THE SCIENCE OF SCULLING WILD FOWL. 211 



oars " ; then a hunter of experience will write on " jump- 

 ing mallards " by paddling. All very good, provided one 

 can get nothing better. But these methods can hardly 

 be classed in the category of skill, when compared with 

 sculling. As an illustration, let a man come down 

 some winding stream in a boat, with bow-facing oars, 

 or paddling his boat. If the stream is crooked and 

 narrow, with overhanging willows extending from the 

 bank into the main stream, then he will jump a good 

 many birds, coming on them suddenly around sharp 

 bends, driving them out from the edges when they are 

 in the grass, smart-weed, or among the willow twigs, 

 or along sloughs where the bottom grass, flags, or wild 

 rice is high, and the channel narrow. Under such con- 

 ditions he will meet with good success, but the scull- 

 boat will work equally as well there. Then change 

 the conditions into a wide running stream, where the 

 eye can see the water in an unbroken line for a half 

 mile, perhaps a full mile ; where the ducks are feeding, 

 preening and sitting on the bank, basking in the sun- 

 shine. The hunter sees them, they see him. He can- 

 not approach them by land ; it is impossible to do so by 

 water, because they will notice him long before he gets 

 near enough to shoot. He takes in the situation at a 

 glance, knows he cannot get near them, and deliber- 

 ately routs them out. On such an occasion, note the 

 sculler coming down, half reclining in his boat, the bow 

 and sides trimmed with willow twigs and grass, to cor- 

 respond with the shores he is passing. He conies 

 down almost in mid-stream. The ducks see the object, 

 but there is nothing alarming about it, nothing notice- 

 able ; the little of the hull that can be seen looks like 

 a floating log, and the willows on top like sprout- 



