FIELD ETIQUETTE. 275 



Until this lesson has been thoroughly learned, his 

 society will not be eagerly sought, and he may remain 

 aloof from select parties of sporting tourists with full 

 confidence that he never will be missed. That gifted 

 writer and well-known authority, "Gloan," touches upon 

 some of the principal points under consideration in his 

 admirable work, ' ' The Breech-loader, ' ' thus : "To evince 

 disregard — even the slightest — for the possible safety of 

 others, is something more than a mere solecism in man- 

 ners. Therefore, no man should infringe the rules of the 

 field as to carrying his gun, or as to pointing it or shooting 

 it in the direction of another. The caps of a muzzle-loader 

 should always be removed upon entering a dwelling, riding 

 in a conveyance, and whenever not actually in the field ; and 

 more than that, the fulminating powder should be care- 

 fully brushed from the nipple. The cartridge of the gun 

 should always be taken out of the gun on such occasions. 

 Abandon any shooter who refuses to do either! 



' ' To give a younger or less successful man the choice 

 and majority of shots in a day, should be the rule of 

 courtesy; for even between experienced and equal shots, 

 sometimes the luck will all run to one gun, and no shift 

 in position or change of locality will alter it. Generosity 

 then becomes a duty. " 



' ' The field is the touchstone of the man. A gentleman 

 — ^he who claims the title by his even nature, his thought- 

 fulness for friends and others, his self-respect, and, when 

 necessary, self-sacrifice, his forbearance, his politeness, 

 in deed as well as word — ^will find the opportunities 

 greater to show his qualities brighter in the field than in 

 the parlor. 



" To the man of business cares and toils, the field 

 should be an occasion of self-improvement as well as 

 relaxation. While he is in the world of strife, making 

 his race for wealth and fame and power, he may excuse 



