174 SHOOTING THE GROUSE 



from sopowerfula source as ' W. C.,' butthis gentleman 

 was only one of many who always attacked anything 

 like well-organised shooting or large bags, partly be- 

 cause they had no knowledge of such things, and 

 partly because at that time they furnished almost the 

 only ' copy ' which editors of journals could procure 

 on shooting matters. 



Nowadays all the best performances and records 

 are pretty well known, most of them having been 

 published in books or newspapers, and I think the 

 Badminton Library has finally silenced the class of 

 criticism so ably represented by my friend ' W. C.' 



The journey to the English moors, picturesque as 

 it is, has details of a different character from those 

 described in a previous chapter ; and what is a very 

 important fact, the travellers are much more numer- 

 ously recruited from local sources. 



The Manchester man and the Sheffielder, the 

 dalesman and the tyke, are devoted to their grouse 

 driving, and as proud as possible of the great bags that 

 have made their moors so famous ; while their love 

 of the sport is largely shared by the lower classes in 

 the North of England. Herein lies the great difference 

 between English and Scotch driving, as well as the 

 secret of much of the superiority of the former over 

 the latter. 



