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INSTRUCTIONS 


Sportsmen. 


LONDON : 

PRINTED    BY    THOMAS    DAVISON,    WHITEFRIARS. 


INSTRUCTIONS 

1 

TO 


IN 


ALL  THAT  RELATES  TO 

GUNS    AND    SHOOTING, 


BY 


LT  COL.  P.  HAWKER. 

• 


FIFTH  EDITION, 


VD    IMPROVr.l);    \\1TH     KXPLAKATOnV    PLATES 
\VI)    WOOD    <  T'TS. 


LONDON: 

PRINTED    FOR 

'     LONGMAN,  REES,  ORiAIE,  BROWN,  AND  GREEN, 

1826. 


H3 


PREFACE. 

THE  original  edition,  which  has  led  to  the 
publication  of  the  following  pages,  was  hastily 
written,  at  the  particular  request  of  some 
sporting  friends  of  the  Author,  who  had  re- 
course to  the  press,  in  order  to  present  each 
of  them  with  a  legible  copy.  A  few  sup- 
plementary impressions  also  were  provided, 
for  the  amusement  and  instruction  of  the 
inexperienced  sportsman,  to  whom,  alone, 
he  still  presumes  to  offer  so  humble  a  pro- 
duction. 

To  prevent  enlarging  this  work  to  an  ex- 
pensive publication,  all  needless  embellish- 
ments have  been  studiously  avoided.  By 
thus  omitting  ornamental  plates  on  the  worn- 
ouf  subjects  of  common  shooting,  useless 
anecdotes,  and  other  extraneous  matter,  there 


vi  PREFACE. 

is  a  saving  of  time  to  many,  who  would  be 
better  employed  than  in  reading  superfluous 
volumes,  on  a  mere  subject  of  recreation  ;  as 
well  as  of  expense  to  those,  who  could  not 
conveniently  afford  to  purchase  them. 

Every  thing  here  asserted  has  been  the  re- 
sult of  many  years'  trial  and  experience  ;  and, 
therefore,  all  reference  to  other  publications 
has  been  as  much  declined,  as  have  statements 
from  report;  and  it  has  been  attempted  to 
dilate  most,  on  what  has  been  the  least  ex- 
plained by  other  authors. 

So  much,  indeed,  has  been  published,  by 
more  able  writers,  on  field  sports  of  every  de- 
scription, that  little  remains  to  be  said  on  the 
subject.  In  Mr.  Bewick's  History  of  British 
Birds,  the  descriptions  are  so  well  compiled, 
and  the  figures  so  faithfully,  elegantly,  and 
scientifically  engraved,  that,  after  such  a  work 
on  ornithology,  it  would  be  difficult  to  offer 
any  thing,  but  what  would  prove  unworthy 
of  perusal. 

The  pursuit  of  game  is  already  too  well 


PREFACE.  Vll 

known  to  require  much  instruction.  The 
author  has,  therefore,  thought  it  far  better, 
instead  of  treating  too  copiously  on  that 
head,  to  give  particular  directions  for  (what 
gentlemen  least  understand)  GETTING  ACCESS 

TO   WILD   BIRDS   OF   EVERY  DESCRIPTION. 

With  regard  also  to  gum,  and  the  various 
other  subjects  that  form  the  remainder  of  the 
book,  he  has  taken  up  his  pen  with  the  de- 
termination of  neither  borrowing,  without 
proper  acknowledgment,  from  other  works, 
nor  trusting  to  any  thing  from  the  experi- 
ments of  other  persons. 

From  having  thus  declined  all  assistance, 
and  wholly  confined  himself  to  the  limits  of 
his  own  humble  experience,  he  will  have  to 
apologize  perhaps  for  some  errors,  and  no 
doubt  for  many  deficiencies.  But  even  this, 
it  is  hoped,  will  make  the  work  less  objec- 
tionable than  swelling  its  dimensions  to  an 
unreasonable  size,  by  relating  incidents  that 
possibly  never  occurred,  or  commencing  a 
system  of  piracy  on  other  authors,  which  no- 


Vlll  PREFACE. 

thing  should  induce  him  to  do,  after  the  very 
flattering  manner  in  which  his  former  editions 
have  been  received  by  the  Reviewers  and  the 
Public. 

He  now  offers  to  their  notice  the  fifth 
edition  of  this  work,  which  has,  of  late,  been 
in  many  parts  materially  altered  and  en- 
larged. The  improvements  here  added  have 
been  the  result  of  still  further  experience  ; 
and,  therefore,  may  be  considered,  in  some 
degree,  as  finishing  lessons  to  those  young 
sportsmen,  who  have  before  done  him  the 
honour  to  attend  to  his  earlier  instructions. 

The  original  matter,  however,  on  which  no 
improvement  happened  to  present  itself,  will, 
of  course,  remain  as  before,  for  the  benefit  of 
younger  pupils  in  shooting.  But  every  thing, 
which  was  written  previously  to  the  year 
1816  that  could  be  improved,  up  to  the  pre- 
sent year,  has  been  introduced  on  a  different, 
and,  he  trusts,  a  more  perfect  system. 

All  the  new  directions,  which  this  work 
con  tains,  .have  been  first  experimentally  tried, 


PHEFACE.  ix 

and  taken  down,  from  time  to  time,  in  a 
pocket  book ;  then  detailed,  as  soon  after  as 
possible,  in  the  most  specific  manner;  and, 
before  they  were  entered  among  these  pages, 
abridged  to  about  a  tenth  part  of  their  original 
bulk,  through  consideration  for  the  patience 
of  the  reader. 

Some  apology  may,  perhaps,  be  requisite 
for  the  abrupt  style  which  this  very  abridg- 
ment occasions,  as  well  as  for  the  author 
having  been  so  generally  obliged  to  write 
in  the  first  person.  Dictatorial,  however,  as 
may  appear  the  one,  and  egotistical  as  may 
be  thought  the  other,  yet  it  is  presumed,  that 
his  colloquial  style  may  not  be  objected  to, 
when  all  circumstances  are  considered,  by 
those  persons  who  are  most  able  to  criticise, 
and  who  are  invariably  the  most  liberal 
judges. 

Some  apology  too  may  be  necessary  for 
that  want  of  ceremony,  which  the  public 
have  a  right  to  expect  from  every  author. 
But,  while  occupied  in  forming  this  work,  it 


X  PREFACE. 

must  candidly  be  confessed,  that  the  writer 
could  not  divest  himself  of  feeling  rather  as 
one  conversing,  without  reserve,  among  his 
brother  sportsmen,  than  as  an  author,  whose 
work  was  going  before  a  public  tribunal. 

The  summit  of  his  ambition,  therefore,  will 
be,  to  give  some  little  additional  knowledge 
to  those  for  whom  the  work  is  intended ;  and 
his  earnest  hopes  are,  that  these  his  further, 
and  most  probably  his  last,  efforts  on  the 
subject,  will  meet  with  that  indulgence,  which 
he  has  experienced  on  all  former  occasions. 


***  As  there  will  appear  in  this  book  some  recipes  which 
might  fail,  if  the  articles  required  for  them  should  not  be  of  the 
best  quality,  it  has  been  thought  necessary  to  give  the  names  of 
a  few  tradesmen,  whom  the  author  has  reason  to  hope  may  be 
depended  on. 

Iii  a  work  of  this  kind,  it  requires  more  ingenuity  than  the 
writer  can  boast  of,  to  avoid  entirely  those  inimical  appendages 
to  reading — notes  and  parentheses.  The  frequent  use  of  Italics, 
also,  he  is  aware  has  an  ugly  appearance.  But,  nevertheless, 
they  have  before  answered  his  object,  which  is  to  impress  as 
strongly  as  possible  on  the  memory  of  his  young  readers,  those 
directions  which  require  to  be  read  with  particular  attention. 


CONTENTS. 


Page 

GUNS 1 

London  Barrel-makers  * 3 

Mr.  Lancaster's  self-acting  machine  for  turning  the 

outsides  of  barrels 4 

Barrels,  some  of  the  best  shot,  and  then  gauged,  in 

order  to  show  how  they  were  bored 6 

Table  of  a  Trial  to  prove  that  long  barrels  kill  fur- 
ther than  the  short  ones,  which  are  now  made    .  .  18 

Damascus  Barrels   21 

Elevation    24 

Sight 25 

Ramrod 26 

Directions  for  truing  Barrels 26 

Stock 28 

Recipe  for  polishing  Gunxtocks    30 

Breeching 31 

Touchhole 36 

Lock 36 

Gravitating  Stops 39 

Springs 40 

Cocks  and  Hammers     41 

Pan    46 

Trigger 46 

To  take  a  Lock  to  pieces 47 

To  put  it  together  again 49 

Alphabetical  List  of  the  names  of  the  principal  parts 

of  a  Gun    51 

*  For  their  addresses,  see  under  the  head  of  "  Duck  Guns." 


xiv  CONTENTS. 

Page 

Directions  for    Cleaning    Guns,    and    precautions 

against  their  hanging  Jire     53 

DETONATING  SYSTEM    58 

Trials  of  Flint  Locks  against  Petonaters 63 

Gun    67 

Barrel   71 

Breeching 72 

Venthole     72 

Nipple  or  Pivot     72 

Cock,  or  Striker    •. 73 

Side  Nail 74 

Dissection 75 

Cleaning    75 

Loading     75 

Recipe  for  making  Detonating  Powder 77 

Mr,  Joyce's  Anti-corrosive  Percussion  Powder  ....  78 

Mr.  Joseph  Manton's  Percussion  Powder 80 

Shooting    81 

Observations  (from  experiments)  on  the  difference 

in  shooting  between  a  Flint  Gun  and  a  Detonater  8.1 

GUN  CASES    86 

POWDER  88 

SHOT 93 

Schedule  of  Shot,  compiled  up  to  the  very  latest 

manufacturing 96 

NEW  PATENT  SHOT 98 

Trial  of  it  since  the  4th  edition   99 

FLINTS  100 


CONTENTS.  XV 

Page 

WADDING    101 

LOADING 105 

POWDER  FLASK   108 

SHOT  BELT Ill 

DRESS  OF  A  SHOOTER 114 

APPARATUS    118 

^HOOTING 119 

Finishing  Lcxsonx  in,  (with  a  disclosure  lo  the  un- 
finished shooter,  of  how  id  mana-uvre  wild  coriex, 
fyc.  fyc.,  and  to  know  how  to  cope  with  a  crafty  old 
Sportsman)  1,'iO 

Partridge  Shooting 141 

Grouse  Shooting    144 

( With  recipe  for  keeping  Grouse  ;  so  as  to  send 
them  an//  distance,  within  the  United  Kingdoms, 
in  (he  hottest  weather) 146 

Shooting  Pheasants,  fyc.  (with  a  few  directions  to 
the  inexperienced,  for  recovering  (heir  own  Game, 
if  unhandsome///  driven  from  them;  Shooting  in 
Covert,  Sfc.) 147 

Cock  Shooting 152 

Snipe  Shooting,  with  observations,  that  Snipe  Shoot- 
ing and  Fly  Fishing  may  be  followed  on  the  same 
dan  153 

Letter  with  information  to  Mr.  Martin  on  these 
two  subjects;  after  which  are  introduced,  new 
Directions  for  Fly  Fishing,  Trolling,  and  other 
matter  relative  to  Trout  Fishing 155 

A  LIST  of  BIRDS,  $c.  #c.,  which  are  most  com- 


XVi  CONTENTS. 

Page 

monly  followed  by  Shooting  Sportsmen  ;  alpha- 
betically arranged,  with  their  proper  names,  as 
selected  by  Bewick;  their  Latin  and  French 
names  as  given  by  Linnceus  and  Buff  on  y  with 
general  directions  for  getting  access  to  them  ....  176 
In  the  foregoing  list  is  introduced 

BLACK  GAME  SHOOTING  ON  THE  BOR- 
DERS OF  HANTS  AND  DORSET  ....  200 

Directions  as  to  what  birds  are  proper  for  the 
Table;  how  to  choose  them  at  Market;  how  to 
keep  them,  $c.  $c 237 

Recipe  for  Sauce  to  Wildfowl 241 

DOGS  (concise  directions  for  breaking  and  managing}  . .    243 
Newfoundland  Dogs  ;  how  to  choose  them,  fyc 245 

DISEASES  IN  DOGS 249 

Distemper 249 

Letter,   and   Experiment   on    Vaccination  for   this 

Disease 252 

Mange 253 

Sore  Feet 254 

Thorns 254 

Physic   255 

Strains  or  Brmses    255 

Poison    256 

Bites  of  Vipers     256 

Bite  of  a  Mad  Dog 257 

To  physic  moderately,  and  give  ajine  coat  to,  Dog,?  258 

PRESERVATION  OF  GAME,  exposing  various  tricks 

of  Poachers  and  Trespassers 260 

DUCK  GUNS.   Addresses,  fyc.  of  London  Barrel-makers. 

General  Directions  for  Duck  Guns     269 


CONTENTS.  XV11 

Page 
Table  of  Trial  between  Duck  Guns  and  Double 

Guns 276 

Ditto  between  a  Double  Gun,  common  Shoulder  Duck 

Guns,  and  a  Swivel  Gun 276 

Loading 277 

Cleaning  278 

TO  MAKE  AN  OLD  GUN  SHOOT  WELL 282 

DUCK  SHOT    286 

Table  to  show  which  answers  best,  according  to  the 
different  sizes  of  the  Guns  that  are  used 287 

DUCK-GUN  WADDING    288 

Oakum  and  Cork  versus  Pasteboard  (to  prove  that 
a  Punched  Wadding  is  not  the  best  Material  for 
Loading) 289 

WATER  BOOTS 294 

DRESSES  PROPER  FOR   WILDFOWL  SHOOT- 
ING     297 

TO  PRESERVE  GUNS  FROM  RUSTING  WITH 
SALT  WATER 304 

WILDFOWL  SHOOTING 306 

LAUNCHING,  AND  CANOE  SHOOTING 313 

Hampshire  Launching-punt    313 

Different  kinds  of  newly  invented  Sledges  for  tra- 
versing the  Oozes 314 

Expulsion  of  the  Old  System  of  Shooting  on  the 
Hampshire  coast,  as  described  by  Mr.  Gilpin, 
and  given  in  "  Rural  Sports  " 318 

b 


xviii  CONTENTS. 

Page 

Pooh  Canoe,  with  Lessons  in  every  way  for  Wigeon 
Shooting,  by  night  and  day,  at  low  water,  and 
half  flood,  &c 319 

GENERAL  INSTRUCTIONS  for  Sea-coast  Wildfowl 

Shooting,  when  afloat    325 

STANCHION  OR  PUNT-GUN 335 

New  plan  for  Jiring  2lb.  of  Shot  to  the  best  advan- 
tage^ and,  at  the  same  time,  easing  the  recoil  of  a 
Swivel-gun  r 339 

EXPLANATION  OF  MY  PL  AN  for  easing  the  Recoil 
of  a  Punt-gun ;  or,  a  Ship's  Swivel  *  (as  used 
in  Merchantmen ;  in  Boats ;  in  the  "  tops"  of 

Men  of  War;  be.) 344 

Loading 350 

Firing    352 

GUNNING-PUNT,  safe  and  proper  for  the  use  of  a 

Stanchion-gun 355 

New  plan  for  a  Gunning-punt     357 

Shooting  with  a   Stanchion-gun  from  a  Punt;   its 

Elevation  by  day  or  night 364 

Manoeuvring  Curres,  and  other  small  Wildfowl; 
also  Geese,  wild  Swans,  $c.,  with  a  disclosure  of 
all  the  secrets  for  getting  at  them  in  every  way  . .  366 

*  In  writing  on  this  subject,  I  applied  the  word  "  carronade  ;" 
and,  if  improperly,  it  was,  no  doubt,  through  my  «  land-lubber". 
Jike  misunderstanding,  of  naval  friends  to  whom  I  submitted  the 
invention.  For  ships'  swivels,  the  mode  of  easing  the  recoil,  I 
think,  may  be  adapted  as  here  shown;  but  for  carronades,  it 
would,  I  presume,  require  a  somewhat  different  construction. 


CONTENTS.  XIX 

Page 

BOAT  SHOOTING  UNDER  SAIL  outside  of  Harbour  373 
Caution  how  to  avoid  the  Accidents  that  too  frequently 

happen  in  Sailing 374 

Observations  on  Shooters,  Sfc.t  in  the  Southampton 
River 376 

II ILDFOWL  ARTILLERY,  or  Carriage  for  using  a 

Stanchion-gun  on  Land    378 

METHOD  OF  SHOOTING   WILDFOWL  IN 
FRANCE 370 

Freiwh  lint  Shouting  (Specific  In  ,v/  met  ions  for  every 
tiling  concerning} 381 

1 1  a  Han  Method  of  making  Call  Birds  clamorous    .  .    383 

Genera/  Directions  in  using  the  Hut  for  each  nor  I 
of  Wildfowl 385 

Anecdote  to  prorc  the  Superiority  of  the  French 
Ducks  as  Decoy  />//v/.v,  /'//  comparison  lo  tliose 
which  are  hred  in  England 380 

PUNTS,  GUNS,  «$•<;.,   r.S/,7)   FOR  SHOOTING  IN 
THE  FENS 388 

Recent  Information  re/alirc  to  the  Fen  Country  in 
Norfolk 390 

Mode  of  Working  a  Pntit  to  Birds  over  a  Sheet  of 
Ice 391 

DRESSING  FOR  PUNTS  AM)  CA\()ES 392 

New  Directions  for  Preferring  and  Painting  them     393 
How  to  give  Temporary  Changes  lo  their  Colour  for 
different  Weather 393 

BEST    Ml'AXS    OF    COM- EYING     Pl'M'S,    %c. 

LAM)    .  .   394 


XX  CONTENTS. 

Page 

SHOOTING  WITH  A  SMALL  GUN  ON  A  RIVER, 
$c 395 

GAME  LAWS    398 

Qualification 399 

Certificate 400 

Gamekeepers 401 

Form  of  a  Deputation 401 

Refusing  to  give  Names   402 

Game 402 

Eggs  of  Game 404 

Game  found  in  Possession  of  unqualified  Persons  . .    405 

Officers  and  Soldiers  killing  Game 405 

Tame  Pigeons,  or  House  Doves 406 

Dogs 406 

Dogs  exempted  from  Duty 406 

Trespass  406 

Exemptions  from  Trespass  before  and  after  Notice     407 

Notices 408 

Specific  Instructions  how  to  warn  off  a  Trespasser    408 

Dogs,  Trespass  of   . .  . .  r 412 

Waste  Land 413 

Rabbits,  Woodcocks,  Snipes,  fyc 413 

Free  Warrens  and  Decoys 414 

Wildfowl   414 

Time  within  which  Informations  and  Actions  must 

be  brought 415 

Lords  of  Manors 417 

ACTS  passed  since  the  second  Edition : — 

Persons  found  at  night  armed  with  Intent  to  Kill 

Game 417 

Penalty  for  Buying  Game 418 

Observations  on  the  Game  Laws 418 

Suggestions  for  a  New  Code  of  Game  Laws 421 


CONTENTS.  XXI 

Page 

GENERAL  ADVICE  FOR   THE  HEALTH  AND 
COMFORT  OF  A  YOUNG  SPORTSMAN   433 

How  to  provide  for  himself  at  the  last  stage  on  his 
route,  previously  to  the  banishment  of  a  Sporting 
Exile 435 

Precautions  against  taking  Cold  on  his  entering  Bad 
(Quarters  43(> 

How  to  Cater,  and  make  palatable  Bad  Provisions     436 

How  to  fare  tolerably,  while  a  bad  Caterer  would  be 
starved  out  of  the  place  437 

What  few  Medicines  to  make  choice  of,  (is  being 
most  useful  when  confined  to  a  small  quantify  of 
Baggage 442 

Best  Precautions  against  Cold,  Rheumatism,  Tooth- 
ache^ Ague,  fyc 444 

List  of  the  very  few  Articles  that  he  could  take  in  his 
Portmanteau,  iril/i  which  he  or  his  Servant  might 
have  the  means  of  making  (l  tolerable  dish  out  of 
the  most  humble  materials  445 

Interspersed  occasionally  with  a  little  Advice  to  the 
very  Young  Sporifnten,  on  more  General  Subjects. 

ALPHABETICAL  LIST  of  London  Gunmakers 453 

PRESERVERS  OF  BIRDS,  $c 455 


LIST  OF  PLATES,  &c. 


i. 

COMMKXCKMENT  <>f  a  Cripple-chase,  after  firing  2lbs.  of 
Shot  into  a  Skein  of  Brent-geese,  and  two  Wild  Swans 
(with  Boats,  Dogs,  wounded  Curlew,  dead  Coot,  &c.) 
[Explanation  of  this  Plate,  page  375]  FRONTISPIECE. 

II. 

Sections  of  the  different  Gun  Breechings    to  face  page  33 

III. 

Check  Collar  and  Puzzle,  for  breaking  Pointers  or  Setters...  244 

IV. 

Hampshire  Coast  u  Gunning-Punt,"  Mud  Boards,  Appa- 
ratus, &c 314 

V. 

Mud-Launchers,  on  the  Oozes,  offLymington,  shoving  their 

Punts  up  to  Wigeon 318 

VI. 

Poole  Canoe  (with  Directions  for  Building  it),  Mud-Boards, 

&c 319 

VII. 

Approaching  Wildfowl   (with  Canoe  and  Stanchion  Gun), 

preparative  to  the  flowing  Tide    328 


LIST    OF    PLATES. 

Page 
VIII. 
*    Wildfowl  Artillery,  or  Carriage  for  using  a  Stanchion-gun 

\mLand 378 

IX. 

Hut  Shooting,  on  the  French  System.  (The  principal  birds 
here  shown  are — fastened  to  the  strings,  the  Decoy 
Ducks  and  Mallards : — In  the  killed  arid  wounded,  the 
Pintail,  the  Cock  Wigeon,  a  Duck  and  Mallard,  and 
the  Tufted  Duck ; — and,  flying  up  from  the  water,  the 
Dunbird  and  the  Scaup  Drake)  387 

X. 

Carriage  (with  Directions,  &c.)  to  convey  a  Shooting  Canoe 

(or  Punt)  over  Land 394 

WOOD  CUTS  (explanatory  of  the  spring-swivel)  from  344  to  349 


OF  a  common  size  are  now  brought  to  such  perfec- 
tion, that  a  person,  who  is  content  with  being  to- 
lerably well  served,  can  hardly  go  amiss,  in  choosing 
his  gimmaker;  and  there  is  scarcely  any  one  in 
the  business  but,  from  the  accidental  circumstance 
of  having  served  some  of  his  customers  with  good 
barrels,  is  extolled,  by  them,  as  the  best  maker  hi  the 
kingdom. 

The  real  sportsman,  however,  will  turn  the  deaf  ear 
to  such  recommendations,  and  continue  going  to  the 
heads  of  the  Irade*  which,  he  may  rest  assured,  for 
one  who  wishes  to  be  really  well  served,  is  the  most 
certain,  the  most  satisfactory,  and,  in  the  end,  the 
cheapest  method  he  can  adopt. 

In  answer  to  those,  who  deprecate  the  idea  of  giving 
Mr.  Manton,  or  Mr.  Purdey,  fifty-five,  or  Mr.  Joseph 
Manton*  sixty-five  guineas  for  a  gun,  let  me  only 

*  Mr.  Joseph  Manton,  since  being  made  a  bankrupt,  has  as- 
sured me  that  he  shall  resume  business  again ;  and  Mr.  Aston 
(liis  clerk)  and  other  men  are  still  kept  to  execute  orders,  and 
thus  secure  customers  till  matters  arc  re-established.  Mr.  Joseph 
Manton's  name,  therefore,  will  of  course  stand  as  before  in  this 
work.  I  have  just  received  from  him  the  following  notice:— 
•  J  iseph  Manton  has  the  honour  to  inform  noblemen  and  gentle- 

B 


GUNS. 

observe,  that  the  workmen,  employed  by  these  and 
the  other  good  makers,  require  wages  and  indulgence, 
in  proportion  to  their  skill  in  the  respective  branches 
of  the  business ;  and  it  thereby  becomes  necessary  to 
charge  for  the  guns  accordingly. 

Should  this  expense  be  incompatible  with  the  spirit 
or  finances  of  the  shooter,  he  has  only  to  pay  a  visit 
to  Mr.  Bishop*  (170,  New  Bond  Street),  or  Messrs. 
Kent,  Avery  and  Vincent  (corner  of  Little  Brook 
Street),  where  he  will  get,  at  reduced  prices,  the  guns 
of  almost  every  mechanic  in  London,  and  some  of 
them  entirely  new,  with  every  article,  as  it  came 
packed  from  the  gunmaker,  to  the  gentleman,  who 
raised  the  wind  on  it ! 

Buying  a  gun  ready  made,  at  a  respectable  shop, 
is  cheaper  and  better  than  going  to  an  inferior  maker, 
by  reason  that  instead  of  waiting  six  months  for  one, 

men,  that  he  hopes  very  soon  to  have  his  affairs  settled,  when  he 
intends  to  resume  business  again  with  a  new  patent  double  gun 
on  a  very  improved  construction,  and  which  will  far  exceed  any 
of  his  former  inventions.  He  will  also  have  new  machinery  much 
better  adapted  for  the  various  parts  of  gun  making,  so  as  to  ren- 
der his  workmanship  superior  to  what  it  ever  has  been." 

u  March  25th,  1826." 

*  Mr.  Bishop  is  now  agent  for  Mr.  Westley  Richards,  of  Bir- 
mingham, who  is  considered  by  some  of  our  best  sportsmen  as 
"  Joe  Manlon  the  second ;"  and  I  should  say  deservedly  so,  if 
I  may  judge  by  what  I  have  seen  of  him  and  his  work.  Mr. 
Richards  is  really  a  scientific  man,  instead  of  having  more  tongue 
than  brains,  like  many  of  our  gunmaking  charlatans.  His  bar- 
rels are  perhaps  as  good  as  any  in  the  world,  being  made  of  pure 
Holland  stubs,  and  twisted  in  a  manner  best  suited  for  service 
and  for  safety. 


GUNS.  3 

which,  after  all,  you  might  not  be  pleased  with,  you 
may  here,  at  once,  suit  yourself;  and,  sometimes,  full 
as  well  as  if  you  had  spared  no  expense.  You  should, 
however,  first  try  and  examine  it,  as  the  gunmakers 
themselves,  as  well  as  the  broken-down  gentry,  are 
frequently  obliged  to  have  a  little  commerce  with 
pawnbrokers. 

By  having  here  mentioned  only  the  names  of  the 
two  Mantons  and  Purdey,  I  do  not  mean  to  cast  any 
reflection  on  the  rest  of  the  trade;  as  no  one  can 
dispute  that  most  of  the  leading  makers,  both  in  town 
and  country,  have  turned  out  some  excellent  guns : 
and  I  am  induced  to  mention  one  of  the  country 
makers,  as  an  encouragement  for  others  to  follow  his 
example — Mr.  Parsons,  of  Salisbury,  who  has  his 
barrels  from  the  same  man,  and  closely  imitates  Mr. 
Manton ;  by  which  lie  has  given  much  satisfaction 
in  the  West  of  England.  Mr.  Parsons  has,  of  late, 
become  quite  a  star  among  the  country  gunmakers, 
as  I  always  thought  he  would,  because  he  was  never 
above  being  told  any  thing. 

By  having  named  Mr.  Parsons,  let  it  be  understood 
Hint  I  am  far  from  meaning  any  thing  against  his 
competitor,  Mr.  Rhodes,  who  is  also  a  gunmaker  of 
good  repute  in  the  same  town. 

The  barrel-maker  that  I  have  alluded  to  is  Mr. 
Fullerd,  who,  for  forging,  is  one  of  our  best  artificers. 
Mr.  Charles  Lancaster  is  the  other  justly  celebrated 
man.  Mr.  Lancaster  receives  his  barrels  in  the  rough 
from  Birmingham  (where  the  coals  for  the  forge  are 


4  GUNS. 

now  easier  to  be  got  good  than  in  London) ;  and, 
consequently,  he  has  the  picking  from  some  of  the 
best  barrels  in  Europe ;  and  then  turns  and  finishes 
them,  in  a  very  superior  manner,  at  his  workshop, 
No.  2,  Thomas  Place,  Hampstead  Road.  Here  Mr. 
Lancaster  has  a  self-acting  machine  for  turning  the 
outsides  of  barrels,  from  end  to  end ;  and  producing, 
mathematically  true,  the  proper  shape  and  curve, 
from  the  muzzle  to  the  breeching.  This  apparatus 
has  cost  him  immense  pains  and  expense,  and  is, 
no  question,  the  best  invention  that  has  ever  been 
adopted;  as  regular  shooting  must,  in  a  great  de- 
gree, depend  on  the  regular  thickness,  and  the  re- 
gular tapering  of  the  barrel. 

I  flatter  myself  that,  ere  long,  I  may  probably 
have  the  thanks  of  many  sportsmen,  though  perhaps 
any  thing  but  the  thanks  of  many  gunmakers,  for 
advising  Lancaster  to  come  forward,  at  the  west  end 
of  the  town,  and  produce  with  his  own  name  that  ad- 
mirable work  of  his,  which  has  been  the  means  of 
establishing  the  names  of  so  many  others  in  the  gun 
trade.  If  he  spares  no  expense  in  getting  the  other 
parts  of  his  guns  equal  to  his  barrels,  he  need  not 
fear  as  to  standing  one  of  the  first  on  the  list,  and 
soon  making  a  fortune.  I  have  therefore  reason  to 
think  that,  before  this  edition  is  printed  off,  Mr. 
Lancaster  will  commence  business,  as  gunmaker,  as- 
sisted by  some  of  the  best  workmen  in  London. 
While  only  known  as  a  barrel  maker,  he  has  been 
in  the  habit  of  "  ribbing,"  "  breeching"  and  putting 


GUNS.  5 

together  the  barrels,  then  "  boring"  them  "for  shoot- 
ing ;"  and,  in  short,  completing  them  for  the  field  all 
but  the  browning  and  engraving. 

Many  wiseacres  abuse  all  the  heads  of  the  trade, 
and  swear  that  they  can  always  insure  having  the 
best  of  guns,  at  a  quarter  the  price,  from  Birming- 
ham !  This  may  be,  provided  a  person  has  such 
good  judgment,  or  interest  there,  as  to  get  picked 
workmen,  for  the  whole  process  of  his  order ;  but, 
in  general,  the  immense  business  carried  on  at  this 
place  is  for  the  wholesale  line,  and  only  requires  to 
be  in  the  rough ;  from  which  circumstance,  the  work- 
men are  not  so  much  in  the  habit  of  finishing,  as 
those  employed  daily  for  that  purpose.  Moreover, 
if  there  is  a  first  rate  and  enterprising  workman,  he 
hears  of  the  high  wages,  and  contrives  to  get  off  to 
London. 

But,  as  far  as  the  judgment  of  some  people  goes, 
it  would  certainly  be  a  wanton  extravagance  to  give 
more  than  fifteen  pounds  for  a  double,  or  eight  for  a 
single  gun.  I  allude  to  those,  who,  on  being  shown 
a  superior  one,  would  view  it  like  a  fossil  or  a  picture ; 
and,  on  being  requested  to  "  feel  how  fine  the  lock 
is,"  thrust  their  fore-fingers,  as  far  as  they  can,  into 
the  guard,  sticking  up  their  thumbs  as  if  going  to 
be  dressed  for  a  wound,  and  usually  complete  their 
inspection,  by  breaking  one  of  your  locks,  and  abusing 
the  man  who  made  them. 


6  BARBELS. 

BARRELS. 

I  SHALL  now  proceed  to  the  particulars  of  what  a 
gun  should  be,  and  begin  with  the  barrels. 

The  usual  method  of  trying  a  barrel  is  to  fire  at 
a  single  sheet  of  paper,  and  pronounce,  at  once,  that 
the  one  which  puts  in  the  most  shot  is  the  best, 
without  considering  any  other  circumstance. 

Such  a  mistake  is  excusable  in  those,  who  merely 
take  up  a  gun  for  exercise,  or,  at  times,  when  they 
cannot  hunt ;  but,  that  a  person,  who  wishes  to  excel 
in  shooting,  and  even  a  London  gunmaker,  should 
fall  into  the  same  error,  argues  as  much  against  the 
judgment  of  the  one,  as  the  qualification  for  his  bu- 
siness of  the  other. 

In  throwing  shot  from  a  barrel,  closeness  and 
strength  cannot  be  combined  beyond  a  certain  pro- 
portion of  each,  and  as,  in  either  extreme,  the  one 
is  incompatible  with  the  other,  the  desideratum  is 
for  a  gun  to  partake  as  much  as  possible  of  both 
advantages. 

Some,  however,  will  persist,  that  guns  cannot  shoot 
too  close ;  not  recollecting,  that,  if  we  load  with  all 
the  powder  that  the  shoulder  can  possibly  bear,  they 
must  shoot  the  slower,  from  the  shot  being  too  long 
detained  in  the  barrel. 

For  example:  how  is  the  barrel  made  to  throw 
shot  very  close  ?  By  a  too  long  continued  relief  for- 
ward, without  a  proportional  opening  behind :  this 
(from  a  want  of  that  impetus,  or  friction,  which  the 


BARRELS.  7 

shot  receive  while  passing  through  the  cylindrical 
part  of  the  caliber)  makes  the  gun  shoot  so  slow, 
that  the  sportsman  often  fires  behind  his  game ;  and, 
of  course,  so  weak,  though  well  directed,  that,  instead 
of  his  birds  dying  in  the  air,  they  are  brought  down 
in  a  slovenly  manner,  and  half  of  them  escape  being 
bagged,  although  their  skins  may  be  filled  with  shot 
enough  to  make  a  brilliant  display  at  a  single  sheet 
of  paper. 

Many  are  apt  to  suppose,  that,  if  a  bird,  killed  by 
a  long  shot,  has  been  struck  with  four  or  five  pellets, 
their  gun  will  always  be  certain  of  doing  execution 
at  the  same  distance,  if  properly  directed.  But  so 
far  is  this  from  being  the  case,  that  it  may  proceed 
from  the  barrel  throwing  the  grains  in  patches,  and 
therefore  being  liable  to  let  even  fair  shots  escape 
through  an  interval. 

Indeed,  the  effect  of  this  mode  of  boring  might  be 
equally  well  produced  by  wetting  the  shot,  or  loading 
with  very  little  powder,  and  elevating  so  as  for  nearly 
all  the  shot  to  drop  into  the  mark  (a  common  trick, 
when  an  old  hand  wishes  to  sell  a  gun  to  a  Cockney, 
or  win  the  Christmas  prize  at  an  alehouse  by  shoot- 
ing at  a  mark).  But  enough  of  imperfections ;  and 
now  for  what  a  barrel  ought  to  be 

With  respect  to  the  common  sized  guns,  which  are 
usually  made  for  the  sports  of  the  field,  there  are  two 
good  ways  of  boring ;  the  one  is,  to  leave  a  cylinder 


8  BARRELS. 

for  about  three-fourths  of  the  barrel  (always  taking 
care,  however,   to  preserve  a  tightness  for  a  little 

friction  just  where  the  shot  first  moves],  and  let  the 
remaining  part  be  gradually  relieved  to  the  muzzle. 
For  instance,  suppose  a  barrel  to  be  two  feet  eight 

.  inches  long,  we  would  say  (beginning  at  the  breech 
end)  about  six  inches  tight;  twenty-one  inches  a 
cylinder ;  and  the  remaining  five  inches  relieved  to 
the  muzzle.  All  this  must  be  done  with  the  most 
delicate  possible  gradation,  and  in  so  small  a  degree, 
that  even  some  gunmakers  can  scarcely  discover  it. 
How  natural  then  is  it,  that  many  sporting  authors 
should  be  so  far  deceived,  as  to  fancy  the  best  guns 
are  bored  a  true  cylinder,  and,  therefore,  argue  in  its 
favour!  This  relief  has  the  effect  of  making  the 
gun  shoot  as  close  as  it  can  do,  compatibly  with  the 
strength  and  quickness  required :  \\hich  should,  how- 
ever, be  increased  as  much  as  possible  by  the  best 
constructed  breechings. 

The  other  plan  is,  to  make  the  barrel  regularly 
tighter  all  the  way  down,  so  that,  in  firing,  the  shot 
goes  progressively  easier  as  it  approaches  the  muzzle. 
All  this  relief  must  be  given  in  a  very  trifling  degree ; 
because,  should  the  barrel  be  too  much  opened  in 
any  part,  it  would  admit  of  the  powder  escaping 
between  the  wadding  and  the  sides  of  the  caliber,  by 
which  the  shooting  of  the  gun  would  be  rendered 
weak.  For  this  reason,  I  should  even  object  to  having 
a  hole  through  the  wadding  that  covers  the  powder, 


BARRELS.  9 

which  many  do  to  prevent  the  confined   air  from 
resisting  the  ramrod. 

A  barrel  mthtflaws  has  the  same  disadvantage  of 
not  keeping  the  powder  air-tight  from  the  shot.  If, 
however,  a  barrel  is  very  short,  you  are  almost  obliged 
to  reverse  the  mode  of  boring  in  order  to  get  strength 
by  friction ;  consequently  it  recoils,  and  never  an- 
swers so  well. 

For  a  duck  gun,  or  piece  of  any  considerable  length, 
the  barrel  should  be  bored  so  as  to  feel  more  and 
more  tight  on  ramming  down  the  wadding,  parti- 
cularly on  coming  just  above  where  the  shot  lies; 
and  with  a  very  little  opening,  from  where  the  shot 
lies,  down  to  the  breeching.  This  you  will  perceive,  by 
a  relief  to  the  ramrod,  just  before  the  wadding  reaches 
the  powder.  If,  however,  the  gun  is  very  long,  you 
may  then,  of  course,  have  the  barrel  further  opened 
behind,  in  proportion  to  the  length;  and,  thereby, 
give  more  force  to  the  powder,  which  will  enable 
you,  with  propriety,  to  extend  the  relief  forward,  and, 
by  that  means,  get  close  shooting  combined  with 
strength.  This  is  the  reason  why  long  barrels  may 
he  made  to  shoot  further  than  short  ones.  Thus  the 
shot  has  friction  by  being  forced  through  the  cylinder, 
and  is  then  gradually  relieved  all  the  way  in  going 
out;  and  this  more  in  proportion  again  as  the  shot 
leaves  the  muzzle.  In  a  word,  the  shot  should  receive 
all  the  force  of  the  powder  while  tight  in  the  barrel, 
and  then,  as  before  observed,  go  easier  and  easier 
all  the  way  out  of  it.  This  mode  of  boring  is  the 


10  BARRELS. 

best  calculated  for  large  wild-fowl  guns,  because  the 
first  friction  makes  them  shoot  strong  (by  means  of 
giving  due  time  to  burn  the  powder),  and  yet  with 
as  much  ease,  as  any  caliber  that  can  be  made  to 
answer  that  purpose. 

In  answer  to  many  absurd  arguments  in  favour  of 
short  guns,  and  observations  about  "  lateral  pressure," 
I  shall  here  subjoin  a  schedule,  in  order  to  show  how 
were  bored  the  five  best  guns  I  ever  so  fired,  ex- 
emplifying how  far  they  were  from  being  bored  a 
cylinder,  and  therefore  proving  the  absurdity  of  those 
arguments  which  are  all  grounded  upon  this  mistake. 
Were  a  gun-barrel  bored  a  true  cylinder  it  might 
shoot  nearly,  or  quite,  as  well  if  two  feet  long  as  one 
of  greater  length,  because  a  superfluity  of  what  may 
be  strictly  called  lateral  pressure  would  do  more 
harm  than  good,  by  checking,  instead  of  assisting, 
the  force  of  the  charge.  But  to  these  two  feet  of 
cylinder  let  me  add  some  more  caliber,  and  that  to 
consist  of  proper  opening  and  relief,  and  then  shoot 
the  guns  for  a  wager,  and  see  how  those  new- 
discovery  gentlemen  would  come  off  who  have  been 
holding  forth  to  the  public  such  nonsense  in  favour 
of  short  guns. 

Cannons  are  bored  a  cylinder,  because  they  are 
generally  used  for  firing  ball,  and  therefore  may  be 
short :  but  how  have  they  always  thrown  loose  shot  ? 
Why,  most  miserably,  till  General  Shrapnell  invented 
his  admirable  shells  that  keep  the  charge  together 
for  a  second1  explosion,  which  takes  place  a  little 


BARRELS.  11 

before  the  shot  has  reached  the  object.  It  is  one 
thing  to  speak  of  things  plausibly,  another  to  state 
them  correctly. 

In  the  following  schedule  I  have  taken  three  of 
the  largest  sized  guns,  because  a  little  sporting  gun 
is  on  so  small  a  scale,  that  although  the  relief  may 
befelt  in  a  moment  by  passing  a  proper  gauge  through 
the  caliber,  yet  the  barrel  is  so  diminutive,  that  it 
would  be  difficult  to  measure,  and  specify,  the  exact 
depth  of  this  relief. 

N.  B.  If  any  gunmaker  had  candidly  informed  me 
as  to  his  mode  of  boring  barrels,  I  should  have  felt 
myself  bound  in  honour  never  to  divulge,  much  less 
to  publish,  the  secret.  But  as  the  little  knowledge 
I  possess  has  been  acquired  by  my  own  discovery, 
and  proved  by  experiments  to  be  correct,  it  becomes 
my  own  property ;  and  as  such  therefore  I  have  no 
further  hesitation  in  presenting  it  to  my  readers. 

A  SINGLE  SWIVEL-GUN. 

Barrel  made  by  Fullerd :  average  of  bore,  an  inch 
and  \ :  weight  of  barrel  621bs. 

Feet.  Inches. 

Cylinder  .  .28 

Relief          .  .  .41 

Opened  behind        .         .     0       6£ 

Total  (exclusive  of  plug)      7      3± 

DEPTH  OF  CUT. — Relieved  to  the  20th  of  an 
inch :  opened  behind  to  the  24th  of  an  inch. 


12  BARRELS. 

MY  NEW  DOUBLE    SWIVEL-GUN  (weight  1931bs.) 

Barrels  by  Fullerd. 

Feet  Inches. 

Cylinder  .  .29 

Relief        .  .  .42 

Opened  behind         .         .13 

Total  (exclusive  of  plugs)     8       2 

DEPTH  OF  CUT. — The  bore,  in  cylinder,  an  inch 
and  \  all  but  a  32d :  relief  forward  an  inch  and  j 
and  a  32nd  (a  16th  difference),  and  cut  rather  less 
deep  behind  than  at  the  muzzle. 

A  SINGLE    STANCHION-GUN. 

Barrel  69lbs.  (made  in  Birmingham). 

Feet.  Inches. 

Cylinder         .          ..27 
Relief  .  .44 

Opened  behind        .         .     0     10 


Total 


DEPTH  OF  CUT. 

Cylinder  ^  ,  barely. 

Relief  V  inch  and  ^    ^  and  a  16th. 

Opened  behind  3  'anda32d. 

A  SINGLE  GUN. 

(Musket  bore  and  the  average  weight  of  a  musket.) 

Cylinder 
Relief 
Opened  behind 

Total 


BARRELS.  13 

A  COMMON  FOURTEEN  GAUGE  DOUBLE  GUN. 

(Weight  altogether  8|lbs. :  barrels  by  Lancaster.) 

Feet.  Inches. 
Cylinder  .  .19 

Relief  .     0      5 

TIGHT  behind  0       6 


Total  .     2       8 

Q.  Why  is  the  common  sporting  gun  tight  be- 
hind, when  the  other  guns  are  opened  behind  ? 

A.  Because  a  sporting  gun  requires  to  be  fired  so 
many  times  in  a  day,  that  we  must  adopt  an  inferior 
mode  of  getting  friction,  in  order  to  prevent  the 
barrel  from  becoming  leaded ;  and  therefore  to  make 
it  shoot  through  the  whole  day,  nearly  as  well  as 
when  clean,  and  without  recoil  to  the  shoulder.  Again, 
a  sporting  gun  must,  of  necessity,  be  short,  for  the 
convenience  of  covert,  and  snap-shooting ;  and  there- 
fore the  length  that  would  properly  suit  that  relief 
which  must  follow  an  opening  behind  (in  order  to 
prevent  recoil,  and  preserve  close  shooting)  would  be 
generally  objected  to  as  an  inconvenience. 

Q.  Suppose,  then,  you  were  to  have  your  fourteen 
gauge  barrels  two  feet  ten  inches,  how  would  you 
dispose  of  the  extra  length  ? 

A.  I  would  have  seven  inches  of  relief  instead 
of  five,  by  which  my  shot  would  be  thrown  equally 
strong,  and  decidedly  closer. 

[On  this  proportion  I  ordered  a  guri  for  a  friend, 
who  writes  to  inform  me  that  he  has  hitherto  beat 


14  BARRELS. 

every  gun  he  shot  against.     It  is  but  justice  to  say 
that  Mr.  Westley  Richards  was  the  maker.] 

Gunmakers,  who  know  their  business,  form  their 
calibers  more  or  less,  according  to  circumstances,  on 
the  plans  already  stated ;  except  those  of  rifles,  and 
guns  for  firing  ball,  which  must  be  regularly  tighter 
all  the  way  out,  as  with  these  we  have  no  reason  to 
fear  the  want  of  strength,  or  the  risk  of  a  recoil,  and 
the  only  object  is  to  keep  the  ball  in  the  sir  (lightest 
possible  direction,  and  regulate  the  barrel  to  the 
most  accurate  line  of  aim.  This  should  be  done  by 
having  the  gun  of  the  utmost  length  that  can  be 
used,  and  steadied  by  immense  substance  and  weight 
of  metal. 

The  farther  the  sight  at  the  breech  is  placed  from 
that  near  the  muzzle,  the  more  accurate,  of  course, 
must  be  the  line  of  aim ;  and  the  heavier  the  gun, 
the  more  likely  you  will  be  to  preserve  it  in  firing. 

With  regard  to  having  a  barrel  too  far  opened 
forward,  when  left  with  mere  cylinder  behind,  and 
the  various  tricks  that  are  played  to  ease  the  ex- 
plosion, for  the  sole  purpose  of  throwing  the  shot  as 
close  as  possible,  it  will  be  needless  to  trespass  on 
the  reader's  patience.  Suffice  it  therefore  to  say, 
that  by  adhering  to  the  methods  previously  ex- 
plained, a  gun  will  drive  the  shot  with  such  force, 
that  one  pellet  will  do  more  execution  than  four  or 
five  from  a  barrel  otherwise  bored.  It  will  go  off 
so  instantaneously,  that  the  pull  of  the  trigger  and 
death  of  the  game  will  be  all  in  one  motion,  provided 


BARRELS.  15 

the  breeching,  lock,  and  touchhole  (of  which  I  shall 
make  mention  hereafter),  be  all  on  a  proper  con- 
struction. 

Though  a  barrel,  bored  in  this  manner,  will  not 
shoot  quite  so  close  as  it  might  be  made  to  do,  yet, 
taking  every  thing  into  consideration,  it  has  the  ten- 
fold advantage  of  doing  justice  to  a  good  shot,  and 
even  assisting  a  bad  one,  by  the  irresistible  force 
given,  not  only  to  the  body  of  the  charge,  but  also 
to  the  pellets,  winch  fly  wide  of  the  mark.  Let  the 
sportsman,  therefore,  rest  assured,  that  a  gun,  which 
will  shoot  sufficiently  close  a  surface  to  insure  two  or 
three  shot  (of  No.  7,  at  forty  yards)  taking  the  body 
of  a  bird,  and,  at  the  same  time,  distribute  them  in 
a  regular  manner,  is  better  than  a  very  close  shoot- 
ing cylinder.  It  was  formerly  the  custom  to  make 
barrels,  although  so  small  as  fourteen,  sixteen,  or 
even  two-and-twenty  in  the  gauge,  of  three  or  four 
feet  in  length ;  and  now,  since  it  has  been  ascertained 
that  two  feet  six  inches  will  shoot  equally  well,  at 
the  short  distance  of  a  gunmaker's  confined  premises, 
many  have  gone  too  much  to  the  other  extreme,  and 
cut  them  to  two  feet  four  inches,  and  less.  The 
disadvantage  of  this  is,  that  even  the  best  shots  are 
more  liable  to  miss ;  as,  although  we  allow,  that  a 
short  gun,  at  a  short  distance,  will  kill  as  well  as  a 
long  one,  yet  the  latter  gives  you  a  more  accurate , 
aim,  and  considerably  lessens  the  recoil,  by  which  you 
shoot  to  a  greater  nicety,  and  with  more  steadiness. 
To  avoid  all  extremes,  I  should  recommend  small 


I? 

r 


16  BARRELS. 


barrels,  never  less  than  two  feet  eight,  nor  more  than 
three  feet  in  length.  My  readers  will  observe  that 
my  remarks  here  have  been  altered  since  publishing 
my  earlier  editions.  Mr.  Joseph  Manton,  who  knows, 
at  all  events,  as  much  as,  if  not  more  than,  any  man 
in  Europe  about  a  gun,  declared  to  me,  very  lately, 
that,  after  innumerable  experiments,  he  has  proved 
that  two  feet  eight  for  a  twenty-two  gauge  barrel  is 
the  best  proportion  for  a  sporting-gn%  Take  there- 
fore  a  fourteen  gauge  barrel,  and  see  whether  or  mtt 
I  am  right  for  recommending  one  of  two  feet  te.n 
inches,  and  three  feet,  where  it  can  be  used  without 


inconvenience ! 


It  may  be  thought  a  bold  assertion,  but  I  have 
every  reason  to  believe  that  we  have  all,  to  this  very 
day,  been  completely  in  the  dark  aboftt  the  length  of 
guns.  Mr.  Daniel  (speaking  of  a  duck  gun)  said 
that  a  barrel,  three  feet  eight  inches,  is  "  as  capable, 
or  more  so,  of  throwing  shot  sharp  and  distant,  as  a 
barrel  two  feet  longer."  In  my  second  edition  (de- 
ceived in  the  same  manner  that^all  the  gunmakers 
have  been,  by  not  having  made  their  trials  on  a  sufc- 
ficiently  large  scale)  I  gave  ifl||^  an  opinion,  that, 
except  the  aim  being  better,  and  the  recoil  less,  a 
long  gun  had  no  advantage  over  a  short  one.  On 
the  contrary,  I  have  now  proved  that  a  short  gun 
has  no  chance  with  a  long  .one,  in  keeping  the  shot 
well  together  at  long  distajices. 

The  experiment  must  not  be  tried  with  little  pop 
guns  that  are  used  for  pigeons  and  partridges,  but 


BARRELS.  17 

by  guns  on  a  gigantic  scale,  by  which  we  can  make 
every  observation  in  the  clearest  possible  manner, 
with  the  same  advantage  that  an  astronomer,  with 
his  large  telescope,  has  over  the  naked  eye,  or  di- 
minutive glass,  in  discovering  a  planet. 

I  had  once  made  up  my  mind,  that  a  barrel,  of 
whatever  size  it  might  be,  would  kill  the  farthest  if 
made  forty-eight  times  the  diameter  of  the  intended 
caliber,  and  entered  in  the  MSS.  for  my  third 
edition  some  observations  to  that  effect.  Hut  had 
.they  gone  to  the  press,  I  should  have  been  open  to 
the  criticism  of  every  good  experimentalist :  for  I 
have  since  discovered,  that  the  larger  the  gun,  the 
longer  it  ituixt  be  in  proportion,  because  the  further 
the  shot  lias  to  travel,  the  greater  the  resistance  of 
the  atmosphere.  In  addition  to  my  own  experiments 
I  am  indebted  for  the  perusal  of  several  observations 
(which  corroborate  my  opinion  on  them)  to  that  ex- 
cellent engineer,  (General  Shrapnell,  of  the  Royal 
Artillery.  I  shall,  therefore,  say  no  more  by  way 
of  argument,  l*ut  lay  before  niy  readers  one  of  the 
clearest  proofs,  selected  from  the  number  I  have 
made : — 

TRIAL,  taking  the  average  of  several  shots,  at 
twenty  sheets  of  thickest  brown  paper,  at  a  target, 
plaq^d  in  the  middle  of  a  sheet  of  water,  in  order 
that  all  by-stapders  may  see  fair  play,  as  to  correct 
shooting : — 

Distance,  90  yards:—  shot  BB. 

c 


18  BARRELS. 

A  best  finished  London  duck-gun :  weight  of  the 
barrel,  59lbs. :  bore,  1^  inch  :  length,  5  feet  8  inches. 

No.  of  grains  in  Ditto  through  Ditto  through 

1st  sheet.  12th  sheet.  20th  sheet. 

26  10  8 

A  Birmingham  gun :  weight  of  barrel,  691bs. : 
bore,  1-f  inch :  length  7  feet  9  inches. 

1st  sheet.  12th  sheet.  20th  sheet. 

50  35  22 

I  then  sent  my  gun  to  Mr.  Durs  Egg,  desiring 
him  to  get  the  same  barrel  forged  one  foot  ten  inches 
longer,  making  it  seven  feet  six  inches ;  and  by  means 
of  unavoidably  being  obliged  to  reduce  the  metal  after 
joining  it,  the  barrel,  when  sent  home,  wras  scarcely 
31bs.  heavier  than  before.  1  then  shot  the  gun  about 
twenty  rounds,  and  the  average  was 

1st  sheet.  12th  sheet.  20th  sheet. 

46  30  20 

by  which  it  evidently  appeared  to  me,  that  if  the 
metal  is  disposed  of  in  length,  it  has  the  advantage 
over  a  short  thick  gun. 

From  having  lOlbs.  more  weight  of  metal,  how- 
ever, the  Birmingham  gun  still  had  rather  the  ad- 
vantage, because  it  carried  seventeen  ounces  pleasanter 
than  the  other  carried  fifteen. 

Substance  and  length,  therefore,  are  what  we  ^ant 
in  as  great  a  degree  as  can  be  used  without  incon- 
venience. 

For  instance :  Fire  a  fourteen  gauge  sporting  gun, 


BARRELS.  19 

two  feet  eight  inches,  or  forty-four  diameters,  at  Mr. 
Manton's  iron  door,  against  one  of  three  feet,  and 
there  will  probably  be  no  difference.  But  go  out  in 
an  open  field,  and  particularly  on  a  windy  day,  with 
the  two  feet  eight  inch  barrel,  and  try  it  at  sixty 
yards,  and  after  the  shot  have  gone  about  two-thirds 
of  the  distance,  they  will  begin  to  open  in  oblique 
directions,  where  the  three  feet  barrel  keeps  the  shot 
together.  For  instance :  Take  a  funnel  (or  a  paper 
cut  triangularly  like  one)  four  inches  in  diameter : 
pin  up  a  sheet  of  brown  paper,  and  stand  at  three  or 
four  yards  from  it.  Then  look  along  either  edge  of 
the  funnel,  and  you  will  see  how  very  wide  a  cylinder 
thus  relieved  carries  the  outer  parts  of  its  circle 
beyond  the  paper.  Then  take  a  funnel  of  the  same 
diameter  eight  inches  deep,  and  you  will  see  how 
much  more  of  the  funnel  is  filled  with  the  paper. 

Now,  as  guns  must  be  relieved  in  order  to  shoot 
well,  I  take  all  this  in  the  extreme,  the  more  clearly 
to  demonstrate  why  length  has  the  advantage  at  long 
distances.  But,  on  the  other  hand,  go  almost  close 
to  the  paper,  the  short  funnel  will  lay  the  whole  of 
its  circle  within  it ;  and  the  long  one  can  do  no  more, 
and,  therefore,  at  this  distance  you  give  no  trial.  So 
it  is  with  barrels  that  are  tried  in  a  gunmaker's  yard, 
and  at  the  usual  distances.  Moreover,  the  extreme 
friction  that  is  absolutely  required  to  send  a  charge 
strong  has  the  effect  of  scattering  and  recoiling  so 
much  in  a  short  barrel,  that  a  certain  sacrifice  of 
power  must  be  made.  But  in  a  long  barrel,  which 

c  2 


20  BARRELS. 

admits  of  greatly  increasing  the  relief,  the  shot  are 
kept  without  any  sudden  check  so  long  together,  after 
this  violent  concussion,  that  we  are  enabled  to  com- 
bine both  strength  and  closeness  in  the  most  power- 
ful degree ;  and  this,  together  with  less  recoil,  and  a 
better  aim.  We  have,  therefore,  been  half  a  century 
making,  as  it  were,  the  tour  of  the  world  in  guns, 
and  at  last  come  home  again  to  discover,  that,  in 
regard  to  the  length  of  barrels,  we  were  not  so  near 
the  mark  as  our  grandfathers  ! 

Mr.  Durs  Egg,  in  opposition  to  the  whole  trade, 
and  all  the  sportsmen,  weathered  the  storm,  and 
always  maintained  the  same  opinion.  We  all  laughed 
at  him,  and  now  it  is  his  turn  to  laugh  at  us,  as  he 
may,  with  justice,  say  that  on  this  point  he  knew 
more  than  all  of  us  put  together  ! 

Be  cautious,  therefore,  of  shortening  an  old  barrel 
that  shoots  well ;  and  recollect,  also,  that,  if  much  of 
the  length  is  taken  off,  you  alter  the  relief. 

As  a  gun,  which  is  topheavy,  is  inimical  to  quick 
shooting,  the  usual  plan,  unless  the  barrels  are  very 
short,  is  to  make  them  "  light  forward  ;"  that  is,  thin 
towards  the  muzzle.  This  I  conceive  to  be  bad ;  as 
a  barrel,  which  is  everywhere  tolerably  stout,  is  not 
so  liable  to  expansion,  and,  consequently,  will  shoot 
stronger,  and  last  many  more  years,  than  one  which 
is  rendered  so  by  being  in  any  part  too  thin.  A  gun, 
thus  substantial,  can  always  be  made  to  mount  well, 
by  being  properly  balanced  with  lead  under  the  heel- 
plate, which  will  be  far  more  convenient  and  neat  in 


DAMASCUS    BARRELS.  2> 

appearance  than  a  huge  piece  of  wood  for  the  but, 
and  will  thus  admit  of  the  stock  being  made  light 
and  elegant. 

In  choosing  the  size  of  a  caliber,  it  may  be  con- 
sidered, that  a  fourteen  gauge  is  at  all  events  the  best 
for  a  bungler,  and,  on  the  whole,  the  most  destructive 
gun.  But,  with  a  very  accurate  shot,  the  size  is  not 
of  so  much  consequence  for  killing  game,  as  the 
necessary  substance  to  prevent  the  recoil  of  a  large 
bore  cannot  be  brought  to  bear  so  quick  as  a  some- 
what lighter  gun ;  and,  therefore,  what  is  gained  by 
weight  of  metal  might  be  lost  in  time.  Supposing, 
however,  that  weight  was  not  objected  to,  the  gun  to 
be  recommended  is  a  fourteen  gauge,  and,  if  a  double 
one,  of  about  nine  pounds,  after  the  beginning  of 
October,  till  which  time  a  twenty-two  gauge  gun  will 
do  equally  well,  and  be  lighter  to  carry  during  the 
warm  iceather.  (Remember,  I  am  now  speaking  of 
a  flint-gun,  as  a  light  small-bore  percussion  gun  is, 
I  conceive,  incompatible  with  safety.) 

DAMASCUS  BARRELS. 

MOST  sportsmen  are  aware,  that  a  twisted  barrel 
is  formed  by  horse  nails,  or  other  tough  iron,  being 
beat  out  to  a  long  bar,  and  then  twisted  round  a  kind 
of  anvil,  much  in  the  same  manner  as  leather  is  put 
round  the  handle  of  a  whip-crop.  The  Damascus  is 
a  mixture  of  iron  and  steel,  and  has  its  grain  directly 
crossways  when  beat  out ;  so  that  the  bar  of  Da- 


22  DAMASCUS    BARRELS. 

mascus,  when  twisted,  forms  a  continuation  of  small 
grains  running  longitudinally r,  which  must  be  more 
liable  to  open,  if  not  to  burst,  than  a  continued  round 
of  solid  well-beat  iron.  It  may  be  compared  to  a 
piece  of  wood  cut  across,  instead  of  with,  the  grain. 
All  this  may  be  easily  demonstrated,  by  putting  some 
acid  to  eat  away  the  iron.  I  should  not  have  ven- 
tured to  pronounce  my  feeble  judgment  on  a  point 
of  this  kind,  was  it  not  that  I  arn  of  the  same  opinion 
as  Mr.  Joseph  Manton,  and  some  other  first-rate 
gunmaker^. 

I  shall  now  conclude  under  the  head  of  "  Barrels," 
with  a  copy,  verbatim,  from  a  part  of  my  journal 
when  last  at  Birmingham. 

"  Saw  the  process  of  making  Damascus  barrels, 
the  mixture  of  iron  and  steel  for  which  is  beat  out 
in  long  bars,  and  then,  previously  to  being  wound 
round  the  anvil,  twisted  by  a  kind  of  turning  lathe 
(similar  to  wringing  cloths  when  wet),  and  then  beat 
flat  again.  Although  these  are  by  far  the  dearest 
barrels  that  are  made,  yet  the  price  of  one  in  Birming- 
ham is  very  trifling :  viz. 

£.   s.    d. 

Forging  .  .  .          ]      10     0 

Boring  and  grinding         .          .  .050 

Filing  and  patent  breech  .  .         0110 

Proof        .  016 


7     6 


"  The  stub  barrels,  which  are  generally  used  for 
best  guns,  cost  about  sixteen  shillings  each. 


DAMASCUS    BARRELS.  23 

"  Went  to  the  proof  house,  and  was  present  at  the 
proving  of  an  immense  number  of  barrels.  The 
proof,  as  ordered  by  the  last  act  of  parliament,  is  to 
one  ounce  ball,  thirteen  drains  and  a  half  of  best 
cartridge  powder,  with  a  very  stiff  wadding  of  paper 
on  each ;  and  so  on,  more  or  less,  according  to  what- 
ever ball  will  tightly  fit  the  caliber.  It  has  been 
observed  to  me  here,  that  the  London  gunmakers  do 
not  go  the  cheapest  way  to  work,  as  they  commonly 
employ  the  tradesmen  of  the  town,  instead  of  the 
master  workmen,  who  actually  do  the  business,  and 
consequently,  they  have  to  pay  an  extra  price,  beyond 
prime  cost,  for  the  article  with  which  their  country 
agent  supplies  them.  Their  reason,  however,  may 
be  much  to  their  credit ;  a  wish  to  secure  the  best 
barrels.  Was  I  a  gunmaker,  however,  I  should  prefer 
keeping  at  Birmingham  a  first-rate  foreman,  or  agent 
of  my  own,  who  could  pick  and  choose,  and  supply 
me  direct  from  the  factories. 

"  All  shooting  articles  in  Birmingham  are  usually 
sold,  or  to  use  the  term  of  trade  '  put  in,'  by  the 
dozen,  at  a  mere  nothing  in  comparison  with  the 
retail  price.  One  of  the  best  shops  at  which  I 
stocked  myself  was  that  of  Messrs.  Allen  andReneaud, 
No.  7,  Whittal  Street,  who  supply  many  of  the  gun- 
makers  with  all  kinds  of  turnscrews,  brushes,  tools, 
&c. ;  and  who  also  deal  in  fishing-rods,  reels,  and 
almost  every  thing  that  can  be  required  in  the  sport- 
ing way,  at  about  one-fifth  of  the  price  that  you  pay 
in  London." 


24  ELEVATION. 


ELEVATION 

OF  a  single  gun  is  readily  obtained,  by  the  additional 
thickness  at  the  breeching,  by  placing  which  in  a  line 
with  the  muzzle,  the  caliber  is,  of  course,  so  much 
elevated,  as  to  bring  the  centre  of  it  full  up  to  the 
line  of  .aim*  which,  were  the  barrels  of  the  same  size 
at  each  end,  would  of  course  be  completely  under  the 
mark. 

With  the  elevation  of  double  guns,  we  remained 
for  many  years  rather  in  ignorance.  The  groove 
between  the  barrels  was  considered,  by  many,  as  an 
easier  sight,  than  that  of  a  single  gun.  This  may 
be  for  a  sitting  shot,  or  a  bird  flying  straight  from 
you ;  but,  for  a  cross  shot,  I  consider  it  a  dis- 
advantage :  as,  when  this  sunk  groove  is  levelled 
before  the  object,  that  object  becomes  so  far  obscured, 
by  the  barrel  next  to  it,  that,  if  a  moment  is  lofet 
in  firing,  we  are  ignorant  how  for  we  are  pointing 
before  it. 

In  order  to  prevent  shooting  under,  it  became 
necessary  to  what  was  called  set  up  barrels ;  that  is, 
to  bend  them  upwards  at  the  end  of  every  season, 
which,  to  say  the  least  of  it,  contributed  so  much  to 
their  wear  and  tear,  as  to  make  them,  in  a  few  years, 
somewhat  doubtful  as  to  safety. 

All  these  objections,  however,  were  at  last  admirably 
remedied  by  Mr.  Joseph  Manton's  elevation,  which, 
although  abused  by  other  gunmalfcrs,  has  been  so 


SIGHT.  25 

closely  copied  by  the  greater  part  of  them,  more  or 
less,  that  some  infringed  on  the  patent,  and  others 
brought  out  bungling  imitations  of  it,  "  because  the 
gentlemen  icon  Id  have  their  guns  in  the  fashion" 
at  the  same  time  well  aware  of  the  necessity  of  an 
elevation.  Those,  who  are  above  copying,  tell  you, 
that  a  straight  stock  will  answer  the  same  purpose : 
but  let  me  ask  them,  whether  it  will  give  so  clear 
and  good  a  sight  ?  and  will  an  elevation,  by  this 
means,  bring  your  line  of  aim  on  so  true  a  level? 

Notwithstanding  the  elevation  was  before  used  for 
rifles,  arid  seen  on  some  very  old  guns,  yet  it  must 
be  allowed,  that,  although  attempted,  it  never  was 
brought  to  such  perfection,  as  to  be  worthy  of  being 
generally  imitated,  till  adopted  by  Mr.  Joseph  Man- 
tori.  As  a  proof  of  my  original  argument  in  its 
favour,  my  readers  need  only  observe  how  universal 
this  elevation  has  now  become  with  almost  every 
gunmaker  in,  and  even  out  of,  the  kingdom. 

THE  SIGHT 

Is  little  used,  except  for  beginners,  and  slow  poking 
shots,  who  dandle  their  guns  after  a  bird  for  ten  or 
fifteen  yards ;  and,  therefore,  the  less  it  is  the  better; 
one  scarcely  bigger  than  a  pin's  head  will  be  more 
out  of  the  way  if  not  wanted ;  and  for  those  who 
require  it,  the  smaller  it  is  the  more  readily  it  will 
help  them  to  the  centre. 


26          DIRECTIONS    FOR    TRYING    BARRELS. 

THE  RAMROD, 

WHICH  has  a  worm,  on  the  same  principle  as  the 
solid  corkscretv,  is  the  best  to  take  hold  of  all  kinds 
of  wadding,  and  admits  of  a  brass  cap  as  well  as  any. 
The  one  made  like  a  screw,  after  a  little  wear,  is  of 
scarcely  any  more  use  than  the  end  of  a  stick,  and 
the  common  worm  is  apt  to  flatten  and  become 
troublesome. 

Many  young  sportsmen  have  been  puzzled  by  shot 
falling  into  the  barrel  when  the  ramrod  was  there ; 
but  if,  instead  of  trying  to  pull  it  out  by  force,  they 
would  turn  the  gun  upside  down,  and  press  the 
ramrod  into  the  barrel,  the  shot  would  immediately 
become  disengaged,  and  fall  out. 

Some  of  the  old  school,  who  still  -  keep  to  the  use 
of  paper,  have  been  obliged  to  leave  the  field  from 
having  wedged  in  the  ramrod,  through  a  neglect  to 
disengage  it  in  time  from  this  sort  of  wadding.  In 
such  a  case,  I  conceive,  that  putting  something  wet 
into  the  barrel,  and  softening  the  paper,  by  using  a 
little  friction  with  the  ramrod,  would,  most  probably, 
disengage  it ;  and,  by  holding  the  gun  with  the 
muzzle  downwards,  after  the  paper  had  sufficiently 
absorbed  the  moisture,  the  shooter  would  have  less 
risk  of  wetting  his  powder. 

DIRECTIONS  FOR  TRYING  BARRELS. 
A  MAN  may  be  taken  in  with  a  horse,  or  a  dog, 


DIRECTIONS    FOR    TRYING   BARRELS.          27 

but  never  with  a  gun,  after  being  simply  told  how 
to  try  it. 

Having  taken  out  the  breeching,  and  ascertained 
that  the  barrel  is  free  from  flaws,  or  unsound  places, 
let  him  fire  about  a  dozen  or  twenty  shots  at  a  quire 
of  the  thickest  brown  paper,  by  which  he  will  know, 
to  a  certainty,  both  the  strength  and  closeness  with 
which  the  shot  is  driven ;  and  he  should  remember, 
that  the  strongest  and  most  regular  shooting  gun  is 
the  best,  provided  it  does  not  throw  the  shot  so  thin 
as  for  a  bird  to  escape  between  them. 

The  same  quire  of  paper  might  do  for  all,  if  one 
fresh  sheet  is  put  in  front  of,  and  another  behind  it, 
every  time  the  gun  is  fired. 

•  Before  concluding  on  the  examination  of  barrels, 
it  may  be  proper  to  observe,  that  a  barrel  may  be 
pretty  good  and  perfectly  safe,  and  yet  not  able  to 
bear  the  scientific  inspection  of  a  first-rate  maker  or 
judge.  That  is,  to  hold  the  barrel  up  to  the  window, 
and  gradually  raise  it  till  the  shade,  from  above  the 
window,  runs  along  its  surface,  by  which  inspection 
you  will  easily  discover  the  most  trifling  want  of 
finish.  For  instance,  examine  a  barrel  of  Mr.  Lan- 
caster, in  this  manner,  and  the  shade  will  run  along 
it  like  the  even  surface  on  a  flow  of  smooth  water. 
But  take  a  barrel  of  an  inferior  finisher,  and  you  will 
perceive  the  iron  all  in  bumps,  as  if  that  flow  of  water 
was  agitated  by  wind.  To  the  many,  however,  who 
fancy  themselves  good  judges  of  a  gun,  the  one  might 
appear  as  perfect  as  the  other ;  and  so  indeed  it  would, 


28  STOCK. 

to  every  person  who  examined  it  in  the  ordinary  way. 
To  inspect  the  inside  of  a  barrel,  raise  it  in  like 
manner,  and  if  the  stream  of  shade,  as  it  were,  flows 
true  and  steady,  the  boring  may  be  considered  straight, 
and  free  from  any  palpable  defect. 

THE  STOCK, 

To  be  neat  in  appearance,  should  be  cut  away,  as 
close  as  strength  and  safety  will  admit  of,  and  well 
tapered  off  at  the  locks.  The  but  may  be  rather 
full.  A  cheekpiece,  however,  is  not  only  as  frightful 
as  its  usual  companion,  the  scrollguard,  but  is 
sometimes  apt  to  give  the  very  blow  it  is  intended 
to  save. 

The  stocks  of  single  guns  are  generally  tipped,  or 
capped,  with  horn ;  but  some  makers  have  discarded 
this,  through  fear  of  its  being  split  by  the  recoil,  and 
either  leave  a  clumsy  continuation  of  the  wood,  or 
tip  the  stock  with  a  gingerbread-looking  piece  of 
silver;  whereas,  if  they  would  only  leave  a  space 
about  the  thickness  of  a  shilling  between  the  end  of 
the  rib  and  the  horn,  the  recoil,  however  great,  could 
have  no  influence  on  that  part. 

The  length,  bend,  and  casting  off  Qi  a  stock,  must, 
of  course,  be  fitted  to  the  shooter,  who  should  have 
his  measure  for  them  as  carefully  entered  on  a,  gun- 
maker's  books,  as  that  for  a  suit  of  clothes  on  those 
of  his  tailor.  He  has  then  only  to  direct,  that  his 
guns  may  be  well  balanced;  to  do  which,  the  maker 


STOCK.  29 

will  put  lead,  in  proportion  to  their  weight ;  so  that, 
on  holding  each  of  them  flat  on  the  left  hand,  with 
the  end  of  the  featherspring  about  half  an  inch  from 
the  little  finger,  he  will  find  a  sufficient  equilibrium 
to  make  the  gun  rest  perfectly  steady  ON  the  hand. 

I  have  proved,  that  this  degree  of  balance  answers 
best,  as  a  but  too  much  loaded  is  apt  to  hang  on  the 
right  hand  in  bringing  it  up,  and  vice  versa,  on  the 
left,  with  a  gun  which  is  topheavy. 

All  stocks  should  have  a  good  fall  in  the  handle, 
and  not  be,  as  some  are,  nearly  horizontal  in  that 
part.  This  has  nothing  to  do  with  the  general  bend 
or  mounting  of  the  stock,  but  is  merely  to  keep  the 
hand  to  the  natural  position,  instead  of  having,  as  it 
were,  the  handle  wrenched  from  the  fingers,  while 
grasping  it.  This  is  the  only  point  on  which  we 
are  beat  by  those  execrable  gingerbread  guns,  which 
some  of  the  foreigners  have  the  effrontery  to  compare 
with  ours. 

If  a  stock,  in  every  respect,  suits  you  as  to  coming 
up  to  the  eye,  &c.  &c.,  the  way  to  have  one  precisely 
like  it  is  to  leave  with  your  gunmaker  a  thin  piece  of 
board,  made  to  fit  with  the  greatest  accuracy  to  the 
profile  of  the  bend,  all  the  way  from  the  breeching 
to  the  upper  part  of  the  but.  By  being  made  to  fit 
into  this,  your  new  stock  must  be  like  the  old  one. 
But  if  you  trust  to  a  set  of  memorandums  that  are 
often  mistaken,  or,  in  the  hurry  of  business,  not  half 
attended  to,  you  may  have  as  many  new  stocks  as 


30  STOCK. 

would  almost  amount  to  the  price  of  a  gun,  before 
you  would  get  two  precisely  alike. 

A  stock  that  is  deep,  and  comes  out  well  at  the 
toe,  or  bottom  of  the  heelplate,  is  the  most  steady 
when  pitched  on  the  object. 

Many  a  journey  to  town  would  be  saved  to  a 
sportsman  if  all  these  trifles  were  properly  attended 
to  by  the  makers. 

For  those  who  take  a  pride  in  the  appearance  of 
their  stocks,  and  select  handsome  pieces  of  wood,  I 
know  of  nothing  better,  to  keep  them  polished,  than 
a  little  linseed  oil,  and  plenty  of,  what  is  vulgarly 
called,  elbowgrease ;  unless  sportsmen  choose  to  take 
the  additional  trouble  of  adopting  the  following  re- 
cipe ;  which  I  shall  here  give,  under  the  idea,  that, 
if  considered  too  troublesome  to  apply  it  to  gunstocks, 
it  may  still  be  found  worth  inserting,  from  its  excel- 
lence in  giving  a  dark  polish  to  tables,  or  any  kind 
oft.  furniture. 

RECIPE  FOR  KEEPING  THE  POLISH  ON  GUNSTOCKS. 
Cold  drawn  linseed  oil        .         .         .         .1   quart. 

Gum  arabic  (dissolved  in  warm  water)        .     \  ounce. 
Alkanet  root     ......     2  ounces. 

Rose  pink          ......     i  ounce. 

Vinegar -f  pint. 

Boil  these  together,  and  put  them  in  an  earthen 
pan  to  stand  for  a  day  or  two,  after  which  the  mixture 
will  be  fit  for  use. 

To  apply  it,  rub  a  small  quantity  on  the  wood : 


BREECHING.  31 

let  it  lie  on  all  night,  and  rub  it  off  clean  in  the 
morning.  With  a  few  such  dressings,  you  will  bring 
out  a  superior  polish. 

If  a  stock,  which,  in  other  respects,  suits  you,  is,  in 
a  trifling  degree,  too  straight  or  too  much  bent,  the 
maker  could  rectify  it  by  means  of  boiling  it  in  hot 
water,  instead  of  persuading  you  to  have  a  new  one. 

BREECHING. 

A  GUN-BREECHING,  till  of  late  years,  was  simply 
a  plug,  screwed  into  the  end  of  the  barrel,  so  as  to 
reach  to  the  touchhole. 

The  first  improvement  was  to  bore  a  hole  down 
the  centre  of  this  plug,  and  bring  the  touchhole  to  it 
in  a  right  angle,  thereby  having  the  communication 
directly  through  both  the  male  and  female  screws. 
How  far  this  may  be  safe,  I  leave  to  the  more  ex- 
perienced to  judge ;  but  it  certainly  shoots  so  well, 
that  I  never  could  find  any  solid  breeching  to  beat 
it,  until  Mr.  Joseph  Manton  brought  out  his,  which, 
like  the  rest  of  his  work,  has  been  abused  and  imitated 
by  most  of  his  filing  fraternity  ! 

To  treat  on  the  various  kinds  of  solid  breechings, 
that  have  been  made  since  the  original  invention  of 
Mr.  Nock,  would  be  wasting  time,  and  consuming  a 
volume,  when  we  can  at  once  warrant,  that  there  are 
none  superior  to  the  one  above-mentioned. 

For  example,  a  breeching  on  Mr.  Manton's  con- 
struction places  the  touchhole  literally  to  the  chamber, 


32  BREECHING 

and  thereby  not  only  cuts  off  all  superfluous  angles, 
which  impede  quick  firing,  and  collect  dirt,  but  the 
narrowness  of  this  chamber  admits  of  the  outside 
metal  being  filed  away,  with  the  most  perfect  safety, 
and  lets  in  the  lock  so  far,  that  the  pan  is  brought 
close  to  the  charge  of  powder,  by  which  means  the 
discharge  of  the  gun  becomes  as  instantaneous  as 
possible.  All  this,  however,  may  be  more  clearly 
demonstrated  by  a  reference  to  the  sections  of  all  the 
different  gun  breechings,  of  which  there  are  now 
published  so  many  engravings,  and  in  comparing 
which  the  other  decided  advantages  of  this  improve- 
ment are  fully  manifested. 

Should  it  be  suggested,  that  the  narrowness  of 
this  tube  renders  it  difficult  to  be  cleaned,  let  it  be 
remembered,  that  the  rod,  when  it  goes  to  the  bottom 
of  the  breech,  forces  the  air  through  the  centre  tube 
with  such  violence,  that  neither  oil  nor  damp  can  be 
left  behind  ;  and,  in  the  event  of  any  dirt  falling  in, 
there  is  a  probe,  which  you  screw  on  the  ramrod : 
and  this  little  appendage  is,  or  should  be,  attached 
to  your  flintcase. 

It  may  be  well,  however,  to  observe,  that  many 
of  the  gunmakers,  who  now  adopt  this  breeching, 
commit  a  sad  fault,  by  making  the  centre  tube  too 
small ;  they  are  led  into  this  error  by  knowing,  that 
the  narrower  the  tube  the  stronger  the  gun  willjire, 
and  are  satisfied  with  the  result  of  afew  shots.  But 
were  they  to  take  their  guns  out  for  a  whole  day's 
work,  they  would  find,  that,  by  thus  attempting  to 


( ;  i   v 


h'iil  Breechin 


.  \"  / 

.],is,-fili  M<iut«n'.\- 
,i  //•//  I ni ml  l>r<'ivliiti<> 


I) 


.1  Ms  <litto  tor  ,toti/>l,' 


'l  J/////"    M'ffM'l      (/\-    //-/•//    t/ti    //////    ///'/// 

K'>  .l*,//f/   /ft'/t     »///<//  ///  M'  M\    //."  ,/,//////r  (*f  frrrttf/   f'?//  r/wt/t/ 


BREECHING.  33 

improve  on  a  nc  plus  ultra,  they  had  rendered  their 
breechings  liable  to  repeated  flashes  in  the  pan ,  as 
well  as  more  difficult  to  see  through  (for  ascertaining 
that  all  is  clean  and  safe),  when  held  to  the  light. 

Let  me  now  conclude  my  observations  on  the  fore- 
going gun  breechings  by  recapitulating  on  each,  in 
reference  to  the  annexed  engraving. 

The  common  plug.  No.  1,  is  adopted  as  the  cheapest 
and  best  calculated  breeching  for  rough  usage,  dirt, 
and  neglect ;  and  is,  for  this  reason,  generally  put  to 
all  fire-arms  that  are  merely  used  for  personal  pro- 
tection, the  service  of  the  army,  &c.  Solne  make  the 
common  plug,  with  a  little  notch  at  the  end,  which  is 
filed,  to  hold  a  greater  depth  of  powder  at  the  touch- 
hole  ;  others  think  that  this  collects  the  dirt,  and  leave 
the  surface  quite  plain.  I  have  heard  many  sports- 
men say,  "  After  all,  give  me  the  old  common  plug; 
it  tires  as  well  as  any,  and  can  never  be  stopped  up." 
But,  on  taking  out  their  breechings,  their  "  old  com- 
mon plug"  has  proved  to  be  the  chamber  plug,  which 
is  precisely  the  same  to  all  outward  appearance. — 
See  the  Plate. 

The  chamber  plug,  No.  2,  has  the  advantage,  not 
only  of  the  common,  but  most  of  the  patent  breech- 
ings, by  means  of  the  small  perforation  leading  to 
a  concave,  or  cup,  at  the  top ;  where  the  powder  is 
suddenly  ignited  from  the  centre.  But,  as  the  touch- 
hole  goes  through  the  threads  of  the  female  screw  in 
the  barrel,  it  must  be  met  by  a  hole  nearly  as  large 
as  the  tube  itself,  which  comes  from  the  tube  in  a 

B 


34  BUEECHING. 

right  angle,  through  the  male  screw  or  plug.  This 
perforation  is  apt  to  wear,  and  sometimes  to  get 
damp  from  the  oil  which  is  used  for  screwing  in  the 
breech-plug.  It  is  also  liable  to  become  corroded, 
and,  therefore,  sometimes  difficult  to  be  taken  out. 
Excepting  for  these  defects,  the  chamber  plug  is 
much  to  be  recommended ;  and  having  recourse  to 
it  is  almost  the  only  way  that  an  old  gun  can  be  im- 
proved with  that  economy,  which  should  be  observed 
in  all  expenditures  on  a  worthless  foundation. 

The  solid  breeching  of  the  late  Mr.  Nock,  No.  3, 
is  a  discovery  of  great  merit;  and,  as  we  have  to 
thank  him  for  this  foundation  to  all  our  improve- 
ments, it  would  be  an  injustice  to  his  memory  not  to 
give  him  every  credit  for  the  original  invention.  The 
objection,  however,  to  the  solid  breeching,  as  first  made 
(when  compared  with  the  improvements  that  have 
since"  been  adopted),  is,  that  it  shoots  too  weak,  from 
the  powder  in  the  chamber  not  being  in  a  sufficiently 
narrow  compass  to  ignite  suddenly  and  forcibly  in 
the  centre ;  and  too  slow,  in  consequence  of  the  great 
length,  which  there  is  through  the  whole  communica- 
tion, from  the  touchhole  upwards ;  add  to  which  the 
superfluous  angles,  and  the  difficulty  of  probing  the 
antechamber.  Mr.  Grierson's  patent  came  the  nearest 
of  any  to  the  original.  His  plan  was  to  cut  off  the 
angle  by  shortening  the  antechamber  and  bringing  it 
to  the  other  chamber  in  an  oblique  direction.  There 
was  certainly  a  degree  of  ingenuity  in  his  improve- 
ment ;  but  yet  there  remained  the  objection  of  the 


BREECHING.  35 

centre  hole,  or  chamber,  not  being  so  narrow  as  to 
ignite  the  body  of  the  charge  so  suddenly,  in  the 
centre,  as  in  the  breeching  of  Mr.  Joseph  Manton. 

No.  4,  Mr.  Joseph  Jkfanton9*  breeching'.  As  a 
proof,  that  this  is  by  far  the  best  of  any,  I  need  only 
observe,  that  it  is  now  adopted  by  Mr.  John  Manton, 
who  had  always  before  used  Nock's  breeching  (till  he 
intermediately  brought  out  one  of  his  own,  which, 
from  proving  unsafe,  he  was  obliged  to  relinquish), 
and  no  one  can  dispute  the  excellence  of  Mr.  John 
Manton's  guns,  although  he  may  have  left  to  other 
makers  the  risk  or  merit  of  trying  experiments,  and 
bringing  out  new  patents  or  inventions.  This  breech- 
ing was  also  patronized  by  the  late  Mr.  Smith,  who 
originally  worked  under  Mr.  Nock,  the  patentee  for 
the  other.  (Mr.  Smith  was  one  of  the  most  in- 
dustrious men  in  the  trade,  uud  latter! tj  became  an 
excellent  gunmaker.  His  second  son  carries  on  the 
business,  and  is,  I  believe,  giving  universal  satis- 
faction.) In  short,  this  breeching  is  so  generally 
adopted,  that,  after  what  has  here  been  previously 
said  on  its  advantages,  it  will  be  sufficient  to  conclude, 
on  this  and  all  the  other  breechings,  by  a  reference 
to  the  Plate. 

The  first  three  breechings  may  be  put,  as  they  here 
stand,  to  a  common  lock;  but,  with  those  of  Mr. 
Joseph  Manton,  the  lock  must  be  constructed  on 
purpose,  unless  you  have  an  antechamber  long  enough 
for  the  touchhole  to  reach  to  the  pan  without  filing 
away  any  of  the  metal.  I  should  prefer  this  to  having 

D  2 


36  LOCK. 

any  other  sort  of  breeching  (provided  the  barrel  was 
worth  something  better  than  a  chamber  plug),  as  I 
have  proved,  that  it  answers  remarkably  well.  It 
then  becomes  like  the  chamber  plug,  shoots  about  as 
well,  and  will  be  safer  and  much  more  durable. 

TOUCHHOJLE. 

NOTHING  contributes  more  to  filling  the  bag  than 
the  disposal  of  this  apparently  trifling  concern  ;  inso- 
much, that  an  old  musket,  with  a  touchhole  put  in 
by  a  clever  mechanic,  would  beat  a  gun,  with  all  the 
new  improvements,  if  this  important  part  of  it  were 
left  to  the  job  of  a  bungler. 

Touchholes  of  platina  are  considered  the  best,  as 
those  of  steel  are  apt  to  collect  rust,  and  one  of  gold 
is  more  liable  to  blow  out,  and,  therefore,  will  not 
admit  of  being  made  so  thin  ;  consequently  (from  re- 
quiring to  be  thick},  does  not  shoot  so  sharp ;  for  the 
thinner  it  is,  the  quicker  will  be  the  firing  of  the  gun. 

The  touchhole  should  be  countersunk ;  and,  to  get 
at  it,  for  this  purpose,  the  solid  breechings  have  a 
screw  directly  opposite,  which  (although  in  those  of 
Mr.  Manton  scarcely  visible)  is  easily  taken  out  and 
put  in  again. —  Vide  Plate. 

LOCK. 

ANY  comment  on  the  perfection  to  which  this  part 
of  a  gun  is  now  brought  would  be  quite  redundant. 


LOCK.  37 

Notwithstanding,  however,  that  almost  every  country 
maker  can  turn  out  a  tolerably  well-filed  lock,  yet 
few,  even  in  toivn,  have  the  knack  of  making  the 
springs  to  go  so  pleasant  to  the  touch,  and  (if  I  may 
use  the  expression)  feel  so  oily,  as  those  made  by  the 
two  Mr.  Mantons,  Mr.  D.  Egg,  Mr.  Nock,  Mr.  Smith, 
Mr.  Purdey,  and  some  few  others.  I  mean,  that 
many,  even  of  the  best  finished  locks,  have  an  un- 
pleasant harshness,  which  is  hot  only  disagreeable 
to  feel;  but,  by  reason,  not  so  ready  to  action. 

The  plate  of  a  lock  should  be  so  far  substantial  as 
to  be  insured  from  bending,  which,  if  it  occurred, 
would  be  the  means  of  injuring  all  its  movements. 

Although,  for  large  breechings,  a  long  plate  is 
required,  yet  it  is  not  necessary  to  put  such  very 
clinnsy  locks  as  we  sometimes  see,  on  even  highly- 
finished  wildfowl  guns. 

As  remarked  at  the  time  when  I  wrote  my  former 
editions,  many  attempts  were  then  in  vogue  for 
making  the  locks  water-proof,  and  all  of  them  equally 
frightful  and  ridiculous.  That  they  might  avert  a 
fi-w  drops  from  an  immediate  entrance  to  the  pan, 
there  could  be  no  doubt,  and  they  might  keep  the 
powder  dry  somewhat  longer  than  locks  with  the 
hammers  on  the  common  construction ;  but,  that  they 
could  so  completely  resist  the  effect  of  a  damp  atmo- 
sphere on  the  nitre,  as  always  to  keep  their  priming 
dry  throughout  a  rainy  day,  I  denied ;  although  it 
might  be  very  easy,  by  way  of  showing  off' the  lock 
in  a  shop,  to  pour  water  over  it  without  wetting  the 


38  LOCK. 

powder.  For  quick  firing  in  a  damp  atmosphere, 
the  best  of  all  the  flint  locks  I  have  yet  tried  is  one 
of  Mr.  D.  Egg's,  on  the  hammer  of  which  he  puts 
an  oval  of  platiiia,  and,  into  that,  dovetails  a  sharp 
edge  of  the  pan.  This,  with  coarse 'powder  and  a 
lock-cover,  I  have  used  on  salt  water,  for  several 
winters,  and  it  scarcely  ever  failed,  while  the  deton- 
aters  were  repeatedly  missing  fire  !  This  happens  to 
be  a  self-primer,  and  the  only  one  that  I  have  ever 
yet  seen  that  does  not  go  slow.  Two  other  kinds  of 
self-primers  were  brought  out  by  two  great  makers, 
and,  as  a  third  observed,  if  "  you  owe  a  man  a  grudge, 
advise  him  to  have  one  of  them." 

Since  the  short  time  ago  when  the  foregoing  ob- 
servations were  made,  it  appears  that  almost  every 
gunmaker  has  been  studying  to  complete  some  water- 
proof lock  or  other,  at  the  expense  of  sacrificing  quick 
shooting,  and  many  other  advantages,  that  are  of 
more  consequence  than  a  guard  against  rain.  For, 
after  all,  what  is  the  object  to  be  gained?  If  you 
shoot  in  the  rain,  neither  partridges  nor  snipes  will, 
in  general,  lie  well ;  and  if  you  shoot  in  covert,  your 
dogs  are  soon  cowed  by  the  wet,  and  the  sport  is  any 
thing  but  pleasure  ;  and  if  you  go  after  wildfowl  you 
cannot  choose  a  worse  time  for  your  sport  or  your 
health,  than  in  wet  weather. 

I  formerly  observed,  that  if  a  man  was  so  destitute 
of  resources  within  himself  as  to  be  miserable  unless 
he  was  shooting,  he  had  only  to  provide  himself  with 
one  of  Mr.  Forsyth's  fulminating  locks,  which  cer- 


GRAVITATING    STOPS.  39 

tainly  defied  the  weather  longer  than  any  others  at 
that  time  invented  ;  though,  perhaps,  from  the  effect 
of  the  atmosphere  on  the  oxygen,  they  might  not  be 
proof  against  a  continual  pour  of  rain.  The  inven- 
tion is  certainly  of  infinite  merit,  and  has,  of  late 
years,  been  so  much  improved  on,  that  scarcely  any 
thing  is  now  thought  of  but  detonating  guns.  I 
have,  in  consequence,  been  making  trials  in  every 
way  that  appeared  necessary,  in  order  to  be  able  to 
give  a  few  directions  solely  dictated  by  the  result  of 
experiment. 

I  shall,  therefore,  after  dismissing  every  thing 
concerning  the  flint-lock,  treat  exclusively  on  "  de- 
tonaters." 

GRAVITATING  STOPS. 

AN  insurance  from  accidents,  with  a  double  gun, 
is  completely  effected  by  Mr.  Joseph  Manton's  gra- 
ntating  stops,  which  act  of  themselves,  to  remedy 
the  serious  danger  of  loading  with  a  barrel  cocked ; 
and,  with  these  stops,  you  may,  by  holding  the  gun 
downwards,  carry  both  barrels  cocked,  through  a 
hedgerow,  with  little  or  no  danger,  if  any  circum- 
stance could,  justify  such  determined  preparation. 

The  gravitating  stops,  I  should  not  omit  to  men- 
tion, require  to  be  kept  very  clean,  as,  with  rust  or 
dirt  under  them,  they  will  not  fall  so  readily,  and 
thereby  prevent  the  gun  from  going  off.  This  I 


40  SPRINGS. 

name  as  a  caution  to  a  slovenly  shooter,  and  not  as 
an  imperfection  in  the  plan. 

SPRINGS. 

IF  the  mainspring  be  too  strong,  in  proportion  to 
that  of  the  hammer,  the  cock  is  often  broken  for  want 
of  resistance ;  and,  if  the  hammer  or  feather-spring 
be  too  stiff,  or  should  shut  down  with  too  much' force, 
it  becomes  difficult  to  throw  it,  even  with  a  strong 
mainspring.  Here,  till  very  lately,  most  «f  the  gun- 
makers  were  in  the  dark ;  as  nothing  was  more  ad- 
mired in  a  lock,  than  the  hammer  shutting  down 
with  great  velocity.  This  is  not  only,  for  the  reason 
already  mentioned,  a  sad  fault ;  but  the  hammer  by 
thus  coming  down  escapes,  in  a  certain  degree,  from 
the  influence  of  the  spring ;  and,  consequently,  loses 
its  pressure  on  the  pan  ;  by  which  the  priming  is  not 
so  closely  covered,  and  the  hammer  is  apt  to  react, 
instead  of  obeying  the  mainspring.  In  a  word,  let 
your  hammer  shut  down  dull,  and  fly  back  smart. 
The  mainspring,  to  be  well  regulated,  should  at  first 
pull  up  very  hard,  and  then  draw  progressively  easier : 
because  it  requires  an  accession  of  force  after  it  has 
recovered  the  first  sudden  escape  from  the  scear- 
spring,  otherwise  it  will  go  slow  with  a  flint,  and  be 
liable  either  to  cause  a  snap,  or  allow  the  cock  to  be 
blown  back,  with  a  detonater. 


COCKS   AND    HAMMERS.  41 


COCKS  AND  HAMMERS. 

