DUCK-SHOOTING. 257 



quires more practice than even shooting from 

 " points " exacting from the sportsman not merely 

 readiness in handling the gun, but activity of mo- 

 tion and accuracy of balance. The gun, at full 

 cock, is laid in its rack across the thwart ; or, as I 

 prefer, from one thwart to another, with the trig- 

 gers up ; the sportsman, standing erect on the stern, 

 wields his pole with care, avoiding noise, and never 

 by any chance touching the side of the beat with 

 it, for nothing alarms the birds so much as rapping 

 on the side of the boat, although it is not easy to 

 avoid doing so. He faces forward, raises the pole 

 carefully, and replacing it without a splash or a blow 

 on the crackling stems or leaves of the lilies, uses 

 his body as a fulcrum as often as he wishes to alter 

 the direction of the boat. He works his way against 

 the wind as much as possible, and, casting his eyes 

 in every direction, is always on the alert. Suddenly, 

 with a roar like distant thunder, a wood-duck, gene- 

 rally the male, starts from the weeds, and with a 

 curious cry, like that of a wailing infant, makes the 

 best of his way from the approaching danger; in- 

 stantly the sportsman drops the pole, wherever it 

 may be in mid air or deep in the mud, just planted 

 or at its full reach and springing to his gun, raises 

 it with rapidity but deliberation, and, if the bird 

 has not already gained a safe distance, discharges 

 it with the best effect he is able to command. Fre- 

 quently, at the report, another bird will start, and 

 offer a fair and generally successful shot. 



To one accustomed to kill quail, this shooting, 



