COCK SHOOTING. 167 



steep woods at either side, and a stream with a 

 margin of soft ready soil running between. Stand 

 on the alert outside the quarter of the slope that 

 is being searched, and when the monotonous 

 whish and whack of the beater's stick is diversi- 

 fied by a sudden shout of ' Mark cock !' even 

 though you hear the shot fired from within, 

 keep a sharp look-out, as, if the bird is missed, 

 he is as likely as not, after darting some fifty 

 yards through the cover, to rise above it, and 

 then your time comes. Besides, it frequently 

 happens that the beaters send out numbers of 

 birds they never mark or see. It is a dan- 

 gerous practice to beat two sides of a gully, 

 such as we refer to, simultaneously. It is 

 almost impossible in such a case to avoid 

 accidents. The heights across which some one 

 is sure to fire are on a level, and the only per- 

 sons safe are the beaters, who enjoy for once 

 comparative immunity. If a bird rises from 

 the wood without being shot at from in- 

 side, and appears to be beyond range, it is as 

 well to stoop down so as to hide from him. 

 He may then pitch within sight. Now this is 

 a fact which is again difficult to reconcile with 