IF  the  sportsman  has  no  objection  to  its  clumsy 
appearance,  I  should  be  inclined  to  recommend  the 
solid  cock  which  falls  on  its  end,  instead  of  being 
stopped  in  the  middle  by  the  lock-plate.  It  will 
therefore  admit  of  mawwpring*  as  strong  as  you 
please ;  and,  by  this  means,  add  considerably  to 
quickness  in  firing.  But,  if  you  have  very  strong 
mainsprings,  with  the  common  cock,  the  resistance 
from  the  hammer-spring,  to  prevent  its  breaking, 
must  be  so  great,  that  you  would  soon  wear  out  your 
hammers,  by  being  obliged  to  use  an  immoderate 
quantity  of  flints.  With  this  another  part  of  the 
lock  also  is  safer,  because  the  solid  cock  is  received 
on  a  firm  support  annexed  to  the  pan ;  while  the 
one  on  the  other  construction  suddenly  catches  the 
lock-plate,  and  is  therefore  liable  to  jar,  and  break 
either  the  tumbler  itself,  or  the  pin  of  the  tumbler. 
A  solid  cock  has  many  other  advantages,  from  its 
durability  and  strength :  it  is  proof  against  all  awk- 
ward hands,  and  particularly  desirable  on  guns  which 
are  liable  to  meet  with  rough  usage  in  a  boat. 

The  reason  why  some  gunmakers  object  to  it  is, 
that  it  is  not  so  easily  regulated  to  strike  higher  or 
lower  with  new  hammers  as  the  other.  Neiv  ham- 
mers !  for  which  most  of  them  have  had  some  patent 
or  fancy  of  their  own  ;  and  with  this  they  took  care 
to  accommodate  you  on  every  favourable  opportunity. 


42  COCKS   AND    HAMMERS. 

Add  to  this,  the  solid  cock  is  not  apt  to  break  like 
the  other,  and  is  therefore  not  so  good  for  trade. 
With  due  submission,  however,  to  the  superior  judg- 
ment of  those  in  the  business,  I  must  beg  to  observe, 
that  I  have  always  found  an  old  hammer  new  steeled 
to  fire  better  than  a  new  hammer ;  insomuch,  that  I 
have  even  had  new  hammers  new  steeled  before  I 
ever  used  them  ;  and  surely  an  old  hammer,  if  sound, 
must  go  pleasanter  than  a  new  one,  which  has  scarcely 
been  used  enough  to  get  rid  of  its  harshness.  The 
reason  why  new  facing  does  best  is  this  : — in  making 
new  hammers,  the  steel  is  welded  and  incorporated 
with  the  iron  ;  the  process  of  which  requires  so  much 
heat,  that  it  softens  and  reduces  the  quality  of  the 
steel;  whereas,  by  putting  only  new  faces,  this  evil 
is  avoided,  and  the  steel  may  be  kept  in  the  best 
possible  temper.  Gunmakers  know  tins  perfectly 
well ;  but,  whatever  may  be  their  abuse  of  one  an- 
other, to  customers  in  their  shops,  yet  they  have  the 
sense  to  agree  on  one  point,  namely,  to  keep  among 
themselves  this,  and  other  little  secrets  belonging  to 
the  trade. 

On  the  other  hand,  I  shall  now  recommend  some- 
thing to  their  advantage :  which  is,  that  every  sports- 
man be  at  first  equipped  with  extra  hammers  and 
extra  springs  to  his  gun  ;  so  that,  by  being  provided 
with  a  spring  cramp,  and  shown  how  to  use  it,  he 
may  be  able  to  remedy  an  accident  with  his  own 
hands,  which  might  otherwise  oblige  him,  from  the 
midst  of  good  shooting,  to  send  away  his  fowling- 


COCKS    AND    HAMMERS.  43 

piece,  to  be  left  at  the  mercy  of  a  gunmaker's  punc- 
tuality, or  endangered  by  the  unrelenting  hands  and' 
tools  of  an  awkward  country  blacksmith.  Hammers, 
like  crockery-ware,  are  none  the  icorsefor  age,  though 
liable  to  be  broken. 

There  are  two  ways  of  putting  a  hammer  in  mo- 
tion ;  one  with  a  wheel  in  the  feather-spring,  and 
the  other  with  a  bridge  there,  over  which  a  wheel  in 
the  hammer  is  made  to  run.  We  may  give  to  both 
of  these  trivial  concerns  their  separate  merits ;  the 
former,  that  of  being  the  neatest,  and  the  latter,  the 
least  likely  to  react,  and  leave  the  choice  of  them  to 
the  gunm  alter. 

Mr.  D.  Egg  and  Mr.  Manton  usually  make  the 
first  mentioned  ;  and  Mr.  Joseph  Manton  the  other. 
With  this  he  is  enabled  to  have  a  long  neck,  which, 
immediately  on  being  put  in  motion,  raises  the  hammer 
so  high,  that  it  cannot  prevent  any  of  the  sparks 
from  falling  into  the  pan.  No  locks,  however,  can 
go  pleasanter  than  those  made  by  Mr.  John  Manton 
and  Mr.  D.  Egg,  which  proves,  that  the  difference 
between  the  two  modes  of  construction  is  very  im- 
material. 

It  may  be  as  well  to  make  a  few  observations  on 
another  point ;  tv'x.  the  improvement  of  passing  a 
current  of  air  through  the  priming  without  suffering 
the  powder  to  escape ;  by  which  it  is  kept  dry,  and 
not  liable  to  cake  and  stick  to  the  bottom  of  the 
hammer.  This  has  been  completely  effected,  both 
by  Messrs.  Manton  and  Mr.  D,  Egg ;  but,  as  credit 


44  COCKS    AND    HAMME11S. 

for  the  original  invention  is  due  to  Mr.  Joseph  Man- 
ton,  I  shall  chiefly  confine  my  description  to  the 
hammer  for  which  he  got  the  patent.  The  object 
attained  by  this  is,  that  when  you  ram  down  the 
wadding,  the  air  passes  through  the  small  perfora- 
tion at  the  lip  of  the  hammer,  and  goes  out  through 
a  groove  in  the  bottom  of  the  pan :  yet  this  hole  in 
the  lip  is  so  small  as  not  to  admit  the  powder.  This, 
although  apparently  a  trifling  alteration  from  what 
had  been  before  adopted,  is  a  very  great  advantage, 
and  the  first  attempt  that  ever  had  the  desired  effect. 
That  some  air,  in  all  locks,  must  pass,  it  stands  to 
reason ;  but,  if  the  powder  also  passes,  it  must  be 
recollected,  that,  in  coming  from  the  chamber  of 
breechings  on  Mr.  Joseph  Manton's  construction,  it 
leaves  a  vacuum ;  whereas,  with  this  improvement, 
the  chamber  is  always  kept  so  full  of  dry  powder, 
that  not  a  grain  can  be  lost,  or  even  out  of  its  place, 
and  thus  there  is  produced  a  sudden  and  instanta- 
neous fire.  The  forcible  passing  of  this  current  of 
air  also  effectually  dries  the  powder  in  the  touchhole. 

N.  B.  Whatever  new  hammers  may  have  since 
been  brought  out,  for  new  fashion,  or,  in  other  words, 
for  the  good  of  trade,  yet,  after  all,  I  find  that  this 
hammer  is  decidedly  the  best,  and  produces  by  far 
the  quickest  ignition. — 1826  ! 

In  this  improvement  of  a  gun-lock,  Mr.  John 
Manton  so  far  imitated  his  brother,  that  a  trial, 
which  took  place  in  the  court  of  common  pleas,  was 
chiefly  relating  to  his  alleged  infringement  on  the 


COCKS    AND    HAMMERS.  45 

patent.  He  there,  however,  gained  his  cause  by 
producing  some  hammers  with  perforated  lips;  as 
well  as  on  the  other  point  (concerning  the  elevation), 
by  bringing  forward  an  old  double  gun,  which  it  has 
been  generally  understood  was  in  the  possession  of 
the  late  Lord  Berkeley.  It  appears,  however,  that 
in  this  statement  there  was  some  mistake,  as  the  gun 
in  question  was  made  for,  and  expressly  to  the  order 
of,  Evelyn  Medows,  Esq.  by  Mr.  John  Manton, 
when  foreman  at  Twig's;  and  it  was  from  this 
gentleman  that  he  borrowed  the  gun,  which  he  pro- 
duced in  court,  in  order  to  show  that  that  for  which 
his  brother  had  obtained  a  patent  was  not  an  original 
invention.  (I  am  favoured  with  this  statement  by 
Mr.  Medows  himself.)  But,  query,  if  Mr.  Joseph 
Manton  had  not  made  the  discovery,  that  this  eleva- 
tion, and  this  hammer  might,  with  a  trifling  altera- 
tion, be  adopted  as  the  greatest  improvements, 
would  the  one  at  this  moment  have  been  universally 
known  ?  Or,  might  not  the  other  have  been  for  ever 
buried  in  the  filings  of  Birmingham'?  Or,  would 
not  both  (to  use  a  lawyer's  expression)  have  become 
obsolete  from  non  usage  ? 

If  a  hammer  is  too  hard,  the  flint  will  make  scarcely 
any  impression  on  it,  and,  if  too  soft,  it  soon  becomes 
dented,  like  lead;  but  when  in  good  temper,  the 
impression  is  moderate,  and  the  sparks,  before  they 
are  extinguished,  pause  in  the  pan  and  occasion  a 
ic  frizzing  noise. 

You  will  seldom  get  a  London  maker  to  temper, 


46  TRIGGER. 

or  even  face  a  hammer,  if  he  can  persuade  you  to 
have  a  new  one  ;  and  it  is  as  common  a  trick  to  con- 
struct hammers  so,  that  the  flints  may  soon  cut  them 
to  pieces,  as  it  is  to  set  a  fellow  to  work  with  un- 
merciful relays  of  scouring"  paper °,  to  help  to  wear 
out  the  barrels,  under  the  old  plea,  that  the  trade 
must  live. 

PAN. 

IF  the  pan  is  not  placed  considerably  below  the 
touchhole  (that  is,  with  its  edge  just  under  the  touch- 
hole)  the  gun  will  always  fire  slow,  because  instead 
of  catching  the  first  flash,  which  invariably  rises,  the 
charge  is  not  ignited  till  the  priming  has  burnt  down 
to  below  the  touchhole,  and  consequently  the  dis- 
charge is  prolonged  into  two  motions.  If  a  pan  is 
placed  too  high,  therefore,  the  remedy  is,  to  put  a 
very  little  depth  of  priming. 

If,  on  the  other  hand,  the  pan  is  placed  too  low, 
the  gun  will  of  course  be  liable  to  flash,  instead  of 
going  off. 

TRIGGER. 

LET  the  triggers  of  all  your  guns  be  made  to  go 
nearly  alike ;  for,  if  one  requires  too  hard  a  pull,  it 
is  a  sad  check  to  shooting ;  and,  if  it  goes  too  easy, 
you  are  liable  to  the  accident  of  firing  the  gun 
before  it  is  fairly  brought  to  the  shoulder.  Any 


HOW    TO    TAKE    A    LOCK    TO    PIECES.          47 

tolerable  mechanic  may  rectify  these  extremes,  by 
filing,  more  or  less,  the  part  where  the  scear  catches 
the  tumbler.  The  most  accurate  way  to  regulate  the 
pull  of  a  trigger,  as  well  as  that  of  a  cock,  is  by  a 
small  stilliard,  which  will  draw  out  and  regulate  those 
of  twenty  guns  to  the  same  focus. 

The  triggers  are  now  kept  well  in  their  places,  by 
the  constant  pressure  of  little  springs,  and  you  must 
therefore  push  them  back  before  you  can  let  in  your 
locks. 

In  cleaning  locks,  the  best  places  to  put  a  little 
oil  are, 

1st.  In  front  of  the  pan,  immediately  under  the 
neck  of  the  hammer,  from  whence  the  oil  will  find  its 
way  through  to  the  wheel  and  spring : 

2d.  On  the  pivot  nail,  or  centre  of  the  tumbler,  on 
which  the  whole  of  the  works  move : 

3d.  On  the  lockplate,  under  the  works,  where  a 
feather  may  be  inserted  : 

4th.  Where  the  scear  catches  the  tumbler. 

TO  TAKE  A  LOCK  TO  PIECES. 

IN  the  event  of  breaking  or  weakening  a  spring, 
and  therefore  having  to  replace  it  with  an  extra  one  ; 
or,  in  case  the  works  of  a  lock  should  have  become 
damaged  by  rust  and  neglect,  every  sportsman  should 
be  provided  with  a  little  spring-cramp,  which  may 
be  carried  with  his  flint-case,  and  with  which  he  may 
himself  take  his  locks  to  pieces,  with  as  much  safety 


48  HOW    TO    TAKE 

as  the  first  workman  in  London.  I  have,  therefore, 
here  given  specific  directions,  regularly  numbered, 
by  having  which  before  him  he  will,  I  trust,  find  it 
almost  impossible  to  mistake,  either  in  taking  his 
locks  to  pieces,  or  putting  them  together. 

TO  TAKE  OFF  THE  HAMMER  AND  SPRINGS. 
v 

MAINSPRING. 

To  take  off:— 

1 .  Put  lock  to  full  cock. 

2.  Cramp  the  mainspring. 

3.  Let  down  the  cock,  and  the  mainspring  will  drop  off. 

To  put  it  on  again  : — 

(Let  cock  be  left  down.} 

1.  Hook  the  end  of  the  mainspring  on  the  swivel,  or  chain. 

2.  Move  it  up,  and  into  its  position  on  the  lock-plate. 

3.  Unscrew  the  cramp,  and  the  mainspring  will  be  replaced 

for  action. 

HAMMER. 

To  take  off:— 

1 .  Shut  down  the  hammer. 

2.  Keep  gradually  cramping  the  spring,  till,  by  shaking  the 

lock  in  your  hand,  you  can  just  hear  the  hammer 
rattle,  from  being  loose. 

3.  Take  out  the  screw  from  behind,  and  the  hammer  will 

fall  out. 

To  put  it  on : — 

1.  Put  the  hammer  in  its  place  again. 

2.  Turn  in  the  screw. 

3.  Set  the  spring  at  liberty. 

To  take  the  hammer  spring  out,  you  must  first  take  away  the 
hammer,  and  also  the  mainspring,  to  get  at  the  screw  behind. 


A    LOCK    TO    PIECES.  49 

The  hammer-spring  must  be  then  confined  till  taken  out,  and 
put  on  again  to  receive  the  hammer. 

In  cramping  springs,  be  sure  never  to  confine  them  closer 
than  is  absolutely  necessary,  otherwise  you  will  soon  weaken 
and  spoil  them. 

TO  DISSECT  THE  SMALL  WORKS  OF  A  LOCK. 

(In  doing  which  be  careful  not  to  mix  your  small  screws.) 

Having  previously  taken  off  your  mainspring, 

1.  Unscrew,  and  take  out,  the  sccar.     This  must  be  done 

by  half  cocking,  and  then  pressing  the  fore-part  of 
the  lock  against  your  left  breast,  by  putting  the  ball 
of  the  thumb  against  the  back  part  of  the  cock  \ 
and,  with  this,  pushing  the  cock  forward,  while  you 
.vf/wrrr  together  the  war  and  scear-spring,  with  the 
fore-/ingc r  and  thumb,  for  the  facility  of  taking  out 
the  scear-screw. 

2.  Undo  the  two  screws,  and  take  off  the  bridle. 

3.  Unscrew  and  take  out  the  swar- spring. 

4.  Unscrew  and  take  off  the  cock,  which  will  come  from  the 

tumbler   by  being  gently  tapped   inwards,  with  the 
handle  of  your  turnscrew. 

5.  Take  out  the  tumbler. 

TO  PUT  THEM  TOGETHER  AGAIN. 

1.  Put  in  the  tumbler,  and  screw  on  the  cock. 

2.  Screw  on  the  scear-spring. 

3.  Set  on  the  bridle  with  the  two  upper  screws. 

4-.  Put  in  the  scear ;  to  open  a  clear  passage  for  the  screw 
of  which,  you  must  observe  the  same  pressure  of  the 
fore-finger  and  thumb  on  the  scear  and  scear-spring, 
and  the  pushing  of  the  cock  forward,  as  before  de- 
scribed for  taking  off  the  scear. 

The  reason  for  this  pressure  being  required  to  put  in  the  scear 

E 


50  HOW    TO    TAKE 

is,  to  get  the  hole  in  the  scear  opposite  the  hole  in  the  bridle,  so 
as  to  admit  the  scear-screw  to  pass  freely.  What  most  frequently 
puzzles  people,  who  are  not  used  to  mechanics,  is,  that  they 
neglect  to  keep  pressing  the  cock  forward,  and  by  that  means  the 
scear  is  constantly  slipping  out  of  the  tumbler,  and  they  are 
plagued  to  get  the  holes  in  a  line,  to  which  they  would  imme- 
diately be  brought  by  the  pressing  forward  of  the  cock,  and  the 
pressing  inward  of  the  scear. 

(  Having  Jinished  so  far) 

LET  DOWN  the  cock,  to  put  on  the  mainspring,  as  before 
directed,  and  your  lock  will  have  every  thing  in  its 
place. 

Observe  well,  that,  except  the  pressure  required  to  put  in  the 
scear,  which  is  the  only  part  in  the  least  difficult,  there  should 
be  no  force  whatever  used  with  the  works  of  a  gunlock. 

With  detonating  guns,  however,  we  have  but  half  the  trouble, 
and  the  only  extra  dissection  that  may  be  required  for  those 
which  are  now  most  usually  made  is,  to  screw  out  the  nipple  or 
pivot  with  a  small  wrench  or  key. 

In  doing  all  this,  or  indeed  any  thing  to  a  gun,  it 
is  advisable  to  put  on  an  old  pair  of  gloves,  as  the 
warmth  of  the  skin  is  apt  to  produce  rust,  and  the 
hand,  with  the  glove  on,  has  a  better  purchase  for 
taking  out  the  scear. 

As  a  key  to  the  foregoing  directions,  the  following 
is  an  alphabetical  list  of  the  proper  names  for  the 
principal  parts  of  a  gun,  which  may  not  be  uni- 
versally known  among  sportsmen. 


NAMES  OF  THE  PRINCIPAL  PARTS  OF  A  GUN.  51 

ALPHABETICAL  LIST  OP  NAMES 

OF    THE 

PRINCIPAL  PARTS  OF  A  GUN. 

BOLTS.     Pieces  of  steel,  which  push  through  the  loops  to  fasten 

barrel  into  stock. 
BRIDLE.     Polished  piece  of  steel,  which  caps  the  tumbler,  is  then 

put  on  with  two  screws,  and  afterwards  receives  the  scear-screw. 
CAP.     Tip  of  stock  ;  or  covering  for  worm  of  ramrod. 
CASTING  OFF.     Inclining  outwards  of  the  but,  so  as  to  bring  the 

line  of  aim  inwards,  and  more  ready  to  meet  the  eye. 
CHAIN,  or  SWIVEL.     A  little  catch,  suspended  from  the  neck  of 

the  tumbler,  to  receive  the  end  of  the  mainspring. 
CHAMBER.     Centre  or  principal  tube  in  breeching.     The  Ante- 
chamber is  the  smaller  tube,  leading  from  this  to  the  touchhole. 
COCK-SCREW.     That  which  screws  in  the  flint. 
Ci  I-.     Concave  at  the  top  of  improved  breechings. 
ESCUTCHEONS.     Pieces  of  silver,  to  prevent  bolts  from  wearing 
*  stock ;  and  also  the  shield  on  which  the  crest  and  ciplur  are 

usually  engraved. 
FACING  (of  hammer).     Part  which,  by  coming  in  contact  with 

flint,  strikes  fire. 
FALSE-BREECHING.     Part  where  the  ends  of  the  breechings  hook 

in,  before  the  barrels  can  be  laid  in  the  stock. 
FALSE-BREECH-SCREW.     That  which  passes  through  the  stock 

into  the  trigger-plate,  and  screws  them  together. 
FENCE.     Part  between  cock  and  pan,  on  which  is  received  the 

solid  cock. 

GUARD.     Bow  which  defends  the  triggers. 
HAMMER-SPRING.     On  which  hammer  is  moved. 
HAMMER-BRIDLE.     Part  which  the  tail  of  hammer  works  in. 
HEEL-PLATE.     Plate  with  which  the  but  is  tipped. 
JAWS.     Lips  of  the  cock,  which  hold  the  flint. 
LOCK-PLATE,     Plate  to  which  all  the  lock  is  formed. 

E  2 


52  NAMES  OF  THE  PRINCIPAL  PARTS  OF  A  GUN. 

LOOPS.     Eyes  to  barrel,  which  receive  the  bolts  that  fasten  it 

into  stock. 

MAINSPRING.     That  by  which  tumbler  is  worked  with  cock. 
NIPPLE  (or  Pivot).     Protuberance  on  which  strikes  the  cock  of 

a  detonating  gun. 
PIPKS.     Bands  to  receive  ramrod. 
RIB.     Piece,  or  strip,  on  which  slides  the  ramrod. 
SCROLL- GUARD.     An  extra  bow,  continued  from  the  guard,  to 

steady  the  hand. 
SCEAR.     Part  which  catches  the  tumbler  for  half  or  whole  cock, 

and  which,  being  pushed  up  by  trigger,  lets  off  the  gun. 
SCEAR-SPRING.     The  spring,  which  presses  the  scear  against, 

and  holds  it  in,  the  notches  of  tumbler,  for  either  the  half  or 

whole  cock. 

SIDE-NAIL.     Screw,  which  fastens  on  the  locks. 
SIGHT.     Little  bit  of  gold  or  silver,  to  bring  up  to  the  object, 

when  taking  a  deliberate  aim. 

SPRING-CRAMP.     A  small  instrument  for  dissecting  locks. 
TAIL.     The  arch,  shoulder,  or  neck  of  a  hammer. 
TOP-PIECE.     Groove,  or  elevation,  along  which  is  directed  the 

line' of  aim. 

TRIGGER-PLATE.     Plate  in  which  the  triggers  work. 
TRIGGER-SPRINGS.     Small  springs,  to  keep  triggers  constantly 

pressing  close  to  scear.     (Invented  and  always  used  by  Mr. 

Joseph  Man  ton). 
TUMBLER.     The  moveable  centre-piece  of  a  lock,   which   falls 

with,  and  is  subservient  to  the  cock. 

TUMBLER-SCREW.     The  little  screw  which  fastens  on  the  cock. 
VENT-HOLE.     A  small  hole  at  the  side  of  the  breeching,  in  a  de- 

tonater,  to  let  out  the  gas,  and  lessen  the  recoil. 
WORM.      Screw,    at  the  end   of  ramrod,   for   drawing  out  the 

wadding. 

***  When  you  find  a  lock  rub,  or  bind,  be  sure  and  see  that 
it  does  not  do  so  in  consequence  of  some  little  screw  or  other 
having  worked  loose,  before  you  attempt  easing  the  part  of  the 
stock  where  the  friction  takes  place. 


DIRECTIONS    FOR    CLEANING    GUNS.  53 

DIRECTIONS    FOR   CLEANING   GUNS, 

AND 

PRECAUTIONS  AGAINST  THEIR  HANGING  FIRE. 

LET  your  barrels  be  first  washed  perfectly  clean 
with  cold,  and  then  Jill  each  of  them  with  hot  water ; 
which,  by  the  time  it  has  nearly  run  out  at  the  touch- 
holes,  will  accelerate  their  being  wiped  dry,  as  much 
as  though  boiling  water  had  been  used ;  and,  before 
they  have  completely  discharged  the  water,  stop  the 
muzzles  and  touchholes ;  and,  after  shaking  it  up 
and  dowrn  in  the  barrels,  turn  it  out  at  the  muzzles, 
by  which  means  you  will  effectually  stir  up  and  expel 
any  extraneous  matter,  that  may  have  lodged  in  the 
bottom  of  the  chambers.  To  ascertain  this,  hold 
them  with  the  touchholes  towards  the  window,  and 
(with  the  breechings  which  I  have  recommended) 
you  will,  by  looking  into  each  muzzle,  plainly  per- 
ceive the  light  in  the  chamber,  appearing  like  one 
dot  surrounded  by  two  (arid  sometimes  three)  rings. 

I  have  recommended  washing  guns  with  cold  water, 
from  having  found  that  it  always  more  readily  re- 
moves the  foulness  occasioned  by  the  powder,  which, 
from  sudden  heat,  is  apt,  at  first,  to  dry  and  adhere 
more  closely  to  the  caliber :  whereas,  with  cold  water, 
it  remains  in  a  moist  state,  and  immediately  mixes. 

In  cleaning  barrels,  a  little  fine  sand  may  not  be 
amiss,  and  will  generally  answer  in  removing  the  lead. 
If  hot  water  should  be  required  for  this  purpose,  the 


54  DIRECTIONS    FOR 

gun  may  be  scoured  with  it,  after  having  been  washed 
with  cold. 

Some  have  their  guns,  occasionally,  only  dry  wiped, 
which  is  not  so  well,  as  the  introduction  of  the  clean- 
ing rod  drives  the  dirt  into  the  chamber,  from  whence 
it  becomes  difficult  to  remove  it  without  water. 

The  tow  proper  for  cleaning  guns  is  that  fine  sort, 
which  is  called  surgeons'  toiv,  and  sold  by  the  che- 
mists: but,  for  cleaning  barrels,  the  breeching*  of 
which  cannot  be  readily  seen  through,  I  should  re- 
commend using  nothing  but  cloth,  which  answers 
nearly  or  quite  as  well,  and  by  which  means  you  are 
not  liable  to  the  serious  accident  that  might  happen 
from  having  tow  left  in  the  chamber ;  and  this  you 
cannot  always  guard  against  in  guns  which  have  not 
the  inverted  breeching. 

Cloth  is  also  more  portable  for  travelling,  as  the 
same  pieces  of  it  may,  by  being  washed,  serve  for 
several  times. 

Some  of  our  moderns  recommend  a  sponge  !  fitted 
to  the  end  of  the  cleaning-rod.  Let  us  have  a  receipt 
to  kill  birds  without  shot,  and  this  will  do  vastly  well ; 
but  unfortunately  guns,  after  being  fired,  become 
leaded,  and  then  of  what  avail  is  a  sponge  ? 

We  are  told,  that  a  barrel  should  be  cleaned  after 
having  been  fired  about  twenty  rounds ;  but,  as  it  is 
not  every  manor  that  will  now  afford  so  many  shots 
in  a  day,  it  becomes  a  query,  how  often  we  may 
venture  to  put  away  a  gun  which  has  been  used.  I 
think,  that  if  eight  or  ten  shots  have  been  fired  from 


CLEANING    GUNS.  55 

each  barrel,  it  will  be  best  to  have  the  gun  washed 
on  returning  from  the  field ;  and,  if  not,  the  way  to 
prevent  it  hanging  fire  (if  kept  loaded)  is  simply  to 
prick  the  touchhole,  put  fresh  prime,  and  give  the 
but  a  few  smart  strokes  with  the  hand.  Should  the 
gun  have  been  in  the  damp,  or  put  by  a  long  time, 
the  more  certain  way  is  to  fire  it  off,  then  put  in  a 
fresh  charge  of  powder,  while  the  barrels  are  warm, 
and  afterwards  take  off  your  locks,  and  wipe  them,  as 
well  as  the  outside  of  the  breechings  and  touchholes, 
which  may  be  warranted  free  again,  by  being  probed 
with  the  clipped  end  of  a  stiff  feather :  and  all  this 
done  in  less  time  than  it  requires  to  explain  it. 

When  you  put  away  your  gun  empty,  you,  of 
course,  always  let  down  the  springs  of  the  locks ; 
and,  as  their  being  kept  long  at  the  half-cock  tends 
so  much  to  weaken  them,  it  would  even  be  advisable 
for  those  who  keep  their  guns  loaded  to  do  the  same. 
A  piece  of  tow  should  be  put  in  the  pan  (or  on  the 
nipple,  if  a  detonater)  to  prevent  damp,  and  the 
ramrod  left  in,  as  a  caution  to  those  who  might 
otherwise  take  up  the  gun.  It  is  highly  improper, 
however,  under  any  circumstances,  and  particularly 
where  there  are  children  in  a  house,  ever  to  leave 
fire-arms  about  charged,  unless  secured  out  of  reach, 
or  by  lock  and  key. 

A  little  cleaning  ought  to  be  occasionally  had  re- 
course to  in  the  field.  Were  the  pans  imped  and  the 
feather  inserted  in  the  touchholes  after  every  shot, 
your  gun  would  scarcely  ever  be  known- to  hang  fire, 


56  DIRECTIONS    FOR 

unless  this  precaution  had  been  counteracted  by  your 
forgetting  to  load  it  while  warm,  or  some  other  cir- 
cumstance ;  and  I  see  nothing  to  justify  your  neglect 
in  this,  except  the  incessant  rising  of  birds,  in  which 
case  you  may  be  permitted  to  await  a  leisure  oppor- 
tunity. Nothing  is  more  absurd,  if  a  gun  has  been 
washed,  than  dirtying  it,  long  before  there  is  any 
occasion  for  so  doing,  by  what  is  called  squibbing, 
which  answers  the  purpose  only  of  alarming  women 
and  poultry,  putting  your  cattle  into  a  gallop,  and 
your  kennel  full  cry ;  and,  in  short,  making  a  general 
disturbance  among  your  domestic  animals  ! — very  ex- 
cusable in  a  boy,  who  would  desire  no  better  fun ! 

If  a  gun,  after  your  having  probed  the  touchhole, 
should  ever  flash  in  the  pan,  you  had  better  draw  the 
shot ;  and,  in  firing  off  the  powder,  hold  the  gun 
sideways  (that  is,  with  the  touchhole  uppermost).  I 
have  seen  shooters  plagued  for  half  an  hour  with 
their  guns,  which  have  gone  off  immediately  on  being 
held  in  this  manner. 

The  proper,  safest,  and  most  certain  way  of  ascer-, 
taining  that  your  gun  be  perfectly  clean,  is  to  hold 
it  to  the  light,  and  look  through  it  (as  before  re- 
commended) ;  and  to  prove  that  neither  oil  nor  damp 
be  left  behind,  put  your  charge  of  powder  into  the 
barrel,  and,  before  you  add  the  wadding,  see  that  the 
few  grains,  which  you  can  shake  into  the  pan,  are 
quite  dry  ;  and  if  so,  prime,  and  finish  loading ;  but 
observe,  that  in  trying  this  with  Mr.  Joseph  Manton's 
original  patent  hammers  (which  are  the  best  he  ever 


CLEANING    GUNS.  57 

invented),  you  must,  for  the  moment,  leave  the  pans 
open,  or  no  powder  will  pass. 

If  a  stupid  fellow  wedges  dry  tow  into  your  gun, 
with  the  cleaning  rod,  pour  boiling  water  on  it,  and 
the  rod  may  then  be  turned  round  and  drawn  out. 
I  remember  this  occurred  with  a  large  punt-gun,  at 
which  I  caught  four  men  hawling  away  most  un- 
mercifully, but  to  no  effect.  I  luckily  came  by  and 
saved  the  destruction  of  the  cleaning-rod,  if  not  the 
injury  of  the  barrel,  by  suggesting  this  simple  con- 
trivance. 

These  little  remedies,  I  am  aware,  must  be  insipid 
to  the  reader ;  but,  when  wanted,  often  prove  worth 
double  the  price  of  a  book ;  so  that  I  have  never 
failed  to  pencil  down,  and  afterwards  insert  here,  all 
that  I  thought  had  the  least  chance  of  being  original 
to  the  average  of  sportsmen. 


Intonating 


Now  that  every  gunmaker  and  almost  every  sports- 
man is  so  infatuated  with  the  detonating,  or  per- 
cussion, system,  I  can  easily  imagine  that  the  whole 
of  this  edition,  which  relates  to  the  flint,  will  by  many 
be  considered  an  obsolete  subject,  and  therefore  an 
useless  insertion.  I  fancy  that  I  see  a  fashionable 
sportsman  opening  this  little  work,  catching  his  eye 
on  the  word  "  flint,"  "  pan,"  or  "  hammer,"  throwing 
down  the  book,  walking  out  of  the  shop,  and  ex- 
claiming, "  a  hundred  years  out  of  date !"  Little 
aware,  however,  that  for  these  last  seven  years  I  have 
made,  perhaps,  more  trials  of  detonaters  than  any 
gunmaker  in  the  kingdom  ;  and  were  I  to  print  every 
schedule  that  was  carefully  noted  down  at  the  time 
of  trial,  I  might  compile  a  work,  which  would  be 
formed  of  pages,  more,  in  appearance,  like  a  book  of 
arithmetic,  than  a  work  of  sentences.  I  shall  there- 
fore not  trouble  my  readers  with  a  dry  detail  of  evi- 
dence, but  merely  insert  one  of  the  schedules,  with  a 
copy  of  an  impartial  opinion  which  I  sent  to  Mr. 
Joseph  Manton  in  1822;  as  every  subsequent  trial, 


DETONATING    SYSTEM.  59 

up  to  the  present  time,  has  only  served  more  strongly 
to  confirm  that  opinion. 

Were  I  inclined,  however,  to  make  any  further 
observation,  it  would  be  to  say,  that  on  further  and 
more  general  trial,  I  find,  so  far  from  not  having 
done  justice  to  the  percussion  principle,  I  have,  like 
all  other  modern  shooters,  been  rather  cwe/'-rating  its 
merits  than  otherwise  :  for  the  more  shots  I  fire,  the 
more  I  am  persuaded  that  the  Jlint-g\m  shoots  the 
strongest  into  the  bird,  and  by  far  the  easiest  against 
the  shoulder. 

It  seems  a  paradox  that  a  percussion  gun  should 
fire  quicker,  and  yet  not  stronger  than  a  flint-gun ; 
but,  most  assuredly,  this  is  the  case.  It  may  perhaps, 
in  some  measure,  be  accounted  for  thus  :  the  gas  flies 
instantaneously  through  the  whole  charge  of  powder, 
and  puts  it  in  motion  with  such  rapidity,  that  one 
half  of  the  powder  is  not  ignited  till  the  other  half 
and  the  shot  have  made  some  progress  up  the  barrel, 
and,  consequently,  there  takes  place  (owing,  perhaps 
to  the  vacuum  which  is  thus  occasioned)  a  violent 
concussion  or  reaction,  which,  so  far  from  giving 
strength  to  the  shot,  is  rather  inimical  to  projectile 
force,  though  it  causes  a  severe  strain  on  the  barrel, 
and  therefore  snakes  every  other  part  of  the  gun. 
For  this  reason  I  find,  that  instead  of  almost  equal 
measure  of  powder  and  shot  (the  sure  proportion 
for  strong  and  good  shooting),  a  detonater,  in  one's 
own  defence,  had  better  be  loaded  with  three  quarters 
in  measure  of  powder,  to  four  quarters  of  shot;  and 


60  DETONATING    SYSTEM. 

that  long  barrels,  which  are  opened  behind,  and  nip 
the  charge,  in  the  cylinder,  till  more  of  the  powder 
is  burnt,  do  more  justice  to  the  percussion  system 
than  the  others.  I  had  ample  proof  of  this  by  an 
experiment  with  a  musket  of  three  feet  six  inches, 
and  a  double  gun  of  two  feet  eight  inches.  The 
musket,  when  made  into  a  detonater,  shot  very  near, 
if  not  quite,  as  well  as  when  a  flint-gun ;  but  the 
double  gun  did  not  shoot  so  well,  afterwards,  by  at 
least  one-fourth !  which  evidently  shows  that  quick- 
ness and  strength  are  not  always  combined.  For 
instance  :  load  one  gun  with  large-grained  powder, 
and  another  with  very  fine  canister  powder.  We 
are  quite  sure  that  the  latter  will  fire  the  quickest; 
but  I  would  back  the  other  to  fire  the  strongest  if  of 
equally  good  quality,  because  the  larger  powder  has 
the  more  projectile  force.  Again,  fire  a  small  detonater 
and  a  swivel-gun,  ay,  a  twelve-pounder  if  you  please, 
at  a  mark  only  thirty  yards  off,  and  see  if  the  little 
gun  does  not  shoot  up  to  that  distance  as  quick  as, 
or  quicker  than,  the  others!  And  yet  would  it  not 
be  ridiculous  to  compare  them  for  strength  ? 

Mr.  D.  Egg  made  to  me  a  droll,  though  a  good 
comparison,  on  the  ignition  of  detonating  guns :  he 
said,  "  If  I  were  to  kick  a  fellow  out  of  my  shop, 
would  he  go  off  so  strong  on  his  legs  as  if  I  allowed 
him  to  walk  out  ?" 

I  am  not  fond  of  quoting,  but  nevertheless  I  must 
copy  a  few  lines  on  the  percussion  principle  by  Ezekiel 
Baker,  one  of  the  very  few  master  gunmakers  in 


DETONATING    SYSTEM.  61 

London  who  understand  barrels.  I  never  saw  Mr. 
Baker,  though  I  have  read  a  few  extracts  from  his 
work,  which  prove  that  he  has  the  ability  to  discover, 
and  the  honesty  to  publish  the  real  state  of  the  case. 
He  says,  "  By  the  detonating,  or  percussion  principle, 
the  whole  of*  the  powder  is  fired  instantaneously, 
but  the  very  quickness  with  which  the  powder  is 
burned,  in  my  opinion,  lessens  its  general  effect,  and 
I  am  satisfied  more  execution  will  be  done  at  an  equal 
distance  with  the  charge  from  the  common  flint. 
Indeed,  I  have  proved  this  by  many  experiments  from 
the  same  barrel.  In  rain,  or  snow,  the  percussion 
lock  will  act,  from  its  detonating  power,  more  correctly 
than  the  common  flint-lock ;  and  this,  by  sportsmen, 
is  considered  its  greatest,  and,  I  must  confess,  it  ap- 
pears to  me,  its  only  advantage/'  This,  and  I 
should  add  (as  I  observed  in  1822)  the  "  wonderful 
accuracy  it  gives  in  so  readily  obeying  the  eye :"  and 
(as  I  observed  in  1824)  "  having  scarcely  any  flash 
from  the  lock  of  the  first  barrel  to  intercept  the  sight 
of  the  second." 

Another  observation  should  be  made :  A  well- 
known  gunmaker  (not  Joe  Manton),  in  presence  of 
a  well-known  sportsman,  offered  to  bet  me  fifty 
guineas  that  a  detonater  of  equal  size,  &c.  would  beat 

*  "  The  whole  of!"  These  are  the  only  three  words  that  I 
have  the  least  doubt  of  throughout  Mr.  Baker's  observation :  as 
this  question,  I  conceive,  depends  on  what  quantity  of  powder 
you  put  into  the  gun. 


62  DETONATING    SYSTEM. 

a  flint-gun.  I  immediately  took  up  the  bet,  told  his 
clerk  to  book  it,  and  offered  to  double  it  if  he  chose. 
He  then  fought  off,  and  would  not  stand  to  what  he 
proposed.  Soon  after  the  sportsman  left  the  shop, 
and  the  gunmaker  then  said  to  me,  "  You  are  quite 
right ;  but  if  you  had  not  taken  me  up  I  should  have 
got  an  order  for  a  brace  of  detonating  guns !"  Let 
this  be  a  lesson,  then,  to  gunmaker s,  not  to  be  so 
ready  in  offering  wagers  to  gentlemen. 

In  short,  it  does  not  require  a  succession  of  ar- 
guments and  anecdotes  to  prove,  that  if  guns  on  one 
principle  are  sooner  shook  to  pieces,  and  worn  out, 
than  guns  on  another,  it  is  the  interest  of  the  trade 
not  only  to  universally  adopt  them,  but  to  employ 
people,  who  will  write  any  thing  for  so  much  a  sheet, 
to  overrate  them  to  the  credulous,  through  the  me- 
dium of  some  publication  or  other.  Let  the  reader, 
however,  put  down  all  that  I  have  said,  or  that 
others,  in  argument  against  me,  may  say,  as  nothing ; 
and  only  take  a  walk  to  some  field  with  a  few  flint- 
guns  and  detonaters,  of  equal  sizes,  and  fairly  try 
them  at  two  or  three  quires  of  paper,  and  then  let 
his  opinion  be  guided  \>y  facts  instead  of  words. 

In  the  mean  time,  I  will  proceed  to  repeat  the 
same  trials  that  I  gave  in  the  earlier  editions. 

"  TRIAL  on  the  8th  of  November  1822,  of  a 
171bs.  Joseph  Manton  duck  gun,  at  fifty  yards,  loaded 
with  four  ounces  of  B.  B.  shot,  and  rather  more  than 


DETONATING    SYSTEM.  63 

an  equal  measure  of  fine  cylinder  powder,  at  a  sheet 
of  pasteboard,  and  twelve  sheets  of  thick  brown  paper, 
which  presented  a  target  of  28  by  22  inches  in  size. 

"  WITH  FLINT  LOCK. 

In  the  first  sheet.  Through  the  pasteboard 

and  the  twelfth  sheet. 

"  Round  1  .  .54  .  .54 

2  .  .45  .  .41 

3  .  .38  .  .37 

Total     137  132 


"  WITH  DETONATING  LOCK. 

In  the  first  sheet.  Through  the  pasteboard 

and  the  twelfth  sheet. 

Round  1  .     36    -  .  .34 

2  .  .43  .  .40 

3  .  .30  .  .30 

Total     109  104 


"  Majority  in  favour  of  the  flint  in  the  aggregate 
of  three  rounds  : 

In  the  first  sheet.  Through  the  pasteboard 

and  the  twelfth  sheet. 

« With  flint  lock  .137  -     132 

Detonating  lock          .109  .104 

Majority     28  28 

"  One  round,  as  above,  with  No.  1  shot : 
«  WITH  DETONATING  LOCK. 

In  the  first  sheet.  Through  all. 

75  .  •          64 


64  DETONATING    SYSTEM. 

"  A  round  from  one  of  the  best  fourteen  gauge 
double  detonaters  in  the  kingdom,  made  by  Mr.  Jo- 
seph Man  ton,  with  No.  1  shot,  as  above  (with  wadding 
cut  by  his  new  dented  punch,  on  both  powder  and 
shot)  :  in  order  to  show,  that  even  the  very  best  small 
guns  will  not  throw  large  shot  like  duck-guns : 

In  the  first  sheet.  Through  all. 

35 30 

"  A  second  round  from  the  same  barrel  (loaded 
with  wadding  cut  by  a  common  punch  on  the  powder, 
and  wadding  cut  by  a  dented  punch  on  the  shot)  : 

In  the  first  sheet.  Through  all. 

40  36 

"  From  the  result  of  very  many  experiments,  Col. 
Hawker  is  of  opinion,  that  for  neat  shooting  in  the 
field,  or  covert,  and  also  for  killing  single  shots  at 
wildfowl,  rapidly  flying,  and  particularly  by  night, 
there  is  not  a  question  in  favour  of  the  detonater,  as 
its  trifling  inferiority  to  the  flint  is  tenfold  repaid  by 
the  wonderful  accuracy  it  gives  in  so  readily  obeying 
the  eye.  But,  in  firing  a  heavy  charge  among  a  large 
flock  of  birds,  the  flint  has  the  decided  advantage ; 
and,  moreover,  the  sudden,  and  additional,  recoil  of 
a  detonater,  with  the  full  charge  of  a  duck-gun,  is 
apt,  if  the  shooter  be  not  careful,  to  strike  the  hand 
back,  and  give  him  a  severe  blow  on  the  nose.  For 
duck  guns,  therefore,  he  recommends,  besides  the  flint 
lock,  a  detonating  one  on  the  principle  which  Mr. 
Joseph  Manton  has  so  beautifully  made  to  his  order. 


DETONATING    SYSTEM.  65 

"  A  detonater  that  does  not  light  at  the  side,  how- 
ever, is,  he  thinks,  quite"  (I  should  now,  by  further 
experience,  rather  say  "  almost")  "  equal  in  power  to 
the  flint ;  but  one  that  does,  he  should  be  induced,  at 
a  rough  calculation,  to  consider  one  fifth  inferior ; 
consequently  he  prefers  the  guns  with  breechings 
made  expressly  for  caps,  to  those  fired  with  tubes,  or 
any  other  primers,  at  a  side  touch-hole ;  and  if  this 
plan  was  adopted,  perhaps  the  flint  might  be  alto- 
gether dispensed  with  even  in  duck-guns ;  besides, 
this  invention  is  more  simple,  more  water-proof,  and 
admits  of  the  gravitating  stops.  A  detonating  gun, 
to  be  sufficiently  independent  of  the  muriatic  acid 
which  is  produced  by  the  ^composition,  or  detonation 
of  the  fulminating  powder,  should  have  no  springs, 
or  wovcable  bodies  outside  the  loch-plate,  that  are 
dependent  on  cleanliness  ;  and,  in  short,  a  detonating 
gun  can  never  be  so  near  perfection  as  when  it  has  no 
springs  whatever,  except  the  main  spring  and  scear 
spring,  which,  on  the  principle  last  mentioned,  being 
well  protected  inside  of  the  lock-plate,  and  free  from 
the  smoke  that  is  apt  to  be  driven,  even  there,  by  all 
side  communications,  no  part  of  the  machinery  is 
here  dependent  in  its  action  on  being  kept  clean  from 
the  foulness  arid  rust  which  is  always  occasioned  by 
the  oxygen  gas. 

"  The  superiority  of  the  foregoing  plan  may,  per- 
haps, in  a  great  measure,  be  accounted  for  thus : — 
every  gun  that  fires  at  the  side,  positively  must  have 
some  of  its  advantage  iti  shooting  sacrificed  to  a 


DETONATING    SYSTEM. 


good-shed  touch-hole^  or  it  will  be  for  ever  liable  to 
miss  fire.  A  gun  that  fires  near  the  bottom  of  the 
breech,  by  the  hole  in  a  nipple  or  pivot,  has  that  hole, 
however  large  it  way  be,  closed  up,  with  the  cock, 
or  striker,  by  the  very  blow  that  puts  the  cJiarge  in 
action ;  and  consequently  no  powder  can  escape,  there 
being  no  hole  then  left  open,  except  the  very  little 
gas-hole,  which  lets  out  the  detonating  flame." 

SUBSEQUENT  TRIAL,  on  the  18th  of  November 
(with  No.  7  shot),  of  a  14  gauge  gun  (barrels  by 
Lancaster),  with  flints,  and  afterwards  with  cocks  and 
hammers  put  on,  with  which  was  used  the  detonating 
powder  :*— 


FLINTS. 


DETONATERS. 


RIGHT  BARREL. 

In  1st  Through 
sheet.  12th  Do. 
Round  1     81     49 
2  121     61 
3  143     63 

LEFT  BARREL. 

In  1st     Through 
sheet.      12th  Do. 
110     .     62 
122     .     54 
98     .     40 

RIGHT  BARREL. 

In  1st  ^Through 
sheet.      12th  Do. 
89    .     31 
69    .     40 
80    .     29 

LEFT  BARREL. 

In  1st     Through 
sheet.      12th  Do. 
91     .     42 
116     .     47 
102     .     49 

Total  .    345  173 

330        156 

238        100 

309        138 

Majority  in  favour  of  the  Flint      107        73  21         18 

A  round  was  then  fired  from  each  barrel  of  a 
larger  and  heavier  detonating  gun  of  Mr.  Joseph 
Manton's  (barrels  by  Lancaster,  and  of  the  same 
gauge),  made  expressly  to  fire  with  caps,  at  the  bottom 
of  the  breech  instead  of  through  aside  touch-hole:— 
RIGHT  BARREL.  LEFT  BARREL. 


In. 
120 


Through. 

•     75 


In. 

157 


Through. 
•      78 


DETONATING    SYSTEM.  67 

Which  seems,  as  far  as  cursory  observation  will  prove, 
to  confirm  the  opinion  given  after  the  trial  on  the 
8th  instant. 

This  gun,  however,  which,  from  superior  weight 
of  metal,  had  the  advantage  in  the  foregoing  trial, 
was  afterwards  shot  against  a  flint-gun  of  equal 
weight ;  and  then  the  flint-gun  had  the  advantage, 
not  only  both  in  strength  and  closeness,  but  also  in 
regularity  of  shooting. 

The  foregoing  trials  will  show  the  very  great  un- 
certainty of  even  the  best  guns  at  all  times  throwing 
the  shot  alike,  and  therefore  prove  the  absurdity  of 
talking  about  people  who  "  never  miss,"  which  every 
one  must  often  do,  who  shoots  beyond  thirty-five  or 
forty  yards,  and  consequently  this  trumpery  kind  of 
reputation  is  only  to  be  maintained  by  picking  and 
choosing  every  shot,  and  therefore  losing  a  third,  or 
perhaps  the  half,  of  those  birds,  which  might,  other- 
wise, be  put  in  the  bag. 

We  will  now  treat  on  every  principal  part  of  the 
detonating  system,  in  the  same  order  as  the  flint ; 
and,  of  course,  as  briefly  as  possible. 

GUN. 

To  fire  with  detonating  powder,  the  gun  requires 
to  be  much  stronger  than  that  used  for  a  flint ;  it 
must  be  heavier  to  stand  the  recoil ;  of  a  large  sized 
caliber,  in  order  not  to  have  the  powder  too  narrowly 
confined,  which  is  absolutely  dangerous;  and  the 

F  2 


68  DETONATING    SYSTEM. 

London  gunmakers  will  find  out  sooner  or  later, 
that  the  barrel  should  rather  be  2  feet  10  than  2  feet 
8,  or  the  disproportionate  length  of  2  feet  4,  or  2 
feet  6  ;  unless  absolutely  required  to  be  short,  for  the 
convenience  of  shooting  in  covert.  The  breeching 
should  be  made  on  purpose,  and  I  therefore  fully 
acquit  the  gunmaker  of  any  wish  to  impose  on  his 
customers,  when  he  hesitates  to  alter  the  average 
of  flint  guns.  A  good  heavy  fourteen  gauge  gun 
may  be  altered  by  means  of  a  new  breeching,  or  (as 
a  very  inferior  make-shift]  with  a  roller  screwed  into 
the  touch-hole ;  for  either  of  which  you  must  of 
course  alter  your  lock-plate,  so  that  it  can  no  more 
be  used  with  a  flint.  The  way,  however,  to  use  both 
flint  and  detonater  on  the  same  lock  is  very  simple, 
but  so  apt  to  break  the  hammer-bridle,  that  out  of 
six  locks  which  I  had  altered,  five  of  them  were 
spoiled  ,by  this  means.  Were  the  hammer-bridle 
forged  very  strong,  I  have  no  doubt  it  would  answer 
perfectly  well ;  so  that  if  you  wished  to  use  either 
flint  or  detonater,  a  new  lock-plate  must  be  forged 
on  purpose.  The  hammers  which  I  had  put  on  in 
town  were  for  ever  missing  fire ;  those  by  Mr.  Par- 
sons of  Salisbury,  by  the  trifling  alteration  that  I 
suggested,  of  placing  the  nipple  as  near  as  possible 
to  the  touch-hole,  and  lining  the  pan  all  through 
with  platina,  fired  about  eight  hundred  shots  with 
only  about  three  misses  fire,  and  were  decidedly  the 
most  certain  of  any  detonating  guns,  or  hammers,  I 
had  ever  used ;  till  at  last,  like  all  the  rest,  off  flew 


DETONATING    SYSTEM.  69 

one  of  the  hammers.  I  am  ready  to  admit,  that  a 
nipple  on  the  centre  of  a  hammer  is  less  likely  to 
strain  the  hammer-bridle ;  but  then  the  communica- 
tion, by  placing  it  there,  is  so  much  longer,  that  the 
discharge  of  the  gun  can  never  be  depended  on.  I 
had  my  hammers  done  in  this  way  at  first,  and  when 
on  salt  water,  the  gun,  on  an  average,  missed  fire 
every  eight  or  ten  shots  ;  and,  in  field-shooting,  about 
once  in  twenty  shots.  Several  sportsmen,  however, 
have  assured  me,  that  their  guns  have  gone  well  for 
a  whole  season,  after  being  altered  in  this  wray.  Far 
be  it  from  me  to  doubt  their  word ;  but  still  it  is  my 
duty  to  the  public  to  speak  of  this,  and  every  thing 
else,  not  as  I  have  heard  oj\  but  as  I  have  found  it. 
I  have  since  had  a  double  gun  "  detonated"  to  my 
order  (with  new  breechings,  &c.)  by  Mr.  Parsons.  I 
have  tried  sixty  shots  with  it,  and  part  of  the  time 
in  showers  of  rain.  It  did  not  miss  fire  once  ;  and  it 
is  but  justice  to  observe  too,  that  the  alteration  is 
done  in  as  workmanlike  a  manner,  as  if  it  had  been 
turned  out  of  hand  at  nearly  double  the  price  in 
London. 

Mr.  John  Manton  has  a  patent  that  I  particularly 
admire,  and  am  confident  must  be  one  of  the  best  as 
yet  brought  out:  and  Mr.  Purdey  (a  rising  gun- 
mnker  of  extraordinary  merit)  is  acquitting  himself 
most  admirably  in  the  detonating  system,  as  well  as 
in  the  very  neat  and  elegantly  finished  style  of  his 
work.  I  deal  with  neither,  and  have,  for  that  very 


70  DETONATING   SYSTEM. 

reason,  a  double  pleasure  in  doing  justice  to  both  of 
them. 

Mr.  Joseph  Manton  has  completed  another  patent 
detonater,  which,  for  a  self-primer,  is  by  far  the  best 
and  most  simple  invention  I  have  yet  seen.  The 
workmanship  is  most  beautiful,  and  if  ever  any  kind 
of  self-priming  detonater  will  answer,  without  giving 
trouble,  it  will  be  this  of  Mr.  J.  M.  who  will  still,  I 
trust,  continue  to  be,  what  he  always  has  been,  the 
leading  inventor  for  the  whole  trade,  and  the  cham- 
pion among  all  real  judges  of  a  gun. 

Were  I  merely  to  observe  that  Mr.  Joseph  Man- 
ton's  guns  (at  all  events  for  the  workmanship)  are  so 
far  before  those  of  the  gunmakers  in  general,  that 
those,  who  cannot  see  this,  are  like  indifferent  judges 
of  a  picture,  who,  for  want  of  profound  science,  would 
be  as  well  pleased  with  the  gaudy  painting  of  some 
young  artist,  as  with  the  picture  of  a  fine  old  master, 
I  should  appear  like  a  hireling  of  this  maker.  But 
I  only  beg  of  whoever  differs  with  me  in  opinion, 
when  he  next  sees  any  other  first-rate  gunrnaker  or 
mechanic  in  town  or  country,  to  say  to  him,  "  Now 
tell  me,  on  your  honour  as  a  tradesman,  whose  guns, 
NEXT  TO  YOUR  OWN,"  [mind  this]  "  are  the  best, 
and  most  scientifically  made  ?"  and  if  they  do  not  say 
(or  think)  "  Mr.  Joseph  Manton's,"  I  will  resign  all 
claim  to  judgment  of  a  gun,  or  to  the  kind  patronage 
with  which  my  work  has  been  honoured.  In  short, 
let  any  one  look  (not  with  the  naked  eye,  but  with  a 


DETONATING    SYSTEM.  71 

magnifying  glass}  at  the  work  in  every  part  of  Mr. 
Joseph  Manton's  guns,  and  at  those  of  most  other 
makers,  and  he  will  discover  about  the  same  difference 
that  there  is  between  one  of  Leader's  or  Houlditch's 
town-built  coaches,  and  that  gothic  vehicle  which 
among  our  moderns  is  yclept  a  "  Jarvy" 

But  let  every  man  make  every  part  of  a  gun  him- 
self, and  then,  I  believe,  Mr.  D.  Egg  would  in  his 
younger  days  have  had  the  laugh  against  them  all. 
This,  however,  is  no  more  required  than  that  an 
architect  should  handle  well  a  hammer  or  a  trowel ; 
and  a  great  part  of  those  mechanics  who  set  up  and 
work  for  themselves  consists  of  those,  who,  from 
having  been  journeymen  in  only  one  department  of 
gunmaking,  are  probably  but  superficially  acquainted 
with  even  the  theory  of  the  other. 

THE  BARREL 

SHOULD  be  fourteen  gauge,  to  let  the  powder  bum 
easy  ;  and  (as  before  observed)  at  least  two  feet  eight 
inches  ;  and  if  two  feet  ten  inches,  or  even  three  feet, 
so  much  the  better;  in  order  riot  only  to  keep  the 
shot  together  at  long  distances,  but  to  prevent  the 
gas  from  driving  out  the  powder  before  it  is  thoroughly 
ignited.  It  has  been  argued  to  me  (by  the  way)  that 
many  people  have  cut  long  barrels  shorter,  and  found 
that  they  afterwards  killed  even  better  !  Very  likely  : 
and  for  why?— because  the  barrels  were  improperly 
bored  for  a  long  caliber,  and,  therefore,  the  length, 


72  DETONATING    SYSTEM. 

from  this  circumstance,  became  mere  lumber,  if  not 
an  obstruction,  instead  of  being  the  greatest  possible 
assistance. 

THE  BREECHING 

MAY  be  cupped  similar  to  that  for  a  flint,  though  of 
course  with  a  shorter  chamber:  and  by  all  means 
forged  in  one  solid  piece. 

I  am  inclined  to  think,  however,  that  a  cup  and 
centrehole  made  rather  more  like  a  funnel  would 
better  insure  the  ignition  of  all  the  powder  in  a  per- 
cussion-gun,  notwithstanding  this  mode  of  cupping 
may  have  proved  inferior  to  the  other  for  &  flint-gun. 

VENT-HOLE. 

A  DETONATER  without  a  vent-hole,  though  per- 
haps it  may  shoot  a  little  stronger,  is  very  liable  to 
corrode,  and  recoils  most  cruelly.  The  best  vent- 
hole,  to  my  fancy,  is  a  fixed  one  of  platina,  similar 
to  a  touch-hole ;  as  vent-screws,  I  find,  are  liable  to 
rust  in ;  and,  unless  lined  with  platina,  are  either 
soon  choked  up  with  rust  and  dirt,  or  blown  too 
large  by  repeated  shooting. 

THE  NIPPLE,  OR  PIVOT, 

Is  best  plain  or  polished  ;  the  caps,  if  made  well,  will 
always  keep  on ;  but  when  the  pivot  is  made  like  a 
screw  it  collects  rust,  always  looks  bad,  and  gives 


DETONATING    SYSTEM.  73 

additional  trouble  in  cleaning.  The  hole  in  the 
nipple  must  not  be  too  small,  and  well  increased  in 
size  downwards,  or  this  deadly  poison  to  all  fire-arms 
(the  oxygen  gas)  will  choke  up  the  communication 
wjth  rust,  and  repeated  missing  fire  will  be  the  con- 
sequence. A  very  strong  mainspring  will  counteract 
all  the  bad  effects  of  a  large  hole,  by  firmly  closing 
it  with  the  cock,  in  striking  the  very  blow,  as  I  before 
observed,  that  puts  the  charge  in  motion.  The  nipple 
(the  only  article  that  need  be  made  to  separate  from 
the  breeching)  must,  of  course,  have  a  square  base, 
so  as  to  be  removable  at  pleasure,  by  means  of  a 
little  wrench. 

There  are  various  opinions  as  to  placing  the  nipple 
or  pivot.  The  favourite  plan  appears  to  be  that  of 
having  it  perpendicular,  for  the  convenience  of  putting 
on  the  copper  caps.  For  my  own  part,  however,  I 
prefer  it  sloping,  because,  in  the  event  of  the  copper 
flying,  the  eye  is  not  then  parallel  with  the  circle  of 
splinters,  should  one  of  them,  by  accident,  escape 
from  the  concave  head  of  the  cock  or  striker. 

THE  COCK,  OR  STRIKER, 

SHOULD  cover  the  nipple  with  a  deep  concave  head, 
so  that  scarcely  any  of  the  copper  can  escape,  or  a  man 
may  lose  his  eye.  Several  accidents  have  happened 
through  the  neglect  of  this.  If,  however,  the  concave 
head  of  the  cock  is  too  small  in  diameter,  or  strikes 
the  least  on  one  side,  so  as  to  cause  any  friction 


74  DETONATING    SYSTEM. 

against  the  side  of  the  cap,  the  gun  will  most  probably 
miss  fire. 

Another  important  observation  should  be  made 
under  this  head :  people  try  copper-cap  guns  in  a 
shop,  and  fancy  they  are  safe  if  the  copper  does  not 
fly  about.  This  is  no  trial  at  all;  because  the  way 
that  accidents  happen  is  through  the  recoil  of  the 
gun  forcing  the  cock  from  the  nipple,  and  then  all 
security  is  at  an  end.  Try  this  by  having  a  heavily 
loaded  gun  with  a  weak  mainspring,  and  the  cock 
will  fly  up  so  far  as  to  catch  at  the  half,  if  not  the 
full,  bent,  unless  you  happen  to  have  a  nipple-hole 
so  small  that  it  would  be  for  ever  missing  fire.  To 
obviate  this,  be  sure  that  your  mainsprings  are  strong, 
and  have  their  greatest  force  on  the  first  pull ;  and, 
as  a  still  further  security,  you  might  have  an  extra 
shield  or  fence  round  the  cock. 

THE  SIDE-NAIL 

SHOULD  be  made  of  the  best  tempered  spring  steel, 
and  stouter  than  that  for  a  flint-gun. 

All  side-nails,  whether  for  flint  or  detonaters, 
should  go  through  both  locks  in  a  double  gun,  and 
have  a  notch  at  each  end,  so  that,  if  they  break,  they 
may  be  screwed  out,  and  replaced  by  an  extra  one  in 
the  field. 


DETONATING    SYSTEM.  75 


THE  DISSECTION 

# 

Is  much  more  simple ;  and  your  locks  remain  on 
the  stock  while  in  the  case,  so  that  you  have  only  to 
put  in  your  barrels  (remembering  that  you  must  draw 
up  the  cocks  first),  and  your  gun  is  ready  for  the  field. 

CLEANING. 

SIMILAR  to  a  flint  gun,  and  rather  less  to  do  :  hut 
you  must  leave  every  thing,  as  well  as  the  inside  of 
the  barrels,  kept  a  very  little  damp  with  sweet  oil, 
or  your  gun  will  rust  fifty  times  worse  than  with 
common  powder. 

It  should  be  observed,  however,  that  when  the 
oxygen  mixes  with  gunpowder,  in  its  explosion,  it 
becomes  less  injurious  to  the  iron ;  consequently  the 
cocks  and  breechings  receive  even  more  damage  from 
this  composition  than  do  the  insides  of  the  barrels. 

LOADING. 

As  I  before  observed,  you  are  obliged,  in  your  own 
defence,  to  load  a  detonater  lighter  than  a  flint-gun ; 
and  as  it  goes  quicker  (though  not  stronger,  as  the 
gunmakers  would  wish  to  make  you  believe),  and 
for  other  reasons  before  given,  you  may  use  a  fourth 
less  powder  than  with  a  flint-gun.  Many  sportsmen 
feel  quite  positive  that  a  detonater  shoots  much 


76  DETONATING    SYSTEM. 

stronger  than  a  flint.  This,  I  have  no  doubt,  is 
because  it  does  not  allow  them  time  to  flinch,  and 
therefore  they  fire  the  body  of  the  charge  so  much 
more  accurately  with  a  detonater,  that  they  kill 
cleaner  and  at  greater  distances. 

The  safest  way  to  load  a  detonater  is  to  put  the 
caps  on  last,  taking  care  to  leave  down  the  cocks ;  or 
the  powder,  unless  of  large  grain,  would,  on  ramming 
the  wadding,  be  forced  through  the  hole  in  the  nipple. 
If  you  put  away  your  gun  loaded,  always  take  off  the 
caps,  not  only  for  safety,  but  because  the  locks  must 
either  be  left  straining  at  half  cock,  or  if  let  down 
and  suffered  to  remain  all  night,  the  odds  are  that  the 
powder  would  be  jammed  into  a  sort  of  damp  paste, 
and  both  barrels  would  miss  fire.  But  if  you  take  fresh 
caps,  and  prick  both  the  vent-holes,  and  the  nipple- 
holes,  your  gun  will  generally  fire  with  its  usual  rapidity. 

Detonating  powder  I  have  found  very  liable  to  miss 
fire  after  being  long  in  contact  with  any  salt  or  damp, 
such  as  a  strong  pressure  on  the  elastic  fluid  of  gun- 
powder ;  being  all  night  in  a  punt  in  the  sea  air ; 
the  spray  that  comes  over  a  boat  in  sailing,  &c. 

In  a  word,  although  detonating  powder  may  be 
put  in  water )  and  then  fired  off,  yet  it  frequently 
misses  fire  after  being  long  in  the  damp,  and  par- 
ticularly when  shooting  on  salt  water.  I  am  inclined 
to  account  for  it  by  the  following  comparison  :— 
Take  a  piece  of  biscuit,  or  (what  would  answer  the 
proof  much  better)  crisp  gingerbread  ;  dip  it  in  water 
for  a  short  time,  arid  it  will  nevertheless  remain  hard 


DETONATING    SYSTEM.  77 

enough  to  crack  before  it  will  bend.  But,  on  the 
other  hand,  if  you  lay  it  in  a  damp  cellar  all  night, 
it  will  not  be  found  crisp  in  the  morning.  So  it  is 
with  detonating  powder ;  by  long  continued  damp  it 
loses  its  crispness,  and  then,  of  course,  will  no  longer 
crack,  or  in  other  words,  fire  by  percussion. 

One  of  the  recipes  for  making  detonating  powder  is  : 

One  ounce  of  oxymuriate  of  potash, 
One-eighth  of  an  ounce  of  superfine  charcoal, 
One-sixteenth  of  an  ounce  of  sulphur, 

Mixed  with  gum  arabic  Mater,  and  then  dried.     It  should  be 
mixed  up  in  wood,  for  fear  of  accident. 

Another,  and,  I  am  told,  a  far  better  proportion,  is  : 

Five  of  oxymuriate  ; 
Two  of  sulphur;   and    ' 
One  of  charcoal. 

I  merely  give  the  recipe,  in  case  a  sportsman  should 
be  in  a  place  where  he  cannot  buy  the  composition, 
as  I  presume,  that  no  one  in  his  senses  would  run 
the  risk  of  being  blown  up,  in  order  to  make,  perhaps 
indifferently,  what  he  could  so  cheaply  purchase  in 
perfection. 

The  foregoing  few  directions  are,  I  trust,  sufficient, 
and  I  have  confined  them  to  the  most  simple,  and, 
therefore,  as  yet,  the  best  detonating  system ;  which, 
in  the  trifling  matter  of  caps,  patches,  &c.  may  be 
suited  to  the  shooter's  fancy;  but,  as  to  all  those 
intricate  magazines,  moveable  bodies,  and  other  com- 
plicated machinery,  I  leave  their  merits,  and  the 


78  DETONATING    SYSTEM. 

directions  about  them,  to  the  dissertation  of  some 
very  learned  mechanic,  as  their  advantage  and  utility 
are  far  beyond  my  comprehension. 

ANTI-CORROSIVE  PERCUSSION  POWDER. 

IN  August,  1824,  I  gave  the  following  statement 
relative  to  this  powder : 

"  Since  the  first  part  of  this  work  was  printed  off, 
a  letter  has  been  received  from  Mr.  Joyce,  chemist, 
11,  Old  Compton-street,  Soho,  commenting,  as  he  is 
fully  justified  in  doing,  on  the  injury  done  to  fire- 
arms by  the  oxy muriate  of  potash ;  and  inclosing  a 
specification  of  a  new  '  ANTi-corrosive'  percussion 
powder.  The  author,  however,  is  extremely  tena- 
cious of  misleading  his  readers,  by  recommending  any 
article  that  has  not  been  thoroughly  tried ;  and,  there- 
fore, all  he  can  as  yet  say  is,  that  he  has  fired  24 
copper  caps  with  this  new  powder,  after  dipping  each 
cap,  for  some  time,  in  water,  and  not  one  of  them 
missed  fire ;  nor  was  there  any  acid  produced  by  the 
decomposition. 

"  Were  Mr.  Joyce's  invention  good  for  the  gun 
trade,  it  would  soon  find  its  way  to  the  public ;  and, 
if  defective,  he  might  expect  every  assistance  for  its 
improvement.  But  as,  on  the  contrary,  it  is  rather 
the  reverse,  he  may  probably  meet  with  obstacles  to 
getting  it  fairly  circulated  for  trial ;  and,  for  this 
very  reason,  the  author  is  induced  to  mention  it.  He 
hopes,  therefore,  that  some  o^ier  sporting  writer,  who 


DETONATING    SYSTEM.  79 

may  be  going  to  press  after  the  ensuing  season,  will 
have  time  to  review,  and  further  inform  the  public 
as  to  the  merits  or  demerits  of  this  invention." 

Little  was  I  aware,  at  the  time  of  writing  this, 
that  the  third  edition  would  be  out  of  print  in  a  few 
months,  and  that  it  would  fall  to  my  lot  to  give  the 
next  report  of  this  powder. 

I  before  said,  "  as  this  new  system  is  the  life  and 
soul  of  trade,  let  us  hope  that  the  gunmakers  will 
exert  their  chemical  powers  to  render  this  '  devil's 
powder'  (as  Mr.  D.  Egg  used  to  call  it)  less  poison- 
ous to  fire-arms/' 

It  appears,  however,  that  the  gunmakers  knew 
better.  But  Mr.  Joyce  has  proved  a  sad  enemy  to 
the  fraternity  who  fatten  on  the  destruction  of  iron, 
by  establishing  a  manufactory  of  this  anti-corrosive 
percussion  powder,  in  which  he  does  away  entirely 
with  the  oxy muriate. 

It  may  be  hardly  fair  to  say  publicly  what  the 
composition  is  (because  Mr.  Joyce  candidly  told 
me,  though  I  believe  it  is  pretty  well  known) ;  and 
although  it  was  long  ago  adopted  by  Mr.  Goode 
Wright  of  Hereford  (according  to  a  statement  which, 
as  an  utter  stranger,  I  was  favoured  with  by  this 
gentleman),  yet  Mr.  Joyce  has  had  so  many  obstacles 
to  overcome  before  he  could  bring  it  to  perfection, 
that  we  must,  at  all  events,  give  him  a  great  deal  of 
credit.  In  short,  it  is  of  no  consequence  to  me  as 
the  writer,  and  much  less  to  the  public  as  readers, 
how  much  credit  is  to  ,j  given  to  one  of  these 


80  DETONATING    SYSTEM. 

gentlemen  or  to  the  other;  so  let  them  fight  it  out 
themselves,  and,  in  the  mean  time,  leave  me  to  go  on 
with  my  work.  For  I  have  as  much  dislike  to  su- 
perfluous writing,  as  to  interfering  with  the  contests 
of  others.  Enough  of  this — now  again  to  the  point 
about  the  powder. — When,  Mr.  Joyce  first  brought  it 
forward,  his  agent  in  Birmingham  had  served  him 
with  caps  of  brittle  cannon-metal,  instead  of  the  best- 
worked  copper.  The  consequence  was,  that  many 
sportsmen,  and  I  among  the  number,  were  severely 
cut,  and  had  nearly  lost  an  eye,  owing  to  the  quality 
of  the  cap,  not  the  powder.  This  was  of  course  a 
glorious  victory  for  all  Mr.  Joyce's  oxygen-opponents, 
arid  the  fault  was  unjustly  laid  on  the  composition. 
I  can  only  say,  however,  by  subsequent  experience, 
that  since  Mr.  Joyce  has  used  nothing  but  good 
copper,  all  the  caps  that  I  had  of  him  have  gone  as 
well  as  any  in  the  kingdom,  and  his  percussion 
powder  does  not  injure  the  guns  any  thing  like  so 
much  as  the  other.  Let  him,  therefore,  be  very 
careful,  in  future,  to  get  supplied  with  GOOD 
COPPER,  of  a  good  substance,  and  I  may  safely  ven- 
ture to  recommend  his  "  Anti-corrosive  percussion 
powder." 

MR.  JOSEPH  MANTON'S  PERCUSSION 
POWDER. 

MR.  JOSEPH  MANTON  observed  to  me,  some  time 
ago,  that  he  was  beginning  to  get  quite  out  of  conceit 


DETONATING    SYSTEM.  81 

with  detonating  guns ! !  till  he  very  lately  discovered 
an  improvement  in  percussion  powder  that  would 
make  them  shoot  as  strong  as  flint  guns,  with  little 
or  no  injury  to  the  iron ;  and  that  he  should  very 
soon  put  it  in  general  circulation.  I  think  it  right 
to  name  this,  because  I  have  great  confidence  in  his 
talent,  though  all  I  can  yet  say  is,  that  I  wish  he 
may  succeed.  * 

SHOOTING, 

Difference  in,  hetween  a  Flint  and  a  Detonater. 

HERE  we  come  to  a  part  of  the  subject,  the  very 
title  of  which,  in  the  present  day,  would  soon  clear 
off  an  edition  of  a  pamphlet :  and  it  therefore  becomes 
a  matter  of  surprise  that  the  book  manufacturers 
have  not  been  more  on  the  alert  in  reaping  a  harvest 
from  it ;  as  this  fashionable  theme,  if  well  diluted 
with  anecdotes  and  specifications,  might  be  spun  into 
a  good-sized  volume.  All  that  is  really  wanted,  how- 
ever, is  the  essence  of  the  subject,  and  therefore  I 
shall  make  my  humble  attempt  to  give  it. 

As  a  detonater  goes  so  very  much  quicker  than  a 
flint,  it  becomes  necessary,  in  firing  one,  to  avoid 
shooting  too  forward ;  and  I  should,  therefore,  revert 
to  my  former  hints  for  young  men  learning  to  shoot, 
and  say,  observe  precisely  all  that  I  before  said 
under  the  head  of  shooting,  but  IF  YOU  HAVE  A 
DETONATER  make  only  HALF  the  allowance ;  that 

G 


82  DETONATING    SYSTEM. 

is,  where  you  would  fire  six  inches  before  a  bird  with 
a  flint,  fire  only  THREE  INCHES  with  a  DETONATER; 
AND  so  ON.  If  a  sportsman  has  been  all  his  life  an 
indifferent  shot,  which  he  may  be,  either  through 
never  having  acquired  the  knack  of  firing  sufficiently 
forward  ;  flinching  as  he  pulls  the  trigger  ;  dropping 
his  hand  before  the  gun  is  fairly  discharged  ;  or  many 
other  such  circumstances :  I  most  strongly  advise 
him  to  lose  not  a  moment  in  getting  a  detonater, 
because  I  have  known  many  instances,  where  a  man 
had  been  a  very  bad  shot  all  his  life,  through  defects 
which  the  use  of  a  detonater  might  so  effectually 
remedy,  that  by  taking  up  one  he  might,  almost  im- 
mediately, become  a  tolerable,  if  not  a  very  good 
shot.  For  one,  however,  who  has  always  shot  well 
with  a  flint,  it  becomes  somewhat  difficult  to  give 
advice.  On  first  taking  up  the  detonater,  he  will,  by 
habit,  fire  well  forward  at  all  his  game,  and,  very 
probably,  have  the  mortification  to  miss  such  shots, 
as  he  was  before  in  the  habit  of  killing.  (Of  this  I 
was  an  eye-witness  when  out  with  one  of  the  most 
certain  shots  in  England).  He  will  soon,  however 
(to  use  a  sailor's  expression),  "  know  the  trim"  of  his 
gun ;  and,  taking  all  things  into  consideration,  most 
probably  shoot  still  more  accurately  with  a  detonater 
than  he  had  been  used  to  do  with  a  flint,  by  reason 
of  its  very  great  readiness  in  obeying  the  pull  of  the 
trigger,  before  the  eye  or  hand  has  time  to  vary ;  its 
equal  rapidity  in  foul  or  damp  weather ;  and  having 
scarcely  any  flash  from  the  lock  of  the  first  barrel  to 


DETONATING    SYSTEM.  83 

intercept  the  sight  of  the  second.  He  must,  however, 
compound  for  a  greater  recoil  to  the  shoulder ;  and,  on 
the  whole,  I  should  say,  to  missing  fire  rather  oftener 
than  with  a  good  flint,  -provided  he  is  out  in  fine  still 
weather.  We  may,  therefore,  on  the  whole,  taking 
all  things  into  consideration,  say,  that  at  first  a 
detonater  may  make  a  good  shot  an  indifferent  shot, 
and  both  first  and  last  an  indifferent  shot  a  good 
shot,  and  therefore  we  may  be  rather  inclined  to  give 
the  balance  in  its  favour.  But,  to  coincide  with  all 
the  panegyrics  that  are  written,  by  keen  young  sports- 
men who  happen,  perhaps,  to  have  been  shooting 
extremely  well,  and  despatch  their  bulletins  on  the 
spur  of  the  moment,  would  be  to  overrate  the  de- 
tonater, and  to  underrate  the  flint,  and  therefore  not 
giving  a  fair  and  disinterested  opinion. 

Why  it  becomes  a  question  whether  a  good  shot 
ought  to  fly  to  a  detonater  or  not  is  this : — After 
he  has  been  using  one  for  a  season,  or  even  a  few 
weeks'  shooting,  he  will,  on  taking  up  his  flint  gun 
again,  find  that  it  goes  comparatively  so  slow,  after 
the  other,  that  it  will  appear  to  hang  fire ;  and,  very 
probably,  so  puzzle  and  disconcert  him,  that  perhaps 
his  best  and  favourite  gun  is  either  packed  up  for  the 
pawnbroker,  or  stripped  of  its  flint-appendages,  and 
metamorphosed  into  a  detonater.  And  the  whole 
armoury,  if  he  has  many  guns,  is  considered  as  mere 
lumber,  unless  altered,  or  exchanged  for  guns  on  the 
detonating  system.  He  therefore  takes  to  fulmi- 
nating powder,  like  a  wife,  "  for  better  for  worse," 


84  DETONATING    SYSTEM. 

and  this  is  one  of  the  chief  reasons  why  the  percus- 
sion plan  has  so  rapidly  superseded  the  flint.  Did 
both  go  equally  quick,  I  am  inclined  to  think  the 
flint  would  have  held  the  majority.  If  a  sportsman, 
who  has  no  money  to  throw  away,  has  been  accom- 
modated with  the  loan  of  a  detonater,  the  only  way 
for  him  to  back  out  of  it,  is  to  modulate  as  it  were 
into  his  flint  gun  again,  by  using  the  slowest  old 
musket  he  can  lay  hands  on,  and  then  taking,  after 
that,  his  best  flint  gun. 

Before  dismissing  this  subject,  I  must  just  name  one 
circumstance : — While  I  was  using  nothing  but  de- 
tonating guns  for  four  seasons,  it  was  the  remark  of 
my  man,  that  he  never  had  the  pleasure  to  see  me 
make  such  long  shots  as  I  was  once  in  the  habit  of 
doing ;  and  I,  ready  to  lay  all  the  fault  on  myself,  or 
rather  to  a  premature  attack  of  that  anno  domini 
complaint  which  must  befall  the  best  of  us,  felt  that 
I  dare  not  blame  a  system  which  my  superiors  had  so 
universally  adopted.     I  took  up  a  flint-gun.     This 
was  worse  and  worse ;   as  its  comparative  slowness 
made  me  miss  even  fair  shots.     Last  year,  however, 
having  been  prevented,  by  illness,  from  taking  a  gun 
in  hand  till  just  before  the  end  of  the  season,  the 
sensation  of  firing  a  flint  and  a  detonater  became  as 
it  were  de  novo.     I  accordingly  took  out  a  flint-gun, 
and  down  came  the  long  shots,  as  in  former  days ! — 
I  name  this  as  a  simple  fact.     Let  others  argue  the 
point  as  they  please.     So  I  shall  now  conclude  the 
subject  by  reducing  the  matter  to  a  very  few  words. 


DETONATING    SYSTEM.  85 

Can  you  shoot  well  with  a  flint-gun  ?  Yes !  Then 
"  leave  well  enough  alone !"  Can  you  ?  No !  Then, 
by  all  means,  go  and  get  a  detonater ! 

I  have  now,  I  hope  and  trust,  fairly  and  disin- 
terestedly stated  all  that  is  necessary,  both  for  and 
against  the  detonating  system,  which,  at  no  small 
expense,  I  have  tried  by  every  kind  of  experiment, 
in  order  to  be  able  to  give  my  opinion  to  the  public 
independent,  instead  of  with  the  assistance,  of  gun- 
makers. 


<iun  Cases 

OFTEN  prove  very  inconvenient  to  a  person,  who 
travels  by  a  mail  coach,  in  the  boot  of  which  they 
cannot  be  made  to  go  without  the  risk  of  being 
damaged,  and  having  the  gun  itself  endangered,  by 
the  heavier  luggage.  From  the  prohibition  of  put- 
ting any  thing  on  the  roof,  there  requires  some  in- 
terest with  the  guard  to  allow  even  a  small  gun  case 
to  go  between  that  and  the  box,  although  the  place 
may  be  occupied  by  the  passenger's  own  servant.  It 
has,  therefore,  often  occurred,  that  sportsmen,  who, 
months  before  the  grouse  season,  had  eagerly  secured 
places  in  the  north  mails  for  the  sake  of  one  week's 
shooting,  were,  after  all,  thrown  out  of  the  first  three 
or  four  days,  by  having  to  depend  on  their  gun  cases 
being  forwarded  by  another  conveyance ;  and  other 
persons,  through  fear  of  this,  have  submitted  to  the 
shameful  extortion  of  an  imposing  guard.  (Of  late 
years,  however,  the  wonderful  improvements  and 
increase  of  light  coaches  have  rendered  travelling 
sportsmen  more  independent  of  the  mails  ;  or,  to  use 
the  modern  term,  "  paper -carts?} 

For  the  young  sportsman,  or  young  traveller,  to 
be  prepared  against  such  annoyance,  should  he  find 


GUN   CASES.  87 

it  inconvenient  to  carry  his  gun  in  a  sail  cloth,  and 
over  that  an  oil-skin  case,  let  him  have  a  short  piece 
of  wood,  just  infill  up  the  hollow  of  his  stock,  made 
flat  at  the  top,  and  with  loops  to  receive  the  bolts  at 
the  bottom.  Let  the  place  where  his  lock  fits  in  be 
either  wrapped  up,  or  guarded  by  pasteboard,  arid 
the  lock  itself  be  put  in  his  portmanteau.  The  stock, 
covered  over,  may  then  be  safely  put  in  the  seat,  and 
he  may  either  lay  the  barrel  with  it,  or  carry  it  in 
his  hand  ;  or  sling  both  in  a  bit  of  canvas  under  the 
inside  of  the  roof. 


Pototier. 

ALL  this  trouble  with  guns  would  be  ill  bestowed, 
if  we  neglected  a  due  attention  to  the  care  and  choice 
of  this  article. 

Gunpowder,  when  good,  is  made  of  ingredients 
perfectly  pure,  properly  mixed,  and  judiciously  pro- 
portioned. 

The  principal  ingredient,  saltpetre,  should  be 
entirely  divested  of  marine  salt,  as  that  is  a  great 
obstacle  to  the  production  of  good  powder,  of  which 
there  is,  in  all  saltpetre,  a  certain,  and  often  a  con- 
siderable quantity ;  and,  in  proportion  as  it  is  more 
or  less  freed  from  that  impurity,  so  the  powder  will 
be  more  or  less  liable  to  imbibe  damp  air,  and  be- 
come proportionally  moist  and  weak.  But  when  it 
is  perfectly  freed  from  marine  salt,  the  powder  will 
suffer  but  little  diminution  of  its  strength  from  being 
carelessly  kept,  or  even  openly  exposed  to  a  moist 
atmosphere,  as  what  it  might,  by  this  means,  have 
lost,  would  be  presently  restored  by  drying  it. 

Your  powder  should  always  be  properly  dried; 
in  order  to  do  which,  make  two  or  three  plates  very 
hot,  before  the  fire,  and  (first  taking  care  to  wipe 


POWDER.  89 

them  well,  lest  any  particle  of  cinder  should  adhere 
to  theni)  keep  constantly  shifting  the  powder  from 
the  one  to  the  other,  without  allowing  it  to  remain 
sufficiently  long  on  either,  to  cool  the  plate.  The 
powder  will  then  be  more  effectually  aired,  and  more 
expeditiously  dried,  than  by  the  more  common  means 
of  using  one  plate,  which  the  powder,  by  lying  on 
it,  soon  makes  cold,  and  therefore  the  plate  requires 
to  be  two  or  three  times  heated.  (This  is  another 
little  discovery  since  the  earlier  editions).  Nothing 
preserves  the  strength  of  powder  better  than,  after 
being  dried,  to  put  it  into  canisters,  securely  corked 
from  the  air.  Mr.  Butts  latterly  did  so,  by  my  ad- 
vice. Beware  of  going  any  where  near  the  fire  to 
dry  powder  on  plates.  Recollect  how  far  a  hot 
cinder  will  sometimes  fly,  and  therefore,  to  be  on  the 
sure  side,  run  with  your  hot  plates  out  of  the  room, 
and  go  where  there  is  no  fire.  As  a  still  safer  plan 
too,  I  might  name  the  use  of  a  common  pewter 
water  plate )  or  dish  ;  by  having  recourse  to  which 
there  can  be  no  risk  of  accident ;  except  that,  through 
awkwardness,  the  powder  might  be  wetted,  instead  of 
being  dried.  This  way  of  drying  is  much  on  the  same 
principle  as  that  which  is  now  in  general  use  in 
powder  works;  -r/s.  by  means  of  steam  passing  through 
pipes,  or  other  receptacles,  by  transfusion  of  heat 
through  those  pipes,  or  cases,  from  which  the  air  of 
the  drying  room  is  heated  to  as  great  a  degree  as  is 
requisite  for  the  purpose  of  drying  the  powder. 
Good  powder  burns  red  hi  the  pan,  will  keep  its 


90  POWDER. 

strength  for  two  years  (or  more,  if  made  with  due 
care  and  attention  to  the  principles  before  mentioned), 
and  may  be  had  from  most  of  the  mills. 

As  I  formerly  observed,  Pigou  and  Andrews's  has 
the  name  of  being  the  best,  and  is  unquestionably 
most  excellent ;  but  I  have  never  found  any  to  please 
me  quite  so  well  as  the  cylinder  powder,  which 
was  originally  prepared  by  Mr.  Butts,  of  Hounslow, 
whose  more  important  concerns,  in  manufacturing 
for  government,  had  for  many  years  (luckily  for  his 
rivals)  prevented  him,  in  some  degree,  from  showing 
forth  in  the  sporting  world.  In  my  former  editions, 
I  stated  that  the  government  contracts,  though  pro- 
bably not  at  an  end  with  Mr.  Butts,  would  soon  be 
considerably  lessened  ;  and  we  should,  therefore,  have 
reason  to  hope,  that  there  would  not  exist  that 
difficulty,  which  there  was  then,  in  procuring  this 
extraordinary  good  powder.  My  predictions  have 
since  been  verified ;  arid  Mr.  Butts,  after  highly  di- 
stinguishing himself  in  the  sporting  world,  retired 
with  the  ample  fortune  which  he  deserved ;  and,  I 
regret  to  add,  died  in  November,  1824.  His  suc- 
cessors are  Messrs.  Curtis  and  Mr.  Harvey,  from 
whom  I  continue  to  receive  the  cylinder  powder,  if 
possible,  better  than  ever.  Their  mills  are  on  Houns- 
low Heath ;  their  gunpowder  office  is  No.  74,  Lom- 
bard-street. 

Mr.  Lawrence,  of  Battle,  Mr.  Taylor,  and  several 
others,  have  now  brought  their  sporting  powder  to 
the  greatest  perfection. 


POWDEtt.  91 

With  regard  to  the  strength  and  other  good  qua- 
lities of  gunpowder,  I  shall,  instead  of  saying  any 
thing  farther,  recommend  the  epreuvette  (or  powder- 
proof *),  whereby  we  can  always  be  certain  of  finding 
out  the  best ;  provided  that  this  machine  is  properly 
made,  properly  used,  and  nicely  cleaned  after  every 
fire.  I  should  observe,  however,  that  the  Uttle  trifling 
things  called  powder  proofs,  or  powdertryers,  which 
sell  for  three  or  four  shillings,  are  as  likely  to  mis- 
lead as  to  inform  the  person  using  them. 

The  proper  "  epreuvette"  is  very  correctly  made ; 
the  wheel  on  which  the  gradations  are  marked  is 
large,  and  the  spring  strong ;  consequently  the  resist- 
ance to  the  force  of  the  powder  is  considerable.  The 
stronger  it  Is  the  better ;  for  without  the  resistance 
is  strong,  a  correct  proof  cannot  be  obtained ;  because, 
if  not  sufficiently  strong  to  detain  the  powder  in  the 
chamber  long  enough  for  all  the  particles  to  ignite, 
many  of  them  (especially  in  powder  of  good  firm 
grain)  will  fly  off  unlnmit,  and,  of  course,  a  part 
only  of  the  charge  would  be  proved. 

The  part,  attached  to  the  wheel  of  the  epreuvette, 
which  shuts  the  mouth  of  the  chamber,  should  be  so 
nicely  adjusted,  that  on  looking  closely  at  the  parts, 
when  in  contact,  no  light  can  be  seen  between  them ; 
for,  if  any  light,  there  is  of  course  so  much  vacancy, 
and  consequently  so  much  windage ;  and,  in  propor- 
tion to  the  windage,  the  proof  will  be  lower ;  and, 
therefore,  incorrect. 

Three  fires,  at  least,  should  always  be  made  in 


921  POWDER. 

proving,  and  the  average  taken  as  the  mean  amount ; 
for  variations  frequently  happen  in  fires  immediately 
following  each  other,  although  made  with  consider- 
able attention.  Care  should  be  taken,  after  every 
fire,  to  clean  the  chamber  nicely,  or  otherwise  the 
foulness  left  by  the  preceding  discharge  would  lessen 
the  space,  by  which  the  succeeding  charge  would 
become  proportionally  less. 

The  best  powder  for  all  water  shooting,  as  well  as 
for  detonating  guns,  and  particularly  in  damp  wea- 
ther, is  that  made  by  Messrs.  Curtis  and  Mr.  Harvey, 
which  we  proposed  should  be  distinguished  by  the 
name  of  "gunning  *  powder."  For  very  large  guns 
the  common  cannon  powder  answers  much  better 
than  the  Jine,  but  not  quite  so  well  as  this. 

*  "  Gunning"  means  wildfowl  shooting,  which  is  now  quite  an 
obsolete  term  among  the  fraternity  who  understand  it. 


MANY  select  their  shot,  in  proportion  to  the  she 
of  the  bird,  when  it  ought  to  depend  more  on  that  of 
the  caliber ;  for  it  is  not  so  much  the  magnitude  of 
the  pellet,  as  the  force  with  which  it  is  driven,  that 
does  the  execution. 

For  instance,  a  common  sized  gun  (well  breeched, 
and  properly  bored)  will  shoot  No.  7  better  than  any 
other  shot ;  and  although  a  deviation,  according  to 
circumstances,  may  be  sometimes  necessary,  yet  I  am 
confident,  that  had  you,  for  a  whole  season,  no  other 
sized  shot  in  your  possession,  you  would  (taking 
every  thing,  from  mallard  and  hare  to  quail  and  Jack- 
snipe)  find  that  you  had  shot  with  more  universal 
success,  killed  more  game,  and  brought  down  your 
birds  in  a  handsomer  style,  than*  you  had  ever  done, 
while  whimsically  following  other  plans. 

For  my  own  part,  I  should  scarcely  ever,  with  a 
small  gun,  use  any  other  shot,  except  for  killing 
snipes  in  February  and  March,  when  other  birds 
should  not  be  fired  at.  In  this  case,  unless  I  had 
a  very  close  shooting  gun,  I  should  use  No.  8,  the 
difference  between  which  and  7  is  more  than  that  of 


94  SHOT. 

any  other  two  numbers,  from  1  upwards,  All  sizes 
above  3,  or  2  at  largest,  I  shall  bring  under  the  head 
of  duck-guns,  with  which  only  they  will  lie  compact 
in  the  caliber ;  though,  if  I  went  out  solely  for  the 
purpose  of  shooting  wildfowl  with  a  small  gun,  then 
I  should  of  course  prefer  No.  3  to  No.  7. 

No.  9  is  rather  too  small,  and  the  use  of  dust-shot 
absurd ',  except  for  small  birds  ;  as,  at  any  distance, 
snipes  will^y  away  with  it,  if  shot  in  the  body ;  and, 
to  break  a  bone  with  it,  the  bird  must  be  very  close : 
add  to  which,  its  disadvantage  in  windy  weather,  and 
the  impossibility  of  manufacturing  it  so  well  as  the 
regular  numbered  shot. 

The  reason  why  small  shot  answers  best  is,  that  it 
lies  more  compact  in  the  barrel ;  and,  consequently, 
receives  more  effectually  the  force  of  the  powder  than 
large  shot,  which  can  only  have  this  advantage  in  a 
proportionably  large  caliber.  Thus  it  is,  that  a  grain 
of  small  shot,  from  a  small  gun,  will  kill  far  better, 
in  proportion,  than  one  of  large ;  and,  with  it,  you 
have  not  only  the  chances  multiplied  in  favour  of 
taking  a  vital  part,  but  the  same  advantage  of  pene- 
trating feathers,  that  a  pin  would  have  (with  a  mo- 
derate pressure  on  it)  over  a  'nail ;  and  it  shoots  so 
regular  a  surface,  that  a  bird,  at  forty  yards,  could 
very  seldom  *  get  away ;  whereas  the  large  shot,  from 

*  I  say,  very  seldom,  instead  of  never,  by  reason,  that  the  best 
gun  in  England,  tried  (although  regularly  cleaned)  two  hundred 
times  at  sheets  of  paper,  the  size  of  birds,  may  once,  or  more,  not 
put  a  single  grain  in,  although  properly  haded  and  well  directed. 


SHOT.  95 

the  objection  before  named,  will  often  fly  so  wide 
and  irregular  that  the  game  will  escape  between  the 
void  spaces  of  the  circle. 

It  must,  however,  be  admitted,  that,  with  No.  3  or 
4,  a  few  more  accidental  shots,  at  immense  distances, 
may  be  made,  than  with  No.  7 ;  but  then  let  it  be 
recollected,  that,  for  the  sake  of  killing  one  bird  now 
and  then  at  seventy  yards,  we  are  not  only  wounding 
many  others,  by  being  tempted  to  fire  large  grains  at 
such  distances,  but  sacrificing  the  almost  certainty  of 
killing  fair  shots,  for  the  mere  chance  of  making 
long  ones  ;  as  well  as  uselessly  dirtying  and  wearing 
our  guns. 

