han it should have been.

Indians and professional hunters and trappers of the north say that they
can notice a difference in the fur of foxes, lynx, marten, etc., when
the food supply is abundant. The fur is thicker and has a healthier,
silkier and glossier appearance. The secret, no doubt, is to give the
animals plenty of room and feed should be varied. Here is where the
person who knows the habits of the animal or animals he is raising is
valuable. When cattle, sheep and hogs are fed properly they take on fat
readily and produce a healthy coat of hair or wool. The same applies to
the fur bearing animals.

What animals offer the best inducement to raise? This is a question that
each individual going into the business must largely decide. The place
you have in view for the starting of the "farm" will have much to do
with this. Is the location one best adapted to skunk, mink, coon, fox,
muskrat or some other fur bearer? Again, your experience should be taken
into consideration,--what fur bearers you are most familiar with. If you
live near a large city which offers a market for coon and opossum
carcasses, this should be considered as these animals are easy to raise
and opossum especially are very prolific, producing from six to twelve
at a litter. While the fur of coon and opossum will never be very
valuable, yet, as both fur and carcass have a cash value, they will
prove greater money makers than many believe. Muskrat are another animal
that should not be overlooked as they increase rapidly and their flesh
is now being sold in many of the larger cities.

Marten and silver fox should not be raised in the south, as these are
animals that do best in the cold sections. Otter and mink are two
animals that the sun fades the fur and as the darker the fur, the more
valuable, it is important that as little sun as possible shines upon
them. For this reason it is advisable to have the enclosure for these
animals in the woods or thicket. In fact some trees should be in
enclosures for all animals. If raising coon or opossum, they will be "at
home" in the trees while other animals will enjoy the shade in the
summer and will make use of the leaves in the dens for winter.

[Illustration: Enclosure in thick woods.]

There are some animals such as marten, fisher, wild cat, weasel, badger
and wolves that do not seem promising to us to raise for various
reasons. Marten do best in the high mountain sections; fisher and wild
cat would