SNIPE-SHOOTING. 3 



us that the mammoth was said still to wander in the 

 unknown north. I think it may be urged with more 

 probability that the woodcock, snipe, and other winter 

 visitants to southern climes breed among those 

 fastnesses. 



The writer who would speak of snipe-shooting 

 finds the way somewhat barred by the magic pages of 

 Jefferies. With what vivacity and what fidelity to 

 nature does he depict the rambles of the " Amateur 

 Poacher" by the frozen brooklet in quest of this bird, 

 which was evidently a favourite with the author. We 

 can almost see the bird rising from the sedges with its 

 shrill cry, which he attempts to reproduce as " scape ! 

 scape ! " and which he says the bird often acts up to 

 by eluding the aim of the unskilful gunner. The 

 snipe certainly has a great reputation for being difficult 

 to hit, which in my opinion is rather badly founded. 

 There are many birds less easy to kill on the wing. I 

 consider driven partridges to be so, the green parrakeet 

 certainly is. Some people say " there is a knack in 

 snipe-shooting." If so there is a knack in all shooting, 

 which simply consists in the working together of the 

 hand and the eye. I would give two reasons for 

 snipe often getting away : the first is that the bird, so 

 to say, trades on his reputation, and the mere fact of a 

 snipe getting up makes the gunner nervous and 

 hurried. The second is, that in England they are 

 generally only incidental to a day's shooting, and are 

 consequently often shot at with No. 5 shot, when 

 of course it is " odds on the bird." I certainly 

 have never found them very difficult to kill, though I 



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