Return home
Bevy of quail feeding on the snow
1876.
(Dec. 8 [December 8, 1876]) rose, My pointer retrieved the dead birds
nicely after first pointing dead on each. 
In P. M. I started off alone and hunted 
over to Goodspeeds & beyond. Started four
grouse & shot 5 times killing one bird.
Smuggler for the first time did [?]
really good work making a number of
good points and finding my bird - 
a runner, in fine style.
Saturday
Dec. 9 [December 9, 1876] The morning broke cloudy & snow falling thickly
about 2 inches already on the ground. The
weather soon cleared however & I got off
at about 9. Hunted on to Goodspeeds &
found the tracks of a large bevy in his clearing
but could not start them. Returning I 
got a long shot into a bevy of 7, that
rose off a wood pile up the valley but
did not kill any & could not find
them again. After dinner Capt. B. [Captain Baxter]
drove me over to W. Barnstable [West Barnstable] where
I took the 2.40 train for Boston. 
On the way over we saw a bevy of 14
quail out on the snow, within shot of the
road. A prettier sight I never beheld. 
Some were resting, squatted in little groups
on the spotless surface: others were running
busily about [delete]in little[/delete] among the weeds
while one large cock bird had climbed up
a few inches on a bending stalk & was
reaching up pecking at the seeds. I 
forgot to note, that grouse in this
locality feed out on the stubbles morning &
evening nearly as regularly as the quail
Total bag for week 12 quail 2 grouse 4 snipe = 18 birds