The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1900-12-20
HOW He CHARMED FOXES.
,,, .rIFICATION or THE ADIRoN-
DACIN NATIVES.

.,t Traps aha His Prey Followed
tttm-FinnIIy Got the BLACK one.
,.nfrssion az the Point of Gun.
,., The New York Commercial Adver-
tiscr
.mr- smith had Just dropped into the
I'D. se,er day on crane mouutain. where
had been hunting foxes. This does not
.n that Elmer had been riding 20
rds. that Is not the way an Adlron-
.k native hunts the fox Elmer's meth
. WAS 10 turn loose his two big hounds
..i lee them chase reynard through the
.h and woods while ne waited abous
the region through which the hunted
aal would b. likely 10 circle. The fox
- NOT run an indefinite distance ia a
.Ieht line when pursued. as does the
,-. but circles and may cover the same
lud several times.
s., Elmer. lodging here and tiere whore
thought the hunted animal likely TO
counted on an opportunity 90 bring
en the fox with a bullet from his =
brs Winchester.
.a this particular night Elmer was
.atsi he had not killed thing 4 Is
t.s hut De had started black fox and
Id twice caught sight OF Il. Now. a
...k fox Is worth something like 5000
.ri y9o TO an Adirondack native Is a
.r..ly sum- II Is more than ne makes
. fhr bay field IN summer and in the
.aals In winter. both together. Elmer
loved he could kill this fox. and he al
...Iv felt the thrill Of mllionaireship.
Tonight there was a stranger al the
n lie was a little Old man. strong and
r.ry. but gray and plainly not far from
o.. Years old. Elmer knew that this man
,5I come from the West with his wife
I'D had settled In an abandoned cottage
~. one az Tim Murphy's stony little
arms H0Rever. he dld not know his bus
mess Nov he WAS 20 ind out
why don't you crap your fox. asked
old man.
Never had any luck trappin foxes re-
rHed Elmer. rive been trappin mink aud
r14.krats and coon ever since 7 was big
cough TO bend the spring OF a steel trap.
tlt I'm cussed Il could ever catch q
FOX"
u can ketch 'em every time went OF
pie stranger. 1--WE trapped fox over the
nIted states and I'm trappin EN- right
ryw. Why. / bet I've caught more foxes
Jos traps than any man la New York state.
eot i've this morning and that ain I
anything TO what I expect TO do later on
when I get started IN earnest. But then
cont trap just Ike most fellers do.
,8u make fox follow me In the woods.
~ YOU don't believe a.. Just keep your eyes
oren and see II YOU don't see a fox track
every now and then following right along
AFTER mine"
Elmer did not like this boast on the
plrt Of the Old stranger. In the first place
De- dld not Hike the idea that this man
should claim to he a superior trapper In
she second place he was panied BY the
alsa that the stranger might get this black
fox IN trap sooner than Elmer could
kll him by a more sportsmanlike method.
IL a method may be said 90 be sportsman
ike when the man employing II does 50
from lack Of skill in using that OF the
pot hunter. Elmer did not take great
stock IN the claim OF the old trapper 20
salhty In the way OF charming foxes
yet he ana all the rest who heard the
speech were on the lookout when Ia the
woods for his tracks 10 Sc IT, a. ne
claimed a fox track might often be foi-
lowing that Of the trapper.
sure enough. two days later a woodsman
came into the inn and told the assembled
crovd that he had run across the old
name track in the woods that day and
that a fox track ran along beside a. Tie
volunteered 20 take any skeptical one 20
zee Tor himself But that was not neces-
sary. for the very next night Elmer
smith came IN hooking like the last ROSE Of
summer. When he had got the better Of
MS dependency he said he had come upon
the track OF the old hunter on Crane
Mountain. and that a fox track ran after
a. Elmer expressed the opinion that a
man who used charms had no business iu
the country and that there ought 20 De a
law to compel honest trapping. IL was al
wrong TO XIII the animals simply because
one happened to be- the seventh son OF the
soventh son o rfor some other equally 20
tent reason had power 10 make foxes &c
his Bidding. such a man ought by rights
10 b run out OF the country.
The speech was interrupted by the en-
trance Of che charmer himself. In reply
20 queries rs 10 his luck he replied: Good
as ever. Got six this morning. This Is the
hest country for foxes I've seen. The an
finals are bigger round here than most
any other part OF the United States I've
trapped in most an OF them, and / know
what I'm talking about. But one part
don't hold me long. The supply Of foxes
runs short pretty soon after se'
there"
The old man bought drinks. This rein
stated him in favor with everybody pu'
Elmer. for drinks at this season OF th'
year were scarce The money made ~
haying had been spent long ago. There
was not much numbering 20 do. ana the
natives hesitated 10 so In debt 700 heaNi'
ly az the bar for fear there would be nosn'
ing left OF the next summers haying %
pay bills at the stores. That would mean
loss OF credit. whtch Is thing 10 d
cared IN a community where men i've AZ
winter on the strength Of what they are
- earn IN the hayheld next summer.
I've been here now two weeks. and W
caught forty-elght foxes. I've got traT
out for the black one. that lives around
crane mountain. bet I'll have him In the
morning"
Elmer's spirits fell 20 their lowest. Here
This man with miraculous powers would
get the black fox that he had worked for
md planned Tor and starved for througs
DAYS OF long, hard trsmping over the cruc
Adircndacks. IL was. not the loss OF tn'
fox that hurt 30 much. either. but th'
thought this man Just out OF the Wes
tdould defeat him on his own ground III
oonsoied himself win the thought that hi
competitor was some sort OF superhumal
being. but that did not save him frou
iaki0s a far lafsr!or place TO this good
natured, boastful stranger.
Two nights later Elmer appeared =
fhc inn in his most despondent mood
ono Of his dogs had died that day %
Crane Mountain. He had found the tract
~ che black fox and had started the dogs