Quail shooting.
1891.
Nov. 7
(No. 2)
Concord, Massachusetts.
Concord, Acton & Carlisle. - Scarce 100 yds. further on
the dog struck another scent that crossed the
path and roaded it out into a pasture coming
finally to a stand at a ground juniper bush of
large size that grew close to a wall. As I stepped
up six or seven Quail started, after a prodigious
amount of preliminary fluttering as they struggled up
through the dense juniper, giving me a perfectly
open shot but I missed with both barrels. the
dog then jumped over the wall and turning pointed
directly at it. / I followed and at once saw a cock
Quail sitting quietly in a crevice between the stones
literally within a foot of the dog's nose. Supposing
that it was wounded I thrust in my hand
cautiously and actually touched it but it slipped
through my fingers, disappeared, and the next 
instant flew from the other side of the wall. /
Rising I cocked the gun and shot it before it
could get out of range.
[margin]Quail takes refuge in a stone wall.[/margin]
[margin]Copy between marks[/margin]
  I then went to the deserted house and began
eating lunch but before I had finished I
heard the Quail whistling and at once started
after them. Don quietly found five which
had run together in the corner of a stone
wall. I fired both barrels at the first that 
rose and missed it, the others going off
unshot at. Soon after this the Dog found
and pointed three more on the edge of 
a thicket in a meadow not 30 yards
from where I started the bevy in the
first place. I concluded that they must