SNIPE. 
9 
day’s tramp. When working quietly homewards in a punt at dusk, or waiting for fowl at flight, I have 
frequently seen Snipe, after hovering for a time in the air, settle quietly down and commence boring along 
the edge of some open pool ; here the birds would collect in small parties on ground I was well aware 
had been entirely deserted by day. Wind and weather have an influence on Snipe that we can scarcely 
expect to fathom ; though the greater part of their movements may be understood and anticipated, they 
undertake at times a change of quarters that is utterly unintelligible. 
The large flights of Snipes that cross the North Sea now and then lose several of their numbers 
through coming in contact with the lamps of the light-ships. I was informed by the crews of some of 
the vessels that this species had been frequently taken on board, though during the two seasons of 1872 
and 1873 only one bird fell disabled on the floating lights off the Norfolk coast. 
Though feeding, as a rule, on inland marshes, I have frequently met with Snipe resorting, even in 
open weather, to saltwater mud-banks. A few are now and then to be seen on Breydon flats in autumn, 
and both full birds and Jacks are not uncommonly flushed on the saltings in Shoreham Harbour. The 
small grassy islands at the head of the Cromarty Firth near Dingwall possessed some years ago great 
attraction for Snipe at low water. During July and August 1868 I repeatedly put up from fifty to one 
hundred birds by simply following the rising tide in a boat. Snipe being of little value so early in the 
season, and the weather too hot to allow of their keeping beyond a day, I seldom molested them: on 
one or two occasions ten couple were bagged ; twice that number could, however, have been obtained 
with the greatest ease. 
During protracted frost Snipe at times are forced to betake themselves to situations where, under 
ordinary circumstances, they would seldom if ever be expected. While the train was entering- the 
station at Tain in Eoss-shire one evening in March 1869, I noticed a Snipe spring from the side of the 
line and, rising straight in the air, strike the telegraph-wires with such force that it fell disabled to the 
ground. As I was returning from shooting in the neighbourhood my gun was at hand, and proceedin*^ 
at once to the spot, four and a half couple of Snipe were bagged during the few minutes of daylight that 
remained. The birds rose from a small brick drain of water that ran from the station, two or three 
escaping through flying off in a line with the telegraph-wires; the station-master happening to be 
present, I declined to fire lest some damage might be laid to my charge. On the journey from Dino-wall 
during the early part of the afternoon, I had noticed Snipe flying up more than once from the vichiity 
of the large iron pumps employed to supply the engines. On the shores of the Highland firths where 
the tide was perfectly salt, I have also watched these birds busily engaged in searching for food While 
punt-gunning one winter on a river in the north of Scotland, I noticed that Snipe were collected in 
numbers along the banks where the mud was kept soft by the action of the tide. As a novel proceedinc. 
tried one shot at them with the big gun; the birds, however, were so tame that it could hardly be 
considered sport, and fowl being plentiful on the water at the time, I left them in peace, hoping to renew 
the acquaintance on some future occasion*. During the day the puiitman knocked over three or four 
birds with the setting-pole, and these as well as eight couple stopped by the shot of the punt-gun were 
in fairly good condition, having apparently suffered but little from the severity of the weather. 
A ridiculous mishap that occurred the same evening shall bring to a close the notes on Scolopax 
galhnago. I was stopping at a most comfortable hotel, which, as is commonly the case in the Highlands 
was situated in a remarkably wild and, during winter, deserted region. Having finished a capital”dinner* 
an eing tired of my own company, I strolled into the kitchen to see what was going on. Here I found 
the punt-gun propped up on a couple of chairs in front of a roaring fire, with two or three keepers 
be found “““ ‘ ‘ 
