BAY-SNIPE SHOOTING. 81 



Small stools cannot be seen far enough to attract a 

 yelper sailing amid the clouds, or a marlin sweeping 

 along the distant horizon ; and although it is pretty 

 and appropriate to have them of suitable colors, size 

 is more necessary. A sickle-bill is a large bird, and 

 I have seen one tethered among the stools towering 

 above them, so that the imitations looked puny by 

 comparison, although larger than they were usually 

 made. The word stool is derived from the Danish 

 stoel, and signifies something set up on less than 

 four legs, but of the mode or reason ol its adoption 

 we have no record ; it is in universal use, to the ex- 

 clusion of the more elegant and appropriate term, 

 decoy, which is confined to imitation of wild fowl. 

 Stools are ordinarily made of wood, and occasionally 

 painted with great artistic care and skill ; and although 

 a rough affair, coarsely daubed, seems often to an- 

 swer nearly as well, there are times when the birds, 

 rendered wild by many hair-breadth escapes, look 

 sharply ere they draw near, and will not approach 

 unsightly blocks of wood, no matter how sweetly 

 they seem to whistle. 



As wooden stools take up much room and are 

 troublesome to carry for any distance, tin ones have 

 been made that will pack together in a small space. 

 By heading these, different ways, they present a good 

 view to the snipe, except when the latter are high 

 in air, from which position they are invisible, To 

 remedy this defect, it has been suggested that a strip 

 of tin of the width of the body may be soldered 

 along the upper edge ; and thus, while they pack 

 4* 



