difficult to believe that the two are really equal in size — 

 the white disc appears so strikingly the larger. Viewed 

 against the background of the sky, a pheasant is under the 

 conditions of the black disc on a white ground, and 

 appears much smaller than it would if seen against a dark 

 ground, such as the trees of a covert, or the side of a hill. 

 In shooting, we judge the distance of a bird from the gun 

 chiefly by its apparent size ; so that a bird that from any 

 other cause than a(ftual distance appears small, is judged 

 to be further off than it really is. If we habitually limit 

 ourselves to a 40 yard shot (I say habitually), a bird that 

 IS 40 yards up in the air is, from its apparent smallness 

 against the bright sky — and all skies are bright compared 

 with trees and hills — judged to be further away than the 

 prudent and self-respecting 40 yards, and is let off, though 

 the shot will strike it just as hard as one crossing, and 

 harder than one going away, horizontally. 



The esteemed Editor, himself, I have reason to know, 

 a shot in the same brilliant class as A, B, C and D, makes 

 a remark that possibly involves a misconception. After 

 noting the fad that at 40 yards the stream of shot is about 

 12 feet long, he says — "Now, if all these shots were 

 killers, it would be almost impossible to shoot too far 

 ahead of a bird." On the contrary, theory shows that it 

 would be quite easy ; though in practice, owing to the 

 human weakness which makes us all more liable to shoot 

 behind than in front, it is comparatively difficult. Let us 

 consider. The bird at 40 miles an hour is going about 

 60 ft. a second ; the shot at 40 yards di^ance from the 

 gun is going about eleven times as fast ; so that, while the 

 last shot is travelling the 1 2 ft. that separate it from the 



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