GROUSE-BECKING 67 



night, fills his pockets or belt with cartridges, and 

 sallies forth through the darkness to the spot in which 

 he intends to obtain sport. Arrived at the right place, 

 which is generally quite in the centre of the bleak 

 moorlands, and often miles from any human habita- 

 tion, the fowler takes up his position behind the best 

 screen that offers itself. The angle of two stone walls 

 often serves as a temporary shelter, or he may hide 

 himself beside a pile of peats that are drying in the 

 wind. He has to remain perfectly still and silent, no 

 matter how cold the job may be, for any demonstra- 

 tion of impatience would surely spoil his chances of 

 success. As soon as ever he hears a cock grouse start 

 to call, his own business begins. His task in the first 

 instance is simply to reproduce as nearly as he can 

 the call of the hen grouse, which is not easy to in- 

 scribe upon paper, but may perhaps be rendered ' yap, 

 yapi yap, yap] or l youe, youe, youe. J 



The cry of the hen is reproduced in several ways. I 

 know a Cumbrian peasant who despises the assistance of 

 any instrument in ' becking.' He contrives to imitate 

 the cry of the female grouse by compressing the 

 nostrils with one hand and drawing in his breath, which 

 is then emitted in deep gasps. This he has practised 

 for years, and he can call male grouse up to his cottage 

 door most successfully. Some men use a metal bird- 