Now,  as  I  have  recommended  small  shot,  many 
persons  may  say,  "  Suppose  we  go  out  in  November, 
we  may  then  possibly  get  twenty  shots  in  a  morning, 
provided  we  choose  to  take  our  chance  at  fifty  or 
sixty  yards,  and  perhaps  during  the  whole  day  may 
not  have  one  opportunity  of  firing  oiu*  guns  within 
thirty  yards;  do  you  mean  to  argue,  that,  in  this 
case,  small  shot  is  best?"  In  answer,  I  should  say, 
"  If  you  go  out  with  the  prospect  of  getting  shots 
only  at  long  distances,  or  through  thick  wood,  you 
certainly  may  succeed  .better  with  No.  2,  or  3,  than 
7  ;  but  if  you  wish  to  avoid  occasionally  missing  the 
fairest  shots,  although  with  the  most  accurate  aim, 
you  will,  for  this  purpose,  lay  aside  your  double  gun, 
and  take  the  largest  single  gun  that  you  can  possibly 
manage,  as  you  may  then  use  No.  1,  2,  or  3  shot, 
without  any  risk  of  throwing  it  in  patches," 


96  SHOT. 

All  those  who  prefer  No.  4,  or  3,  in  common  sized 
guns,  contend,  that  as  large  shot  will  kill  at  a  long 
distance,  it  must  kill  at  a  short  one.  Kill  it  may 
when  it  hits;  but  is  it  always  so  sure  of  Chitting? 
And,  if  it  does  take  a  bird,  is  not  a  vital  part  more 
likely  to  escape  from  three  or  four  straggling  pellets, 
than  from  ten  or  a  dozen  grains,  which  are  regularly 
distributed  in  the  same  space  ?  Why  does  large  shot 
in  too  small  a  caliber  fly  not  only  thinner,  but  in  a 
wider  circle?  Because  the  larger  the  grains,  the 
more,  by  rotary  motion,  they  rebound  away  from 
each  other. 

The  annexed  schedule  is  about  the  usual  weight 
of  shot. 

SCHEDULE  OF  SHOT, 

According  to  labelled  samples,  which  were  sent  me 
from  Messrs.  Walker,  Maltby,  and  Co.,  Patent  Shot 
Tower,  Lambeth.  The  firm  is  now  Messrs.  Walker, 
Parker,  and  Co.,  as  Mr.  Maltby  is  now  established  in 
the  shot  business  by  himself. 

MOULD    SHOT. 

No.  of  pellets 

to  1  oz. 
LG  5i 

MG  .  .  .  (hardly)    9 

SG  .  .  .             .11 

SSG  .  .  .             .15* 

SSSG  .  .  .            .17 

*  Best  made,  and  by  far  the  most  useful  of  all  mould  shot. 


SHOT.  97 

PATENT  DROP  SHOT. 

AA  ....  40 

A*  •-..  50 

IJiJ                     58 

"  ....  75 

1  .  82 

.  112 

3  .  135 

4  .  177 
b  .  218 
f'  ......  280 

7  .       .    ;MI 

8  .     600 

9  .  .  .  .     984 
10            ..                         .  1720 

The  pleasure  of  using  and  counting  the  dust  shot, 
I  leave  to  those  who  recommend  it ! 

The  shot  of  different  manufacturers  varies  much 
in  size  :  for  example,  an  ounce  of  No.  7,  from  Messrs. 
Walker  and  Parker,  amounts  to  341  pellets;  and 
the  same  weight,  from  Mr.  Beaumont  (late  Preston), 
398  ditto,  &e. :  and  in  some  places  the  numbers  are 
reversed. 

Many  sportsmen  recommend  the  use  of  unglazed 
shot ;  others  wet  their  shot  with  oil.  I  have  tried 

*  In  the  general  use  of  a  common  duck-gun,  at  flight,  where 
the  coast  is  much  disturbed,  I  have  found  this  to  be  the  best  shot 
for  wildfowl,  as  they  most  commonly  present  ten  long  shots  for 
one  fair  one,  and  are  so  apt  to  fly  after  being  mortally  wounded. 
But  for  the  proper  night  shooting  afloat,  with  a  701b.  barrel,  that 
will  burn  2oz.  of  powder,  No.  1,  in  the  long  run,  is  worth  all  the 
other  sizes  put  together. 

H 


98  SHOT. 

both  these  plans  repeatedly,  but  could  not  find  suf- 
ficient advantage  in  either  to  justify  my  recommend- 
ing them.  The  object  of  both  is  to  prevent  the  gun 
from  leading ;  and,  as  they  can  do  no  harm,  I  should, 
if  a  choice  readily  offered,  prefer  using  the  shot  un- 
glazed,  or  oiled,  for  the  chances  of  any  trifling  ad- 
vantages which  may  be  thereby  derived. 

NEW  PATENT    SHOT. 

MR.  Joseph  Mariton  has  obtained  a  patent  for  one 
of  the  greatest  possible  improvements  in  shot,  which 
simply  consists  in  mixing  a  little  quicksilver  with 
the  lead.  By  means  of  this  process  the  shot  is  ren- 
dered harder  and  heavier,  and  wholly  divested  of  the 
arsenic,  which  was  one  of  the  chief  objections  to  the 
original  patent  shot. 

The  advantages  thus  derived  are,  that  shot  of  a 
small  size,  which  lies  the  most  compact,  and  there- 
fore always  answers  best,  in  the  calibers  of  small  guns, 
has,  from  its  additional  weight,  the  same  force  as 
shot  of  rather  a  larger  size ;  and  the  game,  after 
being  killed  with  this  shot,  will  keep  much  longer. 
Moreover,  by  the  foregoing  process,  the  shot  becomes 
as  clean  as  silver  to  handle,  or  carry  loose  in  the 
pocket ;  and  its  friction,  when  firing,  leads  the  calibers 
little  or  nothing  in  comparison  to  the  old  shot. 

An  advantage,  too,  above  all  the  others,  I  should 
not  omit  to  mention,  is,  that  in  this  shot  the  surface 
of  every  pellet  is  precisely  alike,  owing  to  a  different 


SHOT.  99 

process  of  manufacturing ;  which  could  never  be  the 
case  with  shot  that  had  arsenic  in  its  composition. 

This  must,  of  course,  tend  to  make  the  charge  lie 
with  more  precision  in  the  barrel,  and  consequently 
be  more  evenly  dispersed  in  and  round  the  object. 

%*  Before  this  article  first  went  to  press,  I  made  a  point  of 
procuring,  for  examination,  a  sample  of  the  new  shot,  and  then  of 
going  down  to  Messrs.  Walker  and  Co.'s  manufactory  expressly 
to  ascertain  all  particulars  as  to  its  advantages :  consequently  I 
did  not  begin  writing  on  the  subject  from  the  mere  ipse  dixit  of 
Mr.  Manton.  I  have  since,  however,  used  this  shot,  for  the  only 
fortnight  that  I  took  up  a  gun  last  season,  and,  as  I  never  shot 
better,  or  made  more  long  shots  since  detonators  have  been  the 
order  of  the  day,  I  have  every  reason  to  speak  well  of  it.  The 
number  of  shots  tried  I  do  not  remember ;  but  I  have  a  me- 
morandum of  killing  207  head  of  game  in  six  days  (though  a 
part  of  each  day  was  devoted  to  some  extraordinary  sport  in 
trout  fishing,  owing  to  damp  windy  wvttlker;)  consequently,  I 
may  venture  to  say  that  1  have  given  this  shot  a  pretty  fair  trial, 


H 


NONE  are  better  than  the  most  transparent  of  the 
common  black  flints.  Great  quantities  (considered 
as  good  as  any)  come  to  London  from  Lord  Cadogan's 
estate,  at  Brandon.  They  should  be  put  in  with  the 
flat  side  upwards,  stand  well  clear  of  the  hammer ', 
and  yet  be  long  enough  to  throw  it.  Screw  them  in 
with  leather ;  as  lead  strains  the  cock,  and  cloth  is 
dangerous,  from  being  liable  to  catch  fire.  If  very 
particular  about  the  neat  appearance  of  your  gun, 
get  a  punch  for  stamping  the  leathers,  and  change 
them  as  often  as  you  put  new  flints. 

To  make  a  flint  strike  lower  you  have  only  to 
reverse  the  usual  way  of  putting  it  in ;  but,  if  you 
want  it  to  strike  higher,  you  must  either  put  a  very 
thick  leather,  or  screw  the  flint  in  with  a  bit  of  some- 
thing under  it.  This  temporary  way  of  regulating 
a  lock,  so  as  to  make  the  hammer  fall,  is  worth 
knowing,  as  it  often  saves  vexation  and  loss  of  time. 


PAPER  not  being  stiff  enough,  hat  dirty,  card  too 
thin,  and  leather  apt  to  soften  with  the  heat  of  the 
barrel,  the  common,  and,  perhaps,  the  best  punched 
wadding  is  pasteboard.  The  larger  the  bore,  the 
thicker  should  be  the  wadding,  which  may  be  got  to 
any  size,  among  the  discarded  cuttings  of  a  book- 
binder. 

All  this  attention,  however,  is  only  required  in 
covering  the  powder ;  as  (e.cccpt  in  double  guns, 
where  the  charge  of  one  barrel  has  to  encounter  the 
explosion  of  the  other)  it  would  be  better  to  wad  the 
shot  with  common  card,  or  even  paper,  knowing  that 
much  resistance  on  that  does  more  harm  than  good. 

Cartridges  are  bad,  as  they  do  not  keep  the  powder 
sufficiently  air-tight,  like  the  proper  wadding ;  add 
to  which  they  often  fly  unbroken,  and  can  never  be 
depended  on.  I  have  a  friend,  however,  an  old  sports- 
man, who  would,  for  many  years,  never  even  hear  of 
any  other  mode  of  loading.  He  was  at  last  persuaded, 
by  a  gentleman  in  Dorsetshire,  as  good  a  shot,  and  as 
good  a  judge  of  a  gun,  as  any  man  living,  to  try  some 
experiments,  which  he  readily  agreed  to  do,  from  a 


102  WADDING. 

confidence  of  making  good  his  argument  in  favour  of 
cartridges.  What  the  particulars  of  this  trial  were, 
I  do  not  exactly  remember ;  but  I  know  that  my 
friend  has  never  used  a  cartridge  since.1 

As  we  often,  however,  want  to  load  in  a  hurry 
when  wildfowl  are  every  moment  passing  on  the  wing 
at  dusk,  and  as,  on  this  occasion,  cartridges  might  be 
handy ;  I,  since  publishing  the  second  edition,  tried 
a  duck-gun  with  a  few  quires  of  paper,  taking  care 
to  seal  up  that  end  which  comes  in  contact  with  the 
powder.  By  the  result  of  this  experiment  it  appeared, 
that  although  there  was  very  little  inferiority  in  point 
of  strength,  or  in  the  number  of  shot  put  into  the 
paper,  yet  the  cartridges  did  not  throw  them  near  so 
regular  as  the  usual  mode  of  loading.  I  should, 
therefore,  make  choice  of  them  only  when  I  wished 
to  fire  at  random,  into  large  flocks  of  fowl,  that  might 
be  every  moment  flying  past  me ;  but  should  certainly 
avoid  the  use  of  cartridges  when  I  had  leisure  to  load 
in  the  common  way,  and  more  particularly  in  field 
shooting,  where  I  had  only  a  single  object  to  fire  at, 
and  which  object  might  be  missed,  with  the  best 
possible  aim,  when  a  gun  threw  the  shot  in  patches. 

Nothing  is  better  to  punch  your  wadding  on  than 
a  round  block,  sawed  out  of  some  close  grained  kind 
of  wood ;  such  as  beech,  chestnut,  lime,  sycamore, 
&c.  Lead  is  improper,  as  it  wears  out  the  punch. 

Be  careful  not  to  let  your  wadding  get  damp,  or, 
in  drying,  it  may  shrink  so  much  as  to  become  too 
small  for  the  caliber  of  your  gun. 


WADDING.  103 

If  your  gunmaker  should  send  you  a  punch  which 
is  too  large,  and  you  have  consequently  trouble  in 
forcing  down  the  wadding,  just  bite  it  a  little  edge- 
ways,  and  you  will  contract  it  so  as  to  load  in  a 
quarter  of  the  time,  without  the  risk  of  either  leaving 
a  vacuum,  or  breaking  your  ramrod.  This,  of  course, 
I  only  name  as  an  alternative,  till  you  can  change 
your  punch.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  the  punch  is 
but  a  mere  trifle  too  small,  it  may  be  enlarged  by 
being  rubbed  on  a  whetstone ;  to  do  which,  place4  it 
flat,  as  you  would  on  the  pasteboard ;  and,  unless 
you  grind  it  too  much,  there  will  still  remain  a  suf- 
ficient edge,  owing  to  the  gritty  substance  in  its 
composition. 

If  you  have  separate  wadding  in  two  pockets,  and 
have  that  which  covers  the  shot  pierced  with  a  small 
hole  (or,  what  is  better,  cut  with  Mr.  Joseph  Mantori's 
dented  punch),  you  will  load  as  quick  again.  I  detest 
all  frivolous  trouble,  but  you  will  here  find  great  ad- 
vantage in  the  saving  of  time.  The  pasteboard  which 
covers  the  powder  should  (as  before  observed)  be 
kept  air-tight  from  the  shot.  This,  indeed,  seldom 
troubles  you,  as  the  air  that  passes,  more  or  less, 
through  all  locks,  will  admit  the  first  wadding  to  go 
down  pretty  freely  ;  but,  after  this  and  the  shot  are 
in  the  barrel,  the  resistance,  if  the  wadding  fits  tight, 
as  it  ought  to  do,  is  then  so  great  as  to  be  unpleasant 
to  the  hand,  and  inimical  to  expedition. 

Both  pockets  must  be  in  reach  of  the  same  hand, 


104  WADDING. 

as  there  would  be  no  time  saved  if  you  had  to  shift 
hands  with  the  ramrod. 

When  using  different  waddings,  have  them  of  dif- 
ferent colours,  to  avoid  mixing  them. 

N.  B.  For  better  materials  to  load  with  than 
punched  wadding,  see  hereafter,  under  the  head  of 
"  Duck-gun  Wadding." 


Goatling. 


MUCH  as  may  be  said  on  this  important  head,  I 
shall  attempt  to  explain  it  by  one  simple  example : 
for  instance,  to  load  a  single  gun  of  six,  or  double 
gun  of  seven,  eight,  or  nine  pounds  weight,  take  a 
steel  charger,  which  holds  precisely  an  ounce  and  a 
half  of  shot ;  fill  it  brim  full  of  powder,  from  which 
first  prime,  and  then  put  the  remainder  into  the 
barrel :  to  this  add  the  same  measure  bumper  full  of 
shot,  and  then  regulate  the  tops  of  your  flasks  and 
belts  accordingly. 

Some  little  difference  of  charge  will,  of  course,  be 
required  between  a  twenty-two  and  a  fourteen  gauge  ; 
and,  in  this,  we  may  be  guided  by  the  shoulder, 
observing,  at  the  same  time,  the  proportion  of  each 
here  recommended  :  but,  unless  the  gun  is  very  heavy, 
a  gauge  of  fourteen  will  recoil  more  than  one  of 
ticenty-two ;  so  that,  after  all,  the  above  charge  might 
do  equally  well  for  both. 

For  those  who  have  scales  at  hand,  another  way 
will  be  to  ascertain  this  by  weight;  for  instance,  to 
the  guns  above  mentioned  put  one  drachm  and  a 
half  of  powder,  exclusive  of  the  priming,  to  an  ounce 


106  LOADING. 

and  a  half  of  shot.  The  proportion  for  a  twelve 
pounds  gun  to  be  doubled;  eighteen  pounds  trebled; 
twenty-four  pounds  quadrupled,  &c.  with  one  trifling 
deviation ;  viz.  the  larger  the  gun  the  less  should  be 
the  proportion  of  shot,  as  the  larger  and  longer  the 
caliber  the  more  powder  may  be  damaged  in  going 
down  it, 

Much  more  may  be  fired,  but  not  always  with  ease 
to  the  shoulder.  (The  powder  I  have  measured  by 
apothecaries9  weight,  the  shot  by  avoirdupois). 

The  same  proportion  will  hold  good  from  a  lady's 
gun  to  the  firearms  of  a  punt  shooter,  though  it 
may,  in  a  trifling  degree,  be  altered,  as  barrels  shoot 
thin  or  close. 

Although  I  have  mentioned  being  guided  by  weight 
as  one  way  of  regulating  a  charge,  yet  this  is  not  the 
most  correct  means  to  be  used,  with  regard  to  the 
powder,  for  the  following  reason,  which  is  not  ge- 
nerally known : — As  sportsmen  charge  by  measure, 
the  gunpowder  makers  endeavour  to  include,  in  the 
space  to  be  filled,  as  much  weight  as  possible ;  arid 
in  so  doing,  include  as  much  projectile  force  as  the 
composition  is  capable  of;  it  is,  therefore,  evidently 
better  to  be  guided  in  the  powder  by  measure.  All 
the  powder  made  for  the  king's  service  is  exposed  to 
the  air  of  the  magazine,  with  the  door  open  all  day, 
for  three  weeks,  before  it  undergoes  a  second  proof, 
to  ascertain  whether  it  will  imbibe  moisture,  and 
increase  in  weight,  which  if  it  does  beyond  a  certain 
small  allowance,  it  is  rejected. 


LOADING.  107 

Gunmakers  will  obstinately  dispute  this  method  of 
loading ;  and  for  why  ?  Because  they  try  their  guns 
in  confined  places,  use  larger  shot  than  No.  7,  and 
look  chiefly  to  the  closeness  of  their  shooting.  But 
we  should  remember,  that  if  a  gun  is  overloaded  with 
shot,  a  great  part  of  it,  at  any  distance,  drops  short 
of  the  object ;  and  the  remainder  has  not  so  much 
strength  left,  as  if  that  only  had  received  the  full 
force  of  the  powder. — Try  this  on  the  water. — I  do 
not,  however,  say,  but,  at  even  a  little  distance,  some 
shot  must  strike  (not  fall)  short,  if  a  bird  is  swim- 
ming. These  are  the  grains,  which,  in  spreading, 
would  take  the  under  part  of  any  thing  placed  per- 
pendicular. It  should  also  be  observed,  that  with 
a  small  charge  of  shot  you  are  not  so  liable  to  fire 
behind  an  object  crossing,  or  under  a  bird  which  is 
rising,  by  reason  that  the  less  the  weight  of  shot  is 
in  proportion  to  the  charge  of  powder,  the  shorter 
time  it  requires  to  travel  through  the  air. 


jflasfc. 


IF  you  expostulate  with  an  old  wildfowl  gunner 
on  the  danger  of  his  piece,  he  may  retaliate  on  that 
of  your  spring  powder  flask  ;  while  he  (with  a  cow's 
horn,  stopped  at  one  end  with  a  piece  of  oakum,  and 
at  the  other  with  a  bit  of  ood)  can  fill  his  backey- 
pipe,  and  load  with  more  safety  than  you  gemmen  ! 
'Tis  very  true  !  many  serious  accidents  have  happened 
from  sportsmen  not  having  had  the  precaution  to 
detach  their  charge  before  they  put  it  into  the  barrel, 
which  may  have  a  fatal  spark  remaining  !  A  spring 
powder  horn  should  have  a  cap  to  it,  from  which  you 
can  load,  and  by  means  of  which  you  keep  all  dead 
leaves,  and  other  dirt,  that  may  fall  in  the  pocket, 
from  crumbling  into  the  top  of  it. 

Having  pushed  back  the  spring,  to  fill  the  top  or 
charger,  let  it  gradually  close  again  on  the  thumb, 
instead  of  allowing  it  to  fly  back  and  snap.  I  men- 
tion this  in  consequence  of  an  accident,  which  hap- 
pened to  one,  who,  in  doing  the  latter,  had  his  hand 
dreadfully  mangled  by  the  explosion  of  a  flask,  which 
it  is  supposed  was  occasioned  by  the  adhesion  of  a 
piece  of  flint, 


POWDER    FLASK.  109 

Mr.  Egg  and  Mr.  Sykes  have  each  got  patents  for 
powder  flasks,  in  which,  if  a  charge  is  blown  up,  all 
communication  is  so  effectually  prevented,  that  no 
farther  damage  can  be  done.  I  have  seen  the  one 
of  Mr.  Egg  repeatedly  tried  by  himself.  To  do  this, 
he  dropped  a  red  hot  nail  into  the  barrel,  which,  of 
course,  instantly  fired  the  measure  put  into  it.  He 
then  unscrewed  the  top,  and  showed  me  the  remainder 
of  the  powder  hi  the  horn,  having  only  guarded  his 
right  hand  by  a  shield  of  pasteboard,  to  avoid  being- 
burnt  by  the  charge  from  the  barrel. 

The  principle  of  it  is  so  secure  as  to  render  it  im- 
possible for  the  powder  in  the  flask  to  ignite,  while  in 
the  act  of  loading,  by  the  passage  being  completely 
cut  off,  from  the  lever  being  placed  on  the  top  of  a 
strong  plate  instead  of  underneath.  It  also  prevents 
the  flash  out  of  the  barrel  from  injuring  the  hand,  as 
the  charger  is  fixed  in  an  octant  position,  with  a  vent 
to  let  out  the  flame. 

The  springs  of  these  powder  horns  must  be  kept 
very  clean  and  free,  or,  like  many  other  ingenious 
patents,  they  will  fall  victims  to  the  abuse  of  slovenly 
sportsmen.  Mr.  Egg  says,  he  "  begs  leave  to  caution 
gentlemen  of  a  trumpery  Sheffield  flask  (sold  in  the 
shops),  with  an  upright  charger,  not  being  calculated 
to  answer  the  purpose  intended,  though  it  is  an  in- 
fringement on  his  patent." 

Another  caution  relative  to  powder  horns  in  the 
field:- -If  you  should  have  fired  one  barrel,  and, 
"while  in  the  act  of  reloading  it,  other  game  should 


110  POWDEll    FLASK. 

be  sprung,  beware  of  firing  the  other  barrel  until  you 
have  either  put  the  flask  in  your  pocket,  or  thrown  it 
on  the  ground.  I  could  name  several,  who,  through 
a  neglect  of  doing  this,  have  been  severely  wounded 
by  blowing  up  their  flasks;  and  among  them,  two 
excellent  shots  of  my  acquaintance. 

With  regard  to  a  powder  horn  in  the  house,  common 
sense  will,  it  is  to  be  hoped,  teach  us  to  take  care  of 
it ;  and,  with  a  moment's  reflection,  convince  us  of 
the  danger  and  absurdity  of  frying  powder  in  the 
flask,  on  the  hob  of  a  chimney,  during  the  whole 
time  of  a  meal,  or  other  preparations,  before  starting 
for  the  field. 


Belt, 


IN  my  humble  opinion,  there  is,  after  all  inven- 
tions, no  method  of  loading  better  than  the  common 
shot  belt  ;  but  it  so  often  falls  into  awkward  hands, 
and  steel  chargers  are  such  a  pretty  little  item  for 
a  gunmaker's  bill,  that  it  is  almost  considered  too 
vulgar  an  appendage  for  a  gentleman.  Let  it  be 
observed,  however,  that  a  shot  belt  is  light,  and  no 
incumbrance  when  empty  ;  does  not  fill  the  pockets  ; 
is  not  liable  to  be  lost;  and,  if  properly  managed, 
is,  on  the  whole,  as  quick  a  mode  of  loading  as  any 
that  can  be  adopted.  For  instance  :  First,  if  you  have 
fired  both  barrels,  and  should  take  out  a  charger  left 
full  only  on  one  side,  some  little  time  is  lost  in  using 
another.  Second,  if  you  load  with  gloves  on,  the 
hand  is  apt  to  catch  in  the  pocket,  from  which  steel 
chargers  are  not  so  easily  taken  as  a  powder  flask 
(or,  if  they  were,  they  would  be  liable  to  be  lost). 
Third,  if  you  do  not  take  a  supply  for  the  whole  day, 
they  must  be  replenished  ;  and  this  office  generally 
falls  to  the  lot  of  some  marker,  or  servant,  who, 
being  perhaps  a  clumsy  handed  fellow,  on  a  fidgety 


112  SHOT    BELT. 

horse,  wastes  a  considerable  time  as  well  aj§  a  great 
quantity  of  your  shot. 

Frivolous  as  it  may  appear  to  mention  so  trifling  a 
subject,  I  shall  endeavour  to  describe  the  manner  by 
which  a  shot  belt  may  be  managed  so  neatly,  that  it 
may  be  used  for  a  whole  month  without  your  losing 
half  a  charge. 

While  pressing  the  spring  with  the  forefinger  and 
thumb,  draw  the  top  just  out ;  then  take  a  fresh  hold 
over  handed,  so  as  for  the  first  finger  and  thumb  to 
steady  the  hand  by  pressing  the  muzzle  of  the  belt, 
and  the  second  finger  to  be  just  within  the  ridge  of 
the  top,  and  by  closing  the  second  finger  a  little,  the 
top  will  be  sufficiently  drawn  out.  The  instant  you 
have  taken  this  fresh  hold,  lean  the  body,  with  a 
little  jerk,  to  .the  right,  and  the  shot  will  fill  the  top, 
of  which  your  second  finger  will  have  such  a  com- 
mand, that  none  will  be  spilt. 

Before  you  put  the  first  measure  into  the  barrel, 
lean  a  little  to  the  left,  or  the  shot  will  pour  out  of 
the  belt ;  and  in  loading  your  second  barrel,  you 
must  observe  the  same  motion  of  the  body  to  the 
right  and  left.  In  doing  all  this,  the  left  hand  should 
never  be  taken  from  the  gun.  Be  sure  always  to 
keep  the  spring  inwards,  and  have  your  shot-top 
made  rather  longest  in  the  part  which  comes  under 
while  filling  it. 

When  we  have  acquired  the  knack  of  this,  nothing 
can  be  more  quickly  done,  long  and  tedious  as  it  may 
appear  in  explanation. 


SHOT    BELT.  113 

Always  have  the  tops  of  your  shot  belts  made  to 
fit  nicely  into  the  muzzle  of  your  gun,  by,  which 
means,  in  the  process  of  drawing  your  charge,  you 
can  empty  your  shot  into  them  without  losing  a 
grain. 


Hress  of  a  footer. 

THE  study  of  dress,  in  every  thing  further  than 
always  to  appear  like  a  gentleman,  or  strictly  in  the 
character  of  what  a  man  professes  (except  to  the  age 
of  two  or  three  and  twenty,  when  it  is  as  natural  for 
a  young  man  to  study  dress  as  for  a  child  to  play 
with  toys),  might  possibly,  with  many  persons,  give 
rise  to  a  reflection  on  a  man's  understanding,  or  a 
suspicion  that  he  wras  a  "  knowing  hand,"  who  made 
a  business  of  adorning  his  person,  in  order  to  get  on 
the  weak  side  of  weak  people.  I  therefore,  lest  the 
book  should  fall  into  the  hands  of  some  philosopher, 
feel  a  hesitation  in  introducing  any  subject  so  fri- 
volous, except  for  the  object  of  suggesting  what  con- 
tributes to  comfort,  for  the  perusal  of  some  citizen, 
who  makes  his  first  start  as  a  shooter.  We  all  know 
that  a  jean,  nankeen,  or  any  kind  of  thin  jacket,  is 
the  pleasantest  wear  for  September,  one  of  fustian  for 
October,  and  one  of  velveteen  for  the  winter ;  and 
that,  for  a  man,  who,  at  all  times,  uses  but  one  kind 
of  jacket,  fustian  would  be  about  the  medium.  After 
having  tried  almost  every  thing,  that  is  commonly 
used,  and  some  of  the  wretched  articles  that  are 


DUESS    OF    A    SHOOTER.  115 

puffed  by  advertisement,  I  have  found  nothing  so 
good  for  a  light  summer  jacket  as  what  is  made 
at  Manchester  by  the  name  of  satteen,  jeanet,  or 
florentiue,  which  is  printed  on  each  side,  in  imitation 
of  cloth.  This  stuff  far  surpasses  the  others  for 
lightness,  comfort,  durability,  and  every  thing  that 
can  be  required  for  warm  weather ;  but,  as  there  is 
no  particular  interest  in  making  it  (rather  the  re- 
verse), it  is  not  every  where  very  easily  procured  ;  so 
that  your  tailor  would  probably  be  obliged  to  order 
it,  in  doing  which  he  cannot  choose  it  of  too  good  a 
quality. 

With  regard  to  the  other  part  of  the  dress,  but 
few  persons  appear  to  know  what  is  really  comfort- 
able, and  I  may,  therefore,  appear  singular  for  con- 
sidering as  most  ttncom/brtable,  that  which  is  com- 
_rnonly,  and  was  till  of  late  years,  universally  worn : 
I  mean  shoe*  and  gaiters.  To  say  nothing  of  being 
tormented  with  two  or  three  dozen  of  buttons  every 
morning,  and  having  your  ankles  and  knees  in  a 
state  of  confinement  through  a  hard  day's  exercise,  it 
need  only  be  observed,  that,  if  you  step  in  the  least 
puddle,  you  are  wet ;  if  you  tread  in  moist  ground, 
your  shoe  is  pulled  down  at  heel,  and  you  are  often 
liable  to  be  annoyed  by  your  shoes  untying,  and 
thorns  and  bits  of  stick,  &c.,  getting  into  them,  or 
between  the  buttons  of  your  gaiters.  How  much 
more  comfortable,  then,  is  the  dress  here  recom- 
mended!  With  lambswool  stockings  and  flannel 
drawers,  put  on  a  pair  of  overall-boots,  and  then  draw 

I  2 


116  DRESS    OF    A    SHOOTER. 

over  them  a  pair  of  trowsers,  which  may  be  made 
either  of  fustian  or  leather,  and  so  strongly  defended 
inside  the  knees,  that  no  thorn  can  penetrate.  Thus 
you  are  equipped  without  trouble  or  loss  of  time, 
you  have  your  muscles  perfectly  at  liberty  for  hard 
exercise,  and  are  free  from  every  annoyance ;  not  to 
say  a  word  on  the  advantage  and  safety  you  have  in 
the  stirrup,  if  on  horseback,  or  on  the  infallibility  of 
this  remedy  against  the  annoyance  of  harvest-bugs 
in  September.  Since  this  was  first  published,  I  see 
that  what  is  here  advised  has  become  very  much  in 
fashion.  I  have  not,  however,  the  vanity  to  suppose 
that  it  was  from  my  recommendation,  but  because 
people  now  begin  to  find  out  the  comfort  of  it. 

For  those  who  prefer  gaiters,  the  best  way  to 
wear  them  is  with  half  boots,  that  lace  close  above 
the  ankle,  and  which  require  them  no  longer  than 
just  to  reach  that  part. 

A  shooting  waistcoat  of  the  same  stuff  as  the 
jacket  is  always  desirable  and  economical.  It  saves 
an  increase  of  baggage  in  travelling,  arid  may  be 
made  long  to  cover  the  loins,  with  pockets  expressly 
to  your  own  fancy.  I  have  found,,  however,  that  one 
of  dark  gray  cloth,  with  mother-of-pearl  or  bone 
buttons,  is  the  most  comfortable  (unless  the  weather 
be  too  warm  for  it),  and  will  last  so  as  to  look  well 
longer  than  any  other.  A  small  sidepocket  above 
the  left  breast  is  handy  for  wadding,  which  may  be 
got  at  with  the  fore-finger  and  thumb,  without  taking 
off  your  glove ;  and  as  (by  the  way)  keeping  the 


DRESS    OF    A    SHOOTER.  117 

hands  warm  in  frosty  weather  is  a  matter  of  necessity 
in  shooting,  I  shall  recommend  a  little  bit  of  copper 
wire  fastened  either  to  the  lower  button,  or  the  shot 
belt,  which  is  always  ready  as  a  gun-picker ;  never 
rusts  ;  will  not  injure  the  platina  of  a  touch-hole  ;  and, 
if  you  fall,  will  bend,  instead  of  running  into  you. 
This,  if  bent  to  a  right  angle,  does  very  well  too  as  a 
probe  for  the  nipples  of  detonaters. 

A  dissertation  on  a  shooting  jacket  would  be 
absurd,  farther  than  to  recommend,  that,  if  you  wish 
to  have  what  is  commonly  called  a  liarepocltet,  it  be 
lined  with  oiM'hi,  by  which  you  may  sponge  off  the 
blood,  instead  of  having,  as  many  do,  a  jacket,  that 
would  serve  as  a  drag  for  a  pack  of  harriers,  by  way 
of  a  nosegay  for  ladies  at  a  breakfast  table. 


Apparatus. 


IT  may  not  be  amiss  to  remind  the  beginner  what 
articles  he  should  know  that  he  has  with  him  before 
starting  for  the  field  (exclusive  of  having  an  oilskin 
gun-cover  in  case  of  rain)  :  viz.  powder  flask,  shot, 
wadding,  a  knife,  and  a  flint  case,  with  a  gunpicker 
and  turnscrew,  which,  as  well  as  a  little  chamber- 
probe,  are  usually  attached  to  this  case.  We  will 
say  nothing  about  a  game  bag,  as  a  man,  who  re- 
quires to  be  told  all  this,  is  very  unlikely  to  kill  more 
than  may  be  contained  in  his  pockets. 

In  case  he  should  forget  some  of  these  things,  I 
only  beg  the  favour  of  him  to  learn  one  poor  line  of 
blank  verse,  which  will  be  easier  remembered  than 
one  quarter  of  what  has  been  here  said  in  prose  :— 

Take  powder,  shot,  gun,  wadding,  flints,  and  knife : — 
or,  if  with  detonater, 

,  and  case. 


footing. 

LET  every  one,  who  begins  shooting,  take  warning 
from  the  many  serious  misfortunes,  that  have,  alas ! 
too  often  occurred,  and  start  with  the  determination 
of  -never  suffering  a  gun,  at  any  time,  to  be  held  for 
a  moment,  or  even  carried,  so  as  to  be  likely  to  come 
in  the  direction  of  either  man  or  beast.  One,  who 
strictly  abides  by  this  golden  ride,  would  be  less 
liable  to  accidents,  even  if  he  went  from  his  door 
with  both  barrels  cocked,  than  he,  who  neglected  it 
for  a  few  frivolous  maxims. 

Although  wre  are  not  all  blessed  with  such  nerves, 
as  to  aspire  to  being  first  rate  shots,  yet  I  have  no 
doubt  but  almost  every  man  may  be  taught  to  shoot 
tolerably  well ;  and,  indeed,  the  art  has  of  late  been 
so  much  improved,  that  although  but  little  more  than 
half  a  century  ago  one  who  shot  flying  was  viewed 
with  wonder,  yet  we  now  frequently  meet  with 
schoolboys,  who  can  bring  down  their  game  with  the 
greatest  dexterity. 

Most  men,  who  can,  in  a  slow,  bungling  manner, 
kill  more  birds  than  they  miss,  or  now  and  then 
shoot  brilliantly,  have  the  name  of  being  "  excellent 


120  SHOOTING. 


shots;"  and,  as  this  character  has  an  opening  for 
scandal,  the  world  is  too  happy  to  indulge  them 
with  a  circulation  of  it,  while  others,  who  have  real 
skill,  are  laughing  in  their  sleeves,  and  have  real 
sense  to  conceal  it. 

But  (to  be  brief,  which  is  here  my  study)  allow 
me  to  suggest  an  humble  attempt  for  the  instruction 
of  the  complete  novice.  First,  let  him  take  a  gun 
that  he  can  manage,  and  be  shown  how  to  put  it 
to  his  shoulder,  with  the  breech  and  sight  on  a  level, 
and  make  himself  master  of  bringing  them  up  to  a 
wafer. 

Then,  with  a  wooden  or  bone  driver  (instead  of  a 
flint)  let  him  practise  at  this  mark ;  and,  when  he 
thinks  he  can  draw  his  trigger  without  flinching,  he 
may  present  the  gun  to  your  right  eye,  by  which  you 
will  see,  at  once,  if  he  is  master  of  his  first  lesson. 
In  doing  this  he  must  remember,  that  the  moment 
the  gun  is  brought  up  to  the  centre  of  the  object, 
the  trigger  should  be  pulled,  as  the  first  sight  is 
always  unquestionably  the  best. 

Then  send  him  out  to  practise  at  a  card  with 
powder,  till  he  has  got  steady,  and  afterwards  load 
his  gun,  occasionally,  with  shot;  but  never  let  the 
time  of  your  making  this  addition  be  known  to  him, 
and  the  idea  of  it  being,  perhaps,  impossible  to  strike 
his  object,  will  remove  all  anxiety,  and  he  will  soon 
become  perfectly  collected. 

The  intermediate  lesson  of  a  few  shots,  at  small 
birds,  may  be  given ;  but  this  plan  throughout  must 


SHOOTING. 

be  adopted  at  game,  and  continued,  in  the  first  in- 
stance, till  the  pupil  has  quite  divested  himself  of  all 
tremor  at  the  springing  of  a  covey,  and  observed,  in 
the  last,  till  most  of  his  charges  of  shot  have  proved 
fatal  to  the  birds.  If  he  begins  with  both  eyes  open, 
he  will  save  himself  the  trouble  of  learning  to  shoot 
so  afterwards.  An  aim  tints,  from  the  right  shoulder ', 
comes  to  the  same  point  as  one  taken  with  the  left 
eye  shut,  and  it  is  the  most  ready  method  of  shooting 
quick. 

Be  careful  to  remind  him  (as  a  beginner)  to  keep 
his  gun  woe-ing,  as  follows  : — before  an  object, 
crossing  *  ;  full  high  for  a  bird  rising  up,  or  flying 
away  rcry  low ;  and  between  the  ears  of  hares  and 
rabbits,  running  straight  away  (all  this,  of  course, 
in  proportion  to  the  distance;  and  if  we  consider  the 
velocity,  with  which  a  bird  flies,  we  shall  rarely  err, 
by  firing,  when  at  forty  yards,  at  least  five  or  six 
inches  before  it).  Till  the  pupil  is  au  fait  in  all 
this,  he  will  find  great  assistance  from  the  sigbt, 
which  he  should  have  precisely  on  the  intended  point, 
when  he  fires.  He  will  thus,  by  degrees,  attain  the 
art  of  killing  his  game  in  good  style,  which  is  to  fix 
his  eyes  on  the  object,  and  fire  the  moment  he  has 
brought  up  the  gun.  He  may  then,  ultimately, 

*  As  the  barrels  of  double  guns  usually  shoot  a  little  inwards 
at,  long  distances,  there  is,  so  far,  a  preference  in  favour  of  the 
right  barrel  for  an  object  crossing  to  the  left,  and  vice  versa,  that 
If  we  were  beating  along  the  side  of  a  hedge,  it  would  be  best- to 
Keep  the  barrel  next  to  it  in  a  state  of  preparation. 


SHOOTING. 

acquire  the  knack  of  killing  snap  shots,  and  bring 
down  a  November  bird  the  moment  it  tops  the 
stubble,  or  a  rabbit  popping  in  a  furze-brake,  with 
more  certainty  than  he  was  once  used  'to  shoot 
a  young  grouse  in  August,  or  a  partridge  in  Sep- 
tember. 

Many  "begin  with  very  quick  shooting,  and  kill 
admirably  well;  but  are  often  apt  not  to  let  their 
birds  fly  before  they  put  up  their  guns,  and  therefore 
dreadfully  mangle  them,  and,  I  have  observed,  are 
not  such  every  day  shots  as  those,  who  attain  their 
rapid  execution  on  a  slow  and  good  principle. 

Others  potter  on,  in  the  old  way,  all  their  lives, 
and  offer  to  shoot  with  any  man  in  England,  because 
they  can  cock  an  eye,  and  kill  twenty  slow  shots 
running !  Such  adagio  sportsmen  take  care  never  to 
fire  random  shots,  as  they  call  all,  that  are  the  least 
intercepted,  or  confined  to  time ;  but  usually  point, 
and  then  take  down  their  guns — a  practice,  that  is 
seldom  admissible. 

There  are  few  of  my  young  readers,  I  dare  say, 
that  have  not,  at  some  time  or  other,  met  with  a  man, 
who,  wishing  to  show  off  his  shooting,  has  never 
fired  but  when  he  was  pretty  sure  of  killing,  and 
whose  pride  was  to  be  able  to  boast  after  dinner,  that 
he  had  bagged  so  many  birds  without  having  missed 
a  shot  the  whole  morning.  But  before  we  give  this 
person  credit  for  the  name  to  which  he  aspires,  let  us 
ask  him  whether,  in  so  doing,  he  brought  home  as 
much  game  as  he  ought  to  do  ?  or  whether,  in  order 


SHOOTING. 

to  bag  a  dozen  head  of  game  without  missing,  he  has 
not  refused  at  least  twenty  ^shots,  in  covert,  &c.,  and, 
taking  all  chances,  about  eight  or  ten  of  which  ought 
to  have  been  killed?  It  is  generally  the  mistaken 
idea  of  those  who  are  no  judges  of  shooting,  that 
if  a  man  kills  a  certain  number  of  times  without 
missing,  he  is  to  be  put  down  as  a  first-rate  shot,  arid 
that  another  person,  because  he  has  been  seen  to 
miss,  is  to  be  considered  as  his  inferior. 

For  example,  the  one  man  goes  out  and  springs 
birds  enough  to  fire  fifty  times,  within  forty  yards, 
arid  perhaps,  being  a  reputation  shooter,  only  twenty 
of  these  shots  happen  to  suit  his  fancy.  He  never 
fires  a  second  barrel  unless  the  birds  rise  one  at  a 
time,  or  a  covey  happens  to  spring  from  under  his 
feet;  and,  in  short,  he  kills  his  twenty  birds  in 
twenty  shots.  The  other  man  takes  the  whole  of  the 
fifty  shots,  many  of  which  may  be  very  difficult  ones, 
and  under  extreme  disadvantages  :  he  kills  thirty-five, 
and  misses  fifteen.  A  fair  sportsman  and  really  good 
judge,  I  conceive,  would  not  hesitate  to  say,  that  the 
latter  has  claim  to  be  considered  the  better  shot  of 
the  two. 

We  will  then  bring  a  first-rate  shot  into  the  field, 
and  he  shall  kill  forty-five  out  of  the  fifty  (never- 
failing  of  course  to  work  both  his  barrels  on  every 
fair  occasion) :  he  will  then  have  missed  five  times ; 
and  would  any  old  sportsman  judge  so  unfairly  as  to 
place  htfore  him  the  necer-miss  gentleman  with  his 
twenty  trap  shots  running? 


124  SHOOTING. 

For  my  part,  I  should  not,  even  if  he  missed  an 
open  shot  or  two  within  five  yards  of  his  nose ;  be- 
cause such  a  circumstance  might  arise  from  his  being 
nervous,  or  an  accident,  when  the  other,  if  put  to 
the  difficulties  that  he  had  been  doing,  would  acquit 
himself  no  better  than  an  old  woman. 

If  such  a  person,  therefore,  has  a  pride  about  him, 
and  wishes  to  be  thought  a  great  shot,  let  him  throw 
aside  his  double  barrel ;  and,  under  the  plea  of  having 
only  one  charge  to  depend  on,  he  may  come  off  with 
great  eclat  among  the  average  of  shooters. 

With  regard  to  the  distance,  which  constitutes  a 
fair  shot,  there  is  no  speaking  precisely ;  but,  as  far 
as  such  things  can  be  brought  to  paper,  and  guns  to 
an  average,  I  should  say,  that,  provided  a  gun  is 
held  straight,  a  bird  should  scarcely  ever  escape  at 
forty  yards;  and  that  that  is  the  outside  of  point 
blank  range,  although,  at  fifty  yards,  the  chances 
are  three  to  one  in  favour  of  killing,  with  a  good 
aim ;  but  as  a  gun  never  shoots  twice  alike,  a  bird, 
at  this  distance,  may  sometimes  be  struck  with  three 
or  four  shot,  and  at  others,  may  escape  through  an 
interval,  though  the  piece  be  never  so  well  directed. 
But,  if  a  pellet  should  take  a  bird  in  a  vital  part,  or 
the  wing,  at  seventy  or  even  eighty  yards,  it  would 
probably  come  down,  though  the  odds  (at  such  di- 
stances) are,  of  course,  against  your  hitting  it  at  all. 
Birds  fly  ing  straight  aivay,  or  coming  to  you,  require 
a  much  harder  blow,  than  those  crossing  we  flying 
directly  over  your  head;  by  reason  that,  in  the  first 


SHOOTING  125 

instance,  they  are  partly  shielded  by  the  rump,  and, 
in  the  second,  the  feaf hers  are  apt,  at  long  distances, 
to  glance  the  shot. 

Under  these  circumstances,  a  man  MUST  either 
PICK  his  SHOTS  or  occasionally  MISS,  though  his 
gun  l)e  every  time  held  straight.  I  may  venture  to 
say,  there  is  no  sportsman  living  who  has  not  been 
known  to  miss  the  fairest  shots ;  and  there  are  very 
few  but  now  and  then  in  a  season  will  shoot  badly 
for  a  whole  day.  It  stands  to  reason  when  the  most 
skilful  may  become,  for  a  time,  unnerved  for  shoot- 
ing, by  ///  heal tli,  oppression  of  mind,  one  night's 
debauch,  or  any  thing  that  will  operate  on  the 
temper  or  nerrcs. 

One,  who  vexes  himself  about  missing  a  fair  shot, 
is  the  less  likely  to  support  himself  at  all  times  as 
a  first-rate  performer,  because  that  vexation  alone 
might  be  the  very  means  of  his  missing  other  shots, 
and  therefore  he  could  not  be  so  much  depended  on 
as  another  man,  who  bore  the  disappointment  with 
good  humour. 

When  two  persons  are  shooting  together,  there 
cannot  be  a  more  simple  way  of  avoiding  confusion 
than  for  each  man,  when  a  covey  rises,  to  select  the 
outer  birds  on  his  own  side.  Let  all  birds  that  cross 
belong  exclusively  to  that  shooter  for  whose  side  their 
heads  are  pointed ;  and  let  all  single  birds,  that  may 
rise  and  go  away  fair  for  either  person,  be  taken 
alternately,  and  left  entirely  for  the  two  barrels  of 
the  shooter  to  whom  they  belong.  By  this  means 


SHOOTING. 

there  is  no  "  wiping  of  noses !"  as  they  call  it;  no 
"  blazing  a  volley  into  the  brown  of  'em  /"  or,  in  other 
words,  no  jealousy  ;  no  unfair  work ;  and  two  sports- 
men may  thus  shoot  coolly  together  with  good  nerves 
and  in  good  friendship,  instead  of  with  jealousy  and 
greediness,  which  riot  only  destroys  all  pleasure,  but 
soon  lessens  their  good  shooting,  if  not  their  good 
fellowship.  I  adopted  these  regulations  for  three 
seasons,  with  one  of  the  best  shots  that  ever  went 
into  a  field,  and  our  diversion,  by  this  means,  inva- 
riably went  on  so  pleasantly,  that  we  shot  with  addi- 
tional confidence  when  in  each  other's  company. 

Taking  the  average  of  shooting  companions,  how- 
ever (except  to  beat  a  double  hedge-row,  or  divide 
what  could  not  be  seen  on  both  sides),  I  should  pardon 
any  old  sportsman  for  saying  that  he  would  rather 
have  their  room  than  their  company. 

From  one,  who  professes  himself  an  adept  with  a 
double  gun,  it  is  expected,  that  he  will  kill  a  bird 
with  each  barrel,  almost  every  time  the  covey  rises 
within  fair  distance ;  unless  impeded  by  the  smoke  of 
his  first  barrel  or  other  obstacles,  which  he  should 
endeavour  to  avoid.  The  usual  method  is  to  take 
down  the  gun,  and  present  it  afresh,  after  the  first 
shot ;  but  as  I  have  seen  fourteen  successive  double 
shots  killed  the  other  way,  I  shall  venture  to  re- 
commend it,  as  being  more  expeditious.  It  is,  never 
to  take  the  gun  from  the  shoulder,  till  both  barrels 
are  fired;  by  which  means  so  little  time  is  taken, 
between  the  two  shots,  that  the  first,  as  well  as  the 


SHOOTING. 

second  bird,  may  be  suffered  to  fly  to  a  proper  di- 
stance ;  and  let  those,  who  are  not  to  be  trusted  with 
both  barrels  cocked,  get  the  gravitating  stops.,  or  use 
a  single  gun. 

Since  publishing  the  first  edition  of  this  work,  I 
have  seen,  on  the  plan  here  recommended,  fifteen 
double  shots  at  partridges  fairly  killed  in  succession, 
provided  I  may  be  allowed  to  include  one  of  the 
number  which  towered  and  fell  at  so  great  a  distance 
that  it  was  never  bagged.  It  is,  of  course,  not  meant 
to  include  among  these  doublets  such  birds  as  were 
sprung  by  the  report  of  one  barrel,  and  /filled  with 
the  other.  Shots  of  this  kind  certainly  intervened, 
as  we'll  as  single  ones  at  different  sorts  of  game.  The 
number  altogether,  killed  by  the  same  person,  in  about 
five  days,  amounted  to  sixty  head,  without  one  miss. 
The  barrels  here  used  were  two  feet  eight  inches 
in  length,  and  twenty-two  gauge.  Those,  for  the 
performance  before  stated,  were  of  the  same  length, 
and  fourteen  gauge.  Both  the  guns  were  made  by 
Mr.  Joseph  Manton,  and  each  had  the  elevated  top- 
piece  ;  but,  contrary  to  what  he  usually  recommends, 
they  were  leaded  at  the  but,  and  had  the  sights  filed 
very  small. 

A  sight,  however,  as  before  observed,  is  so  seldom 
required  by  a  quick  shot,  that  this  is  of  little  conse- 
quence ;  except  that  I  wish  to  mention,  specifically, 
the  most  trifling  deviations,  here  adopted,  from  what 
is  most  commonly  turned  out  by  Mr.  Manton. 

Many  sportsmen  of  the  old  school  would  be  quite 


128  SHOOTING. 

irritated  if  laughed  at  for  their  extreme  caution  in 
never  allowing  their  gun  to  be  cocked  till  after  the 
bird  had  risen ;  but  if  they  will  show  me  one  among 
them  that  can  cock  a  gun,  and  bring  down  a  snap 
shot  with  as  little  loss  of  time  as  one  who  had  nothing 
to  do  but  to  present   and  fire,   and  particularly  in 
making  double  shots,  I  will  resign  all  pretensions  to 
argument  on  the  subject.     This  system  may  have 
done  very  well  half  a  century  ago,  when  they  might 
almost  have  "  put  salt  on  the  birds'  tails,"  and  when 
the  art  of  neatly  using  the  second  barrel  was  wholly 
unknown ;   or  even  now,  among  the  tame  birds  in 
the  preserved  turnip  fields  of  Norfolk  and  Suffolk, 
where  they  may  pick  both  their  shots,  or  keep  the 
second   barrel  for  the  chance  of  springing  another 
bird.    But  those  who  shoot  on  this  system,  in  a  wild 
country,  would  stand  a  poor  chance  in  competition 
with  one  who  went  up  to  his  game  with  both  barrels 
cocked,   at   a  time  when  the  birds  were  wary,  and 
when  the  loss  of  an  instant  made  the  difference  of  ten 
yards  in  the  distance.     Then  only  is  it  that  the  dif- 
ference is  to  be  seen  between  a  first  and  second  rate 
shot ;  and,  consequently,  that  those  who  pride  them- 
selves on  skill,  instead  of  easy  slaughter,  have  the 
opportunity  of  distinguishing  themselves.     The  ar- 
gument, therefore,  as  to  not  cocking  a  gun,  can  only 
be  heard  on  the  question  of  safety.    And  here  again  I 
must  confess  I  have  my  doubts  as  to  their  correctness. 
We  will  put  a  cool  and  steady  old  sportsman  out  of 
the  question :  but  suppose  an  eager  young  man,  who 


SHOOTING.  129 

is  unaccustomed  to  shooting,  walks  up  to  his  dog 
with  his  gun  half  cocked ;  the  moment  the  birds  rise 
he  is  in  such  a  state  of  agitation,  that  in  attempting 
to  draw  back  the  cock  of  his  gun,  with  a  trembling 
hand,  he  lets  it  slip  before  the  scear  has  caught  the 
tumbler.  Off  goes  the  gun  !  and  the  best  fortune  that 
can  be  expected  is  the  happy  escape  of  a  favourite 
dog,  or  the  life  of  his  fellow-shooter.  While,  on  the 
other  hand,  if  lie  goes  up  with  his  gun  cocked,  and 
hi  ft  companion  or  follower  AYV.V  that  he  advances  with 
the  MUZZ/C  in  a  xafe  and  elevated  position,  the  worst 
that  can  happen  is,  (hat  he  may  fire  it  by  accident, 
in  a  direction  that  may  be  as  likely,  or  more  so,  to 
kill  a  bird  than  when  he  aimed  at  it,  or  at  all  events, 
in  one  that  could  endanger  neither  man  nor  dog. 
With  regard  to  presenting  a  gun,  the  hand,  when 
near  the  guard,  is  in  the  safest,  and  when  grasping 
(lie  stock  in  the  firmest  position.  Here  let  the  shooter 
please  himself. 

Avoid  squaring  your  elbows  when  you  present  a 
gun  ;  it  gives  you  an  unsteady  position,  and  has  the 
same  outlandish  appearance  as  the  squared  elbows 
of  our  half-strangled  r.r<y///Avtov  who  drive  about  the 
streets.  Nothing  can  be  neatly  or  gracefully  done 
that  is  not  done  with  ease,  and  a  man  may  as  well 
say  that  he  can  sit  with  the  same  comfort  in  the  stocks 
as  on  a  sofa,  as  that  he  can,  in  reality  or  appearance, 
be  as  easy  with  his  elbows  forced  outwards,  as  when 
in  their  natural  position. 

If  we  consider  for  a  moment,  then,  we  shall  per- 

K 


130  FINISHING    LESSONS 

ceive,  that  in  doing  most  things,  squared  elbows 
have  not  only  an  unskilful,  but  an  ungraceful  ap- 
pearance. 

When  a  man  is  no  further  versed  in  shooting  than 
just  to  have  become  quite  expert  at  bringing  down 
his  bird,  I  conceive  that  he  has  only  learnt  about  one- 
third  of  his  art  as  a  shooting  sportsman.  Knowing 
where  to  place  himself  for  shots ;  how  to  spring  his 
game  to  advantage ;  what  days  and  weather  to  choose 
for  the  different  kinds  of  sport,  constitute  at  leagt  the 
other  two-thirds,  till  he  is  master  of  which  he  may 
often  get  beat  in  filling  the  bag  by  a  very  inferior 
marksman  to  himself.  Again,  admit  him  to  have 
learnt  every  thing  in  the  ordinary  way,  then  comes 
wildfowl  shooting ;  the  requisites  for  understanding 
which  are  so  totally  different,  that  there  are  many  of 
the  greatest  field  sportsmen  in  the  kingdom,  who 
know  no  more  about  it  than  children. 

FINISHING  LESSONS  IN  SHOOTING. 

I  SHALL  now  add  a  few  little  hints,  that  may 
possibly  be  of  service  to  many  of  my  readers  who 
have  had  some  practice  in  shooting,  but  who,  I  trust, 
will  not  be  offended  at  my  offering  a  few  finishing 
lessons,  under  an  idea  that  something,  in  general, 
may  be  learnt  even  from  the  most  inferior  person, 
and  because  that,  after  I  had  shot  for  more  than 
twenty  years,  not  a  season,  no,  not  even  a  month  or 
a  week  elapsed  without  my  discovering  that  I  had 


IN    SHOOTING.  131 

been  previously  ignorant  of  somp  trifle  or  other.  If, 
therefore,  a  person  feels  himself  above  hearing  an 
opinion  in  this,  as  well  as  in  every  other  art,  he  de- 
cidedly gives  the  greatest  and  most  positive  proof 
of  his  own  deficiency  and  narrowness  of  conception. 
Safely,  however,  may  it  be  said,  that  in  field  sports, 
as  well  as  in  other  pursuits,  there  are  thousands  who 
fancy  that  no  one  can  show  them  any  thing,  when 
they  have  literally  not  learnt  above  a  twentieth  part 
of  their  art ;  and  such  people  are  always  best  left 
alone ;  as,  like  blighted  fruit,  they  have  a  bastard 
colour  of  maturity,  that  must  for  ever  debar  their 
coming  to  perfection. 

With  apologies  for  this  digression,  let  me  now 
endeavour  to  recollect  what  hints  I  can,  that  are  not 
universally  known. 

In  killing  snap-shots  fix  your  eyes,  and  imme- 
diately pitch  your  gun  and  fire,  as  it  were,  along,  or 
rather  over,  the  bucks  of  the  birds.  Recollect  they 
are  generally  rising  and  not  flying  forward,  when 
you  take  them  n>ry  quick,  and  that  as  the  birds 
required  to  be  so  taken  are  usually  at  a  distance,  an 
elevation,  at  all  events,  can  do  no  harm.  If  you 
cannot  acquire  the  knack  of  doing  this,  your  snap- 
shot birds,  being  struck  in  the  breast,  will  go  off, 
and  tower  before  they  drop. 

If  you  have  a  double  gun,  always  contrive  as  much 
as  possible  to  get  cross  shots  (which  you  will  most 
likely  do  by  walking  across,  or  heading  your  dog, 
instead  of  going,  like  a  bungler,  directly  from  him 


FINISHING    LESSONS 

to  the  game),  or  otherwise  your  second  barrel  birds, 
by  flying  straight  away  up  wind,  down  wind,  or,  in 
short,  in  the  smoke,  may  sometimes  defy  the  best 
shot  in  Europe.  Recollect  further,  that,  as  birds  fly 
across  you,  they  not  only  become  clear  of  the  smoke, 
but  give  you  more  time,  and  present  to  your  charge 
a  more  vital  part.  Be  assured  there  is  a  great  deal 
of  generalship  (if  I  may  use  the  expression)  as  well 
as  marksmanship  in  showing  off  a  brilliant  day's 
shooting.  But,  when  a  man,  over  his  bottle,  talks 
to  his  company  of  killing  to  a  certainty  double  shots 
in  whatever  situation  you  choose  to  spring  the  game, 
within  forty  yards,  "  hear  him,"  as  Lord  Chesterfield 
says,  "  with  patience,  and  at  least  seeming  attention  ;" 
although  you  might  feel  disposed  to  confer  on  him 
the  order  of  the  long  bow,  or  put  him  on  your  list 
for  a  knight's  companion  of  the  golden  hatchet. 
Recollect,  however,  it  is  but  liberal  to  allow  those 
persons  who  have  most  frequently  the  mortification 
to  do  but  little,  the  comfort  of  astonishing  the  cre- 
dulous by  talking  a  great  deal. 

In  firing  at  random  distances,  where  birds  are 
crossing  you  at  the  distance  of  sixty  or  seventy  yards, 
the  average  of  good  shots  generally  present  not  more 
than  half  a  foot  before  them.  But  it  should  be  re- 
collected, that  after  the  shot  has  been  driven  through 
the  air  to  the  point  blank  distance,  it  travels  so 
much  slower,  that  the  allowance  must  be  greatly 
increased;  and  that  although  a  few  inches  may  be 
sufficient  to  fire  before  a  fair  cross  shot,  yet  at  sixty 


IN    SHOOTING.  133 

or  seventy  yards  I  should  fire  at  least  two  or  three 
feet  before  the  bird,  if  it  went  with  any  velocity.  Let 
any  one  of  my  young  readers,  who  shoots  fairly,  try 
this  against  one  that  adopts  the  ordinary  system,  and 
see  who  will  make  the  greatest  number  of  long  shots. 
While  attending  to  this,  however,  he  must  take  care 
not  to  present  too  low,  but  pitch  his  gun  well  up,  or, 
if  any  thing,  full  high  for  the  mark. 

In  shooting  by  guess  at  rabbits,  or  any  thing  in 
covert,  fire  at  least  a  foot  or  two  before  the  object, 
because,  on  losing  sight  of  it,  your  hand  will  imper- 
ceptibly obey  the  eye  in  coming  to  a  sort  of  check, 
by  which  you  will  invariably  shoot  a  long  way  be- 
hind it. 

In  walking  up  to  your  dogs,  in  turnips  or  high 
stubble,  when  birds  are  wild,  lift  your  legs  high; 
and  by  thus  making  less  noise,  you  will  get  twice  as 
near  to  your  game. 

If  a  dog  stands  at  a  high  hedge,  go  yourself  on  the 
opposite  side,  and  let  your  servant  be  sent  where  the 
dog  stands.  When  he  hears  you  arrive  opposite  let 
him  call  to  you ;  and  when  you  are  ready  for  him  to 
beat  the  hedge,  give  a  whistle,  because  a  bird,  being 
less  alarmed  at  a  whistle  than  a  man's  voice,  will 
most  likely  come  out  on  your  side.  Some  people 
heigh  the  dogs  in.  This,  I  need  not  tell  a  sportsman, 
is  the  way  to  spoil  them,  and  to  prevent  them  from 
being  stanch  on  such  occasions.  It  sometimes  hap- 
pens, that  there  is  a  close  twisted  hedge  on  the 
opposite  side,  so  that  the  birds,  in  order  to  extricate 


134  FINISHING    LESSONS 

themselves,  must  face  the  dog ;  and  it  is  for  want  of 
cunning  to  do  this  that  young  birds  are  so  often 
caught  in  hedges,  to  the  great  delight  of  ammu- 
nition savers  and  pot-hunters.  In  the  latter  case, 
keep  with  your  dogs,  and  send  round  your  man  to 
poke  the  hedge  with  a  stick. 

If  your  object  is  to  get  a  great  deal  of  game  on 
the  same  beat,  provided  you  have  it  to  yourself,  do 
not  go  out  above  three  days  in  a  week.  By  so  doing 
you  will  kill  at  least  twice  as  much  as  by  following 
the  birds  without  intermission.  Many  people,  who 
wish  to  secure  all  the  partridges  they  can  during  the 
month  of  September,  make  a  point  of  shooting  every 
day,  and  are  quite  disconcerted  if  they  lose  even  half 
a  day's  sport.  All  this  is  natural  enough  in  keen 
young  sportsmen,  and  very  well,  provided  they  have 
fresh  dogs  and  fresh  ground  to  beat,  but  under  other 
circumstances  they  would  stand  no  chance  with  a 
man  who  went  out  three  times  a  week ;  because  his 
birds,  having  intervening  days  to  be  left  quiet,  would 
lie  so  much  better,  that  he,  towards  the  end  of  the 
month,  would  continue  to  fill  his  bag,  while  another 
would  have  so  driven  and  harassed  his  coveys,  that 
he  would  scarcely  be  able  to  get  a  fair  single,  much 
less  a  double  shot.  (I  name  this,  and  indeed  all  I 
have  asserted,  not  as  a  mere  opinion,  but  as  the  result 
of  decided  proofs,  that  I  have  witnessed  no  small 
number  of  times.) 

In  boisterous  weather,  contrive,  as  much  as  you 
can,  to  sport  on  the  windward  part  of  your  beat,  or 


IN    SHOOTING.  135 

you  will  drive  the  birds  away  from  your  own  pro- 
perty to  where  they  may  fall  a  prey  to  other  shooters, 
or  be  driven  into  the  heart  of  another  manor  by  some 
knowing  gamekeeper.  Many  old  sportsmen  will  not 
beat  their  ground  at  all  in  windy  weather.  This  I 
hold  to  be  bad,  for  birds  run  a  great  deal  when  it 
blows  hard ;  and,  by  such  means,  often  run  out  of 
bounds.  When  birds  are  young  and  tame,  a  windy 
day  is  generally  the  ruin  of  good  sport ;  but  when 
they  are  strong  and  wild,  the  most  boisterous  weather 
is  frequently  the  best  for  one  who  shoots  quick  and 
well,  as  the  birds  cannot  hear  so  far,  and  will  often 
lie  the  closer,  for  the  sake  of  shelter. 

For  one  who  happens  to  be  deprived  of  his  only 
dog  at  the  critical  time  of  the  shooting,  or  when 
there  is  no  scent,  on  a  dry  sultry  day,  there  is  many 
a  worse  plan  for  killing  birds  than  to  get  two  boys  to 
drag  the  ground  with  a  rope,  from  ten  to  twenty  yards 
long,  kept  down  with  a  weight  or  stone  at  each  end. 
This  plan  first  struck  me  from  the  immense  number 
of  birds  that  have  been  sprung  by  the  land-measurers, 
after  harvest,  at  a  time  when  the  best  of  sportsmen 
have  left  behind  them  a  great  deal  of  game.  If  there 
is  one  shooter,  he  should  keep  in  the  middle,  a  little 
behind  the  rope,  and  the  boys  should  be  well  drilled 
to  drop  like  dogs  when  the  game  rises.  But  if  two 
shooters,  then  one  may  be  on  each  flank,  and  the 
rope  may  have  a  longer  sweep. 

For  a  person  who  has  regular  business  to  attend, 
and  therefore  can  only  go  out  for  a  few  hours  in  the 


136  FINISHING    LESSONS 

day,  I  should,  in  September,  always  recommend  him 
to  dine  at  one  o'clock,  and  shoot  in  the  afternoon 
(the  grand  time  for  filling  the  bag).  His  nerves  are 
then  sure  to  be  in  a  pretty  good  state  for  shooting, 
and  his  head  perhaps  would  then  be  less  disposed 
for  application.  When  he  returns,  let  him  take 
with  his  refreshment  tea  or  coffee,  instead  of  other 
beverage,  after  which  he  will  feel  himself  cool,  clear- 
headed, and  again  fit  for  business,  instead  of  being 
disposed  to  throw  himself  into  an  arm-chair  and 
snore  away  the  evening  in  concert  with  his  dog.  Do 
not  let  him  think  that  by  thus  advising  I  wish  to 
deprive  him  of  his  nightcap,  or  he  may  at  once  con- 
demn me  and  my  book  for  ever !  No !  if  he  likes 
grog,  or  other  liquor,  he  may  finish  the  evening  with 
a  bucketful,  only  let  business  be  first  done,  and  put 
out  of  the  way. 

For  gentlemen  who  require  a  delicate  hand  in 
drawing,  mechanism,  surgical  operations,  music,  &c. 
&c.,  I  should  advise  them  always  to  shoot  in  gloves, 
and  the  moment  they  return  from  the  field  to  wash 
their  hands  in  very  warm  water,  using  with  it  a  more 
than  usual  quantity  of  soap ;  or  their  hands,  by  con- 
stant shooting,  will,  for  a  time,  become  so  coarse  and 
hard  as  to  spoil  and  unfit  them,  in  some  degree,  for 
that  nicety  which  may  be  required  in  their  more 
valuable  occupations.  Many  people  cannot,  or  rather 
fancy  that  they  cannot  shoot  in  gloves,  and  conse- 
quently their  hands  become  as  coarse  as  those  of  a 
gamekeeper,  which,  utterly  as  I  abhor  dandyism, 


IN    SHOOTING.  137 

I  must  yet  observe  is  not  quite  in  unison  with  the 
general  appearance  of  a  perfect  gentleman.  I  shall, 
therefore,  recommend  to  them  dark  kid  gloves,  which 
will  stand  a  month's  shooting  much  better  than 
might  be  supposed ;  and  if  they  fit  nicely  to  the 
fingers,  are  so  thin  as  not  to  be  the  least  incumbrance 
between  the  triggers.  Of  these  and  other  gloves, 
the  best  and  strongest  that  I  can  anywhere  procure 
are  sold  by  Mr.  Painter,  No.  27,  Fleet-street. 

If  a  person  is  extremely  nervous  from  hearing  the 
report  of  his  gun,  or  from  the  noise  of  the  rising 
game,  let  him  prime  his  ears  with  cotton,  and  his 
inside  with  tincture  of  bark  and  sal  volatile. 

It  sometimes  happens  that  a  covey  of  birds  is 
always  to  be  found,  but  never  to  be  got  at ;  and  are 
always  seen  going  over  one  hedge,  as  soon  as  you 
arrive  at  the  other.  In  this  case  let  the  shooter,  if 
distressed  for  a  brace  of  birds,  place  himself  behind 
the  hedge  they  fly  over,  and  send  a  person  round  to 
drive  the  birds  to  him.  He  will  then  probably  get  a 
double  shot,  and  very  likely  disperse  the  covey. 

When  birds  are  so  wild  that  they  will  not  lie,  you 
often  see  them  running  across  a  barren  field ;  in 
which  case  keep  out  of  sight,  if  you  can,  and  make  a 
little  noise,  in  order  to  drive  them  to  the  opposite 
hedge,  but  do  not  show  yourself,  or  they  will,  perhaps, 
fly  up,  and  be  afterwards  so  much  on  the  alert  as  not 
to  be  got  at  without  great  manoeuvring. 

When    birds   run   (but    are    not   visible    on    the 


138  FINISHING    LESSONS 

ground,  and  the  dogs  keep  drawing  across  a  whole 
field),  as  they  will  do,  most  particularly  in  a  dry 
easterly  wind,  they  are  almost  sure  to  get  up  at  a  long 
distance.  My  recipe  on  this  occasion  is  to  have  a 
man  on  horseback,  and  make  him  take  an  immense 
circle,  and  after  he  thinks  he  has  arrived  well  a-head 
of  the  birds,  to  gallop  up  and  down  in  a  transverse 
direction,  by  which  means,  between  the  two  enemies, 
the  covey  are  often  induced  to  squat  down  close  in 
their  own  defence ;  or,  what  is  even  better,  to  disperse 
before  they  take  flight. 

If  you  have  a  piece  of  turnips  very  near  a  small 
covert,  into  which  you  wish  birds  to  be  driven  for 
good  shooting,  at  a  time  when  the  birds  have  become 
wild,  be  careful  what  you  are  about  in  windy  weather ; 
because  birds,  when  shot  at,  will  of  course  fly  much 
farther  than  if  quietly  sprung,  and  particularly  if 
borne  away  by  the  wind.  It  will  often  happen,  there- 
fore, that  by  your  refusing  two  or  three  shots  on 
such  an  occasion,  you  will  get  twenty  or  thirty  shots 
after  the  birds  (which  from  running  among  the 
turnips  frequently  become  dispersed)  are  dropped  all 
over  the  covert ;  whereas  if  this  covert  is  not  very 
large,  they  might  probably  have  flown  beyond  it  had 
you  discharged  a  gun.  Many  eager  sportsmen,  how- 
ever, would  be  loath  to  trust  to  such  a  lottery,  and 
argue,  that  "  a  bird  in  hand  is  worth  two  in  the 
bush ;"  but  such  I  have  proved  to  be  the  case ;  and 
this,  as  well  as  every  other  part  that  relates  to  shoot- 


IN    SHOOTING.  139 

ing,  has  been  pencilled  down  in  the  field,  with  a 
query  as  to  its  future  confirmation;  and  if  it  has 
stood  repeated  tests,  entered  in  MS.  for  this  work. 

If  birds  are  so  very  wild  that  all  fair  and  quiet 
shooting  fails,  they  are  still,  ninety-nine  times  in  a 
hundred,  to  be  got,  if  absolutely  wanted,  to  win  a 
wager;  fora  sick  person;  or  any  very  particular  purpose. 
But  the  process  for  this  is  any  thing  but  steady  sport- 
ing, and  can  only  be  well  followed  in  an  open  country. 
It  is  simply  to  establish  a  picket  of  mounted  markers, 
with  directions  to  give  a  signal  when  the  birds  drop ; 
on  receiving  which  you  must  gallop  to  the  one  who 
has  watched  the  birds  down,  arid  instantly  gallop  with 
him  to  within  about  eighty  yards  of  the  spot.  Then 
spring  from  your  horse,  and  walk  briskly  to  the  birds, 
without  a  dog,  taking  care  to  advance,  if  possible,  in 
a  direction  that  may  drive  them  to  the  best  of  your 
other  markers.  Many  a  brace  of  birds  have  I  seen 
bagged  this  way,  before  an  old  dog  could  canter  up 
fast  enough,  even  to  be  in  at  the  death,  much  less  to 
run  the  risk  of  spoiling  your  shot  for  want  of  scent. 

In  calm  weather,  after  September,  never  go  bellow- 
ing out  "  P— o— n— t— o"  "  T— o— h— o"  &c.  (like 
a  boy  hooting  at  birds  on  corn).  Your  keeper  will 
do  this,  at  another  time,  if  the  dog  requires  it,  and 
be  pleased  with  his  own  noise.  But  rather  take  your 
chance  of  the  second  dog's  seeing  the  point  in  time ; 
or  you  may  probably  do  much  more  harm  than  the 
very  dog  that  you  are  rating.  If,  however,  the  dog 
is  going  down  wind,  the  case  alters ;  but  even  then  I 


140  FINISHING   LESSONS,   ETC. 

should  rather  try  the  expedient  of  a  menacing  at- 
titude, seconded  by  a  clod  of  dirt,  or  a  turnip,  to 
using  my  voice  on  such  an  occasion.  (Of  course  I 
mean  if  I  wanted  birds,  otherwise  a  good  sportsman 
ought  always  to  lose  a  shot,  rather  than  neglect  his 
dogs). 

If  you  really  want  game,  when  the  scent  is  bad, 
and  see  precisely  where  a  covey  has  dropped,  let  your 
dogs  be  taken  up,  and  go  first  without  them ;  and  if 
the  birds  get  up  singly,  never  think  of  picking  them 
up,  but  make  the  best  of  your  time  in  loading  and 
firing.  Should  you,  however,  want  your  dogs,  have 
them  one  at  a  time,  by  making  a  signal,  or  whistling 
to  your  man  who  holds  them  ;  but  do  not  speak,  lest, 
by  so  doing,  you  might  spring  the  covey. 

If  you  have  a  small  beat,  rather  give  leave  to  one 
of  the  best  shots  in  England,  who  is  content  to  shoot 
twice  a  week,  than  to  an  idle  bungler,  who  is  loung- 
ing out  with  a  gun  every  day;  because  the  one, 
although  he  kills  game  himself,  does  not  prevent  you 
from  doing  the  same,  while  the  other,  by  harassing 
the  birds,  day  after  day,  without  intermission,  will 
make  them  wild,  and  very  probably  drive  them  into 
another  country. 

The  foregoing  are  a  few  hints  that  I  had  hitherto 
kept  to  myself;  but  as  now  (thanks  neither  to  age 
nor  imprudence,  but  to  accidental  circumstances)  I 
have  no  longer  eyes  or  nerves  for  pretensions  to  the 
name  of  a  shot,  the  greatest  pleasure  that  can  possibly 
remain  for  me  is  to  resign  the  little  I  have  learnt  for 


PARTRIDGE    SHOOTING.  141 

the  benefit  of  young  sportsmen.  The  rising  genera- 
tion of  shooters  might  otherwise  be  left,  as  I  was  for 
many  years,  to  find  out  all  these  little  matters,  which 
not  one  man  in  a  thousand  (admitting  that  he  knows 
them)  likes  to  impart  to  another ;  and  yet  which  are 
so  necessary  to  be  known,  before  even  the  best  shots 
among  them  would  be  able  to  cope  with  a  crafty  old 
sportsman. 


PARTRIDGE  SHOOTING. 

MOST  young  sportsmen,  and  many  old  ones,  fancy 
that  nothing  great  can  be  done  on  the  first  day,  with- 
out they  go  out  as  soon  as  they  can  see  to  distinguish 
a  bird  from  a  dog.  This  may  possibly  be  necessary 
for  those  who  start  from  a  town,  where  two  or  three 
unfortunate  coveys  are  to  be  contended  for  by  half 
the  lawyers,  doctors,  schoolmasters,  sporting  parsons, 
and  tradesmen  in  the  place ;  but  under  other  circum- 
stances, this  is  the  very  worst  method  that  can  be 
adopted. 

In  the  first  place,  the  birds  being  at  this  time  on 
the  feed,  will  not  always  lie  well.  By  your  spring- 
ing them  from  the  run,  the  covey  are  pretty  sure  to 
take  wing  altogether ;  and  being  once  disturbed  in  this 
state,  it  becomes,  afterwards,  much  more  difficult  to 
disperse  them,  than  if  they  had  been  left  quiet  till 
the  dew  had  dried  on  the  stubble.  Secondly,  you 
throw  off  with  long  shots  instead  of  fair  ones ;  which, 
to  say  the  least  of  it,  is  not  a  favourable  beginning 


142  PARTRIDGE    SHOOTING. 

either  for  yourself  or  dogs.  Thirdly,  for  one  who 
may  have  no  relay  of  pointers  or  setters,  it  should  be 
recollected,  how  much  better  bestowed  would  be  the 
work,  which  he  takes  out  of  them  while  slaving  to 
little  purpose  in  the  dew  of  the  morning,  if  he  re- 
served it  for  the  afternoon.  This,  from  about  three 
till  six,  is  the  time  of  day  (in  the  early  part  of  the 
season),  that  all  the  best  shots  are  to  be  got.  The 
birds  are  then  scattered,  and  driven  to  the  low 
grounds  and  meadows  :  where,  with  steady  dogs,  they 
may  be  found  one  or  two  at  a  time,  and  kicked  up 
as  fast  as  he  can  load  and  fire. 

The  most  partridges  I  have  seen  bagged  in  a  day 
by  one  person,  in  a  country  not  preserved,  were 
twenty-three  brace,  in  killing  which  I  remember, 
that  although  he  began  in  the  very  best  quarter,  and 
every  thing  favoured,  as  well  as  it  possibly  could  do, 
his  starting  at  daylight,  yet  he  only  got  three  shots 
before  nine  o'clock. 

Although  he  had  four  relays  of  dogs,  yet  he  felt 
confident  that  he  should  have  killed  at  least  seven 
brace  more,  if  he  had  left  the  coveys  undisturbed  till 
about  half  past  seven  or  eight. 

The  person  who  performed  this,  and  the  double 
shooting  before  alluded  to,  went  out  111  a  subsequent 
year  at  nine  o'clock,  surrounded  by  other  shooting 
parties,  who  had  been  hard  at  work  since  the  break 
of  day.  He  had  this  season  a  far  inferior  breed  of 
birds,  arid  he  had  only  one,  and  that  a  very  old  dog. 
He  took  refreshment,  and  rested  from  twelve  till  two ; 


PARTRIDGE    SHOOTING. 

shot  again  till  six,  and  then  went  home  to  dinner, 
having  killed  fifty  partridges  and  a  hare,  with  only 
missing  two  very  long  shots,  though  he  invariably 
used  both  his  barrels  whenever  the  coveys  rose  within 
gunshot.  To  this  one  dog  he  bagged  in  all,  at  dif- 
ferent times,  in  a  wild  country,  3163  head  of  game. 

Much  game  as  I  have  seen  killed  in  a  September 
day,  I  do  not  recollect  one  solitary  instance  of  any 
thing  extraordinary  being  done  very  early  in  the 
morning.  With  regard  to  where,  and  how  we  are  to 
beat  for  game,  &c.  &c.  it  would  now  be  unneces- 
sary to  inform  even  a  schoolboy ;  and,  indeed,  others 
having  mentioned  all  particulars,  is  a  sufficient  reason 
for  my  not  imposing  on  the  reader's  patience  with 
what  he  will  have  seen  before,  and  what,  to  describe, 
would  lead  me  into  the  very  subject  of  other  sporting- 
authors.  Suffice  it  therefore  to  say,  that  the  great 
object  is,  first  to  have  good  markers  *  judiciously 
placed,  and  then  to  disperse  the  birds ;  the  best  way 
to  do  which  is  to  head  your  dogs,  by  taking  an  ex- 
tensive circle.  The  second  is,  to  make  no  more  noise 
than  what  cannot  absolutely  be  avoided,  by  doing  as 
much  by  signal  and  whistling,  and  as  little  by  halloo- 
ing as  possible.  Thirdly,  go  first  on  hills  to  find, 

*  Always  be  sure  to  tell  a  young  marker  that  he  must  carry 
his  eye  well  forward  when  a  covey  of  birds  begin  to  skim  in  their 
flight,  and  consider,  that  as  they  may  continue  doing  so  for  a  field 
or  two,  he  cannot  safely  say  that  he  has  marked  them  down,  till 
he  has  seen  them  stop  sod' flap  their  wings,  which  all  game  must 
do,  before  they  can  alight  on  the  ground. 


144  AROUSE    SHOOTING. 

and  drive  down  from  them,  the  birds,  and  then  in 
vales  to  kill  them.  Fourthly,  when  distressed  for 
partridges,  in  a  scarce  country  at  the  end  of  the  sea- 
son, take  a  horse,  and  gallop  from  one  turnip  field  to 
another,  instead  of  regularly  slaving  after  inaccessible 
coveys. 

Many  an  excellent  shot  has  come  home  with  an 
empty  bag,  under  the  following  circumstances.  He 
has  gone  out  in  a  cold  raw  day,  and  found  that  the 
birds  were  scarce  and  wild,  and  that  even  in  turnips 
they  would  not  lie.  But  had  he  then  tried  one  kind 
of  land,  to  which  almost  every  man,  as  well  as  his 
dog,  has  a  dislike — the  fallows,  he  might  possibly 
have  got  some  good  double  shots ;  because  the  birds, 
finding  it  a  misery  to  run  here,  particularly  if  he 
walked  across  the  fallows,  will  sometimes  lie  till  they 
are  sprung  the  fairest  possible  shots. 

GROUSE  SHOOTING. 

THE  foregoing  observations  relative  to  partridges 
may  be  nearly  as  well  applied  to  grouse  shooting, 
when  we  recollect  that  Lord  Strathmore's  keeper  in 
killing  forty -three  brace  of  muir-game  before  two 
o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  had  only  bagged  three  birds 
at  eight  in  the  morning.  [This,  however,  is  nothing 
in  comparison  to  the  recent  performances  of  Lord 
Kennedy,  and  many  others  of  our  first-rate  shots.] 

The  chief  difficulty  to  be  guarded  against  in  this 
delightful  sport  is  the  manoeuvre  of  the  old  cock, 


GROUSE    SHOOTING.  145 

who  runs  cackling  forward,  in  order  to  lead  you  away 
from  the  brood.  Old  sportsmen  and  old  dogs,  how- 
ever, should  be  too  well  aware  of  this  stale  trick  to 
pay  any  farther  attention  to  him,  than  to  destroy  him, 
if  possible,  on  his  first  appearance.  A  dog,  who  has 
been  used  to  this  sport,  will  sometimes  head  him,  and 
be  too  cunning  for  him;  or  at  all  events  will  not 
suffer  him  to  prevent  the  sportsman  from  getting  a 
good  shot  at  the  rest  of  the  pack. 

Tojiml  muir-game  at  the  beginning  of  the  season, 
take  as  many  pointers  or  setters  as  you  can  get  to 
hunt  steadily  together.  To  kill  them,  when  found 
and  marked  down,  take  up  all  but  one  stanch  dog. 

For  shooting  grouse,  select  a  fine  sunshiny  day, 
.from  about  eight  till  five  in  August  or  September, 
and  from  about  eleven  till  two  at  the  later  periods  of 
the  season,  as  they  are  then  extremely  wild,  and  will 
only  lie  tolerably  during  the  few  hours  which  are 
favoured  by  a  warm  sun.  Unless  the  weather  is  very 
fine,  you  will  see  them  running  and  getting  up  five 
hundred  yards  before  you.  In  this  case,  let  one  per- 
son take  an  immense  circle,  so  as  to  head  them,  while 
the  other  remains  behind,  to  press  them  forward  when 
he  is  ready ;  and  above  all  things  you  should,  for 
killing  them  at  this  time  of  the  year,  use  No.  1,  2, 
or  3,  shot,  in  the  largest  single  gun  that  you  can 
possibly  manage.  Grouse  take  a  harder  blow  than 
partridges,  and  do  not  fly  quite  so  regular  and  steady. 

Scotland  is  the  best  place  for  this  sport,  as  the 
heather  there  being  much  higher,  they  will  lie  closer 

L 


146  GROUSE    SHOOTING. 

than  in  Yorkshire  and  the  other  moors  of  England  : 
add  to  which,  the  sport  there  has,  in  many  parts,  the 
pleasing  addition  of  blackcock  and  ptarmigan  shoot- 
ing. Such,  however,  is  the  misery  of  the  Highland 
public  houses,  and  particularly  to  our  perfumed  young 
men  of  fashion,  that  I  have  generally  observed  nine 
out  of  ten  of  them,  however  good  may  have  been 
their  sport,  come  home  cursing  and  swearing  most 
bitterly  about  their  wooden  births,  peat  fires,  and 
oatmeal  cakes* 

I  have  had  very  good  grouse  shooting  close  to  the 
inn  at  Arden  Caple,  in  Dunbartonshire,  although  in 
the  depth  of  winter,  when  interspersed  with  wood- 
cocks and  wildfowl.  But  these  birds  then  lose  their 
fine  flavour,  and  become  somewhat  similar  in  taste  to 
a  dry  red-legged  partridge.  The  Highland  shepherds 
poach  them  in  the  snow,  by  means  of  decoying  them 
to  an  ambush  with  an  imitation  of  their  call,  and 
then  raking  them  with  a  large  gun. 

"To  send  grouse  any  distance,  put  some  pepper  to 
the  parts  where  they  have  been  shot,  as  well  as  into 
their  mouths,  and  then  pack  them,  carefully  separated 
from  each  other,  and  kept  as  air-tight  as  possible,  in 
boxes  of  hops. 


PHEASANT    SHOOTING,  &C.  147 


SHOOTING  PHEASANTS, 

&c.  &c. 

WITH  A  FEW  DIRECTIONS  TO  THE  INEXPERIENCED  FOR 
RECOVERING  THEIR  OWN  GAME,  IF  UNHANDSOMELY 
DRIVEN  FROM  THEM,  SHOOTING  IN  COVERT,  &c.  &c. 

FOR  shooting  phcasau ts  it  often  becomes  necessary 
to  start  very  early  in  the  morning,  as  they  are  apt  to 
lie  during  the  day  in  high  covert,  where  it  is  almost 
impossible  to  shoot  them  till  the  leaf  has  fallen  from 
the  trees.  We  can  never  be  at  a  loss  in  knowing 
where  to  go  for  pheasants,  as  we  have  only  to  send 
some  one  the  previous  evening,  for  the  last  hour 
before  sunset,  to  watch  the  different  barley  or  oat 
stubbles  of  a  woodland  country,  and  on  these  will  be 
regularly  displayed  the  whole  contents  of  the  neigh- 
bouring coverts.  It  then  remains  to  be  chosen,  which 
woods  are  the  best  calculated  to  shoot  in ;  and,  when 
we  begin  beating  them,  it  must  be  remembered  to 
draw  the  springs,  so  as  to  intercept  the  birds  from  the 
old  wood.  If  the  coverts  are  wet,  the  hedge-rows 
will  be  an  excellent  beginning,  provided  we  here  also 
attend  well  to  getting  between  the  birds  and  their 
places  of  security.  If  pheasants,  when  feeding,  are 
approached  by  a  man,  they  generally  run  into  covert ; 
but  if  they  see  a  dog*  they  are  apt  to  fly  up. 

If  a  person  holds  land,  over  which  keepers  have  a 
reservation,  and  therefore  drive  it  in  the  morning  to 


148  PHEASANT    SHOOTING,  &C. 

spoil  his  sport,  he  should  sprinkle  it  well  with  barley 
and  white  pease,  for  which  the  pheasants  would  most 
likely  come  back  again  in  the  evening,  and  he  has 
then  only  to  begin  beating  with  his  back  to  the  extreme 
point  of  his  liberty,  and  the  birds,  being  cut  off  in 
their  retreat,  will  either  fly  to  him,  or  lie  very  dose. 
If  the  wind  should  blow  strong  from  the  preserves, 
or  if  the  foxhounds  should  happen  to  run  through 
them,  he  would  then,  by  this  means,  be  still  more 
sure  of  having  retaliation  on  those  who  had  been 
taking  pains  to  defeat  him  in  the  fair  and  lawful 
amusement  of  sporting  on  his  own  ground. 

This  plan,  however,  would  be  followed  with  little 
success,  if  the  person  -adopting  it  should  take  out  a 
cry  of  noisy  spaniels,  or  a  set  of  wild  pointers.  He 
should  recollect,  that,  in  order  to  intercept  the  birds, 
he  may  be  obliged  to  work  down  the  wind,  and  it 
therefore  becomes  necessary  that  he  should  have  only 
one  steady  old  pointer,  or  setter,  who  will  keep  within 
gunshot,  and  quarter  his  ground  with  cunning  and 
caution,  so  as  to  work  round  every  stem  of  under- 
wood, instead  of  hastily  ranging  forward  ;  and,  above 
all,  be  well  broke,  either  to  fall  to  the  gun,  or  lie 
down  when  he  has  brought  a  bird. 

There  are  very  few  old  sportsmen  but  what  are 
aware  that  this  is  by  far  the  most  sure  method  of 
killing  pheasants,  or  any  other  game,  where  they  are 
tolerably  plentiful,  in  covert ;  and  although  to  explore 
and  beat  several  hundred  acres  of  coppice,  it  becomes 
necessary  to  have  a  party  with  spaniels,  yet,  on  such 


PHEASANT    SHOOTING,  &C.  149 

expeditions,  we  rarely  hear  of  any  one  getting  much 
game  to  his  own  share,  except  some  sly  old  fellow, 
who  has  shirked  from  his  companions  to  the  end  of  the 
wood,  where  the  pheasants,  and  particularly  the  cock 
birds,  on  hearing  the  approach  of  a  rabble,  are  all 
running,  like  a  retreating  army,  and  perhaps  flying 
in  his  face  faster  than  he  can  load  and  fire. 

For  one  alone  to  get  shots  in  a  thick  underwood, 
a  brace  or  two  of  very  well  broke  spaniels  would,  of 
course,  be  the  best.  But  were  I  obliged  to  stake  a 
considerable  bet  (taking  one  beat  with  another,  where 
game  was  plentiful),  I  should  back,  against  the  sports- 
man using  them,  one  who  took  out  a  very  high 
couraged  old  pointer,  that  would  keep  near  him,  and 
would,  on  being  told,  break  his  point  to  dash  in,  and 
put  the  pheasants  to  flight  before  they  could  run  out 
of  shot.  This  office  may  be  also  performed  by  a 
Newfoundland  dog ;  but,  as  first  getting  a  point 
would  direct  the  shooter  where  to  place  himself  for  & 
fair  shot,  the  Newfoundland  dog  would  always  do 
best  kept  close  to  his  heels,  and  only  made  use  of 
to  assist  in  this ;  and  particularly  for  bringing  the 
game;  as  we  rarely  see  a  pointer,  however  expert 
in  fetching  his  birds,  that  can  follow  and  find  the 
wounded  ones  half  so  well  as  the  real  St.  John's 
Newfoundland  dog. 

It  will,  of  course,  be  recollected,  that  the  pointer 
kept  for  this  purpose  should  never  be  taken  with  re- 
gular broke  dogs.  He  will,  however,  before  the  sea- 
son for  pheasant  shooting,  be  as  well  tvorth  his  keep 


150  PHEASANT    SHOOTING,  &C. 

as  spaniels,  by  the  service  he  will  render  his  master 
(single  handed)  among  potatoes  and  bean-fields ;  the 
beating  in  which  (and  particularly  if  there  are  land- 
rails, or  red-legged  partridges)  is  by  no  means  a  good 
practice  for  thorough-broke  pointers  or  setters. 

It  often  happens  that  the  boundary  of  a  liberty 
ends  with  a  broad  hedgerow,  which  may  be  too  high 
to  shoot  in,  and  may  have  land  on  the  other  side 
belonging  to  some  one  who  is  not  on  terms  with  the 
owner,  and  for  whose  property  all  his  game  fly  out 
on  the  wrong  side  of  this  little  covert.  He  has  then 
only  to  sow  sunflower-seeds,  and  plant  Jerusalem 
artichokes  for  the  pheasants ;  and  Swedish  turnips, 
Dutch  clover,  or  parsley,  for  the  hares,  on  his  own 
side,  and  cut  down  a  space  broad  enough  to  shoot,  on 
the  enemy's  side,  in  the  hedgerow,  which  will  soon 
induce  him  to  compromise  on  equitable  terms:  be- 
cause, should  his  competitor  even  do  the  same,  he 
will  most  probably  still  have  his  share ;  and,  if  not, 
he  will  get  away  a  great  part  of  his  game. 

If  the  hedgerow  is  hollow  at  the  bottom,  he  should 
send  some  one  to  the  end  of  it,  as  many  of  the  old 
hares  would  probably  run  forward  rather  than  cross 
him,  or  take  away  from  home. 

If  a  rival  shooter  (some  stranger)  races  to  get  before 
you,  push  him  hard  for  a  long  time,  always  letting 
him  have  rather  the  advantage,  and  then  give  him 
the  double  without  his  seeing  you.  Having  done 
this,  go  quietly  round  (supposing  you  have  been 
beating  up  wind) ;  and,  on,  reaching  the  place  where 


VHEASANT    SHOOTING,  &C.  151 

you  began,  work  closely  and  steadily  the  whole  of 
the  ground  or  covert  that  you  have  both  been  racing 
over,  and  you  will  be  sure  to  kill  more  game  than 
him,  who  is  beating  and  shooting  in  haste,  through 
fear  of  'your  getting  up  to  him ;  and  (if  the  wind 
should  rise)  driving  the  dispersed,  and,  consequently, 
closest  lying  birds  to  your  beat,  as  fast  as  he  finds 
them. 

When  staying  in  a  town,  take  care  not  to  let  every 
one  know  where  you  shoot,  by  pompously  riding 
through  it  with  a  display  of  guns  and  dogs;  but 
either  send  on  the  latter  in  the  dark,  or  take  them 
closely  shut  up  in  your  dog-cart.  If  driving,  cover 
your  shooting  dress  with  a  box  coat :  if  on  horseback, 
ride  out  of  the  town  on  some  road  diametrically  op- 
posite  to  where  your  sport  lies,  and  then  double  back 
again  on  other  roads,  or  by  crossing  the  country.  If 
you  return  by  daylight,  enter  the  town  again  by  this 
means,  or  at  all  events  in  the  most  quiet  and  private 
manner,  otherwise  you  will  soon  have  your  beat  (if 
on  a  neutral  place)  worked  by  every  townsman,  who 
can  muster  a  dog  and  gun. 

If  there  is  one  month  worse  than  another  for  the 
amusement  of  shooting,  I  should  be  apt  to  consider 
that  it  is  November.  The  warmer  weather  of  Sep- 
tember and  October  is  then  gone  by,  and  the  birds 
become  wild  and  cunning.  The  fall  of  the  leaf,  with 
the  sports  of  rabbit,  woodcock,  snipe,  and  wildfowl 
shooting,  are  not  in  general  to  be  fully  enjoyed  till 
December  and  January  ;  so  that,  in  the  event  .of  a 


152  COCK    SHOOTING. 

sportsman  finding  it  necessary  to  leave  the  country 
during  the  shooting  season,  on  any  business,  the 
precise  time  for  which  might  be  at  his  own  option,  I 
should  advise  him  to  choose  this,  the  middle  month, 
for  laying  aside  his  gun. 

