66 Sporting Sketches 



to the water and a few minutes later he was hooked 

 up, and I sat in the trap holding the lines while 

 Larry loaded his pipe. 



I have heard men groan under stress of mental 

 and bodily anguish or bitter disappointment when 

 they put their souls into their work, and there was 

 no fooling; but I do not think that I ever heard one 

 single sound in which sorrow, anger, disappoint- 

 ment, and general disgust were so powerfully blended 

 as in the voice of Larry as he exclaimed, " Oh, 

 murder, look at that now ! " 



I turned on the seat and glanced hastily along 

 the sand-spit we had left. There, in great fluttering 

 clouds, in hundreds nay ! thousands were the 

 curlew we had seen a-wing during the day. Every 

 one, apparently, of the many distant flocks we had 

 longed to be within range of had changed its course 

 and headed for the Eau bar. On the very spot 

 where we had lain so long were curlew standing, 

 while above them hovered fluttering hordes; and 

 on-coming flocks were visible stringing far out over 

 the lake. In time they all pitched and formed a 

 grand army of curlew, such as we had never 

 dreamed of seeing. Could guns have been hidden 

 within range of them, and four barrels emptied in 

 the mass as the birds rose, a world's record for cur- 

 lew would surely have resulted. We could do 

 naught but look, and look hard, which we did while 

 thinking unutterable things. 



" By all the confounded luck that ever two duffers 

 endured, why didrit we stop there an hour longer? " 

 asked Larry. " Why, great Caesar ! we'd have 

 downed a hundred at least, if " I interrupted him 



