I04 SPORT IN EUROPE 



now allowed a close time until so late in the summer that the bags 



are in many places much smaller than they formerly were. Other 



kinds, especially snipe, may be shot from August the ist ; but as 



cultiv^ation advances, and meadows and bogs are drained, 

 Snipe. 



so does this game disappear and migrate to places 



where it can find quiet and better conditions for living. In the 



meadows and bogs of Jutland, and on its west coast, good sport is 



still to be had, and an interesting and varied bag may be obtained, 



from the heron and the Qoose to the smallest wild water-fowl. 



Seals are pretty numerous along the coasts of Denmark, and 



are especially found where dry stone reefs, or sand- banks, extend 



far out into the sea, and afford them opportunity 

 Seals. 



during the summer to sun themselves undisturbed 



and bring up their offspring. The Government pays a premium of 



three krone *^ for each seal-tail, as a check on the damage these animals 



do to the fishing ; and this circumstance, together with the value of 



the fat, induces the fishermen to kill a considerable quantity every 



year. The bags are especially large during the summer, when the 



new-born whelps are surprised on land, where they are slain with 



clubs. To the patient hunter, who handles his rifle with sufficient 



ability, seal shooting offers, however, good sport, at several places 



specially favourable for this purpose. One of the best spots is 



a lono- narrow stone reef, shootino- out from a small island in the 



Cattegat, north of Zealand. There is sufficient room for two guns, 



who post themselves behind big stones, one on each side of the reef, 



and there await the arrival of the seals. 



* The Danish "crown" is valued at about is. i^(/. 



