290 DUCK SHOOTING. 



a part in the disturbance. A bunch of shell duck had 

 cut down to the decoys back of me and were gone 

 before I could get around to them. The next minute 

 I was just as well pleased that I had not shot, for the 

 captain had started the brant, and they were coming- 

 down the shore. There seemed a very large squad of 

 them ; too bad they could not come in smaller bunches 

 at different times ! I hugged the bottom of the box 

 close, and began to toss up in my mind whether to try 

 the eight-gauge first or the ten, or had I better let 

 them alight, or would it be better to have them bunch 

 in the air. I was considering these things, when, to 

 my horror, I saw the whole flock going past me to the 

 leeward, and not noticing the decoys. That would 

 not do. So off came my old black soft hat, and flirting 

 it with a quick motion along the edge of the box, I 

 called brant talk as loud as I could. How quickly they 

 noticed it! The head part of the bunch lifted in the 

 air and caught sight of the stool. 



In an instant everything was changed. The head 

 birds had turned for the decoys, and the rear birds 

 were mounting the air to see where they were going, 

 and, finding out, fell in behind. They were all talking 

 at once and were hugging the water where the heavy 

 wind was least felt. "They will come in like chick- 

 ens," I thought, "and if I work those two guns all 

 right we will have something to look at to-night." 

 Along they came, a regiment of them, beating slowly 

 against the wind. How big they looked! Soon the 

 half-dozen birds in advance reached the decoys and 



