ORDER GALLINiE. 245 



grous is known to hunters, and would lead to the belief that 

 it was easy to discover and destroy him. This, however, 

 is not at all the case, for he will seldom allow himself 

 to be approached near enough for that purpose. It is 

 only when he is uttering those cries we have mentioned, that 

 it is possible to get near enough to him ; as soon as he is 

 silent, the fowler should remain immoveable ; the least stir, 

 even the crackling of the leaves, or an inconsiderate move- 

 ment of the eyes, Avill immediately drive away the grous, and 

 when once he has discovered the danger, he is no longer to 

 be approached, not even within two hundred paces. In ob- 

 serving the cautions we have given, however, the fowler can 

 easily kill this bird, when he gets under the tree ; even if he 

 miss him, he will have time to reload his piece, as long as 

 the grous continues his deafening cries. 



It is a cry of a peculiar kind, which points out to the 

 fowler his advantage ; it may be expressed by the syllables 

 he-de-he-de-he, frequently reiterated. But the grous generally 

 commences with another cry, something like dod, expressed 

 several times, and then dodel-dodel-dodelder, repeated with 

 astonishing quickness and rapidity. While he is uttering this 

 last cry, there is no use in attempting to get near him ; he 

 can perceive the slightest motion, and hear the least noise. 

 The organs of sight and hearing in this species are perfect, to 

 a degree which it is almost impossible to conceive. 



Grous shooting, though amusing enough in some respects, 

 particularly as an object of novelty, is, after all, not the most 

 satisfactory of sports. The opportunity of killing one of 

 these birds does not very frequently occur, and few who 

 have habitually pursued this game can boast of having de- 

 stroyed any very considerable number. A great fowler in 

 Germany, mentioned by Bechstein, rendered himself quite 

 celebrated in his native country by having killed twenty 

 male wood-grous ; he was considered as possessing the 



