172 The Grouse Family 



depended upon for sport with the gun, although 

 an occasional warm spell may cause a good day. 

 A pack will seldom allow a man to approach 

 within anything like shotgun range, and, if 

 flushed, it rises with an astounding roar of wings 

 and streams away at an electric clip for perhaps a 

 mile, or more. To follow is well-nigh useless, for 

 the birds will not lie, and the pursuer may rest 

 assured that a lot of keen eyes are following his 

 every movement. Under such conditions it is 

 possible to have a bit of sport with a rifle of 

 medium calibre, and this is not to be despised 

 by the energetic man who craves a hard, health- 

 giving tramp and who can content himself with 

 a brace or so of birds. Quite often it is possible 

 to get fair chances at from fifty to seventy-five 

 yards, when the man possessed of that rare gift 

 the power to correctly estimate distance on the 

 plains and the skill to put his lead where he 

 wants it, may kill enough birds to keep his 

 interest from waning. 



The best dog for chicken-shooting is the best 

 dog for any form of upland shooting, i.e. a thor- 

 oughly broken pointer or setter. Both breeds 

 have stanch admirers, who do not hesitate to 

 claim a marked superiority for their favorite. In 

 my opinion, and I have had much to do with both 

 dogs, there is no perceptible difference in the 

 quality of the actual field work. To any one but 



