SNIPE SHOOTING. 297 



to our certain knowledge, nine dozen snipe in seven 

 hours, and we ourselves have frequently killed from, 

 seven to eight dozen in the same time. The first day's 

 shooting of my last season, over indifferent ground, and 

 very difficult to walk upon from its inequality of sur- 

 face, in five hours I to my own gun bagged four 

 dozen, and but that the birds were extremely wild, 

 would possibly have knocked over fifty per cent, 

 more. 



Where we should advise the shooter commencing 

 snipe shooting in spring would be at Vincennes, on 

 the Ohio and Mississippi railroad. From here you 

 can have sport in every direction, and when you feel 

 desirous of change of scene, the prairies, which begin 

 here and continue north almost uninterruptedly to the 

 great lakes, will be found abundantly stocked from the 

 date of the arrival of the first flight of the migratory 

 hordes. Of one thing we should like to caution the 

 novice; viz., the using of too large shot. No. 9 will be 

 found the best. A snipe requires but little hitting to 

 bring him down, and then his body is so small, that at 

 the distance of forty yards, although your aim may be 

 correct, if you shoot large shot, it is far from impro- 

 bable that the game may fly through it. Of course, 

 it would be well, particularly when using a breech- 

 loader, to carry a few cartridges of No. 5, in case you 



