CONTENTS. 5 
CHAPTER XIX. 
DUSKY, OR BLACK DUCK. 
Black mallard in the West—Description—Seldom seen in West—Size. 
CHAPTER XxX. 
AMERICAN COOT—MUD HEN. 
A harmless nuisance—Neither fit for sport nor food—A verdict with- 
out a trial—Eaten sometimes—-How they taste—Plenty in fall— 
Voracious feeders and incessant chatterers—Skulking through the 
rice stalks—Their flight—Drive them from decoys. 
CHAPTER XXI. 
BUFFLE-HEADED DUCK-—-BUTTER BALL. 
Smallest of duck tribe—Seldom hunted—Swift flyers—Their food. 
CHAPTER XXII. 
RED-HEAD DUCK. 
Distinction between red-head and canvas-back—Great feeders—What 
they like to eat—In the timber—A treacherous stream—-Delighiful 
shooting—Decoys and how to use them—Call them—Best way to 
capture a cripple—Where they are found—An evening in the Mis- 
souri bottoms—Between 70 and 80 in an hour—Out of shells. 
CHAPTER XXIII. 
SCIENCE OF SCULLING WILD FOWL. 
Trying to catch the motion—Very discouraging—‘ Swish-splash ’— 
How to catch the motion—Safety of scull-boat—Advantage of 
sculling—Among the trees with common boat—With scull-boat— 
After pin-tails and widgeon—Sculling a mallard drake—Going 
down the marsh—Descriptive marsh scenery—An inquisitive pin- 
tail—Cost of inquisitiveness—How to become a graduate in wild 
fowl shooting. 
CHAPTER XXIV. 
PIN-TAIL—SPRIG-TAIL. 
A handsome bird—On some grassy knoll—Wild and restless—Com- 
parison between male and female—More plenty in spring—Out in 
the overflowed fields—How tantalizing !—Just out of range—A 
desperate hunter—At last he getsone down—Such luck !—Lost and 
- found——Decoy at times nicely—Use mallard decoys—Look sharp ! 
high jumpers—Whistle their call often—How they descend verti- 
cally—Travellers. 
