SOME ILLUSTRATIVE EXPERIENCES _ 119 
it has never been my good fortune to make a big bag in this 
quarter. For years I have tried to locate a stubble on the 
wolds where a few shots might be got at them in the autumn, 
but until recently, beyond an odd goose after many days’ 
trouble, I was no more successful. I had full liberty over 
much of the land in the neighbourhood where the geese 
usually came, but it seemed unfortunate for me that the birds 
would select some field over which I had not permission to 
shoot. 
Long after the season had passed I heard of particular 
stubbles which the geese had regularly frequented. I finally 
determined to act on information generally regarding past 
events rather than rely on present daily observations. Thus 
it was I decided to wait for a recurrent suitable crop in any 
large field to which I learned the birds had in years past 
resorted. I found this by far the best plan. To search out 
their feeding ground without some knowledge of their habits 
in previous years always proved unsatisfactory. One spot I 
lately heard about, and later still located, looked a very 
promising one. About the centre of this field were two large 
pits, out of which chalk had been drawn to metal the roads. 
Five years passed before the crop was again barley. During 
this time I kept a close watch every year. Now was my time 
tocome. All arrangements were made. An ambuscade was 
erected in one of the chalk pits long before the geese could 
reach this country ; I had even gone so far as to persuade the 
farmer to delay ploughing up this particular field until after I 
had visited it. I had two guns, a single Greener 8-bore and a 
double 10. Both were bored for brass perfect cases. The 
8-bore carried a charge of 7 drs. black coarse powder and 
24 oz. of No. 1, and, being choke-bored, made a close pattern 
at a very long range. 
I spent much time during the latter part of October on 
a bicycle spying out the country for geese, but finding that my 
