INLAND AND ON THE SHORE 71 



bursting of these old guns was not a very rare occur- 

 rence, and some of the gunners yet survive, minus a 

 finger or two and with sundry scratches through these 

 mishaps. Sometimes a fowler would imbibe a drop or 

 two too much, and whilst sitting on his little square 

 board, in spite of the cold, Morpheus would get the 

 upper hand of him. One tells the tale of going to sleep 

 in this fashion, and waking up and somewhat recovering 

 his senses at the hour of midnight, the ducks making 

 merry within a few yards of his shivering carcass, and he 

 almost too numb with cold to put himself in walking 

 position. No wonder rheumatism showed up so promi- 

 nently in the old duck-shooter of fifty years ago. . . . 

 Other incidents yet cling to the mind of the grey-headed 

 fowler, such as falling into a ditch or through the ice, or 

 losing himself on the marsh on a foggy night, there to 

 tramp about till daylight appeared and relieved his 

 troubled mind and aching limbs, the accidental shooting 

 of a fellow fighter in mistake for something better, and 

 other items too numerous to mention. 



If the gunner be on land, he should visit as early 

 in the day as possible all those parts of his beat which 

 are most likely to be disturbed, bearing in mind that 

 when once a mallard is on the wing the chances of 

 seeing him again that day are not great. Stealthiness 

 and caution should be the watchwords of the duck- 

 shooter; his guiding principle should be never to 

 study comfort or convenience, for if he does so, in 

 whatever branch of wild-fowling he may be engaged, 

 his sport will suffer to some extent. As the birds are 



