THE "QUAIL" 69 



her nest, nearly always coming up on tlie wing 

 and alighting almost in it, and when leaving 

 making a flight as soon as she is fairly clear of 

 her eggs. Rarely, indeed, does she walk to or 

 from her treasures, so that she may leave no 

 trail for her enemies to follow to her undoing. 

 Of course in all these cases the bird's scent is 

 much less because of the thorough airing out 

 which the feathers get in their hustling flight, 

 but I much doubt any ability to withold their 

 scent in either one of them. In the case of the 

 Quails more often than not it is the fault of 

 the shooter in his carelessness in marking or 

 of the dog in his lack of nose than that the 

 birds have '^retained their scent." However, 

 should this strange disappearance of the birds 

 occur it is only a matter of waiting until they 

 have begun to move about, — as they will in a 

 very short time — in order to get good shooting 

 at the scattered members of the bevy. Once 

 the flock has been well broken up the single 

 birds usually hug the ground very closely 

 when the dog has found them. I have almost 

 caught one in my hand thinking it a bird which 

 I had just seen fall and which lay within six 

 feet of it. 



