52 The Partridge Family 



from somewhere. If so, get after and exterminate 

 her as promptly as may be, for the craftiest of 

 imitators cannot compete with the real thing. 

 The reason why she must now be killed is because 

 otherwise she will gather the lot around her 

 within a few minutes, whereupon the next flush 

 becomes precisely what you don't want, — a bevy 

 flush, — and most likely a further flight into what 

 may prove most troublesome cover. As each 

 bird answers, mark its place by the sound, then 

 send the dog about his business. No fear now 

 about the scent. When a bird calls, it has 

 moved, — it won't call from its hiding-place, — and 

 once it has moved it has betrayed itself to the 

 dog. The rest will depend upon the guns. 



Have the birds gone to thicket or other stuff 

 too tall to see over and so thick as to render 

 shooting extremely difficult ? Then there are two 

 ways open. One, the honest man's way, is to 

 smash boldly in, to keep the agreed-upon distance 

 from your friend, and to beat squarely through. 

 This means a rake across the nose every now and 

 then from some thorny growth, a tripping over 

 briers, an occasional difficult shot, and a little — 

 just a little — spicy talk when a bird roars up 

 between your legs and whisks away where you 

 cannot possibly cover it. This is the honest 

 man's way. The other way, the — well, let us 

 call it the experienced man's way — is to agree 



