AVIGEON. 233 



trouble, contrive to get near them ; arid this being 

 once done, you have only to shoot straight to be 

 pretty sure of killing. 



I have seen teal " duck the flash," though never 

 but once, and then I had rather a slow shooting gun. 



If you spring a teal, he will not soar up, and leave 

 the country, like a wild duck, but most probably 

 keep along the brook, like a sharp flying woodcock, 

 and then drop suddenly down : but you must keep 

 your eye on the place, as he is very apt to get up 

 again, and fly to another before he will quietly settle. 

 He will frequently, too, swim down stream the mo- 

 ment after he drops, so that if you do not cast your 

 eye quickly that way, instead of continuing to look 

 for him in one spot, he will probably catch sight of 

 you and fly up, while your attention is directed to 

 the wrong place. If the brook in which you find 

 him is obscured by many trees, you had better direct 

 your follower to make a large circle, and get a-head 

 of, and watch him, in case he should slily skim away 

 down the brook, and, by this means, escape from you 

 altogether. You should avoid firing at random, as 

 this may drive him quite away from your beat. 



* WIGEON, WHEWER, WHIM, or PANDLED 



WHEW. Anas Penelope Le canard siffleur. 



Wigeon * either choose their mates, or detach 



themselves into small trips preparative to so doing, 



* Strictly speaking, we should say " wigeoiw" in the plural 

 number, us well as " pigeon*." But so generally is it the custom, 



