and the Maritime Provinces. 407 



It is doubtful whether the original natives of Massachusetts or Maine 

 hunted these birds at all. It is but natural to suppose that with the great 

 abundance of other and better birds, which, no doubt, existed in those days, 

 they cared little for these less desirable ducks. In the early part of the 

 present century, however, we know that there began to be manifested an 

 interest in securing them, but the shooting at first was done as the birds 

 passed over, and decoys were not used. About fifty years ago, the first 

 rude decoy, which consisted of the skin of a coot drawn over a lobster buoy, 

 was contrived, and from that time, decoys have gradually become more 

 artistic and attractive. Old squaw decoys are fashioned so as to deceive 

 the birds perfectly, and sheldrake decoys are made, even with the imitation 

 of the tuft on the head by means of horsehair. 



Skunkhead Coot. 



With the change of the old muzzle-loader, which was inconvenient and 

 slow in many ways, to the modern, handy and safer breech-loader, the sports- 

 man acquired greater facilities than he formerly possessed for rapid firing, 

 especially useful in the pursuit of wounded birds. Guns are now used which 

 discharge six consecutive shots without reloading. On the other hand, the 

 birds themselves have so changed their habits that man's advantage has 

 been more than overcome. With the great increase in houses along our 

 coast the birds have become more wary, and the constant increase of 

 sportsmen all along our shores has taught them each year to migrate in a 

 more direct course, and they do not now follow the bays and indentations 

 as they did formerly. The late Mr. O. A. Taft, of Point Shirley fame, in 

 the year he opened his hotel (in 1848,) shot hundreds of coots as they 

 passed through the channel between Point Shirley and Deer island, but at 

 the present day it is not likely that any birds pass through there. The 



