374 FEATHERED GAME 
thermometer being down out of sight in the 
glass. Truly, ‘‘They have their reward.’’ It 
may be game or it may take the form of pneu- 
monia. 
A common way in this neighborhood is for 
the gunner to go to the home of some dweller 
among the outer islands and start out with him. 
At midnight or a little later the warning hail is 
heard and out from the blankets you stumble 
to blink sleepily over a cup of strong coffee and 
the fuel to keep the inner man in order, then 
down to the shore to make ready. Cold and 
still the night, scarce a breath of air moving 
over the quiet water, but with regular rise and 
fall the gently seething swell breaks over the 
rocks at the mouth of the narrow cove. In- 
side the rocky barrier small fishing crafts ride 
at anchor, the water rippling alongside and their 
masts reflected in the waves show like long, un- 
dulating serpents. Overhead the moon shows 
pale and cold, and the stars in the sky are wink- 
ing down at their reflections in the sea. Anon 
comes the gentle rustle of the breeze among 
the pines, so still the night you hear their 
needles shivering with the cold, and next the 
rumble and clatter of the decoys, oars and other 