COCK  SHOOTING. 

THE  pursuit  of  woodcocks,  with  good  spaniels, 
may  be  termed  the  fox-hunting  of  shooting! 

A  real  good  sportsman  feels  more  gratified  by  kill- 
ing a  woodcock,  or  even  a  few  snipes,  than  bags  full 
of  game,  that  have  been  reared  on  his  own  or  neigh- 
bour's estate ;  and  one  who  does  not,  may  be  con- 
sidered a  pot  hunter.  In  a  country  where  cocks  are 
scarce,  be  sure  to  put  a  marker  in  a  tree,  before  you 
attempt  to  flush  one  a  second  time ;  and  when  you 
have  marked  down  a  cock,  remember  how  very  apt 
he  is  to  run,  instead  of  rising  from  the  spot  in  which 
you  may  have  seen  him  drop.  If  a  cock  flies  away, 
and  continues  to  rise  wild,  go  safely  beyond  where 
he  may  have  last  dropped,  and  then  back  again  to 
beat  for  him  (leaving  some  one  to  make  a  noise  on 
the  side  where  you  had  before  advanced  on  him),  and 
he  will  then  most  likely  either  lie  close,  or  fly  towards 
you.  If  this  will  not  do,  take  your  station  quietly  to 
windward  (as  cocks  generally  fly  against  the  wind), 
give  a  whistle  when  you  are  ready,  and  let  the  other 
person  then  draw  on,  and  flush  him.  His  cry  of 
"  Mark  !"  will  assist  in  frightening  and  driving 


SNIPE    SHOOTING.  153 

the   cock   forward,   and  be  a   signal  for  your  pre- 
paration. 

No  more  on  cock  shooting,  as  directions  enough 
about  it  have  been  given  by  other  authors. 

SNIPE  SHOOTING. 

THE  pursuit  of  snipes  is  declined  by  many,  who 
plead  their  inability  to  kill  them ;  than  which,  no- 
thing may  be  easier  acquired,  by  a  pretty  good  shot. 
Snipe  shooting  is  like  fly  fishing :  you  should  not  fix 
a  day  for  it,  but  when  you  have  warm  windy  weather, 
saddle  your  horse  and  gallop  to  the  stream,  with  all 
possible  despatch.  Should  there  have  been  much  rain, 
allow  the  wind  to  dry  the  rushes  a  little  before  you 
begin  to  beat  the  best  ground,  or  the  snipes  may  not 
lie  well.  Although  these  birds  frequent  wet  places, 
yet  the  very  spot  on  which  they  sit  requires  to  be  dry 
to  their  breasts,  in  order  to  make  them  sit  close ;  or, 
in  other  words,  lie  well. 

If  they  spring  from  nearly  under  your  feet,  remain 
perfectly  unconcerned,  till  they  have  done  twisting, 
and  then  bring  up  your  gun  and  fire ;  but,  if  you 
present  it  in  haste,  they  so  tease  and  flurry,  that  you 
become  nervous,  and,  from  a  sort  of  panic,  cannot 
bring  the  gun  up  to  a  proper  aim.  If,  on  the  other 
hand,  they  rise  at  a  moderate  distance,  down  with 
them  before  they  begin  their  evolutions.  When  they 
cross,  be  sure  to  fire  well  forward,  and  (if  you  pos- 
sibly can)  select,  as  I  before  said,  a  windy  day  for  this 


154  SNIPE    SHOOTING    COMBINED 

amusement ;  as  snipes  then  usually  lie  better,  and,  on 
being  sprung,  hang  against  the  wind,  and  become  a 
good  mark. 

In  springing  snipes,  always  contrive  to  get  to 
windward  of  them,  by  which  you  will  be  more  likely 
to  prevent  their  moving,  and  seldom  fail  to  get  a 
cross  shot ;  in  taking  which  a  young  sportsman  is  not 
so  liable  to  be  confused  by  their  twisting. 

To  kill  snipes,  first  go  silently  down  wind  to  walk 
up  the  wilder  ones ;  afterwards  let  go  an  old  pointer 
up  wind  to  find  those  which  may  have  lain  so  close 
as  to  allow  you  to  pass :  and  before  you  spring  them, 
take  care  to  make  a  circle,  and  head  your  dog.  Look 
always  for  snipes  in  places  which  are  not  frozen.  I 
have  always  found,  that  the  worst  time  to  shoot 
snipes  is  in  a  white  frost,  as  these  birds  then  ge- 
nerally take  to  the  uplands,  or  get  into  some  rivulet, 
in  small  whisps,  or  flocks,  and  spring  up  all  together, 
instead  of  being  well  dispersed,  and  thereby  affording 
a  number  of  shots,  as  they  do  in  boisterous  weather. 
But,  after  &  frost  has  brought  the  snipes  into  the 
country,  you  are  pretty  sure  of  good  sport  on  the 
first  open  windy  day  that  follows  it.  Stick  to  these 
birds  when  once  you  find  them,  as  they  may  all 
disappear  in  one  night. 

Before  I  conclude  under  the  head  of  "  snipe  shoot- 
ing," I  am  induced  to  insert  a  letter  that  I  wrote  to 
Mr.  Martin,  wherein  I  had  occasion  to  introduce  this 
subject.  I  hope  my  readers  will  pardon  me  for 
copying  the  letter  at  full  length;  as,  although  in 


WITH    TROUT    FISHING.  155 

other  parts  wholly  irrelevant  to  the  present  subject, 
yet  it  all,  more  or  less,  may  concern  young  sports- 
men.    They  may,  however,  say,    and  with   reason, 
what  can  snipe  shooting  have  to  do  viiihfly  foMng  f 
With  their  indulgence  then,  I  will  tell  them : — Most 
young  sportsmen,  probably  some  old  ones,  are  not 
aware,  that  no  two  sports  may  be  better  combined 
than  snipe  shooting  arid  trout  fishing !    The  snipes 
are  never  better  than  in  February  and  March,  and  at 
this  time  the  trout    are  often    pretty  good,  and  of 
course  much  easier  caught  by  a  young  angler  than 
when   in  high  season,    as  they  have  then  scarcely 
tasted  a  gnat,  and  will  rise  at  any  thing.     A  dark 
and  mild  dry  day,  with  a  good  breeze  from  the  south 
and  west,  is  the  most  favourable  time  for  both  of 
these  sports,  which  may  also  be  combined  at  the  fall 
of  the    year,  when  the  trout,    and    particularly  the 
large  ones,  often  remain  in  high  season. 

Mr.  Martin,  it  appears,  has  published  rny  letter  in 
his  second  edition,  from  which  I  copy  it  verbatim, 
and  wherein  he  does  me  the  honour  to  say — 

"  Major  P.  Hawker,  who  is  an  entire  stranger  to 
me,  further  than  as  the  well-known  author  of  that 
much-admired  work,  entitled  '  Instructions  to  Young 
Sportsmen,'  has  done  me  the  favour  to  transmit  the 
following  letter : — 

"  Longparish  House,  October  llth,  1818. 
"  SIR, 

"  On  my  return  to  this  place,  I  was  favoured  with 
a  copy  of  the  '  >\fiurlxmun'x  Calendar,'  which  you  have  done  me 


156  SNIPE    SHOOTING   COMBINED 

the  honour  to  send ;  and  which,  no  less  for  its  utility  than  for 
the  remembrance  of  your  attention,  shall  have  a  place  in  my 
library. 

"  I  can,  without  flattery,  assure  you,  that  I  am  well  pleased 
with  the  work,  because  you  have  comprised,  in  a  small  compass, 
all  the  necessary  information ;  and,  instead  of  prosing  on  the 
various  subjects,  and  taking  up  the  trade  of  book-making,  by  the 
detail  of  useless  anecdotes,  that  are  perhaps  nothing  more  extra- 
ordinary than  have  occurred  to  every  old  sportsman,  or  have  been 
handed,  for  ages,  from  one  book  to  another,  you  have  judiciously- 
inserted  that  which  is  most  useful  on  other  points.  In  short, 
you  have  given,  in  the  way  of  directions,  recipes,  &c.,  all  that 
can  be  required  for  a  good  sportsman  j  and  then,  very  properly, 
devoted  the  remainder  of  your  little  volume  to  the  purpose  of  be- 
coming an  universal,  though  portable,  calendar. 

"  As  I  see  you  have  thought  a  few  of  my  instructions  worthy 
of  notice,  permit  me  to  observe,  that  there  are  two  points  on 
which  I  dissent  from  you  in  opinion  : — 

"  1  st.  About  cocking  the  gun  after  the  bird  rises : — I  have  so 
many  times  nearly  had  one  of  my  dogs  killed  by  young  shooters 
letting  the  cock  escape  from  the  thumb  before  the  scear  had 
caught  the  tumbler  (through  eagerness  to  fire),  that  I  have,  by 
subsequent  experience,  found  less  danger  in  allowing  them  to 
cock  their  gun  when  the  dog  stands,  making  it  my  first  object  to 
see  that  their  guns  are  always  carried  in  a  safe  direction.  No 
man  can  kill  double  shots  brilliantly  in  December,  if  he  takes 
down  his  gun  to  cock  the  second  barrel ;  and,  as  for  danger,  Mr. 
Joseph  Manton's  gravitating  stops,  which  may  be  put  to  any  gun, 
will  preclude  the  possibility  of  an  accident,  even  admitting  that 
you  are  so  unfit  to  be  trusted  with  a  double  gun  as  to  load  one 
barrel  without  uncocking  the  other. 

"  2dly.  With  regard  to  Snipes :  It  is  only  when  they  lie  well 
that  you  can  allow  them  to  finish  their  twisting ;  the  greater  part 
of  them  require  to  be  taken  extremely  quick,  and  the  knack  of 
doing  this  constitutes  the  crack  snipe-shot,  who  will  kill  a  dozen 


WITH    TROUT    FISHING.  157 

of  those  birds  where  a  slow  poking  warksman  of  the  old  school 
can  only  fire  his  gun  a  few  times. 

"  Having  been  thus  far  so  rude  as  to  criticise  your  work  on  the 
subject  of  shooting,  allow  me  to  make  the  amende  honorable  by 
giving  you  a  useful  hint  on  trout  Jishing ;  viz.  For  small  rivers 
the  yellow  dun,  as  made  by  Chevalier,  is,  in  the  long  run,  worth 
all  the  other  flies  put  together  j  and  I  can  safely  assert,  that  my 
sport  has  never  been  so  good  as  when  fishing  through  the  whole 
season  with  this  fly  at  the  end,  and  a  small  red  palmer  for  a 
bob*.  A  great  deal,  however,  depends  on  throwing  well,  so  that 
the  gut  should  drop  on  the  water  before  any  part  of  the  line, 
which  is  seldom  the  case  when  our  soi-disant  anglers  fish  with 
their  whole  bodies  :  and,  instead  of  throwing  gracefully  from  the 
wrist,  which  ought  to  be  done  equally  well  with  either  the  left  or 
the  right  hand,  they  labour  like  a  person  threshing,  and  keep 
bowing  like  a  candidate  to  his  constituents  at  an  election.  What 
is  the  consequence  of  thus  flogging  the  water?  they  frighten 
away  the  large  fish,  and  catch  only  the  small  ones. 

"  With  many  apologies  for  the  scarcely  legible  manner  in 
which  the  greatest  haste,  and  an  accumulation  of  unanswered 
letters  oblige  me  to  write, 

"  I  have  the  honour  to  remain, 

"  Sir, 
"  Your  obedient  humble  servant, 

"  P.  HAWKER, 

"  P.  S.  One  who  can  throw  a  fly  well  across  the  wind  has  a 
great  advantage  in  catching  the  large  fish,  as  in  this  case  the  line, 
before  it  falls,  becomes  for  a  moment  suspended  over  the  water, 
and  therefore  drops  lighter  than  when  thrown  directly  with  the 
wind." 

*  It  would  be  ridiculous  to  lay  down  this  as  a  rule  for  every 
county.  I  only  speak  of  the  small  rivers  that  I  happen  to  have 
fished  for  many  years,  in  Hampshire  and  part  of  Dorsetshire, 
concerning  which  I  can  therefore  speak  from  experience. 


158  TROUT    FISHING. 


TROUT  FISHING,  &c. 

As  this  letter  has  led  us  into  trout  fishing,  it  may 
really  be  worth  while  (before  I  proceed  to  the  alphabet 
of  birds)  to  make  a  few  remarks  on  this  favourite 
pursuit,  for  the  information  of  the  young  sportsman, 
because,  although  much  has  been,  yet  a  little  more 
may  be  said  on  the  subject,  as  every  art  must  daily 
improve  in  a  new  school. 

A  few  hints,  however,  are  quite  enough  on  that 
which  is  foreign  to  our  title.  Almost  every  one 
is  now-a-days  a  " piscator?  The  Fanatico,  about 
Easter,  goes  off  as  busy  as  the  cockney  on  his  wunter, 
when  bound  to  Epping.  He  generally  takes  a  great 
many  things,  and  kills  a  few  fish.  The  old  angler 
takes  a  few  things,  and  kills  a  great  many  fish.  Some 
dark,  warm,  windy,  drizzly  days,  early  or  late  in  the 
season,  and  particularly  when  a  fine  breeze  blows 
from  off  the  banks  of  a  river,  where  no  one  has  begun 
fishing,  the  trout  are  so  easily  taken,  that  a  basket 
full  is  but  little  proof  of  skill.  One  might  then 
almost  train  a  monkey  to  catch  a  trout.  But,  at 
other  times,  and  particularly  when  fish  are  well  fed, 
is  the  time  to  see  who  is,  and  who  is  not,  an  angler. 

About  ninety  in  a  hundred  fancy  themselves 
anglers.  About  one  in  a  hundred  is  an  angler. 
About  ten  in  a  hundred  throw  the  hatchet  better 
than  a  fly.  Here  we  take  the  average.  Now  for  a 
few  very  common  faults.  One  who  lets  his  fly  lie 


TROUT    FISHING.  159 

too  long  in  the  water,  after  dropping  it,  is  a  better 
killer  of  time  than  of  fish.  He  who  tries  to  land  a 
large  fish  against  weeds  and  stream,  when  he  can  take 
him  down,  or  allows  a  fish  so  much  line  as  to  be  able 
to  rub  his  nose  against  the  bottom,  may  be  considered 
as  one  in  need  of  a  fishing-master.  Enough,  how- 
ever, of  defects.  I  will  now,  therefore,  take  in  hand 
the  best  fly  rod  I  have  (which  was  made  by  the  late 
Mr.  Higginbotham*),  and  a  set  of  tackle,  as  made  to 
my  order,  by  Chevalier  (No.  1 2,  Bell  Yard,  Temple 
Bar),  with  a  pen  and  ink  before  me.  Though  I  should 
first  premise,  that  I  only  speak  of  fishing  in  a  trout 
stream.  I  have  no  right  to  go  further,  because  a 
man  cannot  be  answerable  for  what  he  publishes, 
unless  all  his  statements  and  representations  are 
faithfully  written,  on  the  .spot,  and  with  the  material* 
before  him.  The  directions  for  a  two-handed  fly 
rod  (for  trout  In  a  small  rirerj,  I  leave  to  those 
who  can  see  the  use  of  it ;  for  my  own  part,  I  can 
see  none,  except  to  drop  the  natural  may-fly  with,  or 
to  facilitate  the  art  to  those  who  have  not  learned  it 
in  the  best  manner.  Now,  then,  to  the  point. 

ROD. — About  twelve  feet  three  inches  long,  and 
about  fourteen  ounces  in  weight.  It  must  not  be 

*  Mr.  Higginbotham  was,  to  my  fancy,  the  best  fly  rod  maker 
in  the  kingdom.  His  successor  was  Mr.  Clark,  who  retired  from 
the  business,  which  is  now  carried  on  in  the  best  possible  manner, 
by  Messrs.  Willingham,  91,  Strand.  Chevalier's^orte  is  a  troll- 
ing-rod,  flies,  and  tackle.  In  naming  these  makers  of  fishing 
tackle,  it  would  be  improper  not  to  say,  however,  that  Ustonson, 
Holmes,  Bowness,  and  many  others,  are  also  excellent  performers. 


160  TROUT    FISHING. 

top-heavy,  nor  it  must  not  have  too  much  play  in  the 
lower  part,  but  the  play  should  be  just  in  proportion 
to  the  gradual  tapering ;  by  which  there  will  be  very 
little  spring  till  after  about  the  third  foot  of  its 
length.  A  rod  too  pliable  below  is  as  bad  a  fault  as 
being  too  stiff;  and,  from  being  too  small  there,  is, 
of  course,  more  liable  to  be  top-heavy,  which  nine 
rods  in  ten  are.  The  consequence  is,  they  tire  the 
hand,  and  do  not  drop  the  fly  so  neatly.  I  have 
seen  some  Irish  rods  (I  think  of  Mr.  Martin  Kelly's, 
Dublin),  which,  if  they  had  not  been  too  pliant, 
would  have  been  worth  any  money. 

REEL. — Put  on  your  reel  with  a  plate,  and  wax- 
end  fifteen  inches  from  the  bottom ;  and  handle  your 
rod  close  below  it,  keeping  the  reel  uppermost,  as 
the  line  then  lies  on,  instead  of  under,  your  rod,  and 
is,  therefore,  less  likely  to  strain  the  top  between  the 
rings.  The  closer  the  rings  are  put  together  on  the 
top,  the  less  chance,  of  course,  you  have  of  straining 
or  breaking  it  between  them.  Use  a  multiplying 
click  reel,  without  a  stop;  and,  by  not  confining  it 
with  the  hand  while  throwing,  you  are  sure  never  to 
break  your  rod  or  line,  by  happening  to  raise  it 
suddenly,  at  the  moment  you  have  hooked  a  large 
fish  or  a  weed.  Let  your  reel  be  full  large  in  pro- 
portion to  the  quantity  of  line,  or  it  will  not  always 
go  pleasantly  with  it  in  winding  up. 

GUT  and  FLIES.— Use  about  eight  feet  of  gut, 
and  the  addition  of  that  on  the  tail  fly  will  bring  the 
whole  foot-line  to  about  three  yards.  Put  on  your 


TROUT    FISHING.  161 

bob  fly  a  few  inches  below  the  middle ;  or,  if  in  a 
very  weedy  river,  within  little  more  than  a  yard  of 
the  other;  lest,  while  playing  a  fish  with  the  bob, 
your  tail  fly  may  get  caught  in  a  weed.  More  gut 
than  is  here  prescribed  will  be  found  an  incumbrance 
when  you  want  to  get  a  fish  up  tight ;  insomuch, 
that,  of  the  two,  I  would  rather  have  a  little  less  than 
more  of  it. 

A  small  fly-book  may,  of  course,  be  taken ;  and  I 
should  recommend  it  on  my  plan,  which  is  of  Russia- 
leather,  in  order  to  repel  the  moth.  This  no  one 
will  do  better  for  you  than  Chevalier.  A  common 
bearer  hat  is  the  best  thing  to  hook,  and  keep  flies 
on ;  and,  if  you  have  not  two  rods  by  the  river  side, 
always  keep  a  gut  length  and  flies  ready  to  put  on, 
round  your  hat,  in  order  to  avoid  the  waste  of  time 
and  torment  which  you  would  have,  if  you  had  much 
entangled  your  line. 

The  beauty  of  fishing  is  to  do  the  business  quick 
(though  not  in  a  hurry),  because  this  sport  is  every 
moment  dependent  on  the  weather.  Walton  says, 
"  before  using,  soak  what  lengths  you  have  in  water 
for  half  an  hour"  In  the  new  school,  I  should 
rather  say,  draw  what  lengths  you  want  through 
Indian  rubber  for  half  a  quarter  of  a  minute.  Let 
a  gut-length  or  two  (ready  fitted  up  with  flies),  and 
also  a  few  spare  tail  flies  be  thus  prepared  to  go  on 
in  an  instant,  and  put  round  your  hat.  For  flies  (as 
Barker  observes  for  his  night  angling)  take  white 

M 


TROUT    FISHING. 

for  darkness ;  red  in  medio  ;  and  black  for  lightness. 
The  yellow  dun  and  red  palmer,  which  has  a  black 
head,  partake  a  little  of  all,  and  therefore,  with  the 
addition  of  a  white  moth  for  dark  nights,  the  angler 
may,  in  what  few  rivers  I  have  ever  fished,  do  vastly 
well.  No  doubt,  however,  that  an  occasional  variety 
of  flies  might  answer  a  little  better,  and  particularly 
if  these  had  been  too  much  hacknied  by  other  people. 
But,  in  the  long  run,  I  have  never  found  sufficient 
advantage  from  variety  to  be  troubled  with  taking 
more  than  two  or  three  kinds  of  flies.  And  as  to 
carrying,  as  many  do,  a  huge  book  of  flies,  nearly  as 
large  as  a  family  bible,  for  common  trout  streams- 
it  is  like  a  beginner  in  drawing,  who  uses  twenty 
cakes  of  colour  or  more,  where  a  quarter  the  number, 
if  properly  managed,  would  answer  the  same  purpose. 
The  "  piscator"  however,  has  a  right  to  take  what 
he  pleases.  He  may  go  to  the  river  side  with  a  book 
of  this  sort,  or  even  twelve  pounds  of  lead  in  his 
pocket ;  they  will  both,  perhaps,  be  equally  necessary. 
But  who  has  a  right  to  find  fault  ?  If  he  is  deter- 
mined to  go  well  laden  to  the  river — why  let  him. 
With  regard  to  hooks,  I  have  always  found  the  Irish 
ones  far  superior  to  ours.  The  best,  I  believe,  are 
bought  in  Limerick. 

Now  I  have  given  the  outline  as  to  tackle,  I  will 
proceed  as  to  throwing ;  not  in  my  chair,  with  a  pen 
and  ink  ;  but  with  a  pencil  and  a  book,  on  the  banks 
of  the  river. 


TROUT    FISHING.  163 

#  *  *  #  * 

THROWING  A  FI.Y. — I  am  just  returned  from 
the  river  (and,  by  the  way,  not  badly  repaid  for  my 
trouble),  and,  as  near  as  I  could  there  bring  the 
matter  to  paper,  shall  now  say  as  follows  :— 

In  throwing  a  fly,  raise  the  arm  well  up,  without 
labouring  with  your  body.  Send  the  fly  both  backwards 
and  forwards  by  a  sudden  ftpr/tig  of  the  wrist.  Do  not 
draw  the  fly  too  near,  or  you  lose  your  purchase  for 
sending  it  back,  and  therefore  require  an  extra  sweep 
in  the  air,  before  you  can  get  it  into  play  again.  If, 
after  sending  it  back,  you  make  the  counterspring  a 
moment  too  soon  you  will  whip  off  your  tail  fly,  and 
if  a  moment  too  late  your  line  will  fall  in  a  slovenly 
manner.  The  knack  of  catching  this  time  is,  there- 
fore, the  whole  art  of  throwing  well.  The  motion 
should  be  just  sufficiently  circular  to  avoid  this ;  but 
if  too  circular,  the  spring  receives  too  much  check, 
and  the  gut  will  then  most  probably  not  drop  before 
the  silk  line.  In  a  word,  allow  the  line  no  more 
than  just  time  to  unfold,  before  you  repeat  the  spring 
of  the  wrist.  This  must  be  done,  or  you  will  hear  a 
crack,  and  find  that  you  have  whipped  off  yom  tail 
fly.  For  this  reason,  I  should  recommend  beginners 
to  learn,  at  first,  with  only  a  bob ;  or  they  will  soon 
empty  their  own,  or  their  friend's  fishing  book  :  and, 
at  all  events,  to  begin  learning  with  a  moderate 
length  of  line. 

I  have  observed,  that  those  young  men  who  have 
supple  wrists,  and  the  power  to  whip  off  flies,  ulti- 

M  2 


164  TROUT    FISHING. 

mately  make  better  anglers  than  those  who  do  not, 
because,  in  this  action,  like  most  things,  there  is 
really  but  one  step  between  the  sublime  and  the 
ridiculous :  and  the  poor  fellow,  who  makes  no 
attempt  with  energy,  will  most  probably,  in  this,  as 
in  other  pursuits,  remain  all  his  life  in  the  back- 
ground. Walton,  in  speaking  of  throwing  a  fly,  says 
we  should  fish  "fine  and  far  off:"  but  we  must 
except  very  windy  weather,  or  the  result  of  a  very 
long  line  may,  with  a  very  good  angler,  be  crack  and 
whip  off.  If  therefore  you  have  got  into  a  particular 
current  of  wind,  where  this  is  the  case,  wind  up  your 
line  a  few  turns,  or  you  may  soon  lose  another  fly. 
Sometimes  the  wind  blows  very  strong,  directly  across 
you  from  the  right,  insomuch  that  it  becomes  an 
exertion  to  raise  the  rod  enough  to  prevent  the  line 
from  being  blown  back.  Throwing  with  the  left 
hand  is  then  a  convenience ;  but  for  those  who  are 
not  able  to  do  this,  I  can  suggest  no  better  makeshift 
than  to  raise  the  rod  over  the  left  shoulder,  and 
throw  the  line  by  a  motion  similar  to  that  used  with 
a  whip  when  lightly  hitting  a  leader  on  the  near 
side.  (Any  one  who  has  driven  in  double  reins  will 
know  what  I  mean.)  I  made  a  point  of  killing 
some  fish  this  way,  in  order  to  try  the  experiment, 
which  is,  of  course,  a  mere  substitute  for  the  best 
method  of  throwing.  So  much  for  throwing.  Now 
for  what  few  finishing  touches  I  can  think  of:— 
Avoid,  if  you  can,  going  too  close  to  the  edge  of  the 
water.  Throw,  if  you  are  an  fait  enough  to  do  it 


TROUT    FISHING.  165 

well,  rather  for  the  fly  to  become  for  a  moment  sus- 
pended across  the  wind,  than  directly  down  the 
wind  ;  as  it  then  falls  still  lighter,  and,  from  this 
circumstance,  is,  of  course,  more  likely  to  deceive  a 
large  fish.  Prefer  dropping  the  fly  just  under  a 
bush  or  hedge,  or  in  an  eddy,  to  the  open  river,  be- 
cause your  line  is  then  more  obscured  from  the  light, 
and  the  largest  fish  generally  monopolise  the  pos- 
session of  such  places,  in  order  to  find,  and  devour, 
the  more  flies  and  insects  :  and,  also,  to  be  near  their 
places  of  security.  If  the  spot  is  quite  calm,  watch 
the  first  good  fish  that  rises,  avail  yourself  imme- 
diately of  the  ripple  that  has  been  made  by  the  fish 
himself;  and  drop  in  your  fly  a  little  above  where  he 
last  rose.  Never  let  your  line  lie  too  long,  as  by  so 
doing  you  cither  expose  your  tackle  to  the  fish  by 
leaving  it  stationary,  or  draw  the  line  in  so  close,  that 
you  lose  both  the  power  of  striking  your  fish,  if  he 
rises,  and  that  of  getting  a  good  sweep  for  your  next 
throw.  The  first  fall  of  the  fly,  in  fishing,  is  like 
t\\e  first  sight  of  a  bird  m  presenting  a  gun— always 
the  I  test. 

KILLING  YOUII  FISH. — A  small  fish  is,  of  course, 
not  even  worth  the  wear  and  tear  of  a  reel.  But,  if 
you  happen  to  hook  a  good  one,  wind  up  immediately; 
and  the  moment  you  have  got  him  under  command 
of  a  short  line,  hold  your  rod  well  on  the  bend,  with 
just  purchase  enough  to  keep  him  from  going  under 
a  weed,  or  rubbing  out  your  hook  by  boring  his  nose 
into  the  gravel.  (Observe  a  fish,  and  you  will 


166  TROUT    FISHING. 

always   perceive,  that,    after   he   finds    he    is    your 
prisoner,  he  does  all  he  can  to  get  down,  as  the  best 
means  of  escape.)     After  getting  your  fish  under  the 
command  of  a  short  line  and  well  bent  rod,  let  him 
run,  and  walk  by  the  side  of  him,  keeping  a  delicate 
hold  of  him,  with  just  purchase  enough,  as  I  before 
observed,  to  prevent  his  going  down.      When   he 
strikes,  ease  him  at  the  same  instant ;  and  when  he 
becomes  faint,  pull  him  gently  down  stream  :  and,  as 
soon  as  you  have  overpowered  him,  get  his  nose  up 
to  the  top  of  the  water;    and,  when  he  is  nearly 
drowned,  begin  to  tow  him  gently  towards  the  shore. 
Never  attempt  to  lift  him  out  of  the  water  by  the 
line,  but  hawi  him  on  to  some  sloping  place,  then 
stick  the  spike  of  your  rod  in  the  ground ;  with  the 
rod  a  little  on  the  bend ;  crawl  slily  up  as  quick  as 
possible,  and  put  your  hands  under  him,  and  not  too 
forward,  as  a  trout  thus  situated  is  apt  to  slip  back ; 
so  that  handling  him   this  way  must  be  rather  a 
different  touch  from  that  of  weed-groping.     If  you 
use  a  landing  net  (which  for  saving  time,  and  par- 
ticularly where  the  banks  are  steep,  is  sometimes  a 
necessary  appendage)  let  it  be  as  light  as  possible ; 
very  long  in  the  handle ;  and  three  times  as  large  as 
what  people  generally  carry.     Take  care  that  neither 
that,  nor  the  man  who  may  assist  you  with  it,  goes 
even  in  sight  of  the  water  till  the  fish  is  brought  well 
to  the  surface,  and  fairly  within  reach  ;  and  then  you 
have  only  to  put  the  net  under  him,  or  keep  his  eyes 
above  water,  and  tow  him  into  it.     Mind  this ;  or 


TROUT    FISHING.  167 

the  landing  net  and  your  man  will  prove  enemies, 
instead  of  assistants,  to  your  sport.  Nothing  will  so 
soon,  or  suddenly,  rouse  a  sick  fish  as  the  sight  of  a 
man  or  a  landing  net.  With  regard  to  the  time 
and  weather  for  fishing,  it  is  now  well  known  to 
almost  every  schoolboy.  But  it  may  be  proper  just 
to  observe,  that  however  favourable  the  time  may  be 
to  all  appearance,  yet  trout  will  seldom  rise  well 
just  before  ram,  or  when  they  have  been  filled  by  a 
glut  of  flies.  Moreover,  trout  will  frequently  cease 
to  rise  well,  even  at  the  best  of  times,  from  being 
erery  day  ic hipped  at,  by  angler 9^  from  the  same 
bank.  My  plan,  in  this  case,  is  to  go  to  the  opposite 
side,  and  throw  against  (or  rather  under)  the  wind. 
A  friend  arid  I  once  caught  two  and  twenty  brace 
by  this  means,  while  a  whole  tribe  of  professed 
anglers,  who  were  fishing  from  the  windward  side, 
caught  (as  we  afterwards  heard)  but  three  fish  be- 
tween them. 

TROLLING,  or  spinning  a  minnow,  is  the  other 
most  general  mode  of  trout  fishing ;  or,  I  may  almost 
say,  trout-fjoac/ihig.  It  is  however  very  rarely  done 
in  a  proper  manner,  though  every  man,  as  a  matter 
of  course,  upholds  his  own  system.  I,  like  all  the 
rest,  did  the  same,  till  after  fancying  for  years,  that 
I  could  challenge  any  one,  was  beat  and  laughed  at 
by  a  trout-killing  divine.  Now,  however,  I  have  not 
only  got  master  of  his  plan,  against  which  all  others 
that  I  had  ever  seen,  read  of,  or  heard  of,  had  no 


168  TROUT    FISHING. 

chance  whatever;  but  have  remedied  a  few  trifling 
defects  that  it  had,  and  put  Chevalier  in  possession 
of  the  improvement.  The  great  advantage  of  it  is, 
that  it  takes  the  trout  when  they  run  and  bite  short 
by  means  of  fly  hooks,  that  play  round  the  other,  on 
a  separate  branch  of  line ;  so  that  I  have  often  killed 
three  or  four  brace  of  trout,  without  the  minnow 
being  in  the  least  injured,  or  even  touched  by  the 
fish.  To  describe  the  tackle  properly,  without  giving 
a  plate  of  it,  would  be  difficult,  if  not  impossible. 
After  all,  however,  knowing  how  to  bait  the  hook  is 
the  chief  art ;  and  even  after  being  shown,  requires 
practice  on  the  part  of  the  fisherman  who  adopts  it. 
Supposing,  however,  that  some  angler  might  have 
confidence  enough  in  what  I  have  said  to  get  a  set  of 
this  tackle  from  Chevalier,  I  will  endeavour  (having 
now  a  minnow  in  my  hand)  to  direct  him  as  to 
baiting  it.  After  choosing  a  white-bellied  minnow, 
of  rather  small  size,  and  hardening  it  in  bran  for 
an  hour  or  two,  First  draw  back  the  plummet,  and 
put  the  large  hook  into  the  minnow's  mouth,  and 
out  through  the  right  gill,  taking  care  not  to  tear 
the  mouth  or  any  part  of  the  bait :  then  draw  the 
line  three  or  four  inches  to  you,  so  as  to  be  able  to 
get  the  hook  back  again  into  its  mouth.  Then  take 
the  minnow  between  the  finger  and  thumb  in  the  left 
hand,  and  the  large  hook  in  the  right  hand,  and  run 
the  hook  all  down  its  back,  close  to  the  bone,  to  the 
very  end  of  the  fish,  and  let  it  come  out  about  the 


TROUT    FISHING.  169 

centre  of  the  tail  fin.  Then  with  your  right  hand 
pull  the  minnow  out  as  straight  as  it  will  lie,  and 
press  it  into  natural  form  with  the  finger  and  thumb. 
Afterwards  nip  off  the  upper  half  of  the  tail  Jin,  in 
order  to  prevent  a  counteraction  to  the  spinning  of 
the  minnow. 

Having  done  this,  draw  down  your  plummet  again, 
and  see  that  your  branch-line  falls  smoothly  by  the 
side  of  your  bait-line ;  and  if  not,  rub  it  with  Indian 
rubber  till  it  does.  Your  hook  is  then  ready  for 
action,  and  action  indeed  it  may  be  called  if  properly 
done.  I  should  observe,  that  a  new  gut  seldom  spins 
the  minnow  so  well  as  one  that  is  half  worn  out  (by 
reason  of  the  stiffness  which  encircles  the  minnow's 
gill).  Therefore  ten  minutes  soaking  in  water,  and 
sometimes  a  little  hard  friction  of  the  gut,  just  above 
the  large  hook,  may  at  first  be  required ;  besides  the 
working  it  with  Indian  rubber.  So  much  for  this 
plan ;  there  may  be  many  better ;  but  all  I  can  say 
is,  that  I  have  not  yet  seen  one  fit  to  be  named 
with  it. 

The  rod  for  trotting  should  be  from  eighteen  to 
twenty  feet  long,  and  made  as  light  as  possible, 
though  neither  too  pliaUe  nor  top  heavy ;  except  just 
the  top  and  bottom,  a  minnow  rod  is  best  when  made 
of  cane.  This  rod  of  course  requires  two  hands  :  no 
matter  therefore  where  the  reel  is  placed.  If  the  top 
is  too  stiff,  you  strain  a  fish's  mouth  so  much  as  to 
run  the  risk  of  breaking  out  his  hold,  which  is  nine 
times  in  ten  on  one  of  the  three  small  fly-hooks. 


170  TROUT    FISHING. 

But,  if  the  top  is  too  pliant,  the  fish  will  frequently 
make  his  escape  on  first  being  pricked.  Here  there- 
fore, as  in  all  things,  the  medium  is  best.  A  minnow 
must  of  course  be  thrown  underhanded,  and  the  line 
got  well  on  the  swing  before  it  is  sent  out.  You 
should  throw  it  till  it  comes  to  its  end,  and  then,  by 
drawing  in  the  hand,  give  it  a  little  check,  so  that  it 
should  be  laid  delicately  in  the  water,  and  not  thrown 
in  with  a  splash.  The  very  instant  your  minnow  is 
in  the  water  begin  drawing  it  at  one  unvaried  pace, 
down  stream,  and  then  towards  you,  till  near  enough 
to  require  a  fresh  throw ;  and  in  this,  as  well  as  fly 
fishing,  never  keep  trying  too  long  in  the  same  place. 
If  a  fish  comes  after  your  minnow,  never  stop  it,  or 
in  any  way  alter  the  pace,  or  he  will  most  likely  be 
off  again  directly;  though,  if  you  can  tow  your 
minnow  into  a  rougher  place,  without  giving  it  any 
sudden  motion,  the  fish  will  most  likely  follow  it 
there,  and  be  still  more  easily  deceived  than  in  the 
smoother  water.  To  get  your  bait,  use  a  silk  casting- 
net,  and  remember,  that  the  chief  art  in  throwing  it 
is  to  hurl  the  right  hand  well  round  horizontally, 
instead  of  inclining  it  upwards.  Keep  your  bait, 
with  bran,  in  any  thing  but  tin  or  metal,  which  is 
liable  to  heat  in  warm  weather.  This,  I  believe,  is 
all  that  need  be  said  on  the  best  mode  of  trolling. 

I  have  sent  for,  and  read,  the  whole  of  this  article, 
on  the  subject,  to  his  piscatorial  reverence,  who,  after 
the  most  rigid  criticism  that  he  could  make,  approved 
of  it  in  the  extreme,  as  well  as  of  the  improvement 


TllOUT    FISHING.  171 

in  the  tackle,  with  which,  before  he  would  pronounce 
his  judgment,  he  fished  for  a  whole  morning.  The 
previous  one,  on  fly  fishing,  I  have  submitted  to  the 
very  best  fly  fisher  I  ever  saw ;  but  as  it  would  ill 
become  me  to  repeat  his  remarks,  I  must  leave  the 
correctness  of  it  to  the  judgment  of  the  reader. 

There  are  generally  known  three  other  modes  of 
trolling.  The  first  is  the  diving  minnow.,  which  is 
precisely  on  the  same  plan  as  the  gorge-hook  for 
pike.  This  answers  well  in  very  deep  holes,  where 
you  may  frequently  kill  trout  when  the  sun  is  too 
bright  for  the  more  common  mode  of  trolling.  On  this 
plan,  you  must,  of  course,  loosen  the  line,  and  allow 
the  trout  some  time  to  pouch  his  bait.  The  second 
is  the  artificial  winnow,  which  is  the  worst  of  all ; 
because  it  does  not,  in  general,  spin  so  well ;  and, 
particularly,  because  it  is  too  frequently  made  of 
hard  materials,  on  which  a  fish,  unless  very  hungry, 
will  seldom  close  his  mouth  enough  to  get  hooked. 
The  third  is  called  the  kUl-der'd,  and  although,  in 
appearance,  not  near  so  like  a  real  fish  as  the  other, 
yet  it  spins  so  well,  and  is  so  much  softer  in  the 
mouth,  that  it  answers,  I  think,  the  best  of  all  plans, 
when  you  cannot  procure  the  natural  bait.  Any  good 
fishing-tackle  shop  will  furnish  these  articles,  and 
therefore  it  would  be  a  waste  of  time  and  of  paper 
to  give  a  minute  description  of  them. 

WORM-FISHING.  Though  fishing  with  a  lob- 
worm cannot  be  called  trolling,  yet  it  may  be  right, 
en  /W.V.SY////,  merely  to  state,  that  this  is  the  best  way 


172  TROUT    FISHING. 

to  kill  fish  ill  a  mill-hole,  when  the  sun  is  too  bright 
for  the^/%,  or  the  minnow;  and  also  a  very  destructive 
plan  for  night  work.  But  I  name  such  a  diversion 
only  as  a  pastime  for  the  juvenile  performer,  though 
not  with  the  contempt  as  does  Dr.  Johnson,  who  says, 
"  Fly-fishing  may  be  a  very  pleasant  amusement ; 
but  angling,  or  float-fishing,  I  can  only  compare  to  a 
stick  and  a  string,  with  a  worm  at  one  end,  and 
afool  at  the  other." 

If,  however,  the  poor  angler  should  feel  sore  at  the 
wit,  he  might,  in  his  turn  (if  scavenger  enough  to 
descend  to  verbal  criticism),  have  a  little  pleasantry 
with  the  philologer,  by  brandishing  his  rod  and  ex- 
claiming, 

"  almost  as  bad,  good"  Doctor, 

as — a  wag  and  a  worm-fisher,  with  a  comparison  at 
one  end,  and  nothing*  to  compare  with  at  the  other! 
And  when  he  has  put  away  the  stick  and  the  string 
(and  washed  his  hands)  he  may  substantiate  the  pro- 
priety of  his  retort  by  looking  out  the  words  "  com- 
pare—  to"  in  the  doctor's  own  dictionary;  which  we 
should  be  as  unkind  to  the  doctor,  as  he  has  been  to 
the  angler,  if  we  did  not  estimate  as  the  best  authority 
in  existence. 

The  foregoing  subject  has  led  to  a  wide  digression, 
or,  to  have  recourse  to  a  musical  comparison,  has 
thrown  us  into  an  extraordinary  modulation,  which, 
as  the  great  Albrechts  Berger  observes,  "  may  asto- 
nish" but  "  not  please."  By  this  rule,  therefore, 
I  should  not  have  presumed  to  speak  on  what  is 


TROUT    FISHING.  173 

foreign  to  my  subject,  by  introducing  that  of  fishing, 
if  I  had  not  some  example  of  exception  as  authority 
to  do  so/  Isaac  Walton  appears  to  please  every  one  ; 
and  this  gives  me  a  sort  of  license  to  consider  that  I 
may  now  even  go  further  on  the  subject.  Before  dis- 
missing it,  therefore,  I  may  as  well  tell  a  gentleman's 
cook  how  to  dress  a  trout  in  my  shooting  book,  as 
he  introduce  a  milkmaid's  song  in  his  fishing  book, 
particularly  as  eating  is  a  more  general  concern  than 
singing ;  and,  above  all,  as  there  is  not  more  than 
one  cook  in  a  thousand  that  does  not  spoil  every  trout 
in  the  dressing. 

If  a  trout  is  out  of  season,  or  in  poor  condition,  it 
would  be  needless  to  attempt  dressing  it  in  the  ne 
p/u*  ultra  way ;  and,  perhaps,  the  best  simple  recipe 
might  be  to  split  it,  and  broil  it,  with  an  occasional 
touch  of  cold  butter.  But  when  fresh  caught,  and 
in  high  season,  the  way  to  dress  it  is  thus :  - 

Directly  you  have  caught  the  trout,  crimp  it,  with 
about  four  cuts  on  each  side,  taking  care  to  let  the 
Made  of  the  knife  be  in  a  sloping  direction,  so  as  to 
make  every  incision  rather  circular  and  parallel  to 
the  gills ;  instead  of  having  the  blade  of  the  knife 
perpendicular,  by  which  you  would  cut  too  much 
across  the  fleaks,  and  the  fish  would  not  be  near  so 
firm.  Then,  if  you  have  a  pump  at  hand,  let  the 
trout  be  pumped  upon,  as  hard  as  possible,  for  about 
ten  minutes  ;  and  if  not,  the  laying  it  in  cold  spring 
water  will  do  nearly  as  well.  Having  done  this,  put 


174  TROUT    FISHING. 

the  fish  away,  not  in  water  9  but  on  stones ;  or,  in 
short,  in  the  coldest  place  that  can  be  found. 

When  dinner  is  nearly  ready,  clean  the  trout, 
leaving  the  scales  on,  and  pump  on  it  for  a  few 
minutes  more.  Then  have  a  kettle  of  water,  with  a 
large  handful  of  salt,  and  when  the  water  properly 
boils  (but  not  before),  put  the  fish  in  ;  and  an  average 
sized  trout  (say  one  of  a  pound  weight)  will  be  done 
in  about  ten  minutes,  and  should  then  be  sent  im- 
mediately to  table. 

A  trout,  if  possible,  should  always  be  dressed  the 
day  it  is  caught ;  and  never  put  to  soak  and  soften 
over  the  fire,  in  cold  water,  as  is  the  general  custom. 

Remember,  also,  that  if  trout  are  suffered  to  re- 
main in  the  water  after  being  sufficiently  boiled,  they 
will  directly  become  soft,  and  lose  all  the  firmness 
which  is  given  by  this  mode  of  dressing  them. 

It  has  been  remarked  by  many  other  people,  as 
well  as  myself,  that,  of  all  fish  in  existence,  there  is 
not  one  that  you  can  partake  of  so  many  days  in 
succession,  without  ceasing  to  enjoy  it,  as  a  trout, 
provided  it  be  fresh  caught,  and  well  in  season. 
Almost  every  sportsman,  and  every  fishmonger,  has 
his  own  way  of  fancying  that  he  can  tell  when  a  trout 
is  in  season.  As  to  the  red  spots  on  the  skin  having 
any  thing  to  do  with  it,  the  very  idea  is  absurd  and 
fallacious.  But  the  more  general  criterions  are  a 
small  head  and  high  crest,  a  full  tail,  and  the  roof  of 
the  mouth,  or,  what  is  still  better,  the  flesh  under 


TROUT    FISHING.  175 

the  tongue  being  rather  of  a  pink  colour.  Another 
excellent  criterion,  which  wab  explained  to  me  by 
Mr.  Joseph  Miller,  the  fishmonger  in  Piccadilly,  is 
the  smallness  and  tightness  of  the  vent;  for  the 
better  the  trout  is  in  season,  the  smaller  will  be  that 
venthole  which  is  formed  just  before  the  under,  or 
belly,  fin.  And,  after  all,  I  prefer  this,  and  one 
other,  way  of  deciding ;  which  is  by  the  bright  and 
silver-like  appearance  of  the  scales.  Take  twenty 
trout,  and,  I  think,  if  you  dress  them  all,  and  pre- 
viously mark  that  one  on  which  the  scales  shone  the 
brightest,  it  will  prove  to  be  the  best  fish.  This  may 
be  frequently  ascertained,  even  before  you  land  a 
trout,  as  a  bright  one,  on  being  first  hooked,  gene- 
rally gives  two  or  three  leaps  out  of  the  water. 

Before  you  send  trout  on  a  journey,  always  have 
them  cleaned  and  gutted,  and  let  them  be  laid  on 
their  backs,  and  closely  packed  in  willow  (not  flag) 
baskets,  and  with  either  flags  or  dry  wheat  straw. 
Packing  in  damp  grass  or  rushes  is  apt  to  ferment, 
and  therefore  liable  to  spoil  your  fish. 


176  LIST    OF    BIRDS. 

A  LIST  OF  BIRDS, 

&c.  &c. 

WHICH   ARE    MOST    COMMONLY    FOLLOWED    BY 
SHOOTING    SPORTSMEN, 

ALPHABETICALLY  ARRANGED, 

WITH 

THEIR  PROPER  NAMES,  AS  SELECTED  BY  BEWICK;  THE 
LATIN  AND  FRENCH  FOR  THEM,  AS  GIVEN  BY  LINNAEUS 
AND  BUFFON;  AND  OCCASIONAL  DIRECTIONS  RELATIVE 
TO  SHOOTING  THEM. 

IN  selecting  this  list,  it  becomes  a  question  where 
to  draw  the  line  between  those  which  are,  and  those 
which  are  not  considered  sporting  birds ;  but  as  many 
shooters  would  be  eager  to  kill  what  others  would 
scarcely  deign  to  fire  at,  it  is  presumed  that  the  better 
way  will  be,  not  only  to  insert  those  which  are  fol- 
lowed by  the  keen  sportsman,  but  all  that  are  com- 
monly shot  at  for  diversion  or  practice. 

With  regard  to  the  proper  names  of  land  birds, 
there  is  little  difficulty  in  selecting  them ;  but  for 
those  of  water  birds,  and  particularly  wildfowl,  there 
are  so  many  provincial  terms,  that  it  would  be  a  dull 
and  endless  task  to  construe  the  appellations  given 
them  by  the  decoymen,  poulterers,  and  gunners,  into 
their  proper  names  in  natural  history.  For  example  : 
the  duribirds  are  called  redheads  on  the  South  and 
West  Coasts,  and  Parkers  or  half-birds  in  the  fens. 
This  is  also  a  general  term  here  for  all  birds  under 


PROVINCIAL    NAMES    OF    BIRDS.  177 

the  size  of  the  common  wild-duck.  The  morillons 
are  called  douckers  in  Scotland,  and  gingling  curres 
in  the  West.  The  tufted  ducks  are  blue-billed  curres 
on  the  Western,  and  dowers  on  the  Eastern  Coast,  in 
many  parts  round  which  the  wigeon  are  only  known 
by  the  name  of  winder.  The  golden  eye  is  commonly 
called  pied  curre ;  and  the  scaup  duck  is  known  by 
the  name  of  grey-back  curre  in  the  South  and  West, 
and  that  of  tea  I -drake  in  the  North.  For  these,  and 
all  the  various  tribes  of  smaller  wildfowl,  the  decoy- 
men  and  poulterers  have  a  sort  of  sweepstakes  ap- 
pellation, by  putting  them  down  as  dunbirds  and 
dirers.  Again,  there  are  many  absurd  names  for 
other  birds,  such  as  Tommy  Loos  for  the  divers,  Isle 
of  Wight  parsons  for  the  cormorants,  and  so  on. 

On  the  French  Coast,  the  same.  We  here  find  the 
dunbirds,  and  others  of  their  kind,  provincially  called 
vignons ;  the  wigeon,  sarcelles ;  and  coots,  mar- 
car  eux,  &c.  &c.  In  short,  it  would  be  a  waste  of 
time  to  explain  the  nonsensical  terms  by  which  only 
birds  are  known  in  many  places ;  and  more  par- 
ticularly as  the  naturalist  or  sportsman  should  be 
provided  with  "  Bewick,"  which  has  not  only  the 
advantage  of  being  portable  as  a  pocket-companion, 
but  will  answer  his  purpose  far  better  than  any  other 
work,  during  his  pursuit  in  sport,  or  search  of  natural 
history. 

The  birds  marked  thus  (*)  are  those  of  the  Anas 
kind  fit  to  be  eaten,  and  which  are  usually  considered 
as  wildfowl.  For  the  general  pursuit  of  these  specific 

N 


178  BITTEIIN. 

directions  shall  be  given  in  another  part  of  the  work, 
as  my  young  readers  will  be  able  to  understand  them 
better,  after  they  have  received  a  few  lessons  in  shoot- 
ing from  a  punt.  The  following  alphabet,  therefore, 
is  chiefly  intended  as  a  directory  for  the  more  common 
mode  of  shooting. 

In  getting  at  all  wild  birds,  approach  them  cir- 
cuitously,  instead  of  going  directly  up  to  them ;  and 
avoid  looking  full  at  them  until  you  have  got  within 
shot,  or  till  they  shall,  if  flying,  have  come  sufficiently 
close  for  you  to  fire.  If  you  see  a  wild  bird,  when 
unprepared  for  him,  either  continue  your  course 
without  looking  at  him ;  or  instantly  retreat,  and  he 
may  then  probably  sit  quiet  till  you  can  advance  with 
caution  on  him  a  second  time. 

If  a  valuable  bird  lies  wounded,  always  go  up  to 
him  prepared  to  shoot,  lest  he  should  rise  again,  and 
make  his  escape. 

BITTERNS. 

To  know  if  there  are  any  in  the  fens,  send  out  in 
the  evening,  when  they  may  be  seen  on  the  wing, 
and  heard  making  a  hollow  booming  noise.  The 
following  day  you  may  beat  for  them,  with  dogs,  that 
will  either  point  them,  or  hunt  near  enough  to  spring 
them  in  shot;  as  they  will  lie  so  close  among  the 
rushes,  as  to  be  sometimes  nearly  trod  on  before  they 
will  rise.  If  you  wing  a  bittern,  be  careful  that  he 
does  not  strike  you  with  his  beak. 

There  are  two  sorts  of  Bittern;  the  COMMON  one,  otherwise 


BUSTARD— COOT.  179 

called  Bogbumper,  Bitterbum,  or  Miredrum  (ardea  stellaris — le 
butor)  ;  and  the  LITTLE  BITTERN  (at  Sea  minuta — leblongios). 

BUSTARDS. 

From  the  open  plains,  which  they  frequent,  you 
have  fewer  opportunities  of  approaching  bustards  than 
most  other  wild  birds.  They  will,  however,  sometimes 
suffer  carts  and  carriages  to  pass  very  near  them, 
from  which  they  have  been  frequently  shot;  and 
they  are  also  killed  in  places  where  they  have  been 
used  to  see  shepherds,  by  means  of  the  shooter  carry- 
ing a  hurdle  to  conceal  his  gun. 

There  are  two  kinds  of  Bustard  j  the  GREAT,  or  Common 
(otis  tarde — I'outardc)  ;  and  the  LITTLK  BUSTARD  ( otis  tetrax 
—la  petite  outarde}. 

COOTS, 

When  found  in  rivers,  are  scarcely  thought  worth 
firing  at ;  yet  they  are  in  great  requisition  when  they 
arrive  for  the  winter  on  the  coast,  from  the  immense 
numbers  that  may  be  killed  at  a  shot,  as  they  roost 
on  the  mud  banks.  They  are  generally  sold  for 
eighteen-pence  a  couple,  previously  to  which  they 
are  what  is  called  cleaned.  The  recipe  for  this  is, 
after  picking  them,  to  take  off  all  the  black  down,  by 
means  of  powdered  white  rosin  and  boiling  water, 
and  then  to  let  them  soak  all  night  in  cold  spring 
water ;  by  which  they  are  made  to  look  as  delicate 
as  a  chicken,  and  to  eat  tolerably  well ;  but,  without 
this  process,  the  skin,  in  roasting,  produces  a  sort  of 
oil,  with  a  fishy  taste  and  smell ;  and,  if  taken  off, 

N  2 


180  COOT. 

the  bird  becomes  dry,  and  good  for  nothing.  After 
all,  however,  these  birds  are  in  no  way  delicate,  except 
when  skinned ;  and  after  being  soaked  twenty-four 
hours  in  cold  spring  water,  repeatedly  changed,  made 
into  a  pudding,  by  which,  as  with  all  such  birds, 
when  in  puddings,  pies,  or  soup,  you  can  get  rid  of 
their  strong  skins  without  losing  the  juice  of  their 
flesh ;  and  their  fishy  taste  is,  in  a  great  measure, 
drawn  off  by  steam.  (Moorhens  may  be  cleaned 
in  like  manner ;  and,  if  in  good  condition,  they  will 
then  be  nearly  equal  to  any  wildfowl.)  Coots,  when 
on  a  large  pond,  generally  swim  or  flutter  out  of 
reach,  on  being  approached  by  a  shooter ;  and  as  they 
are  not  worth  bestowing  much  trouble  on,  the  best 
way  to  kill  them  is  to  place  yourself  somewhat  con- 
cealed under  the  leeward  bank,  while  another  person 
goes  round,  and  fires  a  gun  to  windward,  before  they 
can  swim  into  any  rushes.  They  will  thenjly  up  in 
great  confusion,  and,  most  likely,  for  some  minutes 
afford  employment  for  a  dozen  guns.  Shoot  well 
forward,  as  one  shot  before  and  under  the  wings  of 
a  coot  will  stop  him  sooner  than  ten  in  the  hinder 
parts.  This,  by  the  way,  should  be  observed  with 
most  other  birds. 

Coots,  when  on  the  coast,  usually  travel  to  wind- 
ward, so  that  a  west  wind  brings  them  to  the  west, 
and  an  easterly  wind  to  the  east*  instead  of  vice  versa, 
as  with  other  fowl.  These  birds  take  such  a  hard 
blow,  and  are  so  tenacious  of  life,  that  you  may  often 
stop  ten  or  twenty  at  a  shot,  and  by  the  time  you 


COOT.  181 

have  got  on  your  mud-boards,  or  made  your  dog  go 
after  them,  not  above  three  or  four  may  be  left  on 
the  spot,  and  the  others,  if  they  have  a  spark  of  life, 
will  swim,  or  what  the  gunners  call  "  skitter"  away. 
The  plan  which  I  have  found  best  for  slaughtering 
the  coots  by  wholesale,  is  either  to  listen  for  them, 
before  daylight,  and  rake  them  down,  at  the  gray  of 
a  white  frosty  morning ;  or  watch  them  at  some  di- 
stance in  the  afternoon,  and  set  into  them  as  late  in 
the  evening  as  you  can  see  to  level  your  gun,  taking 
care,  if  possible,  to  keep  them  under  the  western 
light. 

If  you  think  your  wounded  coots  worth  collecting, 
you  will  find  nothing  like  a  double  gun  to  give  them 
the  coup-de-grace,  as  they  are  sometimes  most  tor- 
menting birds  to  catch  with  a  dog,  or  kill  with  a  pole. 
Coots,  instead  of  drawing  together  before  they  fly 
(like  geese  and  many  other  fowl),  always  disperse  on 
being  alarmed ;  and  as  they  generally  fly  to  wind- 
ward, the  gentlemen's  system  of  wildfowl  shooting 
answers  well,  which  is  to  embark  with  a  party ;  sail 
down  on  them ;  and,  as  they  cross,  luff  up  and  fire 
all  your  barrels.  When  an  infant  at  wild  sport,  I 
used  to  be  mightily  pleased  with  this  diversion.  When 
on  the  coast,  you  may  easily  distinguish  coots  from 
wild  fowl,  by  the  scattered  extent  of  their  line  ;  their 
high  rumps;  their  rapid  swimming ;  and  their  heads 
being  poked  more  forward.  Beware  of  a  winged 
coot,  or  he  will  scratch  vou  like  a  cat. 


182  CORMORANT. 

Naturalists  have  so  far  agreed,  that  there  are  two  sorts  of 
COOTS  (the  GREATER,  and  this,  the  COMMON  BALD  COOT),  that 
for  the  one,  Linnaeus  gives  us  the  name  ofjulica  atray  and  Buffon 
that  oflafoulque,  or  morrelle  ;  and  for  the  other  we  find,  in  the 
Latin,  fulica  alter ima,  and  in  French,  la  grande  foulque,  or 
la  macroule.  But,  after  all,  some  consider  the  one  bird  a  mere 
variety  of  the  other. 

CORMORANTS 

Have  generally  some  regular  evening  course  to 
the  cliffs,  where  they  roost;  and  as  they  fly  low 
towards  sunset,  they  repeatedly  balk  the  young 
shooter,  who  fancies  them  Brentgeese.  But  as  they 
seldom  appear  so  very  late  as  not  to  be  distinguished, 
he  may  perceive  the  difference  by  the  extra  length 
and  sharpness  of  the  head  and  tail;  and  their  oc- 
casionally ceasing  to  flap  their  wings  as  they  fly. 
These  birds  may  be  easily  killed  in  the  breeding  sea- 
son, if  a  shooter  chooses  to  run  the  hazard  of  con- 
cealing himself  about  the  middle  of  the  cliffs.  This 
many  people  do  by  being  let  down,  for  which  some 
use  a  kind  of  saddle,  and  others  a  strong  basket,  or 
finding  places  where  they  can  climb  up  for  some  di- 
stance. But  as  such  dangerous  schemes  are  by  no 
means  to  be  recommended,  I  should  prefer  the  use  of 
a  rifle,  or  content  myself  with  the  few  chance  shots, 
that  could  be  fired  from  a  place  of  safety. 

There  are  three  sorts  of  Cormorants.  The  COMMON  GREAT 
BLACK  one,  alias  Cormorant,  or  Colegoose  (pelicanus  corbo — le 
cormoran)  :  the  Green,  Shag,  Scarfe,  or  Skart  (pelicanus  gra- 
culus — le  petit  cormoran,  or  le  nigaud)  :  the  third  is  the  CRESTED 


CURLEW.  183 

COR vo RANT,  but  for  this  we  have  neither  the  names  of  Linnaeus 
nor  Buffon,  as  it  was  not  ascertained  t^  be  a  distinct  species  till 
a  dissection  of  one  took  place,  subsequent  to  the  works  of  these 
great  authors. 

CURLEW.     Scolopax  arquata — Le  courlis. 

To  get  at  a  flock  of  curlews  on  the  sea-shore,  go 
in  a  small  punt  or  canoe,  when  it  happens  to  be  high 
water  just  after  dusk,  or  before  daybreak  in  a  white 
frost.  They  will  then  be  assembled  by  hundreds  on 
the  small  headlands  of  the  beach,  where  they  are  at 
first  so  cautious  in  alighting,  that  the  various  plans 
of  burying  casks,  &c.  to  wait  in  do  not  always  answer. 
In  approaching  these  birds,  be  careful  to  keep  close 
alongside  and  under  the  shade  o/the  land. 

In  autumn,  the  curlews  from  all  parts  round  the 
neighbouring  coast  will  congregate  in  one  enormous 
cloud,  when  they  have  generally  two  or  three  fa- 
vourite roosting  places.  To  drive  them  to  any  one 
in  particular,  send  a  person  towards  the  others  with 
a  /(intern ;  on  seeing  which,  they  will  immediately 
take  wing,  and  may  be  heard  repairing  to  their  next 
evening  haunt,  with  cries,  which  echo  through  the 
air  for  miles. 

For  curlews  always  contrive  to  have  a  second  gun 
in  reserve,  because  if  you  happen  to  wing  a  curlew, 
he  will  generally  cry  out,  and  thus  entice  the  flock  to 
pitch  down  again  with  him.  You  will  then  most 
probably  get  much  nearer  than  you  might  have  been 
able  to  do  previously  to  your  first  shot. 


184  DEER. 

THE  LITTLE  CURLEW,  or  WHIMBREL.    Scolopax  phceopus 
— Le  petit  courlis. 

These  birds  appear  on  the  shores,  in  small  flocks, 
about  April,  and  are  much  easier  of  access  than  the 
others.  They  are  very  common  in  Romney  Marsh, 
where  they  are  called  "  Curlew  Jacks,"  and  may  be 
killed  in  great  numbers,  without  much  trouble  or 
difficulty.  They  are  then  in  condition,  and  excellent 
eating. 

THE  STONE  CURLEW.    Charadrius  cedicnemus—Le  grand 
pluvier. 

This,  being  altogether  a  land  bird,  is  classed 
among  the  plovers,  and  called  the  great  or  Norfolk 
plover,  and  thick-kneed  bustard. 

This  bird,  although  not  amiss  in  flavour,  is  in 
general  so  dry  and  tough  as  to  be  scarcely  eatable,  ex- 
cept when  young.  There  are  few  sportsmen  who  have 
not  sprung  these  birds  while  crossing  fallow  fields  in 
September,  when  the  young  ones  are  often  found  by 
the  dogs,  in  beating  for  game. 

DEER. 

The  art  of  killing  deer  with  a  rifle  is  so  well 
known  to  every  park-keeper,  that  it  would  be  needless 
to  mention  more  than  the  most  approved  methods  of 
shooting  them.  For  a  deer  standing  sideways  take 
the  forelegs,  the  neck,  or  the  head;  but,  in  firing  at 
the  latter,  be  careful  not  to  shoot  too  forward  or  too 
low,  as  you  would  then  only  break  his  jaw.  A  deer 
facing  you  affords  the  worst  chance  of  all ;  but,  if  he 


DEER.  185 

is  standing/row  you,  it  is  the  best,  as  you  may  then 
take  him  in  the  poll,  or  the  back  of  the  head;  and, 
if  struck  anywhere  in  these  parts,  he  will  come  down. 
For  a  bad  marksman,  or  a  long  shot,  the  surest  way 
to  hit  him  (so  as  to  have  any  effect)  is  to  fire  just 
behind  the  foreleg,  and  pretty  low  down :  this  is  the 
best  and  easiest  target  that  he  can  present,  and  here 
you  will  have  a  chance  of  taking  the  heart.  He  will, 
however,  unless  shot  through  the  neck,  brains,  spine, 
on  forelegs,  generally  bound  away,  and  apparently 
unhurt,  till  he  has  gone  a  considerable  distance :  he 
will  then  begin  to  stagger,  and  fall. 

If  you  have  an  outlying  deer,  and  are  without 
bloodhounds  to  hunt  him  back  to  the  park,  or  wish 
to  save  your  corn  by  shooting  him,  go  out  in  a  sum- 
mer morning  just  after  sunrise,  while  the  dew  is  on 
the  grass,  or  unripe  corn,  and  look  with  caution  into 
every  inclosure,  and  particularly  among  young  peas. 
You  must  be  very  silent,  because,  if  a  buck  hears 
you,  he  will  probably  lie  down  so  close  as  to  escape 
your  notice ;  but,  if  you  go  carefully  and  silently, 
you  will  see  him  feeding,  and  most  likely  at  no  great 
distance  from  a  hedgerow. 

If  he  happens  to  be  near  some  hidden  place,  that 
you  can  approach  without  being  smelt  *  (by  going  to 
windward),  seen,  or  heard  among  the  boughs,  you 
will  probably  get  a  good  shot ;  but,  if  not,  your  best 

*  There  is  a  remedy  to  obviate  this,  which  frequently  answers ; 
and  that  is.  to  carry  before  you  an  armful  of  very  sweet  hay. 


186  DEER. 

chance  is  to  send  some  one  round  to  the  field  beyond, 
and  there  to  walk,  or  ride  along  the  other  side  of  the 
hedgerow,  nearest  which  the  deer  is  feeding.  On 
hearing  this  person,  he  will,  in  all  probability,  either 
lie  down  so  close  as  to  let  you  walk  up  to  him,  or 
come  directly  away  from  the  hedgerow,  opposite  to 
which  you  should  be  concealed.  If  he  is  pretty  wild, 
and  sees  the  man  behind  him,  he  will  come  bounding 
with  such  rapidity,  that  the  most  expert  rifleman 
may  miss  him.  In  this  case,  a  pretty  stout  gun, 
loaded  with  a  mixture  of  mould  and  A  or  B  shot, 
would  be  your  best  chance.  If  with  this,  however, 
you  even  mortally  wound  him,  the  chances  are  twenty 
to  one,  that  he  continues  his  course  with  unabated 
speed ;  so  that,  instead  of  beginning  to  despair,  you 
must  follow  him  up  as  fast  as  possible,  by  doing 
which,  you  will  most  likely  find  him  dying  in  some 
hedgerow,  a  few  fields  distant.  For  this  purpose  a 
Newfoundland  dog  is  very  useful,  as  the  moment  the 
dog  has  run  up  to  him  in  the  covert  he  will  begin 
bellowing  so  loud  as  to  be  easily  discovered. 

To  approach  a  buck  in  an  open  field,  crawl  as  low 
as  possible  on  the  ground,  and  hold  before  you  a 
green  bough,  which,  if  there  is  a  hedge  or  wood  be- 
hind, will  appear  so  confused  with  it,  that  he  will 
often  suffer  you  to  come  within  rifle  shot. 

The  outlying  deer  usually  browse  all  day  among 
the  thickets,  where,  amidst  the  verdure  of  the  sum- 
mer leaf  and  herbage,  they  are  very  difficult,  to  be 
seen.  They  are  particularly  fond  of  apples,  and  the 


DIVERS.  187 

poachers  in  the  cider  counties,  well  aware  of  this, 
make  frequent  use  of  the  apple  pummice. 

The  three  sorts  of  deer  common  in  Great  Britain  are  the 
FALLOW,  already  mentioned  (cervus  dama — le  dain)  ;  the  RED, 
or  Stag  (cervus  elephas — le  cerf);  and  the  ROEBUCK  (cervus 
capreolus — le  chevreuil). 

The  two  last  are  now  chiefly  confined  to  the  high- 
lands of  Scotland.  The  latter  of  them,  being  very 
small,  is  generally  killed  with  common  large  shot. 
The  sportsmen  place  themselves  at  the  leeward  end 
of  a  long  wood,  or  planting^  which  the  keepers  go 
round  for  a  great  distance,  in  order  to  draw  regularly 
down  the  whole  range  of  coverts.  By  this  means 
the  hares  and  roes  are  at  last  driven  out  before  the 
guns. 

With  regard  to  red  deer,  I  regret  to  say,  that  I 
have  never  had  any  opportunity  of  shooting  them, 
and  therefore  I  should  be  a  quack  to  pretend  giving 
instructions  on  the  subject.  I  do  not,  however,  abuse 
it  because  I  am  ignorant  of  it  f  on  the  contrary,  I 
should  conceive  it  to  be  most  noble  sport. 

DIVERS. 

To  shoot  a  diver,  when  he  is  fishing  up'a  creek  at 
low  water,  contrive  to  get  your  boat  below  him ;  as, 
although  he  will  perhaps  rather  dive  close  by  you 
than  suffer  himself  to  be  hunted  up  to  a  shallow 
place,  yet  he  will,  at  last,  be  so  much  in  need  of 
breath,  that,  by  firing  the  instant  he  comes  upy  you 


188  DUCKS. 

may  be  able  to  kill  him.  The  large  divers  are  most 
savage  birds,  and  will,  if  wounded  and  driven  to  ex- 
tremity, attack  either  man,  dog,  or  boat.  To  kill 
divers  along  shore,  peep  over  the  banks  in  windy 
weather,  when  they  are  not  so  apt  to  duck  the  flash. 
Suffice  it  to  say,  that  of  those  birds,  which  are 
literally  and  properly  called  divers,  there  are  seven 
kinds  to  be  found  in  Great  Britain,  exclusive  of  six 
others,  which  are  separately  classed  as  the  Genus 
Mergus. 

DUCKS. 

Including  all  the  various  kinds  of  wild  fowl,  which 
are  common  in,  and  occasionally  migrate  to  this 
country,  there  are  sixteen,  which  come  under  the 
denomination  of  ducks. 

*  BIMACULATED,  or  CLUCKING  DUCK.     Anas  glociians — 
French  not  given. 

BLACK  DUCK,  or  SCOTER.     Anas  nigra — La  macreuse. 

BURROUGH   DUCK,    or   SHELDRAKE.      Anas  tadorna — La 
tadorne. 

The  young  sheldrakes,  directly  after  being  hatched 
in  the  rabbit  burrows,  are  taken  by  the  parent  birds 
to  the  sea,  where  they  may  be  seen  in  what  the  boat- 
men call  troops  of  from  thirty  to  forty ;  but,  as  the 
female  seldom  hatches  more  than  fourteen  eggs,  it 
is  clear,  that  each  flock  is  formed  by  two  or  three 
broods.  On  their  being  approached,  the  old  ones  fly 


DUCKS.  189 

away,  and  leave  the  young  to  shift  for  themselves  by 
diving.  They  may  be  easily  shot  when  they  come 
up ;  but  you  can  seldom  kill  more  than  one  or  two 
at  a  time,  as  they  always  disperse  before  you  can  get 
very  near  them. 

These  birds  show  but  tame  sport  with  a  gun,  and 
are  good  for  nothing  when  killed.  But,  in  winter 
nights,  they  often  give  you  a  fine  shot  on  the  mud, 
though  they  are  so  white  that  you  can  seldom  per- 
ceive them,  even  afloat,  without  a  good  moon.  Be 
prepared  to  fire  directly  you  rise ;  as  they,  being 
very  quick-sighted  birds,  will  give  you  but  little  time 
to  present  your  gun. 

You  may  keep  young  Burrough  ducks  for  five  or 
six  weeks,  provided  you  give  them  crums  of  bread, 
and  only  a  little  water  three  times  a  day.  But  if  you 
let  them  get  into  the  water >  or  even  drink  too  much, 
before  they  are  full-grown,  and  fit  to  be  turned  out 
on  your  pond,  you  are  almost  sure  to  kill  them.  This 
appears  quite  a  paradox  with  birds  that,  in  their  wild 
state,  are  always  in  the  water !  But,  such  is  the  case. 

*  COMMON  WILD  DUCK.     Anas  boschas—Le  canard  sau- 
vage. 

The  male  bifd  of  which  is  called  mallard,  and  the 
young  ones  flappers.  To  find  a  brood  of  these,  go, 
about  July,  and  hunt  the  rushes  in  the  deepest  and 
most  retired  parts  of  some  brook  or  trout  stream ; 
where,  if  you  spring  the  old  duck,  you  may  be  pretty 
sure  that  the  brood  is  not  far  off.  When  once 


190  DUCKS. 

found,  flappers  are  easily  killed,  as  they  attain  their 
full  growth  before  their  wings  are  fledged ;  and  for 
this  reason,   the  sport  is   often   more  like  hunting 
water  rats  than  shooting  birds. 

If  you  leave  the  brood,  after  having  disturbed 
them,  the  old  bird  will  remove  them  to  another  place 
long  before  the  following  day. 

When  the  flappers  take  wing  they  assume  the 
name  of  wild  ducks.  About  the  month  of  August 
they  repair  to  the  corn  fields,  till  disturbed  by  the 
harvest  people.  They  then  frequent  the  rivers  pretty 
early  in  the  evening,  and  show  excellent  sport  to  any 
one,  who  has  patience  to  wait  for  them.  Our  sporting 
writers  in  general  have  given  no  further  directions 
for  duck  shooting  than  to  walk  quietly  up  a  brook, 
and  shoot  them  as  they  rise.  In  doing  this,  if  you 
have  only  a  single  gun,  and  should  spring  a  bird  at 
an  uncertain  distance,  halloo  out  before  you  shoot,  as 
there  may  be  others  under  a  bank,  and  much  closer 
to  you,  that  would  spring  on  the  discharge  of  your 
gun. 

You  need  not  be  at  a  loss  to  know  a  wild  duck. 
The  claws  in  the  wild  species  are  black. 

Some  sportsmen  recommend  common  land  spaniels 
for  duck-shooting,  and  nothing  is  more  common  than 
to  see,  in  a  picture,  a  smart  looking  Tyro  attacking 
a  flock  of  wild  fowl  with  two  open-mouthed  dogs  of 
this  description.  This  is  an  art  we  have  yet  to 
learn ;  and,  I  conceive,  the  best  recipe  to  acquire  it 
would  be,  first  to  tie  the  ducks  by  their  legs,  taking 


DUCKS.  191 

care  not  to  do  as  the  Italian  once  did  with  a  hare, 
that  he  bought  and  tied  up,  in  order  to  win  his  wager 
of  shooting  one— blow  off  the  string,  and  set  the 
game  at  liberty.  I  must,  therefore,  to  be  on  the 
safer  side,  recommend  my  young  pupils  to  use  either 
a  Newfoundland  dog,  a  mute  water  spaniel,  or  an 
old  pointer  that  will  keep  close,  and  fetch  dead  birds. 

EIDER,  ST.  CUTHBERT'S,  or  GREAT  BLACK  AND  WHITE  DUCK. 
Anas  mollissima.'—L'eider. 

*  FERRUGINOUS  DUCK.     Anas  rutila—No  French  to  be 

found  for  this. 

*  GOLDEN-EYE  DUCK.     Anas  clangula—Le  garrot. 

*  GRAY  DUCK,  or  GADWALL.     Anas  strepera — Le  ckipeau. 

LONGTATLED  DUCK,  or  SWALLOWTAILBD  SHELDRAKE.  Anas 
glacialis — Canard  de  miclon. 

*  MORRILLON.     Anas  glaucion—Le  morillon. 

*  PINTAILED  DUCK,  WINTER  DUCK,   SEA  PHEASANT,  or 

CRACKER.     Anas  acuta — Le  canard  &  longue  queue. 

*  SCAUP  DUCK.     Anas  marila — For  this  we  have  not  the 

name  by  BufFon,  though  I  am  pretty  sure  I  have  seen  scaup 
ducks  on  the  coast  of  Normandy,  where,  with  the  dunbirds, 
they  are  collectively  called  les  vignons. 

*  SHOVELLER,  KERTLUTOCK,  or  BROADBILLED  DUCK.     Anas 

clypeata — Le  souchet. 

Birds  of  this  kind  are  more  common  in  the  fens  of 
Norfolk  than  in  those  other  marshy  parts  of  England 


192  DUNBIRD  — -FIELDFARE. 

which  lie  further  from  Holland.  The  Shovellers 
breed  in  Norfolk,  where  they  are  called  "  Becks" 
and,  in  some  places,  "  Scopper -bills"  The  flappers 
of  this  species  are  easier  found,  and  show  more  sport 
than  those  of  the  common  wild-duck.  Their  flesh, 
too,  I  think,  is  of  a  superior  flavour. 

There  is  a  variety  of  this  kind,  called  the  red- 
breasted  Shoveller,  for  which,  as  well  as  all  other 
varieties  of  wildfowl,  I  have  found  the  coast  of  Nor- 
folk to  be  the  best.  This,  no  doubt,  is  in  conse- 
quence of  its  being  the  nearest  to  Holland ;  from 
whence  there  are  driven  across  the  channel,  by  a 
strong  easterly  wind,  many  birds  that  will  seldom 
travel  further  to  the  westward. 

*  TUFTED  DUCK.     Anasfuligula—Le  petit  morillon. 

Why  this  is  called  by  Brisson  "  the  little  morillon" 
I  am  at  a  loss  to  discover,  as  the  other  morillon  is  in 
every  respect  the  smaller  bird  of  the  two.  This  is 
well  known  to  all  wildfowl  shooters  ;  and  Mr.  Bewick 
corroborates  it  in  his  quoted  statement  of  weight  and 
dimensions. 

VELVET  DUCK,  GREAT  BLACK  DUCK,  or  DOUBLE  SCOTER. 
Anas  fusca — La  grande  macreuse. 

*  DUNBIRD,    POCHARD,    or    GREATHEADED 

WIGEON.      Anas  Jerina — Penelope,  le   mil- 
louin. 

FIELDFARE.     Tardis  pilaris— La  tourdelle. 
As  long  as  the  berries  remain  on  the  hedges,  field- 


GANNET.  193 

fares  continue  in  the  uplands,  and  are  very  fat ;  but 
afterwards  they  betake  themselves  to  the  water  mea- 
dows, and  feed  on  worms.  These  birds  are  then 
the  "  head  game"  for  schoolboys,  and  people  who  go 
hedge-popping  during  the  Christmas  holidays.  They 
are,  however,  scarcely  tame  enough  for  this  diversion 
till  they  have  somewhat  lost  their  condition  by  hard 
weather.  As  fieldfares  are  so  dispersed  when  feed- 
ing, the  only  way  to  get  five  or  six  at  a  shot  is  to 
hide  under  some  place  near  the  trees,  which  they  fly 
to  on  being  disturbed,  and  on  which  they  will  collect, 
if  some  one  goes  round  to  drive  them  from  the  water 
meadows. 

40. 

GANNET,  GAN,  or  SOLAN  GOOSE.  Pelicanus 
Bassanus — Lefou  de  Bassan. 

Gannets  are  occasionally  seen  on  almost  every 
coast,  at  times  when  the  shoals  of  herrings  are  most 
abundant ;  and,  in  stormy  weather,  they  come  pretty 
near  to  land,  where,  like  large  seagulls,  they  may  be 
seen  hovering  over  the  foaming  surge.  These  birds 
may  be  easily  distinguished  from  the  gulls  by  the 
additional  length  of  their  necks,  and  the  sharp  black 
ends  of  their  wings,  the  motion  of  which  is,  at  times, 
more  like  that  of  the  heron. 

The  sailors  sometimes  catch  these  birds,  by  fasten- 
ing a  fresh  herring  on  a  floating  plank,  against  which 
the  gannet's  neck  is  broken,  when  furiously  pouncing 
on  his  prey. 

With  regard  to  the  swarms  of  solan  geese,  which 

o 


194  GANNET. 

breed  on  the  islands  near  North  Britain,  and  the 
manner  by  which  the  fowler  may  distinguish  their 
alarm,  I  find,  that  precisely  what  I  should  have  ob- 
served is  already  so  much  more  ably  described,  that 
I  consider  it  better  to  quote  the  accounts  from  Dr. 
Harvey  (as  translated  in  Pennant),  Bewick,  and 
Martin,  than  attempt  any  one  of  my  own,  which 
would  be  a  mere  corroboration  of  what  these  authors 
have  asserted. 

"  There  is  a  small  island,  called  by  the  Scotch, 
Bass  Island,"  in  the  Frith  of  Forth,  "  not  more  than 
a  mile  in  circumference  :  the  surface  is  almost  wholly 
covered,  during  the  months  of  May  and  June,  with 
nests,  eggs,  and  young  birds,  so  that  it  is  scarcely 
possible  to  walk  without  treading  on  them ;  and  the 
flocks  of  birds  in  flight  are  so  prodigious,  as  to  darken 
the  air  like  clouds  ;  and  their  noise  is  such,  that  you 
cannot,  without  difficulty,  hear  your  next  neighbour's 
voice.  If  you  look  down  upon  the  sea  from  the  top 
of  the  precipice,  you  will  see  it  on  every  side  covered 
with  infinite  numbers  of  birds  of  different  kinds, 
swimming  and  hunting  for  their  prey ;  if,  in  sailing 
round  the  island,  you  survey  the  hanging  cliffs,  you 
may  see,  in  every  crag  or  fissure  of  the  broken 
rocks,  innumerable  birds,  of  various  sorts  and  sizes, 
more  than  the  stars  of  heaven  when  viewed  in '  a 
serene  night.  If  from  afar  you  see  the  distant  flocks, 
either  flying  to  or  from  the  island,  you  would  imagine 
them  to  be  a  vast  swarm  of  bees." 

This  island  is  "  farmed  out  at  a  considerable  rent 


GARGANEY.  19'5 

for  the  eggs  of  the  various  kinds  of  water  fowl,  with 
which  it  swarms ;  and  the  produce  of  the  solan  geese 
forms  a  large  portion  of  the  rent ;  for  great  numbers 
of  their  young  ones  are  taken  every  season,  and  sold 
in  Edinburgh  for  twenty-pence  each,  where  they  are 
esteemed  a  favourite  dish,  being  generally  roasted 
and  eat  before  dinner." 

"  The  solan  geese  have  always  some  of  their  num- 
ber that  keep  watch  in  the  night-time ;  and  if  the 
centinel  be  surprised,  as  it  often  happens,  all  that 
flock  are  taken  one  after  another ;  but  if  the  centinel 
be  awake  at  the  approach  of  the  creeping  fowlers, 
and  hear  a  noise,  he  cries,  softly,  grog,  grog,  at  which 
the  flock  do  not  move ;  but  if  this  centinel  see  or 
hear  the  fowler  approaching,  he  cries  softly  bir,  bir, 
which  would  seem  to  import  danger,  since,  imme- 
diately after,  all  the  tribe  take  wing,  leaving  the 
disappointed  fowlers  without  any  prospect  of  success 
for  that  night." 

Notwithstanding  that  the  young  gannets  may  be 
considered  a  delicacy,  the  old  ones  are  so  fishy  as  to 
be,  in  general,  scarcely  eatable. 

*  GARGANEY.      Anas    querquedula — La    sar- 

celle. 

Birds  of  this  description  are  frequently  killed  in 
the  fens  of  Norfolk,  where  they  sometimes  breed, 
and  are  called  summer  teal. 


196  GEESE. 

GEESE. 

There  are  six  wild  sorts  which  visit  Great  Bri- 
tain. 

*  BEAN  GOOSE. 

A  variety  of  the  common  one. 

*  BERNACLE,  TREEGOOSE,  or  CLARIS.     Anas   erythropus — 

La  bernacle. 

Most  common  in  Scotland  and  Ireland. 

*  BRENT  GOOSE.     Anas  bernicla — Le  cravant. 

To  kill  Brent  geese  by  day,  get  out  of  sight  in  a 
small  punt  at  low  water,  and  keep  as  near  as  possible 
to  the  edge  of  the  sea.  You  will  then  hear  them 
coming,  like  a  pack  of  hounds  in  full  cry,  and  they 
will  repeatedly  pass  within  fair  shot,  provided  you 
are  well  concealed,  and  the  weather  is  windy  to  make 
them  fly  low.  Before  you  fire  at  them,  spring 
suddenly  up,  and  these  awkward  birds  will  be  in 
such  a  fright  as  to  hover  together,  and  present  a 
mark  like  a  barn  door. 

COMMON  WILD   GOOSE,  GREYLAG.     Anas  anser—L'oie 
sauvage. 

This,  for  the  market  or  table,  is  a  far  inferior  bird 
to  the  Bernacle,  or  even  the  Brent  goose,  and  has 
but  little  to  recommend  it  farther  than  the  pleasure 
of  killing  it.  The  common  GRAY  wild  geese  may 


GEESE.  197 

be  always  distinguished  by  their  flying  in  a  figure. 
These  birds,  instead  of  repairing  to  the  coast,  like 
other  geese,  prefer  keeping  inland,  where  they  feed 
on  the  green  wheat  by  day,  and  in  the  flooded  water 
meadows  at  night.  Wild  geese,  when  feeding  by 
day,  take  care  to  choose  an  open  plain.  You  have 
therefore  no  means  of  getting  near  them,  unless  they 
are  very  tired,  from  having  just  arrived  after  a  long 
flight.  I  have  once  or  twice,  however,  got  shots  at 
them  by  taking  one  of  the  horses  from  a  plough- 
team,  and  walking  under  cover  of  him,  with  a  large 
gun.  Some  use  a  stalking-horse,  the  skin  of  a  cow, 
and  various  other  contrivances ;  which,  after  all, 
seldom  answer  for  geese,  although  they  may  for 
golden  plover,  and  other  less  artful  birds.  The 
surest  way,  therefore,  to  kill  them,  is  to  let  any  one, 
who  works  in  the  water  meadows,  ascertain  what 
parts  they  have  used  (which  he  will  see  by  their 
dung  and  feathers),  and  then  wait  for  them  at  dusk, 
in  some  ambush,  that  commands  the  fresh  places 
adjoining.  Contrive,  if  possible,  to  get  the  line  of  a 
dyke  or  drain,  so  as  to  take  their  company  on  the 
flank. 

Let  the  man  who  goes  after  geese,  or  any  wild 
birds  in  the  snow,  dress  as  white  as  he  can,  and  take 
a  white  cotton  nightcap  ready  to  put  on  before  he 
begins  crawling  after  them ;  or  to  a  certainty  they 
will  catch  sight  of  his  head,  and  be  off. 


198  GOD  WITS. 

[EGYPTIAN    GOOSE,    GANSER,   or   GAMBO   goose.     Anas 
JEgyptiaca — L'oie  d'Egypte. 

Two  of  these  birds  appeared  some  years  ago  in 
Norfolk,  one  of  which  was  killed  by  John  Ponton, 
Esq.,  and  the  other  by  his  keeper.  Three  Egyptian 
geese  were,  for  some  days,  in  the  winter  of  1823,  in 
the  fields  of  Longparish,  and  after  being  fired  at 
about  ten  times,  the  old  gander  was  killed  by  one  of 
the  labourers.  I  was  informed  that  they  were  at  first 
so  easy  of  access,  that  I  then  concluded  they  must 
have  taken  flight  from  some  gentleman's  pond.  The 
next  year  again,  during  the  tremendous  gales  from 
the  west,  a  flock  of  about  eighty  !  appeared  near  the 
same  place,  and  two  more  were  killed,  and  sent  me, 
by  the  same  man.  I  have,  therefore,  no  doubt  of 
their  importation,  instead  of  migration,  to  this  coun- 
try.— I  suppose  these  birds  were,  till  of  late  years, 
very  scarce,  as  Mr.  Bewick  could  procure  no  specimen 
for  his  admirable  work.] 

*  REDBREASTED,  SIBERIAN  GOOSE.     Anser  nificolis. 

A  rare  and  very  delicate  species. 

*  WHITEFRONTED,  or  LAUGHING  GOOSE.     Anas  albifrons 

— L'oie  rieuse. 

GODWITS. 

There  are  eight  sorts  of  godwits,  including  the 
small  redshank. 

The  red  godwit  is  spoken  of  as  a  delicious  and 


GREBES — GROUSE.  199 

scarce  bird.  I  have,  however,  killed  several  of  them 
on  the  coast  of  Kent ;  but  always  considered  the  gray 
godwit  as  the  best  worth  shooting.  There  is  no 
great  art  required  to  kill  these  birds.  In  hard  wea- 
ther they  are  scattered  on  the  shores,  and  in  spring 
they  may  be  easily  shot  when  flying  about  in  the 
marshes. 

GREBES. 

There  are  seven  sorts,  including  the  little  river 
dobchick. 

These  birds,  in  evading  the  flash  of  a  gun,  are 
even  quicker  than  the  divers. 

The  large  grebes  are  worth  shooting  for  the  sake 
of  their  skins,  which  make  excellent  tippets  and  tra- 
velling caps. 

GROUSE. 

There  are  three  kinds  of  grouse,  exclusive  of  the 
wood  grouse,  or  capercaile  (a  Swedish  bird,  that  is 
given  in  Bewick  as  having  formerly  been  known  to 
visit  this  country),  the  same  species  of  which  so  many 
were  lately  brought  to  London  by  the  Laplanders, 
and  which  were  sold  at  the  poulterers  by  the  name  of 
kappercally. 

BLACK  GROUSE,  or  BLACK  COCK.     Tebrao  tetrix—Le  coq 
de  bruyere,  a  queue  four  chue. 

To  shoot  a  black  cock  (in  the  winter),  when  he 
becomes  wild,  you  should  wait  near,  or  in  the  direc- 


200  BLACK-GAME    SHOOTING. 

tion  of,  the  larch  firs,  for  which  he  flies  to  perch : 
and  send  some  one  round  to  drive  him  from  the 
stubble,  where,  about  sunrise,  the  black  game  may 
be  seen  feeding  like  rooks. — In  the  North,  &c.,  the 
female  of  this  species  is  called  gray-hen,  but  in  the 
New  Forest  both  male  and  female  are  collectively 
named  heathpoults. 

The  black-game  rise  somewhat  like  a  young  phea-. 
sant,  and  are,  I  conceive,  to  one  divested  of  anxiety, 
and  in  good  nerve,  easy  birds  to  shoot : — more  so  than 
a  grouse  or  a  partridge. 


BLACK-GAME    SHOOTING,    ON    THE    BORDERS    OF    HANTS 
AND  DORSET. 


At  the  commencement  of  the  season,  the  black- 
game  here  lie  tolerably  well,  and  particularly  if  the 
weather  is  so  hot  as  to  drive  them  down  to  the 
bogs.  The  gray -hen  generally  remains  with  the 
pack,  which  seldom  consists  of  more  than  five  or  six 
birds.  Nine  or  ten  is  considered  a  very  large  pack, 
except  in  winter,  when  the  cock  birds  all  congregate 
together  in  one  flock ;  and,  in  general,  defy  every  kind 
of  fair  shooting,  as  well  as  the  few  bungling  artifices 
that  gamekeepers  are  master  of,  with  regard  to  wild 
birds.  The  keepers'  only  chance,  therefore,  is  to 
wait  concealed  for  their  flight;  as  a  black-cock, 
although  one  of  the  wildest  birds  in  existence,  will, 
when  once  on  the  wing,  seldom  break  his  course  or 


BLACK-GAME    SHOOTING.  201 

raise  his  flight,  let  what  will  intercept  him.  The 
old  cock  birds,  even  at  the  beginning  of  the  season, 
are  very  difficult  of  access  ;  as,  on  being  approached, 
they  keep  running  forward  instead  of  remaining  with 
the  pack. 

The  best,  or,  at  all  events,  one  of  the  best  day's 
black-game  shooting  that  was  ever  known,  I  believe, 
in  these  parts,  I  had  with  my  old  friend  and  brother 
sportsman,  Mr.  John  Ponton  of  Uddens  House,  on 
the  25th  of  last  August*.  We  found,  on  this  gen- 
tleman's manor,  eleven  brace  in  one  day,  which  was 
considered,  by  the  keepers,  extraordinary  success ; 
and  we  killed  eight  brace  without  missing  a  shot. 
But  notwithstanding  all  our  birds  were  as  strong, 
and  as  large,  as  the  old  ones,  we  never  even  saw  an 
old  cock  the  whole  day. 

The  black-game  here  are  briefly  called  "poults." 
The  fagging  for  them  is  the  hardest  labour  of  any 
sport  I  know,  because  you  have  to  work,  in  the 
hottest  weather,  through  stiff  heath,  which  is  so 
much  intercepted  by  fir  plantations  and  bogs,  as,  for 
the  most  part,  to  prevent  your  riding ;  and,  from  the 
very  few  shots  that  you  are  likely  to  get  in  a  day, 
you  have  not  the  same  encouragement,  as  in  the 

*  Black-game  shooting,  as  will  be  seen  by  the  game  laws  here- 
after inserted,  does  not  begin  in  the  New  Forest,  nor  in  Devon- 
shire nor  Somersetshire,  till  the  1  st  of  September.  But  every 
where  else  the  first  day  is  the  20th  of  August.  Not  being  in  the 
bounds  of  the  New  Forest,  therefore,  we  began  even  five  days  after 
the  time  ;  consequently  were  not  transgressing  the  law,  as  it  might 
appear,  without  this  explanation. 


202  GUINEAFOWL. 

abundant  sport  of  grouse  shooting.  But  notwith- 
standing all,  I  was  never  so  much  pleased  with  any 
day's  sport  as  with  my  first  day's  black-game  shoot- 
ing in  England. 

RED  GROUSE,  GORCOCK,  or  MOORCOCK  (the  common  muir 
game).     Tetrao  Scoticus — L'attagas. 

WHITE  GROUSE,  or  PTARMIGAN.     Tetrao  lagopus—Le  la- 
gopede. 

These  birds,  instead  of  becoming  wild  in  the 
winter,  like  the  two  others,  may,  at  any  time,  be 
easily  shot,  if  we  can  but  reach  the  almost  inacces- 
sible parts  of  the  northern  mountains  which  they 
frequent. 

They  may  here  be  seen  on  the  ground,  standing 
with  the  greatest  composure,  and  looking  like  white 
pigeons ;  and  are  not  unfrequently  killed  with  sticks 
or  stones. 

GUINEAFOWL,   PINTADO,    or  PEARLED-HEN. 

Numidia  meleagris — La  pinlade. 
Although  guineafowls,  as  well  as  turkeys,  and 
even  peacocks,  are  sometimes  turned  out  in  gentle- 
men's preserves,  yet  they  can  only  be  considered  as 
poultry ;  and  my  sole  reason,  therefore,  for  making 
mention  of  them  is  to  observe  what  excellent  birds 
they  are  to  give  the  alarm,  in  the  event  of  poachers 
entering  a  covert,  or  thieves  lurking  about  your  pre- 
mises by  night. 


GULLS HARES.  203 

GULLS. 

There  are  thirteen  sorts  of  gulls ;  and  as  these  are 
birds  which  no  one  would  ever  think  of  dressing,  it 
is  not  generally  known,  that,  although  scarcely  eat- 
able in  any  other  way,  they  make  an  excellent  sub- 
stitute of  giblet  soup :  for  this  purpose  their  skins 
must  be  taken  off. 

If  you  shoot  a  gull,  let  him  lie,  and  the  others 
will  keep  flying  about  the  place.  You  will  always 
observe  that  gulls,  terns 9  or  sea  swallows  *,  &c.  con- 
trive ivface  you  in  hovering  round;  knowing  that 
they  are  almost  impenetrable  when  in  this  direction ; 
prefer  therefore  shooting  at  them  in  any  other,  as 
you  will  then  have  more  chance  of  bringing  them 
down,  although  at  three  times  the  distance. 

