206 PRAIRIE AND FOREST. 



rods, dropping, scattered among a thick growth of iron- 

 weed. The dogs must, on this occasion, have winded their 

 game at least several hundred yards off, so strong is the 

 effluvium emitted by this game and noble bird. 



The majority of the last brood we killed ; so, ere noon 

 had arrived, our bag consisted of seventy head of prairie 

 chicken fairly bagged. 



Hank selected a well-suited place for our meal, and with 

 otium sine dignitate we passed the meridian hours of the 

 day, happy and contented, at peace with all men, and con- 

 scious of the pleasure of successfully following an innocent 

 pursuit. 



We remained under the hedge till after two o'clock, eating, 

 chatting, and smoking, our irrepressible driver relating, in 

 the most facetious manner, several most amusing anecdotes 

 of his previous career ; but as the western sun commenced 

 to elongate its shadows, and the afternoon breeze to cool 

 the atmosphere, a start was agreed upon, and with one 

 accord each rose and shouldered his gun, intent on doing 

 good shooting and further swelling the capacity of our 

 already distended game-bags. The fresh brace of dogs 

 were uncoupled, and, amid the discordant notes and piteous 

 whining of our discarded morning favourites, we started for 

 the beat. 



The ground we were about to hunt exactly resembled in 

 appearance and vegetation what we had traversed in the 

 morning, and our anticipations of sport, from former 

 experience, were up to the boiling-point. However, we 

 must have walked quite an hour before either obtained a 

 shot, although the slut ran up two birds, for which she got 



