New Britain herald., 1923-09-15

spring. the Thirty-Mile cabin, oyo,
the ridge and down to the sea. Inc
sea cabin; and thence. trapping salt
water mink and otter. to the home
cabin, five days Journey In all.
AS N smiling upon their venture.
nature gave them clear dawn I'm
which to start forth. The sa,aw and
Bess started up from the river mouth
together. the former In the role OF
teacher: Ned and Doomsdorf followed
UP the little, silvery creek that ripplcd
past the home cabin. And for the
first time since his landing on He'll
! Island Ned had chance really to
look about him.
y here there's timber. there's
n'arten.' Doomsdorf explained. MAR
ten. suppose YOU know. are the
most valuable furs we take, outside
OF silver and blue fox---and one of the
easiest taken"
He took one of the traps from
Ned's shoulder and showed him how
to make the set. The bait was
placed few feet above the trap in
this case. on the trunk OF the tree, so
that to reach it the marten would
almost certainly spring the trap.
They tramped on. and Doomsdorf
pointed out where wolverine had
come down the glade and crossed the
creek. You'll curse at the very
name of wolverine before the seasons
done" Doomsdorf told him, as Ned
paused to study the imprint. He's
the demon of the snow so far as the
trapper is concerned. Nevertheless
you'll want to take a skin for your
own use. It's the one fur for the
lood OF parka--you can wear It
over your mouth in fifty below and
it doesn't get covered with ice from
your breath. But you'll have to be
a smarter man than ! think you are
to catch him." !
Once they paused before great |
cruel instrument of iron, seemingly
much too large to be trap, that had |
been left at the set from the previous
trapping season.
Lift it." Doomsdorf advised. Ned
bent, finding the iron itself heavy in
his arms
mo creatures going to walk away
with that on his leg, is her,
No? That's all you know about
it. I'll admit that you wouldn't care
to walk with it very far You would
see why didn't take it into shelter
at the close OF the seasop-although
of course it's easy enough to haul on
a sled. You notice it's attached a
chain and that chain to toggle."
"Toggle" was a word that Ned had
hoa ri h,,f ,tybich Mo nj |
a great log, or drag, to
which the trap chain was attached.
1t took nearly all of Ned's strength
to push down the powerful springs
and set the great Jaws. The fact
that he didn't know Just how to 60
shout it impeded him, too. And
when he stood erect again, he found
Doomsdorf watching him with keen
Isl interest.
II didn't think you were man
enough to do it, he commented.
You'll say that's quite a trap, won't
-ou?"
ITS quite trap Ned agreed
hortly What kind of an elephant
10 you take in it,"
mo kind of elephant. but one of
he grandest mammals that ever lived,
{ that. I don't trap them much,
BECAUSE hardly get enough for their
kins to pay for handling them-you
an guess they're immensely bulky.
here's a fair price for their skulls.
90. but the skull alone is a fair load
or week back. Last year I needed
few hides for the cabin. Did you
yer hear of the zodiac bear"
He cut a slender whip, about half
n inch in diameter. from a nearby
-illow, and thrusting both ends into
ne ground in front of the trap, made
n arch. When the old boy comes
long, he'll life his front foot right