THE TRICKS OF POACHERS. 141 



wind-Stripped oak branches or under the spreading eaves of spruce 

 firs. His lurcher is there, of course, but kept in at heels or held 

 by a comrade who crouches behind a thicket, while the gunner 

 creeps forward. On spruce branches, low down, pheasants may 

 be killed, one after another, by blows from a cudgel, or even 

 caught by the leg by one hand, while the other stops their cack- 

 ling. Those on the oaks and beeches, however, perch so high 

 that they can only be seen when in silhouette against the pale 

 halo of veiled moonlight. But though thus out of reach, they are 

 near enough to be brought down by a small charge, so the Poacher 

 takes half the powder out of his cartridges, thus lessening the 

 volume of sound when he fires. Not that he concerns himself much 

 then about the chance of his shot being heard. Probably he is 

 far off before any watchers have made up their minds exactly 

 where the last report came from. Ears are deceptive when startled 

 suddenly at night,. and the Poacher takes care that nobody shall 

 see the flash of his gun, which he discharges from behind an 

 impenetrable screen of bushes well inside the covert, and seldom 

 on the fringe of it. At worst, however, the risk of bringing 

 keepers down on him for a sharp hand-to-hand tussle adds zest to 

 the game, and in a stern grip, when wrestling for a fall, he can 

 often show them that the tricks of Poachers are not confined to 

 setting snares for timid or helpless wild creatures. It is im- 

 possible for a sportsman to write of Poachers without some 

 admiration for their skill in woodcraft, though he must wish it were 

 employed to better ends. Even the squire who suffers has a soft 

 place in his heart for the dexterous or bold Poacher, and lets him 

 off with a light sentence. 



