A RETRIEVER NECESSARY. 247 



Strictly migratory, what an enjoyable life they must 

 lead ! here to-day, gone to - morrow ; one week skimming 

 the waters that skirt the sunny shores of Florida, the next 

 seeking their food on the spongy, verdant uplands of Lab- 

 rador ; in the former wakened from their reveries or slum- 

 bers by the approach of the stealthy alligator or clumsy 

 turtle, in the latter by the deep growl of the Arctic bear, 

 or the sudden dash into their ranks of the stealthy blue fox. 

 Then the scenes they see, traversing the ocean the over- 

 freighted ship toiling in the surging storm, the taut-rigged 

 coaster or pilot vessel laying-to, to wait for the war of the 

 elements to cease ; the giant steamboat, regardless of wind 

 or weather, cleaving with scorn the mountain billows that 

 oppose her course, or, more to my taste still, the white 

 wings of numerous crafts lazily flapping against their spars, 

 while the anxious skipper earnestly looks for the semblance 

 of a breeze, or superstitiously whistles with the hope of 

 producing one. 



If the doctrine of the transmigration of souls were true, 

 when our earthly course in the present form was run, who 

 would not wish to be transformed into one of these migra- 

 tory darlings, especially if those he or she loved passed 

 through the same change ! 



But to leave dear dream-laud, and return to cruel reality. 

 A large-bore gun, say a 10, with the lightest shot, is the 

 best weapon to use for the destruction of this family, unless 

 curlew be the principal object of your pursuit, when heav- 

 ier shot I should prefer No. 5 should be employed. 



A retriever will be found absolutely necessary in this de- 

 scription of sport, for the greater portion of the game kill 

 ed, from being shot on the margin of the sea, fall in the 

 water. Your dog, however, should not be large, for these 

 birds, although only crippled, are easily captured, and a 

 small retriever is always preferable to a large one in a boat. 



