THE WOODCOCK. 315 
bolt a whole lobworm as one of the Lazzaroni at Naples takes 
in a yard or so of maccaroni, or a Madras juggler, a sword. It 
appeared to me rather a clumsy bird, not nimble and sprightly 
like the Sandpipers, but somewhat lumpy in its gait, and the 
large, round, head and perpendicular forehead of the bird gave 
it an air more of the dove than of the serpent. If alarmed 
it would run under cover, and squat, its long bill resting on 
the ground ; but on finding all quiet, would soon rise and glide 
out. On none of these occasions did it take wing, nor fairly 
proceed into the open, never straying further than seven or 
eight yards from a bush.” 
They are with us very tame and confiding birds ; it is not 
merely that they, as a rule, only rise when you are quite close 
to them, and then, if not fired at, only flap a dozen yards or 
so away behind some bush before they drop again. This might 
be due to the fact that, being chiefly nocturnal in their habits, 
they do not see over well in daylight; are confused by the 
glare, and conceive concealment more likely to conduce to 
their safety than flight ; but they really affect rather than shun 
the neighbourhood of mankind. Ina huge valley, containing 
thousands of charming haunts, if there be a single village in 
it near a stream, you are more likely to meet with Woodcock 
in any little garden plots or enclosures on its outskirts than 
anywhere else. And they are not afraid of men, and if you 
do not fire at them, you may put them up two or three times 
in a day, day after day, from the same place ; and after a few 
days they will scarcely take the trouble to flap ten yards away 
when you do rouse them up, and will even, squatting by the 
trunk of some low tree, sit and blink at you with their large 
eyes only half open in a sort of reproachful half-disgusted 
way. “That fellow bothering here again; it is too bad that 
one can’t get a single good day’s rest!’ And then when a 
dog bustles in, he is in no hurry, but just flutters noiselessly 
up afew feet as Dash approaches, and as soon as convinced 
the bird has flown, the dog rushes off, scouring round and 
round in large circles hoping to pick up the scent again, down 
pops the Woodcock placidly in its old place, not apparently 
at all frightened, only very much dissatisfied. Day after day 
in the Sewaliks of the Eastern Dun for nearly a fortnight, 
when after a Sambhar with fabulously large antlers, never 
alas! destined to become trophies of mine, I used to see, and my 
dogs used to put up the same three Woodcock in the same 
spots, until we all knew each other perfectly, so well that when 
having to return to work, I was compelled to give up the 
Phantom Deer, I parted with those Woodcocks in peace, and 
believe that for that season, at any rate, they escaped moles- 
tation. 
No European writer notices their tameness and confiding- 
ness, which has so much struck me here; but that may be 
See ee 
