GROUSING 31 



the ground on which a finish is to be made in the afternoon ; 

 and if that be thoroughly done, then the two hours before 

 dusk will give the best sport of the whole day, for the birds 

 will be feeding and no longer in coveys, but in twos and 

 threes, and young ones will lie close even while their more 

 canny parents are put into the bag as they rise alongside 

 of them. A beat should never end close to the march, but 

 always finish as much as possible in the centre of the moor, 

 for grouse driven over the march late in the day will stay 

 to sup and sleep and breakfast, and thus any neighbours 

 who may hunt that way on the following day will bag 

 many birds that do not rightly belong to their ground. 



Unless with the special purpose of making a big bag, very 

 early starts are not advisable, but if a record performance 

 is to be attempted, it should only be undertaken by those 

 certain of being able to last out the day, as it is clearly useless 

 to start two men off at five o'clock on the morning of the 

 twelfth if they are likely to be dead beat at midday. 



When writing of record bags, those made in 1843 and 

 1846 by the late Colonel Campbell of Monzie still remain 

 the largest scores ever put together over dogs ; and in these 

 days of record breaking, high preserving, and big rents, it 

 is remarkable no one has been found to surpass them. This 

 we attribute somewhat to the rage for driving grouse, for 

 there are certainly a good few shootings on which the 

 attempt could be made with every chance of success. Mrs. 

 Campbell of Monzie has kindly sent me copies of the Colonel's 

 letters, which he wrote in reply to several enquiries about 

 his large bags. Here they are, and may they inspire some 

 of our crack walkers and shooters to try and beat them : — 



"Monzie Castle, 



" 2lSt August, 1843. 



" My actual bag, carried off the moor by the ponies and 

 creels on the evening of the 12th, was 184^ brace of grouse. 



