St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1886-12-26

strung like beads on thread, So that, in
opening up conversation, two speakers of
| ''MellanOk" would at once produce their
word rosaries. and, instead of telling their
beads. make their beads, or rather their
carved bone equivalents, tell their story.
PENNSYLVANIA rOY-HUNTERS.
How They Catch Rabbits with tho
Aid of archaeological by Genu.
Inc SpOrsslncu.
There has been a fringe of rabbits over
the door and along the outside racks of
nearly every butchershop in town ever
since the beginning of November, says the
New York Sun. Restaurants of the class
kept by persons who believe they can
tempt the appetites of the public by dis
playing large quantities of raw meat on
their dOor-posts and in their windows have
had their fronts fairly festooned with rab-
bits for nearly two months. HaWkers with
voices that ought to send them to the island
have bawled rabbits through the streets
from one end of the town to the other.
Rabbits have been selling at prices that
hardly paid for handling them. and have
been drug in the market at that. a uni
versal feeling of adherence for rabbit
meat as an article of diet has been aroused,
and with it has come feeling of curiosity
to know something of the source and causes
of this rabbit avalanche.
| Well, most of these rabbits come from
Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania is a big state,
and it has an unusually large proportion of
excellent rabbit land-and that is valuable
chiefly as medium in which to dig holes.
1t is well-known fact that rabbits are
produced in large lltters and frequently,
and there is no region of the earth where
the ltters are larger or more regular in
their appearance than they are in the Key
stone state. But, even i'll view of these
favorable conditions, it is a matter of won
der how so many rabbits as have been COM
ing to this market are killed. The truth is
that they are not killed in any way that is
recognized as legitimate. but are bagged by
pOt-hunters with the help of ferrets. This
way of taking them is forbidden by a state
law. and the penalty is $40 fine for every
violation of it; but the law is not enforced
with such strctneSs as to make these fines
a source of very considerable revenue to
the state.
A ferret is an animal of the weasel kind.
Its fur looks as though it had been origin.
ally white, but had been stained by dense
smoke. The head resembles rats. The
body is no longer around than the head.
The distance from the fore legs to the hind
legs is proportionately long. The legs are
short and small. A ferret can go through
any hole that is large enough to admit it's
head. 1t preys, upon vermin and the
smaller animals, and drinks their blood.
The ferret is a native Of Africa. There are
a few stores in New York where ferrets are
kept for sale.
A man who knows something about
| hunfinU with fnrratc said. ssRooouSo of tho
fact that it is unlawful almost everywhere
to hunt game with ferretS they are called
bulldogs by men who use them for taking
game. The best time for hunting rabbits
with them is when the snow is deep and the
rabbits spend most of their time in their
holes A ferret costs about SIS. They
are passably docile, but will nip you with
their sharp teeth unless you handle
them very carefully. When the ferret
gets hold of an animal he fastenS
himself there to stay. sucks the creatures
| blood, and then curls up for sleep. There
are several ways to prevent ferrets from go
ing to sleep in rabbit holes after killing the
game. One is to put muzZles on them.
But sometimes the muzzle catches on root
protruding in the burrow, and the ferret is
held there till he starveS or the hunter digs
him out. Another is to pierce their lips
and tie them together with fine cord when
out hunting. Still another way is to break
off the ferret's incsors. With his mouth
disabled the ferret can not hold the rabbit,
| but chaSeS him out of the hole and is easily
| recovered.
| when the pot-hunter starts out he puts
his bulldog into his coat pocket. Ferrets
are sleepy creatures, and the bulldog usu-
ally snoozes while the hunter is tramping
over the fields. Of course the hunter car
ries gun, and he makes believe that his
| gun is his only means of getting game if he
falls in with anybody who he thinks might
make trouble for him if he knew that he
was hunting with ferret. He also carries
a bag of course fabric in his pocket and
hunting-knite. When the hunter comes to
a burrow that has the outward indication
of being occupied, he sends the ferret in,
and quickly puts the mouth of the bag
over the hole. If the rabbit is
within he loses no time in clearing
out, and finds himself stopped in his
| flight by running against the bottom of the
bag. II the hunter thinks the chance Of
| his exciting somebody's suspicion are sufi-
Gent to warrant the precaution, he wounds
| the rabbit with the point of his knife
often killing it-so that the blood will come
| through and stain the fur as though the
game had been shot. Then he puts the
| rabbit on his string and the ferret in his
pocket and with his trusty but not used
gun under his arm he goes out in search of
another burrow. 1t is quick work at each
rabbit hole, and a few greedy pot-hunters
can almost clear tract of rabbits by going
| over it.
Hunters usually handle their ferrets with
gloves while out hunting, for it the hands
become bloody through handling the game
| the ferrets are apt to bite them. Once in
while ferret goes to sleep in burrow
| where he finds no game Then the pot
hunter is in a predicament. He has no
spade and pickax for digging him out OF
the frozen ground, and to attempt to Dor
row them of the nearest farmer would
arouse suspicion. Even if he could borrow
them safely, he would incur considerable
risk by undertaking the job. Ordinarily
farmer conld be passifed by the payment
to him of a couple Of dollars and the
promise to hunt no more in his neighbor-
hood with the bulldog. but if a genuine
sportsman should find a pot-hunter digging
,, out ferret he would be apt to make him
just as much trouble as the law allows"
All Were as Good as the Best.
Boston Record.
1t was small, weakened, long-nosed
boy, with eyes like two very small and dark
holes burned in brown blanket, who,
bending under an enormous load of feather
busters, invaded the historians apartment
yesterday.
''Fayder dohsters," said he, ''nyshe yones;
oshtridge fayders, turkey fayders, only
dirtv va onrtc oud