192 lewis' AMERICAN- SPORTSMAN. 



tliis plan, the Birds rise on a windy day within ten, fifteen, or 

 twenty feet, as the case may be, circle about for an instant, and 

 then make invariably towards you or by you, and thus present 

 the very best shot that could be desired. 



When raining, Snipes are very uneasy, wild, and difficult of 

 approach. 



Snipes always lie better in the autumn than they do in the 

 spring, as they are far more restless, and even shy, at this season 

 than they are when they return from the North, accompanied 

 by the young Birds, as they necessarily are far less cautious and 

 timid than the old ones, and require more quiet to recruit them- 

 selves after long flights. 



DOGS FOR SNIPE-SHOOTING. 



There are few Dogs, that we have ever had the good fortune 

 to meet with, that can be employed with much success in Snipe- 

 shooting; and, when the Birds are abundant, most of our 

 Shooters prefer going to the field alone. However, when there 

 is sufficient cover on the marshes, and the Dog is accustomed to 

 his game. Snipes will frequently lie well, and suffer a cunning 

 animal to approach within a few feet of them. 



The Dog, however, must be very careful, and not too fast, 

 otherwise he will overrun his game, and do much more harm 

 than good. The English, or rather Wilson's Snipe, as every 

 one should call it, gives forth a strong game effluvium, and it is 

 no uncommon circumstance for a careful Dog to draw upon one 

 at a distance of twenty, thirty, or even sixty feet. When the 

 Birds are very numerous and somewhat confined, owing to the 

 locality and small extent of their feeding-grounds, we would 

 advise a persevering Shooter to leave his four-footed companion 

 at home, provided he is willing to travel backward and forward 

 over the cover and get all the Birds up himself, for by so doing 

 he will have a fairer chance to bag them than if he had the best 

 Dog in the world ; such, at all events, has been our experience. 



A Snipe Dog should be stanch, and had better be too old 

 than too young, as hunting young Dogs on these Birds is very 

 likely to prove injurious to them, having a tendency to make 

 them slow, and perhaps lazy, as they find the Birds so easy. 



