256 USE OF THE DOG IN SHOOTING. 



N. E. storin into soft, warm weather, the partial drying up of the 

 early spring floods, and the blowing of a warm, south-westerly 

 Lreeze. Rough weather disturbs the conditions, and shooting then 

 will be a matter of great uncertainty. At times, snipe will lie in 

 uplands, fallow fields, grassy meadows, and even in woodlands; 

 while in the marshes one may find plenty of borings and drop- 

 pings, but not a bird. Sometimes one cannot choose, and having 

 coine to shoot, must do the best he can. Then, even in rough 

 squally weather, birds may be found about springs and muddy 

 pools, surrounded by brakes and briers, or tall alders, or high 

 bunches of marsh grass or reeds. Thus the sportsman who is 

 after snipe, to succeed in his aims, must know the character of his 

 gamo and the ins and outs of its curious disposition. 



A dark day, a drizzly day, or a windy, is not favorable to sport, 

 unless the wind is from the south or west and not too high. A 

 mild, soft, hazy, sunshiny day, with a gentle south breeze, is jusv 

 fie diy for snipe. It may be hot, and if the air is damp, and thb 

 breeze gentle, the birds will lie the closer for it, and on such a day 

 their flight is lazy and they will drop often within a few yards of 

 the dog that has flushed them. Then there are no easier birds to 

 kill ; all that has to be done is to let them get away a fair dis- 

 tance, so as to allow for the shot to spread, then cover the bird 

 well before the trigger is touched, all the time taking things 

 coolly and deliberately. 



Snipe nearly always rise against and go away up-wind, as 

 closely as possible ; consequently the mode of beating for this 

 game is different from that used for any other. It is generally the 

 practice to beat clown-wind, and the ground is to be entered from 

 the windward instead of from the leeward as for all other game. 

 If this is not possible, the ground must be beaten diagonally, and 

 all the most likely spots, approached by a circuit so as to come on 

 the windward side of it. If the dog points, the sportsman must 

 make a circuit around so as to get the bird, down- wind of him, and 

 for this reason it is very necessary to have a steady dog. 



For young sportsmen, a pointer is recommended, but for old 

 and practised sportsmen, a setter is preferred. When the birds 



