en write or cause it to be written and published in some of the
sporting papers, that I had caught 300 fox this season, as I see one
trapper did, but I would not feel good about it after I had done so.
Fifty-seven fox are the most that I ever caught in one season.

A brother was down to see me and I was pleased to meet him, I wish to
say, brother trappers, that if you should have an opportunity to meet
Brother Stearns, you will find him a gentleman in every respect. But,
Brother Stearns and I could not agree on the scent question, and he
did not like to believe that I handled my traps, bait and all
pertaining to the setting of the trap, bare-handed. He went so far as
to hint that I was cold-blooded, and even felt of my pulse to see if
my circulation was all right. Hold on, I am mistaken, it was my hands
that he felt of to see if they were not cold, but he pronounced them
all right. He then related a story about an old uncle of his and a
crow, but shook his head and said it did not do any harm to wear
gloves if it did not do any good. That is all right, but we do not
like to be carrying unnecessary weight.

One word with Brother Chas. T. Wells. No, brother, I do not go much
on scents. Perhaps you would have caught more than 15 fox, but I do
not like to own that you could have done so. Now the first ten days
that I was in the woods, there were hundreds of head of cattle in the
woods, and the woods were full of men gathering them up, and one
could do but little or nothing in the way of trapping. Neither did
the 15 include the five that were stolen, nor the two that broke the
chains and went off with the trap. By the way, Brother Stearns could
tell you of a chase I had with one of those that carried off a trap,
the worst jaunt I have had in many a day. No brother, the only scent
I use is the urine of the fox and I only use that in certain places.
No, I believe that one good method is much better than scents in
trapping the fox. If one wishes to use scents, they will find none
better than some of those advertised in the H-T-T.

Now brothers, while I do not believe that any one man is so cute he
cannot find his equal, I do not like to believe but that I can catch
as many fox as the next one--all things being equal. For the last ten
years I have not set traps over a scope of territory to exceed two or
three miles square and if Brother Stearns had been on the ground that
I trapped on, a few days before I began trapping, he wo