VARIOUS KINDS OF GUNNING-PUNTS 283 
a skilled man to do the sailing, or a mishap will very likely 
occur, and, just before taking a shot, the boat must be brought 
skilfully round half to windward ; and, as the fowl meanwhile 
are rising head to wind, you gain a few yards on them. 
Other craft requisitioned by the wildfowler are the gondola 
and ‘‘sneak-boat.’’ They are both used for cruising about 
the shallows in hope of a shot with a big shoulder gun, such 
as a single 4-bore. The gondola is generally used by wild- 
fowlers on the tide. The sneak-boat (which is a miniature 
gondola, but decked round a cockpit, so that brushwood, etc., 
may be erected as a screen for the shooter) is more generally 
used on fresh water, such as flooded lands, carrs, meres, lakes, 
etc. The gondola may be made of any size, ranging from 
13 ft. to 24 ft. long, and a corresponding beam of from 
3 ft. to 4 ft. to suit the number of gunners she is to carry. 
As our subject refers to swivel-gun shooting, and the use 
of gondolas is confined to shoulder guns, we cannot go beyond 
the mere dimensions of a gondola and a few hints on them. 
We give the following dimensions for the gondola. She may 
be reduced 6 ft. in length for two shooters, 9 ft. for one shooter, 
but in no case where she is to be used on the tide should her 
length be less than 13 ft. For shooting she will be best made 
sharp at both ends, then she may be shoved either way when 
in narrow places, not square-sterned, as in the usual type of 
gondola. 
Gondola to carry three shooters :—Length over all, 24 ft. ; 
length on bottom, 22 ft.; beam over gunwale, amidships, 
4ft. 9 in. ; width over bottom, amidships, 3 ft. 3 in. ; height 
at stem, 2 ft.; height at stern, 1 ft. 10 in. ; height of sides, 
amidships, 1 ft. gin.; spring fore and aft on bottom, § in. ; 
kammel athwartships, 14 in. ; three seats, 8 in. by 14 in. ; floor 
timbers of oak, 3 in. by 14 in.; floor planks, 1 in. thick. 
Knees of American elm; bottom of yellow pine; sides 
clinker-built of 4 in. yellow pine. 
