JIMMY’S TRIP TO CALIFORNIA 69 
There was great honking and excitement, as the entire 
flock, after circling several times, found deep water and 
one by one dropped down heavily into it, sending the 
spray flying. I watched them through my field-glasses. 
They were very thirsty and when not drinking would 
bathe, sinking their bodies deep in the water, then sit 
bolt upright with their feathers all ruffled up as though 
hung out to dry. 
“By crickey,’’ said Jimmy, ‘‘those geese are about 
played out. Did you see how they came down?. They 
were that tired they almost fell into the water. I’d 
just love to get a crack at them. Did I ever tell you 
about getting seven of those big chaps one morning last 
fall?” 
“‘No,’’ said I, ‘‘you never mentioned it.”’ 
“Well, it was this way: I was guiding a Denver sport 
and while rowing home one evening, I saw two bunches 
of Canadas in a small grassy place not over two miles 
from the shanty. Early next morning I started after 
them. I had my half dozen profile geese decoys set 
out while it was yet dark. There wasn’t a bit of use 
to build a blind, it would only frighten them away. 
So I took a running jump into the tules edging the 
grassy place, leaving no break in the outside line for the 
geese to be suspicious about, and laid down. A bunch 
of eight, making very little noise, came in just after 
the first streak of dawn. It was almost too dark to 
shoot, but I raised up and gave them all six shells. 
You never heard such a commotion. I got three 
from the bunch.”’ 
*“What did you do then?”’ 
““Never stirred a finger, let the three lay where they 
fell and waited. Pretty soon I heard a great honking 
over the lake and saw a gang of a dozen coming my way. 
