FRINGE OF THE A/OOA" 249 



They always rise all together and close to one 

 another, and many people, otherwise scrupulous 

 sportsmen, will, as they turn, shoot into the brown, or 

 rather the ' white,' of the covey. This I think horribly 

 cruel and unfair, specially so in the case of ptarmigan, 

 for a wounded bird who may fly across a valley 

 which it would take you four hours of descent and 

 ascent to cross, is more often than not never retrieved, 

 but left to linger in a rift between the rocks, or fall a 

 victim on the mossy slopes to the eagle, the raven, or 

 the fox. 



In beating a round hill, it is a good plan to 

 separate and work round it in two parties, when 

 you will send some beautiful rocketing shots from one 

 to the other ; but your guns must be accurate, careful 

 shots, or as you approach to meet again you may 

 easily shoot one another. The handling of the gun 

 altogether demands experience and closer attention 

 on ptarmigan ground than on any other. The footing 

 is often bad, and slips over loose stones are frequent, 

 while the possibility of blinding one of the party by 

 a ricochet off the rocks must always be borne in mind. 

 The best way to carry the gun on such ground, wher- 

 ever possible, is in the right hand only, thrown back, 

 with the barrels resting on your right shoulder and the 

 hand on the grip. Then, should you fall, your piece 



