Habits and Habitat of Snipe, 183 



tion of his classic book, has the following 

 sentence: "After a frost has brought the 

 snipe into the country, you are pretty sure 

 of good sport on the first open windy day 

 that follows it." So you would be if frosts 

 did invariably bring birds into the country ; 

 but the truth is that they just as often 

 drive every snipe out of it, using the word 

 country — as it is presumed Colonel Hawker 

 uses it — in the sense of locality. 



The young sportsman who Is looking out 

 for winter snipe - shooting quarters will do 

 well therefore to make careful inquiries from 

 sportsmen, not from countrymen or hotel- 

 keepers, of the effect of frost on the snipe 

 population of the district he is considering. 

 I have known and experienced many cases 

 of grievous disappointment from neglect of 

 this preliminary, entailing that most unsatis- 

 factory of all retrospects, a long-looked-for 

 and wasted shooting holiday. 



The reason why I do not advise taking 

 counsel with the people excepted is that, self 

 interest apart, the lower orders are rarely ob- 



