A COVEY OF PARTRIDGES iii 



a covey. On becoming aware of the enemy 

 the birds' first impulse is to conceal them- 

 selves. Under the circumstances (high clover) 

 this ruse is simple enough, and would prob- 

 ably succeed were it not for the man's clever 

 assistants, viz., his dogs, who indicate the posi- 

 tion of the covey. Whereupon, an advance 

 is made in their direction. Concealment now 

 no longer availing, the alternative is flight. 

 The birds rise simultaneously. One or more 

 fall, but the rest carry on together, and are 

 presently marked down and followed up by 

 the sportsman, when, again, the same perform- 

 ance is repeated ; though hidden from one 

 another, they spring simultaneously into the 

 air. It does sometimes occur that one or, 

 perhaps, two birds remain to rise a few seconds 

 after the others have fled and get safely away, 

 for it is at this moment the sportsman is 

 engaged in reloading his gun. However, if 

 the observer has carefully noted the relative 

 positions of the birds, he will find that the 

 laggards were squatting a certain distance 

 away from the main body ; they were, in fact, 

 outside the zone of telepathy. 



But to foUow the remnant of the covey : 

 By this time — ^after the second rise — the birds 

 are fairly scared and scatter to some extent, 

 so that when the sportsman comes up with 



