WILD DUCKS AND DUCK DECOYING 163 



weather the fowl are captured almost entirely by 

 means of the dog, but as soon as frost sets in they 

 are taken by feeding them in the pipe, and keeping 

 a piece of water constantly open near it. Now as to 

 the actual working. If the birds are sluggish the 

 trained dog cleverly works them from the bank, and 

 either drives or attracts them by curiosity to the pipe 

 to be worked, being also aided by the decoy ducks 

 and induced to stay by finding corn scattered about. 

 By skilful manipulation the fowl are worked up the 

 pipe, the dog trotting in and out of the reed-screens 

 and luring them further and further away. Soon 

 they have made sufficient progress to enable the 

 man to show himself, and this he does, at the same 

 time waving his hat. Retreat to the pool is cut off, 

 and the terrified birds rush up the pipe only to find 

 themselves in the narrowing tunnel-net which 

 terminates it. This is at once detached, and the 

 final scene is the wringing of the ducks' necks by the 

 decoy man. As all the pipes curve to the right the 

 decoying is unseen from the pool, and one set of 

 fowl can be " worked " whilst others are sleeping 

 or preening themselves on the lake. Further aids 

 of concealment for the working of the decoy other 

 than those enumerated are banks of earth and brush- 

 wood running parallel to the palings. 



As sportsmen would rather shoot fowl than snare 

 them, the decoy is mostly interesting nowadays to 



