>The American Woodcock 317 



pointer worthy of the name. In many parts of 

 the country, notably upon the sides of the Penn- 

 sylvania mountains, there are peculiar wet spots, 

 frequently of considerable extent. These spots 

 occur precisely where one naturally would expect 

 dryness, and there usually is more or less dense, 

 leafy cover about them. On such ground, one 

 is apt to find a fair number of birds during July 

 and August. 



About September most of the small creeks, 

 which afforded excellent boring earlier in the 

 season, have become too dry. Then the cock 

 are very apt to betake themselves to large fields 

 of green corn. In this tall cover there frequently 

 is very pretty snap-shooting, and a man can work 

 his pointer, or setter, to advantage. A bell on 

 the dog, tied to his neck with a string which will 

 not sustain the dog's weight, is no bad wrinkle. 



The wise man, beating a field of tall corn, will 

 not falsely judge its promise because it happens 

 to appear pretty dry. There may be — nay, there 

 frequently is — a low-lying and much damper 

 acre or so near the centre and hidden by the 

 corn. Such a bit often affords choice feeding. 

 And even a dusty, dry field may happen to be the 

 day resort of half the birds in the neighborhood. 

 The cock not infrequently pass the day in such 

 fields, and fly far and wide to feed at dusk. There- 

 fore, it is well to work through the field and keep 



