A Few Words on Deadfalls.
Comrades, as I have been asked to give my idea on the deadfall as a
practical trap in taking the fur bearing animals, will say that I do
not consider it a useless contrivance as some of the boys of the trap
line claim. On the contrary, I consider it to be a very successful
trap in taking many of the fur bearers such as will readily take bait
including the skunk, mink, coon, opossum, rabbit, muskrat, etc.
It is not to be supposed that the fox, coyote, wolf, etc., can be
taken in the deadfall; neither is it supposed to be as convenient or
as successful a trap as the steel trap. Yet, under favorable
conditions I prefer it to the steel trap in trapping some animals,
and it is certainly a little more humane in its operation as it
usually kills its prey almost instantly, therefore it saves the
animal much suffering.
Now there are many kinds of deadfalls, the most of which have been
shown from time to time in Hunter-Trader-Trapper. Were I up on
drawing, I would illustrate some of the deadfalls which I consider
the most successful, but I am not, so enclose photo. I will mention
some of the deadfalls which I have seen in use in different parts of
the country, some of which were good, but the majority I have seen in
general use I did not like mostly on account of the length of time
that it took to construct them, and the manner in which it was
necessary to place the bait.
I prefer a deadfall so constructed that several different kinds of
bait can be used at the same time, therefore the trap is ready for
more than one kind of an animal and also a trap that is readily
constructed. In the South we see many deadfalls. The most common
deadfalls used are those made by placing a bottom log about six or
eight inches in diameter and five or six feet long. The drop was
about the same size as the bottom log, only much longer and stakes
were split from the pine logs and driven into the ground the entire
length of the bottom log on both sides of the log. These stakes or
boards were long enough to come above the drop log when the trap was
set. The drop log was placed between the two rows of stakes and above
the bottom log. The common figure 4 trigger was used and placed about
midway of the bottom log and raising the drop log six or eight inches
from the bottom log. This made a runway that enabled the animal to
enter from either end of the run and the animal necessarily was on
top of the bottom log and directly under the drop log. The bait was
fastened to the spindle. This deadfall may work well on mink, skunk
and opossum, but I hardly think it a good trap for other animals and
it requires too much time to construct it.
[Illustration: GOOD SMALL ANIMAL DEADFALL.]
Another deadfall that I saw in common use on the Pacific Coast as
well as in other sections of the country was the ordinary string
deadfall. It is hardly necessary to describe this trap for every boy
who works a trap line knows how to make them. The trap is made by
using a bottom log three or four feet long and a drop log of the same
size, but much longer. If the trap is not heavy enough of its own
weight, place logs on the drop log until it is sufficiently heavy to
kill the animal. Four stakes are driven, two on either side of the
log and close to the bottom log and about two feet apart and driven
so that the top or drop log will work easily between the stakes. Two
of the stakes, the ones driven on the side where the bait pen is, had
a crotch or fork and a stick was placed in these crotches. A string
was tied to the drop log and to a stick of the proper length so that
when the drop log was raised up eight or ten inches from the bottom
log and the string passed over the stick in the crotches, one end of
the trigger stick would rest against the stick placed in the
crotches. The other end would slightly catch onto another stick, laid
directly under the one that rests in the crotches and resting against
the forked stakes and about two inches from the bottom log. This
stick is called the treadle, as the animal going into the bait pen to
get the bait must step on this treadle, pushing it down, which will
release the trigger spindle and allow the drop log to fall.
The bait pen is usually made by driving stakes in a circle from one
of the trap stakes to the other stake on the same side of the bottom
log. This style of a deadfall is alright as to handling bait, but I
do not consider it a sure trap, as often the animal will set off the
trap before it is far enough under the drop to make a sure catch. I
prefer a trigger that will cause the animal to get at least one fore
leg over the bottom piece before the trap is sprung.
In making this style of a deadfall it is not necessary to use a
string and the forked stakes with the cross stick in the forks; all
that is necessary is to have two upright standards, one locked on to
the other by just a notch cut in the standard that the drop rest on
and catch the other end of the standard resting on the bed place.
This standard is made slightly wedge shape so as to rest firmly in
the notch in the upper standard. The notch should be about two-thirds
the distance from the lower end of the stick up and just long enough
to come down and rest against the side of the crossbar or treadle,
which, as before stated, should be about two inches above the bed
piece.
The stone deadfall with the figure 4 trigger, I have found in common
use in nearly all sections where large flat rocks were to be had to
use in making the trap. This stone deadfall is alright in mink
trapping and smaller animals but it is not favored much in coon
trapping. There are many other styles of deadfalls which I will try
to describe later.
As to animals taking bait, will say, I have never had much trouble in
getting meat or carnivorous animals to take bait, but sometimes it is
necessary to use a different bait than what they will take at other
times. This, undoubtedly, is owing to what the animals have been
accustomed to feeding on. If the animal is fed on a certain kind of
food and will no longer take readily to it as a bait, then use
something different. For instance, I found it difficult on the
Pacific Coast in the vicinity of Vancouver to get mink to take flesh
as a bait, while they readily took other baits. When the mink will
not take bait readily, then of course the deadfall does not make a
successful mink trap. While the deadfall cannot take the place of the
steel trap, yet a well constructed deadfall under some conditions has
advantages over the steel trap. Often a deadfall can be set in a
thicket of evergreen trees or under a single pine, hemlock or other
evergreen tree, or it may be protected by building a frame of poles
above the trap and cover with boughs to partly protect the trap from
the heavy snows. Now you have a trap that will work alright, where a
steel trap would freeze down from sleet or other causes and would not
spring; nor will Johnny Graball carry off a deadfall.
No, boys, do not shun the deadfall when trapping skunk in a section
where material is convenient to build it with, and especially if you
are near your trapping grounds so that you can go out at times and
put up a trap or two so as to have a good line of deadfalls ready
when the trapping season arrives.