HARES. 

Always  endeavour  to  shoot  a  hare  crossing,  and 
consider  the  head  as  your  object.  Withhold  shooting 
at  her  when  coming  to  you,  until  she  is  very  close,  or. 
her  skull  will  act  as  a  shield  against  your  charge. 

If  a  hare  canters  past,  and  you  are  behind  a  hedge 
at  feeding  time,  she  will  often  stop,  and  sit  up  if 
you  whistle.  This  I  name  to  facilitate  a  shot  for  a 
schoolboy. 

Of  these  there  are  two  sorts ;  the  COMMON  (Lepus 

*  These  birds  breed  by  thousands  on  the  large  tract  of  shingle, 
by  Dungeness  and  Lydd,  where  they  are  called  kipps.  Their 
eggs  are  sold  in  great  numbers  among  those  of  the  greenplover 
or  peewit. 


204  HERON. 

timidus—Le  lievre);  and  the  ALPINE  or  WHITE 
HAKE,  which  frequents  the  highland  mountains,  and 
goes  to  earth  (or  rather  into  the  clefts  of  rock)  like  a 
fox. 

HERON,  or  HERONSHAW.  Ardea  major — Le 
heron  hupe. 

Although  one  of  the  most  difficult  birds  to  approach 
by  land,  yet  the  heron  is  not  quite  so  shy  of  a  boat 
as  might  be  expected.  The  best  time  to  kill  herons 
is  to  wait  for  them,  at  dusk  or  by  moonlight,  either 
near  the  brooks,  rivers,  or  watermeadows,  or  under 
the  trees  adjoining,  on  which  they  often  assemble 
before  they  begin  their  havock  among  the  fisheries. 
The  shooter  may  either  remain  in  a  dark  dress  against 
a  bush  or  hedge ;  or  in  a  light-coloured  punt  and  light 
dress  on  the  water;  where  he  should  keep  by  the  side, 
or  under  the  shade  of  the  bank.  The  herons  will,  in 
either  of  these  situations,  come  close  to  him  before 
they  can  see  him ;  and  from  the  latter  one  he  may 
float  down  stream  (keeping  close  to  the  leeward  bank) 
and  kill  them  from  his  boat.  He  may  bring  them 
down  farther  than  most  other  birds,  as  they  are  a 
large  mark,  and  yet  require  but  very  little  shot. 

The  best  way  to  shoot  herons  by  day  is  either  with 
a  rifle,  or  by  the  following  contrivance. — These  birds, 
when  they  have  done  fishing,  generally  seek  the  safety 
of  an  open  plain,  where,  with  their  long  necks,  they 
can  see  an  approaching  enemy  so  well,  that  you  can 
seldom  get  nearer  (particularly  if  on  foot)  than  about 


KNOT — LANDRAIL.  205 

wo  hundred  yards.  Go,  therefore,  when  it  blows  a 
strong  gale  of  wind,  on  a,  fast  galloping  horse,  and 
ret  as  near  as  possible  to  them  on  the  leeward  side. 
Fhe  moment  the  herons  begin  to  rise,  charge  for 
;hem  at  full  speed ;  and,  before  they  can  possibly 
nake  head  against  the  wind,  you  will  either  get  under 
lhem,  or  they  will  fly  over  you,  and  very  seldom  out 
)f  gun  shot.  The  only  obstacle  is  the  chance  of 
missing  them,  from  the  difficulty  of  keeping  the 
dorse  sufficiently  steady  to  shoot  from  his  back,  im- 
mediately after  being  pulled  up  from  a  gallop. 

KNOT,  KNUTE,  or  KNOUT.      Tringa  canutis— 

Le  canut. 

A  bird  which,  like  the  ruffs  and  reeves,  is  more 
easily  caught  by  nets  than  shot;  as  the  knot,  like 
the  others,  keeps  running  under  the  high  reeds,  where 
it  cannot  well  be  followed  up,  and  then  is  apt  to 
spring  out  of  gunshot.  The  knots,  if  they  remain 
in  England,  when  the  fens  are  frozen,  will  sometimes 
repair  to  the  coast.  There  they  are  much  easier  of 
access  than  either  the  curlews  or  gray  plovers. 

LANDRAIL,  CORNCRAKE,  or  DAKERHEN.  Eattus 

crex — Le  rale  de  genet. 

To  find  a  landrail,  always  make  choice  of  a  clover 
field;  and  if  that  does  not  offer,  try  beans,  potatoes, 
or  beds  of  young  withey.  Landrails  are  now  most 
plentiful  in  Ireland. 


206  LARK. 

To  call  them  in  the  evening,  go  behind  a  hedge 
near  the  swaths  of  corn,  with  two  bones;  one  of 
which  must  be  notched  like  a  saw,  the  other  plain ; 
and  by  drawing  the  one  down  the  serrated  part  of 
the  other,  you  will  produce  a  noise,  which  so  far 
imitates  their  call,  as  often  to  draw  them  close  to 
your  place  of  concealment. 

There  are  two  sorts  of  rails,  which  may  be  named 
after  speaking  of  the  landrail ;  but,  from  their  being 
water  birds,  or  rather  waders,  which  inhabit  only 
the  sedge  and  places  near  rivers,  they  are  very  widely 
distinguished  in  natural  history.  The  one  is  the 

COMMON  WATER-RAIL,  and  the  other  the 

SPOTTED  WATER-RAIL,  SPOTTED  GALLINULE,  or  WATER 
CRAKE. 

Notwithstanding  these  two  are  seldom  regarded 
by  sportsmen,  yet  there  is  scarcely  a  greater  delicacy 
than  either  the  one  or  the  other. 

In  shooting  all  kinds  of  rails  press  them  very 
hard,  or  you  will  have  difficulty  to  get  them  on  wing. 
If  they  are  in  a  hedge,  go  a-head  of  your  dogs,  and 
shake  it  before  them.  Having  once  driven  them  up, 
you  should  fire,  if  there  is  any  chance,  as  the  difficulty 
of  springing  them  a  second  time  is  tenfold. 

LARK.     Alauda  arvensis — Ualouelte. 

To  shoot  larks  (or  any  other  small  birds)  in  hard 
weather,  sweep  away  the  snow,  and  sprinkle  a  long 


OXBIRD.  207 

train  of  scearl*,  corn,  or  chaff,  within  shot  of  some 
hedge  or  place  that  you  can  walk  to  unseen,  and 
occasionally  give  them  a  sweeping. 

OXBIRD,  PURRE,  or  STINT.  Tringa  cinclus— 
L'aloutte  de  mer. 

To  get  a  shot  among  the  clouds  of  oxbirds,  which 
frequent  the  shores,  go  in  your  canoe,  and  either  take 
them  on  the  mud  from  a  creek  at  low  water,  or  on  a 
gravelly  point  at  high  water.  A  white  frost  is  the 
best  time  for  this,  and  they  are  then  most  commonly 
interspersed  with  gray  plover. 

Oxbirds  are  sometimes  so  tame  in  windy  weather, 
about  the  month  of  August,  that,  at  high  water,  you 
may  walk  along  the  beach,  and  shoot  them  openly 
with  a  little  double  gun.  Perhaps,  after  killing  a 
dozen  with  your  first  barrel,  the  remainder  of  the 
flock  will  pitch  among  them,  and  present  a  shot 
equally  good  for  your  second.  But  these  are  no 
doubt  mostly  young  birds,  that  have  just  flown,  as 
the  oxbirds  are,  in  general,  difficult  of  access ;  and 
(like  most  other  birds)  the  larger  their  flock,  the 
wore  difficult  it  is  to  be  approached. 

The  oxbird  belongs  to  the  tribe  of  sand  pipers. 
Of  these,  including  the  ruff  (the  female  of  which  is 
called  reeve),  there  are  fifteen  sorts :  but,  as  they 
scarcely  afford  any  particular  sport,  it  will  be  wasting 

*  A  provincial  term  for  those  light  seeds,  that  fall  through  the 
rudder,  when  cleaning  the  wheat,  and  of  which  the  small  birds 
are  particularly  fond. 


208  PARTRIDGES. 

time  to  enter  into  any  detail  on  them,  or  even  to  give 
a  translation  of  their  different  names. 

PARTRIDGES.       Tetrao    perdix—La    perdrix 
grise. 

RED  LEGGED.     Tetrao  rufus~La  perdrix  rouge. 

The  latter  has  been  of  late  years  brought  from  the 
continent,  and  is  now  (as  I  before  observed)  plentiful 
on  the  estates  of  lords  Hertford  and  Rendlesham  in 
Suffolk. 

The  red  legged  partridges  are  fond  of  warm  dry 
soil ;  and,  from  this  circumstance,  they  are,  in  flavour, 
rather  inferior  to  the  common  ones.  Although  called 
"  French  partridges,"  these  birds  are  scarcely  known 
in  many  parts  of  Normandy  and  Picardy,  where  the 
common  partridge  (like  ours)  is  the  only  one  com- 
monly to  be  met  with.  In  France  they  prefer  the 
vine  countries,  for  the  sake  of  a  warm  sandy  soil ; 
but  in  Spain,  Portugal,  and  the  Southern  parts  of 
Europe,  they  are  universally  diffused. 

I  remember,  at  the  early  part  of  the  Peninsular 
war,  getting  some  excellent  shooting,  at  these  birds 
on  the  march  between  Castello  Branco  and  Pla- 
centia ;  where,  had  there  been  time  to  follow  a  day's 
sport,  the  quantity  killed  might  have  been  immense. 

Red  legged  partridges  will  congregate  in  packs, 
perch  on  hedges,  and,  if  wounded,  often  go  to  earth. 

To  kill  them,  you  must  press  them  hard  to  take 
wing,  or  they  will  run  out  of  shot  before  they  rise ; 


PHEASANT.  209 

and  for  this  reason,  they  are  apt  to  spoil  your  dogs. 
Red  legged  partridges  being  constantly  on  the  run, 
are  difficult  to  disperse ;  but  by  means  of  heading 
them,  with  men  on  horseback,  their  coveys,  or  packs, 
may  be  divided,  and  this  being  once  done,  they  will 
lie  like  stones. 

PHEASANTS.  Phasianus  cokhicus—Le  faisau. 
Besides  the  common  pheasant,  there  are  now  in 
preferred  ronvAv,  ax  well  aft  aviaries,  other  beautiful 
kinds,  which  have  been  mostly  brought  from  China ; 
viz.  the  golden  pheasant ;  silver  or  pled  pheasant, 
&c. ;  and  also  two  varieties  of  the  common  one,  the 
one  of  which  is  precisely  like  it,  except  having  a  white 
ring  round  the  neck,  from  which  it  is  distinguished 
by  the  name  of  ring  pheasant :  and  the  other  of  pure 
white,  which  I  had  (it  appears  erroneously)  supposed 
to  be  a  mule  bird  between  the  common  pheasant  and 
the  barn  door  fowl,  partaking  of  the  shape  and  habits 
of  the  former,  with  the  colour  and  taste  of  the  latter. 
What  led  me  to  think  so  was,  that  these  birds  ap- 
peared without  any  one  having  originally  imported 
the  breed,  or  even  any  variety,  but  where  the  com- 
mon pheasants  were  often  seen  among  the  white  barn 
door  fowls.  In  a  small  covert  of  my  own  I  had  one 
nide  of  twelve,  in  which  were  hatched  nine  common 
and  three  white  pheasants.  But,  since  the  foregoing 
surmise  appeared  in  a  former  edition,  I  was  favoured 
with  observations  from  a  superior  ornithologist,  which 
I  am  sure  will  be  far  more  worthy  the  attention  of 

p 


210  PHEASANT. 

naturalists  than  any  thing  I  can  insert  of  my  own. 
I  shall,  therefore,  take  the  liberty  of  subjoining  his 
communication : 

"  In  the  second  edition  of  the  '  Instructions  to  Young  Sports- 
men' by  Major  Hawker,  the  author,  in  speaking  of  the  different 
kinds  of  pheasants,  says — " 

Here  he  quotes  from  my  second  edition  at  con- 
siderable length.  He  then  continues — 

"  The  '  Instructions  to  Young  Sportsmen'  are  evidently  the 
work  of  a  sportsman,  who  is  a  master  of  the  subject  on  which  he 
writes,  and  under  a  very  moderate  title  contain  a  great  deal  of 
original  and  interesting  information  j  information  new,  not  only 
to  the  young  sportsman,  but  capable  of  instructing  the  old.  It 
is  with  great  deference,  therefore,  that  the  writer  of  the  following 
observations  ventures  to  give  a  different  opinion  on  the  cause  of 
white  pheasants,  or  at  least  to  submit  that  there  should  be  assigned 
another  cause  for  their  production  than  that  of  their  being  mule 
birds,  between  the  fowl  and  hen  pheasant.  He  will  speak  of 
these  two  subjects  in  their  order  :  and, 

((  First,  on  the  probable  cause  of  white  pheasants. 

"  On  reading  the  '  Instructions  to  Young  Sportsmen'  the 
writer  of  the  following  remarks  was  struck  with  the  observation, 
that  '  the  common  pheasants  were  often  seen  among  the  white 
barn  door  fowls  /  and  recollecting  the  story  of  Jacob's  contract 
with  Laban,  in  the  30th  chapter  of  Genesis,  he  began  to  think 
white  pheasants  were  produced  by  the  impression  made  on  the 
hen-  pheasant,  from  having  white  fowls  before  her  during  the 
period  of  gestation.  In  the  above  account  in  Genesis  it  appears, 
that  Jacob's  stratagem  fully  succeeded,  for  we  are  told  in  the  last 
verse,  that  '  the  man  increased  exceedingly,  and  had  much  cattle.' 
These  ring-streaked  and  speckled  cattle  of  Jacob,  and  the  brown 
sheep,  were  evidently  caused  by  impression,  or  the  operation  of 


PHEASANT.  211 

an  outward  appearance  upon,  and  influencing,  the  senses,  as  will 
appear  by  reading,  attentively,  the  st  >ry  from  the  25th  to  the 
43d  verse :  and  besides  the  peeled  rods  obtruded  before  the  eyes 
of  the  cattle  during  the  time  of  conception,  he  set  *  the  faces  of 
the  flocks  toward  the  ring-streaked  and  all  the  brown  in  the  flock 

of  Laban." 

i 

"  If  then  beasts  may  be  affected  by  impression,  or  the  operation 
of  an  outward  appearance  on  the  senses,  is  it  unreasonable  to 
suppose,  that  birds  may  be  affected  in  the  same  manner  ?  and  if 
by  having  peeled  rods  placed  before  them,  and  their  '  faces  set 
toward  the  ring-streaked,'  an  impression  was  made  on  these 
cattle,  causing  them  to  produce  their  young  of  that  colour,  may 
not  the  same  cause  have  the  same  effect  on  pheasants?  and  the 
hen  pheasant,  by  being  among  white  fowls,  and  having  them 
before  her  eyes,  bo  the  mother  of  young,  of  a  pied  or  white 
colour? 

"  But  it  will  )K>  said,  '  Here  are  fowls  of  several  colours  besides 
white,  with  which  pheasants  are  likely  to  mix  in  the  fields,  and 
this  will  destroy  the  probability  of  pheasants  becoming  white  by 
impression  made  on  the  hen  pheasant,  since,  as  there  are  black 
and  brown  fowls,  why  should  not  pheasants  become  black  or 
brown  from  the  same  cause?' 

"  "  It  is  submitted,  in  answer  to  this  objection,  that  a  white 
fowl  is  of  a  more  glaring  and  obtrusive  colour  than  any  other,  and 
consequently  more  likely  to  catch  the  eye,  and  make  a  stronger 
impression  on  the  hen  pheasant,  from  its  striking  peculiarity,  and, 
as  it  respects  the  pheasant,  deformity. 

"  But  further,  though  we  often  hear  of  a  variety  of  any  par- 
ticular species  of  bird,  yet  that  variety  is  almost  always  either 
white,  or  a  mixture  of  white  with  the  natural  colour.  If  among 
birds  there  be  a  lusus  naturae,  she,  in  her  freak,  seldom  deviates 
from  this  colour.  And  notwithstanding  these  white  varieties 
may  be  fairly  termed  rarae  aves,  and  although  there  are  several 
species  naturally  black,  yet  a  black  variety  always  has  been  con- 
sidered a  peculiar  prodigy,  as  we  may  remember  in  that  well 
known  line  in  the  mouth  of  every  schoolboy.  And  among  fowls 

P  2 


PHEASANT. 

there  are  none  of  a  stronger  colour  than  white  fowls  and  black, 
and  white  is  stronger  than  black.  Other  fowls  approach  more  to 
the  colour  of  the  pheasant  (the  brown  fowl  particularly  to  that  of 
the  hen  pheasant),  at  least  than  these  two  colours  of  white  and 
black.  Fowls  of  another  colour  than  white  will  be  introduced 
again  soon  after,  as  a  concurrent  proof,  that  white  pheasants  are 
not  a  mule  breed  between  the  barn  door  cock  and  the  hen 
pheasant. 

"  In  proof  of  the  effect  of  the  influence  of  impression  on  the 
senses  from  outward  appearances,  we  might  here  allude  to  the 
human  species,  and  the  impression  which  is  often  unfortunately 
made  on  mothers,  from  objects  of  deformity, 

"  In  the  above  remarks,  the  writer  has  ventured  an  opinion  on 
the  probable  cause  of  white  pheasants.  He  leaves  it  to  others  to 
judge  how  far  he  is  right  or  wrong.  But  however  this  may  be, 
he  will  now  endeavour  to  show,  that  whatever  may  be  the  cause 
of  this  lusus  naturae  in  the  pheasant,  yet  that  there  are  the 
strongest  grounds  for  presuming,  that  the  white  pheasant  is  not 
a  mule  bird,  between  the  barn  door  cock  and  the  hen  pheasant. 
And, 

ei  First,  it  is  conceived,  that  the  white  pheasant  is  not  a  mule 
bird,  between  the  barn  door  cock  and  the  hen  pheasant,  from  the 
circumstance,  that  it  is  one  of  the  laws  of  nature,  that  the  young 
of  all  animals  should  be  formed  more  after  the  male  than  the 
female  parent,  have  more  of  the  shape,  nature,  and  properties,  of 
the  former,  than  of  the  latter.  This  is  well  known  to  the  breeders 
of  cattle.  If  a  horned  ram  be  put  to  an  ewe  without  horns,  the 
offspring  will  have  horns.  On  the  contrary,  let  the  ewe  be 
horned,  and  the  ram  without  horns,  and  the  lamb  will  be  without 
horns;  in  both  cases  taking  after  the  ram.  A  mule  was  once 
pointed  out  to  the  writer  of  these  remarks  as  something  extra- 
ordinary, from  its  being  the  foal  of  an  ass  covered  by  a  Portuguese 
horse,  which  happened  to  be  brought  over  to  this  country  by  an 
officer.  It  was  thought  an  extraordinary  production,  since  the 
stallion  refuses  the  she  ass,  and  consequently  all  our  mules  are 
produced  from  the  ass  and  the  mare,  and  not  from  the  horse  and 


PHEASANT. 

the  she  ass.  But  this  mule,  having  a  horse  for  its  sire,  was  much 
more  like  a  horse  than  our  common  mules,  which  spring  from  a 
more  humble  sire,  and  partake  more  of  the  nature  of  the  a**  than 
the  mule  here  alluded  to,  and  from  this  greater  resemblance  to  the 
horse,  it  was  pointed  out  rather  as  a  curiosity.  From  hence  the 
writer  infers,  that  the  white  pheasants,  if  they  were  mule  birds, 
between  the  barn  door  cock  and  the  hen  pheasant,  would,  accord- 
ing to  this  law  of  nature,  take  more  of  the  shape,  nature,  and 
properties  of  the  male  than  of  the  female  parent.  But  the  reverse 
is  the  case :  white  pheasants  are  perfect  pheasants,  in  every  re- 
spect but  colour,  and  whether  male  or  female  birds,  have  neither 
the  comb,  the  gills,  nor  the  tail  of  the  fowl ;  have  no  appearance 
of  the  fowl  except  in  their  white  colour.  Now  the  tail  of  the 
pheasant  is  so  remarkable  in  its  shape,  as  not  to  be  found  in  any 
other  class  of  British  birds  ;  and  notwithstanding  the  rule  of 
nature,  that  all  animals  should  preserve  more  of  the  shape  and 
properties  of  the  male  than  of  the  female  parent,  yet  the  white 
pheasant,  descended  from  the  male  fowl  and  female  pheasant, 
retains  the  tail  of  the  latter  perfect  and  unaltered,  and  without 
any  resemblance  to  that  of  the  former. 

"  From  this  identity  of  shape  in  the  white  pheasant  and  com- 
mon pheasant  it  is  submitted,  that  the  former  cannot  be  a  mule 
bird  between  the  barn  door  cock  and  the  hen  pheasant. 

"  And  \dtli  respect  to  the  colour  of  the  white  pheasant,  it  will 
l>e  presently  urged,  from  the  instances  of  white  varieties  in  other 
birds,  that  this  cannot  be  a  satisfactory  reason  for  its  being  a  mule 
bird,  or  half  a  fowl. 

"  But  it  should  not  be  forgotten,  that  in  the  '  Instructions  to 
Young  Sportsmen/  the  taste  of  the  white  pheasant  is  mentioned 
as  like  that  of  the  fowl.  To  this  the  writer  of  these  observations 
can  say  nothing,  but  that  it  may  depend  on  the  imagination. 
Because  it  is  known  to  be  a  white  pheasant,  and  supposed  to  be 
half  a  fowl,  the  flavour  of  the  bird  may  be  judged  rather  from 
what  is  fancied,  than  from  what  is  tasted.  The  skin  of  the  white 
pheasant,  when  picked,  is  probably  different  (the  writer  says, 
probab/ij,  since  he  cannot  speak  to  the  fact,  for  he  has  never  seen 


PHEASANT. 

a  white  pheasant  after  it  was  picked)  from  that  of  other  phea- 
sants, and  white,  like  that  of  the  fowl,  which  may  also  change  the 
appearance  of  the  flesh.  The  whiteness  of  the  skin  will  be  owing 
to  the  colour  of  the  feathers,  which  will  probably  have  that  effect 
on  the  skin.  We  see  this  in  a  pig ;  when  scalded,  and  the  hair 
taken  off,  the  skin  is  either  white,  or  stained  with  black,  accord- 
ing to  the  colour  of  the  hair. 

"  Secondly.  It  is  well  known,  that  other  birds,  besides  phea- 
sants, are  white,  notwithstanding  the  colour  of  their  kind  is  quite 
different,  and  yet  that  these  can  be  no  mule  birds  is  obvious. 
Every  one  has  heard  of  white  varieties  of  one  species  or  other  of 
British  birds  p  and  in  Mr.  Bullock's  museum,  in  Piccadilly,  there 
is  a  white  jay,  a  white  cuckoo,  a  white  blackbird,  thrush,  and 
lark.  But  neither  the  male  nor  female  parent  of  these  birds  could 
have  been  white,  since  among  British  small  birds  there  is  not  one 
class  or  kind  of  that  colour.  And  mule  birds  partake  of  the  colour 
of  both  parents,  as  in  the  instance  of  the  young  of  the  goldfinch 
and  canary.  It  is,  therefore,  clear,  that  the  white  varieties,  just 
mentioned,  cannot  be  mule  birds ;  and,  on  the  other  side,  if  they 
may  be  produced  white  without  being  mule  birds,  why  may  not 
pheasants  ? 

"  Thirdly.  If  white  pheasants  were  mule  birds  between  the 
fowl  and  the  pheasant,  how  does  it  happen  that  the  mule  breed 
between  these  birds  is  always  white  in  all  parts  of  the  country? 
The  writer  of  these  remarks  has  seen  two  in  a  nide,  and  has 
heard  of  many  other  white  pheasants.  But  he  never  saw  or  heard 
of  any  other  variety  of  the  common  *  pheasant  than  the  pied,  or 
white  pheasant.  And  yet  there  are  fowls  of  several  colours  besides 


*  Under  the  description  of  common  pheasant,  the  writer  here 
includes,  for  the  sake  of  perspicuity,  the  ring-necked  pheasant, 
though  properly  a  variety  of  the  common  class,  but  he  excludes, 
of  course,  all  foreign  pheasants.  Neither  is  he  here  speaking  of 
the  mule  pheasant,  so  called,  which  has  the  plumage  of  both  cock 
and  hen  pheasant,  and  the  cause  of  which  phenomenon  sportsmen 
cannot  very  well  determine. 


PHEASANT.  215 

white,  with  which  pheasants  are  likely  to  mix  in  the  fields;  and 
the  mule  production  between  these  fl-wls  and  the  hen  pheasant 
ought  not  to  be  white,  but,  according  to  the  established  law  of 
nature,  they  should  have  a  share  of  the  colour  of  each  parent. 
And  thus  the  mule  production,  from  a  barn  door  cock  of  any  one 
of  several  colours  besides  white,  would  be  easily  distinguished, 
but  particularly  if  the  cock  were  black. 

"  Fourthly.  Again,  if  white  pheasants  be  a  mule  breed  be- 
tween the  barn  door  cock  and  the  hen  pheasant,  how  is  it,  that 
though  we  often  hear  of  these  white  pheasants,  yet  we  never  hear 
of  a  mule  bred  between  the  cock  pheasant  and  the  hen  fowl  ?  The 
writer  has  already  spoken  of  having  seen  white  pheasants,  and  of 
having  heard  of  many  more,  but  he  never  saw  or  heard  of  a  mule 
bred  between  the  cock  pheasant  and  the  hen  fowl.  And  yet  he 
has  seen  pheasants  come  into  a  lonely  barn-yard,  where  there  was 
no  house,  and  where  no  labourers  vrere  at  work,  but  where  there 
were  fowls.  And  he  has  known  a  cock  pheasant  to  come  early 
every  morning  in  the  breeding  season  to  this  barn-yard,  and  crow, 
often  sitting  on  one  of  the  hovels.  And  it  is  said  a  cock  pheasant 
would  beat  a  game  cock,  if  unarmed  with  those  barbarous  weapons, 
steel  spurs.  If  this  be  true,  he  would,  of  course,  be  more  than  a 
match  for  a  dunghill  cock.  And  as  this  superior  prowess  would 
enable  him  to  defend  his  own  seraglio  from  the  violations  of 
chanticleer,  if  attempted  in  his  presence,  so  it  would  enable  him 
more  easily  to  invade  that  of  his  neighbour. 

"  Note. — White  pheasants  are  seldom  perfectly  white,  but  are 
usually  mottled,  or  variegated,  or,  as  they  are  generally  called, 
pied.  When  they  are  entirely  white,  the  impression  on  the  hen 
pheasant  must  be  of  the  strongest  and  most  perfect  kind.  But 
when  they  are  pied,  it  is  suggested,  rather  that  the  impression 
was  not  so  strong  and  perfect,  than  that  the  impression  was  made 
by  mottled  or  variegated  fowls. 

"  With  respect  to  the  brown  sheep  mentioned  in  the  contract 
between  Jacob  and  Laban,  it  may  be  remarked,  that  as  white  is 
the  natural  colour  of  that  animal,  so  the  brown  sheep  may  be  to 


216  PIGEONS. 

the  M  hite  one  what  the  white  fowl  is  to  the  brown  pheasant,  the 
hen  pheasant,  at  least,  being  of  that  colour. 

"  Here  it  may  be  added,  that  the  fowl  being  about  the  size  of 
the  pheasant,  and  in  its  general  form  bearing  some  resemblance  to 
it,  so  this  general  resemblance,  in  any  other  respect,  will  render 
its  peculiarity,  in  point  of  colour,  so  much  the  greater  deformity. 
Fowls,  too,  when  they  stray  from  the  farm-yard  into  the  fields  to 
feed,  and  pheasants,  when  they  leave  the  coppices  and  hedgerows 
for  the  same  purpose,  prowl  and  feed,  both  of  them,  in  the  same 
manner.  And  while  other  birds  are  continually  on  the  wing  from 
place  to  place,  and  seldom  remain  long  on  a  spot,  the  pheasant 
rarely  rises  unless  disturbed,  and  is  much  more  still  and  stationary. 
The  pheasant,  if  undisturbed,  continues  in  the  same  neighbour- 
hood, particularly  in  the  breeding  season.  Fowls,  when  they 
stray,  since  they  cannot  go  far,  must  frequent  the  same  fields; 
and  as  the  pheasant  from  its  habits  is  likely  to  meet  them,  and  to 
remain  with  them,  it  is  liable  not  only  to  a  more  durable  im- 
pression, but  subject  to  a  greater  exposure  to  that  impression. 
And  it  is,  perhaps,  from  these  causes  that  there  are  a  greater 
number  of  white  pheasants  than  white  varieties  of  any  other  single 
species  of  birds,  for  we  much  oftener  hear  of  the  former  than  of 
the  latter.  But  what  may  be  the  cause  of  the  lusus  naturae  in 
other  birds,  the  author  of  these  remarks  leaves  to  be  explained,  or 
attempted,  by  some  more  close  observer  of  her  feathered  family." 

PIGEONS. 

* 

The  shooting  of  tame  pigeons  I  have  always  had 
want  of  taste  enough  to  consider  as  an  amusement 
to  be  classed  with  badger-baiting.  But  as  it  be- 
comes a  glorious  opportunity  for  assembling  parties 
to  gamble  and  get  drunk,  I  must  not  be  so  unfashion- 
able as  to  moralise  about  cruelty ;  particularly  as  the 
professors  of  this  accomplishment  might  ask  me, 


PIGEONS. 

"Why  is  it  worse  than  hunting  a  bag  fox?"  or 
"  May  not  every  sport  be  more  or  less  condemned 
for  cruelty  ?" 

As  pigeons  are  commonly  turned  out  at  twenty- 
one  yards,  it  may  be  easily  observed,  that  the  knack 
of  killing  them  consists  in  firing  the  instant  they  are 
up,  and  being  careful  not  to  shoot  under  them,  as 
they  take  so  hard  a  blow,  particularly  on  the  rump, 
that,  if  suffered  to  fly  to  any  distance,  they  are  apt 
to  get  out  of  bounds  before  they  fall.  The  larger  the 
gun  and  the  charge,  the  wider  the  circle  of  shot ;  and 
therefore  the  better  to  assist  that  shaking  hand,  which, 
among  the  most  expert  marksmen,  may  be  occasioned 
by  anxiety.  Plenty  of  powder,  and  a  light  charge  (in 
proportion)  of  No.  6  shot  will  do  better  for  a  man 
while  nervous  than  very  close  shooting;  or,  at  all 
events,  till  he  has  become  cool  and  confident,  which 
he  generally  will  find  himself  after  he  has  killed  a 
few  birds  in  succession. 

So  little  is  the  art  of  pigeon  shooting  the  criterion 
of  a  good  shot,  that  many  of  the  very  best  performers 
at  this  are  scarcely  third  rate  shots  at  other  birds,  and 
some  of  them  perfect  cockneys  in  every  other  kind  of 
shooting.  It  must,  however,  be  admitted,  that  there 
is  more  difficulty  in  shooting  pigeons  at  a  regular 
match  than  many  bystanders  are  aware  of.  The  man 
who  has  to  exhibit  before  hundreds  of  people,  and  is, 
perhaps,  betting  hundreds  of  pounds,  feels  in  general 
a  very  different  sensation  from  the  one  who  stands 
merely  as  a  spectator,  perfectly  composed;  arid  while 


218  PIGEONS. 

in  this  state,  is  confident  of  being  able  to  beat  those 
who  are  engaged  in  the  match,  although  they  may  be 
shooting  infinitely  better  than  he  perhaps  could  do  if 
placed  in  their  situation.  In  this,  as  in  every  thing 
else,  therefore,  it  is  far,  very  far,  easier  to  be  a  fault- 
finder than  a  performer ;  because  most  things  fall  so 
decidedly  short  of  perfection,  that  any  simpleton  may 
set  up  for  the  one,  while,  on  the  contrary,  a  man  must 
have  acquired  some  little  knowledge,  however  super- 
ficial, before  he  can  attempt  the  other. 

Of  wild  pigeons,  or  (more  properly  speaking)  doves, 
there  are  three  kinds :  the 

STOCK,  or  WILD  PIGEON.     Columba  cenas — Le  biset. 

RING,  CUSHAT,  or  QUEEST.     Columba  palumbus — Le  pigeon 
rainier. 

TURTLE.     Columba  turtur — Le  tourterelle. 

The  second  of  these,  the  most  common,  is  almost 
universally  known  by  the  name  of  woodpigeon ;  and, 
if  not  too  much  fed  on  turnips,  and  kept  till  tender, 
is  deservedly  esteemed  an  excellent  bird.  The  turtle- 
dove,  however,  is  the  best  of  the  three ;  but,  being 
only  a  summer  visitor,  it  generally  escapes  the  notice 
of  the  shooter ;  except  in  the  early  part  of  September, 
when  birds  of  this  description  are  often  sprung  from 
the  pea  fields. 

For  shooting  woodpigeons  there  are  various  con- 
trivances, which,  like  those  for  all  other  wild  birds, 
consist  chiefly  in  waiting  for  them,  as  this  always 


PIGEONS.  219 

answers  so  much  better  than  attempting  to  follow 
them.  Some  hide  themselves  among  the  trees,  where 
they  come  to  roost  about  sunset :  others  take  them 
at  perch,  after  the  fall  of  the  leaf,  by  moonlight* 
(the  way  poachers  shoot  pheasants) ;  and  many  are 
killed  by  boys  in  the  summer,  who  conceal  them- 
selves, in  a  harbour,  near  the  ponds  where  these  birds 
and  the  doves  go  to  drink.  But,  after  all,  the  most 
effectual  way  is  to  shoot  them  when  they  come  to  the 
turnips  in  snowy  weather.  If  the  frost  is  so  hard 
that  you  cannot  approach  them,  under  cover  of  a 
fence,  without  making  a  noise  on  the  white  ice,  you 
must,  after  moving  them,  wait,  to  leeward,  for  their 
return.  If  you  can  make  a  place  in  a  hedge,  it  is 
preferable  to  the  common  plan  of  putting  up  hurdles 
covered  with  straw,  as  the  woodpigeons  are  apt  to 
notice,  and  feed  out  of  reach  of  them.  These  birds 
are  fond  of  frequenting  beech  trees,  and  feeding  on 
the  nuts  that  fall  from  them. 

To  get  shots  at  woodpigeons  round  a  fir  clump,  or 
plantation,  send  your  man  on  the  opposite  side  to 
drive  them  out  before  you ;  or  they  will,  ten  to  one, 
go  off  under  cover  of  the  tree  from  which  they  fly. 
By  waiting  concealed  in  the  covert,  you  may  often 


*  This  the  woodpigeons  will  not  allow  you  to  do,  unless  the 
trees  are  clear  of  underwood  ;  as  the  least  rustling  of  bushes 
would  put  them  to  flight.  For  this  reason  (as  Mr.  Daniel  very 
justly  remarks)  they  are  an  excellent  night  signal,  to  keepers, 
when  poachers  have  availed  themselves  of  boisterous  weather  to 
:tttack  it  preserved  covert. 


220  PIGEONS. 

stand  in  one  place,  where  fresh  birds  will  continue 
dropping  into  the  boughs,  till  you  have  half  filled 
your  bag  with  them.  Observe  one  thing,  however, 
or  you  may  not  kill  a  bird  in  a  week ! — Recollect 
that  a  woodpigeon,  directly  he  perches,  begins  to  re- 
connoitre his  safety  in  every  direction;  and  if  you 
move  but  a  finger,  when  he  first  alights,  he  will 
instantly  take  wing.  But  if  you  will  only  wait  per- 
fectly still  for  half  a  minute,  you  may  then  present 
and  fire  at  him  as  easily  as  at  an  owl. 

Although  the  ringdove  or  woodpigeon  seldom 
builds  anywhere  but  in  dark  evergreen  trees,  such  as 
yew  trees,  firs,  &c.,  yet,  in  1824,  one  of  these  birds 
entered  a  dovehouse  of  mine  ;  made  her  nest  in  com- 
pany with  the  tame  pigeons ;  and  hatched  her  eggs 
there,  notwithstanding  a  man  was  repeatedly  going 
in  to  clean  out  the  place,  and  take  young  pigeons. 
Here  she  brought  up  her  two  young  ones,  and  then 
took  them  off  with  her.  This  is  almost  as  singular 
as  the  circumstance  of  a  partridge,  in  1788,  having 
reared  sixteen  young  ones  up  in  a  pollard  tree, 
through  which  went  the  bars  of  the  stile  in  a  public 
foot-path.  This  happened  in  Essex,  on  a  manor  of 
my  late  father,  of  whom  Mr.  Daniel  had  the  deputa- 
tion, and  was  an  eyewitness  to  the  circumstance. 
The  particulars  of  this  he  very  correctly  states  in 
his  "  Rural  Sports." 


PLOVER. 

PLOVER. 

Of  the  plover  tribe  there  are  six  sorts : — «?/». 

GREAT  PLOVER  (already  named  among  the  Curlews). 

BASTARD  PLOVER,  LAPWING,  or  PEEWIT.     Fringllla  va- 
nellus — Le  vanneau. 

The  one  famous  for  its  eggs. 

Old  peewits,  as  we  all  know,  fly  round  a  dog,  in 
order  to  mislead  him  from  the  nest ;  and  I  have  ob- 
served, that  the  young  ones,  about  July  or  August, 
frequently  do  the  same :  perhaps  in  imitation  of  the 
parent  bird.  With  a  dog,  therefore,  one,  who  agrees 
with  the  French  proverb*,  as  to  their  being  such  a 
delicacy,  may  be  able  to  kill  several  of  these  birds  in 
the  marshes  where  they  frequent.  The  afternoon  is 
the  best  time,  as  peewits  prefer  the  uplands  during 
the  morning. 

GOLDEN  PLOVER.     Charadrius  pliivialis — Le  pluvier  dore. 
GRAY  PLOVER.     Tringa  squatazola— Le  vanneau  pluvier. 
DOTTEREL.     Charadrius  morincllus — Le  guignard. 

RING  DOTTEREL,   RING  PLOVER,  or  SEA   LARK.     Chara- 
drius hiaticula — Le  petit  pluvier  a  collier. 

The  gray  plover,  and  ring  dotterel,  are  coast 
birds:  the  others  chiefly  frequent  the  marshes  and 
fallows  inland,  where  they  feed  on  worms. 

*  "  Qui  n'a  pas  mange  de  vanneau,  ne  sait  pas  ce  que  gibier 
vaut." 


BIRDS    OF    PREY. 

The  golden  plovers  and  large  dotterels  are  worth 
more  than  all  the  others,  either  to  shoot,  or  for  the 
table.  The  former,  when  in  large  flocks,  are  wild, 
and  must,  therefore,  be  followed  with  caution ;  the 
latter  are  easier  of  access,  though  not  so  plentiful. 
Golden  plover  were  formerly  killed  in  great  plenty 
by  means  of  a  stalking  horse.  If  you  fire  at  these 
birds,  as  they  fly  over  you,  they  will  dart  down  for 
the  moment,  and  spread  in  every  direction ;  so  that, 
by  taking  a  random  shot  with  your  first  barrel,  you 
may  often  bring  down  the  birds  to  a  fair  one  for 
your  second. 

If  admissible  to  bring  together  land  and  water 
birds,  we  may  add  to  this  list,  the 

LONG-LEGGED    PLOVER,    or    LONGSHANKS.      Charadrius 
himantopus — L'echasse. 

This  plover,  and  the  sanderling,  Bewick  places 
by  themselves,  as  a  separate  Genus,  at  the  com- 
mencement of  his  second  volume. 

PREY,  BIRDS  OF. 

To  shoot  the  various  birds  of  prey,  which  belong 
to  the  falcon  tribe,  such  as  buzzards,  kites,  hawks, 
falcons,  &c.  &c.,  the  easiest  and  most  destructive 
method  is  to  watch  the  coppices  in  the  breeding 
season,  or  induce  the  boys,  by  a  trifling  reward,  to 
find  out  their  nests.  You  should  wait  till  the  female 
sits  hard  on  her  eggs ;  and  then  go,  late  in  the  even- 
ing, with  some  large  shot  in  a  duck  gun ;  by  which 


QUAIL. 

means  you  may  either  take  her  as  she  flies  out  of  the 
tree,  or  blow  up  the  whole  concern  by  firing  through 
the  nest. 

This  is  a  more  certain,  and  a  much  less  cruel  way 
to  destroy  mischievous  birds  than  by  indiscriminately 
shooting,  or  catching,  them  at  a  distance  from  their 
nests ;  where,  perhaps,  their  young  ones,  having  been 
hatched,  are  left  to  be  starved  with  hunger. 

Ravens,  carrion-crows,  magpies,  &c.,  may  be  killed 
in  the  same  manner,  or  poisoned  previously  to  the 
breeding  season,  by  your  putting  in  some  of  their 
favourite  trees  a  few  joints  of  horseflesh,  well  seasoned 
with  arsenic  arid  -HUP  vomica.  Another  good  way  to 
kill  these,  particularly  magpies,  is  to  drive  along  the 
road  with  a  horse  that  will  stand  fire,  and  shoot  them 
from  a  cart,  gig,  or  other  carriage.  I  have  known 
eight  or  nine  magpies  killed  in  a  day  by  this  means 
(about  the  pairing  season),  when  the  keepers  were 
constantly  following  them  without  being  able  to  get 
a  shot. 

QUAIL.     Tetrao  coturnix — Le  cattle. 

There  is  no  part  of  this  country  where  we  can  go 
regularly  out  for  a  day's  quail  shooting,  as  in  France 
(where  these  birds  abound  in  the  month  of  August), 
or  the  more  southern  parts  up  the  Mediterranean, 
where  they  sometimes  cover  the  country  for  miles. 
The  quails  are  so  far  plentiful  on  the  left  bank  of 
the  Tagus,  that  many  of  the  officers,  indifferent 
shots,  while  in  winter  quarters  at  Vallada,  thought 


RABBIT. 

nothing  of  going  over,  arid  returning  to  their  dinner 
with  ten  or  twelve  couple,  although  with  every  dis- 
advantage in  point  of  guns  and  ammunition. 

These  birds  are  so  scarce  in  Great  Britain,  that  to 
find  a  good  bevy  of  them,  and  kill  three  or  four 
brace,  is  considered  as  something  extraordinary :  and, 
although  there  is  scarcely  a  sportsman,  who  has  not 
occasionally  met  with  a  few,  while  shooting  par- 
tridges in  September,  yet  I  have  never  known  any 
one,  who  has  had  much  sport  with  quails  in  this 
country. 

RABBIT.     Lepus  cuniculus — Le  lap'm. 

To  shoot  rabbits  in  the  evening,  sit  in  a  tree ; 
and,  by  your  being  above  them,  they  are  not  likely 
to  smell  you,  and  will  therefore  play  about  close 
under  the  tree.  Let  your  dead  ones  lie  till  you  have 
done  shooting,  instead  of  spoiling  your  own  sport  by 
getting  down  for  them.  For  this  work  you  must 
take  no  dog. 

To  kill  rabbits,  feeding  in  an  open  warren,  keep  a 
few  hurdles  pitched,  and  approach  or  wait  for  the 
rabbits  under  cover  of  them ;  taking  care  not  to  go 
directly  to  windward.  For  a  regular  attack,  how- 
ever, the  better  diversion  is  to  ferret  the  holes,  and 
stand  about  twenty  yards  off,  very  quiet,  with  your 
gun.  This  is  more  amusement  for  a  man  who  is 
fond  of  shooting,  than  netting  the  rabbits ;  and  the 
shots  are  not  so  difficult  in  this  way,  because  a  rabbit, 
when  bolted  by  a  ferret,  does  not,  in  general,  go  off 


REDWING ROCKBIRDS.  225 

so  fast  as  when  started  by  a  dog.  All  other  rabbit 
shooting  is  so  well  known,  that  my  fancying  I  could 
give  instructions  on  the  subject  would  be  like  the 
Lisbon  barber  informing  Baretti  that  grapes  grew  in 
Portugal.  Though  one  word  more  (by  the  by) : — - 
In  shooting  a  rabbit,  always  consider  the  foremost 
half  of  him  as  your  target,  or  he  will  probably  be 
shot  in  a  slovenly  manner ;  and  if  there  is  an  earth 
near,  most  likely  scramble  to  it,  and  make  his 
escape. 

REDWING,  SWINEPIPE,  or  WIND  THRUSH*. 
Turdus  iliacus — Le  maums. 

The  redwing  is  a  smaller  bird  than  the  fieldfare, 
and  not  so  wild ;  but  its  habits  are  much  the  same 
as  those  of  that  bird. 

When  redwings  appear  on  the  eastern  coast,  they 
as  commonly  announce  the  approach  of  the  woodcock, 
as  does  the  arrival  of  the  wryneck  that  of  the  cuckoo 
in  the  south. 

ROCKBIRDS. 

Those,  which  are  commonly  called  rocWirds,  are 
the  various  tribes  of  the  Guillemot  and  Auk  or 
Penguin  Genus,  which,  previously  to  the  month  of 
May,  assemble  by  myriads,  to  breed  among  the  cliffs 
that  surround  the  British  Isles.  For  brevity's  sake, 

*  The  last  of  these  three  is  in  many  places  the  provincial  name 
given  to  the  missel  bird,  or  storm  thrush. 


226  ROCKBIRDS. 

they  are  here  placed  collectively  under  the  above 
name ;  and  suffice  it  to  say,  that  those  most  com- 
monly shot,  and  the  eggs  of  which  are  most  in  requi- 
sition, are  the  razor-bill  and  puffin  of  the  Auk  kind, 
and  the  common  willock  of  the  Guillemot  kind.  The 
puffins  are  most  plentiful  at  the  back  of  the  Isle  of 
Wight,  and  St.  Alban's  :  the  others  on  the  cliffs  near 
Eastbourne  and  Dover :  but,  for  a  farther  variety,  we 
must  go  more  towards  the  North  of  Great  Britain. 

Although  birds  of  this  description  can  only  be 
used  for  the  sake  of  the  feathers,  or  to  barrel  for 
dog's  meat,  yet  many  of  the  best  sportsmen  are 
tempted  to  amuse  themselves  with  the  diversion  of 
"  Rockbird  shooting,"  from  the  number  of  shots  that 
may  be  got  in  a  day,  and  the  uninterrupted  oppor- 
tunity of  practice,  and  trials  of  skill.  For  this  pur- 
pose, large  parties  of  pleasure  are  made  about  the 
months  of  June  and  July,  when,  instead  of  taking 
only  a  full  powderhorn  and  shotbelt,  it  frequently 
becomes  necessary  to  be  prepared  with  a  cleaning 
rod,  and  an  extra  supply  of  ammunition. 

The  time  selected  for  killing  these  birds  should  be 
either  before  they  hatch,  or  after  they  have  brought 
down  their  young  to  the  water,  where  they  are  able 
to  shift  for  themselves :  otherwise  those,  who  destroy 
the  old  birds,  have  to  reproach  themselves  with  the 
cruelty  of  leaving  the  young  ones  to  starve  upon  the 
rocks. 

On  approaching  the  stupendous  cliff,  in  which  these 
birds  each  deposit  their  one  large  egg,  you  see  them, 


ROCKBIRDS. 

for  miles  and  miles,  blackening  the  air  like  swarms 
of  bees :  and  what  with  the  screaming  of  the  gulls, 
the  hollow  croaking  of  the  cormorants,  and  the  various 
noises  of  the  penguin  tribe,  you  hear  the  caverned 
rocks  in  constant  echo  with  discordant  sounds. 

On  getting  nearer,  you  will  see  the  main  body  of 
the  wi Hocks  and  puffins  standing,  like  ranks  of  sol- 
diers, along  the  chalky  chasms,  but  at  such  a  height, 
as  not  only  to  be  out  of  shot,  but  indifferent  to  the 
sound  of  a  gun.  Your  plan,  therefore,  should  be  to 
let  some  one  start,  so  as  to  be  on  the  heights  by  the 
time  you  have  arrived  below.  Having  anchored  your 
boat  at  a  distance,  where  the  birds  sufficiently  lower 
their  flight,  make  a  signal  to  the  person  above ;  who, 
by  letting  down  about  a  hundred  yards  of  line,  with 
a  piece  of  wood,  a  stone,  or  a  bell  at  the  end  of  it, 
will  immediately  put  their  armies  to  the  rout,  and 
keep  them  constantly  pouring  dowrn  upon  the  sea. 
To  kill  these  birds,  you  must  rather  pick  your  shots, 
and  fire  well  before  them,  as  they  fly  with  great 
rapidity,  take  a  very  hard  blow,  and  your  eye  is  apt 
to  be  deceived  in  distance,  after  gazing  on  a  back- 
ground of  chalk,  which  is,  perhaps,  two  hundred  yards 
in  height.  After  all,  however,  the  rockbirds  will  not 
always  come  near  enough  for  you  to  make  any  ex- 
traordinary number  of  shots  without  missing,  unless 
you  descend  in  a  basket,  &c.  (as  I  mentioned,  when 
speaking  of  cormorants),  in  the  manner  by  which 
the  men  collect  their  eggs,  and  gather  samphire. 

I  remember,  when  a  party  went  to  shoot  willocks 


228  ROOK — RUFF. 

near  Dover,  that  those  who  were  under  the  cliffs 
could  scarcely  get  a  bird  to  fly  low  enough ;  while 
one  person,  who  stood  above,  and  fired  down,  very 
soon  exhausted  all  his  ammunition,  without  missing 
a  single  shot. 

To  take  all  chances  at  rockbirds  and  seafowl,  with 
a  small  gun,  use  shot  No.  3  instead  of  No.  7. 

ROOK.     Corvus  frugilegus— Lefreux. 

Let  those  who  find  amusement  in  shooting  perchers 
(or  young  rooks)  be  careful  how  they  fire  among 
rickyards  and  buildings,  and  always  avoid  loading 
their  guns  with  either  paper  or  tow.  For  this  kind 
of  shooting,  therefore,  the  safest  and  best  kind  of 
wadding  is  leather.  But  as  this  pastime  is  most 
frequently  followed  by  those  who  never  use  a  punch, 
or  perhaps  do  not  even  know  what  the  word  "  wadding" 
means,  let  me  only  advise,  that  they  be  requested  to 
put  green  moss,  or  leaves,  on  their  powder  and  shot, 
instead  of  using  paper,  which  is  so  very  liable  to  set 
fire  to  the  buildings.  Young  rooks,  by  being  first 
skinned,  and  then  soaked  all  night  in  cold  spring 
water,  make  pies,  which  are  worthy  the  notice  of  the 
most  scientific  gourmand. 

RUFF.     Tringa  pugnax — Le  combattant. 

Ruffs  are  birds  of  which  the  males  are  seldom 
found  two  alike  in  plumage,  and  of  which  the  females 
are  called  REEVES. 

As  I  before  observed,  when  classing  them  with  the 


SNIPES.  229 

knots,  they  are  easier  caught  than  shot  in  any  great 
quantity.  It  is  ludicrous  to  see  these  birds  dancing 
round  the  hillocks  in  the  spring,  and  particularly 
when  they  dance  into  the  springes  that  are  set  for 
them. 

SNIPES. 

Of  these  there  are  the  three  following  sorts : — 

THE  GREAT,  or  SOLITARY  SNIPE.  Scolopax  media — La 
grande  becassine.  (As  Buffon  does  not  notice  the  bird,  we 
are  to  presume  that  this  must  be  the  French  translation.) 

THE  COMMON  SNIPE,  SXITE,  or  HEA.TIIER-BLEATER.  Sco- 
lopax gaUinago — La  bfaassinc. 

THE  JACK  SNIPE,  JUDCOCK,  JETCOCJC,  or  GID.  Scolopax 
gallinula — La  petite  becassine. 

To  kill^ac^-snipes,  a  pointer  that  will  stand  them 
is  the  greatest  possible  acquisition,  as  they  always  lie 
so  very  close  that  you  are  liable  to  walk  past  them. 
These  little  snipes  are  easiest  killed  in  a  light  breeze, 
or  even  calm  weather,  as  in  a  gale  of  wind  they  fly 
more  like  butterflies  than  birds.  Nothing  teazes  a 
poking  shot  worse  than  jack-snipes,  but  to  one  who 
has  the  knack  of  pitching  and  firing  his  gun  in  one 
motion,  they  are,  generally  speaking,  not  much  worse 
to  shoot  than  other  small  birds,  except  in  boisterous 
weather. 

The  jack-snipes  are  the  best  eating  of  all  the  tribe. 

The  "  old  hand"  therefore  keeps  the  jack  for  his 
own  eating,  and  sends  the  fine  looking  full  snipe 


230  STARLING. 

to  his  friend.  As  with  pheasants,  the  hen  is  the 
best  on  the  table ;  the  cock  the  prettiest  bird  for 
a  present. 

STARLING,     or    STARE.      Sturnus    vulgaris — 
L'etourneau. 

The  time  to  shoot  starlings  by  wholesale  is  just 
before  the  dusk  of  the  evening,  when  they  come  down 
to  roost  among  the  reeds.  Here  they  assemble  in 
swarms,  that  darken  the  air ;  and,  for  some  time,  keep 
up  a  chatter,  which  even  surpasses  that  of  Frenchmen 
in  their  warmest  political  debates. 

Having  swept  down  some  dozens  with  your  duck- 
gun,  let  their  heads  be  immediately  pulled  off;  as 
this  will,  in  a  great  degree,  prevent  their  having  a 
bitter  taste. 

Starlings  are  very  good  when  stewed  with  rice,  or 
made  into  a  curry. 

Before  I  conclude  under  the  head  of  Starlings,  I 
must  ask  leave  to  become  my  own  trumpeter,  in 
order  to  name  a  shot  that  I  made  at  these  birds, 
which  will  give  some  idea  as  to  the  manner  in  which 
they  swarm  together : — Happening,  in  the  early  part 
of  last  winter,  to  have  my  punt  afloat  on  Lord 
llodney's  pond,  at  Alresford,  I  loaded  my  new 
double  swivel-gun  with  a  pound  of  small  shot  in  each 
barrel ;  and,  a  little  before  daylight,  paddled  across  to 
a  retired  part  of  the  pond,  where  the  reeds  were  lite- 
rally swarming  with  these  birds.  Having  placed  the 
punt  "  stem  on"  so  as  to  command  the  eastern  light, 


STARLING. 

and  shoot  well  clear  of  the  reeds,  I  gave  a  little 
signal,  as  previously  agreed  on,  to  Mr.  Macilwain 
(who,  with  Captain  Hill,  was  in  another  punt  behind) 
to  discharge  both  barrels  of  my  little  double  gun.  On 
hearing  this  report,  up  sprang  the  whole  army,  con- 
sisting, I  should  say,  of  every  Starling  in  Hampshire, 
and  making  the  valley  echo  like  a  peal  of  thunder. 
No  sooner  had  they  cleared  the  reeds  than  I  opened 
my  battery,  and  cut  such  a  lane  through  them  as  I 
could  scarcely  have  thought  possible ;  and  the  quan- 
tity of  feathers,  which  came  flying  back  to  leeward, 
I  could  compare  to  nothing  but  a  fall  of  black 
snow.  What  number  were  killed  and  wounded  we 
never  could  ascertain,  from  the  extreme  difficulty 
of  getting  the  birds  that  fell  among  the  reeds  and 
quagmires,  but  we  fairly  bagged  two  hundred  and 
forty-three^  as  fast  as  they  could  be  picked  up ;  and 
the  workmen,  when  the  reeds  were  cut  down,  de- 
clared that  they  found  between  two  and  three  hun- 
dred more:  for  this,  however,  I  have  only  their 
word ;  though  there  is  no  reason  to  doubt  it,  as  we 
all  felt  confident  that,  at  least >  five  hundred  fell  to 
this  one  volley ! 

It  may  be  unnecessary  to  add,  that  the  army  of 
Starlings  took  care  not  to  quarter  at  Alresford  the 
next  night. 


WILD    SWAN TEAL. 

SWAN,  WILD,  or  HOOPER.     Anas  cygnus — Le 

cygne  sauvage. 

The  hoopers  are,  at  certain  times,  easier  of  access 
than  some  other  wild  birds ;  and  if,  when  flying, 
they  are  fired  at  directly  under  the  hollow  of  the 
wing,  or,  when  swimming,  through  the  head,  they 
may  be  stopped,  at  a  reasonable  distance,  with  a 
common  double  gun  and  small  shot;  perhaps  even 
farther  than  other  wildfowl,  as,  when  struck  in  the 
body,  they  become  helpless  from  their  iveight,  and 
their  heads  are  less  likely  to  escape  between  the  shot 
than  those  of  smaller  fowl.  But  if,  through  eager- 
ness, you  happen  to  fire  carelessly  at  their  upper 
coverts,  you  may  as  well  try  to  penetrate  a  woolpack, 
unless  you  have  very  heavy  shot,  or  a  ball. 

*  TEAL.     Anas  crecca — La  petite  sarcelle. 

As  a  brood  of  teal,  including  the  old  ones,  usually 
amounts  to  no  more  than  six  or  seven,  they  are  most 
commonly  seen  in  very  small  numbers ;  unless  they 
have  collected  on  decoy  ponds,  and  are  driven  from 
them  by  hard  frosts,  when  they  will  appear  on  the  ad- 
joining rivers,  in  flocks  of  twenty  or  thirty  together. 

Of  all  the  prizes  that  a  wildfowl  shooter  could  wish 
to  meet  with,  a  flock  of  teal  is  the  very  first.     In- 
dependently of  their  being  by  far  the  best  birds  of 
the  whole  anas  tribe,  they  are  so  much  easier  of 
access,  and  require  such  a  slight  blow,  that  no  matter 
whether  you  are  prepared  for  wildfowl,  partridges, 
or  snipes,  you  may,  at  most  times,  with  very  little 


AVIGEON.  233 

trouble,  contrive  to  get  near  them ;  arid  this  being 
once  done,  you  have  only  to  shoot  straight  to  be 
pretty  sure  of  killing. 

I  have  seen  teal  "  duck  the  flash,"  though  never 
but  once,  and  then  I  had  rather  a  slow  shooting  gun. 

If  you  spring  a  teal,  he  will  not  soar  up,  and  leave 
the  country,  like  a  wild  duck,  but  most  probably 
keep  along  the  brook,  like  a  sharp  flying  woodcock, 
and  then  drop  suddenly  down :  but  you  must  keep 
your  eye  on  the  place,  as  he  is  very  apt  to  get  up 
again,  and  fly  to  another  before  he  will  quietly  settle. 
He  will  frequently,  too,  swim  down  stream  the  mo- 
ment after  he  drops,  so  that  if  you  do  not  cast  your 
eye  quickly  that  way,  instead  of  continuing  to  look 
for  him  in  one  spot,  he  will  probably  catch  sight  of 
you  and  fly  up,  while  your  attention  is  directed  to 
the  wrong  place.  If  the  brook  in  which  you  find 
him  is  obscured  by  many  trees,  you  had  better  direct 
your  follower  to  make  a  large  circle,  and  get  a-head 
of,  and  watch  him,  in  case  he  should  slily  skim  away 
down  the  brook,  and,  by  this  means,  escape  from  you 
altogether.  You  should  avoid  firing  at  random,  as 
this  may  drive  him  quite  away  from  your  beat. 

*  WIGEON,    WHEWER,    WHIM,    or    PANDLED 

WHEW.    Anas  Penelope — Le  canard  siffleur. 

Wigeon  *    either    choose    their  mates,    or  detach 

themselves  into  small  trips  preparative  to  so  doing, 

*  Strictly  speaking,  we  should  say  "  wigeoiw"  in  the  plural 
number,  us  well  as  "  pigeon*."  But  so  generally  is  it  the  custom, 


234  WIGEON. 

by  about  Valentine's  day ;  and  therefore  killing  many 
at  a  shot,  after  this  time,  is  generally  only  to  be 
done  when  they  are  fighting  together,  or  in  the  event 

among  those  who  have  any  thing  to  do  with  wildfowl,  to  leave 
out  the  s  here,  that  the  introduction  of  it  feels  to  me  like  hearing 
a  "flock  of  partridges,"  or  a  "  fox's  tail."  Let  me,  therefore, 
see  if  I  can  scrape  up  any  authority  for  having  thus  deviated  from 
the  rules  of  our  language.  Yes  !  by  the  way ;  the  plural  of  sub- 
stantives ending  in  out  should  have  an  s ;  and  yet,  by  habit,  all 
modern  sportsmen  say,  for  the  plural,  "  trout"  and  not  "  trouts." 
Well  then,  let  the  shooter,  as  well  as  the  fisherman,  appeal  for  a 
licence  to  kill  languages. 

Now  therefore  to  the  comparison  : — It  may  be  argued,  that 
although  in  old  works  we  read  of"  fish  as/1  yet  in  modern  language, 
or  rather  by  habit,  which  gives  a  sort  of  licence,  the  word  Jish, 
speaking  collectively,  is  generally  used  without  a  plural.  Most 
people,  for  instance,  would  say  "  a  basket  of  Jish,"  or  "  the  river 
is  full  ofjish"  notwithstanding  the  plural  of  other  nouns  ending 
in  sh  should  have  the  addition  of  es  to  distinguish  it  from  the 
singular  number.  For  instance,  "dishes,"  "  wishes/'  and  so  on. 
Again,  speaking  of  them  separately,  some  fish  have,  and  some 
have  not,  an  s  for  their  plural ;  as,  for  instance,  "  herring*," 
"  pilchards,"  te  sprat*;"  on  the  other  hand,  "  carp,"  "  tench," 
"  mackerel." 

In  comparison,  too,  I  observe,  that  the  word  "  wildfowl"  is  used 
without  a  plural  (and  yet  translated  in  Latin,  vohicrEs  palustrEs), 
notwithstanding  we  put  a  plural  when  the  first  syllable,  or  rather 
the  adjective,  is  not  used.  For  example,  in  speaking  of  poultry, 
we  should  say  "  a  couple  of  fowls."  We  have,  it  is  presumed, 
therefore  an  equal  right  to  say  "  wigeon"  "  teal"  "  plover," 
though,  on  the  other  hand,  we  should  say  "  wild-duck*,"  "  dun- 
bird*,"  "  curlew*." 

Our  lexicographers  it  appears  still  spell  Wiogeon  with  a  d;  I 
suppose,  because  birds  of  this  kind  are  not  so  much  in  the  fashion- 


WIGEON.  235 

of  cold  weather.  The  wigeon,  for  coast  night  shoot- 
ing, is  like  the  fox  for  hunting,  it  shows  the  finest 
sport  of  any  thing  in  Great  Britain.  We  shall, 
therefore,  hereafter  make  the  pursuit  of  this  fowl  one 
of  our  leading  subjects. 

able  world  as  pigeons,  and  therefore  the  word  has  escaped  the 
modern  polish,  or  been  neglected,  which  is  the  case  with  most 
things  that  belong  to  absentees.  Mr.  Bewick  spells  "  wigeon1* 
without  the  d.  I  shall,  therefore,  take  the  liberty  of  following 
his  example,  under  the  idea  that  lexicographers  are  not  gods,  but 
men  ;  and  therefore  as  liable  to  leave  room  for  future  improvement 
as  are  all  other  students  and  authors. 

As  the  word  pigeon  was  taken  from  the  French,  the  d  here 
should,  I  presume,  never  have  been  introduced,  though  we  see  it 
in  the  English  translation  of  Anton  Ernst  Klausing's  German 
dictionary,  taken,  as  he  states,  from  Nathan  Bailey's  English 
dictionary  :  (but,  perhaps,  from  some  very  old  edition).  I  have, 
however,  seen  it  spelt  with  a  d  in  subsequent  works.  The  other 
bird  was  formerly  spelt  Widgen,  as  somewhat  nearer  to  the 
Saxon,  from  which  it  was  probably  derived,  [See  Scott's  Bailey's 
Dictionary,  in  1/55,  which  says,  «  prob.  of  pij^enb"  (wiggend) 
"  Sax.  Fighting"]  ;  and  then,  I  believe,  changed  to  widgeon. 
We  may,  therefore,  it  is  presumed,  follow  up  the  improvement, 
and  erase  that  consonant  which  is  superfluous  to  the  pronuncia- 
tion ;  since  it  has,  of  late,  become  the  custom  to  do  so  with 
other  words. 

A  thousand  apologies  for  (if  I  may  use  a  vulgarism)  such  a 
long-winded  note  on  one  word,  as  this  is  quite  unnecessary  when 
a  work  is  in  the  hands  of  a  reviewer,  or  any  other  liberal  reader. 
But  I  have  inserted  it  merely  for  the  amusement  of  the  word- 
rnleher;  or,  in  other  words,  the  little  gentleman  who  looks  more 
at  the  leaves  on  the  tree  than  the  design  of  the  landscape. 


236  WOODCOCK. 

WOODCOCK.     Scolopax  rusticola — La  becasse. 

Although  many  sportsmen  consider,  that  there  are 
two  distinct  kinds  of  woodcocks,  and  Latham  describes 
three,  yet  they  are  more  to  be  considered  as  mere 
varieties  of  this  bird,  than  any  species  that  can  be 
separately  distinguished  from  it. 

The  feather  of  the  woodcock,  which  is  so  accept- 
able to  miniature  painters,  is  that  very  small  one, 
under  the  outside  quill  of  each  wing :  to  be  sure  of 
finding  which,  draw  out  the  extreme  feather  of  the 
wing,  and  this  little  one  will  then  appear  conspicuous 
from  its  sharp  white  point. 

To  prove,  that  woodcocks,  on  having  migrated  into  this  country, 
will  repair  to  the  same  haunts  for  a  succession  of  winters,  I  shall 
mention  a  circumstance,  not  as  having  pilfered  it  from  Mr.  Bewick 
or  Mr.  Daniel,  but  because  it  was  related  to  me  by  Mr.  Pleydell 
himself,  when  I  was  at  Whatcombe  House,  where  the  bird  is  now 
preserved.  In  Clenston  Wood  (a  covert  belonging  to  the  above 
place,  in  Dorsetshire),  a  woodcock  was  taken  alive,  in  one  of  the 
rabbit  nets,  in  the  month  of  February,  1 798.  Mr.  Pleydell,  after 
having  a  piece  of  brass  marked,  and  put  round  its  left  leg,  allowed 
the  bird  to  be  set  at  liberty;  and,  in  the  month  of  December  fol- 
lowing, he  shot  this  woodcock,  in  the  very  same  coppice  where  it 
had  been  first  caught  by  his  gamekeeper. 

Although  it  is  here  wished  to  abstain  from  all  anecdotes,  that 
may  not  be  considered  of  some  little  use  in  the  way  of  information, 
yet,  while  on  the  subject  of  woodcocks,  I  shall  take  the  liberty  of 
mentioning  one  circumstance,  that  occurred  to  myself  on  the  25th 
of  January,  1810.  It  was,  soon  after,  very  correctly  stated  in  a 
newspaper ;  but,  no  wonder,  considered  by  many  as  an  absurd  and 
improbable  assertion ;  and  for  this  reason  I  shall,  in  quoting  the 
paragraph  here,  add,  that  the  circumstance  took  place  in  the  pre- 
sence of  the  Rev.  W.  Nourse  and  two  other  gentlemen.  "  A  few 


TO    PRESERVE    BIRDS.  237 

days  ago,  a  woodcock  flew  up  the  lawn,  and  dropped  close  before 
Longparish  House,  in  Hampshire ;  and  was  shot  from  the  window,  ' 
by  Captain  Hawker,  who,  having  been  wounded  in  Spain,  was 
there  confined  to  his  room.  What  makes  the  circumstance  more 
remarkable  is,  that  it  happened  in  a  country  where  it  is  very  rare 
to  see  three  of  these  birds  in  a  season ;  and  that  a  friend  of  his 
had  laid  a  bet,  he  would  be  well  enough  to  shoot  a  cock  before 
the  winter  was  over." 


TO  PRESERVE  AND  CHOOSE  BIRDS, 

&c.  &c. 

To  distinguish  specifically  the  foregoing  birds,  I 
refer  my  readers  to  Bewick ;  presuming,  as  I  have 
repeatedly  hinted,  that  no  one,  who  has  the  least 
interest  in  shooting,  either  as  a  sportsman  or  a  na- 
turalist, could  willingly  be  without  such  a  portable, 
cheap,  and  yet  such  a  very  superior  work. 

If  you  shoot  a  curious  bird,  and  have  not  the  means 
of  getting  it  stuffed  while  fresh,  you  may  preserve  the 
skin  of  it  for  many  months  by  putting  therein  dry 
tow  and  powdered  ginger.  May  and  June  are  the 
only  months  that  you  need  fear  the  moth ;  and  just 
then,  cedar  shavings,  or  camphor,  would  be  a  good 
addition.  To  skin  a  bird,  open  him  either  on  one 
side,  or  down  the  back. 

I  have,  as  proposed  at  the  beginning,  marked  only 
those  of  the  broad-billed  birds  which  are  fit  for  the 
table ;  and  this  has  been  done  as  a  caution  against 
the  imposition  of  marketmen  and  poulterers,  who,  for 


238  TO    CHOOSE    BITU)S. 

instance,  would  have  little  hesitation  in  serving  you 
with  a  couple  of  scoters,  or  burrough  ducks,  by  way 
of  a  "  delicate  bottom  dish  for  your  second  course." 

Although  it  is  not  meant  to  dwell  here  on  a  sub- 
ject, which  more  properly  belongs  to  a  cookery  book, 
yet  it  would  be  very  hard  not  to  have  some  considera- 
tion for  many,  who  would  rather  see  one  bird  roasted 
and  well  frothed  up  on  a  table,  than  ten  thousand 
springing  from  a  stubble,  or  feeding  under  the  moon. 
Let  it  therefore  be  observed,  that,  in  choosing  birds, 
you  cannot  be  guided  better  than  by  selecting  those, 
which,  of  their  kind,  are  the  heaviest  in  weight  and 
the  least  beautiful  in  plumage. 

Young  birds  may  be  distinguished  by  the  softness 
of  their  quills,  which,  in  older  ones,  will  be  hard  and 
white.  The  females  are,  in  general,  preferable  to  the 
males ;  they  are  more  juicy,  and  seldom  so  tough. 
For  example,  a  hen  pheasant*  or  a  duck  is  to  be 
preferred  to  a  cock  pheasant  or  a  mallard.  The  old 
pheasants  may  be  distinguished  by  the  length  and 
sharpness  of  their  spurs,  which,  in  the  younger  ones, 
are  short  and  Hunt.  Old  partridges  are  always  to  be 
known,  during  the  early  part  of  the  season,  by  their 
legs  being  of  a  pale  blue,  instead  of  a  yellowish 
brown ;  so  that,  when  a  Londoner  receives  his  brace 
of  blue-legged  birds  in  September,  he  should  im- 

*  Provided  it  is  not  a  very  dark  coloured  one,  which  would  de- 
note its  being  an  old  barren  hen.  Such  birds,  by  the  way,  should 
always  be  destroyed  as  vermin)  because  they  take  to  sucking  the 
eggs  of  the  others. 


TO    KEEP    BIRDS.  239 

mediately  snap  their  legs,  and  draw  out  the  sinews, 
by  means  of  pulling  off  the  feet,  instead  of  leaving 
them  to  torment  him,  like  so  many  strings,  when  he 
would  be  wishing  to  enjoy  his  repast.  This  remedy 
of  making  the  leg  tender  removes  the  objection  to 
old  birds,  provided  the  weather  will  admit  of  their 
being  sufficiently  kept;  and  indeed  they  are  then 
often  preferable,  from  having  a  higher  flavour. 

Jf  birds  are  overkept  their  legs  will  be  dry,  their 
eyes  much  sunk,  and  the  vent  will  become  soft  and 
somewhat  discoloured.  The  first  place  to  ascertain 
if  they  are  beginning  to  be  high  is  the  inside  of 
their  bills,  where  it  is  not  amiss  to  put  some  heather 
straw,  or  spice,  if  you  want  them  to  keep  for  any 
length  of  time.  Birds  that  have  fallen  in  the  water, 
or  have  not  had  time  to  get  cold,  should  never  be 
packed  like  others,  but  sent  openly,  and  dressed  as 
soon  as  possible. 

Sportsmen  are  often  heartily  abused  by  their  ac- 
quaintance (I  cannot  yet  bring  myself  to  hackney  the 
word  friends  quite  so  fluently  as  I  ought  to  do)  for 
sending  them  "  tough  and  good-for-nothing  game," 
while  all  the  blame  should,  in  many  instances,  rest 
with  themselves,  or  their  pudding-headed  cook,  who, 
may  be,  dresses  an  old  pheasant,  or  hare,  the  very 
day  after  it  was  killed,  or  perhaps,  while  engrossed 
in  a  story  or  argument,  leaves  it  to  roast  away,  till 
there  remains  neither  juice  nor  flavour. 

All  game,  &c.  should  be  kept  till  properly  tender ; 


240  TO    KEEP    BIIIDS. 

or,  if  wanted  in  a  hurry,  it  may  be  picked,  wrapped 
up  in  a  cloth,  and  thus  buried  in  the  earth  for  a 
few  hours,  before  it  is  dressed.  This  is  the  custom 
abroad,  where  I  have  supped  on  wildfowl,  perfectly 
tender,  that  were  killed  since  an  early  dinner  on  the 
same  day. 

Birds,  that  are  dressed  so  soon  after  being  killed, 
as  scarcely  to  have  become  cold,  are  more  tender 
than  if  put  by,  for  a  night,  and  afterwards  not  kept 
long  enough.  On  the  other  hand,  if  you  want  them 
kept  a  very  long  time,  for  any  particular  purpose, 
powdered  charcoal  (for  game,  venison,  or  any  thing)  is 
the  best  recipe  that  I  have  yet  been  able  to  procure. 

Keep  your  game  in  a  safe,  or  a  well  secured  larder, 
to  avoid  flies :  and  to  get  rid  of  rats,  you  have  only 
to  leave  out,  for  their  supper,  a  red  herring,  which 
you  must  first  split  open,  and  then  occasionally  heat 
before  the  fire,  while  you  put  over  and  into  it  about 
as  much  corrosive  sublimate  of  mercury  as  would  lie 
on  a  half-crown.  The  rats,  when  they  have  eaten 
of  this,  will  shortly  afterwards  adjourn  to  the  water ; 
and,  instead  of  returning,  there  drink  themselves  to 
death.  This  is  a  far  more  certain  recipe  to  destroy 
rats  than  the  mercurial  ointment,  which  was  before 
named  in  this  work.  It  may  be  worth  while  to  ob- 
serve also,  en  passant,  that  the  corrosive  sublimate  of 
mercury  is  a  never  failing  remedy  to  destroy  bugs, 
if  mixed  with  spirits  of  wine,  and  well  worked,  with  a 
paint  brush,  into  the  joints  and  crevices  of  furniture. 


TO    DRESS    WILDFOWL.  241 

N.  B.  Be  very  careful  how  you  handle,  or  where 
you  leave,  this  preparation,  it  being  POISON. 

Q.  What  has  this  last  recipe  to  do  with  sporting? 

A.  The  citizens  have  been  enlightening  us  country 
shooters  with  a  new  system  of  instructions  for  killing 
our  game,  and  therefore  the  least  that  I  can  do  in 
return  is  to  give  them  a  short  recipe  for  killing 
theirs. 

With  regard  to  dressing  birds  there  are  so  many 
various  methods,  for  which  every  cook  or  epicure  has 
his  favourite  receipt,  that  it  would  be  absurd  to  enter 
on  the  subject  ;  but,  as  so  many  fail  in  adapting  their 
sauces  to  wildfowl,  I  shall  take  the  liberty  of  giving 
one  that  has  been  preferred  to  about  fifty  others  ; 
and  was,  at  one  time,  not  to  be  got  without  the  fee 
of  a  guinea. 

RECIPE  FOR  SAUCE  TO  WILDFOWL. 

Port  wine,  or  claret         ....     1  glass. 

Sauce  u  la  Russe*  (the  older  it  is  the  better)  1  table  spoonful. 
Catsup         ......     1  ditto. 

Lemon  juice         ...  .          .1  ditto. 

Lemon  peel  .  .1  slice. 

Shalot  (large)       .  .  .  .1  sliced. 

Cayenne  pepper  (the  darkest,  not  that  like  1 
brickdust)         ...  J 

Mace         .  .  .  .  .     1  or  2  blades. 

To  be  scalded,  strained,  and  added  to  the  mere  gravy,  which  comes 
from  the  bird  in  roasting. 

*  Sold  by  Hill,  in  Albemarle-street  ;  successor  to  Mr.  Aveling, 
who  first  introduced  this  sauce. 


242  TO    CHOOSE    HARES. 

To  complete  this,  the  fowl  should  be  cut  up  in  a  silver  dish,  that 
has  a  lamp  under,  while  the  sauce  is  simmering  with  it. 

Let  a  goose,  or  any  strong  or  fat  wildfowl,  be  roasted  with  the 
addition  of  a  small  onion,  and  a  pared  lemon,  in  the  inside ;  as 
this  will  draw  out  the  strong  fat,  and  give  the  bird  a  milder 
taste. 

Hares  and  rabbits,  when  old,  have  blunt  claws ; 
are  broad  across  the  back ;  their  ears  are  very  tough  ; 
and,  when  cut,  their  flesh  curls  up,  and  remains  dry. 
The  first  joint  of  their  foreleg  is  larger  and  stiffer 
than  in  young  ones,  and  their  jawbones  are  very 
hard.  In  young  hares  and  rabbits  all  is  the  reverse 
to  this :  their  ears  are  easily  torn,  and  their  jawbones 
may  be  cracked  with  the  forefinger  and  thumb. 


HAVE  been  such  a  universal  subject  for  every  sport- 
ing writer,  that  scarcely  a  word  can  be  said  about 
them,  but  that  of  which  we  may  find  the  counter- 
part in  some  publication  or  other.  Every  one  has 
his  own  caprice,  or  fancy,  about  pointers,  setters,  and 
spaniels ;  and  we  meet,  almost  every  day,  with  some 
fresh  man,  who  has  got  the  best  dog  in  England. 

Let  it  be  observed,  however,  that,  with  all  the 
perfection  to  which  we  have  brought  both  the  breed- 
ing and  breaking  of  these  animals,  we  are  not  always 
sufficiently  particular.  In  the  one  we  are  apt  to  let 
them  degenerate  for  want  of  a  proper  cross ;  and,  in 
the  other,  we  are  too  well  contented  (provided  they 
have  "  plenty  of  hunt  in  them")  with  their  merely 
being  broken  well  to  back  and  stand,  without  re- 
garding the  importance  of  their  lying  down  to  charge, 
and  being  stanch  from  chasing  hares  or  rabbits. 
Putting  the  credit  of  our  dogs  entirely  out  of  the 
question,  we  forget  the  number  of  shots  they  spring 
by  committing  such  faults. 

If  you  want  game,  take  old  dogs.  Young  ones, 
however  fleet  and  well  broken,  know  little  more  than 

R  2 


244  DOGS. 

the  A  B  c  of  their  business,  while  old  ones  are  up  to 
every  kind  of  trick. 

I  shall  now  give  an  engraving  of  an  iron  puzzle 
and  check  collar,  that  will,  at  once,  do  more  towards 
dog-breaking  than  a  whole  treatise,  which  would  be 
redundant  to  those  of  my  readers  who  are  sports- 
men, and  set  all  the  others  asleep.  I  shall,  however, 
make  one  observation,  which  is,  that  a  dog  is  far 
more  likely  to  become  a  first-rate  one,  by  being  made 
a  companion  of,  and  corrected  by  rating  and  shaming 
him,  than  by  being  kept  entirely  away  from  the 
breaker,  except  to  be  taken  to  the  field,  and  there 
flogged  for  every  fault  he  commits.  I  had  a  friend 
in  Dorsetshire,  who  was  not  only  one  of  the  best  shots 
that  ever  lived,  but  who  had,  perhaps,  the  very  best 
dogs  in  Europe,  and  I  know  this  was  his  plan. 

[In  the  fourth  edition,  I  observed  that  any  one 
who  had  been  much  in  the  west  of  England  would 
know  who  I  meant ;  but  I  now  sincerely  regret  to 
add  that  this  gentleman  died  last  summer.  While 
he  lived,  the  public  mention  of  his  name  might  have 
been  thought  a  liberty ;  but  now  that  he  is  no  more, 
I  feel  it  a  duty — a  tribute  due  to  his  memory.  The 
sportsman  alluded  to  was  Bayles  Wardell,  Esq.,  who, 
"  take  him  for  all  in  all,"  was  one  of  the  very  best  shoot- 
ing sportsmen  that  ever  went  into  a  field !  To  say  of 
any  man  that  he  was  the  best  shot  in  England,  would 
be  as  bold  an  assertion  as  to  say  that  there  was  any 
man  in  England  who  could  shoot  better  than  Mr. 
Wardell !] 


•/'  tft. 

//- 

I  i.  I  ')  . 


BOGS.  245 

With  regard  to  spaniels,  they  are,  nine  times  in 
ten,  so  badly  broken  in,  as,  in  general,  to  be  only  fit 
to  drive  a  large  wood ;  but,  if  taught  to  keep  always 
within  half  a  gunshot,  they  are  the  best  dogs  in 
existence  for  working  among  hassocks  and  briars. 
They  should  be  trained  very  young,  or  they  require 
an  unmerciful  deal  of  flogging ;  and  it  is  sometimes 
advisable,  at  first,  to  hunt  them  with  a  forefoot  tied 
up  in  the  collar. 

If  you  have  occasion  to  punish  a  dog,  which  I 
should  recommend  having  recourse  to  as  little  as 
possible,  never  kick  him,  for  by  such  means  you  may 
do  him  an  injury.  I  know  a  sportsman  in  Hamp- 
shire who  had  the  misfortune  to  lose  his  dog  by 
giving  him  one  unlucky  kick  !  Always,  therefore,  flog 
your  dog  with  a  whip  or  switch.  To  do  this,  and, 
at  the  same  time,  avoid  the  risk  of  his  getting  loose, 
or  biting  you,  hold  his  head  between  your  knees,  by 
which  means  you  properly  secure  him,  and  have  a 
full  command  of  his  back,  without  being  liable  to 
strike  him  in  a  tender  part. 

NEWFOUNDLAND  DOGS. 

HERE  we  are  a  little  in  the  dark.  Every  canine 
brute,  that  is  nearly  as  big  as  a  jackass,  and  as  hairy 
as  a  bear,  is  denominated  mfine  Newfoundland  dog. 
Very  different,  however,  is  both  the  proper  Labrador 
and  St.  John's  breed  of  these  animals  ;  at  least,  many 


246  DOGS. 

characteristic  points  are  required,  in  order  to  di- 
stinguish them. 

The  one  is  very  large  ;  strong  in  the  limbs  ;  rough 
haired ;  small  in  the  head ;  and  carries  his  tail  very 
high.  He  is  kept  in  that  country  for  drawing 
sledges  full  of  wood,  from  inland  to  the  sea  shore, 
where  he  is  also  very  useful,  by  his  immense  strength 
and  sagacity,  among  wrecks,  and  other  disasters  in 
boisterous  weather. 

The  other,  by  far  the  best  for  every  kind  of 'shoot- 
ing, is  oftener  Hack  than  of  another  colour,  and 
scarcely  bigger  than  a  pointer.  He  is  made  rather 
long  in  the  head  and  nose ;  pretty  deep  in  the  chest ; 
very  fine  in  the  legs  ;  has  short  or  smooth  hair ;  does 
not  carry  his  tail  so  much  curled  as  the  other ;  and  is 
extremely  quick  and  active  in  running,  swimming, 
or  fighting. 

Newfoundland  dogs  are  so  expert  and  savage, 
when  fighting,  that  they  generally  contrive  to  seize 
some  vital  part,  and  often  do  a  serious  injury  to 
their  antagonist.  I  should,  therefore,  mention,  that 
the  only  way  to  get  them  immediately  off  is  to  put  a 
rope,  or  handkerchief,  round  their  necks,  and  keep 
tightening  it,  by  which  means  their  breath  will  be 
gone,  and  they  will  be  instantly  choked  from  their 
hold. 

The  St.  John's  breed  of  these  dogs  is  chiefly  used 
on  their  native  coast  by  fishermen.  Their  sense  of 
smelling  is  scarcely  to  be  credited.  Their  discrimi- 


DOGS.  247 

nation  of  scent,  in  following  a  wounded  pheasant 
through  a  whole  covert  full  of  game,  or  a  pinioned 
wild  fowl  through  a  furze  brake,  or  warren  of  rabbits, 
appears  almost  impossible.  (It  may,  perhaps,  be 
unnecessary  to  observe,  that  rabbits  are  generally 
very  plentiful,  and  thrive  exceedingly,  near  the  sea 
shore.  It,  therefore,  often  happens,  that  wigeon,  as 
they  fly,  and  are  shot  by  night,  fall  among  furze- 
brakes,  which  are  full  of  rabbits.) 

The  real  Newfoundland  dog  may  be  broken  in  to 
any  kind  of  shooting;  and,  without  additional  in- 
struction, is  generally  under  such  command,  that  he 
may  be  safely  kept  in,  if  required  to  be  taken  out 
with  pointers.  For  finding  wounded  game,  of  every 
description,  there  is  not  his  equal  in  the  canine  race ; 
arid  he  is  a  sine  qua  -non  in  the  general  pursuit  of 
wildfowl. 

Pool  was,  till  of  late  years,  the  best  place  to  buy- 
Newfoundland  dogs  ;  either  just  imported,  or  broken 
in :  but  now  they  are  become  much  more  scarce, 
owing  (the  sailors  observe)  to  the  strictness  of  "  those 
the  tax-gatherers."  I  should  always  recom- 
mend buying  these  dogs  ready  broken ;  as,  by  the 
cruel  process  of  half  starving  them,  the  fowlers  teach 
them  almost  every  thing ;  and,  by  the  time  they  are 
well  trained,  the  chances  are,  that  they  have  got  over 
the  distemper,  with  which  this  species,  in  particular, 
is  sometimes  carried  beyond  recovery. 

If  you  want  to  make  a  Newfoundland  dog  do  what 
you  wish,  you  must  encourage  him,  and  use  gentle 


248  DOGS. 

means,  or  he  will  turn  sulky ;  but  to  deter  him  from 
any  fault,  you  may  rate  or  beat  him. 

I  have  tried  poodles,  but  always  found  them  in- 
ferior in  strength,  scent,  and  courage.  They  are  also 
very  apt  to  be  sea-sick.  The  Portland  dogs  are 
superior  to  them. 

A  water-dog  should  not  be  allowed  to  jump  out 
of  a  boat,  unless  ordered  so  to  do,  as  it  is  not  always 
required  ;  and,  therefore,  needless  that  he  should  wet 
himself,  and  every  thing  about  him,  without  ne- 
cessity. 

For  a  punt,  or  canoe,  always  make  choice  of  the 
smallest  Newfoundland  dog  that  you  can  procure; 
as  the  smaller  he  is,  the  less  water  he  brings  into 
your  boat  after  being  sent  out ;  the  less  cumbersome 
he  is  when  afloat;  and  the  quicker  he  can  pursue 
crippled  birds  upon  the  mud.  A  bitch  is  always  to 
be  preferred  to  a  dog  in  frosty  weather,  from  being, 
by  nature,  less  obstructed  in  landing  on  the  ice. 

If,  on  the  other  hand,  you  want  a  Newfoundland 
dog  only  as  a  retriever  for  covert  shooting,  then  the 
case  becomes  different ;  as  here  you  require  a  strong 
animal,  that  will  easily  trot  through  the  young  wood 
and  high  grass  with  a  large  hare  or  pheasant  in  his 
mouth. 


JOisrasrs  tit  33ccj2 

ARE  so  universally  prescribed  for,  and  in  so  many 
different  ways,  that  it  will  be  needless  to  treat  on 
any  thing  farther  than  the  most  common  evils  that 
happen  to  them  ;  the  Distemper,  the  Mange,  Sore 
Feet,  getting  lamed  by  Thorns,  Sec.  &c.,  with  the 
prescription,  which  I  have  found  to  answer  best  for 
each. 

DISTEMPER. 

To  enumerate  the  various  recipes  for  this  some- 
t'nncti  incurable  disease  would  require  a  volume  ;  but, 
of  all  that  I  have  yet  tried,  none  has  answered  better 
than  the  one  I  shall  here  give ;  and,  as  the  remedy 
is  so  innocent,  it  may  be  safely  administered,  where 
there  exists  even  a  doubt  as  to  a  dog  having  the 
distemper. 

The  following  prescriptions  are  each  about  a  dose  for  a  full 
grown  pointer.  They  must,  of  course,  be  increased  or  diminished 
in  proportion  to  the  size  and  strength  of  the  dog. 

RECIPE. 

Opium          ...  .     3  grains. 

Emetic  tartar  (an  invaluable  medicine)         .     5  grains. 

To  be  given  at  night. 


250  DISTEMPER. 

Repeat  the  dose,  every  third  night,  till  the  dog  is 
recovered  ;  taking  care  to  keep  him  in  a  warm  place, 
and  always  fed  with  a  warm  liquid  diet,  such  as 
broth,  gruel,  &c. 

If  the  nostrils  should  discharge,  have  them  washed, 
or  syringed,  twice  a  day,  with  a  lotion  of  alum,  or 
sugar  of  lead  ;  putting  about  half  an  ounce  of  either 
to  a  pint  of  water. 

The  following  is  a  recipe,  which  no  bribe  could 
tempt  the  vender  to  part  with ;  but,  by  means  of 
some  very  clever  chymists,  I  have  ascertained  it  to 
be  simply  as  follows : — (after  some  trouble  in  dis- 
covering the  proportions,  and  discarding  the  in- 
gredients by  means  of  which  it  was  disguised  in  a 

pill.) 

RECIPE. 
FOR  A  HALF  GROWN  POINTER  : — 

Jalap  powder          .  .  .  .25  grains. 

Calomel  .  .  .  .5  grains. 

Made  into  a  pill  with  a  little  gum  water.  . 

FOR  A  FULL  GROWN  POINTER  : — 

Jalap  powder          .  .  .     30  grains. 

Calomel  .  .  .  .8  grains. 

Mixed  as  above. 

One  of  these  doses,  mixed  with  butter,  or  in  a 
small  piece  of  meat,  should  be  given  to  the  dog  every 
other  morning,  on  an  empty  stomach.  The  food 
should  be  light,  and  easy  to  digest ;  and  the  lotion, 
if  required  for  the  nostrils,  should  be  observed  here, 
as  before  mentioned. 

Notwithstanding  the  trouble  we  had  to  discover 


DISTEMPER.  251 

this  simple  recipe,  I  should  prefer  the  one  first  given, 
because  there  is  less  chance  of  a  dog  taking  cold 
with  that,  than  with  any  kind  of  mercurial  prepara- 
tion. 

Since  my  earlier  publications,  I  have  been  fa- 
voured with  the  following  recipe  from  Dr.  Taylor, 
of  East  Yarmouth ;  and  from  its  great  repute,  as 
well  as  that  of  the  gentleman  to  whom  I  am  in- 
debted for  it,  I  am  induced  (though  I  have  not  yet 
tried  it)  to  give  this  recipe  insertion. 

RECIPE. 

Gum  gambouge      .  .  .  -20  grains. 

White  hellebore  powder      .  .  .30  grains. 

To  be  made  in  six  balls. 

One  to  be  given  to  a  full  grown  dog,  six  following  mornings  (or 
half  the  quantity  to  a  puppy). 

The  dog  to  be  kept  warm,  and  fed  on  milk  and  gruel. 

By  an  anonymous  letter  (for  which  I  beg  leave  to 
thank  the  author  of  it,  whoever  he  may  be),  I  was 
induced,  with  the  able  assistance  of  a  medical  sports- 
man, to  try,  as  a  preventive  to  the  distemper,  the 
vaccine  inoculation.  We  made  the  experiment  on 
several  dogs,  and  we  could  not  afterwards  hear  that 
any  one  of  them  had  taken  the  distemper.  But 
whether  this  was  the  effect  of  chance,  or  whether  the 
remedy  can  always  be  depended  on,  I  must  leave  to 
the  decision  of  those  persons,  who  are  better  versed 
in  the  diseases  of  dogs  than  myself.  At  all  events, 
the  remedy  is  so  innocent,  that  there  can  be  no  harm 
in  trying  it ;  arid  I  shall  conclude  tinder  this  head, 


252  DISTEMPER. 

with  the  insertion  of  the  letter,  which,  after  what  I 
have  said,  it  would  be  negligent  to  omit. 

"SiR; 

"  As  a  stranger  I  know  not  what  business  I 

have  to  trouble  you,  but,  from  the  subject  of  my  letter,  you  will, 
as  a  sportsman,  probably  pardon  the  intrusion.  I  should  tell  you 
I  have  lately  purchased  your  ( Instructions  to  Young  Sportsmen/ 
and  I  do  not  intend  to  flatter,  when  I  say,  it  is  by  far  the  best 
book  on  shooting  I  ever  read.  And  since  from  its  originality, 
and  excellence,  I  have  no  doubt  it  will  go  through  another  edi- 
tion, I  am  induced  to  hope  you  will,  in  a  future  edition,  say  some- 
thing on  a  preventive  of  distemper  in  dogs,  which  has  been  lately 
tried,  if  after  a  trial  you  should  find  it  to  answer.  About  two 
years  ago,  when  in  Sussex,  I  had  frequently  heard  at  table,  that 
inoculating  a  dog  with  the  cow-pox  virus  would  prevent  it  from 
having  the  distemper.  About  half  a  year  afterwards,  having  a 
pointer  puppy,  a  few  months  old,  I  inoculated  it.  The  dog  has 
never  had  the  distemper  yet ;  but  since  dogs  sometimes  escape 
this  cruel  disease  till  old  age,  and  sometimes  entirely,  this  can  be 
no  proof.  However,  you  may  possibly  deem  the  supposed  pre- 
ventive worth  a  trial  5  and,  as  no  one  is  a  greater  friend  of  the 
dog  than  I  am,  it  would  afford  me  the  sincerest  pleasure  if  you 
should  find  it  succeed,  and  make  it  known.  After  reading  your 
publication,  Sir,  no  one  can  doubt  of  your  being  a  sportsman,  and 
as  such  you  must  feel  an  affection  for  your  faithful  companions 
in  the  field;  and  since  this  will  plead  for  me,  and  I  shall  ask 
your  bookseller  whether  he  cannot  make  this  reach  you  without 
putting  you  to  the  unnecessary  expense  of  postage,  I  shall  make 
no  further  apology.  But  I  am,  Sir, 

"  Most  respectfully, 

"  Your  obedient  humble  servant, 

"  London,  October,  1816.  "  CAMS  AMICUS. 

