62 The Partridge Family 



string, when he is most impatient, and so practi- 

 cally force him over in advance. Once over, he 

 has to stay there, and not one green hand in one 

 thousand will ever reason out why you get the most 

 shots. In beating a ditch, especially a railroad 

 ditch, the choice place is in the middle of it; for 

 the cover is seldom very high, and the nature of 

 the ground is all in the gun's favor, as most of the 

 birds will follow the ditch and afford the fair- 

 est of chances. When the banks are high, one 

 man must keep up where he can see all about, and 

 mark down lost birds. The experienced man 

 usually sees that the other fellow has this task. 



Old hands know all about these fine points, 

 and they are merely referred to here for the bene- 

 fit of a novice, who, if he be wise, will bear them 

 all in mind. Perhaps my present attitude some- 

 what resembles the tactics of the card-sharper, 

 who goes about exposing the tricks of gamblers, 

 yet the motive is good. Needless to say, by far 

 the better way, in fact the only sportsmanlike 

 way, is to insist upon a fair and square sharing 

 of all hard work, rough beats, and choice posi- 

 tions. It is no credit to anybody to get the better 

 of a game in which a raw 'un is pitted against 

 a master hand. True sportsmanship prefers a 

 difficult problem, and there is ever more satisfac- 

 tion in winning against the odds than with them. 

 Sharp practice is the deadly foe to sport ; yet 



