THE YOUNG OOLOGIST. 



^35 



the covers tliey would, like Hastings' Ideal, 

 "come again." It is true the animals are 

 harmless; so are mosquitoes, but neverthe- 

 less a person unused to their lullaby does 

 not appreciate it as the efforts on the part 

 of the animnls probably deserve. 



Thus I passed a very restless night, when 

 daylight at length dawned upon us, to mj* 

 great joy and the apparent discomfiture of 

 the coyotes, for at the first approach of 

 dawn I could see them skulking oft" in pairs 

 and trios and soon disappear in the recesses 

 of the deep thickets near our camping- 

 ground. The creatures were evidently 

 very much disappointed at not finding us 

 more generous with our fresh-killed birds 

 and squirrels, the scent of which had prol)- 

 ably attracted them to our localitj'. 



We at once proceeded • to re-pack our 

 camp, and after partaking of a slice of 

 bread and fried bacon, and above all. the 

 cup of hot black coffee, which cannot be 

 truly appreciated until a person is out on a 

 hunt on a cold morning, we "pulled stakes" 

 and departed. After a few turns and 

 crooks we reached oiu- hunting grounds 

 without further mishap, about three o'clock 

 on the afternoon of the 30th. We at once 

 began to pitch camp. The spot selected 

 was a high, dry knoll on the bank of a lit- 

 tle stream and about fifty yards fi'om a 

 willow thicket Avhich afforded us with a 

 never-failing supply of fuel. We had 

 things fixed comfortably, and to use the 

 expression, everything was lovely b}- five 

 o'clock in the evening. 



It was about this time the Ducks and 

 Geese began to come in from the bays and 

 large lakes and to alight among the small 

 sloughs and grain fields to feed. The num- 

 ber of Ducks in these incoming flights was 

 simply amazing. Flocks of several hun- 

 dred yards in extent would come rushing 

 in and for a short time darken the sky, and 

 these had no sooner passed on and dis- 

 persed when another immense flock num- 

 bering countless thousands would come 

 sweeping along in the same direction. 

 Each of mj^ comrades and myself took 

 favorable stands on the banks of the slough 

 and then commenced a general fusilade 



which we kept up for about an hour, when 

 it became too dark to participate in the 

 sport further, so all hands repaired to the 

 camp. When we had arrived there and 

 taken an inventory of stock we found that 

 we had bagged one hundred Ducks, mosfly 

 Mallard and Pin-tail, with a few scattering- 

 Widgeon, Teal and Spoon-bills. x\s we 

 were somewhat tired we retired early to 

 blissful slumbers, fuid. 1 am happy to say, 

 an undisturbed one, for we were not trou- 

 bled by coyotes, as on the previous night. 



The next morning we were up bright and 

 early and at our posts at sunrise. We did 

 not have long to wait; soon a few strag- 

 gling Ducks come sailing along at an in- 

 viting distance over our heads and we give 

 them a couple of loads for luck and bring- 

 down a couple of daring old drake 3fal- 

 lards. 



Then three or four detached flocks come 

 rushing- along, all heedless of their impend- 

 ing doom. We get in a couple of good 

 telling shots among these, and then — 

 Mercy! but what is that dark cloud which 

 come?i rushing along with a muffled roar? 

 We do not have long to wait for an an- 

 swer. Soon the Ducks are upon us, like a 

 whirlwind, on their way back to the bays. 

 At their arrival bang! bang! go our fowling- 

 pieces, but such is the tumult you could 

 not hear the reports two hundred j^ards 

 distant. 



After ten or fifteen minutes the flight 

 has all passed and we proceed to pick up 

 our Ducks, which to say the least made 

 quite a little pile when we reached camp 

 and put them up in a bunch. By this time 

 the ducks are all down in the large bay, so 

 we procure a boat and row out for a little 

 mid-day sport. Our success here was not 

 so great here as inland, however we pro- 

 cured quite a number of Geese on the open 

 wat.er, mostly the White and Grey Brant. 

 After several hours of this sport we again 

 retire to camp and prepare for the evening- 

 shoot. After picking our fowls for the 

 feathers and throwing the carcass away we 

 repair to our stands of the previous even- 

 ing. As the weather was a little windy 

 with signs of rain, the Ducks began flying 



