The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1888-11-11

Little Animal Which Swells the Purses of
Many Maryland People.

If anyone wants to enjoy the full glories of
muskrat shooting he must go to Dorchester
county, Maryland. About thirty miles from
this tewn is Bishops Head district a region OF
marshes mud, mosquitoes and muskrats. 1t is
cut up by creeks and rivers that no part of it
IL mile from water communication. Il - a
curious out-of-thew sort of country. Hun
dreds of years ago colonists from England set
tied il, ana their descendants, uucontamins ted
by railroads or any of the large accessories of
civilization, live prosperously upon their reve-
nues from Clustering. trapping and cunning.
Old fashioned wind-rills like great wooden
acrobats turning endless handspring 8, still grind
corn into meal and wheat into -four. In many
of the estates the family cemeteries are IN the
front yards aud some are so close that o man
can sit in his parlor and read his list Of ances-
tors from the tembstones-
Kindler people do not live. They are the
soul Of hospitality, and strangers are almost in
variably invited TO "bitcn up aud take snack
with u.s." The writer's first insight into the
condition of these people was given by o negro
who drove him down there several years ego.
'I used to work for man who bought hides,
said be. sometimes he'd get hard up for
change, aud he'd go INTO one OF these little
houses aud ask EN- to change hundreddollar
note. II made me laugh, cause the whole
shanty didn't look worth a. but purity soon the
old man would grab down a bag from cuddy-
hole in the chimney and pull out money 'nuff to
buy farm"
One Of the greatest sources of this wealth 10
the muskrat Not one-twentieth OF the region
is under cultivation. Most of il Is MARSH. full
of sluggish streams and muskrat beds. 1t il
just the sort of soil that the muskrat likes snd
his wonderful skill architect finds full
play. The little animal is very fastidious. He
not only washes himself before and after eating.
but be washes all his food, and observes the
laws of cleanliness with unvarying regularity.
He is a short-lecRed little mammal, from twelve
TO fifteen inches long. with a tail two-thirds the
length of his body. He sports ak rows of side
whiskers. aud has a scared. surprised sort of an
expression on his rather homely face, as If at
some time he had committed great crime. He
wears a dress of hair very soft and warm, dark
brown on top and rather lighter below. His bill
of fare embraces roots. grasses, vegetables,
fruits. mussele. and occasionally meat Gener-
ally he Is a vegetarian.
Muskrats feed principally at night, except in
late spring aud during the summer months until
the cold weather sets in They select secluded
localities. In the early morning they may be
seen making their way to and from their ders.
The feeding ground is usually an over-grown
log or stump, or tussock or sometimes float
ing bed of grass whose upper and coarser por-
tions give them a hiding place while they devour
ihe lower ends and roots. They feed about
three times a night. fist soon after dark. sec
ona abou. midnight, aud third just before day
break They return TO their homes about sun
rice after their last meal, and are then in primo
condition for the gunner. as they are filled with
grass, and are slow and clumsy about diving.
Il
first effort at muskrat shooting. The air was
crisp, the wind soft and gentle, and the water IS
sluggish If il Lad fallen into sleep from which
il did not caro- TO be aroused Our boat was q
small hatbottomed affair. propelled by thin
paddles, which were dipped noiselessly, as il
welded By spectres. The utmost caution is re-
quired, for the muskrat IN spring and autumn is
always alert and his ears are wonderfully acute.
/ was in the bow with my gun ready. Suddenly
/ saw ball Of fur. took direct aim and fired,
~ nt~1 E-A Aa~
rodent. The veteran in tho stern laughed
heartlessly.
"Neyer shot muskrsts before, ehi' he said
al seen that by the way You acted. Wait till
you shoot while longer and you'll never shoot
at him where he is but where hs'e going to DO
when your shot gets to him. Be careful now
aud when You see ripples ahead give yourself
plenty of spare room and fire quick"
We entered a little cove where the grass grew
thickly. the sun was just mile orttwo on the
other side of the horizon. The rats had fed,
and were on their way home The ripples be-
came numerous. and then the sport grew decid-
eddy interesting. We popped away at uncer-
tainties, tried to follow the rats as they dived
and reappeared. sometimes hit and sometimes
missed and got thoroughly wound up in the ex-
element It was splendid sport, and it re-
CURED the best Of skill and the exercise of
good eyesight, for there is not better swimmer.
a quicker diver q moro cunning trickster in
the whole animal kingdom than this plebeian TO.
dent We got a dozen rats. and considered our
selves lucky. A subsequent trip on . moonlight
night WAS still more delightful. for the shooting
was entirely haphszard, and success came only
from good shots Oh good gussses swimming
something would be seen, q shot would follow,
and perhaps a dead muskrat would be tho re-
suit The best and safest shot was when fool
ish ratswam directly toward the boat Under
such circumstances ordinary man was sure
of his victim. Shooting in winter IS generally
more successful. because the rats are tanner, but
fr, ad NV ha ,iart1
GUS use OF gun powder. the spring.is better, and
it does net REQUIRE freezing just for the sake of
O little amusement.
IL muskrats had only gunpowder to fear their
number would be several times as large as 1t is.
The PEOPLE who capture them for a living do not
do so for sport. II IS q business, ard one that
pays thousands of dollars q year to this region.
I The most interesting method, except shooting,
il spearipe. The hunter is armed with pole,
| Ave or six feet long, with a spear OF four or
ave proues attached at the lower end. These
erongs are sharp-pointed. but have no barb. and
are SO arranged not to allow the body Of q
rat to pass between them. To spear success
| fully one must have experience and caution.
ward side of the oen. Directly over the
| inner bed there is usually a daub of
mud. AS soon as this Is seen
| hard blow is struck; the spear is driven deep
into the bed. the top OF the Gen Is at once torn
! of. and the rats are killed with a small club
which is always carried for that purpose.
| When several rats arc speared there is need of
considerable caution, for the rat is a vicious
rascal when cornered and he fights vigorously
| and splendidly to the end. He is such a good
fighter that he can generally defeat dog several
times his size.
In trapping two plans used. The dead
fall consists Of slab or log set SO that the rat
| in following his path will have TO go under it.
Tho SLAB is held in place by sticks driven in tn,
ground. aud is supported BY the setting sticks
| familiar to all schoolboys. Sometimes the fall
is baired. but often not The steel or spring trap
| is used TO limited extent, hut owing TO the
corrosive action of salt water it is most success
full in fresh water. it is buried in the feed
| ing-beds or paths of the rats. When a rat is
caught in one of these be will commit suicide il
there is water enough in which to drown him
| self
The greatest trap OF all, however, is plain
| box of four pieces or board, three or four feet
| long and SIX inches wide. At each end there is
. door made OF wire, which fails inwsrdiy. This
trap is set in an underground lead, through
| which the rats pass, and is always anchored TO
turn they raise the door and keep entering until
| caught The traps must be promptly at
| tended or TIE rats will drown. The dis
| advantage of this plan is that it drives
| the uucaught rats to other leads.
| The beet trap is arrangement with q free
| lower passage aud with snares that grab the rats
and hoist them into an upper prison. IL Is more
| complicated than the others.
/ AS an architect muskrat is deserving of high
| honor. His residence is always q model OF neat
| ness, economy aud ingenuity. The materials
used in the construction vary with the locality.