«  P.  S. — I  should  observe,  the  part  where  I  inoculated  my  dog 
was  on  the  inside  of  the  fore  leg,  under  the  shoulder.  It  was 
done  by  cutting  a  very  small  place  with  a  pair  of  scissors,  arid 


MANGE.  253 

rubbing  the   bone,  or  quill,  charged  with   the  virus,   into  the 
wound.     From  the  appearance  of  the  wound,  a  few  days  after,  I 
was  afraid  the  virus  had  not  taken  effect,  but  I  have  been  told 
that  this  slight  appearance  is  usual. 
«  P.  Hawker,  Esq." 

MANGE,  COMMON  OR  RED. 

RECIPE. 

Sulphur  vivum         .  .  .  .4  ounces. 

Hellebore  powder  .  .  .2  ditto. 

Bay-berry  powder  .  .  .2  ditto. 

Spirits  of  turpentine  .  .  .1  ditto. 

Hogslard  (to  form  it  into  an  ointment)  .     -f  pound. 

The  dog  to  be  first  washed  with  lime  water ;  and, 
when  dry,  to  be  well  rubbed  with  some  of  the  oint- 
ment on  the  parts  affected.  The  washing  and  dress- 
ing to  be  repeated  every  two  days. 

Give  the  dog  half  a  drachm  of  nitre  and  a  drachm 
of  sulphur  daily,  for  ten  days. 

It  will  be  best  to  keep  the  dog  free  from  getting 
very  cold  or  wet  during  this  process,  which,  by  the 
by,  very  rarely  fails  to  cure  in  two  or  three  applica- 
tions. - 

The  following  is  another  remedy,  during  the  pro- 
gress of  which  dogs  may  be  worked,  or  even  go  in 
the  water.  The  simple  article  required  for  this  can 
only  be  procured  on  the  seacoast. 

Rub  the  parts  affected  every  other  day  with  the  strongest 
bitters,  which  are  extracted  from  the  salt,  and  are  to  be  had 
at  the  salt-urns,  by  the  name  of  glauber.  This  kind  of  em- 
brocation may  be  kept,  for  some  time,  in  bottles,  if  wanted 
to  send  inland. 


254  SORE    FEET  — THORNS. 


SORE  FEET. 

To  keep  a  dog's  feet  hard  and  sound,  the  best  way 
is  to  wash  them  with  brine,  or  pot-liquor,  every  day 
after  coming  in ;  because,  if  once  suffered  to  get  raw, 
they  are  so  apt  to  smart  (and  particularly  if  any 
thing  is  applied),  that  the  dog  makes  them  worse, 
by  gnawing  and  biting  at  them  to  allay  the  itching. 

If  any  farther  remedy  was  required,  I  should  pre- 
fer the  following 

RECIPE. 

te       Oil  of  vitriol  .  .  .  .5  drops. 

Tincture  of  myrrh         .  .  1  ounce. 

A  little  of  which  should  be  applied,  with  a  feather, 
after  first  washing  the  feet. 

THORNS. 

"  FOR  thorns,"  says  Mr.  Daniel,  "  a  plaster  of 
black  pitch  is  the  best  cure  for  man,  horse,  or  dog ; 
and  has  succeeded  after  all  other  things  have  failed/' 
I  must,  however  (to  speak  as  I  have  found  it),  ob- 
serve, that  &  poultice  of  linseed  meal  surpasses  every 
remedy  I  have  yet  tried,  provided  the  thorn  cannot 
be  extracted,  or  cut  out.  But  if  the  thorn  can  be 
got  rid  of,  I  should  let  the  dog  complete  the  cure 
with  the  most  healing  of  all  applications — his  own 
tongue;  by  which  there  is  no  risk  of  softening  or 
irritating  his  feet. 


PHYSIC — TRAINS    OR    BRUISES.  255 


PHYSIC 

SHOULD  be  given  to  dogs  before  they  begin  their 
hard  work.  Nothing  is  better  than  a  mixture  of  one 
ounce  of  jalap  and  a  pint  of  syrup  of  buckthorn. 
With  a  large  tablespoonful  of  this  mixture  every  dog 
should  be  drenched  twice  in  each  of  the  two  weeks 
preceding  the  sporting  season.  The  dogs  should  also, 
in  hot  weather,  have  some  pieces  of  brimstone  in 
their  water-troughs.  If  people  would  only  take  this 
trouble,  we  should  not  so  often  hear  of  dogs  going 
mad,  or  dropping  down  dead  in  the  field. 

STRAINS  OR  BRUISES. 

I  HAVE  always  found,  that  an  immediate  and  long 
continued  application  of  water,  as  hot  as  it  can  pos- 
sibly be  borne,  is,  in  these  cases,  the  best  fomenta- 
tion that  can  be  applied  to  man  or  beast. 

After  this,  you  may  use,  with  wet  rags,  the  fol- 
lowing saturnine  lotion  :— 

RECIPE. 

Acetated  lead          .  .2  ounces. 

Vinegar,  and  water,  of  eacli  .  •     4  P*nt- 

Mixed  together  *. 

*  I  think  it  proper  to  express  my  thanks  for  an  amendment  to 
this  recipe  in  the  "  Sporting  Magazine,"  which,  I  am  proud  to 
see,  speaks  so  handsomely  of  this  work ;  though,  by  the  way,  I 
regret  that  I  should  have  led  the  editor  to  suppose  I  am  attached 


256  POISON— BITES    OF    VIPERS,  &C. 

When  the  inflammation  is  completely  removed^ 
rub  the  parts  with  the  following  embrocation  : — 

RECIPE. 

Soft  soap      .             .             .  .  .1  ounce. 

Spirit  of  wine           .             .  .  .1  ditto. 

Oil  of  turpentine      .              .  .  .1  ditto. 

Green  elder  ointment            •  .  .1  ditto. 

POISON. 

GIVE,  as  soon  as  possible, 

Emetic  tartar,  dissolved  in  warm  water,  15  grains; 

and,  after  this  has  taken  effect, 

Castor  oil         .  .  .  .2  ounces ; 

keeping  the  dog  warm  during  its  operation. 

BITES  OF  VIPERS,  &c. 

APPLY  the  following  mixture : — 

Green  elder  ointment,  and  savin  ointment,  equal  quantities. 
Let  the  dog  be  kept  on  a  low  and  cool  diet. 

I  have  been  told,  by  a  friend  in  Norfolk,  that  the 
fat  of  vipers,  taken  out,  boiled  down,  and  kept  (like 

to  the  old  game-laws.     On  the  contrary,  though  I  wished  them 
at  all  events  to  be  made  clear,  yet  I  always  disapproved  of  them. 

"  The  medical  advice  in  the  diseases  of  dogs  is  rational,  hut 
we  would  not  advise  any  one  to  depend  on  the  Turpeth  mineral, 
as  a  cure  for  madness."  £This  is  Mr.  Beckford's  remedy,  and 
merely  quoted  by  me.]  "  In  the  embrocation  for  strains,  the 
water  should  be  omitted,  and  the  quantity  of  vinegar  doubled. 
Distilled  vinegar,  decomposing  the  lead  entirely,  makes  the 
neatest,  if  not  the  most  efficacious  medicine." 


BITE    OF    A    MAD    DOG.  257 

goosegrease)  is  a  never  failing  remedy  for  this,  and 
almost  every  other,  poison  ;  but  that  it  gives  pain  on 
the  first  application.  From  the  confidence  I  have 
in  every  thing  which  this  gentleman  states,  I  am  in- 
duced to  insert  the  recipe ;  but,  not  having  tried  it, 
I  cannot  answer  for  its  efficacy. 

BITE  OF  A  MAD  DOG. 

IF  a  dog  is  bitten,  or  suspected  to  have  been 
bitten  by  a  mad  dog,  let  him  immediately  be  con- 
veyed, with  the  greatest  caution,  to  some  very  de- 
tached place ;  and,  in  the  latter  case,  if  no  remedy 
is  used,  a  short  time  will  determine  whether  he  has 
been  bitten  or  not. 

The  following  is  the  recipe  preferred  by  Mr.  Beck- 
ford,  than  which,  it  is  generally  considered,  nothing 
can  be  more  effectual.  (That  is  to  say,  if  any  me- 
dicine in  existence  can  be  depended  on  for  this  horrid 
disorder.)  It  is  simply 

Turpeth's  mineral*,  1st  morning     .     .     .       8  grains. 

2d  morning     .      .     .      16  grains. 

, 3d  morning     ...     32  grains. 

The  dog  should  be  bled  the  day  previous  to  taking 
the  first  dose ;  which,  as  well  as  the  others,  should 
be  given  on  an  empty  stomach.  He  may  have  warm 
broth  or  pot  liquor  in  the  afternoon ;  but  nothing 

*  Strong  doses  of  this  medicine — from  fifteen  to  thirty  grains, 
for  two  or  three  days  successively — have  been  recommended  in 
violent  pases  of  the  distemper,  and  performed  great  cures. 


258  TO    GIVE    DOGS    A    FINE    COAT. 

else  during  the  three  successive  days  of  his  taking 
the  medicine.  Let  the  Turpeth's  mineral  be  given 
in  a  piece  of  butter,  and  care  taken  that  the  dog  does 
not  throw  it  up  again. 

Mr.  Beckford,  in  his  "  Thoughts  on  Hunting," 
says,  "  The  whole  pack,  belonging  to  a  gentleman  in 
my  neighbourhood,  was  bitten;  and  he  assures  me, 
he  never  knew  an  instance  of  a  dog,  who  went  mad, 
that  had  taken  this  medicine. " 

TO  PHYSIC  MODERATELY,  AND  GIVE   A 
FINE  COAT  TO,  DOGS. 

TAKE  a  small  handful  of  the  leaves  of  the  wood- 
laurel  ;  boil  it  in  a  quart  of  water,  till  reduced  to  a 
pint,  and  mix  it  with  sufficient  liquid  food  to  serve 
five  or  six  dogs.  This  given,  about  once  a  month, 
in  hot  weather,  I  have  found  to  answer  better  than 
any  thing;  but,  as  the  wood-laurel  in  any  great 
quantity  is  poison,  it  must  be  used  with  the  utmost 
caution. 

If  a  sportsman  had  his  pointers  rubbed  down  and 
brushed  every  day,  immediately  after  they  came 
home,  and  particularly  if  wet  or  cold,  they  would 
not  only  have  fine  coats,  but  be  serviceable  to  him 
at  least  half  as  long  again.  This  I  have  proved  be- 
yond all  doubt. 

I  here  conclude  all  that  I  shall  say  relating  to 
"  dogs,"  as  the  subject  has  already  been  done  ample 
justice  to  by  Mr.  Daniel ;  Mr.  Thomas ;  Mr.  Scott, 


WORKS    TREATING    ON    DOGS.  259 

and  Mr.  Johnson,  in  their  interesting  publications 
on  field  sports ;  and,  though  the  last  named,  yet  not 
the  least,  by  William  Augustus  Osbaldiston,  Esq.,  in 
his  admirable  work,  which  is  called  the  "  British 
Sportsman."  On  the  merits  of  this  gentleman's 
work  (putting  aside  some  of  the  plates)  I  cannot  for- 
bear making  a  few  remarks,  although  he  is  (perhaps 
I  should  say  was)  an  utter  stranger  to  me.  I  bought 
his  book  when  I  was  a  lad,  above  twenty  years 
ago,  and  I  cannot  say  that  I  have  since  met  with 
any  thing  more  purely  original.  Mr.  Osbaldiston's 
"  British  Sportsman,"  it  is  evident,  is  faithfully 
drawn  from  nature,  by  a  thorough-bred  sportsman  in 
the  field,  instead  of  being  imperfectly  copied  from 
other  works,  by  a  hackney  quilldriver  in  the  metro- 
polis. This  work,  in  short,  as  well  as  Bewick's,  may 
be  considered  as  one  of  the  fine  old  standards,  from 
which  many  a  book-pirate  has  torn  the  colours  that 
he  sails  under ;  or,  as  the  peacock,  in  whose  feathers 
have  strutted  half  the  jackdaws  in  the  bookmaking 
world. 


Preservation  of  <iame, 

HAVING  said  enough  on  the  destruction,  let  ine 
now  proceed  to  the  preservation  of  game. 

A  man,  who,  as  a  friend,  had  been  hospitably 
entertained,  or,  as  a  stranger,  accommodated  with  a 
day's  shooting,  would  scarcely  deserve  the  name  of 
a  gentleman,  if  he  afterwards,  clandestinely,  set  his 
foot  on  the  ground  of  one,  to  whom  he  was  thus  far 
indebted ;  and  it  is,  therefore,  extremely  illiberal  to 
infer,  that  a  good  shot  cannot  sport  like  a  gentle- 
man ;  or  that,  when  invited  to  shoot,  he  would  de- 
stroy an  unfair  quantity  of  game ;  so  far  from  it,  a 
first-rate  sportsman  takes  a  pride  in  showing  mercy 
to  what  is  in  his  power,  and  piques  himself  upon 
strictly  conforming  to  what  he  thinks  would  please 
his  host,  and  being  called  a  nice  gentleman  by  an 
honest  gamekeeper.  Not  only  this,  but,  from  being 
cool  and  steady,  he  has  better  nerves  to  withstand  all 
temptation,  than  a  raw  shot,  who  has  scarcely  any 
command  of  himself  on  springing  a  forbidden  bird. 
There  are  many  'squires,  however,  so  hoggishly 
tenacious  of  their  game,  that,  in  spite  of  all  reason, 
they  continue  their  prejudice  against  a  cracked  shot 


PRESERVATION    OF    GAME,  &c  261 

so  far,  as  studiously  to  avoid  his  acquaintance ;  be- 
cause there  are  some  greedy  destroyers,  who  take  an 
unfair  advantage  of  their  own  skill  and  their  hosts 
indulgence;  and,  on  the  other  hand,  correct  men, 
who  have  been  known  to  kill  an  immense  bag  of 
game,  at  his  particular  request,  for  the  supply  of  an 
election  dinner,  or  some  other  reasonable  purpose. 

Thus  many  lords  of  manors,  who  would  rather 
lose  an  ounce  of  their  own  blood  than  a  brace  of 
their  pheasants,  have  been  striving  to  preserve  every 
head  of  game  by  day,  while  the  poachers,  unmolested, 
were  clearing  it  by  wholesale  during  the  night 
Sometimes,  too,  notwithstanding  all  their  caution, 
their  manors  are  invaded  even  l)y  day,  with  old 
stagers  from  a  garrison,  who  select  market  days, 
when  the  tenants  are  absent,  and  windy  weather, 
when  they  can  manoeuvre  to  leeward  and  outflank 
the  keepers. 

Others  again  manage  to  create  a  diversion  in 
favour  of  their  trespass,  by  having  the  keepers  drawn 
to  opposite  points,  with  the  discharge  of  double  guns 
and  pistols  ;  or,  getting  some  bad  shots,  on  promising 
them  a  share  of  the  booty,  to  throw  themselves  in 
the  way  of  the  lookers  out,  and  occupy  their  whole 
attention ;  first  by  running  away  to  give  them  a 
chase  that  will  prolong  their  distance  from  the  real 
point  of  attack;  and  then,  by  warmly  arguing  in  a 
wrong  cause,  so  as  to  engross  their  attention  with  a 
triumphant  explanation  of  their  own  knowledge,  and 
their  prisoner's  ignorance  in  the  game  laws. 


PRESERVATION    OF    GAME, 

Many  gentlemen  poachers  have,  by  running  away, 
through  pretended  fear,  drawn  a  gamekeeper  off  his 
boundary,  who,  being  possibly  there  followed  by  his 
dogs,  and  having  only  a  gamekeeper's  licence,  be- 
comes so  far  in  doubt  as  to  his  own  safety  against 
information,  that  he  is  too  happy  to  compound  for 
the  day's  sport  being  finished  in  peace,  by  those  be- 
fore whom  he  may  have  committed  himself. 

Some,  with  a  polite  bow  and  shrug  of  the  shoulders, 
have  pretended  to  be  foreigners,  who  do  not  under- 
stand a  syllable  of  English,  and  by  this  means  de- 
terred keepers  from  asking  those  questions,  which,  if 
once  put,  the  usual  penalty  of  twenty  pounds  would 
bind  them  to  answer. 

Others,  regardless  of  either  word  or  credit,  most 
faithfully  assure  the  keepers,  that  they  have  got 
leave  from  their  master,  inquire  after  his  health, 
pretend  to  be  on  the  most  intimate  terms  with  him 
and  his  acquaintance,  and  (probably,  knowing  him 
to  be  from  home)  have  even  had  the  effrontery  to  call 
at  his  house,  in  order  to  give  still  more  plausibility 
to  their  word.  A  keeper  should,  therefore,  always 
serve  tlie  notices  on  every  one,  who  is  not  perfectly 
well  known  to  him.  This  may  be  done  with  a  de- 
gree of  respect  and  civility,  that  could  offend  no 
gentleman,  and  would  often  be  the  means  of  out- 
witting many,  who  are  regardless  of  all  pretensions 
to  that  name. 

Some  attempt  to  carry  their  point  by  sheer  bully- 
ing ;  threatening  to  box  with,  or  shoot  the  keepers, 


AND    TRICKS   OF    TRESPASSERS.  263 

and  (under  a  hope  that  their  masters  would  not  offer 
themselves  as  a  target  to  every  puppy  who  came  to 
poach  on  them)  talk  of  "  satisfaction — "  "  pistols — " 
"  fighting  in  a  sawpit—  *  and  hold  forth  vaunting 
proposals,  in  which,  if  they  were  once  taken  at  their 
word,  they  would,  in  all  probability,  like  most  bul- 
lies, or  sot  disant  heroes,  who  prattle  too  much  about 
"  fighting,"  be  the  very  first  to  sport  the  white 
feather ! 

Though  last  not  least,  among  the  successful  plans 
of  the  day  poacher,  is  that  of  taking  a  double  gun, 
and  an  old  steady  pointer,  when  travelling,  and 
cutting  out  the  game  from  the  farther  end  of  the  pre- 
served fields,  which  flank  the  turnpikes  (as  a  cruiser 
would  a  flotilla  from  under  a  battery) :  or,  if  the  fields 
are  so  large  that  he  might  be  coursed  and  caught, 
simply  to  draw  them  within  a  short  run  of  his 
carriage.  A  keeper,  in  this  case,  would  do  well  to 
gallop  quietly  round  to  some  likely  field  in  advance, 
for  which  our  friend  would  be  pretty  sure  to  turn 
out  again ;  and  here  the  keeper,  by  hiding  himself, 
might  pop  on  him,  with  all  the  necessary  articles  to 
put  an  end  to  his  progress.  For  stopping  one,  who 
carries  a  gun  to  shoot  birds  feeding  as  he  travels 
along  the  road,  the  better  way  would  be  to  tie  down 
the  innkeepers,  by  a  threat  of  withdrawing  your 
custom,  not  to  allow  their  postboys  or  coachmen  to 
stop  for  such  purposes ;  and,  through  a  fear  of  getting 
in  a  scrape,  these  men  would  most  likely  contrive  to 
pass  by,  or  frighten  up  the  game. 


264  PRESERVATION    OF    GAME, 

It  would  far  exceed  the  limits  of  this  work  to 
insert  every  ruse  de  guerre  that  is  successfully 
practised,  for  a  tolerable  shot  to  come  home  with  a 
full  bag.  All  keepers  and  lookers  out,  therefore, 
should  be  constantly  on  the  alert,  and  made  strictly 
acquainted  with  the  game  laws,  at  least  as  far  as 
they  relate  to  themselves  ;  but  although  this  may  be 
learnt  by  a  little  conversation  with  almost  any  at- 
torney's clerk,  or  a  few  written  instructions,  yet  not 
one  in  ten  knows  how  to  serve  a  notice  correctly,  or 
even  the  most  common  points  of  what  so  materially 
concerns  the  duties  of  his  situation. 

Keepers  should  be  as  widely  distributed  as  pos- 
sible, by  which  means  a  marauder  would  have  some 
difficulty  to  steer  clear  of  them  all ;  but  these  men 
(like  markers)  are  too  apt  to  get  idling  and  chattering 
together,  instead  of  minding  their  business.  Each 
gamekeeper  would  do  well  to  have  with  him  a  witness 9 
for  which,  any  common  labourer  would  be  sufficient ; 
and,  above  all,  a  spy  glass,  by  which  he  would  most 
likely  be  able  to  distinguish  any  man,  who  might 
beat  him  by  being  longer  in  the  legs  than  himself, 
or  having  a  horse  which  was  a  better  fencer  than  his 
own ;  and  who  he  may,  by  this  means,  be  able  to 
recognise  hereafter,  so  as  to  find  him  out,  and  serve 
him  with  notices.  A  few  words  more,  with  regard  to 
gamekeepers : 

Be  careful  how  you  trust  any  of  them  with  guns,  under 
the  pretence  of  their  killing  vermin  ;  for  it  is  an  un- 
doubted fact,  that  many  of  those,  who  are  considered 


AND   TRICKS    OF    KEEPERS.  265 

very  honest  men  by  their  employers,  are  yet  so  much 
the  contrary,  that  they  will  take  every  opportunity 
to  destroy  game,  when  not  under  the  immediate  ob- 
servation of  their  master.  For  instance — a  game- 
keeper is  in  a  covert :  he  fires  his  gun,  and  pockets  a 
pheasant  or  a  partridge,  or  kills  a  hare  and  conceals 
it:  his  master,  who  is  perhaps  not  out  of  hearing 
of  the  gun,  comes  up  and  says — "  John,  what  did 

you  shoot  at?"  "A  d d  hawk,  sir,"  replies  the 

trusty  guardian  of  the  preserves.  "  Did  you  kill  it, 
John?"  "Oh,  no,  sir,  he  was  too  far  off;  but  I'm 
sure  I  properly  peppered  him."  "  Where  is  he 
now  ?"  "  Lord  bless  you,  sir,  he 's  been  out  of  sight 
these  five  minutes !" 

Be  very  cautious  whom  you  trust  with  fowling- 
pieces ;  they  are  not  so  often  required,  as  keepers 
would  -wish  to  persuade  you  they  are ;  and  do  not 
be  led  away  with  the  mistaken  notion,  that  it  will  be 
a  protection  to  your  game  to  have  a  dozen  fellows 
running  about  with  guns  in  their  hands.  It  may  be 
asked,  How  then  are  the  various  kinds  of  vermin  to 
be  destroyed  ?  To  which  I  would  answer,  that,  if 
a  keeper  cannot  effect  this  by  means  of  traps,  gins, 
poison,  and  the  various  other  artifices,  he  is  by  no 
means  qualified  for  his  place.  And,  with  regard  to 
hawks  and  other  mischievous  birds,  these  underlings 
have  only  to  keep  a  sharp  look  out,  in  the  breeding 
season,  to  find  their  nests,  and  then  take  the  head 
keeper,  or  some  one  proper  to  be  trusted  with  a  gun, 
to  shoot  them. 


266  TO    KEEP    UP    A    GOOD 

In  case  it  should  be  considered  unsafe  for  keepers 
to  go  their  nightly  rounds  without  fire-arms,  I  should 
rather  recommend  the  use  of  pistols  than  guns, 
though  I  have  little  doubt  but  a  fierce  dog,  and  a 
sabre  or  a  bludgeon,  would  effectually  answer  the 
purpose  of  defence  against  poachers. 

The  real  way  to  keep  up  a  good  stock  of  game, 
we  may  rest  assured,  is,  first,  to  be  well  guarded 
against  such  incursions  as  those  previously  alluded 
to.  Secondly,  to  get  the  poachers  watched  at  their 
own  houses*,  by  concealing  people  during  the  night, 
near  both  their  front  and  back  doors ;  also  to  have, 
up  the  road,  an  eye  on  the  stage-coaches;  and, 
above  aC,  some  spies  over  the  waggoners,  who  are 
often  their  very  employers,  and  who  are  enabled  to 
smuggle  to  London  both  your  game  and  poultry, 
not  only  better  concealed,  than  if  sent  by  the  coach, 
but  in  much  greater  quantities.  Thirdly,  to  keep 
on  good  terms  with  the  farmers,  who,  it  should  be 
remembered,  have  a  right  to  tread  on  their  own 
ground,  though  the  nest  of  a  partridge  or  pheasant 
be  under  their  feet ! 

In  a  few  words,  a  gentleman,  who,  living  on  his 

*  These  men  often  frequent  what  are  called  bough  houses  (un- 
licensed places,  where  beer  is  sold) ;  and  here  it  may  be  contrived 
to  discover  the  whole  gang,  by  having  them  closely  watched,  or 
buying  over,  for  a  spy,  or  keeper,  some  well-known  old  poacher. 
In  short,  if  these  fellows  are  never  lost  sight  of,  they  must  be 
taken  sooner  or  later ;  but,  if  only  hunted  in  the  Jields  and 
woods,  they  may  escape  their  pursuers,  till  they  have  nearly 
stripped  a  manor. 


STOCK    OF    GAME.  267 

estate,  is  liberal  and  popular  with  his  neighbours, 
his  tenants,  and  the  poor,  will  seldom  have  much 
difficulty  in  preserving  his  rights  of  every  kind. 
Few  will  be  disposed  to  infringe  on  them,  while 
every  one  is  ready  to  offer  assistance  for  their  pro- 
tection. But,  on  the  other  hand,  the  tyrant,  hated 
and  despised  by  all,  when  shot  over  by  day,  poached 
on  by  night,  or  even  robbed  of  his  property,  be- 
comes only  the  laughing-stock  of  his  villagers,  who 
would  perhaps  rather  succour  than  inform  against 
the  offenders ! 

Nothing  will  keep  pheasants  at  home  better  than 
stacks  of  buck  wheat,  oats,  white  peas,  or  barley ; 
provided  you  dispose  of  them  IN  coverts,  wheihe  there 
is  access  to  water.  It  is.  equally  as  well  known, 
that  high  turnips  will  be  a  shelter  for  your  par- 
tridges, as  that  Swedes  will  attract  hares,  and  strong 
furze  be  the  means  of  preserving  game  of  every 
description. 

I  may  add,  that  woodcocks  have  been  often  col- 
lected together  by  decayed  apples.  This  discovery 
was  first  made  in  consequence  of  their  having  fre- 
quented the  orchards  in  some  parts  of  Dorsetshire, 
where  they  have  appeared  in  numbers,  and  are  called 
"  ditch-owls." 

In  the  two  last  editions,  I  observed,  that  there  re- 
mained much  to  be  done  for  the  effectual  preserva- 
tion of  game,  to  which  the  legislature  would  no  doubt 
attend,  when  matters  of  more  serious  consideration 
were  happily  adjusted  ;  and  the  game  laws  would,  in 


268  OBSERVATIONS. 

all  probability,  undergo  the  improvement,  for  which 
there  was  (and  as  yet  is)  ample  scope.  Let  us, 
therefore,  still  hope  that  something  will  be  done  in 
parliament.  In  the  mean  time,  I  shall  hereafter 
take  the  liberty  of  introducing  a  few  observations 
on  the  subject,  under  the  head  of  "  Game  Laws." 


Bucfe 

[GENERAL  DIRECTIONS  FOR.] 

I  OBSERVED,  in  the  last  edition,  that  with  regard 
to  a  duck  gun — If  a  sportsman  could  afford  to  have 
one  of  the  very  best  that  could  possibly  be  turned 
out  of  hand,  he  would,  I  was  confident,  get  better 
served  by  Mr.  Joseph  Manton,  than  by  any  one  in 
the  trade ;  because  his  fine  boring  and  other  finish- 
ing were  done  entirely  by  picked  workmen  in  his 
own  house,  under  the  immediate  eye  of  himself,  or 
his  agents.  Here  he  had  rooms,  with  a  good  light 
to  work  in,  and  the  very  best  of  tools,  and  other 
conveniences,  instead  of  having  the  different  parts 
of  the  gun  hawked  about  the  streets  from  one  poor 
journeyman  to  another;  at  the  risk  of  ultimately 
requiring  patchwork,  in  order  to  disguise  from  the 
customer  their  not  fitting  together  in  a  sound  and 
workmanlike  manner. 

[But  now  (May  8t/iJ  I  regret  to  say,  that  this 
concern  is  broken  up,  and  the  greater  part  of  the 
ivorMng  machinery,  such  as  no  other  gunmaker  in 
Europe  could  produce,  has  been  sold  off';  and  the 


270  DUCK    GUNS. 

whole  of  tills  fine  establishment  reduced  to  a  com- 
plete wreck.  Mr.  Lancaster  had  purchased  the 
lease  of  the  premises ;  but,  in  consequence  of  Mr. 
Manton's  commission  being  afterwards  set  aside, 
Mr.  Lancaster's  purchase  became  null  and  void. 
He  has,  however,  retained  most  of  the  best  work- 
men, and  that  excellent  gunmaker,  Purdey,  I  be- 
lieve, has  got  some  of  the  others.  Mr.  Joseph 
Manton  still  assures  me  that  he  shall  resume  busi- 
ness ;  but  this  is  best  known  to  himself.  All  I  can 
say,  therefore,  is,  that  if  he  does  not,  I  know  of  no 
one  so  fit  to  succeed  him  as  Lancaster. 

This  is  the  present  state  of  affairs  at  the  head  of 
the  gun-trade,  but  most  probably  before  the  re- 
mainder of  this  edition  is  printed  off,  I  may  be  able 
to  give  further,  and  more  decided,  information.^ 

If,  on  the  other  hand,  the  shooter  is  content  with 
a  good  serviceable  duck  gun  that  will  kill  well,  and 
answer  every  purpose,  and  is  not  au  fait  enough  to 
send  his  own  specific  directions  to  Birmingham,  he 
has  only  to  go  to  the  fountain  head  at  once,  and 
order  Mr,  Fullerd  or  Mr.  Lancaster  to  send  him  a 
barrel  completely  finished  for  shooting,  and  then 
get  it  fitted  up  to  his  own  fancy  by  any  tolerable 
mechanic. 

My  reason  for  preferring  this  plan  is,  because  I 
know  by  experience  that  if  Fullerd  and  Lancaster 
are  left  alone,  they  can  bore  a  barrel  to  shoot  well ; 
but  when  interfered  with,  they  become  mere  jour- 
neymen who  dare  not  open  their  mouths,  insomuch 


DUCK    GUNS. 

that  if  they  were  ordered  to  bore  a  barrel  like  a 
blunderbuss ;  a  bugle ;  or  a  gas-pipe ;  no  matter 
which — they  must  do  it. 

It  has  been  a  grand  object  with  some  gunmakers 
to  suppress  the  reputation  of  Fullerd  and  Lancaster 
by  punching  their  names  out  of  the  barrels,  and 
putting  on  their  own.  This  may  be  all  fair  when 
these  barrelmakers  are  only  employed  for  the  rough 
work ;  but  this  is  frequently  done  even  when  they 
have  finished  the  boring,  and  completed  almost  every 
part  of  the  barrels,  and  breechings,  except  the  mere 
polish  with  sand-paper.  It  therefore  often  happens 
that,  for  this  second  baptism,  and  a  few  dandy  orna- 
ments, which  are  quite  out  of  character  for  duck 
guns,  the  customer  is  made  to  pay  an  enormous  per 
ceritage  above  the  fair  trade  profit.  Several  of  these 
gunmakers  declare  to  me  that  they  get  nothing  by 
what  they  call  "  making  /"  duck  guns.  Very  well, 
then :  if  so,  by  placarding  the  following  names, 
where  they  cannot  be  punched  out  again,  I  shall  be 
doing  them  essential  service. — 

WILLIAM  FULLERD,  No.  56,  Compton-street. 

Cler  ken  well. 

CHARLES  LANCASTER,   No.  26,  York-street, 
Gloucester-place. 

(But  with  regard  to  common  sporting  guns,  the 
case  alters ;  because  the  fitting  up  of  them  is  now 
pretty  well  understood  by  every  one  ;  and  they  require 
so  many  little  appendages  that  the  least  trouble,  as  I 


272  DUCK    GUNS. 

before  observed,  when  speaking  of  them,  is  to  go  at 
once  to  a  gunmaker  or  a  pawnbroker.) 

Many  will  tell  you,  that  a  large  gun  will  do  no 
more  execution  than  a  small  one ;  and,  by  the  same 
rule,  they  may  say,  that  a  gun  will  kill  no  farther 
than  a  pistol. 

The  advantage  of  a  duck  gun  is,  that  it  will  carry 
large  shot  more  compactly,  and  may  be  fired  with 
double  or  treble  the  charge  for  a  piece  of  an  ordinary 
size.  You  are  therefore  enabled  to  use  the  largest 
shot,  with  the  same  advantage,  that  No.  7  may  be 
fired  from  a  double  gun  ;  by  which  means,  at  a  large 
object,  you  may  kill  considerably  farther ;  and,  in  a 
flock,  many  more  birds  at  a  shot. 

In  comparing  small  shot  from  a  double  gun,  as 
having  the  same  advantage  over  large,  that  a  pin, 
with  a  moderate  pressure,  would  have  over  a  nail, 
in  piercing  the  feathers  of  game,  by  the  same  argu- 
ment it  may  be  said,  that  large  shot,  from  a  duck 
gun,  would  have  the  effect  of  the  nail  driven  by  a 
hammer  through  the  strong  bones  and  feathers  of 
wildfowl.  A  large  gun,  to  carry  twice  as  much  as  a 
small  one  (say  three  or  four  ounces),  should  not  weigh 
less  than  12,  nor  exceed  Idlbs.  and  be  used  with  No.  1 
or  2  shot ;  and  the  same  proportion  of  powder  as 
before  recommended.  One  to  carry  five  or  six  ounces 
should  not  weigh  less  than  18,  nor  exceed  QOlbs.,  and 
be  used  with  A  or  B  shot ;  and  so  on  in  proportion  ;  but 
this  is  the  most  that  can  well  be  fired  without  a  rest. 


DUCK    GUNS.  273 

The  recoil  of  a  duck  gun  can  only  be  checked  by 
weight  of  metal,  and  there  are  two  ways  to  dispose 
of  it :  the  one,  immense  thickness,  whereby  the  gun 
may  be  short,  portable,  and  easily  managed ;  and  the 
other,  considerable  length,  by  which  you  may  kill 
farther,  and  take  a  much  more  accurate  aim.  The 
former  is  the  plan  of  Mr.  Joseph  Manton,  the  latter 
of  Mr.  D.  Egg :  and,  in  order  to  partake  a  little  of 
both  advantages,  I  should  steer  between  the  two,  and 
have  my  barrels  never  less  than  three  feet  eight,  nor 
more  than  four  fed  four  Inches*,  unless  I  used  a 
rest;  by  which  means  a  gun  being  top  heavy  is  ren- 
dered quite  the  reverse  of  objectionable.  In  this 
case,  I  should  adopt  the  plan  of  Mr.  D.  Egg,  as  the 
best  in  every  respect.  A  broad  heel-plate  contri- 
butes greatly  to  lessen  the  recoil ;  and,  in  some  of 
the  largest  sized  shoulder  guns,  a  sponge  has  some- 
times been  found  necessary,  to  prevent  the  guard 
from  cutting  the  second  finger. 

As  to  the  best  length  for  duck  guns  that  are  used 
without  a  rest,  and  must  therefore  be  made  to  mount 
tolerably  well ;  I  will  lay  down  a  simple  rule  for  those 
of  every  size :  viz.  measure  the  barrels  of  your  best 
double  gun,  and  see  how  many  times  they  are  in 

*  Since  the  first  edition  of  this  book  was  published,  Mr.  Joseph 
Manton  has  generally  adopted  the  proportions  here  recommended, 
and  made  some  of  the  best  duck  guns  that  can  possibly  be  turned 
out  of  hand.  He  declared  to  me,  that  he  gained  a  more  perfect 
knowledge  of  his  business  by  making  duck  guns,  than  by  any 
other  branch  of  practice. 

T 


274  DUCK    GUNS. 

length  the  diameter  of  the  punched  wadding;  and 
order  your  duck  guns  to  be  never  less  than  from  four 
to  six  more  diameters  in  proportion.  That  is,  if 
your  double  gun,  of  fourteen  gauge,  should  be  of  the 
common  length  (2  feet  8  inches),  which  is  forty- 
four  diameters,  let  your  duck  gun  of  seven  gauge, 
and  of  ISlbs.  weight,  be  never  less  than  from  3  feet 
6^  to  3  feet  8  inches  ;  (or,  if  you  can  manage  kfeet, 
so  much  the  better) ;  and  so  forth  on  a  still  larger 
scale.  The  latter  gun  at  forty-four  diameters  would  be 
3  feet  2^  inches,  but  with  this  length  it  would  scatter 
more  at  long  shots ;  and,  if  properly  loaded  (say  with 
3^  ounces  of  shot),  would,  by  flying  up  forward,  be 
felt  too  severely  to  the  shoulder. 

Recollect,  that  although  the  same  ratio  might  hold 
good  for  guns,  yet  neither  the  weight  of  the  atmo- 
sphere nor  the  muscular  power  of  a  man  can  be 
made  to  serve  in  proportion.  If  a  duck  gun  is  too 
large  in  the  caliber,  in  proportion  to  its  weight  of 
metal,  it  will  recoil  considerably ;  arid  if  too  small, 
it  will  not  have  the  desired  effect  of  allowing  the  shot 
to  lie  compactly  together. 

A  gun  fired  from  a  rest  \$>felt  more  than  if  held 
out,  because  the  left  hand,  when  grasping  it,  checks 
the  recoil.  The  stock  of  a  heavy  duck  gun  should 
be  more  bent  than  that  of  a  common  gun,  as,  when 
we  are  holding  out  a  great  weight,  it  is  not  so  easy 
to  lower  the  head:  and  it  should  also  be  observed, 
that  the  curve  in  the  stock  tends  to  lessen  the  recoil. 

I  have  of  late  years  had  the  duck  gun   stocks. 


DUCK    GUNS.  275. 

which  I  use  on  the  coast,  made  with  a  pistol  grip,  and 
whipped  with  waxed  end,  round  the  handle,  similar 
to  a  cricket  bat,  which  rather  lessens  the  jar ;  and  the 
upper  part  of  the  but  very  much  cut  away,  in  order 
to  prevent  it  from  hurting  the  shoulder  bone.  I  also 
paint  and  varnish  the  stock,  by  which  means  it  does 
not  get  cracked,  after  being  wetted  with  salt  water. 
The  gunmakers'  stocks  I  found  were  always  a  great 
plague  on  this  account,  as  well  as  from  the  trouble  of 
keeping  them  in  order,  after  being  exposed  to  the 
spray  of  the  sea.  Add  to  which,  they  recoil  most  un- 
mercifully, and  are  therefore  only  fit  for  light  charges. 
I  should  always  have  these  stocks  rather  short ;  as 
one  that  would  mount  well  in  a  shooting  jacket, 
would  be  unmanageably  long  in  a  gunning  dress. 

The  following  is  the  average  of  several  shots,  tried 
at  twelve  sheets  of  thick  brown  paper,  to  ascertain 
the  difference  between  two  common  duck  guns,  and 
a  rery  .superior  double  gun,  made  by  Mr.  Joseph 
Manton. 


276 


DUCK    GUNS. 


Large  duck  gun    .     .     .     . 
Smallest  ditto             .     .     . 

WEIGHT. 

LENGTH. 

GAUGE. 

Pounds. 
14 
124 
9 

Feet.  Inches. 
4  6  ) 
4  5/ 

2  8 

7 
14 

Double  gun       

Duck  guns        ) 
Double  gun       j 

WITH  No.  2  SHOT. 

Yards. 

60 

45 

In  the  1st  sheet. 

32 
20 

34 
26 

Through  the 
12th  sheet. 
25 
18 

34 
26 

Double  gun       J 

The  large  guns  were  loaded  with  precisely  double 
the  charge  of  the  small  gun,  which  is  one-fifth  less 
than  that  with  which  they  always  killed  best. 

The  paper  was  nailed  up  close  to  a  sheet  of  water, 
and  two  men  placed  to  observe  the  effect ;  which 
was,  that  the  outside  shot  (that  which  flew  wide  of 
the  paper)  appeared  to  be  driven  with  much  more 
force  from  the  heavy  guns,  and,  of  course,  spread  a 
much  larger  surface. 

This  proves,  that  although,  if  both  accurately 
levelled,  the  difference  between  a  wildfowl  gun  and 
a  small  gun  is  riot  so  very  considerable,  at  a  single 
bird ;  yet,  from  the  immense  circle,  which  the  large 
gun  spreads,  you  have  more  chances  of  killing  with 
an  indifferent  aim ;  and,  of  course,  in  a  flock  (as  be- 
fore said),  would  kill  many  more  birds  at  a  shot. 


DUCK    GUNS.  277 

At  the  same  time  an  opportunity  was  taken  to 
prove  the  advantage  of  shot  lying  compact;  viz. 
after  loading  the  double  gun  with  a  full  charge  of 
powder,  and  placing  within  the  muzzle  a  round  of 
pasteboard,  I  put  thereon  forty-five  grains  of  No.  7 
shot,  shook  them  aU  into  one  tier  on  the  wadding, 
and,  after  having  laid  on  them  another  round  of 
pasteboard,  carefully  rammed  down  all  together: — 
the  result  was,  that,  at  thirty  yards,  twenty  grains 
were  well  distributed  in  a  newspaper. 


278 


DUCK    GUNS. 


Subjoined  is  another  trial,  made  in  1820,  between  the  smallest  sized 
duck  guns,  and  fourteen  gauge  double  guns  (at  thirty-eight  yards),  wit! 
twelve  sheets  of  thickest  brown  paper  put  up  afresh  for  each  shot. 


Number 

Ditto 

of  Grains 

through 

Remarks. 

in  1st 

12th 

Sheet. 

Sheet 

J        -w        ^3 

• 

«j 

• 

1 

0 

0 

1 

1 

1 

M, 

<N 

CO 

^H 

<N 

w 

f  Old  Joe  (a  gun   never   yet 

beat,  for  its  regularity  ot 

pattern  on  the  paper),  right 

barrel        

156 

143 

116 

73 

74 

80 

}  Most 

Ditto  left  barrel    

111 

140 

196 

71 

70 

72 

j  regular. 

With  oz.  and 

half  No.  5^ 

^•t    , 

A  newer  gun  of  precisely  the 

.shot. 

same  size,  right  barrel  .  .  . 

189 

150 

124 

62 

86 

41 

)  Closest  in 

145 

122 

145 

54 

69 

80 

5  1st  Sheet. 

„ 

Detonating  gun,  right  barrel 
Ditto,  left  barrel  

166 
164 

127 
137 

124 
128 

102 
82 

89 
90 

91 
72 

1  Strongest  *. 

2oz.  and  half  ,  A  131b.  gun  (7  gauge^  4  feet 

OnlyofNo.  \        barrpl^     hv  11.  V.crcr    ..... 

175 

164 

172 

128 

122 

138 

3  Shot,  in  1 

*  /  ^ 

heavy  sin-  /A  lOlb.  detonating   gun  (7 

gle  guns.    ^ 

gauge,  3  feet  barrel)  

162 

170 

145 

120 

104 

142 

One  shot,  for  trial,  against 

heavy   single  guns,   with 
No.  3,  in  Old  Joe,  to  show 

that  even  the  best  double 

guns  will  not  throw  large 

- 

shot  like  duck  guns  

88 

71 

GENERAL  REMARKS. — A  damp,  windy  day  ;  and  therefore  much  against  the  force 
of  powder.  The  eighth  part  of  a  sheet  of  letter  paper  was  pasted  on  every  front  sheet, 
as  a  bull's  eye ;  and,  on  an  average,  received  about  five  grains  of  shot.  All  the  barrels 
were  made  by  Charles  Lancaster,  except  the  one  of  Mr.  D.  Egg,  and  were  well  worked 
and  dirtied  previously  to  being  tried.  The  same  measure  of  powder  as  of  shot. 

*  On  Mr.  Joseph  Manton's  first  principle,  which  was  discarded  from  being  so  trouble, 
some  to  clean  ;  and  which  owed  much  of  its  strength  to  having  more  weight  of  metal ; 
and  so  small  a  vent-hole,  that  it  was  repeatedly  missing  fire. 

f  Recoiled  severely,  if  loaded  higher,  from  being  too  short  in  proportion  to  the  bore, 
and  therefore  would  not  answer  my  purpose  for  wildfowl.  This  gun  was  made  to  my 
order  by  Mr.  Joseph  Manton,  and  is  the  same  with  which  Mr.  Osbaldiston,  in  1824, 
won  a  five  hundred  guinea  match,  and  since  that,  several  others.  This  gentleman  re- 
fused one  hundred  and  fifty  guineas  for  the  gun. 


DUCK    GUNS. 


279 


In  comparison  with  the  table  of  shots  originally 
given,  I  am  now  enabled  to  add,  the  performance  of 
a  duck  gun,  made  expressly  to  my  order  by  Mr. 
Joseph  Manton,  the  barrel  of  which  was  prepared  by 
Lancaster. 


WKIGHT. 

LENGTH. 

GAUGE. 

Pounds. 

17| 

Feet.    Inches. 
4         2 

Not  quite  an 
inch. 

With  four  ounces  and  a  half  of  No.  2  shot,  well 
shaken  down,  after  being  put  in  the  barrel,  and  an 
equal  Measure  of  powder  strongly  wadded: 


Yards. 

In  the  1st  sheet. 

Through  the 
12th  sheet. 

00 

50 

48 

45 

92 

92 

The  following  table  of  a  gun  trial,  which  I  have 
just  found  among  my  papers,  and  which  I  perfectly 
remember  making  (though  I  see  it  is  without  date, 
and  without  the  size  of  the  target  or  the  shot  being 
specified),  may  yet  prove  as  well  worth  insertion  as 
any,  because  it  plainly  shows  the  decided  advantage 
in  the  increased  size  of  guns. 


280  DUCK    GUNS. 

DISTANCE  SIXTY  YARDS. 

Through  a  double 
In  1st  half        quire  of  brown 

sheet.  paper. 

Best  double  gun,  91bs.         .         .         4  .4 

Fisherman's  old  gun  of  1 21bs.  (com- 
mon breeching)  .  .  8  .3 

Joe  Man  ton's  duck  gun,  l/^lbs.          14       .         .14 

An  old  Birmingham  swivel  gun 

(common  breech)  about  701bs.  40  .  .38 

Query.   Does  this  corroborate  the  assertion,  then,  that  a  small 
gun  will  kill  as  well  as  a  large  one  ? 

For  shooting  in  windy  weather,  and  killing  birds 
that  would  dive  at  a  flash,  there  can  be  no  question 
as  to  the  superiority  of  detonating  duck  guns. 

In  loading  a  duck  gun,  the  farther  you  wish  to 
reach  a  flock  of  birds,  the  more  powder  and  the  less 
shot  you  must  put;  because  you  may  often  make 
good  a  few  random  shots  into  flocks  of  wildfowl,  by 
putting  a  considerably  larger  measure  of  powder  than 
of  shot;  when  by  the  usual  mode  of  loading,  you 
might  only  hear  the  shot  rattle  on  the  wings  of  many9 
without  bringing  down  a  single  bird. 

To  conclude  this  subject,  it  need  only  be  observed, 
that  the  same  directions  as  those  before  given  will 
hold  good  for  the  choice,  care,  and  cleaning  of  duck 
guns.  They  cannot,  however,  be  made  to  balance 
quite  so  well  as  guns  on  a  small  construction,  with- 
out an  unmanageable  quantity  of  lead  ;  and,  in  these, 
the  scrollguard,  or,  what  is  far  better,  as  I  before  ob- 
served, a  pistol  grip  to  the  stock,  may  be  adopted,  in 


DUCK    GUNS.  281 

order  to  prevent  the  right  hand  from  being  driven 
against  the  face,  in  the  event  of  a  recoil.  But,  if 
they  should  have  been  loaded  some  time,  it  is  best  to 
loosen  the  charge  of  shot,  which,  otherwise,  would 
bejelt  severely. 

If  one  of  these  guns  should  be  laid  aside  for  a 
season  or  two,  your  filling  it  with  mutton  suet  will 
entirely  prevent  rust. 


Co  make  an  olti  <Stm  sfjoot  toell 

THIS  may  be  done,  if  the  barrel  be  of  sufficient 
substance ;  of  tolerably  good  iron ;  and  perfectly 
sound ;  first  by  boring  it  *  (as  before  mentioned)  so 
as  to  have  friction  downwards,  and  this  gradually 
relieved  Jbrtvard ;  secondly,  by  putting  in  a  chamber 
plug  (vide  plate) ;  and,  thirdly,  by  giving  immense 
strength  to  the  mainspring  of  the  lock. 

This  recipe  may  riot  only  be  worth  the  observation 
of  those  who  cannot  afford  a  new  gun,  but  useful  to 
officers  on  service  ;  who,  from  not  wishing  to  increase 
their  baggage,  when  constantly  engaged,  take  no  gun 
with  them ;  and  are,  perhaps,  after  a  summer's  cam- 
paign stationed  in  winter  quarters,  where  they  have 
plenty  of  leisure,  and  the  finest  shooting,  though  with 
no  other  fowling-piece  than  a  regimental  musket. 


*  In  a  stout  barrel,  even  the  deep  flaws  may  be  easily  got  rid 
of,  by  means  of  making  it  red  hot,  and  beating  them  in,  before 
you  fresh  bore  it. 


TO    MAKE    AN    OLD    GUN    SHOOT    WELL.    283 

This  was  the  case  on  the  expedition  to  New  Orleans, 
in  the  country  near  which  place  the  wildfowl  were 
innumerable. 

A  regimental  armourer  (even  if  he  had  the  means) 
might  not  be  perfectly  master  of  the  boring ;  but  the 
perforated  plug  and  the  strengthening  of  the  main- 
spring  would  very  much  accelerate  the  firing  of 
a  musket ;  and  some  of  these  barrels,  if  properly 
loaded,  often  make  a  very  effectual  substitute  for 
a  duck  gun. 

The  proper  charge  for  them  would  be  about  two 
tobacco  pipes  full  of  powder,  and  the  same  measure 
of  large  shot :  but,  as  this  had  better  be  regulated  by 
the  degree  with  which  they  are  felt  in  firing,  I  shall 
lay  down  a  rule,  which,  by  the  way  (with  a  very 
trifling  alteration,  according  to  circumstances),  may 
be  applied  to  all  duck  guns,  and  most  other  guns. 

Load  with  POWDER  and  SHOT  by  EQUAL  MEA- 
SURE in  as  large  a  quantity  as  can  be  fired  ivith  ease 
to  the  shoulder ;  puffing  your  WADDING  STRONG  on 
the  FORMER,  and  LIGHT  on  the  LATTER. 

As  this  alteration  is  all  inwardly,  it  cannot  affect 
the  appearance  of  the  musket ;  and  (omitting  the 
boring)  it  would,  if  kept  clean,  be  all  the  better  for 
his  majesty's  service.  The  perforation  of  the  plug, 
however,  should  not  be  too  small;  and  particularly 
in  cases  where  it  may  become  necessary  to  use  it 
with  cartridge  powder. 

Before  concluding  the  observations  on  improving 


284  TO  MAKE  AN  OLD  GUN  SHOOT  WELL. 

common  guns,  it  may  not  be  amiss  to  mention  the 
following  circumstances :  An  old  fisherman,  in  the 
country  where  I  was  residing,  had  killed  more  wild- 
fowl than  any  other  man  on  the  river,  with  a  gun, 
which  he  had  picked  up  for  thirty  shillings.  Pre- 
viously to  his  death  he  gave  over  shooting,  and  I 
bought  this  gun,  from  the  reported  excellence  of 
the  barrel,  which  fully  answered  my  expectations. 
Finding,  however,  that  the  plug  and  touchhole  were 
rather  too  much  worn  to  be  safe,  I  had  them  both 
replaced  by  the  same  country  maker  who  put  a  new 
stock  and  lock.  The  barrel  afterwards  shot  so  slow 
and  weak,  that  it  was  perfectly  useless ;  on  which  I 
sent  it  to  be  altered  by  Mr.  John  Manton,  who  very 
civilly  undertook  the  job ;  and,  by  putting  in  a 
common  chamber  plug,  and  fresh  perforating  a  com- 
mon  touchhole,  made  this  gun  shoot  so  admirably 
well,  that  it  was  not  till  I  had  received  five  best 
finished  duck  guns  from  London  that  I  could  get 
one  to  equal  it. 

We  are  often  laughed  at  for  our  expenditure  in 
guns,  when  an  old  gamekeeper  will  sometimes  beat 
them  all  with  a  "  piece"  that  has  scarcely  a  choice, 
whether  to  prefer  firing,  or  being  fired  at  with  it. 
I  admit,  that  if  his  barrel  happens  to  be  well  bored, 
his  mainspring  strong,  and  his  touchhole  and  cham- 
ber plug  well  put  in,  there  will  perhaps  be  very  little 
difference  in  the  killing,  between  his  "  piece"  and 
the  best  gun  that  ever  came  out  of  London.  But 


REMARKS.  285 

if  we  consider,  that  the  excellence  of  a  lock  and 
soundness  of  a  barrel,  although  not  absolutely  re- 
quisite in  killing,  are  indispensably  necessary  for  the 
safety  of  our  persons ;  and  that,  although  practice 
may  bring  a  man  to  point  accurately  with  a  broom- 
stick, yet  we  must  allow  the  advantage,  not  to  say 
the  comfort  and  neatness,  of  having  our  guns  turned 
out  in  a  handsome  and  workmanlike  manner. 


Ourfe 


No.  1  and  2  for  a  *^^w  gauge,  and  A.  or  B.  for 
a  j##£  rffV/io,  or  /#c^  bore,  are  preferable  to  the  very 
largest  shot,  by  the  same  reason  that  No.  7  is  best 
for  game. 

Mould  shot  alone,  therefore,  in  any  caliber  less 
than  that  of  a  stanchion  gun,  is  like  No.  1  in  a  double 
gun  :  it  may  do  wonders,  for  which  you  relinquish 
the  certainty  of  what  other  shot  will  do. 

To  prove,  that  even  one  of  these  pellets  may  be 
carried  off  by  a  wildfowl,  I  should  mention  the  cir- 
cumstance of  having  seen  a  brentgoose,  which,  after 
having  been  brought  down,  flying,  with  No.  2,  was 
discovered  to  have,  under  the  iving,  an  old  wound, 
considerably  more  than  an  inch  deep  :  and  out  of  this 
was  taken  one  of  the  largest  mould  shot,  which  had 
rolled  up  in  feathers,  and  formed  a  sort  of  tent. 

The  following  is  a  table  of  what  I  find  the  best 
shot  for  wildfowl  :  — 

No. 
Common  sporting-guns;    or  what 

the  gunners  call  "  Pop  "-guns       3  for  fair  \  ,    , 

1        long/81 


DUCK    SHOT.  287 

No. 
Shoulder  duck -guns  .  1   for  fair)    , 

A       long/shots- 

Punt-guns 3  for  starlight. 

1  for  fair  shots  (or  in  the 
dark,  when  birds  are 
wilder  than  in  starlight). 

Packed  by  regular  layers  in  car-  (  S.  S.  G.    Above  100  yards, 
tridges <?L.  G.    Wild  random  shoot- 


-  (  S.  S.  G.  A 
IL.G.  Wil 
(  ing. 


A.  or  A  A.  are  the  best  for  geese,  particularly  by 
day,  provided  they  are  so  tame  as  not  to  require 
S.8.G.  In  my  second  edition,  I  talked  of  mixing- 
shot  ;  but  have  since  had  reason  to  doubt  whether  it 
answers  so  well. 

General  Shrapnell  tells  me,  that  some  man  in  Ire- 
land had  contrived  to  imitate  his  shells,  or  spherical 
case  shot,  with  which  he  did  wonders  at  the  wildfowl. 
I  have  been  favoured,  by  a  gentleman  in  Kent,  with 
the  recipe  for  making  and  adapting  them  to  small 
guns.  But  lest  it  might  prove  improper  to  publish 
it  (which  I  could  riot  well  and  clearly  do  without  an 
engraving)  I  shall  say  no  more  on  the  subject,  but 
leave  this  admirable  invention  as  the  valuable  pro- 
perty of  the  British  ordnance. 


FOR  duck  guns,  cork  has  been  strongly  recom- 
mended, but  it  requires  to  be  cut  very  thick,  or  it 
will  not  bear  the  explosion  of  the  powder,  which  all 
wadding  should  do,  in  order  to  give  strength  to  the 
shot.  For  this  reason,  therefore,  while  a  gun  is  not 
fired  so  often  as  to  become  heated,  or  damped  with 
fluid,  we  may  have  recourse  to  leather;  or,  if  that 
cannot  be  conveniently  procured,  and  nothing  should 
be  at  hand  but  common  pasteboard,  put  two  rounds 
of  that  on  the  powder. 

Let  your  punched  wadding  be  what  it  will,  always 
put  with  it  a  good  cushion  of  paper,  before  you  add 
the  shot,  which  may  be  covered  with  any  thing,  that 
will  just  prevent  it  from  running  out  of  the  barrel; 
or,  to  keep  the  powder  still  more  air-tight,  force  in 
the  wadding  wrapped  up  in  a  piece  of  cotton  or  short 
fine  tow.  This  is  still  better  than  the  paper,  as  it 
will  also  have  the  effect  of  cleaning  the  barrel,  and 
preventing  it  from  leading  so  soon  as  it  otherwise 
would  do. 

So  much  for  the  old,  and  hitherto  universal  system, 
among  the  leading  shots  and  gunmakers.  Now  for 
another. 


DUCK    GUN    WADDING.  28J) 

OAKUM  AND  CORK  VERSUS  PASTEBOARD. 

IT  is  somewhat  extraordinary  that  I  and  other 
sportsmen,  as  well  as  the  gunmakers,  should  never 
have  discovered  that  a  punched  wadding  on  the 
powder  is  not  the  best  means  of  loading  a  gun  !  We 
were  all  content,  because  it  was  ten  times  better  than 
paper,  and  therefore  it  is,  and  has  long  been,  the  uni- 
versal method  of  loading.  But  I  was  induced  to  try 
an  experiment  at  quires  of  paper,  having,  as  I  always 
do,  a  clerk,  the  same  as  at  a  cricket  match,  to  take 
down  the  advantages  of  strength  and  closeness,  and 
then  to  sum  up  the  evidence  and  pronounce,  like  a 
judge,  the  grand  aggregate  of  the  gun's  performance  ; 
which,  on  such  occasions,  is  seldom  so  undecided  as 
to  be  merely  a  matter  of  opinion.  I  first  tried  a 
pasteboard  wadding  of  Mr.  Joseph  Manton's,  and  no 
one,  I  presume,  will  dispute,  that  both  the  punch 
and  the  wadding,  as  well  as  every  thing  else  from  Mr. 
Joseph  Manton,  must  be  of  the  best  quality,  the  one 
as  to  fitting  well,  and  the  other  as  to  being  of  good 
pasteboard.  I  then  tried  this  duck-gun  system  of 
loading :  viz.  A  piece  of  coarse  tarred  oakum  (pre- 
cisely what  ships'  ropes  are  made  of),  first  wound 
round  the  finger,  so  as  to  be  quite  hard,  and  then 
rolled  up  in  as  large  a  ball  as  will  fit  tight  into  the 
muzzle,  and  go  with  moderate  force  down  the  caliber 
of  the  gun.  (The  balls  thus  rolled  up  may  be  ready 
made  and  carried  in  the  pocket ;  and,  if  of  the  proper 


290  DUCK    GUN    WADDING. 

size,  will  force  down  the  caliber  rather  quicker  than 
punched  wadding.  Let  the  caliber  be  as  large  as  it 
may,  you  of  course,  with  this  wadding,  require  no- 
thing more  on  the  powder.)  I  then  put  a  common 
pasteboard  wadding  (with  air  vent)  on  the  shot ;  and 
I  found,  that  even  in  small  guns,  where  pasteboard 
is  far  less  apt  to  swerve,  this  mode  of  loading  threw 
the  shot  closer,  stronger,  and,  above  all,  with  less 
variation  in  its  performance. 

In  the  experiment,  I  anticipated  an  increase  of 
recoil,  particularly  when  I  came  to  try  it  with  a 
detonater ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  the  recoil  was  less 
from  the  oakum  than  from  the  wadding.  The  case, 
I  conceive,  must  be  this :  The  punched  wadding 
gives  a  severe  check  at  first,  but  before  the  powder 
is  half  burned,  it  slips  a  little  on  one  side,  and  allows 
it  to  mix  with  the  shot;  while  the  oakum  has  an 
elastic  rotundity,  that  springs  to  every  gradation  of 
the  caliber ;  and  therefore  will  never  suffer  any  powder 
to  escape,  till  it  has  left  the  muzzle  of  the  gun. 

Moreover,  on  the  other  hand,  the  pasteboard  being 
once  a  little  contracted  by  the  friction,  or  rendered 
soft  in  its  edges  by  the  elastic  fluid  in  the  barrel,  al- 
lows the  powder  to  escape  where  the  caliber  becomes 
relieved,  and  therefore  makes  the  gun,  in  comparison, 
shoot  thin,  weak,  and  irregular. 

It  may  be  asked,  and  with  reason,  what  has  the 
tar  to  do  with  the  shooting,  and  will  it  not  rather 
adhere  to  a  warm  barrel  ?  I  should  in  answer  say, 
that  it  most  likely  would  in  a  very  quick  succession 


DUCK    GUN    WADDING. 


of  firing.  But,  on  the  other  hand,  I  should  pro- 
nounce any  kind  of  tow  extremely  dangerous,  by 
being  liable  to  leave  particles  in  the  barrel,  unless 
well  kept  together  by  being  a  little  tarred,  or  some 
other  means. 

Having  mislaid  the  tables  of  about  a  dozen  shots, 
I  have  just  fired  two  more  expressly  to  enter  here ; 
they  prove  as  follows  : — 

With  No.  5  shot,  at  forty  yards. 

FIRST  ROUND, 
WITH    PAPER  DOUBLED. 

PASTEBOARD. 

1st  £  sheet.          Through  2-ltli 


42 


OAKUM. 

1st  £  sheet.        Through  21th  £  sheet. 


1st  sheet. 

90 


59 


SECOND  ROUND, 

WITH   PAPER  OPEN. 
1st  sheet. 


Through  12th  sheet. 

66 


Through  12th  sheet. 

90 


The  two  rounds  of  each  wadding  were  fired  alter- 
nately from  the  same  barrel.  This  wadding  being 
first  put,  answers  very  well  with  a  cartridge  of  shot, 
in  very  large  guns,  which  by  this  means  shoot  closer. 
I  tried  it  with  a  cartridge  in  a  small  gun,  and  it  did 
not  answer  near  so  well  in  proportion.  Mr.  Egg,  in 
competition  with  this,  names  leather  "  mosings,"  or 
shavings,  between  two  punched  waddings.  But  in  a 
few  shots  that  I  tried,  I  found  it  far  inferior. 


u 


292  DUCK    GUN    WADDING. 

Mr.  Johnson  says,  "  if  cork  were  so  cut  as  to  fit 
the  caliber  of  the  fowling-piece,  there  is  little  question 
but  it  would  be  superior  to  any  other  kind  of  wad- 
ding; but  in  this  case  the  assistance  of  a  regular 
cork-cutter  will  be  required."  Mr.  D.  Egg  appears 
to  be  of  the  same  opinion.  In  the  third  edition  I 
said — "  This  article  is  just  going  to  press,  or  I  would 
have  sent  for  a  cork-cutter,  and  tried  the  experiment ; 
although  I  confess  I  have  my  doubts  as  to  cork  an- 
swering so  well  as  oakum,  were  it  only  from  the 
uncertainty  of  always  getting  it  equally  sound  in 
every  part."  I  have,  since  1824,  tried  the  cork 
wadding.  As  to  pasteboard,  leather,  paper,  &c.  they 
have  no  chance  against  it ;  but  the  oakum,  when 
rolled  up  tight  and  hard,  shot  full  as  well,  if  not 
better ;  and  had  I  not  selected  the  very  best  cork, 
the  oakum  would  most  probably  have  had  the  de- 
cided advantage. 

In  short,  use  either  cork  or  oakum,  and  you  are 
sure  to  have  the  best  wadding  for  duck  guns. 

The  wadding  of  cork,  it  may  be  well  to  observe, 
should  be  cut  somewhat  less  than  half  the  she  of  its 
diameter.  For  I  found  that  when  cut  thicker,  it 
rather  made  the  guns  recoil,  and  scatter :  and  when 
thinner  there  was  a  want  of  force  to  the  charge ; 
most  probably  owing  to  the  cork  being  liable  to 
swerve  in  the  relief  of  the  caliber,  and  thereby  be- 
coming no  better  than  a  common  punched  wadding. 

I  have  put  the  oakum  wadding  under  the  head  of 


DUCK    GUN    WADDING.  293 

"  r/MC&-guns,"  as  I  dread  recommending  it  for  field 
shooting,  lest  I  should  be  the  means  of  setting  corn 
or  buildings  on  fire.  Indeed,  the  use  of  it  here  would 
be  running  a  needless  risk,  as  any  thing  is  good 
enough  to  kill  partridge,  or  a  hare. 

I  have  also  put  the  cork  wadding  under  this  head, 
as  the  only  material  worthy  to  be  named  with  oakum. 


$&tater  Hoots 

ARE  absolutely  necessary  for  those  who  shoot  in  wet 
places,  or  wait,  in  cold  nights,  for  wildfowl ;  and,  if 
good,  will  effectually  repel  the  water  for  a  long  time. 

Water  boots,  that  I  have  always  found  to  answer, 
are  made  (for  thirty  shillings  a  pair),  by  a  Mr.  Cox, 
in  Poole,  whose  principal  business  is  their  exportation 
to  Newfoundland.  Mr.  Short,  of  East  Yarmouth,  is 
also  a  particularly  good  maker  of  these  boots,  and 
is  so  clever  in  other  parts  of  his  business,  that  he  is 
in  the  habit  of  sending  boots  and  shoes  to  gentlemen 
above  a  hundred  miles  on  the  other  side  of  London. 
Some  of  the  fen  sportsmen  call  him  the  "  Emperor 
of  the  bootmakers." 

All  boots,  for  going  in  the  wet,  answer  much  better 
if  kept  at  least  half  a  year  before  they  are  worn  ;  and 
they  should  afterwards  never  be  suffered  to  get  too 
hard.  Water  boots  should  be  invariably  worn  over 
an  extra  pair  of  coarse  yarn  stockings,  without 
which  you  do  not  give  them  a  fair  trial. 

So  far  from  being  hard  to  the  feet,  they  are  the 
softest  possible  wear,  and  may  be  made  very  light. 
They  should  always  be  made  to  draw,  when  required, 


WATER    BOOTS.  295 

very  far  above  the  knees,  in  order  to  protect  them 
from  cold  or  wet.  Nothing,  by  the  way,  would 
answer  so  well  in  rain  or  snow  for  stage  coachmen, 
if  these  gentlemen  would  just  then  condescend  to 
wear  them. 

Various  dressings  are  recommended,  though,  per- 
haps, almost  any  grease  may  answer;  but  the  first 
and  most  effectual  application  might  be  tar,  tallow, 
and  bees'  wax,  melted  (not  too  warm),  and  then 
poured  into  the  boots;  which,  after  having  this 
shaken  into  every  part  of  them,  should  be  hung  up 
to  let  it  run  out.  By  this  dressing,  and  the  sacrifice 
of  the  first  pair  of  stockings  that  follows  it,  we  may 
walk  in  the  river  with  more  comfort  than  a  Bond 
Street  lounger  would  cross  the  street  after  a  shower. 

This  recipe,  however,  though  a  double  defence,  I 
do  not  mean  to  say  is  absolutely  necessary. 

As  another  good  recipe,  I  should  prefer  the  follow- 
ing one : — 

RECIPE. 

Drying  oil  •      1  pint. 

Yellow  wax  .  .2  ounces. 

Turpentine          .  -2  ounces. 

Burgundy  pitch  ~  -1  ounce. 

Melt  these  over  a  slow  fire,  and  then  add  a  few  drachms  of 
essential  oil  of  lavender  (or  thyme).  With  this  your  boots  are 
to  be  rubbed  with  a  brush,  either  in  the  sun,  or  at  some  distance 
from  the  fire.  The  application  must  be  repeated,  as  often  as  the 
boots  become  dry  again,  until  they  are  fully  saturated. 

If  your  heel  should  become  galled  by  walking  in  a  water-,  or  any 


WATER    BOOTS. 

other,  boot,  you  will  immediately  remedy  the  inconvenience  b) 
applying  a  piece  of  gold-beaters'  skin,  and  over  that  a  little  court 
plaster,  in  order  doubly  to  defend  the  part.  But  even  in  this 
trifle  there  is  a  right  and  a  wrong  way  of  going  to  work.  Instead 
of  cutting  with  scissors,  and  merely  wetting  the  plaster,  let  it  be 
for  a  moment  heated  by  thejire,  as  well  as  wetted,  being  previously 
stamped  with  a  wadding-punch,  by  which  means,  from  having  no 
angles,  or  corners,  it  will  stick  as  fast  as  your  own  skin ;  pro- 
vided that,  when  on  and  dry,  you  put  over  it  a  little  cold  cream, 
or  any  kind  of  grease,  in  order  to  repel  the  damp. 

The  application  that  has  been  usually  recommended  to  me  by 
surgeons  is  diachylon-plaster,  which,  in  cold  weather,  curls  up, 
and  torments  you  so  much  in  walking,  that  you  soon  become  lame 
again,  and  then  wish  the  doctor  at  Jericho.  Go  to  Godfrey's,  or 
some  other  first-rate  chemist,  in  order  to  get  the  sticking  plaster 
in  perfection,  as  many  a  one  has  poisoned  his  skin  by  not  having 
the  genuine  article. 


for  Wttofotol  Routing, 


IF  you  attempt  to  go  out  for  wildfowl,  without 
being  properly  clothed,  you  will  not  only  frighten 
them  away,  and  kill  nothing,  but  you  will  experience 
those  very  miseries  which  are  merely  imaginary  with 
persons  who  do  not  understand  this  pursuit.  How 
many  do  we  see,  who  fancy  that  they  would  catch 
their  death  by  cold  if  they  went  out  at  night  for  a 
few  hours  in  a  punt  :  and  yet  these  very  people  are 
in  the  habit  of  doing  what  is  ten  times  more  danger- 
ous :  —  walking  in  a  wet  day  from  the  west  end  of  the 
town  to  the  city,  with  thin  boots,  without  galoches, 
and  in  cotton  stockings;  and  there,  perhaps,  with 
damp  feet,  sitting  on  business  for  a  whole  morning  ! 

Having  mentioned  that  water  boots  should,  even 
for  walking,  be  worn  with  an  extra  pair  of  coarse 
yarn  stockings,  I  should  advise  those,  who  go  out  in 
cold  nights,  to  have  their  boots  made  easy  enough  to 
admit,  instead  of  these,  a  pair  of  the  thickest  wads. 
They  should  reach  nearly  up  to  the  middle.  This 
will  be  found  quite  enough,  provided  the  under  stock- 
ings arc  of  the  warmest  quality.  Such,  for  instance. 


298  DRESSES    FOU 

as  the  "  Sanquhar  hose,"  that  are  sold  (and,  I  believe, 
were  first  introduced  from  Scotland  to  London)  by 
Mr.  Otley,  in  Sidney's  Alley.  Having  put  on  the 
boots,  there  must  then  be  drawn  over  all  a  pair  of 
short  loose  sailcloth  *  (or,  if  cold  frosty  weather. 
Flushing-coating)  trowsers.  This,  arid  only  this,  will 
defy  the  cold,  and  have  its  solid  comforts,  by  not  only 
keeping  off  the  sleet,  or  snow,  but  any  little  spray 
that  may  fly  from  the  splash  of  the  oar  to  windward. 

It  is  needless  to  say,  that  (except  the  feet,  which 
we  have  already  defended)  every  part  of  the  body 
should  be  clothed  in  flannel. 

With  regard  to  farther  covering  for  the  body, 
could  we  ensure  not  getting  wet,  leather  would,  per- 
haps, be  the  warmest ;  but,  at  all  events,  the  waist- 
coat, both  before  and  behind,  should  be  made  of 
either  shag,  or  Bath-coating,  which  certainly,  taking 
all  weather,  answers  best,  and  is  the  most  comfortable. 
Under  the  waistcoat,  should  be  worn  a  Flushing- 
frock,  and  over  it,  a  short  jacket,  of  either  drab  cloth, 
or  swanskin.  The  cap  may  be  made  of  the  same 
(or  any  thing  that  has  the  same  appearance),  and,  if 
cold,  worn  over  a  Welsh  wig.  Mr.  Lloyd,  13,  Old 
Bond  Street,  has  invented  an  excellent,  though  simple, 
defender  for  the  chest  (which  he  calls  an  "Anglesey"}', 

*  Sailcloth  is  so  strong,  so  durable,  and  such  a  good  defence 
against  rain,  that  it  answers  better  than  any  thing  for  making 
game  bags ;  or  defending  the  mahogany  gun  cases  of  those  who 
would  wish  to  avoid  the  expense  of  leather;,  and,  if  dressed  with 
tar,  it  makes  the  best  possible  gun-cover. 


WILDFOWL    SHOOTING. 

and  a  large  shawl  handkerchief  may  be  worn  over  the 
collar.  A  pair  of  worsted  wristbands  (sold  by  the 
name  of  "  muffatees")  should  be  worn  with  cloth 
gloves,  and,  over  gloves  and  all,  a  large  and  long 
pair  of  double  swanskin  cuffs,  which  are  as  warm  as 
any  rnuff,  and  may  be  drawn,  or  shook,  off  in  an  in- 
stant, when  you  want  your  right  hand  for  the  trigger. 

Which  of  the  two  colours  for  the  jacket  and  cap 
is  to  be  used  will  depend  on  whether  you  have  sun  or 
moon ;  on  which  occasions  you  and  your  boat  should 
appear  in  a  light  drab,  or  you  will  occasionally  shine 
so  much,  as  to  be  quite  conspicuous.  But  at  all 
other  times  a  b/uis/i  -white  is  mdispufably  the  best 
colour;  except  in  star-light  or  snow.  Then  you 
cannot  possibly  be  too  white  ;  insomuch,  that  a  clean 
linen  frock  and  cap  might  take  you  forty  yards  nearer 
to  your  birds  than  even  flannel  or  swanskin.  All 
further  covering,  such  as  a  cloak,  white  hat,  &c.,  may 
be  at  your  own  option,  as  you  would,  of  course, 
'•  douse"  it  when  you  began  to  "  work  to  birds ;"  and, 
indeed,  the  greater  part  of  that  before-mentioned 
would  be  too  warm,  except  for  one  who  had  nothing 
to  do  but  attend  his  gun. 

I  shall  now  add  one  recipe  for  a  surtout,  by  way  of 
a  dread-nought,  which,  as  wet  weather  has  of  late 
years  been  "  so  much  in  fashion,"  will,  I  trust,  be 
doing  service,  not  only  to  gunners,  but  to  every  class 
of  the  community,  except  the  tailors,  who  might  lose 
business  by  it,  and  their  satellites  the  dandies,  who 
would  faint  at  the  sight  of  it.  It  is  but  fair  that  the 


300  DHKSS.ES    FOK 

man  who  gave  me  the  recipe  should  be  immortalized 
by  its  introduction,  and  not  I,  who  am  the  mere 
copyist.  I  got  it  at  Winterton,  in  Norfolk,  from  the 
factotum  of  all  the  wet  work,  one  Larry  Rogers,  who 
calls  it  his  "  Sou'wester"  and  gets  it  all  for  nine 
shillings.  In  this  dress,  with  water  boots  and  overalls, 
every  thing  (but  a  man's  eyes,  which  he  may  defend 
with  goggles,  arid  his  mouth  and  nose,  which  he  may 
fortify  at  Messrs.  Fribourgs')  is  as  independent  of 
rain  as  a  Corinthian  "  Charley"  in  his  watch-box. 
Add  to  this,  it  is  so  light  and  convenient  for  the 
arms,  that  you  may  walk,  ride,  row,  or  take  any 
exercise  without  being  heated,  as  with  other  surtouts. 
Oil-skin  might  do  likewise  ;  but  this  very  soon  wears 
out,  and  comes  to  six  times  the  price.  [In  case  the 
logician  should  condemn  the  arrangement  of  this 
latter  sentence,  I  must  humbly  beg  leave  to  argue 
that  he  would  be  wrong ;  because  it  is  the  fashion  to 
wear  out  the  coat  first,  and  pay  for  it  afterwards.^ 

Now  to  the  point : — 

Make,  with  an  article  called  Russia  duck  (which, 
as  well  as  swanskin,  should  be  previously  wetted  arid 
dried,  to  prevent  shrinking),  a  loose  over-all  frock 
coat,  and  a  hood  ;  or  a  cap,  with  a  flap  behind,  similar 
to  a  coalheaver's  hat,  and  dress  them  as  follows : — 

Take  three  quarts  of  linseed  oil,  and  boil  them  till 
reduced  to  two  quarts  and  a  half,  the  doing  which 
will  require  about  three  hours ;  and  when  the  oil  is 
sufficiently  boiled,  it  will  burn  a  feather.  (The  ad- 
dition of  some  Indian  rubber  was  suggested  to  me ; 


WILDFOWL    SHOOTING.  301 

but  of  this  I  did  not  make  a  trial.)  When  the  oil  is 
quite  cold,  take  a  clean  paint-brusii,  and  well  work  it 
into  the  out  aide  of  the  whole  apparel,  and  it  will  soon 
find  its  way  to  the  inside.  Let  the  apparel  then  be 
put  out  in  the  air  every  dry  day,  for  a  fortnight  or 
three  weeks;  and,  at  the  expiration  of  that  time, 
provided  the  oil  on  it  be  thoroughly  dry,  take  the 
remainder  of  your  prepared  oil,  and  give  it  the  second 
coat,  which  will  dry  much  quicker  than  the  first. 

I  was  told  that  one^coat  of  oil  would  do,  as  the 
dressing  could  be  renewed  at  pleasure.  The  differ- 
ence, however,  was  this  : — The  first  coat  would  barely 
stand  a  hard  day's  rain ;  but  after  the  second  coat 
was  on,  this  garment,  if  held  up,  would  hold  gallons 
of  water  as  ti«'ht  as  the  pail  from  which  I  poured 
them. 

N.  B.  Tell  the  person  who  does  it  to  beware  of 
getting  burnt  in  boiling  oil ;  and  let  him  do  it  out  of 
doors,  or  he  might  run  a  risk  of  setting  your  house 
on  fire.  Add  to  this,  the  smell  of  it,  when  boiling,  is 
a  great  nuisance ;  although  the  dress,  after  being 
thoroughly  dry,  will  retain  scarcely  so  much  of  it  as 
common  oil-skin. 

This  garment,  if  made  double-breasted,  with  but- 
tons only  on  the  right  side,  and  none  on  the  sleeves, 
which  should  be  sewn  close,  is,  without  exception,  the 
best  I  ever  used  for  throwing  a  casting-net.  In  ad- 
dition to  the  covering^  herein  named,  I  find  that  a 
very  large  old  umbrella,  fitted  up  with  brown  holland 
(and  thus  oiled,  if  you  like),  is  the  greatest  possible 


302!  DRESSES    FOR 

comfort  and  shelter  to  those  who  go  in  a  punt.  More- 
over, it  makes  a  capital  mizen-sail  when  going  before 
the  wind ;  and  is  a  complete  shield  to  you  and  your 
man,  from  the  shaking  of  a  wet  dog,  should  you  have 
no  following-boat  to  rid  you  of  this  annoyance. 

Here,  I  conceive,  is  all  the  covering  that  can  be 
required  for  real  wildfowl  shooting ;  and  as  for  the 
little  pastime  of  tramping  the  water-meadows,  or 
waiting  for  the  flight,  I  need  only  observe,  that  wear- 
ing a  hat,  and  particularly  a  Mack  one,  should  be 
avoided,  and  drab  is,  on  the  whole,  about  the  best 
colour.  For  the  latter  pursuit,  the  shooter  should 
have  a  gunning-coat,  lined  with  shag,  that  has  pockets 
convenient  for  loading ;  a  flap  to  fall  over  his  lock, 
and  a  quaker's  collar,  which  will  not  interfere  with 
his  gun.  [The  pattern  for  this  coat,  and  the  recipe 
for  the  Sou'wester,  I  have  given  to  Messrs.  Christie 
and  Davis,  49,  Poland  Street.]  This  coat,  with  a 
shawl  handkerchief,  should  be  worn  over  his  shooting 
jacket ;  and,  of  course,  not  put  on  till  he  ceases  to  be 
in  motion ;  or  he  might,  otherwise,  get  heated,  and 
take  cold. 

If  he  wishes  to  sit  down,  never  let  him  be  so  im- 
prudent as  to  sit  on  the  damp  ground,  but  have  either 
a  hand-basket  or  a  bag  full  of  straw,  or  something  of 
this  kind ;  and  the  lower  his  seat,  the  better  he  will 
be  able  to  shoot  at  fowl  when  they  <#re  going  over  his 
head. 

The  foregoing  directions,  I  trust,  explain  all  that 
is  requisite  on  the  subject ;  and,  in  this  article,  as 


WILDFOWL    SHOOTING.  303 

well  as  in  many  others,  I  have  to  beg  pardon  for  the 
style  in  which  I  have  written.  But  in  a  work  where 
the  poor  author  is  left  without  a  single  muse  to  in- 
spire him,  the  subject  will  often  become,  both  to  the 
writer  and  the  reader,  like  a  dreary  journey,  where 
any  trifling  observation  may  be  admissible  to  lighten 
the  way.  For  instance,  when  we  give  a  dissertation 
on  water  boots,  hot  oil,  and  Russia  duck,  the  hero  of 
his  own  tale  might,  it  is  presumed,  crave  a  little  in- 
dulgence for  what  the  sceptic  might  consider  playing 
the  fool  with  his  pen ;  or,  in  another  point  of  view, 
taking  the  advice  of  ^sop  to  the  Athenian  philo- 
sopher, and  unbending  that  bow,  which,  the  sceptic 
himself  admits',  has  been  already  strained  too  hard  by 
the  generality  of  authors  and  travellers. 


Co  preserve  <§tmsi  from 
Water, 


FOR  this  recipe  I  shall  copy  Mr.  Daniel,  from 
whom  I  took  it. 

"  Three  ounces  of  black  lead,  half  a  pound  of  hogs' 
lard,  one  quarter  of  an  ounce  of  camphor,  boiled  upon 
a  slow  fire  ;  the  gun  barrels  to  be  rubbed  with  this  ; 
and,  after  three  days,  wiped  with  a  linen  cloth.  Twice 
in  a  winter  will  keep  off  the  rust,  which  the  salt  water 
is  otherwise  sure  to  be  continually  bringing  out  from 
the  iron." 

This  recipe  I  had  adopted,  ever  since  taking  it 
from  Mr.  Daniel's  "  Rural  Sports  ;"  and,  up  to  1822, 
found  it  to  answer  infinitely  better  than  any  thing  I 
had  before  tried. 

In  that  year,  however,  I  was  recommended  to  use 
mercurial  ointment,  which,  I  find,  gives  less  trouble, 
and  answers  quite  as  well,  if  not  better. 

When  on  the  sea,  always  use  linseed  oil  for  every 
part  of  your  gun,  except  the  works  of  the  locks  ;  be- 
cause sweet  oil  has  not  body  enough  to  repel  the  effect 
of  the  salt  water. 


TO  PRESERVE  GUNS  FROM  SALT  WATER.    305 

I  have  lately  found  this  to  answer  so  well  as  to 
become  a  very  good  substitute  for  the  other  dressings. 

If  the  salt  water  should  have  stained  your  barrels, 
you  will,  I  think,  find  yellow  soap  and  warm  water 
the  best  recipe  to  restore  their  colour. 


x 


Wtltifotol  footing* 

THIS  amusement  is  generally  condemned,  as  being 
only  an  employment  for  fishermen,  because  it  some- 
times interferes  with  ease  and  comfort ;  and  bucks 
(who  shoot  as  they  hunt,  merely  for  the  sake  of  aping 
the  Adonis  at  breakfast,  or  recounting  their  sport 
over  the  bottle)  shiver  at  the  idea  of  being  posted,  for 
hours,  by  the  side  of  a  river,  or  anchored,  half  a  night, 
among  the  chilling  winds  in  a  creek. 

This,  however,  is  only  the  actual  service  of  the 
sport,  as  it  may,  like  all  others,  be  enjoyed  with 
moderation. 

The  usual  way  of  sallying  forth,  for  this  purpose, 
is  to  drive  to  an  inn  on  the  coast,  call  the  waiter, 
who  recommends  an  honest  boatman,  for  whom  the 
boots  is  immediately  despatched.  On  his  arrival,  he 
sees  how  eager  you  are  to  set  sail,  fixes  his  price  ac- 
cordingly, shows  you  thousands  of  birds,  where  he 
knows  a  boat  can  never  get  at  them,  obliges  you  with 
a  few  of  his  own  killing,  at  double  their  value,  and 
your  day  ends  with  a  «ten  pound  bill,  and,  perhaps, 
bagging  a  couple  of  sea  gulls. 

If  even  there  was  a  chance  on  the  shore,  or  in  a 


WILDFOWL    SHOOTING.  307 

fen,  to  see  a  flock  of  fowl  well  pitched ;  send  a  gentle- 
man-sportsman after  them,  and  he  generally  comes 
back  without  a  bird ;  while  a  common  fellow  would 
get  a  shot,  and  kill  three  or  four.  Why  is  this  ?  The 
gentleman  thinks  his  cracked  shooting  is  to  do  every 
thing,  and  will  not  go  low  enough,  for  fear  of  dirty- 
ing his  knees ;  while  the  rustic,  not  minding  dirt,  or 
any  thing  else,  pulls  off  his  hat,  crawls  to  the  fowl, 
and  is  generally  as  sure  of  getting,  as  the  other  is  of 
not  getting,  a  good  shot. 

The  average  of  shooting,  on  the  coast,  is  now  far 
inferior  to  that  in  many  private  rivers  and  ponds, 
by  reason,  that,  where  the  wildfowl  contribute  to  the 
winter  subsistence  of  the  fishermen,  they  are  for  ever 
followed,  and  not  only  by  them,  but  every  vagrant, 
who  can  raise  a  few  shillings  to  purchase  an  old 
musket ;  so  that,  on  their  appearing  in  numbers, 
there  is  generally  assembled  a  levy  en  masse,  who, 
by  indiscriminately  firing  at  all  distances,  make  them 
so  difficult  of  access,  that,  although  thousands  may 
be  seen,  few  will  fly  or  let  you  come  within  reach. 

Indeed,  the  sport  is  sometimes  so  completely  ruined, 
that  I  have  heard  the  poor  men,  who  earn  their  live- 
lihood by  it,  express  a  most  earnest  wish,  that  some 
kind  of  licence  was  required,  which  they  could  pay 
for  tenfold  by  the  number  of  shots  that  are  now 
spoiled  by  the  idle,  drunken,  mischievous  rabble, 
that  frequent  the  alehouses  about  Christmas,  for  the 
nominal  purpose  of  wildfowl  shooting.  These  fellows 
would,  by  this  means,  be  deterred  from  infesting  the 

x  2 


308  WILDFOWL    SHOOTING. 

shore,  and  the  poor  fowlers  would  be  better  paid  for 
their  hard  labour :  add  to  which,  this  would  prevent 
the  depredations  that  are  not  unfrequently  committed 
by  these  armed  vagabonds.  As  it  is,  however,  the 
lords  of  manors  may  forbid  their  carrying  guns,  or 
otherwise  trespassing,  in  parts  where  the  tide  does 
not  flow,  such  as  the  waste  land,  &c. 

In  some,  though  now  very  few,  retired  places,  where 
all  this  is  not  so  much  the  case,  the  diversion  of  what 
is  called  flight  shooting  is  excellent  to  those  who  are 
neither  prepared  nor  disposed  to  follow  wildfowl  in  a 
more  scientific  manner.  I  shall,  therefore,  endeavour 
to  give  a  few  hints  on  the  subject. 

It  is  well  known,  that  the  generality  of  wildfowl 
keep  constantly  passing  in  small  "  trips,"  about  the 
dusk  of  the  evening ;  and  that,  after  having  collected 
in  the  night,  they  return  in  a  few  large  flocks  at,  or 
before,  the  dawn  of  morning.  No  plan  for  a  small 
gun,  therefore,  answers  so  well  as  to  wait  then  pa- 
tiently for  them,  and  fire  as  they  pass  to  and  fro. 
They  will,  at  these  times,  seldom  take  notice  of  one 
who  stands  against  a  bush  or  bank,  provided  he  re- 
mains perfectly  still,  is  not  conspicuously  dressed, 
and  wears  a  seal's-down,  or  other  kind  of  cap,  instead 
of  a  hat.  If  such  places  are  not  to  be  found,  an  am- 
bush may  be  easily  made.  Thus  situated,  he  will  be 
able  to  distinguish  the  different  sorts  of  fowl,  long 
before  they  come  within  shot,  and  be  struck  with  the 
wild  retirement  of  the  scene.  He  will  observe  the 
whistle,  which  announces  the  approach  of  wigeon — 


WILDFOWL    SHOOTING.  309 

the  similitude  to  a  storm  of  the  rapid  flying  dun- 
birds — the  shrill  sounding  pinions  of  the  wild  ducks 
— and  the  mournful  notes  of  the  plover.,  with  the 
roar  of  a  bursting  surge,  and  discordant  screams  of 
sea-fowl. 

Flight  shooting  is  always  followed  with  most  suc- 
cess in  very  boisterous  weather,  provided  the  course 
of  the  birds  happens  to  be  against  the  wind  ;  as  this 
not  only  obliges  them  to  fly  low,  but  doubles  them 
well  together.  You  may  then  keep  two  guns  em- 
ployed faster  than  yourself  and  a  servant  can  load 
them.  Never  look  up  while  loading;  you  can  do 
no  good  by  it;  and  you  will  only  put  yourself  in 
a  flurry ;  and,  perhaps,  break  your  ramrod.  If  your 
man  (knowing  you  have  no  gun  loaded)  says, 
"  Look  out,  sir !"  Why — I  had  almost  said — knock 
him  down. 

Should  the  weather  be  clear,  and  the  birds  come 
in  high,  your  best  means  for  getting  a  good  chance 
is  to  conceal  yourself  in  a  canoe,  between  the  banks 
of  some  small  creek ;  as  they  will  lower  their  flight 
on  reaching  the  mud,  and,  in  all  probability,  give 
you  as  many  fair  shots  as  you  can  fire  during  their 
arrival;  which  may  continue  about  half  an  hour. 
Be  careful  to  shoot  well  forward,  and,  if  they  are 
fifty  or  sixty  yards  above  ijou,  at  least  two  or  three 
feet  before  their  heads,  with  *  flint,  and  about  half 
the  distance  with  a  detonater. 

In  choosing  your  station,  select  either  a  bank  or 
wall,  that  divides  the  sea  from  detached  pieces  of 


310  WILDFOWL    SHOOTING. 

water,  or  marshes,  or  any  other  point,  which  can  in- 
tercept the  flight  of  the  birds  from  their  nightly  feed. 
Should  their  course  be  generally  up  some  channel, 
you  may  there  anchor  a  boat  or  two,  and  either  con- 
ceal yourself  in  one  of  them ;  or  keep  your  station 
for  the  chance  of  their  turning  the  birds  towards  you. , 

In  rough  weather,  you  may  sometimes  have  sport 
for  the  whole  day,  by  digging  a  masked  intrench- 
ment  at  the  extreme  end  of  some  promontory,  that 
divides  one  well-stocked  bay  from  another.  It  is  im- 
possible to  direct  about  the  tides,  as  in  some  places 
the  birds  come  in  at  low  water,  and  the  reverse  at 
others;  but,  as  they  indicate  a  preference  to  the 
mud,  by  remaining  there  in  weather  when  the  canoes 
and  punts  cannot  be  put  off,  we  may  infer,  that 
their  leaving  it  proceeds  from  having  been  at  first 
disturbed. 

If  the  coast  becomes  too  much  frequented  by 
shooters,  and  you  can  hear  of  a  neighbouring  pond 
or  lake,  take  a  walk  to  it  in  the  course  of  the  day, 
and  see  if  the  birds  use  it  at  night.  This  you  will 
ascertain  by  going  to  the  leeward  side,  where  you 
will  most  likely  find  some  of  their  feathers,  which 
will  have  drifted  to  the  edge  of  the  water,  and  which, 
in  case  other  shooters  may  be  coming  to  explore  also, 
you  will  do  well  to  gather  up  or  conceal. 

When  evening  comes,  take  your  station  at  the  part 
nearest  the  spring  which  supplies  the  pond;  or, 
otherwise,  anywhere  to  leeward,  with  a  good  light, 
and  there  remain  in  ambush,  with  your  largest  gun. 


WILDFOWL    SHOOTING.  311 

Here  the  birds  will  probably  come  in  faster  than 
you  can  count  them,  and  you  have  then  only  to  wait 
till  they  are  well  packed  together ;  in  which  case, 
you  would  probably  get  from  ten  to  twenty  at  a  shot. 

If  the  pond  is  large,  place  some  one  concealed  on 
the  opposite  side,  who  (should  the  birds  be  feeding 
out  of  your  reach)  will,  by  a  gentle  noise,  be  sure  to 
make  them  swim  across ;  but,  if  he  overdoes  his 
part ;  goes  directly  to  windward  ;  or  shows  himself; 
they  vf  ill  fly  up.  Never  fire  at  random  on  such  oc- 
casions. If  you  wish  to  make  the  birds  forsake  one 
pond,  with  the  view  of  their  using  another  more 
convenient  for  shooting  them,  you  should  put,  in 
the  former,  either  some  train  oil  and  quick  lime ;  a 
bushel  of  soot ;  or  two  winged  birds,  well  rubbed 
over  with  asafoetida. 

