RAIL-SHOOTING. 191 
of September, and disappears so instantaneously 
with the first heavy frost, that our superstitious 
baymen imagine it retires into the mud. It can, 
however, fly strongly, as I have occasionally had 
unpleasant evidence under peculiar circumstances, 
and in wild, windy weather. During low water, 
when it can run upon the muddy bottom among the 
thick stalks} which it does rapidly, it can hardly be 
flushed by any but the strongest and toughest dog, 
and is not frequently pursued ; although many per- 
sons enjoy the hard walking and exposure of this 
plan, preferring to tramp over the quaking surface 
of our broad salt meadows, and flushing the rail 
from amid some tuft of reeds, kill him with the aid 
of their loved fellow-playmate, a high-strung setter 
or untiring water spaniel. 
As the tide rises, however, and covers the bottom 
with a few inches of water, the rail, caught feeding 
among its favorite wild oats, or on the grains of the 
high reeds, and alarmed at the advancing boat, is 
forced to take wing and present an easy mark to its 
destroyer. But if missed, although marked down 
to an inch, it rarely rises a second time, having pro- 
bably escaped by swimming—a thorough knowledge 
of which is among its numerous accomplishments. 
The rail has a long, thin, and soft body, which it 
appears to have the faculty of compressing; as it can 
glide amid the thick stems of reeds and grass with 
wonderful rapidity ; and if wounded, it will dive 
and swim under water, leaving its bill only project- 
ing, so as to bid defiance to pursuit. 
