76 THE RUFFED GROUSE. 



a rapid run, its head is lowered, the tail is more widely spread, and if no 

 convenient hiding-place is at hand, it immediately takes flight with as much 

 of the whirring sound as it can produce, as if to prove to the observer, that, 

 when on wing, it cares as little about him as the deer pretends to do, when, 

 on being started by the hound, he makes several lofty bounds, and erects his 

 tail to the breeze. Should the Grouse, however, run into a thicket, or even 

 over a place where many dried leaves lie on the ground, it suddenly stops, 

 squats, and remains close until the danger is over, or until it is forced by a 

 dog or the sportsman himself to rise against its wish. 



The shooting of Grouse of this species is precarious, and at times very 

 difficult, on account of the nature of the places which they usually prefer. 

 Should, for instance, a covey of these birds be raised from amongst Laurels 

 (Kalmia latifolia) or the largest species of Bay [Rhododendron maxi- 

 mum), these shrubs so intercept the view of them, that, unless the sportsman 

 proves quite an adej)t in the difficult art of pulling the trigger of his gun at 

 the proper moment, and quickly, his first chance is lost, and the next is very 

 uncertain. I say still more uncertain, because at this putting up of the 

 birds, they generally rise higher over the bushes, flying in a straight course, 

 whereas at the second start, they often fly among the laurels, and rise above 

 them in a circuitous manner, when to follow them along the barrel of the 

 gun is considerably more difficult. Sometimes, when these birds are found 

 on the sides of a steep hill, the moment they start, they dive towards the 

 foot of the declivity, take a turn, and fly off in a direction so different from 

 the one expected, that unless the sportsman is aware of the trick, he may 

 not see them again that day. The young birds often prove equally difficult 

 to be obtained, for as they are raised from amongst the closely tangled 

 laurels, they only fly a few yards, and again drop among them. A smart 

 cur-dog generally proves the best kind on these occasions; for no sooner 

 does he start a covey of Ruffed Grouse than his barking alarms the birds as 

 much as the report of a gun, and causes them to rise and alight on the 

 nearest trees, on which they may be shot at with great success. 



This leads me to remark, that the prevailing notion which exists in almost 

 every district where these birds are numerous, that on firing at the lowest 

 bird perched on a tree, the next above will not fly, and that by continuing 

 to shoot at the lowest in succession, the whole may be killed, is contradicted 

 by my experience; for on every attempt which I have made to shoot several 

 in this manner on the same tree, my efforts have proved unsuccessful, unless 

 indeed during a fall of snow, when I have killed three and sometimes four. 

 The same cause produces the same effect on different birds. It may happen, 

 however, that in districts covered with deep snow for several weeks, during 

 severe winters, these birds, becoming emaciated and weak, may stand a 



