376 BIRD-LIFE OF THE BORDERS 



short of oilskins will keep one dry as she is driven ahead, 

 "full and bye," and with the leach of the sail temporarily 

 stiffened with the boathook. When a weather-gauge has 

 been attained, up goes the helm, and we run in on the 

 pack of scaup gently rising and falling on the swell. 

 But even scaup, tame as they are, won't allow a big 

 coble to run right over them at sea, and long before 

 we are in shot, one sees jets of spray flying up among 

 the ducks as, one by one, they rise and get under 

 way. Poor birds! they have done their best to assure 

 safety ; but instinct, or, at any rate, reasoning power, 

 lacks a little at this point : for as they steam away in a 

 straggling line to windward, they fail to observe that the 

 coble's course is altered again. Under a lee helm she 

 has flown up into the wind, and, with gathered "way" is 

 scudding right into their "line of communications." If, 

 moreover, she has been well handled, she has an even less 

 distance to traverse than the birds, and this (unless, as 

 happens, they change their course) will bring the fowl 

 across her bows— sometimes indeed, right over them. It 

 is, of course, a very old manoeuvre — cutting out ducks by 

 a "luff," as they fly to windward — but still it is a very 

 pretty one, and affords exciting moments. 



The behaviour of all sea-ducks when approached by a 

 boat is the same, i.e., they rise wide, but may, under 

 favourable conditions and in a steady breeze, be "cut 

 out " as described. No duck of any sort whatever would 

 dream of attempting to escape by diving: I have been 

 told that long-tails occasionally do so : but never saw any 

 approach to it myself, and fancy that either the birds had 

 not realised the presence of danger and were simply 

 diving for food, or that grebes, tysties, or other birds had 

 been mistaken for ducks. It may be that long-tails will, 