The  dunbirds  and  divers*  may  be  easily  known, 

*  So  called  by  the  decoy  men : — These  birds  have  different  pro- 
vincial names  on  almost  every  coast:  in  some  places,  they  are 
called  cnrrcs,  in  others,  duckers ;  and,  by  many,  are  indiscrimi- 
natgty  classed  with  the  dunbirds.  Their  proper  names,  however, 
arc  scaup  duck,  tufted  duck,  gadwall,  golden-eye,  and  moriliou. 
They  are  remarkable  for  their  rapidity  of  flight,  expertness  in 
diving,  and  carrying  off -A  great  deal  of  shot.  These,  as  well  as 
the  dunbirds,  will  very  often,  what  is  called,  duck  the  flash;  that 
is,  pop  under  water  like  a  dob-chick,  and  completely  escape  the 
shot.  If,  when  shooting  at  night,  you  whistle,  or  make  any  little 
noise,  before  you  draw  the  trigger,  they  will  put  up  their  heads 
to  listen  (though  they  will  not  fly  unless  the  noise  is  repeated), 
and  you  are  then  sure  to  cut  a  good  lane  through  their  ranks. 
If  you  see  a  single  curre  by  day,  when  he  dives  you  must  run  ; 
and  the  moment  he  comes  up,  squat  down.  So  you  may  go  on 
till  within  ten  yards  of  him,  and  then  stand  ready  to  shoot  him 


312  WILDFOWL    SHOOTING. 

by  the  disturbance  they  make  in  the  water,  and  they 
will  generally  swim  over  the  whole  of  the  pond  in 
a  few  hours  ;  so  that,  in  moonlight,  you  would  be 
almost  sure  of  them. 

Should  the  pond  be  frozen  over,  you  might  some- 
times have  a  very  fine  shot,  by  breaking'  open  a  large 
place  in  the  ice,  where  they  would  collect  together 
for  the  fresh  water,  and  most  likely  be  accompanied 
by  duck  and  mallard.  The  chief  of  the  shooting  on 
the  ponds  by  night  is  at  the  dunbirds,  which  are 
vulgarly  called  redheads ;  for,  with  the  exception  of 
the  tufted  and  scaup  duck,  the  other  diving  birds 
prefer  feeding  by  day.  The  golden-eyes  and  morillons 
go  out  every  evening  to  sea,  where,  until  the  winter 
is  nearly  over,  they  will  remain  all  night ;  though 
perhaps  tossed  on  billows  in  the  most  tempestuous 
weather. 

as  he  flies  up,  which  he  will  do  on  coming  up  again,  and  seeing 
you  suddenly  appear  so  close.  There  are  various  contrivances  for 
shooting  birds  that  dive,  such  as  cormorants,  grebes,  &c. :  some 
fire  the  moment  they  come  up  5  others  shoot  under  them,  or 
under  their  heads ;  and  many  hide  the  flash,  by  putting  a  shield 
of  pasteboard  before,  or  a  cover  over,  the  gunlock ;  but,  after  all, 
the  best  recipe  is  to  have  a  good  detonating  gun. 


iUuttrfnttg,  antr  Canoe  Routing, 

HAMPSHIRE  LAUNCHING-PUNT. 

A  HAMPSHIRE  punt,  though  very  long,  is  made 
so  light  and  narrow,  as  just  to  hold  one  person,  with 
a  gun  of  about  seventy  pounds  weight,  and  six  feet 
in  the  barrel,  fixed  on  a  swivel.  This  gun  is  so 
arranged,  that  it  rests  on  the  bow,  and  may  be  raised, 
or  turned  a  few  inches,  by  a  mere  stump,  which  some 
of  the  gunners  here  now  have,  instead  of  a  but,  in 
order  to  take  up  less  room  in  the  punt ;  and  to  admit 
of  their  firing  higher  in  case  the  birds  should  rise. 

They  row  with  their  backs  to  the  gun  till  they 
see  the  fowl,  and  then  turn  round  on  their  faces,  lie 
down,  and  either  work  along,  with  a  leaded  stick,  or, 
if  the  water  be  too  deep  for  this,  with  two  paddles. 
On  having  arrived  within  shot,  they  relinquish  the 
one  on  their  right  side,  which,  in  order  to  prevent  its 
floating  away,  is  made  fast  to  the  gunwale  with  a 
piece  of  string.  They  then  keep  straight  the  punt 
with  the  one  on  the  left,  while  with  the  right  hand 
they  regulate  their  aim  and  pull  the  trigger. 

The  Hampshire  punts  are  now  built  rounder  at 


314  LAUNCHING 

the  stern,  and  the  recoil  of  the  gun  is  received  entirely 
by  a  \meejixed  only  to  the  bottom  plank  (instead  of 
a  cross  piece),  which  is  far  safer,  and  decidedly  less 
likely  to  tear  away  the  sides  of  the  punt.  The 
bottom  is  now  made  of  one  elm  plank,  an  inch  and  a 
quarter  thick,  to  which  this  knee  is  fixed  by  bolts 
and  screws ;  and,  consequently,  as  there  is  no  recoil 
on  the  sides  of  the  punt,  every  part,  but  this  plank, 
is  made  as  light  as  possible. 

As  a  proof  of  my  former  argument  against  the 
safety  of  the  Hampshire  punts,  I  need  only  observe, 
that,  since  my  second  edition,  three  men  (Vincent, 
Jones,  and  Tanner)  were  drowned,  and  another 
(Harnet)  was  killed,  by  his  gun.  These  regular 
western  channel  gunners  are  now,  therefore,  become 
very  shy  of  shooting  afloat,  for  which  (by  having 
punts  that  are  so  crank,  and  draw  so  much  water, 
and  guns  proportionally  so  short  in  the  barrel)  they 
have  always  been  the  worst  equipped  of  any  "  big 
gunners"  (as  they  call  themselves)  on  the  British 
coast. 

They  have,  of  late  years,  therefore,  adopted  an 
entirely  new  mode  of  getting  at  the  birds,  for  which 
that  vast  track  of  ooze  near  Lymington  is  better 
calculated  than  perhaps  any  other  mud  in  the  world. 

They  start  off,  generally  in  the  afternoon  (provided 
the  tide  serves,  so  as  to  be  low  enough  at  the  proper 
time),  keeping  as  close  as  possible  to  the  shore,  and 
going  before  the  wind,  till  they  arrive  at  the  leeward 
end  of  their  beat ;  the  whole  track  of  which,  for  one 


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OVElt    THE    OOZES.  315 

night's  work,  may  be  about  five  or  six  miles.  They 
then  go  ashore,  and  either  get  into  a  pot-house,  if 
they  have  a  sixpence  to  spend  (which  is  not  always 
the  case),  or  lounge  about  the  shore  till  day-light 
disappears,  and  the  birds  begin  to  fly;  having  first 
put  all  "  in  order ;"  that  is,  to  draw  out  their  mould 
shot,  which  they  generally  have  in,  for  the  chance  of 
a  goose  "  going  down  along ;"  put  in  smaller  shot ; 
and  regulate  their  gun  so  that  it  will  bear  about 
eighty  yards,  when  the  punt  is  on  the  dry  mud.  No 
sooner  are  the  wigeon  pitched  than  off  they  set,  in 
tarpaulin  dresses ;  and  looking  more  like  chimney- 
sweepers than  gunners,  crawling  on  their  knees,  and 
shoving  this  punt  before  them  on  the  mud.  No 
matter  whether  light  or  dark,  few  birds  or  many, 
bang !  goes  the  gun ; — and  no  sooner  have  they 
picked  up  what  few  birds  are  readily  to  be  found,  or 
missed  the  fowl,  which  they  very  frequently  do,  as 
the  punt,  by  even  a  few  periwinkles,  might  be  thrown 
off  the  line  of  aim,  they  proceed  again ;  thus  travelling 
all  night  (by  "  launching"  over  the  mud,  and  rowing 
across  the  creeks)  in  a  direct  line,  similar  to  the  march 
of  an  army  of  coots.  I  should  not  omit  to  mention, 
that,  as  the  birds  will  seldom  allow  them  to  get  into 
the  punt  to  fire,  some  of  them  draw  the  trigger  with 
a  string  at  the  end  of  the  ramrod,  and  others  creep 
up  on  one  side,  and  pull  it  off  with  the  finger.  This 
is  perhaps  the  most  laborious,  and  the  most  filthy 
work  in  all  the  department  of  wildfowl  shooting; 
and  not  onlv  that,  but  it  so  ruins  the  country,  that 


316  NEW    LAUNCHING    SLEDGE. 

in  a  very  short  time  it  entirely  "  breaks  the  haunt  of 
the  birds,"  without  having  yielded  any  material  ad- 
vantage to  those  who  adopt  the  system.  As  some 
corroboration  of  this,  I  need  only  observe,  that  a 
family,  who  were  the  leaders  in  this  way,  and  who 
are  by  far  the  best  launchers  in  Hampshire,  have  of 
late  been  reduced  to  absolute  distress  for  a  livelihood  ! 

For  a  man  who  goes  such  distances  on  the  mud, 
of  course,  it  would  be  dangerous  not  to  have  a  boat 
that  would  carry  both  himself  and  his  gun,  in  case 
he  should  be  overtaken  by  a  quick  flood-tide  before 
Tie  could  escape.  But  to  one  who  was  content  with 
merely  having  that,  in  which,  with  high  land  behind 
him,  he  could  just  shove  off,  and  catch  the  birds 
under  the  moon  (in  such  a  place,  for  instance,  as  the 
edge  of  the  Southampton  river,  if  the  mud  was  pretty 
level  and  clear  of  holes),  I  shall  prescribe  one  much 
lighter,  and  in  which  he  can  never  be  tempted  to 
endanger  his  life  afloat.  The  drawing  will  at  once 
explain  it  sufficiently,  and  the  only  caution  that  can 
be  required  against  accident  is,  that,  as  his  gun  must 
be  cocked  before  he  advances,  he  had  better  have  a 
bit  of  cork  to  intercept  the  flint  or  detonater,  which 
can  be  drawn  away  with  a  string  (as  the  noise  of 
cocking  a  gun  might  spring  the  birds),  and  which 
must  not  be  removed  till  he  has  crawled  sufficiently 
on  one  side  of  his  punt  to  be  quite  clear,  in  case  the 
gun  should  go  off. 

This  punt  is  so  much  lighter  than  any  thing  which 
you  can  float  in,  that  you  may  move  it  with  one 


SUSSEX    MUD-BOAT.  317 

hand,  and  by  leaning  your  weight  on  a  hand  patten, 
which,  being  a  little  "  kammelled"  slips  along  without 
noise,  and  with  the  greatest  ease,  you  may,  with  good 
water  boots,  go  two  or  three  hundred  yards  without 
getting  the  least  wet. 

The  gunner  should  not  be  black  like  the  Hamp- 
shire men ;  but  recollect,  that,  as  all  extraneous 
bodies  appear  darker,  he  should  be  at  least  a  few 
degrees  lighter  than  the  mud,  in  order  to  appear 
precisely  of  the  same  colour. 

There  is  another  contrivance  for  traversing  the 
oozes,  which  is  simply  a  very  slight  board,  with 
sides,  somewhat  in  shape  like  the  fore  end  of  the 
Hampshire  punt,  sawed  off,  and  a  tail  board,  or 
bench,  put  across  it.  This  is  used  on  the  Sussex 
coast,  in  places  where  there  are  but  very  few  creeks 
to  interrupt  its  progress.  The  way  to  manage  it  is 
this  : — The  gunner  first  lays  his  piece  (a  large  hand 
gun)  into  the  "  mud-boat ;"  and  then  kneeling  on 
the  bench  with  one  knee,  he  kicks  along  with  the 
other  leg,  and  advances  with  a  rapidity  that  you 
would  hardly  credit ;  and  when  that  leg  is  tired,  he 
changes  it  again,  and  works  away  as  before.  Having 
got  pretty  near  to  his  birds,  he  lies  down  in  the 
"  mud  boat,"  in  which,  if  the  mud  is  soft,  he  can 
work  along  with  his  feet ;  but  if  hard,  he  must  "  hold 
on,"  and  shove  this  kind  of  sledge  before  him.  He 
lies  close  on  his  chest  to  fire,  and  has  a  stock  cut 
away  at  the  but,  which  is  filled  with  horse  hair. 
This  so  much  eases  the  recoil  from  his  collar  bone, 


318  REMARKS. 

that  (unless  in  a  sharp  frost,  when  guns  are  apt  to 
strike  harder)  he  can  manage  to  fire  half  a  pound  of 
shot  at  a  time.  Birds  may  be  approached  much 
nearer  by  this  means  than  by  any  other  kind  of 
"  launching"  as  the  whole  concern  is  so  much  lighter, 
and  smaller. 

So  much  for  the  new  system,  by  which  the  ancient 
mode  of  shooting  on  the  Hampshire  coast,  so  well 
described  by  Mr.  Gilpin,  and  quoted  by  Mr.  Daniel, 
has  long  ago  been  totally  superseded  ! 

Although  I  cannot,  for  a  moment,  suppose,  that 
the  generality-  of  sportsmen  would  ever  think  of 
adopting  this  method,  yet  I  have  given  directions 
for  it,  because  I  am  fond  of  any  thing  original ;  and 
for  this  reason  I  have  made  it  the  subject  of  a  little 
drawing.  Here  the  light  launching  sledge  is  in  the 
fore  ground  ;  the  Hampshire  gunner  contending  with 
it  in  the  centre,  and  the  Sussex  mud-boat  looking 
after  other  birds  in  the  back  ground ;  the  latter  is 
shown  with  a  man  in  the  position  in  which  he  tra- 
verses the  oozes  before  he  begins  to  crouch  and  ad- 
vance to  the  birds.  In  order  to  tell  the  story,  I  have 
found  it  necessary  to  put  this,  and  other  subjects,  a 
little  "  out  of  drawing."  Here  (jUhope  the  R.  A. 
gentlemen  will  pardon  me,  with  that  liberality  which 
is  inseparable  from  men  of  talent. 


C'AXOE    SHOOTING.  319 


POOLE  CANOE. 

(Or  shooting  from  the  creeks,  with  a  large  shoulder 

gun.) 

THE  Poole  canoe  is  built  sharp  at  both  ends,  on 
the  plan  of  the  Greenland  whale-boat,  except  being 
so  flat  at  the  bottom  as  to  draw  only  two  or  three 
inches  of  water,  and  so  light  as  to  weigh  only  from 
sixty  to  two  hundred  pounds.  For  this  canoe,  &c. 
see  the  plates  and  instructions,  with  the  assistance  of 
which  a  carpenter  ought  not  to  mistake  in  building 
one  of  these  boats.  In  making  all  canoes  for  gunning, 
the  builder  should  be  careful  to  have  the  bottoms  of 
them  a  little  rounded  (say  about  half  an  inch  of 
convex,  "  amidships,"  for  a  bottom  three  feet  broad) ; 
and,  what  is  of  still  more  consequence,  a  little  "  kam- 
melled,"  or  sprung ;  that  is,  gradually  rising  "  fore 
and  aft,"  in  order  to  "  give  them  life."  They  will, 
otherwise,  row  miserably  heavy,  and,  when  they  get 
aground,  suck  the  mud  or  sand  so  much,  that,  in 
order  to  get  them  off  again,  you  might  be  forced  to 
stand  up ;  and  this  would  frighten  away  the  fowl. 
If,  however,  the  bottom  of  a  canoe  is  too  much  kam- 
melled,  she  will  never  keep  steady  in  going  to  birds. 
Some  people,  for  this  reason,  leave  hollow  grooves 
between  the  bottom  planks.  I  should  say,  that  to 
every  five  feet  of  plank  I  would  give  about  one  inch 
of  "  kammel,"  so  that  the  bottom  of  the  canoe  here 


320  CANOE    SHOOTING. 

engraved,  being  ten  feet,  would,  by  holding  a  string 
along  the  centre  of  the  bottom  (outside)  prove  convex 
about  two  inches.  If  a  little  more,  she  would  be 
none  the  worse ;  perhaps  better ;  provided  that  she 
drew  water  enough  to  give  a  bearing  to  every  part ; 
otherwise  the  ends  that  were  sprung  would,  by  being 
out  of  the  water,  "  cluck"  so  much  as  to  make  birds 
swim  away  in  the  night.  In  short,  let  your  draught 
of  water  be  the  chief  guide  to  regulate  the  kam> 
melling,  or  springing,  of  your  punts  and  canoes.  If 
not  required  for  rough  work,  or  a  fixed  swivel-gun,  I 
should  recommend  all  the  planks  to  be  not  more 
than  three  quarters  of  the  thickness  specified  in  the 
plate ;  as  nothing,  provided  it  be  perfectly  safe,  can 
be  too  light  for  getting  to  wild  birds.  It  is  the  large 
she  of  a  boat,  not  the  substance  of  the  wood,  that 
makes  her  safe  in  a  sea.  If  the  builder  puts  some 
oakum  and  tar  round  the  heads  of  the  principal  nails, 
before  he  drives  them  in,  so  much  the  better.  Not- 
withstanding all  that  the  boat-builders  have  said,  I 
now  find  that  copper  nails  are  the  best.  For  dress- 
ing and  painting,  vide  directions  hereafter  given. 

This  kind  of  .canoe,  although  built  for  other  pur- 
poses, is,  on  the  western  coast,  generally  preferred, 
for  shooting,  to  one  of  any  other  kind.  It  answers 
best,  when  used  (no  matter  whether  by  day  or  night), 
from  low  water  to  half,  and  sometimes  to  full,  flood. 
You  manage  it  thus  : — 

Sit  down,  on  some  straw  or  rushes,  with  your  gun 
by  your  side,  afid  take  with  you  a  small  Newfound- 


t'ANOE    SHOOTING.  321 

land  dog.  Row  about,  till  you  can  see  or  hear  a 
flock  of  wildfowl  on  the  mud.  To  find  them  sitting, 
if  by  night,  look  at  first  very  low,  so  as  to  bring  the 
surface  of  the  rnud  in  contrast  with  the  horizon,  by 
which  means  you  will  overlook  the  black  edges  of 
the  creeks  and  holes,  instead  of  seeing,  and  perhaps 
mistaking  them  for,  birds. 

When  you  have  rowed  within  three  or  four  gun- 
shots of  the  fowl,  take  in  your  oars,  and  reconnoitre 
the  creeks.  Having  ascertained  which  is  likely  to 
be  the  best,  lie  down,  and  push  along  with  a  stick 
(called  a  set,  or  gunning-spread),  and,  while  the 
mudbariks  stand  above  the  little  channels,  you  are  so 
completely  hid,  that  you  will  seldom  fail  to  get  a 
shot,  provided  there  is  a  creek  within  reach  of  the 
birds,  and  you  do  not  go  directly  to  windward  of 
them*. 

*  The  decoymen  can  go  to  windward  of  the  birds,  by  means  of 
the  smoke  from  a  piece  of  dutch  turf,  or  common  peat,  which, 
after  having  it  well  dried,  they  are  able  to  carry  lighted  in  the 
hand  for  the  short  time  that  is  required  to  drive  the  wildfowl 
into  the  pipes.  Another  recipe,  of  which  some  pretend  to  make 
a  great  secret,  is  a  paste  ,of  cowdung  and  chopped  straw  ;  but, 
before  this  will  ignite  properly,  it  must  be  baked  in  an  oven  for 
about  thrice  as  long  as  the  time  required  for  making  bread. 

All  these  things  may  answer  very  well  behind  the  screen  of  a 
decoy;  but  in  a  canoe,  or  punt,  the  fire  could  not  be  so  easily 
concealed,  and  there  would  be  some  danger  in  lighting  it  where 
one,  without  a  retreat,  was  sitting  on  straw  with  gunpowder  in 
his  pocket.  The  burnt  turf,  &c.  may  be  used  with  success  by  a 
person  walking  behind  the  high  banks  of  a  pond,  or  river,  who 
may  light  it,  when  required,  by  carrying  on  a  match  a  little 

Y 


CANOE    SHOOTING. 

On  arriving  sufficiently  near,  should  the  water  be 
so  low  that  you  cannot  present  your  gun  at  the 
birds  without  kneeling  or  standing  up,  you  must 
get  aground  at  the  side  of  the  creek,  or  steady  your 
canoe  by  means  of  forcing  each  oar  from  between  the 
thowls  into  the  mud,  otherwise  the  recoil  of  the  gun 
will  set  her  rocking,  and  thus  you  might  possibly  be 
tipped  out.  Having  made  all  fast.,  rise  up  and  fire. 
Take  care,  however,  to  rise  high  enough  to  be  well 
clear  of  the  mud,  or  not  a  feather  will  you  touch ; 
and  present  as  follows : — By  day,  or  moonlight,  if 
the  birds  are  close,  directly  at  them  :  or  if  beyond 
forty  yards,  shoot  at  their  heads ;  unless  they  are 
feeding  in  a  concave  place,  where  the  tide  has  left  a 
kind  of  plash,  in  which  case  you  must  level  rather 
under  them,  or  you  will  only  graze  their  back  feathers. 
In  starlight  take  your  aim  just  on  the  top  of  the 

NARROW  BLACK   LINE,   IN  WHICH   BIRDS  ALWAYS 

APPEAR,  TO  ONE  WHO  is  LOW  DOWN  ;  arid  when 
so  dark  that  you  cannot  see  your  gun,  present,  as 
you  think,  about  a  foot  over,  or  you  will  most  likely 
shoot  about  a  foot  under  them. 

Should  you  have  been  successful,  you  will,  if  at 
night,  generally  hear  your  cripples  beating  on  the 
mud,  before  you  can  sufficiently  recover  your  eyes, 
from  being  dazzled  by  the  fire,  to  see  them.  Your 
man  then  puts  on  his  mud  boards,  taking  the  setting 

hy per oxy  muriate  of  potash,  and  dipping  it  into  a  small  phial  of 
vitriolic  acid. 


CANOE    SHOOTING. 

pole  to  support  him,  and  assists  the  dog  in  collecting 
the  killed  and  wounded ;  taking  care  to  secure  first 
the  outside  birds,  lest  they  should  escape  to  a  creek. 
During  this  time  you  are  left  in  charge  of  the  punt ; 
and  should,  if  possible,  keep  a  look  out,  in  order  to 
see  if  any  more  birds  fall  dead,  or  wounded,  from  the 
company,  before  they  have  flown  out  of  sight. 

The  gunner  generally  calculates  on  bringing  home 
the  half  only  of  what  he  shoots,  from  the  difficulty 
of  catching  the  whole  of  his  winged  birds,  which  he 
calls  cripples,  and  those  that  (to  use  the  pigeon 
phrase)  fall  out  of  bounds,  which  he  calls  droppers. 
If  birds  fly  up  he  generally  declines  firing,  knowing 
that  the  moment  they  are  on  wing  they  become  so 
much  more  spread*  that  he  could  seldom  get  more 
than  three  or  four,  for  which  it  would  be  hardly 
worth  while  to  disturb  the  mud ;  particularly  as 
wigeon,  by  night,  if  not  fired  at,  will  probably  settle 
again  at  no  great  distance. 

The  Poole  men  sometimes  go  partners,  by  which 
means  they  can,  with  a  very  light  punt,  use  two 
poles  at  a  time,  and  shove  up  a  creek  that  is  nearly 
dry,  and  then  fire  two  guns  to  a  whispered  word  of 
command.  This  they  call  a  "  double  gun,"  and,  by 
such  means,  they,  some  years  ago,  could  frequently 
secure  forty  or  fifty  wigeon  at  a  time. 

But,  within  these  very  few  years,  Poole  harbour, 
as  well  as  almost  every  other  part  of  the  English 
coast,  has  been  ruined  for  all  the  poor  hand-gunners, 
by  the  introduction  of  punt-guns,  that  carry  from 


324  CANOE    SHOOTING. 

one  to  nearly  two  pounds  of  shot ;  which,  as  the  so- 
vereign remedy  in  the  present  time,  I  shall  hereafter 
explain  to  the  very  latest  improvements. 

The  gunner's  principal  enemy  is  the  curlew,  which 
often  springs  up  from  the  edges  of  the  creeks,  alarms 
the  whole  place,  and  sometimes  spoils  them  an  ex- 
cellent shot. 


General  tnstructtons 


FOR 


SEA  COAST  WILDFOWL   SHOOTING,  WHEN 
AFLOAT. 

I  SHALL  now  more  briefly  explain  my  reasons  for 
entering  into  the  minutiae  of  wildfowl  shooting.  It 
is  very  rare  to  meet  a  gentleman,  that  can,  or  a  good 
professional  gunner  that  will,  give  any  information 
on  the  subject.  The  art  is,  therefore,  the  least  under- 
stood of  any  sport  in  existence.  No  man,  who  had  a 
large  gun,  and  could  earn  five  pounds  in  a  day,  or 
night,  would  be  bored  with  a  gentleman  for  the  sake 
of  his  five  shillings ;  and  therefore  the  only  man 
likely  to  be  hired,  at  a  good  time  for  this  sport,  is 
some  boatman,  who  has  little  to  recommend  him 
beyond  a  local  knowledge  of  the  harbour ;  and  who 
therefore  requires  some  one  to  direct  him  how  to 
manoeuvre  the  birds. 

In  following  wildfowl,  it  is  easier  to  get  within 
twenty  yards  of  them  by  going  to  leeward,  than  a 
hundred  and  fifty  if  directly  to  windward,  so  very 
acute  is  their  sense  of  smelling. 

The  best   time,  therefore,  to  have  sport  with   a 


328  WILDFOWL    SHOOTING, 

Wigeon  are  never  so  readily  disturbed  by  hearing 
a  noise  as  by  smelling  or  seeing :  in  both  of  which 
they  are  very  quick ;  though,  in  the  latter,  less  so 
than  many  other  birds.  Sea  pheasants  and  teal  are 
sometimes  with  them. 

On  the  Dorsetshire  coast,  the  shooters'  terms  for  a 
large  flock  of  wigeon  are  a  company ;  for  about  thirty 
or  forty,  a  bunch  or  trip  of  birds ;  and,  for  about  ten 
or  twelve,  a  little  knob :  a  string  or  skein  of  geese, 
and  other  such  provincial  appellations.  They  also 
call  a  creek  a  lake ;  and  the  smaller  creeks,  or  drains, 
latches.  The  former  is  a  general  term  among  people 
on  the  coast ;  but  the  latter,  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
Lymington,  is  called  a  "  spreader." 

If  we  can  neither  find  a  creek  nor  a  "  latch,"  with 
sufficient  water  to  set  up  to  birds,  it  is  sometimes 
thought  necessary  to  put  the  canoe  in  one  of  the 
latter,  and  there  await  the  return  of  the  tide,  with 
which  we  may  gradually  approach  them,  as  the  water 
flows.  But  if  this  advance  cannot  be  made  under  an 
hour  or  two,  we  may  as  well  go  away;  and,  if  no 
better  chance  should  offer,  return  to  the  place  when 
the  tide  has  risen  to  within  one  or  two  hundred 
yards  of  the  birds,  instead  of  waiting  idle  for  so  long 
a  time.  • 

Here,  unless  disturbed,  they  will  remain,  as  long 
as  the  tide  allows  them  a  place  to  stand  on ;  and,  as 
the  mud  begins  to  disappear,  will  concentrate  them- 
selves on  the  last  uncovered  spot ;  where,  to  use  the 
words  of  a  gunner,  as  soon  as  the  water  begins  to 


WHEN    AFLOAT,    BY    NIGHT.  329 

tk  whiten  the  mud",  thousands  may  be  seen,  literally 
wedged  among  one  another,  and  from  whence  they 
are  so  unwilling  to  fly,  that  they  will  seldom  stir  till 
the  water  actually  sets  them  afloat.  With  proper 
management,  therefore,  you  have,  at  this  time,  every 
chance  of  approaching  them.  To  do  this,  let  your 
punt  or  canoe  be  kept  well  fore  and  aft,  and  lie  down 
in  her,  as  close  as  having  to  push,  or  paddle,  her  will 
admit  of.  But  do  not  advance  on  your  birds  till  you 
have  just  sufficient  water  to  carry  up  your  punt. 
Then  "  work  up"  to  them ;  and  be  careful,  all  the 
time,  to  guard  against  any  sudden  motion.  By  at- 
tending to  this,  arid  having  every  thing  white  (except 
in  moonlight,  when  a  drab,  or  canvas  colour  will  be 
less  glaring),  you  may  safely  approach  the  unsuspect- 
ing mass  of  fowl,  which  will,  at  first,  appear  like  the 
indistinct  view  of  an  island;  and,  on  getting  near, 
it  will  look  more  and  more  black,  till,  at  last,  you 
will  plainly  distinguish  the  shape  of  the  outside  birds. 
Now,  then,  is  the  critical  moment  to  decide  whether 
your  exertions  are  to  be  crowned  with  success,  or 
a  severe  night's  hard  labour  is  to  end  without  your 
getting  a  shot.  Perhaps,  unless  you  have  a  "  good 
loom"  (that  is,  high  black  land)  to  advance  from,  the 
moon  may  suddenly  come  forth  too  bright  for  this 
sport.  Perhaps  some  straggling  bird  may  be  so  near 
you  as  to  give  the  alarm ;  or  perhaps  some  fellow 
may  ruin  all  by  firing  a  shot ;  and  you  may  have  the 
mortification  to  hear  the  sonorous  host  rising,  like  a 


330  WILDFOWL    SHOOTING, 

roar  of  thunder,  to  take  their  departure  for  the  open 
sea. 

On  the  other  hand,  you  and  your  boatman  may 
have  the  good  fortune  to  open  your  masked  battery 
among  their  black  columns ;  and,  by  first  cutting  a 
lane  through  them  with  a  pound  of  the  smallest  duck 
shot,  and  then  each  of  you  discharging  a  large  hand- 
gun, you  may  possibly  secure  a  hundred  wildfowl  as 
fast  as  yourselves  and  a  dog  can  collect  them.  (As 
a  proof  of  what  may  be  killed  at  one  shot  when  birds 
are  wedged  together,  I  need  only  say  that,  on  the 
9th  of  January  last,  my  man  James  Read,  when  sent 
to  reconnoitre  the  creeks  about  two  o'clock  in  the 
morning,  killed  and  fairly  bagged  12  wigeon,  5  ducks 
and  mallards,  2!  pintails,  and  a  gray  plover,  with  a 
common  shoulder  gun,  that  carried  only  5  ounces  of 
shot.  This,  however,  is  such  a  shot,  with  a  small 
gun,  as  I  never  heard  of  before,  and  perhaps  may 
never  hear  of  again.  There  were,  he  thinks,  about 
30  birds  in  the  company.  They  were  all  in  a  lump  ; 
and,  to  use  his  own  expresssion,  he  "  got  almost  o» 
board  'em  before  he  let  drive.") 

Having  thus  succeeded,  beware  not  to  let  your 
eagerness  be  the  means  of  endangering  your  personal 
safety.  Many  have  lost  their  lives  by  both  having 
quitted  the  boat,  which  might  soon  drift  away,  arid 
leave  you  "  an  inevitable  prey  to  the  returning  tide." 
Let  one  go  out  for  the  birds,  taking  with  him  the 
setting  pole,  which  will  not  only  be  useful  in  support- 


WHEN    AFLOAT,    BY    NIGHT. 

ing  him  on  his  mud  pattens,  and  finding  out  the 
deep  places,  but  very  handy,  with  the  fork  at  the 
end,  in  pinning  down  the  wounded  birds.  The  other 
person  should  be  all  this  time  close  to  him  in  the 
boat,  rowing  or  pushing  with  an  oar,  with  which  he 
may  occasionally  assist,  in  killing  the  crippled  birds 
that  are  afloat. 

This  opportunity  of  shooting  wigeon  may  be  also 
taken  by  going  out,  when  the  evening  is  not  too 
light,  at  high  water,  and  keeping  at  a  distance  till 
the  tide  begins  to  leave  the  mud:  on  and  round  the 
first  appearing  part  of  which  the  birds  will  probably 
collect. 

On  this  occasion,  the  shooters  must  be  provided 
each  with  mud-boards,  or  they  may  be  left  all  night 
on  the  mud,  for  want  of  being  prepared  to  haul  their 
boat  to  a  creek. 

[A  canoe  or  punt  may  be  successfully  used  on  a 
lake,  pond,  or  river,  by  keeping  it  in  parts  where  the 
water  is  shaded  with  the  reflection  of  land  objects, 
with  which  a  small  boat  appears  so  confused,  that 
the  birds  would,  most  likely,  not  perceive  it,  before 
you  got  a  fair  shot.  Be  careful,  however,  not  to 
appear  in  a  colour  conspicuously  different  from  the 
background ;  approach  with  caution  ;  and,  above  all, 
beware  of  getting  directly  to  windward  of  the  birds.] 

As  the  punt  and  canoe,  previously  treated  on,  are 
used  most  frequently  for  night  shooting,  which,  as  I 
before  observed,  is  chiefly  at  the  wigeon  (or  birds  of 
similar  habits,  that  join  them  in  hard  weather),  I 


332  HABITS    OF    WIGEON, 

cannot,  I  trust,  class  the  subject  better  than  by  con- 
cluding, under  this  head,  with  what  further  remarks 
may  be  useful  as  to  wigeon,  and  reserve  those  for 
hoopers,  geese,  and  curres  till  after  we  have  taken  up 
our  heavy  artillery,  without  which  but  little  can  be 
done  with  these,  or  any  other  birds  that  are  commonly 
killed  by  day. 

WEATHER. — Fog,  snow,  or  any  other  hazy 
weather,  is  very  bad,  as  it  makes  every  thing  on  the 
water  appear  large  and  black,  and  then  it  is  that  these 
birds  (and  indeed  all  others)  soon  take  alarm.  The 
novice  fancies  just  the  reverse  !  Fog  in  the  fens  and 
marshes,  however,  is  sometimes  the  best  weather,  al- 
though quite  the  reverse  on  the  sea. 

Bright  starlight  is  the  very  best  of  all  times  for 
getting  at  birds,  as  the  tide  flows  over  the  mud;  par- 
ticularly if  there  is  a  little  breeze,  without  wind 
enough  to  blacken  the  shallow  water.  If  a  cold  black 
frost,  so  much  the  better. 

Even  in  moonlight,  wigeon  are  easier  approached 
than  in  hazy  weather.  In  white  frosts  wigeon  are 
often  restless.  In  rain  they  are  constantly  flying  and 
pitching.  In  very  dark  weather  they  are  suspicious, 
and  more  on  the  watch  than  in  starlight ;  but,  if  the 
wind  blows  fresh  enough  to  drown  the  noise  of  a 
launching-punt,  some  "  heavy  shots"  may  now  and 
then  be  made,  by  sweeping  the  surface  of  the  mud  to 
the  sound  of  where  the  flock  is  walking  and  feeding. 
This  may  sometimes  be  within  thirty  yards  of  the 
*'  launcher?  In  mild  weather,  wigeon  are  generally 


IN    THE    NIGHT.  333 

scattered  about,  like  rooks,  till  after  midnight,  unless 
they  become  concentrated  by  the  flow  of  the  sur- 
rounding tide.  But  in  cold  weather  they  sit  thick 
together. 

The  first  night  or  two  of  thaw,  after  a  sharp  frost, 
is  the  best  opportunity  for  this  sport. 

TIME. — Was  it  possible  to  preserve  a  public  har- 
bour, wigeon  should  never  be  fired  at  till  they  had 
fed  for  some  hours,  and  got  well  together ;  because  a 
shot  fired  in  the  evening,  when  birds  are  scattered, 
seldom  produces  much,  and  is  apt  to  make  them  for- 
sake the  place  altogether.  If,  indeed,  they  were  left 
till  just  before  daybreak,  so  much  the  better.  A 
man  who  gets  upon  the  mud,  or  in  the  creeks,  and 
amuses  himself  by  popping  away  at  evening  flight, 
has,  of  course,  the  curse  of  every  regular  gunner ;  as, 
by  such  a  practice,  he  ruins  a  small  harbour  in  a  few 
nights.  Though  the  best  of  all  shots  is  when  the 
birds  are  "  on  their  laxt  legs"  before  the  tide  flows 
high,  yet  shooting  at  them  when  actually  afloat  is 
not  near  so  well.  They  are  then  more  scattered : 
their  feathers  are  not  so  open :  and  shooting  them  at 
thix  time  is  apt  to  make  them  forsake  their  "  feeding 
ground." 

SOUND. — The  thicker  the  weather,  the  more  silent 
the  wigeon,  when  pitched.  A  shrill  clear  pipe  denotes 
a  single  cock  wigeon,  as  does  a  long  loud  "  purre"  a 
hen :  but  when  the  call  of  the  cock  is  one  short,  soft 
note,  and  not  so  often  repeated,  you  may  expect  to 
find  a  company.  If  so,  you  will  probably  soon  hear 


334  HABITS    OF    WIGEON. 

the  birds  "  all  in  a  charm"  (that  is,  in  full  concert), 
if  you  have  patience  to  wait  and  listen,  which  a  good 
gunner  always  repeatedly  does,  every  now  and  then, 
before  he  ventures  on  the  final  approach.  The  birds 
might  otherwise  steal  away,  and  totally  mislead  him. 
When  wigeon  are  "  in  a  charm"''  they  are  not  mind- 
ing you,  but  when  they  are  quite  silent,  they  are,  as 
likely  as  not,  suspecting  an  enemy.  At  this  moment, 
you  must  keep  still,  till  they  open  again ;  and  so  on, 
till  you  see  them ;  and  then,  in  starlight,  you  are 
generally  near  enough,  at  all  events  for  a  large  gun, 
to  give  them  your  royal  salute. 

Be  sure  and  choose,  if  possible,  the  best  back- 
ground to  advance  from,  in  order  to  disguise  your 
profile  from  the  horizon.  Even  a  black  cloud  is 
better  than  nothing.  But  if  (before  the  mud  is 
covered)  you  hear  birds  walking  away,  and  neither 
feeding  nor  "  speaking,"  it  is  a  bad  omen.  It  shows 
that  they  have  some  suspicion  of  an  approaching 
enemy,  and  are  half  inclined  to  fly.  When  birds  are 
about  one  hundred  yards  off  (or  much  further,  in 
very  calm  weather),  you  may  hear  them  feeding ;  the 
noise  of  which,  at  this  distance,  is  like  the  falling  of 
a  little  water,  and  is  often  mistaken  for  it  at  ebb 
tide. 

Here  are  (in  the  fewest  words  I  can  give  them)  all 
the  necessary  requisites  for  night-shooting,  and,  if 
well  understood  and  well  managed,  you  are  just  about 
as  sure  of  getting  a  fair  shot  (in  &  favourable  time}, 
as  you  would  be  with  a  young  partridge  to  a  dead 


STANCHION,    OR    PUNT-GUN.  335 

point  in  standing  clover.  As  to  all  the  old  plans  of 
burying  punts,  casks,  &c.  &c.,  they  are  now  of  so 
little  avail  in  almost  every  part  of  England,  as  to  be 
no  longer  worthy  of  insertion. 

STANCHION,  OR  PUNT-GUN. 

I  HAVE,  by  practical  experiment,  since  the  earlier 
editions,  found,  that  the  gunmakers  have  another 
lesson  to  learn  ! — Although  a  gun  of  this  description 
must  of  course  be  supported  by  some  mechanical 
means,  yet  the  universal  system  of  entirely  confining 
the  gun  under  the  barrel,  so  that  it  cannot  be  relieved 
even  one  inch  in  the  recoil,  is  the  worst  that  can  pos- 
sibly be  adopted.  It  not  only  (when  properly  loaded) 
jars  every  thing  so  much  as  to  require  extra  strength, 
and  therefore  extra  weight  to  a  punt,  which  we  want 
as  light  as  possible,  in  order  to  go  in  shallow  water ; 
but  the  sudden  check  throws  the  muzzle  so  much  out 
of  the  proper  direction,  that  we  are  frequently  obliged 
to  take  level  very  far  under,  or  over,  the  mark ;  ac- 
cording as  the  gun  may  spring,  from  being  either 
heaviest  or  lightest  forward :  and,  what  is  worse  than 
all,  this  sudden  check,  at  the  moment  of  ignition, 
materially  injures  the  shooting  of  the  gun  in  every 
respect.  This  experiment  was  tried,  in  my  presence, 
by  Elijah  Buckle,  one  of  the  best  stanchion-gunners 
in  England,  who,  some  time  ago,  left  the  coast  of 
Essex  for  Southampton  ;  who  has  been  several  weeks 
in  my  employ ;  and  to  whom  I  am,  most  probably, 


336  STANCHION,    OK    PUNT-GUN. 

indebted  for  not  having  remained  much  longer  in 
ignorance  on  the  subject.  Indeed  nothing  but  ocular 
demonstration  would  have  convinced  me  of  this  argu- 
ment. What  pride  and  folly  it  is,  then,  for  any  one 
to  hold  himself  above  being  shown,  even  by  the  most 
humble  individual ! 

The  gun  was  loaded  with  a  pound  of  shot,  and  two 
ounces  of  Messrs.  Curtis  and  Harvey's  best  "  gunning 
powder."  I  fired  from  the  confined  swivel,  as  is  ge- 
nerally used  by  the  London  gunmakers !  in  doing 
which  I  levelled  at  least  afoot  over  the  object ;  and, 
by  this  means  (as  the  water  and  the  paper  proved), 
shot  perfectly  accurate.  Buckle  then  fired ;  having 
taken  level  at  the  centre  of  the  object,  from  the 
swivel :  and  the  whole  charge  went  into  the  water, 
before  it  had  gone  ninety  yards,  where  the  target  was 
placed.  I  then  began  to  abuse  Mr.  D.  Egg,  and  said, 
I  hoped  that  Buckle,  as  an  experienced  gunner,  and 
an  engineer  (he  having  been  a  long  time  in  his  Ma- 
jesty's service),  was  convinced  of  the  fault  of  the 
gun  ;  on  which  he  said,  and  with  justice  I  own,  that 
both  "  the  London  gentlemen,"  and  I,  had  "  a  little 
to  learn  yet."  He  then,  to  use  his  own  words,  "  hove 
away  that  humbugging  swivel ;"  and,  by  means  of  a 
large  bolster  of  sheeps'-wool,  fired  the  gun  from  his 
shoulder,  with  the  same  charge  as  before ;  which  I 
put  in  myself.  He  presented  as  usual,  directly  at 
the  object,  and  made  such  a  shot  as  this  barrel  had 
never  before  been  known  to  make,  both  for  strength 
and  closeness.  I  then,  to  be  convinced  of  his  veracity, 


STANCHION,    OR    PUNT-GUN.  337 

as  to  taking  aim,  fired  the  gun  in  his  way  with  about 
ten  ounces  of  shot,  not  quite  fancying  the  pound  to 
my  shoulder.  I  levelled  at,  instead  of  over,  the  mark, 
and  the  shot  were  delivered  with  the  greatest  ac- 
curacy. The  gun,  with  this  charge,  went  under  my 
arm  precisely  five  inches,  as  I  afterwards  measured. 
If  a  gun,  when  fired  this  way,  was  to  swerve  in  going 
back,  it  would  be  dangerous ;  and  therefore  the  under 
part  of  the  stock,  in  order  to  lie  firm  on  the  bench, 
ought  either  to  be  made  flat,  or  fixed  in  a  piece  of 
wood,  that  was  fiat  at  bottom.  It  then  occurred  to 
me,  that  if  this  gun  (of  eighty-five  pounds  weight) 
was  fired  with  ten  ounces  from  the  swivel,  it  might  go 
so  easy  as  not  to  interrupt  the  shooting.  I  accord- 
ingly tried  it,  and  so  little  appeared  to  be  the  recoil, 
that  it  could  not  be  felt ;  notwithstanding  which,  by 
aiming  at  the  mark,  the  charge  was,  as  usual,  from 
the  swivel,  entirely  under  it.  On  the  other  extreme, 
I  saw  a  gun  fired  by  the  owner  of  it,  one  Samuel 
Singer,  at  Poole  (which  weighs  141  Ibs.)  This  was 
on  a  swivel,  and  mounted  very  light  forward,  and 
he  told  me,  that  he  was  always  obliged  to  present 
very  far  under  the  object,  or  his  whole  charge  went 
over  every  thing ;  and  that  he  should  "douse"  the 
swivel  for  a  rope  breeching.  The  latter,  however,  is 
apt  to  break,  and  has  often  proved  dangerous.  The 
gun,  with  a  breeching,  goes  nearly  as  far  back  as 
the  rope  will  stretch  (say  an  inch  or  two),  and  then 
springs  forward  again  for  about  afoot.  The  ques- 
tion—the grand  object — therefore  is,  how  to  take  off 


STANCHION,    OR    PUNT-GUN. 

the  recoil  ?  I  mentioned  the  experiment  of  the  swivel 
to  several  of  the  leading  gunmakers,  and,  although 
they  had  all  plenty  to  say  on  the  subject,  I  could  not 
meet  with  one  who  was  able  to  do  any  thing  towards 
the  proper  attainment  of  the  object. 

It  would  take  pages  to  state  their  different  plans. 
But  enough  of  them  :  a  few  lines  are  sufficient ;  and 
these  to  say  that  however  plausible  their  inventions 
may  appear  in  a  counting-house  conversation,  not 
one  of  them  would  answer  all  purposes,  when  fairly 
brought  to  trial. 

I  was,  therefore,  notwithstanding  all  their  con- 
sultations, turned  adrift  to  seek  my  own  means  of 
accomplishing  the  object,  and  I  shall  therefore,  under 
the  next  head,  give  a  sketch  of  the  plan  to  which  I 
have  had  recourse. 

(I  must  crave  the  indulgence  of  nine-tenths  of  my 
readers  for  having  trespassed  on  them  with  this  in- 
sipid detail,  as  I  have  some  few  brother  sportsmen  in 
this  way,  who  would  value  it  more  than  all  the  rest 
of  the  book  put  together.  Moreover,  it  may  be 
the  means  of  preventing  accidents,  which  frequently 
happen  to  those  who  use  swivels,  and  particularly  if 
they  do  not  fix  them  with  judgment). 

The  barrel  of  a  punt-gun,  to  be  in  good  proportion, 
should,  I  conceive  (including  the  patent  plug,  of 
about  six  pounds  weight,  and  from  two  to  three 
inches  in  length),  be  about  seventy  or  eighty  pounds 
weight,  from  seven  to  nine  feet  long,  and  from  an 
inch  and  a  quarter  to  an  inch  and  a  half  bore, 


STANCHION,    OR    PUNT-GUN.  339 

according   to    the  one    length    and  weight,   or   the 
other. 

The  smaller  the  bore  is,  in  reason,  the  further  you 
can  kill  at  a  small  number  of  birds ;  but  the  larger 
size  of  these  two  shoots  the  best  and  most  regular 
pattern.  Any  thing  beyond  that  size  seldom  answers. 

It  may,  of  course,  be  made  on  the  same  proportion 
to  any  size ;  but,  although  a  gun  much  beyond  this 
size  will  kill  more  birds  at  a  shot,  I  am  inclined  to 
think,  from  what  I  saw  of  the  one  at  Poole,  that  it 
will  not  kill  so  far  in  proportion.  (As  some  proof 
that  Singer  was  not  very  partial  to  this  gun,  I  need 
only  state  that,  some  months  after  I  saw  it  fired,  I 
received  a  letter  from  him  making  an  offer  of  it  for 
sale ;  which,  as  he  is  a  man  of  long  experience  in 
the  business,  I  conclude  he  would  not  have  done,  if 
the  gun  had  perfectly  suited  him). 

The  barrel,  in  forging  and  filing,  should  be  left 
well  filled  up,  and,  in  every  part,  substantial. 


NEW  PLAN  FOR  FIRING  TWO  POUNDS  OF 
SHOT  TO  THE  BEST  ADVANTAGE;  AND, 
AT  THE  SAME  TIME,  EASING  THE  RE- 
COIL OF  A  SWIVEL-GUN. 

As  guns  to  carry  a  pound  of  shot  at  a  time  are 
now  to  be  constantly  seen  on  almost  every  part  of 
the  coast,  as  well  as  in  most  of  the  fen  countries,  the 
very  few  men  who  formerly  had  them  are  now  sur- 

7.  2 


340  STANCHION,    01J    PUXT-GUtt. 

rounded  by  rivals ;  and  therefore,  in  order  still  to 
keep  the  lead,  some  of  them  have  had  recourse  to 
using  guns  that  carry  from  one  pound  and  a  half  to 
two  pounds  of  shot.  The  recoil,  however,  from  these 
guns  is  so  tremendous,  that  most  of  the  men  who 
used  them  have  met  with  some  accident  or  other,  and 
are  therefore  giving  them  up.  The  desideratum  then 
is  to  accomplish  this  with  no  more  recoil,  or  risk  of 
accidents,  than  there  is  with  other  guns,  and  thus  to 
have  an  advantage  over  the  host  of  ordinary  gunners. 
A  plan  was  suggested  to  me  concerning  which  I  was, 
for  some  time,  bound  in  secrecy ;  and,  lest  it  might, 
even  now,  be  thought  unfair  for  me  to  publish  it,  I 
shall  say  no  more  upon  it ;  except  that,  although  it 
might  do  very  well  in  one  respect,  it  never  would 
answer  in  another.  If,  therefore,  I  was  fully  at 
liberty  to  explain  it,  I  should  consider  it  a  loss  of 
time  to  do  so. 

The  plan  that  I  have  adopted  is  as  follows : — 
A  pair  of  barrels  put  together  so  as  to  fire  two 
circles,  each  one  partly  eclipsed  with  the  other :  the 
one  ignited  by  percussion,  and  the  other  by  a  flint, 
by  which  means  the  trifling  difference  of  the  two 
separate  modes  of  ignition  makes  such  an  immense 
difference  in  the  recoil,  as  to  reduce  it  to  a  mere 
nothing  in  comparison.  The  eclipsed  part  of  the 
circles,  when  the  two  barrels  are  fired  together,  puts 
into  the  paper  at  least  a  fourth  more  shot  than  any 
one  barrel  could  be  made  to  do;  and  the  enormous 
weight  of  metal  not  only  gwes  additional  strength 


STANCHION,    OR    PUNT-GUN.  34,1 

to  the  double  discharge,  but  also  to  either  barrel 
when  you  fire  them  separately,  which,  of  course,  you 
have  the  option  of  doing ;  and  therefore  you  are  never 
obliged  to  discharge  an  extra  pound  of  shot  in  waste, 
as  with  the  huge  single  guns  before  alluded  to. 
Moreover,  the  gun,  oil  my  plan,  cuts  two  united 
lanes  through  the  birds,  instead  of  wasting  half  the 
shot  in  the  water,  and  in  the  air,  which  is  the  case 
when  the  charge  is  contained  in  one  large  circle.  In 
short,  this  plan  forms,  as  it  were,  a  kind  of  oval  to 
suit  the  shape  of  the  object :  and  thus,  at  the  mo- 
ment that  one  part  of  the  birds  are  being  killed  by 
the  detoriater,  the  others  are  just  conveniently  open- 
ing their  wings  for  the  flint  barrel,  though  they  have 
riot  time  to  rise  ;  because  I  have  here  eased  the  recoil, 
and  got  the  barrels  together  so  as  to  do  the  business 
point  blank. 

The  mode  of  easing  the  recoil  is  by  means  of  a 
long  loop,  worked  on,  between,  and  under,  the  bar- 
rels ;  and  the  swivel-pin  going  through  a  slider,  on 
which  re  fits  the  whole  weight  of  the  gun.  The  space 
within  this  loop  (about  eight  inches)  with  the  ex- 
ception of  an  inch  and  five-eighths  that  is  taken  up 
by  the  slider,  is  filled  with  a  spiral  spring,  which 
has  a  play  of  rather  more  than  two  inches ;  (and  if 
it  had  even  four  or  five  inches  of  play,  I  should  think 
it  would  be  all  the  better.)  Consequently,  before 
any  jar  can  take  place  to  interrupt  the  point  blank 
delivery  of  the  charge,  the  shot  has  left  the  gun, 
which  is,  afterwards,  brought  forward  again  by  the 


342  STANCHION,    OR    PUNT-GUN. 

reaction  of  the  spring.  The  loop  should  be  made  of 
horse-nail  stubs,  and  forged  on  to  the  barrels.  Mine 
is  not  so ;  therefore  if  this  part  fails,  the  fault  lies 
with  Mr.  Fullerd,  and  not  with  me.  Suppose  this 
was  to  give  way  ? — which  would  be  almost  im- 
possible, if  done  as  it  ought  to  be — then  you  have  a 
ring  in  the  stock  (all  of  which,  except  a  moveable 
but,  is  of  cannon  metal}  with  a  reserve  rope  that  takes 
up  the  recoil  immediately. 

It  was  the  opinion  of  a  distinguished  officer  in  the 
navy,  before  whom  I  fired  this  gun  several  times, 
that  my  plan  for  easing  the  recoil  would  answer  ex- 
tremely well  for  the  carronades  in  His  Majesty's 
service ;  and  I  therefore  had  made  a  rough  model 
for  the  inspection  of  himself  and  friends.  If,  how- 
ever, the  Lords  of  the  Admiralty  should  honour  me 
so  far  as  to  think  the  suggestion  worthy  of  notice,  I 
have  only  to  say  that  Mr.  Westley  Richards,  of  Bir- 
mingham, is  the  mechanic  who  so  ably  manufactured 
the  one  I  have,  after  the  model  and  instructions  that 
I  sent  him. 

Here  is  an  outline  of  the  plan  in  question,  which 
has  so  amply  repaid  me  for  the  trouble  I  have 
had,  in  overcoming  all  obstacles,  that  I  shall,  under 
the  next  head,  give  directions  for  it,  assisted  by  ex- 
planatory engravings. 

Before  this  gun,  &c.  was  found  to  answer  every 
purpose,  it  went  through  several  hands : — Mr.  D. 
Egg;  Mr.  Fullerd;  Mr.  Joseph  Manton;  Mr. 
Westley  Richards;  Mr.  Parsons,  of  Salisbury,  and 


STANCHION,    Oil    PUNT-GUN. 

Mr.  Long,  of  Andover ;  besides  journeymen  in  my 
own  employ ;  and  consequently  as  so  many  artificers 
have  been  separately  occupied  in  completing  it,  I 
may  safely  defy  any  one  of  them  to  turn  put  pre- 
cisely the  same  kind  of  article,  until  they  have  seen, 
and  had  explained  to  them,  this  gun  in  its  finished 
state. 

Since  the  4th  edition,  I  have  tried  the  gun  and 
punt,  in  every  possible  way ;  and  no  plan  that  I  had 
ever  before  seen  was  worthy  of  being  compared  to 
this. 


344  PUNT-GUN 


EXPLANATION  OF  MY  PLAN  FOR  EASING 
THE  RECOIL  OF  A  SWIVEL-GUN,  OR 
CARRONADE. 

The  following  are  the  dimensions  of  the  appa- 
ratus for  a  sivivel-gun,  which  carries  about  a  pound 
of  shot.  But  if  the  apparatus  is  adapted  to  a 
carronade,  it  must  be  more  than  proportionally 
stronger ',  because  a  carronade,  from  being  so  very 
short,  has  such  a  severe  recoil. 


A.  THE  SWIVEL,  on  which  the  gun  rests,  and 
which,  it  may  be  observed,  is  made  as  short,  and 
compact,  as  the  working,  up  and  down,  of  the  gun 


WITH    SPRING    SWIVEL.  345 

will  admit  of,  in  order  to  avoid,  as  much  as  possible, 
all  extra  strain  occasioned  by  lever ;  as,  of  course,  the 
longer  the  ears  of  the  swivel,  the  more  severe  the 
strain  on  the  neck,  and  on  every  thing  else  below  it. 


Size.J 


Height,  altogether  9i  inches. 

Thickness  of  the  ears  in  the  thinnest  part  (where  the 

pin  goes  through)  each  one  4- an  inch. 
Diameter  of  the  upper  circle,  neck,  or  collar,  2^-  inches. 
^Diameter  of  the  lower  cylinder,  or  stem,  1^  inch. 


Weight — 7-r  pounds. 

The  wooden  block  of  the  punt,  or  whatever  the 
gun  is  fired  from,  receives  both  the  neck  and  the 
stem,  so  that  on  this  plan  the  lever,  or  strain, 
operates  only  as  far  as  the  lower  part  of  the  ears. 


B.  THE  SWIVEL-PIN. 

Diameter — of  the  cylindrical  part,  -J-  of  an  inch. 
Length— (exclusive  of  the  threads  of  the  screw,  and  the 
head  and  square  shoulder)  3  inches. 


346 


PUNT-GUN 


C    THE  \LOOP,  which  should  be  forged  with,  and 
made  as  a  part  of,  the  barrel ;  or,  at  all  events,  welded 
on,  so  that  no  recoil  could  tear  off,  or  loosen  it,  be- 
cause if  merely  soldered  on — /  would  never  answer 
for  its  safety. 

Length — altogether,  ]  0  inches.     (If  longer,  and  there- 
fore able  to  admit  a  longer  spring,  I  should  say  all  tJu 
better.} 

c.  A  little  wedge  of  elm,  or  walnut- wood,  whicli 
is  pushed  into  the  mortise,  c,  in  order  to  ease  the 
jar  that  is  occasioned  by  the  slider,  G,  coming  ir 
contact  with  the  hinder  part  of  the  loop,  on  re 
action  taking  place. 

This  piece  of  wood  must,  of  course,  be  replacec 
with  a  fresh  one,  when  nearly  worn  level  with  th< 
iron. 


D.  THE  SPIRAL  SPRING,  which  is  closed  by  th 


WITH    SPUING    SWIVEL.  347 

recoil  of  the  gun,  and  which,  in  the  reaction,  sends 
the  gun  forward,  and  up  to  its  place  again. 

Length— G  inches  (and  if  S  or  10  inches,  or  more,  in 
order  to  have  so  much  the  further  play,  I  conceive 
it  would  be  a  great  improvement  on  what  is  here 
sketched). 

Diameter — outside,  an  inch  and  half. 

Substance  of  the  wire,  of  which  the  spring  is  made — 
nearly  J.  of  an  inch  in  girth. 

[  Was  I  to  make  another  spring,  I  should  prefer 
aflat  one,  to  a  round  one,  as  the  spring  would  then 
shut  closer ',  and  be  less  liable  to  swerve.  Fullerd 
happened  to  think  of  this,  as  well  as  of  a  second 
sprhtg  within  the  larger  one,  and  is  now  mounting, 
for  a  friend  of  mine,  the  best  proportioned  barrel  I 
ever  saw,  on  this  plan.  But  as  I  will  never  publish 
any  thing  untried,  I  have  here  confined  myself  to 
sketches  from  the  one  that  I  have  found  to  an- 
swer ;  though  I  admit  that  this  is  open  to  improve- 
ment.] 

E.E.  Two  ROUNDS  OF  LEAD,  to  save  the  spring, 
the  boss  F,  and  the  shoulder  of  the  pin  H,  from  the 
harder  contact  of  iron. 

F.  A  BOSS,  to  fill  up  that  end  of  the  spring 
which  has  nothing  to  prevent  it  from  swerving. 


348  PUNT-GUN 


G.  SLIDER,  of  solid  iron,  on  which  rests  the  whole 
weight  of  the  gun ;  through  which  works  the  swivel- 
pin  B ;  and  into  the  female  screw  of  which  goes  the 
male  screw  of  H,  which  is  the  next,  and  last,  com- 
partiment  here  shown. 


H.  A  LONG  PIN,  to  support  the  spring,  and  pre- 
vent it  from  swerving.  The  thick  end,  or  shoulder, 
on  the  left,  fits  tight  into  the  inner  circle  of  the 
spring.  The  cylinder  (where  the  H  is  marked)  is  a 
bit  of  box-wood,  put  on  to  fill  up  the  inside  of  the 
spring  which,  when  forced  together,  by  the  recoil, 
brings  the  rounded  end  of  this  wood  in  contact  with 
the  boss,  F ;  for  which  reason  I  put  before  it  a  piece 
of  thick  Indian-rubber,  in  order  to  ease  the  jar. 

[When  the  recoil  takes  place,  the  pin  is  forced  out 
through  the  hole  in  front  of  the  loop  C,  for  as  many 
inches  as  the  spring  has  play;  and  this  pin,  by  the 
way,  must  have  a  square  point,  in  order  to  be 
unscrewed,  with  a  key,  when  removed  from  the 
slider  G.] 

I  shall  now,  to  the  relief  of  the  reader,  as  well  as 


WITH  SPRING   SWIVEL.  349 

myself,  conclude  these  directions  with  a  sketch  of  all 
the  apparatus  put  together,  for  shooting  :-— 


Intricate  as  this  may  appear,  in  explanation,  I  can 
assure  my  readers  that  I  used  it  on  salt  water,  for 
several  weeks,  last  winter,  and  had  no  trouble  what- 
ever in  keeping  it  free  from  rust,  except  having  to 
anoint  it,  occasionally,  with  mercurial  ointment,  and 
keep  it  always  greasy,  by  means  of  working,  with  a 
feather,  into  every  part  of  it,  plenty  of  linseed  oil. 
Moreover,  I  had  no  occasion  to  take  the  apparatus 
to  pieces  till  the  end  of  the  shooting  season. 

N.  B.  I  left  my  models,  for  some  time,  with  Mr. 
Fullerd,  in  order  that  he  may  adopt  the  plan  of  the 
spring  swivel  to  large  guns,  and  thereby  prevent 
many  of  those  serious  accidents  which  frequently 


350  PUNT-GUN. 

happen  through   attempting  to  resist  the  force   of 
gunpowder. 

Having  now,  I  trust,  done  my  part  towards  ac- 
complishing the  object  in  question,  I  shall  gladly 
take  leave  of  this  dry  subject,  and  resign  to  Mr. 
Fullerd  the  trouble  and  the  credit  of  all  further 
improvements,  by  way  of  a  little  exercise  for  his 
brains. 

LOADING. 

THE  charge  should  be  about  one  pound  of  shot 
(more  or  less,  as  you  feel  it),  and  an  equal  measure 
(which  is  about  two  ounces)  of  powder ;  and  the 
latter  very  strongly  wadded,  as  before  recommended. 
The  shot  in  a  cartridge  is  very  convenient,  as  is  also 
a  little  gunning-box,  to  keep  the  ammunition  dry. 

For  those  who  have  a  common  breeching,  the  powder 
may  be  put  in,  made  up  in  a  cartridge  (one  of  flannel 
is  the  safest),  and  pricked  through  the  touch-hole,  or, 
if  a  detonater,  through  a  good-sized  vent-hole.  But 
as  a  gun  of  this  kind  can  rarely  ever  be  loaded  im- 
mediately, and  as,  therefore,  it  must  be  wiped  well 
out  between  every  shot,  it  becomes  quite  immaterial 
as  to  this,  and  as  to  loading  machines,  and  all  other 
troublesome  appendages.  If  you  have  a  patent 
breeching,  which,  of  course,  shoots  best,  take  care  to 
have  the  centre-hole  large,  or  at  least  in  proportion 
to  another  gun,  or  the  coarse  powder,  which  is  by 
far  the  best  for  this  work,  will  be  liable  to  lodge, 


LOADING    A    PUNT-GUN.  351 

before  it  gets  to  the  touch-hole ;  and  the  consequence 
will  be  a  flash  in  the  pan. 

To  load  a  gun  that  can  be  unshipped,  have 
a  wooden  measure  to  fit  into  the  caliber,  and  then 
suddenly  raise  the  gun  perpendicular  with  the  mea- 
sure in  the  muzzle.  The  greater  part  of  the  powder 
will  then  have  a  perpendicular  fall,  and  your  hand  is 
out  of  the  way  in  case  of  a  spark  in  the  chamber. 
To  load  a  gun  that  can  neither  be  unshipped  nor 
highly  eleyated,./£r<0£  stop  the  touch-hole  and  muzzle, 
in  case  of  a  spark,  and  then  use  a  cylinder  of  either 
tin,  copper,  or  brass,  cut  open  all  the  way  down  on 
one  side.  Put  this  in,  on  a  rod  with  the  open  part 
•uppermost.  When  home,  turn  it  round,  give  it  a 
little  shake,  and  the  powder  is  lodged.  I  have  di- 
rected Fullerd  as  to  the  best  mode  of  making  this 
machine,  so  that  any  person  may  be  furnished  with 
one  by  applying  to  him. 

The  shot  may  be  either  done  up  in  a  cartridge,  or 
driven  home  by  the  ramrod. 

With  regard  to  flint  or  detonater,  I  have,  till  very 
lately,  used  only  the  former  with  a  swivel-gun ;  but 
they  have  both  been  tried  by  the  men  who  constantly 
use  these  guns,  and  the  far  greater  proportion  have 
decided  in  favour  of  the  flint.  They  say  that  the 
recoil  from  a  detonater  is  so  sudden  as  to  shake  every 
thing  too  much ;  and  also,  that  the  birds,  by  night, 
set  up  their  heads  at  the  flash,  just  enough  to  be  a 
much  better  target;  and,  therefore,  the  detonater 
does  not  kill  so  many.  I  merely  give  this  report  as 


352  FIRING    A    PUNT-GUX. 

I  had  it  from  some  of  the  best  performers.  And,  as 
to  rain — a  lock-cover,  of  either  patent  leather  and 
sailcloth,  lined  with  flannel,  or  the  leg  of  an  old 
water-boot  (the  east  Yarmouth  fashion),  will  keep 
the  lock  as  dry  as  when  in  a  house,  if  the  shooter 
leaves  it  on,  and  acquires  the  knack  of  taking  aim 
under  his  gun. 

Since  the  fourth  edition  I  have  well  tried  the  de- 
tonater  with  the  double  swivel-gun,  on  the  plan  for 
which  it  became  necessary.  It  killed  better  than  I 
expected,  though  I  was  obliged  to  give  up  the  copper 
cap  to  it  as  not  being  safe.  I,  therefore,  got  Joe 
Manton  to  put  me  a  breeching  for  his  copper  tubes, 
which  for  these  large  duck-guns  answer  better  than 
any  thing  I  can  describe ;  because  they  give  the  only 
possible  means  of  combining  a  short  communication 
with  perfect  safety.  But,  nevertheless,  I  agree  with 
the  gunners  that,  if  I  had  a  single  swivel-gun,  it 
should  have  zflint  lock. 

FIRING. 

THE  firing  of  these  guns,  at  long  distances,  re- 
quires some  practice,  by  reason  that,  before  the  shot 
can  travel  a  hundred  yards,  the  birds,  if  quick-sighted, 
will  be  on  the  move,  particularly  if  they  see  the  flash. 
No  one  had  ever  the  kindness  to  tell  me  this,  when 
I  first  used  a  long  gun  ;  till,  after  some  time,  wonder- 
ing what  was  .the  matter  that  I  could  not  kill  (not 
being  able  to  see  through  the  smoke),  I  fired  at  a 


FIRING    A    PUNT-GUN.  353 

mixture  of  curlews  and  gulls ;  the  latter  of  which 
were  killed,  and  the  others  never  touched. 

By  this  I  discovered,  that  the  one,  being  quick- 
sighted  and  active  birds,  sprung  before  the  shot  got 
to  them  ;  while  the  others,  not  being  able  to  get  out 
of  the  way,  were  killed.  A  little  elevation  for  the 
gun  (in  which  a  few  shots  at  a  mark  will  direct  you), 
and  a  pretty  good  elevation  for  the  springing  of  the 
birch-,  according  to  what  birds  they  are,  is  absolutely 
necessary,  and  practice  alone  will  best  teach  this. 
Suffice  it  to  say,  however,  that  a  man,  to  be  a  good 
shot,  with  a  large  gun,  has  even  more  to  learn  than 
to  shoot  well  in  the  field  ;  particularly  when  he  comes 
to  cross  shots  at  flocks  going  past,  where,  sometimes, 
there  may  be  required  a  yard  of  elevation,  and  ten 
yards  allowance  for  the  distance  they  are  at,  and  the 
rapidity  of  their  flight. 

As  it  becomes  necessary,  when  approaching  wild 
birds,  to  be  well  concealed  in  your  punt,  you  are 
obliged  to  fire  these  guns,  lying  down  as  close  as 
possible  on  your  chest.  For  which  some  have  a 
wedge  to  support  the  breast.  If  you  put  your  cheek 
to  the  stock,  your  shoulder  bone  in  contact  with  the 
but,  or  your  second  finger  behind  the  trigger,  you 
run  a  risk  of  having  them  severely  jarred ;  but,  if 
you  manage  the  gun  properly,  the  sensation,  with  a 
light  charge,  is  no  more  than  that  of  firing  powder 
from  a  small  gun ;  and  the  report,  to  the  shooter, 
seems  a  mere  nothing.  To  fire  a  stanchion  gun,  put 
your  left  hand  over  the  but,  and  regulate  it  to  the 

A  A 


354  FIRING    A    PUNT-GUN.' 

line  of  aim,  while  your  cheek  gently  grazes  the  back 
of  the  hand.  Put  all  the  fingers  of  your  right  hand 
before  the  trigger,  keeping  the  thumb  out  of  the 
way ;  and  be  careful  not  to  let  your  knees  come  in 
contact  with  the  timbers  of  the  boat.  By  observing 
well  these  directions,  a  child  might  fire  this  gun  with 
as  much  safety  as  the  smallest  fowling-piece. 

In  firing  a  punt-gun  (without  any  stanchion)  from 
the  shoulder,  you  must  lean  hard  against  the  upper 
part  of  the  padded  but ;  and  have  the  gun  as  top 
heavy  as  you  can  possibly  overbear,  by  which  means 
the  friction  of  the  stock  against  the  "gunning-bench" 
and  the  check  of  your  shoulder,  prevents  the  gun 
from  running  too  far  under  your  arm.  Never  attempt 
to  shoot  a  barrel  so  short  as  six  feet  in  this  way,  as 
it  might  fly  up  and  hurt  you.  Always  try  these 
guns  with  a  quarter  of  a  charge  first ;  and  increase 
the  loading  with  an  ounce  of  shot  each  round.  By 
this  means  you  avoid  the  risk  of  a  recoil,  as  you  then 
gradually  ascertain  how  much  ammunition  can  be 
fired  with  perfect  ease  to  the  shoulder. 

If  you  are  so  fortunate  as  to  get  a  line  of  birds, 
shoot  rather  beyond  the  first  of  them,  which  will 
then  be  taken  by  the  lower  shot.  You  may  thus 
(with  mould  shot)  sweep  the  water  from  one  to  two 
hundred  yards,  and  possibly  kill  some  of  them  all 
the  way,  from  one  of  these  distances  to  the  other. 

The  advantage  of  a  stanchion  gun  over  a  shoulder 
duck  gun  is  far  more  than  that  of  the  latter  over  a 
common  sporting  gun ;  and  so  generally  has  this  of 


PUNT    FOR    A    STANCHION    GUN.  355 

late  years  been  found  out,  that,  now-a-days,  but  little 
can  be  done  without  one,  on  any  part  of  the  English 
coast. 

PUNT 
FOR  THE  USE  OF  A  STANCHION  GUN. 

A  GUNNING-PUNT,  which  is  very  narrow,  although 
it  may  row  fast,  is  extremely  dangerous,  and  will  not 
answer  for  going  in  shallow  water,  which  is  the  grand 
object,  in  order  to  get  up  to  the  birds  before  the  tide 
has  flowed  high  enough  to  drive  them  off  their  legs, 
and  disperse  them. 

All  round-bottomed  punts,  such  as  are  used  at 
Southampton  and  Itchen  Ferry,  and  most  of  those 
at  East  Yarmouth,  are  on  a  bad  construction,  except 
merely  to  sail  about  with  a  shoulder-gun ;  because 
they  have  such  unsteady  bearings,  and  are  so  built, 
that  the  gun,  and  the  man's  head  who  fires  it,  must 
appear  considerably  above  the  gunwale.  The  con- 
sequence is,  that  he  frightens  away  half  the  birds 
which  he  ought  to  kill ;  and  can  never  regulate  his 
gun  for  shooting  in  the  dark.  In  short,  clincher  and 
carvel  built  boats  are  only  used  by  those,  who,  what- 
ever they  may  fancy,  are  not  finished  masters  of  their 
business. 

All  gunning-punts  should  be  as  flat  as  possible  in 
the  bottom  (except  having  the  necessary  "  kam- 
melling,"  to  «  give  them  life") ;  by  which  they  draw 
far  less  water,  and  are  so  stiff,  that  it  becomes  im- 
possible to  capsize  them.  If  an  accident  did  happen 

A  A  2 


356  PUNT    FOR    A 

it  would  be  by  their  filling  and  sinking,  but  not 
upsetting,  as  the  before-mentioned  boats  might  do ; 
and,  as  a  still  further  guard  against  which,  these 
boats  may  be  decked  all  the  way  from  "  stern  to 
mid-ships ;"  and  even  half  way  round  the  sides. 

The  most  destructive  gunning-punt,  for  one  hand, 
that  I  had  seen  up  to  1824  (when  I  adopted  my  new 
plan),  was  about  nine  inches  high,  and  drew  scarcely 
two  inches  of  water,  with  a  man  and  his  gun.  This 
punt  should  be  full  three  feet  broad,  from  about  a  yard 
before  the  stern,  decked  all  the  way  from  the  gunning- 
bench  to  the  bow ;  and  so  sharp  forward,  that,  when 
required,  the  bow  may  be  shoved  for  several  feet  up 
the  edge  of  the  ground,  so  as  for  the  gun  to  be  raised 
at  the  but,  rested  on  the  "  stem,"  and  fired  over  the 
mud,  before  the  tide  flows  high  enough  for  a  large 
gun  to  bear  in  the  ordinary  way.  But,  as  in  this 
case  the  recoil  must  be  checked  by  the  shoulder,  or 
a  rope- breeching,  which  is  but  little  better,  I  have 
only  superficially  described  this  punt,  knowing,  of 
course,  that  very  few  who  shot  for  pleasure  would 
adopt  the  system.  Moreover,  by  fully  explaining  it, 
I  should,  instead  of  serving  sportsmen,  be  only  taking 
the  bread  from  Buckle,  the  man  who  showed  me  the 
minutiae  of  it,  to  put  in  the  mouths  of  his  rivals, 
whom  he  says  he  will,  and,  I  believe,  he  safely  mayj 
give  seven  years  to  find  it  out,  and  be  perfect  masters 
as  to  building  this  punt,  and  then  knowing  how  to 
use  that  and  the  gun.  Although  as  much  as  is  here 
mentioned  may,  of  course,  be  known  by  every  one 


STANCHION    GUN.  357 

who  has  seen  the  punt  in  question.  Many  boat- 
builders  have  seen  it,  and  ridiculed  the  idea  of  not 
being  able  to  go  home  and  make  precisely  the  same 
thing.  Several,  however,  have  been  built  by  them 
to  order,  and,  as  yet,  not  one  has  been  done  right, 
though,  of  course,  much  like  it  in  appearance. 
There  is  not  a  boat-builder  in  a  thousand  who  well 
understands  punts,  as  the  best  gunners  generally 
make  their  own,  and  keep  the  secret  to  themselves ; 
or,  at  all  events,  from  the  boat-builders,  who  would 
otherwise  be  making  them  for  every  shooter  in  the 
port.  The  best  way,  therefore,  is  to  get  an  able  gunner 
to  find  head,  and  a  good  inland  carpenter,  wrho  works 
much  better  and  neater  at  this  light  board  work  than 
a  boat-builder,  to  find  hands  and  tools.  I  never 
could  get  a  punt  without  faults,  till  I  did  this. 

Having  treated  further,  perhaps,  than  was  ne- 
cessary on  shooting  punts  in  general,  I  shall  now 
endeavour  to  explain  the  kind  of  one  that  I  have 
found  to  answer  best,  taking  in  consideration  com- 
fort, safety,  and  every  other  point  requisite  for  those 
sportsmen  to  whom  is  offered  this  part  of  the  book. 

NEW  PLAN  FOR  A  GUNNING-PUNT. 

I  HAVE  now  a  punt  on  a  new  plan,  completed  since 
the  third  edition,  which,  as  far  as  I  can  yet  judge, 
beats  all  the  others.  The  plan  in  question  is  to  have 
the  punt  decked  over  in  every  part,  except  leaving 
just  room  for  the  shooter  to  lie,  and  the  man  to  work 


358  PUNT    FOK    A 

to  the  birds ;  and  this  part  surrounded  with  bulwarks 
which  continue  rising,  in  proportion  as  the  punt  be- 
comes lower  forward,  to  about  four  inches  high  in 
front ;  and  ending  in  a  little  stem,  or  bow,  forward, 
that  takes  away,  and  lets  down  the  gun  when  you 
want  to  approach  the  birds.  So  much  of  this  punt 
may  be  thus  shut  up,  and  made  air  tight,  that  it 
would  be  almost  impossible  to  sink  her ;  and  although 
the  sides  amidships  and  the  bow  are  not  four  inches 
above  the  water  (and  she  is  therefore  hardly  visible, 
except  just  round  her  bulwarks,  which  appear  like 
the  smallest  launching  punt),  yet  she  would  drown 
all  the  gunning-punts  I  ever  saw ;  and  (if  I  shut  up 
the  open  part  with  oiled  Russia  duck,  and  lash  it 
round  the  shooters),  would  outlive  half  the  boats  of 
the  navy,  in  a  heavy  sea,  was  any  one  foolish  enough 
to  venture  there  for  pleasure.  The  newly  engraved 
frontispiece  will  tolerably  well  explain  the  shape  of 
her ;  except  that  the  deck  should  have  a  gradual  rise, 
to  the  bulwarks,  of  at  least  two  inches  from  the  sides 
amidships,  and  above  four  inches  from  the  bow.  She 
may  then  be  much  lower  at  the  bow,  and  at  .the 
sides,  than  the  punt  in  this  engraving  :  and  for  this 
plan  she  should  be  longer  forward,  and  more  shut  up 
with  the  deck.  The  mast  may  be  shipped,  on  either 
side  the  gun,  in  little  water-proof  cylinders  that  go 
through,  arid  are  independent  of,  the  deck ;  which  is, 
therefore,  air  tight.  A  punt  on  this  plan  is  so  stiff 
in  the  water,  that  a  man  may  step  out  on  the  deck, 
and  load  his  gun  without  inconvenience. 


STANCHION    GUN.  359 

The  floors  and  timbers  should  each  be  formed 
together  out  of  one  piece  of  hoop  ash,  arid  the  sides 
filled  up  with  angle-pieces,  which  may  be  made  of 
light  deal,  and  must  be  cut  square  so  as  to  fit  the  sides 
and  the  bottom,  and  round  inside,  in  order  to  meet 
the  hoop  timbers.  The  angle-pieces  are  merely  to 
fill  up  the  space,  so  that  no  strength  is  required  for 
them.  [Here  we  have  a  very  great  improvement  on 
the  Poole  plan  ;  but  I  have  no  pretensions  to  this  part 
of  the  invention  :  I  believe  we  are  indebted  for  it  to 
the  Americans.]  The  sides,  on  this  plan,  may  be 
"  flammed"  as  much  as  you  please.  This  is  a  great 
advantage  both  for  safety,  and  for  drawing  little  water. 
The  rowlocks  and  thowles  must  be  all  in  one  piece, 
and  made  to  ship  and  unship,  as  they  must  be  so  very 
high*  in  order  to  let  the  oars  clear  the  bulwarks,  that 
they  might  be  too  visible  if  left  on  while  "  setting" 
or  sculling  to  the  fowl. 

This  punt  (if  for  a  common  shed  stanchion-gun) 
may  be  about  the  breadth  of  the  Poole  canoe,  and 
from  three  to  eight  feet  longer,  according  to  the 
length  of  the  gun  and  the  depth  of  water  that  the 
gunner  has  to  shoot  in.  A  punt  of  this  kind,  to  be 
made  in  perfection,  should  have  no  iron  whatever 
about  her.  Every  nail,  and  other  kind  of  fastening, 
should  be  made  of  good  copper.  She  should  have 
thin  bottom-boards,  in  order  to  save  the  timbers ;  and 
in  this  case  rugs  or  sheepskins  will  lie  flat,  and  there- 
fore be  preferable  to  rushes  or  straw. 


360  PUNT    FOR    A 

I  did  not  build  this  punt  till  1824,  though  the 
model  was  made  in  1 822.  My  reason  for  not  naming 
it  before  was,  because  I  was  unwilling  to  recommend 
a  plan  of  which  I  had  not  made  some  trial. 

Her  bottom  should  kammelfore  and  aft  about  two 
inches  and  three  quarters,  and  be  rounded  "  athwart 
ships"  about  three  quarters  of  an  inch.  The  stern 
may  remain  high,  as  here  shown,  but  quite  sharp,  in 
order  to  row,  stern  foremost,  against  a  head  sea.  But 
the  bow,  or  stem,  part  should  be  cut  down  so  low  as 
to  be  not  more  than  four  inches  in  height ;  so  that, 
if  she  draws  about  three  or  four  inches  of  water  amid- 
ships, she  will  just  have  a  bearing,  or  draw  about  half 
an  inch  of  water,  at  the  bow.  The  gun  should  rest 
on  a  little  prop  (made  of  copper  wire)  about  two  inches 
high,  in  order  to  keep  it  off  the  wet  deck,  and  to  pre- 
vent the  powder  from  burning  the  punt's  bow,  which 
should  project  a  foot  beyond  the  muzzle  of  the  gun, 
and  be  covered  with  sheet  copper.  By  the  gun  thus 
being  low,  every  thing  is  hid  by  the  bulwarks ;  and 
by  its  pointing,  as  it  lies,  not  more  than  fifteen  yards 
from  the  bow  (or  lower,  if  you  put  it  on  one  side  the 
block),  you  can,  if  you  get  aground  at  the  edge  of  a 
creek,  be  enabled  to  fire  low  enough.  Whereas  if  a 
gun  fixed  very  low  down  remained  pointed  at  fifty  or 
sixty  yards,  the  muzzle,  on  your  shoving  aground, 
would  be  thrown  up  in  the  air,  so  that  you  could  not 
bear  low  enough  to  shoot  at  birds  sitting  on  the  rnud 
or  sand,  unless  you  had  the  means  of  raising  the  but, 


STANCHION    GUN.  36l 

which,  on  a  stanchion,  could  not  be  done  without  a 
second,  or  higher,  support.  The  stanchion  should 
be  "  shipped"  into  a  block  of  elm,  which  ought  to  be 
fixed  to  nothing  but  the  centre  plank,  and  this  plank, 
just  where  the  bolts  go  through,  should  be  left  two 
inches  thick.  (The  block  and  centre  plank  of  the 
punt  that  I  built  are  carved  in  one  solid  piece ;  but 
for  this  I  was  forced  to  cut  down  a  fine  elm  tree  on 
purpose.)  The  gun  should  be  fixed  a  little  on  one 
side.  To  do  this  nicely,  put  your  punt  afloat,  lie 
down  to  your  gun,  and  see  that  all  is  "  in  trim" 
ercri/  way,  before  you  bore  the  holes  for  the  bolts. 
By  this  means  of  fixing  the  knee,  or  block,  the  jar  of 
the  gun  is  all  thrown  on  one  strong  point,  and  every 
thing  else  is  carried  back  with  it ;  and  therefore  the 
sides,  and  every  other  part  of  the  boat,  may  be  quite 
as  light  as  those  of  one  which  is  only  required  for  a 
shoulder-gun. 

Every  thing  should  be  slightly  tacked  together, 
and  balanced  afloat,  with  the  gun  "  shipped,"  and 
the  gunners  on  board,  before  the  deck  is  put  on,  or 
the  knee  fixed ;  otherwise  when  the  shooter  lies 
down,  to  the  left  of  his  gun,  the  chances  are  ten  to 
one  that  he  finds  his  punt  out  of  "  trim."  If  means 
of  easing  the  recoil  are  adopted,  the  punt  may  then 
be  made  of  even  lighter  materials  than  the  Poole 
canoe.  I  need  scarcely  observe,  that  a  punt,  of  the 
ftutne  she,  which  is  light,  will  drown  a  heavij  one ; 
as  the  latter,  for  want  of  "  life,"  labours  in  a  sea,  and 
gets  filled;  while  the  other  flies  over  every  thing, 


PUNT    FOR    A 

without  taking  in  a  drop  of  water ;  add  to  which,  a 
light  punt  may  get  out  of  danger,  by  being  hauled 
across  the  mud,  when  the  other  is  obliged  to  "  weather 
it."  I  formerly  observed  that  where  nothing  but  the 
shoulder  had  to  take  the  gun,  I  should  prefer  my  boat 
principally  built  of  cork,  which  it  would  be  utterly 
impossible  to  sink ;  but  now  this  is  superseded  by 
the  new  plan. 

In  approaching  birds,  the  shooter,  having  nothing 
else  to  attend  to,  may  be  constantly  ready  with  his 
gun ;  so  that,  if  they  fly  up,  he  can  always  ensure 
being  able  to  fire  before  they  have  risen  twenty  yards  ; 
while  another  person  has  only  to  manage  the  punt. 
This  he  will  do  by  a  setting  pole,  or  skulling  in  a 
little  crotch  with  a  single  oar,  according  to  the  depth 
of  water.  As  either  the  one  or  the  other  will  be 
under  cover  of  the  front  bulwark,  they  are  less  visible 
than  working-sticks  or  paddles  at  the  sides.  Paddles 
on  the  principle  of  a  bird's  foot,  and  worked  inside, 
would  be  desirable.  I  have  partly  contrived  this,  and 
Mr.  D.  Egg,  and  Mr.  Long,  gunmaker  *  (a  very  good 
workman,  in  Andover),  have  each  undertaken  to  com- 
plete the  invention  with  the  greatest  ease. 

When  you  are  not  advancing  to  birds,  and  should 
there  be  the  least  wind,  you  have  only  to  shut  up  the 
front  of  the  bulwarks,  and  let  the  gun  rest  on  the 
stempiece,  pointing  upwards;  and,  for  shooting  in 

*  While  mentioning  the  name  of  Mr.  Long,  I  must  observe 
that  if  I  wanted  a  barrel  bored  for  shooting,  I  would  rather  em- 
ploy him  than  any  gunmaker  I  know,  except  Joe  Manton. 


STANCHION    GUN.  3(J3 

dark  nights,  the  little  prop  on  which  the  gun  rests 
should  be  made  so  as  to  rise  and  hx  the  gun  precisely 
to  water  level  i  and  then,  if  your  boat  is  properly 
trimmed,  you  cannot  fire  under,  or  over,  the  birds  in 
the  dark.  About  seven  inches  and  a  half  from  the 
water  is  in  general  the  best  elevation. 

This  punt  may  be  safely  used  with  a  sail,  in  going 
over  the  flooded  mud  at  spring  tides,  and  will  set  and 
row  as  well  as  any  boat  that  can  possibly  be  made  to 
carry  two  hands  with  ease,  comfort,  and  safety. 

The  method  of  shooting  wildfowl  which  I  have 
last  described  is  the  best  calculated  for  the  amuse- 
ment of  a  gentleman,  as  he  may  go  out  between 
breakfast  and  dinner ;  and,  in  frosty  weather,  per- 
haps kill  his  twenty  or  thirty  couple  in  a  day,  followed 
by  his  companions,  who  may  keep  at  a  distance,  to 
enjoy  a  sight  of  the  sport ;  and  afterwards  join  in  the 
'•  cripple  chase"  [vide  plate]. 

So  far  superior  is  this  diversion  to  what  people  are 
aware  of,  that  I  have  never  yet  met  with  a  solitary 
instance  of  one  sportsman,  who  had  seen  it  in  per- 
fection, but  what  was  quite  elated ;  and  preferred 
t'ren  a  sight  of  it  to  the  best  day's  game  shooting  in 
the  kingdom.  It  is  therefore  condemned  as  an  oc- 
cupation for  rustics  only  by  those  who  know  nothing 
whatever  about  it. 

Let  those,  who  fancy  punt-shooting  such  a  danger- 
ous amusement,  compare  the  accidents  that  happen 
in  it,  with  those  in  fox-hunting,  battii  shooting,  or 
any  other  sport,  and  see  in  which  they  most  fre- 


364  SHOOTING    FROM.  A    PUNT 

quently  occur :  though  this  pursuit  is  generally  fol- 
lowed by  poor  men,  who  have  the  worst,  the  others, 
by  gentlemen,  who  are  provided  with  the  best,  of 
every  thing.  In  Poole  harbour,  for  instance,  where 
the  channels,  at  times,  are  far  more  dangerous  than 
in  most  other  places,  I  should,  at  a  rough  guess,  say, 
there  were,  on  an  average,  a  hundred  canoes ;  and 
yet,  for  these  last  fifteen  years,  which  is  as  long  as  I 
have  known  the  place,  I  have  never  heard  of  but  one 
man  being  drowned,  and  he  was  not  only  subject  to 
fits,  but  had  left  the  shore  when  in  liquor. 

I  here  allude  to  open  punts,  than  which  decked 
ones  are  of  course  infinitely  less  exposed  to  danger. 

SHOOTING  WITH  A  STANCHION  GUN 
FROM  A  PUNT. 

Now  that  we  have  got  the  gun  and  punt  together, 
a  few  more  words  as  to  the  shooting :  those,  who 
fancy  that  any  one  can  shoot  well  into  a  large  flock 
of  fowl,  will  find  themselves  in  a  mistake.  There  is, 
I  must  repeat,  much  more  knack  in  it  than  people 
are,  at  first,  aware  of;  and,  in  my  humble  opinion,  it 
is  far  more  difficult  than  to  kill  double  shots  at  game  ; 
because  the  man,  who  can  quickly  pitch  his  gun  on, 
or  just  before,  a  partridge,  has  so  little  variation  in 
distance,  as  the  birds  are  generally  from  twenty  to 
forty  yards  off,  that,  without  any  further  calculation, 
or  practice,  he  might,  in  a  slovenly  manner,  contrive 
to  knock  down  the  greater  part  of  those  at  which  he 


WITH    A    STANCHION    GUN.  365 

fires.  But,  in  the  other  shooting,  the  different  cal- 
culations of  elevation,  &c.,  are  tenfold  more  difficult, 
and  particularly  if  taking  flying  shots,  at  perhaps 
one  hundred  yards,  from  a  boat  that  is  rolling  and 
pitching  in  a  sea,  and  where  one  inch  in  aim  might 
make  the  difference  of  twenty  fowl  at  a  shot,  or  not 
touching  a  feather.  All  this,  however,  is  best  gained 
by  practice,  though  it  may  be  right  to  caution  the 
beginner  against  mismanagement,  that  might  un- 
justly put  him  out  of  conceit  with  his  gun. 

In  long  sitting  shots,  he  must  (as  I  before  observed, 
and  cannot  too  often  repeat)  remember,  at  long 
distances,  to  preserve  a  little  elevation  for  his  gun ; 
and  further,  a  good  elevation  for  the  birds  springing 
at  the  flash,  and  perhaps  being  up  before  the  shot 
has  time  to  reach  them. 

On  going  to  either  hoopers  or  geese  he  will,  nine 
times  in  ten,  have  notice  by  the  birds  themselves 
when  he  is  to  fire,  as  they,  previously  to  taking  wing, 
draw  closer  together  and  set  their  heads  up ;  so  that 
he  may  keep  on,  even  if  it  were  to  within  forty  yards, 
till  they  give  the  signal.  And  if  at  night  (which  is 
the  only  time  he  could  get  so  near)  they  were  still 
down,  he  should  first  take  level;  and  then,  pre- 
viously to  drawing  the  trigger,  make  some  little  noise, 
and  by  this  means  induce  them  to  look  up,  before 
they  receive  their  "  allowance."  By  thus  having  their 
feathers  open,  and  their  stretched  necks  for  a  target, 
he  will  kill  at  least  double  the  quantity  that  he 
would  do  when  they  were  either  sitting  close  down, 


366  SHOOTING    CUltRES 

or  flying ;  as  in  the  one  position  their  feathers  would 
be  closed,  and  in  the  other  the  birds  would  be  much 
more  scattered,  than  when  down.  The  curres,  dun- 
birds,  &c.,  will  generally  give  notice  likewise.  The 
ducks  and  wigeon  not  near  so  well;  and  the  teal 
spring  instantly,  without  giving  the  least  notice ;  so 
that  in  shooting  the  latter  birds,  fire  as  soon  as  you 
think  you  can  make  a  tolerable  shot.  Always,  how- 
ever, get  as  near  as  you  can.  Rely  on  it,  close 
quarters  is  the  grand  recipe  for  filling  the  bag,  at 
this,  and  all  other  shooting.  You  must  remember 
too  that  the  sea,  or  any  water,  with  a  large  flock  of 
birds  on  it,  deceives  you  extremely;  insomuch  that 
what  many  people  fancy  fifty ,  proves  to  be  above  a 
hundred  yards.  Take  a  novice  afloat,  and  the  first 
specimen  he  gives  you  of  his  ignorance  in  the  art,  is 
either  to  fire  himself,  or  endeavour  to  persuade  you 
to  fire,  at  birds  which  are  very  far  out  of  gunshot. 

CURRES. — We  will  now  make  a  few  short  ob- 
servations on  the  birds  usually  killed  in  this  way.  I 
will  begin  with  the  "  curres"  (a  provincial  term  for 
all  the  various  tribe  of  diving  ducks),  as  they  appear 
about  October.  These  birds,  when  accustomed  to 
the  skirmishers  of  the  coast,  are  generally  worse  to 
get  at  than  any  others ;  and  you  have  then  often  no 
other  alternative  than  paddling  up  a  winding  creek, 
so  as  to  suddenly  pop  on  them  in  turning  a  corner, 
and  fire  either  sitting  or  just  as  they  fly  up.  But 
when  curres  are,  by  frost,  just  driven  to  the  coast 
from  under  the  kind  protection  of  some  bird  fancier's 


WITH    A    STANCHION    GUN.  367 

pond,  they  are  %a  fine  prey  for  a  swivel  gun ;  pro- 
vided you  hide  the  flash ;  get  their  heads  up  hefore 
you  shoot;  and  are  well  armed  with  little  double 
detonaters,  to  work  away  at  the  "  cripples,"  after  you 
have  stocked  the  water  with  them,  by  the  discharge 
of  your  artillery.  For  thus  finishing  the  business, 
the  percussion  system  is  a  sine  qua  non,  as  these 
birds  are  sure  to  "  duck  the  flash"  after,  if  not  before, 
being  wing  broken ;  and  they  will,  when  wounded, 
shrug  themselves  up  so  much,  that  you  ought  to  get 
within  fifteen  yards,  before  you  give  them  the  coup 
de  grace.  Hundreds  of  sportsmen  would  be  glad  to 
take  a  punt,  and  follow  you,  on  a  fine  sunshiny  day, 
for  this  purpose  ;  while  you  might  either  sit  still  and 
enjoy  the  fun,  or  be  proceeding  for  some  other  attack. 
But  the  business  must  be  done  as  quick  as  possible ; 
or  one  half  of  the  curres  will  be  off,  while  you  are 
killing  the  others.  Cartridges  and  all  other  expe- 
ditious means  are  here  desirable.  Curres  most  fre- 
quently keep  afloat,  instead  of  going  on  the  mud. 

