66 FIELD SHOOTING. 



of each other. For this reason most of the 

 sportsmen, especially those of the towns near at 

 hand, or from the more distant cities, who shoot 

 mostly in the early part of the season, go to 

 them, and do not attempt the wide pastures. But 

 give me the sport on the latter, and let me be- 

 gin about the middle of September, when most 

 of the grouse bred on them are full-grown, 

 strong birds, coming down with a thump seem- 

 ingly hard enough to make a hole in the ground 

 when killed clean and well. The grouse in these 

 places commonly lie first-rate to the dog, and 

 get up by twos and threes, so that a good shot 

 has a chance to bring to bag many of the 

 covey, and those he cannot shoot at the first rise 

 may be easily marked down. In 1872 Miles 

 Johnson of New Jersey was shooting with me in 

 McLean County, Illinois. We camped near Bell- 

 flower, and had a man for camp-keeper while 

 Miles and I shot. We were out ten days, and 

 in that time bagged six hundred grouse, shooting 

 only mornings and evenings. As I have said be- 

 fore, and wish to impress particularly upon my 

 readers for their information and advantage, it is 

 of no use to try for grouse in the middle of the 

 day, when the weather is clear, in the early part 



