1388 WILD FOWL SHOOTING. 
dark. Every young hunter has the same text to learn 
from. Those times are good for ducks, but only in 
flight shooting, or when they come in to feed or roost, 
and the best continuous shooting I ever had has been 
in the middle of the day from ten in the morning until 
four in the afternoon. But mind, a knowledge of 
where they resort at such times must be had by the 
successful midday hunter, and they should be shot over 
decoys. At such times, look for them in rice beds, 
smart-weed, willow flashes, or in overflowed timber. 
At times one will rout them out accidentally. His judg- 
ment will tell him whether or not they will return. 
They will come back if they have been enjoying them- 
selves feeding in some quiet, secluded retreat, and will 
feel comparatively safe. The proper way to find their 
midday retreat is, go where you think they may be 
found, don’t be in a hurry to start out, but first decide 
where you intend going. Station yourself on some 
elevated place, and for half an hour watch every duck 
until it passes out of sight. If you do not see them 
light, depend on it you are at the wrong place, so move 
on. If you see cne light, perhaps a pair, possibly a 
flock, then carefully watch every bird that takes that 
direction, and if you notice they keep dropping in, you 
have found their feeding ground. Go there at once, 
rout them out quietly as possible,—better not shoot 
then, but set out your decoys, build your blind, and you 
will get splendid shooting, as they will string back 
singly, in pairs, and in small flocks. My memory is 
fresh with the recollection of frequent incidents of this 
kind, when I have half filled my duck-boat with mal- 
lards, when at the same time, inexperienced hunters 
were splashing around through the mud, wasting ammu- 
