264 USE OP THE DOG IN SHOOTING. 



without rolling or losing an upright position. A finishing coat of 

 varnish will spoil the best made decoy, on account of its glaring 

 and glistening in the sun. A dead surface is the best. The 

 weight needed to steady the decoy should be made of a strip of 

 sheet lead, placed in a groove at the bottom, and formed like the 

 keel of a boat. Where smooth water only is to be met with, flat- 

 bottomed decoys can be used. These may be carved out of a 

 piece of soft pine plank, but for rough water use, two pieces are 

 needed ; one for the top and another for the bottom, which are 

 hollowed out, then put together and painted. Decoys are pro- 

 vided with a line suited to the depth of the water, and a weight of 

 not less than four ounces, made of a quarter length of a pound bar 

 of lead of the kind used for bullets. The line is wound around 

 the body of the duck, towards the tail, from which it unwinds 

 easily as the weight is thrown out, when the decoys are set. A 

 long string is usually tied to one of the decoys by which it may be 

 shaken so as to ripple the water, and cause the whole flock of 

 them to move. A " duck call " being used at the same time when 

 birds are passing will almost surely attract their notice. The de- 

 coys are best placed, so that the sun shines on the side towards 

 which the ducks are expected. 



A Water Retriever, or a dog that will take to water readily and 

 is furnished with a coat of a nature that resists water, is used in 

 duck shooting. Whatever kind is selected, whether a well-bred 

 early-coated retreiver, a water spaniel, or a Chesapeake Bay dog, 

 he must be well trained for his work, and not averse to taking to 

 the water however cold it may be. The only native dog of the 

 ri-jjht kind we have, is known as the Chesapeake Bay dog. Though 

 a descendent of the curly-coated Irish retriever without doubt, 

 he has been educated to his work by breeding and training for 

 some years. There is no better hunting ground in America for 

 wild fowl, than the Chesapeake Bay and its inlets and the 

 sounds along the North Carolina Coast, and here this useful dog has 

 his home and vocation. The dog used for this sport is trained 

 first to know his name; then to instantly drop, wherever he 

 may be, at a word or a signal of the hand, and to lie quietly until 



