
their very edges, and apparently with
out the least concern where his foot falls.
His eye is quick to detect a pitfall, and
he seems TO escape almost dry shod
where the wits of the trembling stranger
would fail him about how to follow. The
rats cut pipes in every direction, and
build their houses in mounds of mud
and marsh grass. These houses are al
ways built over well i'm the marsh,
which affords an easy escape if the house
is molested. They generally contain
from four to eight rats. On windy day
the skillful trapper sometimes meets with
success by approaching the houses noise
lessly from the leewar,l and driving a gig
crashing through them. Sometimes sew
eral rats are thus pinioned at one stroke,
but it is only at favorable times that this
method can be adopted, for even the
cracking of q flag under the foot will
suffice to give the alarm, and an inn
mediate exit through the well to
the pipes under the marsh is made.
They are usually trapped by the use of
what is called choker. This consists of
a triangular-shaped wire suspended by a
strong cord from a plant pole driven
into the marsh and bent over so as to
allow the wire to intercept his ratship in
his passage through pipe. An ordinary
days catch by a single trapper is about
thirty rats. The meat is considered
wholesome and is greatly relished.
The fur, which is OF two varieties,
black and brown, the black being con.
sidered most valuable, is sold to dealers
at prices varying from 12 to 1s cents
There are probably $4,000 skins sold in
Dorchester county during the trapping
season. One dealer in Cambridge hal
shipped as many as $4,000. During tn,
late freshets and high tides the marshe
have been about four feet under water
and the trappers have not reaped such {
harvest in ten years.-Baltimore Sun.