166 AMERICAN GAME BIRD SHOOTING. 
struction, rather than get over it by flying. Hundreds 
of grouse may be caught in a week by this simple device, 
especially if the traps are carefully looked after, and reset 
every time that a haul is made. These fences are the 
bane of sportsmen, who look upon them with such con- 
tempt that they seldom fail to hurl them down whenever 
they are met. Notwithstanding the numerous foes 
against which the ruffed grouse has to contend, it is as 
abundant as ever on the Pacific Coast. Looking at 
the character of the country beyond the Rocky Moun- 
tains, it would be safe to assert that this bird must be 
numerous for many years to come, and for this reason, 
that it can always procure a generous supply of food and 
ample shelter; that it increases rapidly, is solitary in 
habit, and very vigilant; that it has a vast and trackless 
empire to itself; and, finally, that population is scarce in 
its haunts. 
I have shot the bird frequently in various sections of 
the Continent west of the Rocky Mountains, but the 
largest bag I ever made in a day was in Humboldt 
County, California. Two friends and myself, while pass- 
ing through the country, stopped one day at the cabin of 
a man who shot game, principally deer and birds, for the 
market. His wickiup, as he called it, nestled in a lovely 
glade near a dense forest, and was five miles from the 
nearest house. Although this man seldom saw a human 
being, except when he went to the nearest town to dis- 
pose of his game, he was sociable and hospitable, and 
had a grim humor which was more suggestive than as- 
sertive. He thought no life compared with that of a 
hunter, as it was free from care and trouble, and inde- 
pendent in the fullest sense of the word. His idea of 
existence was that:— 
“Tf thou would’st read a lesson that will keep 
Thy heart from fainting and thy soul from sleep, 
Go to the woods and hills,” 
