SHOOTING ON THE WING. 55 



ever, will be of short duration, as, on the springing of the next 

 bird, he will involuntarily strive to be somewhat smarter in his 

 movements, but at the same time adhering strictly to the golden 

 rule of coolness and deliberation; and his efforts on this occasion 

 will perhaps be crowned with greater success. The bagging, then, 

 of this one bird will recompense for many others lost, and at the 

 same time impress upon him the importance of sticking to the 

 principles upon which he entered the field, and make him a firm 

 convert to the absolute utility of giving heed to our instructions ; 

 for he will find that as often as he departs from these rules and 

 fires his gun at random, just so often will he be disappointed in the 

 result, and will also learn that the chances of killing birds at ran- 

 dom shots are very few, even when fired into a large covey; for 

 how frequently have we seen even the most experienced sportsmen 

 shoot into coveys without ruffling a feather, owing entirely to the 

 circumstance of the birds all rising, as it were, in a mass together, 

 and confusing him by their proximity and numbers; or, in other 

 words, throwing him off his guard, and depriving him momentarily 

 of that coolness and deliberation of which we are speaking ! It is 

 very difficult, at times, even for an old sportsman to suppress a 

 feeling of anxiety, a kind of nervous trepidation that involuntarily 

 creeps over him when advancing upon a covey that he feels certain 

 is spread out around him, but at the same time entirely ignorant 

 of the exact spot from whence the birds will spring. Under these 

 circumstances, the heart of an old shooter is apt to palpitate with 

 a slight but agreeable emotion, while the warm blood of the tyro 

 rushes through his system with a velocity that often makes his 

 whole frame quiver with excitement. If, then, he misses his bird, 

 it is not to be wondered at, as the confusion and noise consequent 

 upon the flushing of a covey of frightened birds is no small affair, 

 but, on the contrary, is well calculated to upset his already-shaken 

 nerves and throw him entirely off his guard; insomuch that he 

 mechanically raises his gun and bangs away, harum-scarum, with- 

 out the least aim, and then is mortified as well as astonished that 



