s Art. Chief among them are the Puma, or Cougar,
Bear, Lynx, Wolf and Wolverine.

Although commonly taken in steel traps, as described respectively
in a later portion of this work, these animals are nevertheless
often captured by Deadfalls and other devices, which are well known
to the professional Trapper, and which serve excellently in cases
of emergency, or in the scarcity of steel traps.

[Illustration]

THE DEAD-FALL.

There are several varieties of this trap, some of which are described
in other parts of this volume. In general construction they all
bear a similarity, the methods of setting being slightly changed
to suit the various game desired for capture. For large animals,
and particularly the Bear, the trap is sprung by the pressure of
the animal's foot, while reaching for the bait. Select some favorite
haunt of the Bear, and proceed to construct a pen of large stakes.
These should consist of young trees, or straight branches, about
three inches in diameter, and should be of such a length as to
reach a height of four or five feet when set in the ground, this
being the required height of the pen. Its width should be about
two and a half or three feet; its depth, four feet; and the top
should be roofed over with cross pieces of timber, to prevent the
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bait from being taken from above. A straight log, about eight inches
in diameter, and six feet in length should now be rolled against the
opening of the pen, and hemmed in by two upright posts, one on each
side, directly on a line with the sides of the enclosure. Another
log, or tree trunk, of the same diameter, and about fifteen or twenty
feet in length, should next be procured. Having this in readiness,
we will now proceed to the construction of the other pieces. In
order to understand the arrangement of these, we present a separate
drawing of the parts as they appear when the trap is set (_a_).
An upright post, is supplied at the upper end with a notch, having
its flat face on the lower side. This post should be driven into
the ground in the left hand back corner of the pen, and should
be three feet or more in height. Another post (_b_) of similar
dimensions, is provided with a notch at its upper end, the notch
being reversed, _i. e._, having its flat side _uppermost_. This
post should be set in the ground, _outside_ of the pen, on the
right hand side and on a line with the first. A third post (_c_),
is provided with a crotch on its upper end.