The trapper knows his wits¹ must match  
The wits of those whom he would catch.
 
                   Little Joe Otter².
 
The trapper who had tried to run down Little Joe Otter and his family and kill them with a club was not one to give up easily. Of course, he was disappointed at his failure to get one of those Otter coats. But he was not at all discouraged. As soon as Little Joe Otter and his family had disappeared in the open water at one end of that pond, the trapper stopped running. He was glad to stop, for he was quite out of breath.
 
“Those Otters³ won’t stay in this pond long,” said he to himself. “They know that I know they are here, so they will move on as soon as they think they safely can. I can guess just where they are bound⁴ for. They are bound for the big brook⁵ where there is a lot of swift⁶ water that doesn’t freeze, and where they will be sure of good fishing. They will stay there for some time. That will be the place to set some traps. The thing for me to do is to leave them alone for awhile so that they will not be at all suspicious⁷. Then I’ll set some traps. Their fur is in the best of condition now, and if I can get two or three of their skins they will pay me several times over for all the trouble I may take to get them.”
 
So the trapper turned back and tramped home. H............