W O O D C O C K-S HOOTING. 



WOODCOCK-SHOOTING may truly be termed 

 the ne plus ultra of all shooting on the wing. 

 Perhaps no other sport is so much enjoyed by the 

 sportsmen of the United States, and especially of New 

 England. However we may be able to knock over 

 the quail, one with each barrel, or to put a sudden stop 

 to the noble partridge while under full headway, let it 

 but be known in the midst of the hunt that a wood- 

 cock is started, and all other game is forgotten. 



There seems to be a special charm about this bird, 

 which enlivens the sportsman, and gives joy and elas- 

 ticity to his feelings. The sharp, peculiar ring that 

 comes from the cock when he springs from the ground, 

 once heard, is never forgotten. I know of nothing 

 that will so soon stir the old retired hunter as that 

 pleasant sound ; nothing that will so renew in him the 

 days of his boyhood, and set him to looking after his 

 old double-barrelled gun and shooting-traps. 



