The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1888-09-08

what hit him IL WOuiu DC HIS ucdb.
But this amt catching turtles. is it?"
He placed one of the pea-like bullets
in the little rifles breech, and laying
the gun to his shoulder sighted along
its octagonal barrel. Instead OF point
ing toward the snapper the guns muz-
zle bore on floating object about the
size of mans thumb, which was
rapidly approaching us from above.
With the report of the gun the object
disappeared, and then, grasping the
scoop, Henry leaned eagerly over the
skiff's side and looked down into the
water In less than minute the cur
rent brought with it the body of a
second turtle, smaller than the first.
which Henry dexterously scooped in as
1t was being half borne by the current
and half propelled by its own dying ex-
ertions down the stream. The bullet
had crushed its skull while it was
swimming, as is the fashion OF many
inland turtles, with nothing but the tip
of its head above water. As the eyes
and nostrils of this creature are placed
upon the extreme end of its proboscis,
and as nothing else was visible, only
chance or the trained eye of woods
man could have enabled the hunter to
see it and shoot it before the turtle had
scented danger and dived.
'.Now, then, for the duck-eater. l
want to take him alive if l can, as
there is not much market for dead
turtles, the dealers not caring to take
the risk of having stock spoil on their
hands when it can be kept in tank for
six months, at almost no expense, II
alive. The only way to get him is to
catch him in a trap, or line, or to
scoop him out. AS he has enough to
eat there for week the first two plans
will hardly work, and while in such
deep water as this the scoop is danger
GUS. will try it"
| Then with an oar Henry turned up
the black earth along the rivers bank,
sending it in a cloud down the current
and completely hiding the turtle under
| its dark mantle.
Don't be afraid; he is not lost, as
have his bearings. You see, when the
water was clear he could see every mo-
ton made, and had tried to SCOOP
him out then he would be off before you
could say boz but now"
Henry leaped out of the skiff and
into the cold water which washed hi.
thighs. With the long handle held
firmly in both hands, he raked the bal
with the teeth of the scoop, until the.
touched something which his practicet
touch told him was the game. With
sudden shoot forward he lifted the OBJ
struction, and then, putting all hi
strength into his arms, he cast it from
the scoops teeth, sending it in clear
fight of dozen feet out of the water
high and dry. on the sandy shore. |
was the snapper, with its jaws Tight,
closed on the wing of the dead duck.
When taken aboard and thrown OF
tine bottom OF the boat with several Q
its congeners, it made no effort to es
cape or to finish its breakfast, but re
manned quiet with the wing in it
mouth and its sharp little eyes staring
The jaws of the steel traps were nov
sprung and fixed in that position, ant
after being fastened to one end of
ten-foot length of quarterback hem
rope, the other end Of which was fixe
to peg driven deeply in the rive
bank, the traps were baited with min
nows and sunk in likely looking hole
among the submerged willows. TIL
fish hooks were baited in the sam
manner, and their lines tied to tn
stout willow branches, after which tn
boat was secured, and, with nothin
but the scoop, Henry set of on tram
up the creek.
There are two or three ponds highe
up here" said he, (which are quit
and shallow and muddy. They ar
I always full of turtle, and shall carr
at least two back to the boat with me
although you might go up there alon
,, every day in the year and never see
shell. The way get them is by wac
|, ing around in the water. and wheneve
strike any thing hard with my boo
. or the scoop push the fork under
and lift it ashore, just as l di
,, down at the river. Sometimes tn
: hard thing is fiat stone, b'
, oftener than you might think it
a turtle. Further down the rive
nearer its mouth, Ihave five hogsheaf
sunk in the water, with a log plante
in the shore over each hogshead. III
turtles soon find the logs, and sit
them summing themselves until l CON
near, when every man of them drc
,, into the water. Instead OF droppir
: into the river, as they think, they drol
: !. into the hogshead, and all have to {
!, is to reach down and scoop them on