Rail-shooting 287 



In one instance we camped on the shore of 

 a strip of high grass, off one of the islands. 

 There was a beach about two feet wide between 

 the dry marsh and the water's edge ; here I 

 noticed two pair of sora rail ; they would 

 come out of the high, dry grass, often together, 

 drink, and at the slightest motion dart back, 

 returning in a few minutes to go through the 

 same performance. When exposed they are ex- 

 ceedingly watchful, and running along the beach 

 look much like a small rat. The nest could not 

 be found, but at both points where the birds 

 appeared on the beach there was a little path 

 leading into the grass. In its common breeding- 

 places the nest is constructed of grass, more or 

 less arched over, and under broken weeds and 

 grass tops, placed near the edge of a marsh or 

 on a solitary tussock in the water, the woven 

 appearance of the nest making it sometimes 

 noticeable a short distance off. The eggs are 

 usually eight to twelve in number and are hatched 

 in June. By August the young birds fly, and in 

 September are shot along the coasts in their 

 various resorts, from Connecticut through the 

 South. The tidal marshes of New Jersey, and 

 those of the tributary rivers of the Chesapeake, 

 Virginia, and North Carolina, where conditions 

 favor shooting, are all popular haunts. On the 

 Delaware River they are killed in immense num- 



