176 SHOOTING THE GOOSE 



about seventeen pellets to the ounce when birds are 

 wild and restless, this being a pattern which is of 

 course most deadly at long range. Although I have 

 but a limited acquaintance with the use of heavy 

 mould shot, I was once induced to try a charge of it 

 (about twelve pellets to the ounce) at the brent by 

 way of experiment. It was not, however, a fair test 

 of its power, as on that occasion, to my utter surprise, 

 I succeeded in getting to close quarters, and instead 

 of bagging thirty or forty, which would have been the 

 case with my usual load, the shot merely cut a thin 

 line through the gaggle, and I had to console myself 

 with a paltry aggregate of thirteen birds only. 



In some places brent geese are easier to approach 

 on the ground ebb, and particularly is this the case 

 when, by reason of tempestuous weather or other 

 causes, their feeding-grounds have been submerged 

 by the tide for a longer period than usual. After the 

 weary hours of waiting their appetites become so 

 sharp set that they will abandon themselves to their 

 meal with an utter disregard of consequences. Again, 

 on an ebb tide, late in the afternoon, before the geese 

 quit their feeding-grounds for the night, the same 

 absence of caution is frequently noticeable, and a 

 diligent fowler should not fail in availing himself of 

 this grand opportunity. Some of the most notable 



