190 lewis's AMERICAN SPORTSMAN. 



from their course for the purpose of scrambling over the slightest 

 barrier that may obstruct their progress. 



This peculiarity of woodcocks has been taken advantage of by 

 the fowlers and poachers of England, who are said to place their 

 nets between the tufts of heath, with avenues of small stones 

 formed on each side, leading up to them, and by this contrivance 

 are successful in taking great numbers. They are also captured 

 by these gentry by means of horsehair nooses, set about in their 

 feeding-grounds, similar to those referred to when speaking of the 

 partridge. 



Woodcocks are quite abundant in Ireland,^ and numbers of the 

 English nobles resort there annually to shoot them. It is usual to 

 hunt them in this country with the assistance of men and boys, 

 termed "springers," who penetrate into the thickets and woody 

 glens, hallooing and beating the bushes on every side, so as to 

 flush the astonished cocks from their close retreats. The sports- 

 men, while this is going on, move about in the clearings, and watch 

 every opportunity to knock the poor birds over as they endeavor 

 to escape from one cover to another. 



This method of killing cocks, no doubt, is quite exciting, but 

 cannot compare with the regular way of hunting them with dogs, 

 and would not be resorted to by English sportsmen except ex 

 necessitate rei. 



DOGS FOR COCK-SHOOTING. 



Cocks lie well to dogs, and, if their habits of life did not force 

 them to select such inaccessible places to feed, they would afford 

 as much sport as partridges. If cocks were left undisturbed during 

 the summer months, and not hunted till October, we should have 

 plenty of them at this '^^iBfeeable season, and certainly in much 

 better condition. The English derive much more pleasure from 

 cock-shooting than we do in this country, as the whole charm of 

 this pastime is destroyed with us by the barbarous custom of shoot- 

 ing the old ones in the months of June and July, when sitting on 

 their nests, and frightening the young ones to death by the roar 



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