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approaching. All the sportsmen on the marsh vie with each 
other in attempting to entice the unlucky birds, but as they almost 
invariably come over the hill from the direction of the Second beach ? 
those who have taken their stand at the eastern end of the marsh 
usually get the first shot. The birds in the meantime have been 
answering the whistles and, when they see the decoys, will usually 
come flying towards them and when near set their wings, drop their 
long legs and sail down uttering their shrill cries. The sports¬ 
man then takes advantage of the opportunity and often brings 
down a good many at a single shot. By far the most abundant 
of the species which may be decoyed in this way, is the common 
Yellow-leg. These birds are frequently so tame that they may 
be whistled up a second time and, after losing several of their 
number at one stand, will often go to another. They are never 
seen here in the great numbers described by Audubon who 
speaks of one hundred and six being killed at a shot, on Long 
Island. 
The Golden Plovers or Greenheads are usually decoyed in the 
bare pastures and not on the marsh, but, although numerous some 
years ago, they are now I believe not common. 
The Red-breasted Snipe known as the Brown-back or 
Dowitcher, which I omitted to mention, is another species much 
sought after by sportsmen and is very easily decoyed. It resem¬ 
bles in shape, though not in plumage, our Common Snipe. I 
have heard an explanation of the singular name of Dowitcher 
applied to this bird which seems very plausible ; the Common 
Snipe which is very closely related to its European brother, 
though not identical with it, is always called the English Snipe, 
and some one out of compliment to our German population is 
supposed to have distinguished the species in question by the 
name of the u Deutscher ” or German Snipe. Our so-called 
English Snipe is not uncommon here; like the Grass Plover 
it cannot be decoyed and is never met with in flocks. It is a 
difficult bird to shoot on account of its peculiarly irregular and 
rapid flight. 
The greater number of the shore birds I have mentioned 
rear their young in the far North, but there is one little bird 
that breeds here in abundance, the Spotted Sandpiper some¬ 
times called Peet-weet from its ordinary cry or Tip-up from its 
