WILD FOWL. 79 



Stood upon the ice around it. They had three firings, both at 

 once, and picked up eighty-eight Canvass-backs, and might have 

 collected more, had they been able to get to the extremity of the 

 ice after the wounded ones. In the severe winter of 1779-80, 

 the grass, on the roots of which these birds feed, was almost 

 wholly destroyed in James River. In the month of January, 

 the wind continued to blow from w. n. w. for twenty-one days, 

 which caused such low tides in the river, that the grass froze to 

 the ice everywhere, and a thaw coming on suddenly, the whole 

 was raised by the roots and carried off by the freshet. The 

 next winter a few of these Ducks were seen, but they soon went 

 away again, and for many years after, they continued to be 

 scarce, and even to the present day, in the opinion of my inform- 

 ant, have never been so plenty as before. 



" The Canvass-back, in the rich, juicy tenderness of its flesh, 

 and its delicacy of flavor, stands unrivalled by the whole of its 

 tribe in this or perhaps any other quarter of the world. Those 

 killed in the waters of the Chesapeake are generally esteemed 

 superior to all others, doubtless from the greater abundance of 

 their favorite food which these rivers produce. At all oiir pub- 

 lic dinners, hotels, and particular entertainments, the Canvass- 

 backs are universal favorites. They not only grace but dignify 

 the table, and the very name conveys to the imagination of the 

 eager epicure the most comfortable and exhilarating ideas. 

 Hence on such occasions, it has not been uncommon to pay from 

 one to three dollars a pair for these Ducks, and, indeed, at such, 

 if they can, they must be had, whatever the price. 



" The Canvass-backs will feed readily on grain, especially 

 wheat, and may be decoyed to particular places by baiting them 

 with that grain for several successive days. Some few years 

 since, a vessel loaded with wheat, was wrecked near the en- 

 trance of Great Egg Harbor, in the autumn, and went to pieces. 

 The wheat floated out in vast quantities, and the whole surface 

 of the bay was, in a few days, covered with Ducks, of a kind 

 altogether new to the people of that quarter. The gunners of 

 the neighborhood collected in boats in every direction, shooting 



