126 SHOOTING THE GROUSE 



appear, and though you find no birds sitting on or 

 near the butts as you approach them, yet as the far-off 

 holloa of the drivers sounds more frequent, round the 

 rocks they begin to come, swinging through the passes 

 at a terrific pace with the wind, or beating slowly and 

 heavily against it, seeming to grow mysteriously out of 

 the rock in front, and vanishing like lightning over 

 the grey knoll behind, yet always making for the same 

 place, until you find by experience that, in proportion 

 to the birds upon the moor, your rock or ravine drive 

 is always one of the best and most certain. 



The march between two moors is, in Scotland, 

 usually on the ridge or watershed, although you will 

 often find it defined by a river or a road. Where it is 

 on the ridge, the shooting will probably consist of both 

 sides of some great glen, with the flat or rocky ground 

 above the ' face,' stretching as far as the highest 

 point of the watershed. Now, grouse are very loth to 

 fly across a big valley, especially if it is cultivated, and 

 should the distance from face to face cost them a 

 flight of a mile or more they will hardly ever attempt 

 it. I have seen a biggish pack of grouse start across 

 a broad valley, where they would have had to go two or 

 three miles before they could again alight upon heather, 

 fly about half a mile, funk it, and turn back again to 

 the hill they were disturbed on. Their inclination is 



