PARTEIDGE SHOOTINGl 263 



A long, narrow lagoon of water, known as the Great 

 Fleet, was first shot, and, as it required but a couple of 

 guns to shoot it, the lawyer and myself were told off 



to work along the high reed-fringed shores, while H 



and B took up their stands amongst the clumps of 



sedges at the head of the fleet. 



Having allowed our fellow guns sufl6.cient time 

 the dogs were sent into the reed-cover, and we started 



forward, M taking the right and myself the left hand 



beat. For some little time, beyond an occasional 

 moor-hen which was allowed to go away unshot at, 

 nothing was moved ; but as I was in the act of crossing a 

 particularly narrow and rickety plank spanning a sedgy 

 dyke, five mallard rose with a great to-do within ten 

 yards of me, and away up the fleet they went, heading 

 straight for the hidden guns. Before I succeeded in 

 scrambling to terra firma, the duck had passed almost 

 out of shot, but I managed to drop the tail bird. " Bang ! 

 bang ! " rang out my neighbour's weapon, and a double 

 furrow was cut into the turbid water a good five yards 

 to the left, and well under the course taken by the 

 mallard. On and on string the fowl, straight up the fleet, 

 all unconscious of the danger lurking ahead of them in 

 yonder growth of wild rice. 



A small white puff of smoke suddenly spurts up from 

 amidst the reed- cover, followed by a faint report, and 

 down drops one of the duck as though struck by 

 a "stooping" peregrine. Another spurt of smoke 

 and a distant report. But no ; it is apparently a clean 



