eplied, "Oh, h--l there will be foxes after I am dead." This man
called himself a trapper, and is quite an extensive fur buyer. Thomas
Pope says, "Man's inhumanity to man, makes countless thousands
mourn." But, in this case, I think it is the dumb animal that mourns
and not the man. The trapper who makes the greatest mistake of his
life is the one who does not subscribe for the Hunter-Trader-Trapper.

* * *

In a former article I undertook to give the most practical way of
killing a skunk, as I have found it, but owing to a mistake, it left
the method of killing rather hard to be understood, so I will try
again. I do this, owing to the many requests that I have from
trappers to give a method for killing skunks, without the skunk
scenting themselves as well as the trapper. Practically, there is no
way of killing a skunk without causing the skunk to discharge his
scent. Their scent is a skunk defense, and they will use it when in
danger.

Now my way of doing the job is to go at it without hesitation. We
have an old adage, "If you would grasp a nettle, grasp it as a man of
mettle." Now my plan is to wear clothes on the trap line to be
discarded as soon as the day's work on the trap line is finished.
When I come to a trap that has a skunk in it, I approach the skunk,
advancing a single step at a time, with a good strong stick about
four feet long, with the stick drawn up in readiness to strike as
soon as close enough. Now when I am close enough to make the blow
sure I strike the skunk a hard blow across the back, and immediately
after, I place my foot on the skunk's back, holding the animal tight
to the ground. At the same time giving the skunk a sharp rap or two
on the head with the stick to make sure that it is dead. Then pick up
the skunk and remove it a little to one side of the place where it
was killed. Rip the skunk across from one leg to the other close to
roots of tail, skinning around the scent glands at the roots of tail,
so that the glands can be easily cut out and thrown away or saved for
bait, as the trapper wishes. Now proceed to skin the skunk. By
following these directions, the trapper will not suffer any great
inconvenience from the animal's scent.

Now if the trapper is a little timid, he can carry some kind of a gun
of small caliber and shoot the skunk in the head. But if the skunk
does not use his weapon of defense, then it is a different skunk than
I have been accustomed to meet with. If the trapp