46 A BIRD COLLECTOR'S MEDLEV. 



decamps outside a hundred yards. Snipe and game birds are accustomed to 

 rising under people's feet, but a Curlew evidently is not ; he seems for the 

 moment utterly "flabbergasted," and as he sheers off with a helpless "whaup" 

 he presents the easiest of shots. Whimbrels, or as the locals here call them, 

 " Titterels," are also common on these flats, and though they will not readily 

 let themselves be approached, even in a punt, yet they are the easiest of all 

 large shore birds to whistle up ; a novice can imitate the note quite well 

 enough to bring a new arrival into range, and they then afford a very simple 

 shot. 



I have heard the mouth of the harbour spoken of as a good place for Wild 

 Geese, and as I know that they are often hawked about Emsworth in hard 

 weather, it is probable that my informant spoke the truth. I remember also 

 reading in the paper that two Black-tailed Godwits had been shot near Ports- 

 mouth, and from the same neighbourhood came the report of the shooting of 

 five Cranes! 



However, the enthusiasm of the shooter who perpetrated this massacre 

 must have received a well-earned damper the following week, when a caustic 

 letter in the local paper suggested that he might be interested to hear that on 

 the day in question five of these birds had escaped from Sanger's Circus, 

 which was then performing in the town ! 



