where anyone of the simple substances would be ineffectual.

THE TRAIL.

The object of the "trail" consists in offering a leading scent
which, when followed, will bring the animal to the various traps,
and when properly made will be the means of drawing large numbers
of game from all quarters and from great distances, whereas without
it the traps might remain undiscovered.

Trails are sometimes made to connect a line of traps, as when set
along the banks of streams for mink, etc., at other times, as in
trapping the fox, for instance, they should extend from the trap on
all sides, like the spokes of a wheel from the hub, thus covering
considerable area, and rendering success more certain than it would
be without this precaution.

The combination "medicine" just described is excellent for the
purposes of a trail for minks, otter, muskrat, and many other animals.

Soak a piece of meat, or piece of wood in the preparation, and
drag it along the ground between the traps. A dead fish smeared
with the fluid will also answer the same purpose. The soles of
the boots may also be smeared with the "medicine" and the trail
thus accomplished. Trails of various kinds are considered under
their respective and appropriate heads in the chapters on animals,
all of which will be found useful and effective.

HOW TO TRAP.

In the following pages will be found full and ample directions
for the trapping of all our leading game, together with detailed
descriptions of peculiar habits of each species. The various articles
contain careful descriptions, whereby the species may be readily
recognized, and, in nearly every case, are accompanied by faithful
illustrations. We add also valuable directions for the best manner of
removing the skin of each animal, this being a matter of considerable
importance, as affecting their pecuniary value.

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THE FOX.

Foremost in the list of animals noted for their sly craft, and
the hero of a host of fables and well-authenticated stories, in
which artful cunning gains the advantage over human intelligence,
Reynard, the fox, reigns supreme. There is scarcely a professional
trapper in the land who has not, in his day, been hoodwinked by the
wily strategy of this sly creature, whose extreme cunning renders
him the most difficult of all animals to trap. The fox belongs to
the Dog family, and there are six varieties inhabiting the United
States. The red species is the most common and is too