WILD DUCKS. 



271 



ance as possible. A blind of white cloth can be used to 

 advantage in winter, if the ground is covered with snow, 

 for it not only affords shelter, but is so deceiving at a 

 distance that the birds approach it without hesitation. 



The sneak-box, sink-box, or float, is a sort of wooden 

 coffin, about six feet long, two feet wide, and thirteen or 

 fourteen inches in depth, which has wide flaps to keep it 

 afloat and prevent the water from running into it. It is 



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generally anchored in shallow water, and in the most 

 advantageous position, and is painted as near the hue of 

 the fluid in which it rests as possible. It is sunk so low, 

 by means of weights, that the entrance is on a level Avith 

 the surface of the stream or lake, so that it cannot be 

 seen at any distance. It is also occasionally covered with 

 brush or sedges. The decoys are placed around this in 

 the form of a triangle, at a distance varying from fifteen 

 to twenty-five yards, luit a few arc posted on the plat- 



