NOT MIGRATORY. 165 



portion of the country where the timber has been 

 destroyed by fire, markedly in the lumber regions, I 

 found them very abundant, it being almost im- 

 possible to wander half a mile from camp or settle- 

 ment without flushing a covey. Now the winters 

 here are particularly long and rigorous, far exceed- 

 ing in severity those of Scotland ; still, the bird's 

 natural hardiness prevents it suffering. In the 

 Alleghanies and midland ranges of hills of the 

 United States, it is also numerous, where, if the 

 winters are less severe, the heat in summer is some- 

 times excessive, proving that the ruffed grouse is 

 capable of enduring great varieties of climate. 



The palate of the most fastidious epicure cannot 

 fail to be gratified with its appearance on the table, 

 the flesh being extremely delicate, with a reminding 

 flavour of our red grouse. I have eaten it cooked 

 in every conceivable manner, and whether it be 

 simply roasted over a camp fire or formed into a 

 portion of an omnium gatherum stew, it will be found 

 alike acceptable. Although scarcity of food may 

 compel this grouse to change its beat, still it is not 

 migratory, as stated by some naturalists. This sup- 

 position has arisen from their being found in great 

 numbers during autumn on the scrub-barren land, 

 which they leave as soon as the more severe weather 

 commences, for the shelter of denser timber. A 

 family of these birds I was acquainted with for a 

 year. On their range there was an abundance of 

 food and water, and during that period I could 

 always find them, their home being a little hilly 

 island on the prairie's edge, which was covered with 

 timber and brush, and detached from any other 

 irregular ground by several miles of savannah. 



Some authorities have placed woodcock-shooting 

 first on the list of sport with the gun, and called it 

 the fox-hunting of those pleasures in which the dog 

 and fowling-piece form the chief accessories. As 



