216 WILD-FOWL SHOOTING. 
they shoot below and behind their birds; and this is 
particularly apt to be the case where the game, as 
with wild-fowl, appears to move more slowly than it 
really does. 
To the novice in this peculiar sport, the second 
difficulty to overcome will be the inability to judge 
distances. Not only do objects appear over the 
water nearer than they really are, but there is no 
neighboring object that will aid the judgment in 
coming to a correct conclusion; and by changes 
in the weather birds in the air will seem to be 
nearer or further off, and their plumage will be 
more or less distinctly visible, according to circum- 
stances. After several days’ experience in dark, 
cloudy weather, the greatest proficient will, on the 
first ensuing day of bright sunshine, throw away 
many useless shots at impracticable distances. 
There is no criterion to determine the distance 
of any bird high above the horizon, and any recom- 
mendation to wait till the eyes can be seen—the 
book-maker’s rule—is worse than useless; it is a 
matter of experience and judgment. 
There is no better time to kill ducks than when 
they are coming head on, the commonly promulgated 
idea that their feathers will turn the heavy shot 
being simply absurd; and all the marksman has to 
do is to cover his bird, pitch his gun a trifle up- 
wards, and pull the trigger. 
In the matter of ammunition, the high numbers 
of shot and the light charges of powder of old 
times have changed by general consent; and for 
