1 66 LETTERS TO YOUNG SHOOTERS 



past together, and you have but one barrel loaded, 

 take the cock, though the hen be the lower and easier 

 bird of the two. If you try long shots, experiment 

 on the cocks. Remember that a hen, though slightly 

 wounded, is generally useless for breeding in the 

 future. 



Cocks as a rule predominate in the coverts, and, 

 such being the case, if at the close of a day's 

 sport you notice a large proportion of hens have 

 been killed, you may rest assured the shooters were 

 inferior or unsporting shots, and selected the hens 

 for their aim because they offered (as is usual) the 

 easiest chances. 



As the subject of safe shooting was fully discussed 

 in the First Series of Letters, I will not allude to it 

 again here further than to point out the extreme 

 danger of, on any occasion, firing at a low bird in 

 covert. If you are walking up a wood towards guns 

 standing forward at its end, never fire at a pheasant 

 flying between you and them, even as a fairly high 

 shot ; in the same way, it is most dangerous to fire 

 at a low bird coming to you out of a covert, and thus 

 run the risk of injuring the guns or beaters walking 

 toward you. 



