THE WOODCOCK. 57 



der-bore and light charge, and even half a pound makes 

 quite a difference in a long day's tramp. A seven-pound, 

 twelve-bore gun, with barrels twenty-eight, or even 

 twenty-six, inches in length, loaded with three drams of 

 powder that which gives least recoil and smoke pre- 

 ferred and one ounce of No. 12 shot if early in the 

 season, or No. 10 if later, will, if held straight, render 

 a good account of every cock that rises. 



The successful woodcock hunter must be the quickest 

 shot of all who follow the dog in autumn months. A 

 woodcock gliding down an open glade straight away is 

 the easiest of birds to kill, but when one springs from 

 its resting-place among the trees, he who hesitates is 

 lost, or rather the bird is, for, like time and tide, it waits 

 for no man. There are covers where one can take care- 

 ful aim, but even there, owing to the uncertainty of a 

 woodcock's flight, the snap-shot is the most successful. 

 But for the fullest enjoyment of this sport, whatever 

 one's skill with the gun may be, he must bring to his 

 aid the intelligence of the dog, and the choice depends 

 upon the character of the covers in which the birds are 

 found. In some covers the spaniel is no doubt the most 

 killing dog, provided he is well trained; while in others, 

 the setter or the pointer is to be preferred. When wood- 

 cock are found in covers where the underbrush is thick 

 and matted, along the banks of streams, and in ravines 

 where alders, willows, or briars grow so thick that it 

 would be impossible for the shooter to walk, or the 

 pointing dog to work, a small, well-trained spaniel could 

 penetrate and work out every spot and tuft, giving warn- 

 ing, by a stifled whine, of the flushing of the bird, while 

 the sportsman remains on the outside, and gets an open 

 shot. But of all dogs, unless thoroughly broken, he is 

 the most exasperating and useless. A well-trained 

 spaniel should range within a few paces of the gun, drop 



