OF SHOOTING AND FISHING 77 
to the east of us, where they had been feeding on 
the stubble fields, and we could hear them discuss- 
ing their affairs as they passed. Although they 
were a long way off, the ‘‘honk-honk’’ was very 
distinct. Close around us were multitudes of very 
interesting avocets and stilts. The teal flight was 
much better than on the day before and each of 
our muds was soon capped with a dead bird. The 
gull fell greatly in my estimation this day. Four 
of them settled around a duck I had wounded. 
They watched it for a time and then began to give 
it an occasional peck, finally killing it by picking a 
hole in its back. I am not sure whether these 
birds were Californian or ringed, probably the 
former, but the guide told me that late in the sea- 
son the gulls live entirely on wounded ducks. 
In the evening a number of crows passed in twos 
and threes. They were exceedingly shy and gave 
us a wide berth. I learned from our guide that 
they nested among some dead willows on an island 
in the middle of the swamps and in the direction 
in which they were flying. Crossing the bay when 
homeward bound we had several shots at spoon- 
bills and I bagged a ruddy duck going up the over- 
flow. 
Great changes had taken place before I again 
visited this sportsman’s paradise. A number of 
energetic men had formed the Bear River Duck 
Club. They had succeeded in securing the place 
owned by Davis and many thousands of acres of 
these splendid swamps. A beautiful club house 
had been built and a fast launch put on the river 
