RUFFED GROUSE 



sees a grouse " tower," all he has to do is to 

 watch where the bird falls. When he finds 

 the game it will be a case of " dead bird." 



In the alder bushes and in the foot-hills 

 of eastern mountains I have found the birds 

 in flocks of from a dozen to twenty grouse. 

 The natives sometimes hunted them there 

 with a cur-dog and a shot-gun or rifle. The 

 dog ran ahead and scared the birds up into 

 the trees, barking at them vigorously after 

 they were treed. The grouse would not fly, 

 but would watch the dog. The hunter, ac- 

 cording to the stories told to me, would 

 slip along as soon as he heard the dog bark- 

 ing and " pot " the birds as they sat on the 

 limbs. When a shot-gun was used the flock 

 would generally fly after one or two shots; 

 but with a small rifle a number of birds could 

 be shot from one flock by shooting the under 

 birds first and the scattered ones and keeping 

 perfectly quiet. If these tales were true, it 

 was a murderous way of getting grouse, not 

 much better than snaring them with " twitch- 

 ups," and gave the birds not the slightest 

 chance for their lives. 



The " drumming " of the ruffed grouse is a 

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