260 SPORTING SKETCHES. 



were soon making ourselves as comfortable and cheerful in the 

 " blind " as the rain would permit. Two "golden eyes" passed 

 over our decoys as we were loading our guns and these were all 

 the ducks we saw or heard that day. The wind blew us out of 

 the " blind " and we landed and sought shelter in an old house 

 with interior so dirty we could not remain inside. We had a 

 new rifle with us, and being anxious to try it we " unlimbered 

 for target practice," but somehow the shells would not explode 

 (explained afterwards on our way home by discovering that rim 

 instead of central fire cartridges had been supplied). All at once, 

 just outside the rushes riding on the heavy swells we saw what 

 we mistook through the tops of the rushes for a wild goose and 

 quickly gave him a charge of A A A. He tried to fly, but fell 

 back into the water and made off across the river. Away we 

 went for the boat and then commenced a chase up wind, the 

 hardest my friend said he ever pulled. At last we got another 

 shot, but still on went the goose for mid stream. We headed 

 him, and over the big waves we rushed down wind on the bird, 

 never heeding in the excitement how we should pull back again. 

 Another long shot and we lifted him in quite dead, a little sur- 

 prised at his color, but not fully realizing, until we got into 

 calmer water that after all we had only killed a tame goose. 



Oh, the goose sped o'er the wave, 



And the ganders followed fast, 

 The stormy billows surged and rolled, 



Wild shrieked the autumn blast. 



We were of course sadly disappointed, but as we could not res- 

 tore him to life and there being no wild fowl to shoot we made 

 up our minds to start for home. The rain was over, the roads 

 worse than ever. Having day light in our favor, after a drive, 

 trying alike to man and beast, we made the railway station and 

 without further adventure soon found ourselves at home w T ith 

 leisure to dream of the discordant cries uttered by the animals 

 we disturbed with our lantern in those dark woods on the historic 

 shores of the Richelieu. 



