1^4g FRANK forester's FIELD SPORTS. 



regards the English Snipe, that the most favorable weather for 

 the sport is dark, blowing, drizzling days — the very worst con- 

 ceivable for our bird ; which is apt to be as wild as a Hawk in 

 windy weather, while it will sometimes lie till it is difficult to 

 kick it up, on bright, warm, sunny days, with the wind southerly. 

 But of this anon. 



In the fli-st place, observe, as regards the arrival of Snipe on 

 the meadows, that it matters not how fair and mild and warm 

 the weather may be, or may have been for many days, overhead, 

 not a bird will be found until the subterranean frost and ice have 

 been entirely dissipated ; which is rarely the case until after a 

 three days' storm of rain, with a stiff easterly blow, succeeded by 

 soft, spring-like weather. 



It must here be remarked that, in morasses and bog meadows, 

 whether fresh or salt, the underground frost lasts much longer 

 unthawed than it does on the uplands. In one instance, I re- 

 member finding all the meadows as hard as ice below some six 

 inches of soft mud, when the frost had disappeared for many 

 days on the uplands, and when the progress of spring was evident 

 in the bursting buds and springing grass. Of course not a bird 

 was to be found. 



' The first of the winged harbingers of spring is the beautiful 

 little Blue-Bird ; and so soon as he has taken up his residence 

 with us, and commenced cleaning out his accustomed box, or pre- 

 paring materials for his nest in the hole of a decayed apple-tree, 

 we may be sure that the Snipe is not far distant. When the 

 buds of the willow trees display their yellowish verdure, and the 

 chirping croak of the frogs rises from every swampy pond, we 

 may feel confident that he is to be found on the meadows ; but 

 not until the Shad is abundant at the mouths of our rivers, is the 

 Snipe plentiful on the inland morasses. 



On his first amval, he generally hangs for two or t|iree days 

 in small whisps, or, oftener yet, scattered individually, along the 

 salt meadows on the coast, especially in places where fresh 

 springs boil up from the ground, or spring-brooks trickle down 

 from the upland. 



