138' WILD FOWL SSOOTING. 



dark. Every young hunter has the same text to learn 

 from. Those times are good for ducks, but only in 

 flight shooting, or when they come in to feed or roost, 

 and the best continuous shooting I ever had has been 

 in the middle of the day from ten in the morning until 

 four in the afternoon. But mind, a knowledge of 

 where they resort at such times must be had by the 

 successful midday hunter, and they should be shot over 

 decoys. At such times, look for them in rice beds, 

 smart-weed, willow flashes, or in overflowed timber. 

 At times one will rout them out accidentally. His judg- 

 ment will tell him whether or not they will return. 

 They will come back if they have been enjoying them- 

 selves feeding in some quiet, secluded retreat, and will 

 feel comparatively safe. The proper way to find their 

 midday retreat is, go where you think they may be 

 found, don't be in a hurry to start out, but first decide 

 where you intend going. Station yourself on some 

 elevated place, and for half an hour watch every duck 

 until it passes out of sight. If you do not see them 

 light, depend on it you are at the wrong place, so move 

 on. If you see one light, perhaps a pair, possibly a 

 flock , then carefully watch every bird that takes that 

 direction, and if you notice they keep dropping in, you 

 have found their feeding ground. Go there at once, 

 rout them out quietly as possible, — ^better not shoot 

 then, but set out your decoys, build your blind, and you 

 will get splendid shooting, as they will string back 

 singly, in pairs, and in small flocks. My memory is 

 fresh with the recollection of frequent incidents of this 

 kind, when I have half filled my duck-boat with mal- 

 lards, when at the same time, inexperienced hunters 

 were splashing around through the mud, wasting ammu- 



