Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1902-12-19
CAUGHT in A TURKEY TRAP.
A STORY FOR BOYS.



Lewis B. Miller in the American Boy.
III tell you what we can do tomor
| row, George" said Arch Kempe1
Lets make turkey trap"
Never saw one Afraid 1 wouldn'
know how,R replied George White.
l never saw one, either, but l know
how they're made, and anybody cal
make one. All you've got to do is t.
build a rail pen, cover it over, and dis
hole under it. Then you bait it ant
catch your turkey
How does the trkey get in?"
He goes under, thru the hole
And what prevents him from coming
out thru the hole?'
Want of sense. He never thinks o.
it. Keeps looking up all the time"
Are you sure thatll work." asked
George, doubtfully.
Everybody that's tried it says it will
| heard Mr.. Richards tell of catching 6
pretty good flock of wild turkeys thai
way"
Arch Kenper and George White lived
on adjoining farms on the banks of the
upper Brazos river, in Texas. At this
part of it's course the BraZos is shut in
by steep hills on both sides. The hills
are about half q mile apart. The river
winds back and forth thru this narrow
valley sometimes against the east side
sometimes against the west side, and
sometimes between. II you climbed to
the top of the high hill on the east side
you could see out over q level prairie.
If YOU climbed to the top of the higher
hill on the west side, you would find
yourself among mountains and cedar
brakes--a rough. wild country, where
at the time of this story, nobody lived.
and where various kinds of game could
be found. including deer and bears and
mountain lions.
The two farms lay on the east bank
of the river Between the west bank
and the hill was a strip of timbered
land about a hundred yards wide. II
was here that George and Arch pro-
posed to locate their trap. The place
was a favorite resort for wild turkeys.
whose pipings and gobblings could be
plainly heard about daylight every
The conversation at the beginning
of this story occurred one Friday after
noon, in the fall as the two boys were
coming home from school, Immedi-
ately after breakfast the next morn.
ing they started, George carrying an
AK and Arch spade and mattock.
They were both between fifteen and
sixteen. George was the taller but
Arch, who was somewhat stocky, was
the heavier Of the two.
At the back of the field they climbed
down the river bank to where a boat
was tied to stake. When they had
rowed across. and fastened the boat to
tree, they went up into the woods
with their tools. Finding a spot where
turkey tracks were numerous they
stepped and got ready for work.
Along the river bank were piles Of
ariftwood, left there by high water.
Among the driftwood were rails. BY
going some distance up and down the
river, and tearing the drifts to pieces,
he boys found rails enough for their
trap.
After collecting the rails they dug a
.rench about foot and a half deep,
.wo feet wide, and six on eight feet
ong, with sloping ends. Then they
made a square rail pen, with one side
# 1t across the trench, so that perhaps
wo feet of the trench was in the, pen.
rhe pen was about four feet high, and
covered over with rails a few inches
part.
The trap was now finished and ready
o be baited. The boys scattered grains
# corn around to lead the turkeys to
t. A trail of corn led down to the
rench, then along the trench and UP
o the pen.
After surveying their work with no
little satisfaction, Arch and George
ook up their tools, rowed back across
he river, and went to their homes to
yait.
AT dusk they returned, and again
fter breakfast next morning, but the |
orn was still scattered around. Prob |
bly, the building of the pen in their |
aunts had scared the turkeys away.
yot till three or four days later did the
Dung trappers find any evidence that |
he wild fowls had been in the vicin |
~. The corn had been picked up as
ar as the trench, but no farther.
This was encouraging, and more corn |
ras scattered around.
The next day, as soon as the boys
OF home from school, they hurried |
own to the boat and pulled across.
N coming in sight of the trap they
aw that it was surrounded by a flock
{ fifteen or twenty turkeys. The boys
i'd behind trees, thinking that the tur-
eys might yet enter the trap, But the
ock had already taken alarm, and ran
# thru the woods as fast as their long
,gs could carry them.
But two of them, q gobbler and a
en-, were in the trap. Very proud were
lie boys when they carried those tur-
eys home and showed them to their
lends, calling everybody's attention to
DIV plump and fat they We're.
After this the results of the trap
ing varied. Frequently there was
othing at all in the trap; on other
lys one or two, and once even five
,rkeys We're found in it.
One day Arch and George were late
citing home from school, and did not
sit their trap until the next morn
g. Then they found no turkeys, but
e ground inside the trap was covered
lCh IeatnefS. lHlS lHeaHl tiidl tl iet-St ,
lie turkey had been caught, but that I, ,
me wild animal had crawled in dur
G the night and devoured it. A sec
ID time, when they failed to visit the !
ap, the same thing occurred.
The boys supposed that the animal
as a fox or wildcat, or possibly a
off that had come down from the 1
But once they went over
the trap at night while the moon was
lining. AS they were landing, they .
ard the cries of a turkey in distress.