HOW TO SHOOT. 47 



gun which is partially foul shoots closer and with more 

 force than a clean one, and say they can never do so 

 well immediately after the gun is cleaned as after it 

 has been fired several times. I cannot possibly see 

 how the force of shot or ball in its passage along the 

 barrel can be increased by foulness. Certainly the 

 substance that helps fill up the passage cannot in any 

 conceivable way add to the force. Suppose a ditch 

 to be cut down the side of a mountain, of even width, 

 and quite smooth on its sides and bottom ; would the 

 force of the current of water passing through be in- 

 creased by having stones and rubbish thrown into it ? 

 or by having the sides overgrown with grass and 

 weeds ? The farmer would not think so ; and neither 

 do I believe that dirt in a gun or rifle can add to its 

 propellant force. If possibly the shot is kept together 

 longer by the sediment, this can happen only at the 

 expense of force and the increase of the recoil. 



While standing in momentary expectation of a shot 

 at a flushed bird, do not spread your legs apart to get 

 a particular attitude, as some sportsmen do. It may 

 look rather artistic while at the stand of a pigeon- 

 shoot ; but even there it is neither natural nor pro- 

 ductive of success. For should the bird be flushed, 

 and fly rapidly to the right, the sportsman could not 

 conveniently recover his limbs from their strained 

 position in season to get a good sight upon him. The 

 better plan is to stand naturally, with the left side a 

 little in advance, so that you may easily cover a bird 

 flying to the right ; and if the feet are near together, 

 as they should be, the shooter, by making a pivot of 



