The Arizona sentinel., 1888-07-14
HUNTING THE MUsK-RAT.
A Sport Which Is Beginning to Attract
 Considerable Attention.


 A Sport Which Is Beginning to Attract
 Considerable Attention.
 With the exception of the beaver, the musk-rat is probably the most in- genious of rodents in the construction of its houses. It always selects wet, marshy places for its homes, and all of the rivers and streams of water emptying into the Atlantic ocean have their share of the small creatures. The low marshes abounding in treach- erous bogs and quagmires, which are terror to amateur huntsmen, are the places selected for the musk-rat's home, and usually a location is pre- ferred which is flooded at high-tide, but which is clear of water at low ebb. The houses are generally two or three stories high, and con- nected with the creek or stream of water by long narrow tunnel, which the musk-rat burrows at low tide The ground floor is laid on a level with this tunnel, or lead, as it is called, and is circular in construction. A second lead, or sort of spiral stair way, connects the ground-hoor with the second room directly above it, which is slightly smaller than the first. The height of the house is regulated by the tide. The top floor Is always just above the highest water-mark.
 There are three ways in which the rats are hunted, any one of which makes good sport. Shooting them is the mode of hunting that usually suits the foreign huntsman, for in this he is not compeled to tramp across the treacherOus meadows, and run the risk of miring waist-deep in sticky mud. He usually goes in boat along the edges of the stream on clear bright night when the rats come ashore to feed The rats, though very cautious in the daytime, become bolder and more dar- ing after dark, and they will frequent ly allow boat to approach quite close to them. After they have secured a spicy root they approach the waters edge, and dipping it in the stream they rub off the mud and wash it thoroughly before beginning to eat it. While engaged in this operation the hunter can easily shoot the little creat- ure, provided the night Is not so dark that he is unable to get fair view of the rat on the marsh. On dark nights headlight with a strong reflector may be used with good effect.
 Trapping the rats is another mode of capture. The traps are constructed somewhat after the fashion of the old box-trap. They are placed in the leads which connect the houses with the rivers at low ebb, When the rats re- turn through their miniature tunnels they push against the wire door of the trap, which easily opens for them, and closes immediately after they have en- tered. They can then proceed no farther until they gnaw through the trap, but before they can do this the tide rises, and drowns them in their un~ derground prison. Nearly all of the hunters have a number of traps set, which they can easily attend to while they are engaged in killing the ami mals in another way, which is the most destructive mode of capture of all. This is by spearing the rats, and it can be done successfully only by the old trappers, who understand I how to use the spears with considera- ble effect. It is not looked upon favor 1 ably by sportsmen, as it has tendency to drive the rats away from the more | accessible parts of the marsh. The l spears are simple of construction, but | deadly in their use, In strong cross section piece of wood a number of sharp spears, three or four feet long, are fastened. Approaching the rat house as quietly as possible, the hunter suddenly plunges the spears down into the soft mud and rushes as far as he ! can shove it. With a picl1-axe he then pulls the house to pieces. By this method he often captures two or three musk-rats at once, as the iron spears will impale all of the rodents that hap pen to be in the house. But in this | work the hunter must needs be very cautious and wary in his movements, ! as the slightest noise will frighten the | rats away before he can plunge the spears through the house.
 The hunters of the musk-rats use the flesh for food, but it is the fur for which they are the most valuable. This is of two kinds, black and brown, the black being considered the most valuable, as dealers pay as high as twelve and eighteen cents apiece for them. The brown can often be pur- chased for six and ten cents each. The | brown rat is larger, however, than it's black cousin, and when full grown it | will measure twelve or fourteen inches from the tip of the nose to the root of | the tail. The rats are distinguished by peculiar kind of musk, which is found in a little sack just under the skin in the lower part of the body George E. Walsh, iV Harper's Weekly.