PRAIRIE CHICKENS — PINNATED GROUSE. 299 



The middle of September the birds are full-grown, 

 strong of wing and body, and are beginning to gather 

 together in packs or flocks; at this time it is hard to dis- 

 tinguish the old from the young birds. This is .the 

 season of the year when they aflEord the most exciting 

 sport, for the birds are large and strong, and in every 

 way worthy of pursuit, and the hunter feels that his 

 work must be careful, his sight quick, his aim sure, and 

 his powder strong, for the grouse are wary and tenacious 

 of life, and will carry off many pellets of shot. As the 

 mornings are cool, the birds pass more time in the 

 stubble-fields, and on cloudy days spend the entire day 

 there. At this time, the wheat and small grain that have 

 fallen from the sheaves have sprouted, and, intermin- 

 gling vrith clover and short weeds, make an excellent cover, 

 where the birds can feed without danger of being seen, and 

 yet can see suspicious danger approaching from any quar- 

 ter; their flight at this time is long, and when flushed they 

 arise in a whirring body, and fly from a half to a full mile 

 before alighting, when they usually drop into the 

 immense corn-fields. These corn-fields are their resorts 

 in times of danger, for after they once alight in these 

 protecting places, they run so fast that they will keep 

 far ahead of the pursuing hunters and their dogs, whom 

 they hear coming, rattling the dried leaves of the stalks, 

 or occasionally running against them, which serves a 

 notice to quit on the alert birds. It takes a wise dog to 

 circumvent the birds in these corn-fields, but I have had 

 great sport shooting them with a dog that was up to all 

 their tricks. Of all the dogs that I ever shot over, he was 

 the only one I ever saw that could get the best of the 

 birds in the corn-field, and it was rarely that, on warm, 

 bright days in the late months of November and Decem- 

 ber, this cunning old fellow would not outwit the birds. 

 He seemed to know that extreme cautiousness must be 



