INDIAN MODE OF HUNTING LYNX AND MARTEN.
Snaring is the principal way in which the lynxes are killed by the
North American Indians. After a heavy fall of snow, however, if an
Indian crosses a fresh lynx track, he immediately gives chase, even
if he has only his belt axe.
The hunter only follows very fresh tracks, and in a short time comes
up with the big cat. As soon as the animal knows it is pursued, it
either climbs a tree or crouches under some thick shrub. If the
hunter finds it up a tree, he sets to work at once to cut down the
tree (that is if he has no gun). As soon as the tree totters he makes
his way in the direction which it is to fall. The lynx clings to the
tree until near the ground, and then springs clear. While he is
floundering in the snow, the Indian bravely runs in and knocks him
with his axe. Of course, if he has his gun, he simply shoots the cat
and it tumbles dead to the foot of the tree. The feat of running down
a lynx and shooting him with a bow and arrow is what all Indian
youths aim to accomplish; they are then considered hunters.
Lynxes are always found in greatest numbers where their natural food
supply is most plentiful. They feed usually on rabbits and
partridges, and these are to be found in young growth of such trees
as pitch pine, birch and poplar.
The Indian also, when he is dependent on rabbits, lives on the border
of such a country, and has long lines of snares which he visits two
or three times a week. Along this snare road at certain distances he
has his lynx snares, which are nothing different from those set for
rabbits, except being much larger. Yes, there is another difference:
Instead of the snare being tied to a tossing pole, it is simply tied
to a stout birch stick, 3 or 4 feet long by about 2 inches in
diameter. The extreme ends of this are lodged on two forked sticks,
and the snare hanging down in the middle is then set, tied to small
dry twigs on each side to keep it in position.
At the back of the snare, at about 2 or 3 feet, the head and stuffed
skin of a rabbit is fixed under some brush. The skin is filled with
moss, or pine brush, and is fixed so as to look as much as possible
like a live rabbit in its form. The head being to the skin gives it
the natural shape and smell, and the lynx, walking leisurely along
the snowshoe track, notices the game and makes a spring for it
through the snare. In his headlong bound he carries snare and cross
stick along with him, and as soon as he feels the cord tightening
about his neck he not infrequently becomes his own executioner by
getting his forefeet on the stick and pulling backwards as hard as he
can. The more he struggles, the madder he gets, and pulls the harder
to free himself, but this is, on the contrary, only making matters
worse. The loop of the noose gets matted into the soft, thick hair of
the throat, and there is no "slack" after that; in a few moments the
great cat is dead.
Sometimes the lynx carries the cross stick in his mouth and climbs a
tree. This is invariably the last tree he ever climbs, because once
up the tree he lets the stick drop and it hangs down, generally on
the opposite side of the limb from that on which the lynx is. As the
cat goes down the tree on one side, the cross stick goes up toward
the limb on the other and gets fixed in the crotch. As soon as the
cord tightens about his neck he tries the harder to get down, and is
consequently hanging himself.
Lynxes are very stupid. They will even put their foot into an open
and exposed steel trap; and the better-off Indians often use small
No. 1 traps instead of snares. This, however is only done latterly,
and by the very well-off Indians. As a rule Indians only have traps
for beaver, otter, fox and bear.
Lynxes are very rarely seen in summer, keeping close to the thickest
bush. In any case, the skin is then of no value, and they are far
from being "a thing of beauty," with nothing but a bare skin.
In the prime state they are largely used on the continent as linings,
and each skin is worth about $4.
* * *
There are three kinds or qualities of martens recognized by the
trappers.
First.--The pine marten that is found in the country covered by soft
woods, such as pine, spruce, white fir and birch. This is the most
numerous and consequently the skins are of least value. They are of
yellowish brown color on the back and orange on the throat, changing
down to pale yellow or white on the belly.
Second.--The rock marten; this is found in a country with stunted
growth of spruce timber, a very mountainous district, the chief
features of which are great crevices and boulders. Some of the skins
of this variety are of great beauty, being dark on back, and throat
and sides of gray or stone color.
The third kind, which is the scarcest, and consequently of most
value, is the marten found in the black spruce country, or swamps of
northern Labrador. The fur of this variety is of a deep brown color
throughout the pelt, and at times the tips of the hairs on the rump
are silver gray or golden brown. The latter are very rare, and such
skins have been sold in the London fur market for L5 a piece! They
are also much larger than the other kinds, the skins of the male
often being from 24 to 30 inches long, exclusive of the tail.
The proper and most successful time for hunting is in the latter days
of November and the whole month of December. They are hunted again in
March, but by that time the sun has bleached out the color of the
hair, which causes a depreciation in value.
As a business, trapping is the only mode of killing martens. They are
rarely seen to be shot at, as they pass the days in thickets or
hollow stumps, only emerging after nightfall to hunt their food,
which consists of mice, birds, young partridges, etc.
Wooden traps are made in the well-known "figure-of-four" shape, and
are set either on stumps or on the snow, flattened down with the
snowshoes, and the trap built thereon.
It is considered a very good day's work in December for a trapper to
construct, bait and set up twenty-five such traps. A real marten
hunter (nothing to do with my name) camps each night at the end of
his day's work until he has from 150 to 200 traps set! He generally
visits them once in ten days or a fortnight, and if the catch
averages one marten to ten traps it is considered very fair.
It takes the hunter two full days to rebait, clean out and freshen up
such a line. When small steel traps are used instead of the deadfall,
the hunter can cover more ground in a day and do better work than by
making all wood traps. The steel traps are much more fortunate than
the wood ones. In the "figure-of-four" traps, before the animal is
caught it must seize the bait with its teeth and pull strong enough
to set off the trap, whereas with the steel trap the mere fact of his
coming to the doorway to smell insures his putting his foot in it,
and in a moment up hangs Mr. Marten or Mr. Mink, as the case may be!
Of course the steel traps have this disadvantage--they are weighty;
that is, when you have fifty and over on your back, but the man who
follows trapping as a business can very easily overcome this
difficulty by placing catches of traps at different places by canoe
near where he proposes to have his line in the winter; and he can
then branch off now and again for a new supply as he is setting up
his trap road.
This leaving the main road at right angles once in a while might even
be a source of profit to the trapper, for he might come across a bear
den or a beaver lodge, or fall on deer tracks, and if he succeeded in
killing a deer some of the sinewy parts would come in to bait his
traps.
The taking of the skins of these little animals is very simple. The
knife is used only about the head; once back of the ears the skin is
drawn steadily until the tail is reached, the core of which is drawn
out, either by a split stick or by the stiff thumb nail of the
trapper. The skin is then dried on flat (three) splints, and when
dried sufficiently to prevent it spoiling is tied up with others to
the number of ten in each bundle, and are thus taken to the trader or
fur dealer.
The first purchaser from the trapper generally buys them at an
average price, but he sells them to the manufacturer selected; that
is, getting a high price for the dark and a low price for the yellow
or pale.