246 UPLAND SHOOTING. 



others. How did each of those birds come in there just 

 at the right time to have the place to himself, and how 

 was it that, on so large a stretch of good feeding and 

 lying ground, each of those birds happened to select that 

 particular spot to stop in? I leave it for wiser heads 

 than mine to answer. 



Let me give a word or two of advice to the intending 

 snipe-shooter. If you are in a strange part of the coun- 

 try, and are, therefore, unacquainted with the ground 

 over which you intend shooting, try to find someone 

 who knows the nature of the meadows. You can almost 

 always succeed in this, and, for a reasonable compensa- 

 tion, get a man or a boy to devote at least a day to 

 showing you over the meadows. Get him to point out 

 any deep, treacherous spots, where, if you were to go, 

 you would run the risk of getting sunk in a spring-hole, 

 or a bed of quicksand. Oftentimes, good snipe-grounds 

 abound in such places. If there are any ditches, as there 

 almost always are, have your guide show you the 

 places where they can be forded safely, or crossed in 

 other ways. If the ground be intersected with small 

 creeks, too deep to ford, and these creeks be tributaries 

 of some larger stream bordering the meadows, have your 

 man get a boat and keep it where it can be got at hand- 

 ily, so that he can at any time set you and your dogs 

 across. This will oftentimes save you and the dogs 

 much walking which otherwise were unavoidable. If 

 the main stream be affected by the tides, ascertain when 

 the tide will be rising, as then will be the best time for 

 you to be on hand. The rising tide will drive the birds 

 from the lower grounds to the higher meadows, con- 

 fining them within narrower limits, where they may 

 more easily be reached. Ground which at low tide you 

 might be able to walk over with ease, will at high tide 

 be so far under water that a boat will be necessary for 



