THE CAPERCAILE. 143 



but then stop : suddenly stop and remain as immovable, 

 whatever your position may be, whether painful or 

 commodious, no matter, as though you were rooted to 

 the earth. Wait thus till he begins again, and at the 

 moment when you may move in safety, jump forward 

 with two or three bounds again, and so on, till you have 

 come so near that he is within your reach. You must 

 always manage to have finished your movements, and 

 be again stationary, before he has completed his " whish- 

 ing " sound ; for if he be ready before you, your 

 motions will attract his attention, and he will fly off. 



It is dark as yet, perhaps; you may have much diffi- 

 culty in making out his form among the dark tufts of 

 foliage, and he may be seated so as to make it impos- 

 sible to get a shot except through intervening branches. 

 Or before you can discover him, he may have flown 

 down to the hens, who, attracted by his voice, have come, 

 forth from the bushes to meet him. For as soon as 

 day appears he leaves his high look-out to alight on the 

 ground and to revel in voluptuous enjoyment. In 

 company with his hens he afterwards flies into the 

 wood, but keeping however always in the neighbourhood 

 of the pleasurable spot. The hens when they hear the 

 call of the male bird answer him by a low intermittent 

 " cack, cack," and then come forth from their shelter 

 with a certain prudery. 



Should you happen to fire at and miss the cock just 



