DUCK SHOOTING. 237 



patter of their feet in the act of alighting on the 

 left of the battery; seizing the small gun we sat 

 up in the box and knocked over one canvass- 

 back swimming among the stools, and a second 

 as it rose, and catching up the second gun fired 

 ineffectually at two others making off; then 

 charging the pieces, cast a glance at the dead 

 birds to ascertain the direction of their drift, and 

 sank back out of sight, without as much as look- 

 ing at the scow, feeling very certain that had 

 the presence of mind, in which we felt so assured 

 before, governed our actions, all four ducks 

 would have been at that moment floating dead 

 on the tide. In fact, gentle reader, in the unex- 

 c usable heat of the moment, a great blunder had 

 been committed in shooting at the ducks in the 

 water, when we should have first drawn trigger 

 on those yet upon the wing, but in the act of 

 dropping their sterns, to alight outside of the 

 first; when we should have used the second gun 

 on the others, which would have still been with- 

 in available distance. Had Fred been there, we 

 thought, he would have had four ducks down; 

 but, n' importe, let them come again. 



But at least ten minutes of expectation elapsed 

 before another shot was obtained, during which 

 time, to recover our coolness, we watched the 



