"Why don't you fasten the chains to the big log, instead of to those light clogs?" asked the boy.
"Dat ain' no good way to do," replied the Indian. "If she fasten on de big solid log, de carcajo git chance to mak' de big pull. He git w'at you call de brace, an' he pull an' pull, an' by-m-by, he pull hees foot out. But w'en you mak' de trap on de clog he ain' kin git no good pull. Every tam he pull, de clog com' 'long a leetle, an' all he do is drag de stick."
The remaining trap was set at another deadfall, and the two trappers returned home to await results. But while they waited, they were not idle. The dog food was running low, so armed with ice chisels and axes they went out on to the snow-covered lake and busied themselves in setting their whitefish nets through the ice.
CHAPTER XI
THE CARIBOU HUNT
Connie Morgan and his trapping partner, 'Merican Joe, bolted a hurried breakfast. For both were eager to know the result of their attempt to trap the carcajo that had worked such havoc with their line of marten and mink traps.
"Suppose we do catch this one?" asked Connie as he fastened his rackets. "Won't there be an other one along in a day or two, so we'll have to do it all over again?"
"No," explained the Indian. "Carcajo no like nodder carcajo. In de winter tam de carcajo got he's own place to hunt. If nodder wan comes 'long dey mak' de big fight, an' wan gits lick an' he got to go off an' fin' nodder place to hunt. Injun hate carcajo. Marten hate um. Mink, an fox hate um. Deer hate um. All de peoples hate um—de big peoples, an' de leetle peoples. Carcajo so mean even carcajo hate carcajo!"