THE WOODCOCK. 



319 



pears above the horizon. Their presence in a region may 

 therefore be known by the position of the leaves or the 

 borings in the ground. 



Ardent lovers of woodcock shooting think no bird af- 

 fords such sport as their favorite, as luck and uncertain- 

 ty enter into it to a large extent. This is true, for a 

 man may find dozens in a region one day and not a single 

 bird the next, owing to their erratic migrations. I will 

 close this chapter by giving a recipe for cooking wood- 

 cock. The bird should first be allowed to get "high,"' 

 but not too much so, and then be thoroughly cleansed. 

 Leave on the head, as it is a delicious morsel, cover the 

 breast with sweet lard, and then roast in a covered pan 

 containing a lump of salt butter. 



