DUCK SHOOTING. 107 



previously marked the young bird down ; but for some 



time our search was in vain. At length, however, when 



the gillie and dog had wandered some distance away 



from me, the former wading, the latter swimming, 



I suddenly came upon the object of our search, sitting 



in an open space almost free from weeds, a few yards in 



advance of me ; and approaching very cautiously, while 



the bird was looking at me with a stupid fascinating 



gaze, I made a sudden spring forward and seized him, 



but at the same instant found myself in much deeper 



water, and I could scarce stifle a sob as my boots were 



speedily filled. But it was not till I gained the dry 



land that I realized fully the discomfort of waterproofs : 



for then though my companions were shaking off the 



wet, or losing it through the convenient cracks in their 



boots, my superior outfit retained it all ; and since to 



remove them, nearly amounted to pulling my legs 



from their sockets, I was compelled to throw myself 



on the ground on my back, and by putting up my 



legs in a somewhat novel and picturesque position, 



let the water turn out the same way by which it had 



entered. This operation, however, did not much mend 



matters ; for most of the water, finding its way up my 



trousers, then ran very unpleasantly along my backbone, 



making me, if possible, more wet and uncomfortable 



than I had been before. 



But to return : we were soon at the part of the loch 

 where the remnant of the ducks had congregated ; and 

 here we found them tolerably thick. Driven as it were 

 to their last stronghold, they seemed reluctant to quit 

 it, and rose, one by one, in straggling disorder. I 

 secured three more, making in all seven to my own 

 gun ; my companions counting one or two more. We 

 then returned to the marshy ground, shot a snipe 

 or two, and started for home with a fair bag ; 



