DUCK-SHOOTING. 259 



of the sportsman. The wild rice has a greenish- 

 yellow stem, with longer joints and without leaves ; 

 it branches at the end into the seed-receptacles, and 

 is not found in such large patches. The deer- 

 tongue grows in deeper water, and retains its green 

 hue till the weather intimates that winter is present. 

 It has a leaf like a dull spear-head, that projects but 

 a few inches above the surface ; and its stout stems, 

 springing up close together, constitute a serious 

 obstacle to the advancing boat. There are also 

 scattered patches of weeds, usually called grass 

 because they are green, but with a round, hollow, 

 tapering stem, or leaf, that has no resemblance 

 whatever to grass. 



Early in the season, when there are few birds fly- 

 ing over the points, and the young, tender, and gen- 

 tle wood-ducks crowd the marshes and will permit 

 an easy approach, it is customary to employ a pun- 

 ter, who poles the boat while the sportsman sits on 

 the forward thwart, gun in hand, ready in a moment 

 to cut down the feeble birds. But if any of the 

 shooting is to be done from the points, the punter 

 will be found in the way, increasing the unsteadi- 

 ness of the boat and augmenting the danger, already 

 sufficiently great. Although by no means proficient, 

 I always prefer poling myself, and will never permit 

 any guns in the boat but my own. 



On the day more particularly referred to in this 

 chapter, we found the birds plentiful, although ra- 

 ther wild, and had grand sport, starting the crying 

 wood-ducks and the quacking mallards from their 



