tated the cry of a falcon, and lias caused this un- 

 expected panic. 



And yet in spite of all the excellent qualities of 

 the American nightingale I am loth to confess that 

 many a time he falls a victim to the gun of the 

 sportsman. And wherefore is this pretty creature 

 slain ? Because his flesh is succulent and of ex- 

 quisite flavour. Here lies the secret of this bar- 

 barous act. 



Sport is so abundant in North America that the 

 sportsman more frequently finds his ammunition 

 run short than any lack of game. As an example 

 of this, I will quote a passage from a newspaper 

 which I have every reason to believe to be quite 

 authentic. It is an account of a sporting expedition 

 which took place in the county of Shefford (Canada), 

 near a village called Frost. The inhabitants of this 

 place assembled at the Golden Eagle Tavern to 

 consult how best to destroy the vast quantities of 

 wild creatures which threatened destruction to the 

 harvest of the vicinity, and it was resolved that the 

 marauding birds and quadrui^eds should be made 

 the subject of a kind of massacre of St. Bartholo- 

 mew. Two leaders were appointed to organize the 

 slaughter, and each of these selected seventy-five 

 companions, who for an entire week went shooting 

 under their orders. Messrs. Asa B. Foster and 

 Augustus Wood were the leaders, and on the 19th 



