376 With Rod and Gun in New England 



to those who consider fox-hunting a little too arduous, that the swamps of 

 the central and northern portions of the State teem with northern hares, 

 and those who enjoy the hounds know full well the sport derived from 

 having a couple of true-running hounds in a rabbit swamp when the fol- 

 lowing is just right, although the game when brought to bag is valueless. 



BIK^DS. 



When the question of brush-shooting over a dog is considered, New 

 Hampshire again takes a rank among the foremost localities in the oppor- 

 tunities she offers, in that, to many, the acme of all true sport. This statement 

 will be corroborated by the scores of non-resident sportsmen who do their 

 fall shooting in the State. 



This applies to ruffed grouse and woodcock more particularly, 

 although in some years — notably the year of the penning of this article — 

 quail are unusually abundant in some sections of the State. 



New Hampshire, without any disparagement to other States of New 

 England, is the home of the ruffed grouse or partridge, as we all call it. This 

 is largely due to the configuration of the land, the water courses, and the 

 innumerable streams flowing through territory, which, owing to the wooded 

 growth thereon, affords the most favorable conditions possible for the prop- 

 agation of this grand game bird, generally acknowledged by all-round 

 sportsmen to be the king of them all, and the pursuit and capture of which 

 brings a thrill of pleasure, unequalled in the bringing to bag of any other 

 variety. In fact, successful late grouse-shooting in New England is abso- 

 lute science, requiring consummate skill on the part of the hunter ; and it is 

 entirely different from any shooting in which it has been the fortune of the 

 writer to participate. 



The veriest tenderfoot can easily obtain a shot at a deer or a moose 

 and very frequently brings down his quarry. 



The most inexperienced man in a party often catches the largest trout, 

 and the getting in the right place in front of a fox is largely due to chance ; 

 but he who cuts down a full-grown November partridge, as he hurtles out of 

 the edge of a thicket, or from beneath the shelter of an old brush fence, 

 ahead of his trusty setter or pointer, has accomplished a feat from which all 

 elements of luck are eliminated, and the reliable performance of the trick 

 is due to an acquired skill, which only years of experience can bestow. 



Some of my comrades in sport will very likely question this statement, 

 calling to mind the rapid flight of the prairie chicken or the immense veloc- 

 ity attained by the black duck and teal, or perhaps, in years gone by, that 

 of the wild pigeon as he passed one's stand, flying from one feeding-place 

 to another ; the writer unassumingly remembers being with them all, but 

 there is a sameness to the shots offered, which, while they require nice cal- 

 culation and a cool head, a fair wing or trap shot soon masters. 



