THE GUN AT HOME AND ABROAD 
make a short circle, and then turn down-wind. If the first drive is down- 
wind the grouse will come back against the wind in the return drive, 
when flushed a second time. 
(2) When grouse are in full feather, after the beginning of October, 
the use of shot smaller than No. 5 invariably results in many wounded 
birds carrying on and then towering, or dropping dead, out of sight. 
At the beginning of the season, however. No. 6 is certainly preferable. 
(3) A blinded bird ascends like one about to tower, but instead of 
suddenly collapsing, and falling a heap of feathers, it comes down with 
its wings outspread. Such a bird is very much on the alert, and, when 
approached, suddenly darts off with great swiftness, and if there is no one 
at hand with a gun, it will probably escape. 
(4) The heather should be kept closely burned for at least fifty yards 
round the butts to facilitate picking up the dead birds. 
(5) When selecting sites for butts try to arrange that no natural alighting 
ground is a short distance in front — unless the butts are concealed from 
observation — otherwise the birds which alight will all turn back when 
approached by the drivers. 
(6) When possible, choose a site where the grouse will have to pass 
over green ground when they arrive within range, grass, fern, or rushes ; 
for when the light is bad it is very difficult to see a low-flying grouse 
sufficiently clearly against dark heather, and many birds are wounded 
in consequence — instead of being killed. 
(7) Where feasible, the butts should be placed low down, so that the 
grouse fly over them, as they are much more easily seen against the sky, 
and consequently a larger percentage are brought to the bag. 
(8) Grouse are much more easily killed when the ground is level for 
some distance before and behind the butts, for then the grouse fly also on 
a level plane. Grouse usually follow the contour of the ground, so that if 
it rises suddenly, or falls away, the birds also continually alter the level 
of their flight, which greatly increases the difficulty of the shot. 
(9) It is easier to kill birds flying to the left if the ground falls away 
in that direction than if it rises, for the natural tendency is to pull the 
muzzle of the gun downwards when swinging it to the left, and vice versa 
to the right. The natural deflection coincides therefore with the flight 
of the grouse when following falling ground. 
(10) Butts made with foundations of stone, the upper half only being 
of peat, are almost everlasting. The stones should not be raised quite 
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