The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1899-08-11
RAZoRBACKS AND MUSKRATS.
The Chief brands of Live stock
Owned by Fishing nay
Suuntters.

Razorback hogs and musltrats are the
chief sources of revenue to the inhab-
itants of the borders of Fishing bay,
Md. The squatters-for a ma jority of
the jewellers are nothing more-are hos
pitable in their way, but are not more
advanced in civilization than are the
people who have always lived in the
out-of-the=way mountains of North
Georgia and Alabama. Few of the
houses have habitable appearance,
and a ma iority of them were built from
lumber found drifting in the bay and
from timber confscated in the forests,
there being immense tracts of valuable
timber land along the shores. These
people believe they have the right to APP
proprate whatever timber they may
need in the construction of their rude
cabins, and it is seldom that the land
owners interfere with them.
Like the razorhack hog and musk
rats, the people are prolific, and swarms
of children may be seen around the
cabins in any of the villages. Both men
and women are interested i'm making a
anu lllN lll tilt w Ut tstl
TO assist in cultivatiug the gardens and
truck patches. The male members Of
Il family generally have all they can do
in looking after the muskrHt traps. aud
the gardening is left to the care of the
women and children. Nearly all use
tobacco-chewing smoking and dip
ping snuff. When times are hard and
money scarce they use rosin from pine
trees AS a substitute for tobacco.
The druves of razorbuck hogs that
are to be seen about all the villages
will scarcely take the trouble to get out
of ones way. The razorbacli is a breed
of hogs raised in the south before the
war and still abundant in the pincy
woods of Georgia. This hog has an inn
portant mission to perform in the Fish
ing bay settlement. II is the mission TO
make way with the hundreds of car
casses of muskrats that accumulate, al
though the muskrat forms an impor-
taut article of food for the musllrattcrs
and their families. Indeed, the flesh
Of musRrats is no doubt superior to that
of the raZurhack, the ham of which is
almost as dry as the ham of an iron fire
dog. But the people along the shore
say that they could not get along with
out the razorback. He is their sanitary
inspector and scayeuger, and SO long
as he is one of them they do not fear
an epidemic of contagious disease.
a few Of the muskratters have made
money trapping the little animals, but
majority of them just manage TO exc
out II bare existence. While the musk
rat has his house in the ground, the en-
trance can only be made through water,
and the house is generally built two
stories high, the lower floor being
flooded with water. The trnppers say
that the reason for the subterraneun
entrance is that the rat has an exit
which will not betray him in time of
danger. But his instinct does not warn
him against the trap his cunning and
persistent enemy places in the water at
the mouth Of the entrance to his home
in the bank OF the river. This trap is
wooden box about three feet in length
aud six inches in width. In each end is
"A wire door, hung on hinges at the top.
The slightest push on the outside causes
the doors to rise, but they will not opcr
from the inside.
This trap is sunk at the entrance >;
the muskrat's house, and whether lie
is going home or on forugiug cNpcdi-
ditiuu he is sure 10 walk into 10. \
muskrat cannot remain under water
/ indefinitely, and before he has time TO
guaw hi, way out of the box ne browns.
/ Au entire family Of mushrats is fire.
/ qucutly caught i'm single night in one
/ trap During extraordinary tides ON
/ the marshes the rats are forced out of
/ their houses and take refuge in the open
/ country, and then lis that the trappcrs
/ and hunters lave no difficulty In locat-
/ ing them. While it is claimed that a
muskrut has instinct which forctelis
rising tides and overAows, they are
frequently caught mapping and have to
make a hasty exit to high land.
AT this season of the year muskrats
are very numerous and do an immense
amount of damage to the crops. Later
on they will have a regular feast cut
. ting down young corn i'm the bottom
lands, Farmers along the shores are
/ kept busy dcyisiug ways of killing OF
the pests, and regular trappors are re
gardod as public benefactors through
out that section of Maryland. However,
tho trappcrs' razorhncks aud the farm
ors are often at war with each other,
the razorhacks insisting that they have
the right to assist the neighbors la har:
vesting their crops,-N. y. Sun,
Nheacc Came the Jupuucsef