CHAP. XIX.] SHOOTING WILD GEESE. +158 
appearance was to make them break their line and fly straight 
away from me in all directions, thus giving me what I wanted, 
shots at them when flying away from me, in which case they are 
easy to kill. My cartridges told with good effect, and I killeda 
brace, one dropping perfectly dead and the other extending her 
wings and. gradually sinking, till she fell on the top of a furze- 
bush three or four hundred yards off, where I found her lying 
quite dead. It appeared that Simon, seeing that the birds had 
observed me, ran round them, and then setting up a shout, had 
luckily driven them xolens volens over my head. ‘They were 
the white-fronted goose, with pure white spots on their fore- 
heads. About three weeks after this time, at the end of 
March, large flights of grey geese appear here, feeding on the 
fresh-sown oats, barley, and peas during the day, and passing the 
night on the sands of the bay, whither they always repair soon 
after sunset. 
I had passed a great part of several days in endeavouring to 
get at these wary birds, and had occasionally killed a stray one 
or two, but some ill luck or error on my part (Simon would 
never admit that his own tactics were wrong) had always pre- 
vented my getting a good shot at the flocks. As for Simon, he 
protested that “his heart was quite broken with the beasts.” 
One morning, however, I got up at daylight and went to the 
shore; a heavy mist was rolling over the bay, and I could see 
nothing, but heard the wild and continued cry of hundreds of 
geese answering each other, and apparently consulting as to what 
direction they should seek their morning’s repast in. Presently 
I knew from their altered cry that the birds were on wu... and 
were coming directly towarus where I was: I sat down, aua very 
soon a long line of geese came cackling and chattering within 
fifteen yards of me, and I killed a brace with no trouble. In 
the afternoon, while walking on the shore, I saw a large flock of 
geese rise off the sea and fly inland, in a long undulating line, 
evidently looking for a place to feed on. I watched them with 
my glass, and saw the field in which they alighted, at the dis- 
tance of at least two miles from me. I sent for Simon, and started 
in pursuit. We came within two fields of the birds, and could 
advance no nearer without risk of putting them up. On two 
sides of the field “in which they were feeding,” was a deep open 