BRENT  GEESE. — Towards  November,  or  Decem- 
ber, we  have  the  brent  geese,  which  are  always  wild, 
unless  in  very  hard  weather.  In  calm  weather  the 
geese  have  the  cunning,  in  general,  to  leave  the  mud, 
as  soon  as  the  tide  flows  high  enough  to  bear  an 
enemy,  and  then  they  go  off  to  sea,  and  feed  on  the 
drifting  weeds.  But  when  it  blows  so  fresh,  that 
they  cannot  weather  it  long  enough  to  feed  outside 
of  the  harbour,  they  then  continue  inside  the  whole 
day ;  though  they  most  frequently  take  especial  care 


368  SHOOTING    BRENT    GEESE 

to  weather  almost  any  thing,  rather  than  trust  them- 
selves there  at  night;  except  when  they  are  very 
short  of  food.  If  therefore  you  have  water  over  the 
mud  for  your  punt,  you  may  often  make  a  tolerable 
shot  by  setting,  or  sailing,  even  in  mild  weather,  par- 
ticularly when  the  tide  has  kept  up  high,  and  the 
geese,  having  become  hungry,  are  just  getting  their 
legs,  at  the  first  ebb  ;  and  still  more  so  if  this  happens 
towards  sunset,  when  they  feed  greedily  previous  to 
leaving  the  harbour  for  the  night. 

In  mild  weather  prefer  following  a  small  flock  to 
a  large  one.  Recollect,  the  more  pairs  of  eyes ,  the 
wilder  the  birds.  A  single  goose  is  termed  a 
"pricked"  bird;  that  is,  turned  out  of  his  com- 
pany, for  having  a  slight  wound,  which  is  invariably 
the  case. 

Taking  it  for  granted  that  my  young  reader  now 
understands  me,  as  to  presenting  the  gun,  I  have 
only  to  give  a  few  directions  on  the  last,  though  not 
the  least,  thing,  to  be  observed  ;  his  getting  the  geese 
which  he  may  have  shot.  They  take  such  a  hard 
blow,  that  he  will,  generally,  find  the  greater  part  of 
them,  that  are  stopped  by  the  shot,  well  enough  to 
swim  and  dive  with  the  greatest  agility,  and  they  will 
all  invariably  make  for  the  heaviest  sea  that  is  near. 
The  boat,  which  follows,  therefore,  should  always 
keep  well  on  the  outside  of  the  birds ;  and,  if  armed 
with  some  "  cripple  stoppers"  (old  muskets,  or  any 
small  arms),  so  much  the  better ;  as  while  you  are 
rowing  after  one  goose,  the  others  may  all  get  off  to 


WITH    A    STANCHION    GUN.  369 

sea.  If  you  are  near  enough  to  reach  a  wounded 
bird  without  a  gun,  take  him  horizontally  across 
the  neck  with  the  edge  of  an  oar,  or  you  may  thrash 
awray  at  him  to  no  effect,  till  you  have  splashed  your- 
self from  head  to  foot ;  so  very  hard  are  the  upper 
coverts  of  his  feathers.  In  shallow  water,  where  he 
is  not  obliged  to  swim,  a  good  light  dog  will  do  more 
in  five  minutes,  than  a  party  of  men  could  do  in  an 
hour.  But  when  once  the  dog  is  out  of  his  depth, 
these  birds  are  so  quick  in  diving,  that  they  will  most 
probably  escape  from  him. 

HOOPEHS,  or  WILD-SWANS. — When  the  winter 
further  advances,  and  the  birds  are  driven  from 
Holland  and  the  Baltic  to  the  more  genial  climate 
of  the  south,  and  then  followed  by  severe  weather 
to  the  refuge  they  have  chosen,  their  last  alternative 
is  to  leave  the  fens,  ponds,  and  decoys,  and  betake 
themselves  to  the  sea  coast,  in  order  to  avoid  starva- 
tion. Then,  and  then  only,  it  is,  that  all  this  di- 
version may  be  enjoyed  in  perfection,  and  without 
much  trouble  or  difficulty.  We  have  then  a  variety 
of  all  kinds  of  wildfowl,  and  sport  for  every  shooter. 
And  it  is  at  such  a  time  as  this  only,  we  can  expect 
to  see  the  monarch  of  the  tribe,  the  hooper,  or  wild- 
swan.  We  had,  during  the  hard  winter,  in  1823,  a 
fine  specimen  of  all  this  on  the  Hampshire  coast,  the 
flats  of  which,  off  Keyhaven  and  Pennington,  were, 
for  some  weeks,  covered  with  ice  and  snow.  Nothing 
could  be  more  novel  or  beautiful  than  the  appearance 
of  the  harbour,  which  was  one  solid  region  of  ice, 

B  B 


370  SHOOTING    WILD-SWANS 

crowned  with  pyramids  that  had  formed  themselves 
of  the  drifted  snow,  and  frozen  like  crystals  ;  and,  on 
the  thaw,  the  harbour  appeared  like  one  huge  float- 
ing island,  as  the  ice  which  covered  it  was  carried 
off  by  the  fall  of  a  high  spring-tide.  And  to  see 
this  huge  body,  with  the  wild-swans  sitting  upon  it, 
while  it  receded,  and  looking  as  if  formed  by  nature 
for  the  only  inhabitants  of  such  a  dreary  region,  gave 
the  spectator  more  the  idea  of  a  voyage  to  the  arctic 
circle,  than  the  shore  of  a  habitable  country.  When 
the  large  bodies  of  ice  were  carried  off,  and  nothing 
remained  but  those  of  a  smaller  size,  the  whole 
harbour  was,  of  course,  in  arms  with  shooters,  and 
had  almost  the  appearance  of  a  place  that  was  be- 
sieged. The  following  morning,  though  it  blew  very 
hard,  and  poured  with  rain,  every  one  was  in  arms 
for  seven  of  the  swans  that  again  appeared,  anxiously 
hoping  that  they  might  swim,  or  fly,  near  enough  for 
a  random  shot ;  though  the  punters,  from  drawing 
too  much  water,  required  at  least  another  half  hour's 
flood  before  they  could  make  the  difficult  attempt  of 
getting  at  them  in  open  day.  By  having  a  punt 
which  drew  less  water  than  theirs,  it  was,  therefore, 
my  lot  to  have  the  first  chance,  if  no  one  fired  off  a 
gun,  in  order  to  spoil  the  shot,  which  is  a  very  com- 
mon practice  on  this,  and  many  other  coasts.  I,  there- 
fore, took  the  precaution  of  getting  well  round  to 
windward,  and  when  I  had  arrived  as  much  to  wind- 
ward as  one  dare  go  to  wildfowl,  having  previously 
covered  myself  arid  my  man  with  clean  white  linen, 


WITH    A    STANCHION    GUN.  371 

and  a  white  nightcap,  to  appear  the  colour  of  the 
snow,  we  floated  down  among  the  small  pans  of  white 
ice  that  were  constantly  drifting  to  leeward  ;  and,  by 
this  means,  had  a  couple  in  the  boat,  and  another 
that  afterwards  dropped  dead,  just  as  the  other 
punts  were  coming  up.  This  circumstance  I  think 
it  right  to  mention,  in  case  it  should  hereafter  be 
found  a  useful  recipe  for  getting  at  very  wild  birds, 
though  it  is  with  reluctance  that  I  become  so  much  the 
egotist  as  to  introduce  any  thing  that  relates  to  my 
own  performance.  In  giving  further  directions  about 
swans,  I  must  observe,  that  to  take  a  sitting  shot  you 
need  never  be  hurried,  as  these  birds  can  never  rise 
above  the  level  of  any  swivel-gun  till  they  have  beat 
the  water  for  several  yards,  in  order  to  get  their  huge 
bodies  on  the  wing.  To  shoot  them  flying,  make  all 
possible  haste  to  row  (or  if  on  land,  to  run)  till  you 
get  under  them,  as  they  fly  very  low,  and  will  seldom 
break  their  course  ;  and,  therefore,  may  be  frequently 
killed  by  surrounding  them  with  boats,  and  having  a 
gunning-punt  in  advance,  ready  to  fire  as  they  pass. 
We  afterwards  got  two  more  of  them  by  this  means. 
Be  careful,  however,  always  to  let  a  swan  pass  you, 
so  as  to  shoot  under  his  feathers,  or  you  may  as  well 
fire  at  a  wool-pack.  (This,  I  believe,  I  named  before, 
as  well  as  that  his  head  must  be  your  target,  if  you 
have  only  a  common  gun).  If  a  swan  rises  out  of 
shot,  where  he  is  likely  to  go  entirely  away,  present 
your  small  gun  very  far  before  him,  and  over  him, 
and  by  thus  firing,  you  will  sometimes  make  him 

B  B  2 


372  SHOOTING  WILD-SWANS. 

"  haul  his  wind,"  as  a  sailor  calls  it,  and  come  across, 
a  fair  shot  for  your  large  gun. 

Hundreds  of  common  swans  are  mistaken  for 
hoopers.  In  hard  weather  they  are  driven  from 
gentlemen's  seats,  and  still  more  so  from  the  large 
swanneries ;  such,  for  instance,  as  that  at  Abbots- 
bury,  in  Dorsetshire.  They  then  frequently  repair 
to  the  shore;  and  by  congregating  in  flocks,  and 
there  getting  driven  about  and  shot  at,  become  quite 
as  wild  as  the  real  hoopers,  from  which  they  are  dif- 
ficult to  distinguish,  unless  you  hear  them  hoop* 
But  when  near  enough  to  inspect' the  head  you  can 
be  no  longer  in  doubt,  as  the  naked  skin  above  the 
bill  in  the  tame  swan  is  black,  and  in  the  wild  swan 
bright  yellow.  Under  two  years  of  age  the  hoopers, 
like  other  cygnets,  are  not  white,  but  more  or  less  of 
a  dull  fawn  colour,  and  then  the  yellow  is  much  less 
brilliant ;  though  still  plain  enough  to  distinguish 
them  from  swans  of  the  tame  species.  Moreover, 
the  tame  swan  has  a  protuberance  just  above  the 
bill,  where  the  forehead  of  the  wild  swan  rises 
gradually  in  profile,  though  it  is  rather  hollow  when 
inspected  from  the  centre.  [I  write  this  with  a  stuffed 
specimen  of  the  tame  swan,  and  each  specimen  of  the 
hooper  now  before  me.] 

An  octavo  volume  might  be  rapidly  filled,  without 
reference  to  any  other  work,  on  the  mere  subject  of 
shooting  all  the  foregoing  birds ;  but,  through  con- 
sideration for  my  reader's  patience,  I  shall  now  con- 
clude, sincerely  hoping  that  I  have  given  all  the  real 


BOAT  SHOOTING,  UNDER  SAIL.  373 

information  which    is  absolutely  necessary  for  his 
pursuit  of  them. 


BOAT  SHOOTING, 
UNDER  SAIL,  OUTSIDE  OF  HARBOUR. 

(As  no  one,  I  presume,  would  go  afloat  without 
either  having  sailors,  or  being  pretty  good  amateur 
sailors  themselves,  it  would  be  needless,  as  well  as 
difficult,  to  write  otherwise  than  in  nautical  terms.) 

We  now  take  our  leave  of  the  harbour,  and  will 
have  one  cruise  out  of  harbour  before  we  proceed  for 
the  shooting  system  to  France. 

To  venture  after  fowl  at  sea  you  must  have  a  large 
boat,  with  good  bearings,  that  will  carry  plenty  of 
canvas.  Rowing  after  them  scarcely  ever  answers ; 
but  when  it  blows  fresh,  a  fast  sailing  boat  may  often 
run  in  upon  geese,  and  sometimes  other  birds,  before 
they  can  take  wing ;  and  after  a  coast  has  been  for 
some  time  harassed  by  the  gunning-punts,  I  have 
seen  more  birds  killed  under  sail  from  a  common 
boat,  than  by  any  other  manner  of  day  shooting. 
But,  to  do  the  business  well,  a  stanchion-gun  must 
be  fixed  in  the  boat,  and  this,  by  all  means,  contrived 
so  as  to  go  back  with  the  recoil,  or  you  run  the  risk 
of  staving  your  boat,  and,  therefore,  of  being  really 
in  danger.  Recollect,  when  you  get  on  the  outride 
of  the  harbour,  an  accident  is  no  joke ;  arid  you  have, 
as  Dr.  Johnson  observes,  but  one  plank  between  you 
and  eternity. 


374  BOAT    SHOOTING,    UNDER    SAIL. 

A  boat  for  this  work  should  have  plenty  of  bear- 
ings, and  have  as  little  keel  as  she  can  well  go  to 
windward  with,  in  order  to  get,  at  times,  within  shot 
of  the  mud  and  sands,  and  also  to  run  through  a 
harbour  at  spring-tides,  without  getting  aground. 
You  should,  therefore,  for  this  sport,  always  make 
choice  of  a,  day  when  the  wind  is  off  the  land,  and  a 
time  when  the  tide  is  flowing;  as  you  have  then  no 
danger  of  filling  your  boat  with  the  hollow  sea  of  a 
lee  shore,  or  running  her  so  fast  aground  as  not  to  be 
able  to  get  her  off  immediately.  In  following  wild- 
fowl under  sail,  command,  as  much  as  you  can,  a 
windward  birth,  in  order  to  bear  down  on  them  at 
pleasure  ;  and  if  they  rise  out  of  shot  against  wind, 
as  they  usually  do,  luff  up  directly,  and  try  to  head 
them  for  a  cross  shot.  As  the  gun,  when  on  one 
tack,  is  in  the  way  of  the  jib,  you  must  have  the 
man  who  attends  the  jib-sheets  always  in  readiness 
to  haul  the  weather  one  to  windward ;  but  this 
must  be  done  only  just  before  you  want  to  fire,  or 
you  deaden  the  boat's  way.  Take  care  also  to  let  the 
sheet  be  under  the  barrel  of  the  gun,  in  order  that 
your  line  of  aim  may  be  clear  of  every  thing.  In  this 
pursuit,  when  the  more  wind  sometimes  the  more 
sport,  never  go  with  less  than  three  good  hands; 
and  be  careful,  in  squally  weather,  not  to  make  too 
fast  the  main-sheet,  as  nine-tenths  of  the  misfortunes 
that  we  hear  of  have  occurred  from  this  very  cir- 
cumstance. 

While  on  this  subject,  it  may  be  useful  information 


EXPLANATION    OF    PLATE.  375 

to  many  gentlemen,  and  it  is  but  doing  justice  to 
an  ingenious  man  to  say,  that,  for  building  a  boat, 
yacht,  &c.  I  have  never  yet  met  with  any  one  who 
could  beat  Mr.  Thomas  Inman,  of  Lymington.  He 
removed  to  that  place  from  Hastings. 

I  will  now  conclude  here  with  explaining  the  ap- 
parent inconsistencies  of  the  plate  by  a  dialogue,  a 
la  Walton: — 

Critic.  Why  put  all  your  wounded  geese  swimming 
one  way  ? 

Author.  Because  geese,  directly  they  are  wounded, 
always  make  for  the  heaviest  sea. 

Critic.  Admit  that :  but  why  have  you  made  birds 
falling  where  no  gun  is  fired  ? 

Author.  Because,  in  wildfowl  shooting,  one  third 
of  the  birds  that  are  mortally  wounded  fly  off  ap- 
parently unhurt,  and  then  drop  suddenly  from  the 
flock. 

Critic.  Why  is  your  wounded  curlew  on  his  legs, 
and  the  goose  unable  to  dive,  while  the  winged  hooper 
is  able  to  swim  ? 

Author.  Because  the  mud  being  convex,  in  some 
places,  the  water  that  flows  over  it  is  only  about  three 
inches  deep  there;  while  it  may  be  nearly  a  foot 
deep  a  few  yards  further ;  and  the  web-footed  bird 
always  makes  for  the  deep,  while  the  wader  seeks  the 
shallow,  water. 

Before  dismissing  the  plate,  too,  I  should  explain, 
that  the  man,  who  is  taking  the  passing  shot,  is 
sketched  for  Buckle,  with  his  punt :  the  yawl  is  with 


376  BOATS    USED    IN    THE 

a  party,  and  a  swivel-gun,  who  are  bearing  down,  in 
obedience  to  the  punter's  signal,  while  the  other  man 
is  standing  on  his  mudboards,  hallooing  and  swearing 
because  he  also  cannot  obey  the  signal  (by  walking 
across  to  intercept  the  cripples)  through  fear  of 
leaving  two  city  gentlemen  aground ;  while  their 
poodle  dog  can  no  longer  contain  himself,  and  on 
hearing  another  shot,  jumps  overboard.  The  New- 
foundlander, in  the  foreground,  is  sketched  from  a 
bitch  of  mine,  that  was  imported  from  St.  John's. 

In  describing  these  subjects,  however,  I  have  un- 
fortunately not  the  means  of  getting  assisted  as  could 
be  wished,  because  they  are  so  totally  foreign  to 
artists.  But  for  the  original  plate  from  which  this 
was  taken  I  am  indebted  to  the  kind  and  able  assist- 
ance of  Wm.  Daniell,  Esq.  R.A. 

BOATS  USED  IN  THE  SOUTHAMPTON 
RIVER,  AND  ELSEWHERE. 

HAVING  spoken  of  the  Hampshire  coast,  I  allude 
to  that  part  of  it  all  the  way  from  Christchurch  bay 
to  Leap  and  Calshot ;  on  sailing  round  which  point 
we  open  the  Southampton  river,  where  the  mode  of 
shooting  again  differs.  The  order  of  the  day  here 
is  to  have  small  carvel-built  boats,  and  many  other 
miserable  contrivances. 

The  gunners  (or  rather  bird-frighteners)  in  these 
parts  scarcely  regard  any  appearance  in  dress  or 
colour.  These  men,  particularly  the  Itchen  ferry- 


SOUTHAMPTON    RIVEll.  377 

men,  go  sailing  about  all  day,  firing  random  shots, 
and  so  disturb  the  coast,  that  iliey  spoil  the  sport  of 
those  few  who  really  understand,  and  would  assist 
their  families  by  the  pursuit  of  wildfowl.  Farther 
up  this  river,  towards  Millbrook,  before  it  was  so 
incessantly  bombarded,  they  had  formerly  a  more 
sensible  plan ;  but  this  was  chiefly  for  getting  the 
curres.  It  was  to  set,  at  low  water,  lines,  with  horse- 
hair loops,  in  which  these  birds  were  caught  and 
drowned,  when  diving  to  bite  the  weeds,  and  were 
thus  left  on  the  mud  by  the  ebbing  tide. 

On  other  parts  of  the  coast  of  England,  I  have  ob- 
served the  boats  are  more  or  less  on  the  construction 
of  those  already  mentioned.  But  when  in  Scotland, 
I  could  procure  nothing  small  enough  to  answer  the 
purpose  in  any  way.  This,  however,  was  some  years 
ago.  Here  (on  the  Clyde,  below  Dumbarton),  the 
sport  would  have  been  excellent,  and  particularly  at 
the  barnacles. 


Wttofotol  at  tiller?; 


OR. 


CARRIAGE  FOR  USING  A  STANCHION  GUN 
ON  LAND. 

BEFORE  we  cross  the  channel,  for  France,  we  will 
now  look  at  the  artillery. 

A  stanchion  gun  may  be  fired  from  a  carriage, 
that  can  be  wheeled  over  land ;  which  is  much  lighter 
than  a  common  loaded  barrow.  But,  with  this  con- 
trivance, the  person  firing  the  gun  must  sit  on  the 
carriage  and  rest  his  feet  on  the  strap,  so  as  to  go 
back  with  it,  otherwise  he  would,  by  going  directly 
behind  it,  stand  a  chance  of  being  knocked  down; 
or,  at  all  events,  of  getting  his  shins  broken. 

Having  contrived  one,  which  answers  well,  I  here 
give  a  representation  of  it,  with  directions  for  its 
management.  [Vide  plate.] 


Wttofotol  in 


ON  the  French  coast,  although  they  are  all  great 
shooters,  and  especially  on  a  Sunday  !  I  could  never 
meet  with  a  very  small  boat  of  any  kind. 

I  remember  going  to  a  lake,  called  Gattemare,  about 
a  league  from  Barfleur,  which  contained  more  wild- 
fowl (chiefly  (htnbirds)  than  ever  I  had  before  seen 
together.  They  floated  with  the  greatest  composure, 
while  the  canaille  were  firing  at  coots,  &c.  from  the 
banks  ;  and  the  lake  being  above  a  mile  long,  and 
nearly  half  a  mile  broad,  these  birds,  aware  of  their 
safety  (like  the  ranks  of  puffins  on  a  cliff),  remain 
indifferent  to  the  noise  of  guns.  Finding  nothing 
could  be  done  with  them,  I,  and  some  friends,  tempted 
the  commissary  of  marine,  by  a  promise  of  bringing 
birds  enough  to  keep  his  family  for  a  week,  and 
giving  him  something  from  Angleterre,  to  exert 
himself  most  zealously  in  getting  a  boat  overland. 
This  having  been  accomplished,  we  started  before 
daylight  ;  but,  instead  of  finding  *  petit  canot,  as  he 
and  his  gens  tfarmes  had  described  it,  we  were 
ushered  into  a  huge  man  of  war's  boat,  that,  in  a  few 
minutes,  put  the  whole  pond  in  motion  with  the 


380         SHOOTING    WILDFOWL    IN    FRANCE. 

rising  of  birds,  and  very  soon  after  was  nearly  send- 
ing us  to  the  bottom  of  it,  by  the  rapidity  with  which 
it  leaked.  In  spite  of  all,  however,  our  sport,  with 
common  guns,  was  most  admirably  good,  and  I  have 
little  doubt,  but  that,  with  proper  equipment  and 
apparatus,  we  might  have  done  wonders. 

We  afterwards  agreed  for  the  exclusive  right  of 
the  shooting  there,  and  protected  it,  according  to  the 
custom  of  this  country,  by  an  armed  garde-chasse, 
which  part  was  most  ably  performed  by  one  of  the 
commissary's  gens  d'armes,  who,  in  addition  to  his 
military  fusee,  had  provided  himself  with  the  terrific 
appendages  of  a  cutlass  and  a  set  of  handcuffs. 

We  found  the  French  peasants  extremely  useful 
to  assist  in  shooting ;  and,  although  quite  ignorant 
of  following  birds  on  the  water  (in  comparison  with 
Englishmen),  yet  they  were  pretty  well  up  to  the 
making  of  bastions,  huts,  and  every  other  trick  for 
getting  shots  on,  and  from  the  shore. 

The  French  coast  is  plentifully  supplied  with  wild- 
fowl ;  which  there  are  far  more  easy  of  access  than  in 
our  country.  Taking  from  between  Cherburg  and 
Neville  to  Carentan,  there  is,  I  believe,  no  better 
place  within  the  same  distance,  from  the  south  of 
England,  than  this  would  be,  for  an  enthusiast  in 
the  diversion.  Here  the  birds  are  still  more  nu- 
merous than  on  the  coast  of  England ;  and  the  very 
few  shots  that  are  worth  taking  with  the  wretched 
guns  and  powder,  which  are  used  by  the  few  people 
who  here  follow  wildfowl,  render  their  sporting  but 


FRENCH    HUT-SHOOTING.  381 

a  trifling  impediment  to  your  enjoying  the  whole 
range  of  country.  (Although  the  powder  is  so 
execrably  bad,  yet  the  French  shot  is  well  manu- 
factured, and  of  good  quality.) 

The  only  objection,  however,  after  the  ten  or 
twelve  hours'  sail,  which  this  would  about  be  from 
Lymington  or  Poole,  is,  that  the  isolated  situation  of 
the  country,  and  the  misery  of  the  inhabitants,  pre- 
clude your  having  any  farther  amusement  than  the 
constant  pursuit  of  sport. 

FRENCH  HUT-SHOOTING, 

CALLED 

LA  CHASSE  A  LA  HUTTE. 

As  the  French  hut-shooting  is  the  only  means  by 
which  a  very  bad  shot,  with  a  very  bad  gun,  may 
kill  ducks  while  as  dry  and  as  warm  as  if  by  his  fire- 
side, I  made  a  point,  on  a  subsequent  excursion  to 
France,  of  going  up  to  Peronne*,  which  may  be 
styled  the  university  for  chasseurs  on  this  system,  in 
order  to  make  myself  master  of  it,  and  insert  it  in 
the  third  edition,  under  an  idea  that  its  great  facility, 

*  The  hut  system  is  also  tolerably  understood  near  Calais. 
Monsieur  Huret  I  found  to  be  "  le  plus  fort  huitier"  there;  and, 
if  I  remember  correctly,  it  was  him  that  I  met  one  morning  with 
forty-three  wildfowl,  that  he  was  just  bringing  home,  with  his 
basket  of  call-birds,  after  one  night's  sport. 


382  FRENCH    HUT-SHOOTING. 

and  little  inconvenience,  may  better  suit  the  ge- 
nerality of  my  readers,  than  the  more  scientific  plans 
of  wildfowl  shooting.  The  lakes  of  Peronne  are 
better  calculated  for  a  lover  of  comfort  to  shoot  at 
his  ease  than  any  place  I  have  seen.  The  water, 
being  a  part  of  the  Somme,  is  not  quite  stagnant ; 
and  is,  in  every  part,  about  four  or  five  feet  deep, 
surrounded,  and  intersected,  by  innumerable  islands 
and  walls  of  rushes.  The  waters  here  are  rented  by 
different  "  huttiers"  (hut-shooters),  who  get  the  chief 
of  their  livelihood  by  supplying  the  markets  of  Paris, 
and  other  towns,  with  wildfowl,  which  they  shoot, 
instead  of  taking  them  by  decoys,  as  in  our  country. 
Though  the  French,  in  some  places,  are  very  expert 
at  catching  birds  (particularly  on  that  vast  tract  of 
wild  sand  between  Crotoi  and  St.  Valery,  where  I 
have  seen  the  whole  mouth  of  the  Somme  spread 
with  nets  and  surrounded  by  lines  of  horse  hair 
nooses),  yet  shooting  from  the  hut  (la  hutte)  is  the 
favourite,  and  most  general,  method  of  getting  wild- 
fowl in  France.  The  common  way  of  making  a  hut 
is  to  dig  a  hole  in  the  ground  by  the  side  of  some 
pool  or  pond  ;  and  then  roof  it  over  with  turf,  so  that 
not  an  opening  remains,  but  one  hole,  into  which  you 
crawl ;  out  of  which  you  fire ;  and  in  front  of  which 
are  fastened,  to  three  separate  pegs  in  the  water,  two 
tame  ducks,  and  a  drake.  The  drake  must  be  in  the 
centre,  and  the  ducks  one  on  each  side  of  him,  at 
about  five  yards  interval ;  and  the  birds  being  thus 


FRENCH    HUT-SHOOTING.  383 

separated,  will,  in  general,  be  calling  to  each  other ; 
and  if  so,  there  will  seldom  pass  a  wild  one,  but  will 
come  and  drop  with  them. 

The  chief  point,  however,  to  be  attended  to  in 
England,  is  to  get,  if  possible,  some  young  wild-ducks 
bred  up,  and  pinioned.  Or,  by  way  of  a  makeshift, 
to  select  tame  birds  which  are  the  most  clamorous, 
even  if  their  colour  should  not  be  like  the  wild  ones. 
But  in  France  you  have  seldom  any  trouble  to  do 
this,  as  the  ducks  used  in  that  country  are  partly  of 
the  wild  breed ;  and  three  French  ducks,  like  three 
Frenchmen,  will  make  about  as  much  noise  as  a 
dozen  English. 

The  Italians,  in  order  to  make  their  call  birds 
noisy,  for  a  "  roccalo,"  burn  out  their  eyes  with  a  hot 
needle,  a  practice  at  which  I  am  sure  my  English 
readers  would  shudder;  though  the  translation  of 
what  they  say  in  Italy  is,  that  "  these  are  the  happiest 
birds  in  the  world  ;  always  singing."  (It  may  be  ne- 
cessary to  explain,  that  a  roccalo  is  a  plantation,  and  a 
large  silk  net,  into  which  various  small  birds  are  driven, 
as  soon  as  they  have  collected,  by  a  Signior,  who  is  con- 
cealed above  the  trees,  in  a  highly  elevated  box,  similar 
to  a  small  pigeon-house.  Out  of  this  he  hurls  down  a 
large  stick  upon  the  birds  ;  and  they,  flying  down,  as 
if  to  avoid  a  hawk,  are  all  made  prisoners  in  the  net 
which  is  placed  behind  the  trees.)  But,  to  return  to 
the  huts  of  Peronne :  they  are  very  superior  to  the 
common  ones.  The  way  to  make  them  is  this  : — Cut 
down  a  large  square  in  the  reeds,  about  eight  feet  by 


384  FRENCH    HUT-SHOOTING. 

four;  make  a  foundation  of  either  stone,  wood,  or 
brick.  Then  drive  in  six  piles  on  each  side ;  and  on 
them  put  six  hoops,  precisely  like  those  to  a  tilted 
waggon.  The  foundation  being  then  formed,  nothing 
remains  but  to  build  up  the  sides  with  turf,  or  what 
else  you  please,  and  thatch  the  roof  and  the  whole  of 
the  inside.  In  front  there  must  be  either  two  or  four 
port  holes  to  fire  through  (each  one  bearing  clear  of 
your  call  birds),  and  at  the  back  a  little  door  to  crawl 
in  at,  which  you  enter  by  a  labyrinth.  This  hut, 
being  built  among  the  high  reeds,  and  afterwards 
strewed  over  with  them,  is  completely  invisible ;  al- 
though as  commodious  inside  as  a  large  covered  cart. 
Here  the  huffier  of  Peronne  goes  regularly  every 
night,  wet  or  dry,  and  takes  a  great  coat  (if  he  has 
one),  with  a  piece  of  brown  bread,  and  a  sour  apple, 
for  his  supper.  In  front  of  his  hut  are  fastened,  to 
piles  at  each  end,  three  separate  ropes,  about  twenty 
yards  long.  On  the  centre  one,  he  ties  four  drakes, 
and  to  the  one  on  each  flank  four  ducks ;  making,  in 
all,  twelve  decoy  birds ;  and  these,  being  (to  use  a 
military  term)  dressed  in  line,  whatever  bird  he  sees 
out  of  the  ranks,  he  knows  must  be  a  wild  one :  and 
as  the  lake,  in  moderate  weather,  is  like  a  mirror,  the 
night  is  seldom  so  dark  but  that  he  can  see  to  shoot 
at  the  very  short  distance  which  his  miserable  gun, 
and  miserable  powder,  will  kill. 

The  great  man  of  the  huttiers  here  was,  and  per- 
haps still  is,  Monsieur  Desabes.  To  his  services  I 
was  recommended  by  the  proprietor  of  whom  he 


FRENCH    HUT-SHOOTING.         ,  385 

rented  his  share  of  the  water.  He  informed  me,  that 
the  huttiers  never  allowed  shooting  from  a  boat,  or  at 
birds  on  wing,  through  fear  of  disturbing  the  pond  ; 
and  said,  that  his  plan  was  to  take  his  night's  rest, 
and  leave  the  birds  till  a  little  before  daylight ;  when 
they  would  be  all  doubled  together ;  and  when  a  shot 
would  do  far  less  mischief  to  the  decoy  than  if  fired 
before  the  birds  had  fed  and  slept.  Here  he  is  per- 
fectly right.  But  that  if  a  "  grande  compagnie" 
should  drop,  the  noise  would  awaken  him,  and  he 
could  then  take  his  choice  whether  to  fire  or  not. 
After  inspecting  all  his  apparatus  by  day,  he  would 
make  me  go  with  him  by  night,  and  being  unwell 
at  the  time,  and  unprepared,  I  was  scarcely  in  the 
humour  to  do  this,  particularly  as  I  knew  that  it  was 
pnst  the  time  of  year  for  this  kind  of  sport.  I  agreed, 
however,  to  go,  and  was  conducted  to  one  of  his  best 
intrenchments,  where  his  twelve  decoy  birds,  all  in 
battle  array,  were  placed  under  the  light  of  a  beauti- 
ful moon,  within  the  quarter  of  an  English  gun  shot 
of  his  hut,  which  was  uncomfortably  warm.  Here 
I  remained,  more  likely  to  be  suffocated  than  chilled, 
for  I  know  not  how  many  hours  ;  but  not  a  wild-duck 
ever  came,  though  his  three  alignements  of  decoy- 
birds  kept  chattering  away,  like  the  other  bipeds  of 
the  French  nation ;  and  although  the  whole  valley, 
for  a  league,  was  resounding  with  the  quacking  of 
decoy  ducks,  and  defended  by  the  masters  of  them, 
yet  I  could  not  have  the  honour  to  say,  I  had  -seen 
or  heard  the  firing  of  a  single  shot.  Had  my  ex- 

c  c 


386  FRENCH    HUT-SHOOTING. 

perience  ended  here,  therefore,  I  should  have  had  but 
little  inducement  to  recommend  the  French  system. 
But  I  have  since  imported  the  French  brojBd  of  decoy 
ducks ;  tried  it  in  England ;  and  find,  that,  by  this 
means,  a  gentleman  with  his  little  gun  may  sit  at  his 
ease,  and  kill  more  wildfowl,  than  by  any  other  plan 
I  have  ever  seen ;  and  without  the  risk  of  driving  the 
fowl  entirely  away  from  his  pond,  which  he  would  be 
liable  to  do  by  any  other  mode  of  shooting. 

In  this  shooting,  let  it  be  remembered,  that  the 
ducks  usually  quit  the  large  ponds  at  night,  and 
therefore  the  huts  for  them  must  be  made  round  the 
smaller  waters,  where  they  feed.  But  for  the  dun- 
birds,  and  all  kinds  of  curres,  the  large  pond  will  be 
the  best  place,  as  they  seldom  leave  it ;  and,  if  not 
too  hard  pressed,  they  may  be  driven  like  sheep  (by 
means  of  a  person  paddling  to  and  fro,  at  a  distance ; 
and  occasionally  making  a  little  noise),  either  by 
night  or  day,  towards  any  of  the  batteries  which  the 
shooter  may  choose  to  open  on  them. 

Coots  may  be  driven  in  like  manner,  but  will  not 
double  up  for  a  shot,  like  the  others.  Ducks  and 
mallards  will  not  allow  you  to  drive  them  ;  but  on  the 
first  alarm  will  generally  take  wing. 

As  a  proof  of  the  superiority  of  the  French  decoy 
birds  to  the  common  English  ducks,  I  need  only  men- 
tion, that  a  few  winters  ago,  when  I  sent  over  some 
of  them  to  Lord  Rodney,  for  his  beautiful  pond  at 
Alresford,  Mr.  Sparry,  the  bailiff,  in  order  to  secure 
them,  for  the  night  on  which  they  came,  put  them 


FRENCH    HUT-SHOOTING.  387 

within  a  few  hurdles,  close  before  his  house.  When 
he  got  up  in  the  morning,  no  sooner  did  he  open  his 
door  tha^a  number  of  wild-ducks  flew  up  from 
within  the  little  fence  he  had  made,  and  into  wliich 
these  birds,  of  course,  had  enticed  them.  Several 
tame  ducks  had  constantly  been  in,  and  all  about,  the 
place ;  but  these  had  never  decoyed  the  wild  birds, 
in  the  manner  that  had  been  done  by  the  French- 
men. 

If  this  system  is  adopted,  two  or  three  huts  should 
be  made,  and  then  the  hutter  has  a  choice  which  to 
take,  according  to  the  light  and  the  wind.  [Vide 
plate.] 

Critic.  Why  have  you  put  all  your  call  birds  one 
way? 

Author.  Because  ducks,  when  stationary,  and  not 
feeding,  always  sit  facing  the  wind ;  or,  if  in  running 
water,  with  their  breasts  against  the  stream. 


c  c 


Wtlirfotol  footing  in  tf)e  jfens* 

PUNT,  GUNS,  &cv  USED  FOR  THAT  PURPOSE. 

HAVING  returned  from  France,  and  learnt  the 
system  of  that  country,  we  will  now  finish  our  wild- 
fowl excursions  with  a  few  observations  on  the  fens, 
and  other  fresh  waters,  where  it  is  the  most  likely  to 
answer.  The  punts  in  the  fens  are  now  somewhat 
similar  to  that  which  I  before  named  of  Buckle's, 
only  much  narrower,  in  order  that  the  gunners  may 
be  able  to  pull  them  through  the  reeds,  in  places 
where  they  cannot  use  their  paddles. 

The  guns  here,  instead  of  having  any  thing  to  check 
the  recoil,  are,  like  his,  merely  rested  on  a  broad 
thwart,  or  gunning-bench,  about  the  centre,  and  in  a 
groove  at  the  bow,  to  support  the  muzzle ;  so  that 
the  shooters  here  fire  in  the  manner  before  stated, 
vfa.  they  lean  with  the  hollow  of  their  shoulders 
hard  against  their  fowling-piece*  (as  they  herejzsill 
punt  guns) ;  and,  after  thus  checking  the  recoil 
themselves,  allow  the  gun  to  run  under  their  arms. 
The  fen  guns  are  built  purposely  to  avoid  a  recoil; 
and,  consequently,  not  on  the  very  best  proportion  to 


WILDFOWL  SHOOTING   IN  THE  FENS.        389 

make  heavy  shots  in  a  flock.  For,  notwithstanding 
they  are  from  forty  to  seventy  pounds  weight,  and 
from  seven  to  ten  feet  in  the  barrel,  yet  they  are  only 
about  an  inch  in  the  bore.  Although,  as  an  extra- 
ordinary circumstance,  the  fen-gunners  sometimes  kill 
from  thirty. to  forty  birds  at  a  shot,  yet  they  now- 
a-days  consider  it  very  good  work  to  secure  a  dozen. 

This  is  nothing  great,  in  comparison  with  what  has 
been  formerly  done  on  the  coast ;  for  instance,  from 
thirty  to  forty  wigeon,  besides  lost  birds,  killed  from 
the  shoulder ;  and  from  seventy  to  eighty  different 
wildfowl  from  a  swivel  gun.  These,  however,  though 
shots  extremely  rare,  are  not  to  be  set  down  as  ex- 
travagant impossibilities,  when  we  consider,  that  a 
shoulder  gun  of  twenty  pounds  weight  may  be  fired 
with  half  a  pound,  and  a  stanchion-gun  with  a  pound 
and  a  half  of  such  shot,  that  any  one  grain  of  it 
wight  stop  a  bird ;  and  this  shot  (say  even  the  large 
letter  A)  has  fifty  grains  to  an  ounce. 

The  winter  shooting  in  the  fens  is  not  what  it 
Avas ;  as  they  have  been  much  drained  for  cultivation, 
by  which  the  wild  parts  are  less  extensive;  and  the 
use  of  large  guns  having,  of  late  years,  been  the 
order  of  the  day  here,  as  ivell  as  everywhere  else, 
the  birds  are  now  much  wilder,  and  not  so  plentiful. 
Putting  this  aside,  however,  the  fens  have  not  so 
many  advantages  as  people  are  led  to  suppose ;  for, 
should  there  be  a  hard  frost,  the  whole  of  the  reed 
beds  and  meres  become  one  continued  sheet  of  ice,  and 
without  a  vestige  of  food  for  the  birds ;  unless,  by 


390  WILDFOWL    SHOOTING 

the  way,  you  take  the  precaution  to  keep  a  place 
open  for  them,  which  plan  answers  most  admirably, 
to  get  the  very  best  shots  that  can  be  made.  But 
should  the  weather  be  open,  the  greater  part  of  the 
wildfowl  remain  in  the  decoys  during  the  day-time, 
and  this  marshy  country  is  too  much  extended  to 
select  any  particular  spot  for  their  evening  flights : 
consequently,  save  having  a  tolerable  quantity  of 
bitterns,  occasionally  most  excellent  snipe  shooting, 
and  in  summer  the  flapper  shooting,  here  is  not 
much  to  be  done  till  about  the  last  fortnight  in 
March,  when  the  birds  are  distributed  preparative  to 
their  breeding.  Then  it  is  that  old  ducks  and  teal 
may  be  put  up  arid  killed  right  and  left  with  a  double 
gun ;  and  then  it  is  that  we  have  the  greatest  chance 
of  catching  the  ague ! 

The  fens  from  Holme  to  Ramsay  were,  at  one  time, 
the  best  I  had  seen :  they  lay  to  the  right  of  the 
north  road,  when  you  are  going  down,  within  a  stage 
of  Huntingdon,  and  scarcely  an  hour's  walk  from 
Stilton.  But  afterwards,  in  1816, 1  found  those  near 
Winterton,  in  Norfolk  (the  private  property  of  I.  B, 
Huntingdon  *,  and  R.  Rising,  Esqrs.)  far  superior ; 
and  the  variety  of  wild  birds  here  was  such,  that,  in 
the  breeding  season,  you  might  kill  from  twenty  to 
thirty  different  sorts  in  a  day.  Some,  by-the-by,  I 
had  never  seen  before,  and,  if  I  mistake  not,  I  was 
favoured  with  a  sight  of  two  or  three,  that  were  not 

*  Lately  occupied,  if  not  purchased,  by  Joseph  lluinc.  Esqr. 
M.  P. 


JN    THE    FENS.  391 

even  in  Bewick,  by  C.  Girdlestone,  Esq.,  which  he 
has  in  his  private  collection,  at  Yarmouth.  In  many 
parts  you^could  scarcely  walk  without  treading  on  the 
eggs  of  terns,  plovers,  redshanks,  and  almost  every 
other  kind  of  marsh-bird.  At  certain  times,  in  the 
winter,  the  fowl,  on  their  passage  from  Holland  to 
the  south,  dropped  in  here,  and  literally  blackened 
the  centre  part  of  the  lakes  called  Horsey-broad,  and 
Heigham  Sounds,  where  they  fancied  themselves  pro- 
tected by  the  surrounding  ice  *. 

I,  however,  went  to  this  country  again,  in  1824, 
and  found,  that,  owing  to  the  drains  for  cultivation, 
and  increase  of  the  decoys,  the  quantity  of  birds  was, 
and  has  for  some  year^  been,  so  much  reduced,  that  I 
was  obliged  to  alter  the  MS.  of  this  statement  from 
the  present  to  the  past  time. .  My  account  would 
otherwise  have  proved  a  gross  exaggeration.  This 
shows  how  few  years  will  put  a  sporting  book  out  of 
date! 

The  fens  are  famous  for  the  ruffs  and  reeves ;  but 
these  birds  frequent  such  awkward  places,  and  are  so 
wild  during  the  summer,  when  they  come  here  to 
breed,  that,  as  I  before  observed,  they  seldom  afford 
much  sport  for  the  gun. 

*  I  was  here  shown  by  Rogers  his  plan  of  getting  fowl  on  the 
ice.  It  was  to  cut  four  horses'  leg  bones,  and  after  filing  them 
smooth,  like  skates,  to  place  them  longitudinally  under  a  very 
small  punt ;  and  then,  lying  on  his  breast,  to  shove  over  the  frozen 
part,  with  two  iron  spikes.  Any  other  means  of  passing  a  place 
that  was  partially  frozen  would  be  dangerous  in  the  extreme. 


dressing  for  $tmts  auto  Canoes. 

To  keep  gunning  punts  and  canoes  from  leaking, 
or,  as  those  who  use  them  call  it,  weeping,  melt  a 
pint  of  tar  with  a  pound  of *  pitch ,  and  either  half  a 
pint  of  common  oil,  or  a  proportional  quantity  of  suet. 
You  have  then  only  to  pour  a  little  of  this  mixture 
into  the  seams  of  your  punt,  and  instead  of  bedaubing 
her  all  over  the  bottom,  as  we  did  in  the  old  school, 
seven  or  eight  years  ago,  have  the  bottom  painted, 
with  one  or  two  thin  coats  of  red  lead,  which  will  last 
much  longer,  and  with  which  the  boat  rows  much 
lighter. 

White  rosin  and  mutton  suet  is  even  a  better 
dressing,  and  by  far  the  lightest  of  any.  To  avoid 
rubbing  the  bottom  of  your  punt  every  time  she  is 
hauled  ashore,  have  two  small  rollers,  by  which  you 
will  considerably  save  her. 

Have  your  canoes  and  punts,  previously  to  being 
put  together,  painted  under  every  timber  with  red 
lead,  and  they  will  (to  the  no  small  annoyance  of  the 
builder)  last  you  twice  as  long.  But  where  the  other 
paint  is  to  go,  do  not  put  red  lead,  as  white  will 
neither  look  nor  take  so  well  upon  it. 


DRESSING    FOR    PUNTS   AND    CANOES.       393 

If  you  want  good  white  lead  for  paint  (instead  of 
whiting  and  water),  you  can  have  it  from  Messrs. 
Walker,  Parker,  &  Co.,  at  the  shot  manufactory. 

Have 'the  outside  of  all  your  punts  and  canoes 
painted,  with  the  very  best  white  lead;  and  to  make 
them  drab,  for  sun  or  moon,  use  a  little  distemper 
colour,  such  as  the  scenes  of  the  theatres  are  painted 
with ;  and  this,  either  with,  or  without  size,  may  be 
mopped  off  in  a  few  minutes.  Some  of  the  gunners 
use  a  wet  clod  ;  but  you  must  beware  of  salt  mud,  as 
that  would  stain  your  punt. 

For  shooting  off  at  sea,  when  there  is  a  breeze,  a 
tint  of  lead  colour  has  the  best  deception.  But  I 
seldom  use  it,  unless  very  light,  for  two  reasons — the 
one,  that  it  is  a  bad  colour  for  shallow  water ;  and 
the  other,  that  no  prudent  man  ought  to  go  off  to  sea 
in  a  punt. 

To  stop  a  chink,  or  crack,  force  in,  with  a  caulking 
iron,  some  oakum,  or  stiff  brown  paper,  before  you 
pour  in  any  kind  of  mixture.  Hot  rosin  also  does 
very  well  by  itself,  if  you  do  not  wish  to  have  the 
trouble  of  mixing  the  other  ingredients. 


Best  means  of 
conteputg  $unts,  &e*  ctoer  lantr, 


THE  boat-cart,  or  canoe-carriage,  here  prescribed, 
will,  I  think,  be  found  the  only  means  of  conveying 
any  kind  of  punt  to  those  places,  where  it  would 
always  be  most  likely  to  answer  ;  such  as  ponds  and 
other  private  waters,  where  no  gunners  are  allowed 
to  sport  ;  and  where  the  keepers  scarcely  know  a 
punt  from  a  pig-  trough. 

The  directions  for  this  carriage  (as  well  as  those 
for  the  canoe,  &c.)  are  given  on  the  plate,  for  the 
convenience  of  inclosing  them  in  a  letter,  in  case  of 
their  being  wanted  abroad  ;  or  in  any  place,  where 
there  might  be  a  difficulty  to  get  a  safe  and  immediate 
conveyance  for  the  book. 

This  carriage,  if  only  required  for  the  punt  itself, 
might  be  made  much  lighter,  by  being  placed  only 
on  two  high  wheels,  similar  to  a  long  French  cart. 
But  when  laden  with  baggage,  the  plan  of  four 
wheels  becomes  a  necessary  one,  in  order  the  better 
to  support  and  save  the  punt.  In  either  case  springs 
would  be  a  decided  improvement,  was  it  not  for  the 
duty  on  them.  The  best  substitute  is,  first  to  put 
a  good  bed  of  straw  under  the  punt;  and  then  to 
fasten  on  punt,  baggage,  and  all,  with  a  line,  similar 
to  that  used  for  binding  a  load  of  corn  in  harvest. 


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SSItitifotol  on  a 


FOR  killing  common  wild-ducks,  that  frequent  a 
river,  you  have  only  to  go  a  little  before  sunset; 
place  yourself  against  any  dark  bush  or  bank  ;  and 
there  wait,  patiently,  and  out  of  sight,  till  they  come 
down,  and  fly  round  you  ;  which  they  will  generally 
do  several  times,  before  they  drop  into  the  stream  or 
marshes. 

As  wild-ducks  most  frequently  betake  themselves 
to  the  springs  and  rivers  about  dusk,  you  have  no 
occasion  to  wait  for  them  longer  than  just  the  last 
hour,  or  half  hour  before  dark;  but,  if  they  have 
been  much  disturbed  or  shot  at,  they  will  not  always 
fly  sufficiently  early  to  be  seen  ;  though  you  may 
plainly  hear  the  shrill,  and  somewhat  melancholy 
sound  of  their  wings.  If,  however,  the  twilight  is 
followed  by  a  full  moon,  these  birds  will  often  with- 
hold coming  to  the  river  till  the  moon  has  completely 
risen  ;  in  which  case  you  might  have  to  wait  till  an 
hour  or  two  after  dusk.  But  then  the  sport  is  con- 
siderably better,  and  will  last  much  longer,  with  the 
additional  advantage  of  your  having  a  continued 
sjood  light  for  shooting. 


396      SHOOTING    WILDFOWL    ON   A   RIVER,   &C. 

Wild-ducks  generally  come  to  the  same  place, 
unless  they  have  been  shot  at,  or  there  should  be  a 
change  of  wind  and  weather. 

It  often  happens,  that  wild-ducks,  dunbirds,  and 
other  fowl,  come  down  at  night  to  large  rivers,  ponds, 
or  lakes,  which  are  so  deeply  surrounded  by  floating 
reeds,  that  no  one  can  approach  the  water ;  and  the 
birds,  aware  of  this,  do  not  lower  their  flight  till  they 
come  near  them.  So  far  from  this  defying  the  shooter, 
it  is  one  of  the  finest  opportunities  that  can  be  af- 
forded for  death  and  destruction.  Let  him  sit,  in  a 
small  punt  or  canoe ',  fore  and  aft,  among  the  rushes, 
where,  towards  dusk,  he  will  be  so  completely  hid, 
that  he  may  either  shoot  at  birds  flying  within  pistol 
shot,  or  wait  for  a  good  chance  on  the  water ;  from 
whence  (his  boat  being  hid  on  each  side,  and  fore- 
shortened  to  the  only  point  of  mew)  he  will  be  pretty 
sure  to  escape  the  observation  of  the  birds.  This 
plan  may  be  resorted  to  where  there  are  no  rushes, 
such  as  under  the  bank  of  an  island,  or  in  a  small 
brook,  near  which  there  may  be  no  hiding-place. 
Here,  however,  nothing  would  surpass  the  French 
system,  for  those  who  had  the  means  of  adopting  it. 

All  these  stratagems  may  become  unnecessary,  in 
places  which  are  strictly  preserved,  and  where  wild- 
fowl shooting  is  interspersed  with  that  of  snipes  and 
other  birds;  but  as  these  places  are  now  but  rarely 
to  be  met  with,  I  have  thought  it  necessary  to  dilate 
at  considerable  length  in  the  foregoing  instructions 
relative  to  shooting  wildfowl,  which  are  now  but 


OBSERVATIONS.  397 

seldom  to  be  killed  without  care,  patience,  and  good 
management. 

Having  now,  I  trust,  sufficiently  explained  the  best 
methods  for  killing  all  kinds  of  birds,  on  land ;  on 
fresh  waters ;  by  sea ;  in  harbour  ;  out  of  harbour  ; 
and  in  every  situation,  that  I  can  think  of ;  there 
remains,  I  believe,  n.o  more  that  need  be  said  under 
this  head.  I  shall  therefore  proceed  to  the  other 
subjects  of  the  volume;  and,  after  giving  a  short 
epitome  of,  and  some  observations  on,  the  game  laws, 
conclude,  with  a  few  hints,  and  a  little  advice,  that 
may  possibly  be  of  service,  for  the  health  and  comfort 
of  a  young  sportsman. 


***  Nothing  has  yet  been  done  with  the  game  laws !  the  new 
bill  having  been  thrown  out  in  the  House  of  Lords  by  a  majority 
of  fifteen.  Instead,  therefore,  of  having  any  new  acts  to  abridge, 
I  have  only  to  reprint  again  my  former  extracts  from  the  old 
rhapsody. 

IT  is  much  to  be  lamented  that  these  laws,  as  well 
as  many  others,  are  not  brought  under  a  revision  by 
the  legislature,  and  reduced  into  one  act  of  the  pre- 
sent reign,  sufficiently  comprehensive  to  include  every 
thing  that  is  useful  or  desirable  in  such  a  code ;  and 
to  exclude  every  thing  that  is  obsolete,  or  inapplicable 
to  the  present  time,  which  is  only  calculated  to  mis- 
lead, or  ensnare  the  unwary  ! 

No  matter  what  any  laws  were;  the  desideratum 
is  to  know  what  they  now  are.  But,  from  a  super- 
fluous introduction  of  repealed  statutes,  it  not  only 
becomes  a  business  of  time  to  wade  through  volumes 
on  the  subject,  but  it  requires  some  attention  to  dis- 
criminate, which  of  the  laws  are  in  force  at  the 
present  day ;  and  they  are  sometimes  misunderstood 
from  the  very  preambles,  that  are  intended  to  prevent 
their  being  so.  It  is,  therefore,  much  to  be  wished, 
that  some  gentleman  in  the  profession  would  favour 


GAME    LAWS.  399 

us  with  a  moderate  sized  publication,  wherein  nothing 
is  inserted  but  that  by  which  we  may  now  be  guided 
•with  safety. 

In  the  interim,  the  annexed  memoranda,  for  the 
present  game  laws,  although  an  imperfect  attempt, 
may  be  the  means,  in  some  cases,  of  saving  time, 
and  perhaps  a  lawsuit;  than  their  doing  which, 
nothing  would  give  more  pleasure  to  the  compiler. 

JUNE,  1826. 


QUALIFICATION. 

\_A  lord  of  a  manor,  if  not  otherwise  qualified,  would  not  be 
entitled  to  kill  game  himself.] 

100/.  per  annum,  clear  of  all  deductions,  in  own  or  wife's  right, 
charged  upon  hinds  or  tenements,  or  other  estate  of  inheritance. 

150/.  per  annum  for  life,  or  on  lease,  for  life,  or  ninety-nine 
years. 

Eldest  sons  of  esquires,  or  [of*]  persons  of  higher  degree. 

Notwithstanding  the  eldest  son  of  an  esquire  is 
qualified,  yet  the  esquire  himself  may  not  be  qualified  f 
such  is  the  consistency  of  the  game  laws  !  What  a 

*  Although  this  word  of  is  not  inserted,  yet  it  has  legally  been 
decided  to  be  necessarily  implied. 

"  A  diploma,  conferring  the  degree  of  doctor  of  physic,  granted 
by  either  of  the  universities  in  Scotland,  does  not  give  a  quali- 
fication to  kill  game  (under  22  and  23  Car.  II.  cap.  xxv).  An 
esquire,  or  other  person  of  higher  degree,  as  suck,  is  not  qualified 
under  that  act;  though  the  son  of  an  esquire,  or  the  son  of  other 
person  of  higher  degree.  i,v."  (Vide  1st  Term  Reports,  page  44.) 


400  GAME    LAWS. 

pity  it  is  that  those,  who  framed  this  law,  were  not 
also  the  authors  of  the  one  penny  penalty  for  taking 
the  eggs  of  mallards!  as  the  two  acts  combined 
would  at  least  have  entitled  them  to  a  mention  of 
their  names  in  the  Biographical  Dictionary. — (Vide 
"  for  every  egg  of  mallard,"  &c.  25  Hen.  VIII.  cap. 
xi.) 

CERTIFICATE. 

PENALTY  for  shooting  without,  20/. 

To  be  taken  out  annually,  in  the  parish  or  place  where  your 
assessed  taxes  are  paid;  costs  31.  13s.  6d.,  and  Is.  fee  to  the 
collector. 

Does  not  authorise  unqualified  persons  to  kill  game,  but  ex- 
empts them  from  the  penalty  of  20Z.,  and  leaves  them  subject  to 
that  of  51.  for  non-qualification ;  and  also  to  that  of  5/.  apiece  for 
every  head  of  game  found  in  their  possession. 

For  menial  servants,  hired  as  gamekeepers,  costs  I/.  5*.,  and 
the  1*.  fee  to  the  collector. 

Persons,  not  menial  servants,  must  have  the  3|  guinea  cer- 
tificate, and  should  have,  also,  the  common  gamekeeper's  cer- 
tificate, to  hold  a  deputation. 

When  demanded  by  any  assessor,  collector,  land  owner,  com- 
missioner, inspector,  surveyor,  occupier  of  land  ;  also  gamekeeper, 
or  other  person  ;  provided  the  two  latter  produce  their  certificates, 
previously  to  requiring  yours.  Penalty  for  refusing  201. 

If  you  have  not  your  certificate  to  produce,  your  name,  and 
place  of  abode,  may  be  asked. — See  penalty  for  refusing. 

All  certificates  expire  on  the  5th  of  April,  in  each  year*. 

*  A  conviction,  under  the  game  laws,  once  took  place  at 
Godalming,  on  the  following  curious  grounds: — An  information 
was  lodged  against  a  qualified  gentleman,  for  having  shot  at  and 
killed,  after  the  5th  of  April,  a  snipe,  not  having  a  license  ;  and, 
according  to  the  literal  construction  of  the  act,  the  commissioners 


GAME    LAWS.  401 

Be  careful,  therefore,  to  receive  your  next  certi- 
ficate before  you  recommence  killing  game ;  in  order 
to  defy  all  pettifogging  informers. 

GAMEKEEPERS 

ARE  subject  to  the  full  penalties  of  unqualified  and  unlicensed 
persons,  as  well   as  to  actions  of  trespass,  if  they  outstep  the 
bounds  of  the  manor,  for  -which  they  are  appointed. 
Only  one  can  be  appointed  to  each  manor. 

DEPUTATION    OF    A    GAMEKEEPER. 

The  deputation  granted  to  a  gamekeeper  must  be  registered 
with  the  clerk  of  the  peace,  within  twenty  days  after  it  is  granted, 
and  a  certificate  taken  of  the  same,  under  penalty  of  20/.  The 
deputation  for  one  keeper  holds  good  till  another  is  appointed.  If 
a  new  gamekeeper  is  appointed  within  the  year,  the  game  cer- 
tificate of  the  former  keeper  may  be  transferred  to  him  for  the 
remainder  of  the  year;  and  this  must  be  done,  free  of  all  expense, 
by  the  clerk  to  the  commissioners  of  the  district. 

FORM  OF  A  GAMEKEEPER'S  DEPUTATION. 

(To  be  written  on  a  I/.  15*.  stamp.') 

Know  all  men,  by  these  presents,  that  I  ,  of 

,  in  the  county  of  ,  esq.  lord 

of  the  manor  of  ,  in  the  same  county,  have 

nominated,  deputed,  and  appointed,  and  by  these  presents  do 

nominate,  depute,  and  appoint  ,  of 

of  taxes  were  compelled  to  fine  him  in  the  penalty  of  twenty 
pounds,  although  it  appeared  he  had  regularly  applied  for  a 
licence,  and  had  been  in  the  habit  of  sporting  w<th  a  licence  for 
some  years  previous.  The  inference  to  be  drawn  from  this  con- 
viction, therefore,  is,  that  no  man,  qualified  or  unqualified,  can, 
as  the  law  now  stands,  use  a  gun,  upon  his  own  estate  or  else- 
where, between  the  5th  of  April  and  the  20th  of  July  (the 
earliest  day,  as  it  appears,  011  which  licences  are  issued),  without 
subjecting  himself  to  a  similar  penalty. — Star  newspaper. 

D  D 


402  GAME  LAWS. 

,  yeoman,  to  be  gamekeeper  of  and 

within  my  said  manor  of  ,  with  full  power, 

licence,  and  authority  to  pursue,  take,  and  kill  any  hare,  phea- 
sant, partridge,  or  other  game  whatsoever,  in  and  upon  my  said 
manor  of  ,  for  my  sole  and  immediate  use 

and  benefit ;  and  also  to  take  and  seize  *  all  such  guns,  bows, 
greyhounds,  setting  dogs,  lurchers,  ferrets,  trammels,  lowbells, 
hays,  or  other-  nets,  hare-pipes,  snares,  or  other  engines  for  the 
pursuing,  taking,  or  killing  of  hares,  rabbits,  pheasants,  par- 
tridges, or  other  game,  as  shall  be  used  within  the  precincts  of 
my  said  manor,  by  any  person  or  persons,  who  by  law  are  pro- 
hibited to  keep  or  use  the  same.  In  witness  whereof  I  have 
hereunto  set  my  hand  and  seal,  this 
day  of  1824. 

(Signature,  and  seal.) 
Sealed  and  delivered  in  presence  of  (the 
signature  of  ONE  witness,  specifying  his 
place  of  abode,  is  sufficient.) 

REFUSING  TO  GIVE  NAMES. 

IF  you  have  not  a  certificate  to  produce,  at  the  time  it  is  catted 
for,  your  Christian  and  surnames,  and  place  of  abode,  may  be 
demanded,  by  any  assessor,  &c.  &c.  (as  before  mentioned) ;  and 
penalty  for  refusing  them,  or  giving  a  false  name,  is  201. 

GAME. 

HARES  may  be  killed  at  any  time  of  the  year ! ! 

Pheasants,  from  the  1st  of  October  to  the  1st  of  February— 

*  To  search  houses,  and  destroy,  or  take  for  the  lord  of  the 
manor,  such  engines,  &c.,  the  warrant  of  a  justice  of  peace  must 
be  first  obtained:  this  being  done,  gamekeepers,  or  any  other 
persons,  may,  in  the  daytime,  make  such  search. —(Vide  22  and 
23  Car.  II.  cap.  xxv.  s.  ii.) 


GAME    LAWS.  403 

Partridges,  from  the  1  st  of  September  to  the  1  st  of  February.-— 
Penalty,  for  killing  them  at  other  times,  51. 

Grouse,  from  the  1 2th  of  August  to  the  1  Oth  of  December — 
Black  game  (in  Devonshire,  Somersetshire,  and  the  New  Forest), 
from  the  1st  of  September  to  the  10th  of  December — Black  game 
(everywhere  else)  .from  the  2Qtk  of  August  to  the  10th  of  De- 
cember— Bustard,  from  the  1st  of  September  to  the  1st  of  March. 
— Penalty,  for  killing  at  other  times,  20/.,  or  not  less  than  1 0/., 
for  the  first  offence ;  and,  for  every  subsequent  offence,  30/.,  or 
not  less  than  20/. 

Any  person  taking  or  killing  game,  on  Sundays,  or  Christmas 
days,  to  forfeit,  for  the  jirst  offence,  not  more  than  20/.,  nor  less 
than  10/. ;  for  the  second  offence,  from  30/.  to  20/.;  and,  for  the 
third  and  every  subsequent  offence,  50/. 

An  unqualified  person,  killing,  can  only  be  convicted  of  one 
penalty  in  a  day: — That  is,  an  unqualified  person,  or  even  a 
poacher,  would  have  no  more  to  pay  for  killing  Jifty  head  of  game, 
in  the  same  day,  than  he  would  for  killing  one.  Though  the 
poacher,  or  the  unqualified  person,  would  be  liable  to  the  other 
penalties,  viz. — 5/.  each  for  every  head  of  game  which  he  sold*, 
offered  for  sale,  or  which  had  even  been  found  in  his  possession : 
and,  if  a  dog  or  gun  (or  other  engine)  was  used  in  the  destruction 
of  game,  he  would  also  be  liable  to  20/.  penalty,  provided  he  had 
not  taken  out  a  sporting  certificate  t. 

*  Even  a  qualified  person  would  be  liable  to  the  penalty  of  5/. 
for  each  head  of  game  that  he  sold,  or  offered  for  sale. 

f  The  following  abstract  from  a  report  of  the  assizes  at  Salis- 
bury affords  a  useful  precedent  for  detecting  poachers,  and  also 
gives  us  an  admirable  observation  on  the  subject,  by  that  most 
able  and  excellent  judge,  Sir  Allan  Park. 

An  action  was  brought  against  a  man,  named  Pithouse,  for 
having  in  his  possession  a  snare  for  the  destruction  of  game ;  and 
also  for  having  in  his  possession  a  pheasant  (which  is  deemed  by 
law  an  exposing  thereof  to  sale)  :  he  was  fined  51  for  each  offence. 

D  D  2 


404  GAME    LAWS. 

If  a  person  go  in  pursuit  of  game  with  a  dog  and  gun,  he  can 
only  be  charged  with  one  offence,  and  convicted  in  one  penalty 
for  both.— (7  Term  Reports,  152.) 

Killing,  from  seven  o'clock  at  night  to  six  in  the  morning,  be- 
tween the  1 2th  of  October  and  the  12th  of  February;  and  from 
nine  at  night  to  four  in  the  morning,  from  the  1 2th  of  February 
to  the  1 2th  of  October  (besides  the  other  penalties  before  named)  ; 
Jirst  offence,  not  more  than  20/.  nor  less  than  10/. ;  second  offence,, 
from  30/.  to  201. ;  third,  and  subsequent,  50/. 

Servant  of  the  lord  of  a  manor  may  kill,  and  yet  the  lord  of  the 
manor  may  not,  unless  he  is  qualified  !  !  ! 

EGGS  OF  GAME. 

[Taking,  or  wilfully  destroying,  the  eggs  of  game,  subjects  the 
offender  to  the  following  penalties  for  EACH  EGG.] 

£.    s.    d. 
Pheasant,  partridge,  swan 

[Query  if  the  following  are  not  become  obsolete  from 

non  usage  ?~} 

Any  wildfowl,  crane,  bustard  (and  one  year's  imprison- 
ment for  the  offence)  .  .  ..018 
Bittern,  heron,  shoveller     .             .             •.  .008 


Another  man  named  Bundy  was  fined  51.  for  having  a  snare  in 
his  possession.  A  man  named  Lovelock  was  also  fined  5/.  for 
keeping  and  using  a  gun,  and  for  exposing  to  sale  a  hare.  In  all 
these  cases  of  poaching,  the  judge  expressed  great  disapprobation 
of  any  person  suffering  similar  offenders  to  elude  the  penalties  of 
the  law ;  and  he  commented  strongly  on  the  dreadful  consequences 
resulting  to  the  community  from  the  too  great  prevalence  of  this 
crime.  His  lordship  assured  the  jury,  that  he  should  always 
punish  the  crime  wherever  he  could  do  so,  because  he  was  con- 
vinced it  led  to  enormities  of  the  darkest  hue,  and  frequently  to 
an  ignominious  death  at  the  gallows. 


GAME    LAWS.  405 

GAME  FOUND  IN  POSSESSION   OF  UNQUALIFIED 
PERSONS 

[See  "  Game"  as  to  Poachers'] 

Is  liable  to  be  seized,  and  the  offender  to  pay  5/.  for  every 
head :  one  half  to  the  poor,  the  other  to  the  informer,  who  is 
entitled  to  it,  even  though  he  should  have  been  an  accomplice, 
and  will,  by  turning  evidence,  escape  all  penalties. 

Unqualified  persons  may  have  game  in  their  possession,  pro- 
vided it  be  given  to -them,  or  intrusted  to  their  care,  by  one  who 
is  duly  qualified. 

A  qualified  person  cannot  offer  game  for  sale,  under  the  penalty 
of  51. 

OFFICERS  AND  SOLDIERS  KILLING  GAME. 

\_By  Mutiny  Act — "  IN  OR  NEAR"  where  they  are  quartered. — 
N.  B.  This  Article  of  War  extends,  also,  to  fish  and  poultry.] 

KILLING  or  taking  game,  without  leave  from  the  lord  of  the 
manor,  under  his  hand  and  seal,  subject  to  penalties  as  follow: — 

Officer  5/.,'  officer  within  whose  command  the  offence  is  com- 
mitted by  a  soldier,  \l. — To  the  poor  of  the  place;  and  (being 
convicted  by  justice  of  peace,  and  the  penalty  demanded  by  the 
constable  or  overseer)  the  officer  must  pay  it  within  two  days,  or 
forfeit  his  commission. 

By  this  act,  an  officer,  although  invited  by  his  friends  to  shoot 
on  their  laud,  may  be  sued  for  the  above  penalty  by  the  lord  of  a 
manor,  who  has,  perhaps,  no  right  to  sport  there  himself !!  ! 

I  conceive,  that,  if  any  thing  else  than  the  lord's 
permission  would  save  him,  it  would  be  a  written 
leave  of  absence  for  the  day,  from  his  commanding 
officer,  which  would  exonerate  him,  for  the  time, 
from  being  subject  to  restrictions  relative  to  "  in  or 
his  "  quarters.'" 


406  GAME  LAWS. 


TAME  PIGEONS,  OR  HOUSE  DOVES. 

UNLESS  they  are  your  own  property,  or  you  are  desired  by  the 
lawful  owner  to  kill  them,  the  penalty  for  shooting  them  is  20s. 
for  each  pigeon. — (Under  statute  of  1  Jac.  I.) 

For  shooting  at  pigeons,  with  intent  to  kill,  the  penalty  would 
(by  2  Geo.  II.)  be  the  same  as  for  killing  one  pigeon,  viz.  20*. 
InTormations  for  these  offences  must  be  commenced  within  two 
months. 

"  But"  (says  a  treatise  on  the  game  laws),  "  not- 
withstanding the  provisions  of  the  above  acts,  it  has 
been  determined,  that  the  owner  of  land  may  kill 
such  pigeons  as  he  shall  find  thereon  devastating  his 
corn."  But,  after  having  killed  the  pigeons,  he  must 
not  take  them  away. 

DOGS. 

^Annual  duties  on,  from  the  5th  of  April,  1826,  to  the  5th  of 
April,  1827.] 

ALL  sporting  dogs  *  (including  lurchers  and  terriers,  or  other 
dogs,  where  two  or  more  are  kepi),  14*. 
For  other  dogs,  where  only  one  is  kept,  8*. 

The  duties  on  dogs  are  not  increased,  in  proportion 
to  the  number  kept. 

DOGS  EXEMPTED  FROM  DUTY. 

WHELPS,  which  are  not  six  months  old,  at  the  time  of  return- 
ing your  list  for  taxes. 

*  Except  greyhounds,  for  which  the  duty  is  M.  for  each  dog ; 
and  a  pack  of  hounds  compounded  for,  the  duty  on  which  is  36/. 


GAME    LAWS.  407 

Dogs  belonging  to  any  of  the  royal  family,  who  are  exempt  from 
all  duties  on  sporting. 

Poor  persons,  who  are  not  assessed  for  dwelling-houses,  may 
keep  one  dog,  provided  it  be  not  a  sporting  dog. 

TRESPASS. 

A  QUALIFIED  person  shall  pay  no  more  costs  than  damages, 
unless  the  latter  exceed  40*.,  or  the  judge  certify,  on  the  back  of 
the  record,  that  the  trespass  was  wilful  and  malicious  *. 

Unqualified  persons  f  are  liable  to  pay  full  costs,  with  the 
smallest  damages,  although  their  trespass  may  not  be  wilful. 

An  unqualified  person  may  accompany  one  sporting,  who  is 
duly  qualified,  provided  he  has  neither  gun  nor  dogs  of  his  own, 
or  does  not  aid  and  assist  in  killing  game.  A  servant,  however, 
may  beat  bushes,  £c.  for  his  master. 

EXEMPTIONS  FROM  TRESPASS  BEFORE  AND 
AFTER  NOTICE. 

A  FKRSON,  even  after  notice,  may  go  on  the  land  of  another, 
to  serve  a  subpoena,  legal  writ,  or,  in  short,  for  any  lawful 
purpose. 

It  was  formerly  supposed,  that  any  one  might  go 
over  the  land  of  another  (not  doing  any  real  damage) 

*  It  is  a  very  general  mistake  to  suppose  that  a  judge  never 
could  "  certify,"  unless  the  person  had  been  first  warned  off,  and 
that  it  is  impossible  to  recover  costs  from  a  'qualified  man,  unless 
he  had  been  previously  served  with  a  notice.  This,  however,  is 
not  the  case ;  for,  if  it  could  be  proved  that  the  defendant  had 
trespassed  wilfully,  the  judge  might,  if  he  chose,  certify  for  full 
costs,  though  the  defendant  had  never  been  regularly  warned  off, 
and  the  damage  should  even  be  under  40s. 

f  Query,  if  this  does  not  extend  only  to  inferior  tradesmen,  &c.? 


408  GAME  LAWS. 

while  hunting  a  wild  fox,  as  a  "  noxious  animal ;" 
but,  upon  late  trials,  it  has  appeared,  that  following 
foxhounds  will  in  no  way  justify  a  trespass. 

The  defendant  therefore  stands  about  the  same 
chance  of  escaping  the  verdict  by  following  fox- 
hounds, as  the  plaintiff  (in  a  case  not  aggravated) 
would  have  of  being  pitied  by  sportsmen,  if  ducked 
in  a  horse-pond  for  bringing  such  an  action  of 
trespass ! 

NOTICES 

MAY  be  personally  served,  or  left  at  the  place  of  abode  of  the 
party. 

Verbal  notices  are  quite  sufficient,  if  accurately  proved. 

All  notices  to  come  from  the  tenant,  and  not  from  the  landlord, 
who  cannot  support  an  action  of  trespass  upon  the  land,  of  which 
he  is  not  the  occupier. 

Gamekeepers,  or  other  persons,  may  be  deputed  to  serve 
either  verbal  or  written  notices,  by  lords  of  manors,  occupiers 
of  land,  &c. 

SPECIFIC  INSTRUCTIONS  HOW  TO  WARN  OFF 
A  TRESPASSER. 

FORM    OF    A    PROPER    NOTICE    TO    BE    SENT    TO,   OR    SERVED    ON, 
ANY    PERSON    IN    PARTICULAR. 

To  (name  the  person  s  Christian 
and  surnames)  of  (name  his 
residence.) 

I  HEREBY  give  you  notice,  not  to  enter  or  come 
into  or  upon  any  of  the  lands,  woods,  underwoods,  shaws,  or 
coverts  [or  into  or  upon  any  of  the  rivers,  ponds,  pools,  waters, 
or  watercourses]  in  my  occupation,  in  the  parish  of  (name  the 


GAME    LAWS.  409 

parish;  or,  if  the  lands  lie  in  more  than  one,  the  several  parishes ), 
in  the  county  of  (name  the  county  or  counties),  as,  in  case  of 
your  doing  so,  I  shall  proceed  against  you  as  a  wilful  trespasser. 
— Witness  my  hand  this  (name  day  of  the  month)  day  of  (name 
month)  1826. 

(Sign  your  name.) 

The  sentence,  within  the  crotchet,  relative  to 
"  waters,"  may,  of  course,  be  adopted  or  not,  as  re- 
quired. 

In  a  case  of  joint  occupation,  the  notice  must,  of 
course,  be  given  in  the  first  person  plural,  with  both 
signatures. 

This  written  or  printed  notice  may  be  served  by 
any  person  not  interested  (I  mean  directly  concerned 
as  a  partner)  in  the  occupation,  and  it  had  better  be 
served  by  delivery  of  a  duplicate  than  of  a  mere 
copy  ;  taking  care,  that  the  person  serving  it  be  able 
to  prove  the  signatures  to  each  duplicate,  and  the 
identity  of  the  person  served. 

In  case  of  warning  off  a  trespasser,  a  second  per- 
son, for  a  witness,  is  sometimes  desirable,  though  not 
absolutely  necessary,  unless  it  may  become  so  by 
death.  This,  or  any  other  notice,  in  a  newspaper, 
is  of  no  avail  unless  it  can  be  proved,  that  the  de- 
fendant had  read  it. 

Suppose,  then,  a  trespasser  comes  on  the  land, 
when  the  occupier  cannot  be  found  to  sign  a  notice, 
what  is  to  be  done  ? 

The  occupier,  to  be  guarded  against  this,  should 
previously  and  bonafide  have  given  directions  to  any 


410  GAME  LAWS. 

person,  who  is  actually  his  servant,  to  forbid  all  tres- 
passers; by  which  that  person,  in  his  absence,  may 
say:— 

"  Sir ;  by  order  of  my  master,  Mr.  ,  who  is  the 

occupier  of  this  land,  I  am  directed  to  forbid  all  persons  from 
trespassing  on  it ;  and  I  accordingly  forbid  you  from  trespassing 
on  it." 

To  prevent  the  possibility  of  mistake,  let  every 
servant  be  taught  to  say  the  above  as  regularly  as  a 
catholic  would  repeat  his  breviary ;  and  not,  as  many 
thickheaded  clodpolls  do,  by  saying,  "  Zur,  Pve  a 
got  measter's  arders  tofarbed  ivery  body"  by  which 
nothing  personal  is  implied. 

In  case  of  a  verbal  notice,  a  witness,  in  addition  to 
the  one  serving  it,  would  be  desirable,  particularly  if 
this  witness  also  was  quite  perfect  in  the  preamble. 
By  this  means  he  may,  on  being  cross-questioned, 
candidly  own,  that  he  had  learnt  it  by  heart ;  and,  if 
not  terrified,  or  browbeaten  into  a  blunder  in  the  re- 
petition of  it,  by  the  modesty  or  ingenuity  of  a  cross 
examination,  he  would  very  soon  prove  the  legality 
of  the  verbal  notice  he  had  given. 

With  legs  pains  taken  to  warn  persons  off  than 
what  is  prescribed  in  the  foregoing  notices,  there  is 
little  doubt  but  there  would  be  ground  for  an  action 
of  wilful  trespass.  From  my  very  humble  know- 
ledge in  such  matters,  however,  I  have  thought  it 
best  to  dictate  with  extreme,  and  therefore,  possibly, 
with  unnecessary  caution. 


GAME    LAWS.  411 

FORM  OF  A  GENERAL  NOTICE, 

WHICH,  after  all,  may  be  the  best  to  answer  every 
purpose. 

The  following  printed  notice,  signed  by  yourself 
and  all  your  tenants,  will  save  much  trouble,  and  be 
found  extremely  useful ;  as  it  may  be  read,  or  even 
shown  by  any  common  labourer.  By  this  means, 
therefore,  your  carters,  your  shepherds,  or  the  most 
humble  person  in  or  out  of  your  service,  may  at  all 
times  be  empowered  to  warn  off  immediately  any 
stranger,  whom  they  might  find  trespassing  on  your 
estate. 

Let  the  person  (while  merely  showing  the  notice) 
say: — 

Sir  j  here  is  my  authority,  and  I  accordingly  forbid  you  from 
trespassing  on  this  estate. 

FORM    OF    THE    NOTICE. 

We,  the  undersigned,  do  hereby  authorise 

,  the  bearer  of  this  notice,  to  warn  off  all  persons 
whom  he  may  find  shooting,  or  otherwise  trespassing,  on  any 
of  the  lands  [or  waters]  in  our  respective  occupations,  situate 
in  the  parish  [or  parishes]  of  ? 

in  the  county  [or  counties]  of  :  and  we 

do  declare,  that  we  will  prosecute,  as  a  wilful  trespasser,  any 
person  whomsoever  continuing  or  coming  upon  our  lands  after 
having  been  enjoined  to  quit  by  the  said 

,  pursuant  to  this  our  notice. 
Signed  by  us,  this  day  of  ,  1826. 

Here  follow  the  signatures  of  the  landholder  and  all  his 
tenants. 


412  GAME    LAWS. 

The  foregoing  directions,  with  respect  to  notices, 
are,  I  trust,  all  that  can  be  required  either  for  land- 
lords, tenants,  keepers,  or  their  printers. 

DOGS,  TRESPASS  OF. 

AN  unqualified  person  cannot  use  dogs  for  sporting,  although 
they  may  be  bonajide  the  property  of  one  who  is  qualified. 

If  an  unqualified  person  keeps  a  sporting  dog,  he 
is  liable  to  the  penalty  of  5l.  and  also  to  have  his 
dog  seized,  as  becoming  the  property  of  the  lord  of 
the  manor.  But  it  would,  perhaps,  be  prudent  for 
the  lord,  or  his  keeper,  first  to  seize  the  dog,  before 
he  ventured  to  shoot  or  destroy  him. 

It  is  a  common  trick  among  low  farmers  and 
poachers,  who  keep  a  wirehaired  greyhound,  or  a 
lurcher,  to  cut  his  tail,  and  pass  kirn  off  for  a  sheep- 
dog.  The  most  effectual  way  to  prosecute  an  of- 
fender of  this  description  is,  first,  to  lodge  an  in- 
formation against  him  for  keeping  such  a  dog ;  and, 
after  that  is  paid,  for  the  lord  of  the  manor,  or  his 
keeper,  to  lay  hands  on  the  dog,  after  which  he 
becomes  the  property  of  the  lord,  and  may  then,  by 
him  or  his  keeper,  be  safely  taken,  shot,  or  otherwise 
destroyed,  in  any  place  within  the  limits  of  that 
lord's  manor.  Justices  of  the  peace,  as  well  as  lords 
of  manors,  are  empowered  (by  the  5th  of  Anne)  to 
take  away  game,  dogs,  nets,  or  other  engines,  from 
persons  not  qualified.  Having  taken  them,  they 
may,  of  course,  destroy  them. 

In  case,  however,  that  doubts  should  exist  as  to 


GAME  LAWS.  413 

the  dog  being  of  the  description  specified  in  the  act 
("  greyhound,  setting  dog,  or  lurcher,")  it  has  been 
suggested,  that  it  would  be  advisable,  in  lodging  the 
information,  to  use  the  word  setting  dog  as  a  kind  of 
general  term.  This  point  I  must  leave  to  the  more 
experienced  to  judge ;  but,  was  an  unqualified  person 
actually  seen  using  any  dog  in  the  destruction  of 
game,  I  should  then,  if  he  had  no  certificate,  put 
him  in  the  hands  of  the  tax-gatherers;  where  he 
would  find  himself  in  a  sort  of  hornets'  nest,  from 
which  there  would  be  very  little  hope  of  escape. 

By  the  f>2  Geo.  III.  cap.  xciii.  s.  viii.  (the  act  relating  to  cer- 
tificates)  "  hound,  pointer,  spaniel,  or  other  dog"  is  added. 

For  farther  information  on  this,  vide  under  "  Time 
within  which  Actions  must  be  brought." 

One  who  is  warned  off  a  ground,  and  sends  his  dog  thereon, 
is  as  much  liable  to  an  action  of  trespass,  as  if  he  went  there 
himself. 

WASTE  LAND, 

SPORTING  on,  the  exclusive  right  of  the  lord  of  a  manor. 

It  has  been  given  as  an  opinion,  that,  although  a 
qualified  person  may,  by  common  rights,  have  the 
liberty  of  going,  sending  or  keeping  his  cattle,  on  the 
waste  land,  yet  he  has  no  right  to  sport  there,  with- 
out leave  from  the  lord  of  the  manor. 

RABBITS,  WOODCOCKS,  SNIPES,  &c. 

(How  far  they  are  made  game.) 

RABBITS,  woodcocks,  snipes,  quails,  and  landrails,  are  made 
game  only  us  far  as  relates  to  shooting  them  ;  for  which,  therefore, 


414  GAME  LAWS. 

a  certificate  is  required  ;  but  one,  without  a  certificate,  may  catch, 
sell,  or  have  them  in  his  possession. 

Two  of  the  profession  were  here  consulted,  as  to 
the  necessity  of  a  qualification,  and  they  were  loth 
of  opinion,  that,  although  a  certificate  was  (by  the 
late  act)  required,  yet  rabbits,  woodcocks,  8yc.,  may 
he  shot,  by  one  unqualified. 

Rabbits,  however,  may  be  shot  by  any  one  without 
a  certificate,  provided  he  kills  them  in  warrens,  or 
inclosed  grounds,  of  which  he  is  himself  the  occupier, 
or  in  which  he  is  commanded,  or  permitted  so  to 
destroy  them,  by  whoever  is  the  occupier. 

FREE  WARRENS  AND  DECOYS. 

THE  game,  in  a,  free  warren,  is  considered  as  private  property, 
as  are  also  the  wildfowl,  &c.,  within  a  decoy  :  and,  consequently, 
even  a  qualified  man,  sporting  on  either,  would  be  subject  to  an 
action  accordingly  (with  costs),  and  without  receiving  any  pre- 
vious notice. 

The  exercise  of  a  free  warren,  however,  is,  in  most  cases,  now 
difficult  to  be  proved. 

WILDFOWL. 

\_Any  one  may  shoot  them  on  the  coast,  from  a  public  path, 


A  PERSON,  with  neither  qualification  nor  licence,  has  a  right 
to  carry  a  gun,  provided  he  does  not  use  it  for  the  destruction  of 
game. 

The  shooting  of  wildfowl,  therefore  (according  to 
the  best  professional  opinions  I  have  collected),  is, 
notwithstanding  the  act  of  Anne  (cap.  xxv),  such  a 
use  as  cannot  be  deemed  an  illegal  one. 


GAME    LAWS.  415 

It  is  said,  that  a  lord  of  a  manor,  or  his  keeper, 
cannot  seize  the  gun  of  any  person  whatever,  unless 
it  has  been  used,  by  the  person  carrying  it,  in  de- 
stroying, or  with  an  intent  to  destroy  game.  (Sed 
quere  ?) 

TIME  WITHIN  WHICH  INFORMATIONS  AND 
ACTIONS  MUST  BE  BROUGHT. 

Informations  for  penalties,  relative  to  the  game  laws,  should 
be  brought  so  as  for  the  conviction  to  take  place  within  three 
months. 

A  penalty  may  be  either  recovered  by  information  before  a 
justice  of  peace,  or  sued  for  in  any  of  the  courts  of  record  at 
Westminster.  In  the  latter  case,  the  action  must  be  brought 
within  six  lunar  months  after  the  offence  committed. 

By  this  way  of  proceeding,  the  informer,  as  plain- 
tiff, will,  if  he  recover  in  the  action,  be  entitled  to 
the -whole  of  the  penalty  for  his  own  use  (instead  of 
one  half  going  to  the  poor,  as  in  cases  of  information), 
and  the  defendant  will,  of  course,  have  to  pay  double 
costs. — (Vide  2  Geo.  III.  cap.  xxix.) 

By  the  48th  Geo.  III.  cap.  Iv.  the  penalties  against  such  as 
have  not  obtained  their  certificates  shall  be  sued  for  in  like  form 
as  any  penalty  may  be  sued  for  and  recovered  by  the  acts  relating 
to  the  duties  under  the  management  of  the  commissioners  for 
faxes,  or  any  of  the  said  acts  (see  43  Geo.  III.  cap.  xcix.  s.  Ixiv.) ; 
by  which  the  penalties  are  recoverable  before  any  two  or  more 
commissioners  for  the  affairs  of  taxes,  who  shall  give  judgment 
for  the  penalty,  or  for  such  part  thereof  as  the  commissioners 
shall  think  proper  tg  mitigate,  not  being  less  than  one  moiety. 

The  time  prescribed  for  bringing  an  Action  of  trespass,  affect- 
ing land  (which  is  called  an  action  qitare  clausvmfregit),  for  the 


416  GAME    LAWS. 

recovery  of  damages,  is  six  years :  but,  if  affecting  the  person 
(that  is  to  say,  in  a  case  of  assault),  only  four  years. 

If  a  penal  act  should  limit  no  time  for  laying  an  information  to 
recover  a  penalty,  the  common  law  allows  the  crown  two  years 
and  the  subject  one  year  for  this  purpose. 

With  regard  to  cases  where  the  possibility  of 
bringing  an  action,  within  the  limited  time,  might 
be  precluded  by  the  absence  of  either  party,  I  have 
thought  it  advisable  to  put  the  following  questions 
to  one  eminent  in  the  profession,  for  the  purpose  of 
here  giving  brief  directions  as  to  what  should  be 
done. 

Question.  Supposing  A  should  trespass  on  the  lands  of  B, 
while  B  is  beyond  the  sea,  can  B  sue  for  the  trespass  after  his 
return  ? 

Answer.  He  can,  provided  he  commences  his  action  against  A 
within  the  time  limited  (by  the  21  Jac.  /.,  cap.  16)  after  his  re- 
turn, which  is  six  years,  and  which  would  run  from  the  time  of 
his  return. 

Question.  On  the  other  hand,  supposing  A,  after  having  com- 
mitted a  trespass  on  the  lands  of  B,  should,  before  the  expiration 
of  the  period  limited  for  commencing  an  action,  go  beyond  the 
sea,  can  B  commence  such  action  against  A  after  his  return  ? 

Answer.  Yes,  he  may  (by  the  4  and  5  Anne,  cap.  16),  pro- 
vided he  commences  his  action  within  the  period  limited.  (By  the 
21  Jac.) 

Question.  Again,  supposing  A  and  B  both  be  in  the  kingdom, 
and  A,  after  having  committed  a  trespass  on  the  lands  of  B,  to 
withdraw  himself  to  a  distant  part  of  it,  and  there  secrete  liim- 
self,  till  the  period,  within  which  an  action  may  be  commenced, 
js  expired,  can  B  afterwards  sue  him  for  the  trespass  ? 

Answer.  No,  he  cannot,  as  his  right  of  action  will  be  barred  by 
the  statute,  unless  he  sue  out  a  writ  within  the  limited  period, 
and,  if  A's  residence  be  unknown,  and  he  cannot  be  met  with,  to 


GAME    LAWS.  417 

be  served  with  it,  the  action  be  kept  on  foot,  by  proper  con- 
tinuances, regularly  filed,  till  A  can  Le  met  with  ;  and  then  B,  if 
he  can  get  him  served,  may  proceed  with  his  action  after  the 
expiration  of  such  period,  the  same  as  if  A  had  been  served 
within  it. 

LORDS  OF  MANORS. 

SINCE  the  several  inclosure  acts,  doubts  have  been 
entertained,  whether  lords  of  manors  have  a  right  to 
sport  over  the  freehold  of  any  other  person,  within 
the  manor,  after  notice ;  or  whether  a  deputation  to 
a  gamekeeper  will  justify  his  going  on  any  grounds, 
except  the  lord's  own  soil? — CLEARLY  NOT. 

A  lord  of  a  manor,  or  his  ga?nekeeper  (unless  in  a  free  warren^ 
or  by  an  especial  right  reserved^  in  letting  or  selling  property), 
cannot  sport  on  the  land  of  another,  without  being  liable  to  the 
same  action  as  any  other  trespasser;  neither  can  he  prevent 
those,  who  are  qualified,  from  sporting  (on  the  grounds  not  his 
own)  within  the  manor.  [Exciting  officers  /] 

ACTS 
PASSED  SINCE  THE  SECOND  EDITION. 

PERSONS   FOUND  AT  NIGHT  ARMED  WITH  INTENT  TO   KILL  GAME. 

(By  St.  57  Geo.  III.  cap.  xc.),  persons  found  at  night  (viz. 
between  six  in  the  evening,  and  seven  in  the  morning,  from  the 
first  of  October  to  the  first  of  February ;  between  seven  in  the 
evening,  and  five  in  the  morning,  from  the  first  of  February  to 
the  first  of  April  j  and  between  nine  in  the  evening,  and  four  in 
the  morning,  for  the  remainder  of  the  year)  armed  with  intent 
to  kill  game,  shall  be  adjudged  guilty  of  a  misdemeanor,  and  be 
transported  for  seven  years. 

E  E 


418  GAME    LAWS. 

PENALTY  FOR  BUYING  GAME. 

(By  St.  58  Geo.  III.  c.  Ixxv.)  after  stating  that  exposing  game 
to  sale  was  by  law  prohibited  j  it  is  enacted,  that  the  buying  of 
game  should  be  subject  to  a  penalty  of  5/. 

For  more  comprehensive  information  on  the  game 
laws,  and  particular  modes  of  proceeding,  I  refer  the 
reader  to  the  late  edition  of  Burn's  Justice,  and  an 
excellent  treatise,  entitled  the  "  Game  Laws  and 
Fisheries,"  by  Mr.  Chitty,  of  the  Middle  Temple, 
London. 

The  preceding  abstracts,  however,  may  serve  as 
easy  memoranda  of  those  game  laws,  in  which  most 
persons  are  as  yet  liable  to  be  concerned,  and  many 
of  which  are  necessary  to  protect  the  rights  and 
liberties  of  the  people. 

SUGGESTIONS  FOR  NEW  GAME  LAWS. 

* 

BY  making  observations  on  the  inconsistence  of 
the  present  game  laws,  I  have  involved  myself  in  the 
unthankful  office  of  having  to  point  out  where,  in  my 
humble  opinion,  the  evil  exists ;  and,  therefore,  at 
the  same  time,  of  having  to  prescribe  a  few  brief 
suggestions  for  its  remedy.  Of  all  subjects  that  ever 
came  to  a  revision  of  the  legislature,  this,  although 
comparatively  insignificant,  is  perhaps  one  of  the 
most  difficult,  by  reason  that  to  please  all  parties 
here,  I  firmly  believe,  would  be  an  utter  impossibility. 

One  simple  question,  however,  may  be  asked  by 
every  one : — Let  any  member,  supposing  that  he  is 


GAME    LAWS.  419 

an  advocate  for  the  present  e^ame  laws,  advert  no 
further  than  to  the  act  relating  to  qualifications,  and 
to  the  mutiny  act,  and  see  whether  they  are  not  in- 
consistent;  or,  in  other  words,  contrary  to  justice, 
and  to  common  sense  ? — Can  that  member,  therefore, 
say,  that  he  would  be  strictly  doing  his  duty,  if,  when 
called  on  for  his  vote,  he  tacitly  admits,  that  those 
acts  which  are  inconsistent,  or  contrary  to  common 
sense,  should  remain  among  our  code  of  laws  ?    But, 
as  to  the  general  principles  of  the  game  laws,  we 
should,  instead  of  putting  ourselves  out  of  temper, 
make  every  allowance  for  the  errors  of  those  who  may 
be  inclined  to  vote  in  their  favour.     We  should  re- 
collect, that  many  of  the  cleverest  men  in  existence, 
when  you  come  to  the  subject  of  their  game,  cannot 
divest  themselves  of  feeling,  in  some  degree,  personally 
interested ;    and  it  need  scarcely  be  observed,  that 
although  a  man  may  have  the  highest  sense  of  honour, 
and  the  most  consummate  talent,  yet  all  men  have, 
more  or  less,  one  favourite  pursuit,  their  attachment 
for  which  evidently  points  out  where  their  weak  side 
exists ;    and  here,  therefore,  it  becomes  difficult   to 
give  them  satisfaction.     Let  what  will  be  proposed, 
depend  on  it  there  will  be  a  host  of  public  speakers 
and  public  writers  to  disapprove  of  it ;  and  as  every 
suggestion  on  such  a  tender  subject  is  not  only  open 
to  criticism,  but  to  public  ridicule,  I  am  justified  in 
repeating,  that  whoever  speaks  or  writes  on  this  sub- 
ject undertakes  a  most  unthankful  office. 

I  shall,  therefore,  withhold  going  far  into  detail, 

E  E  2 


420  GAME    LAWS. 

and  conclude  with  a  few  hints,  that  are  entirely 
founded  on  experience  ;  and  pretty  good  information 
as  to  the  secrets  among  poachers  of  every  description. 
Not  presuming,  however,  that  I  am  capable  of  dic- 
tating even  to  the  lowest  member  in  the  legislature ; 
but  merely  with  a  view  of  pointing  out  a  few  of  those 
evils,  which  may  have  escaped  notice  among  persons 
of  far  greater  abilities  than  my  own. 

We  are  all  highly  indebted  to  Mr.  Wortley  for  his 
exertions  towards  improving  the  game  laws.  For,  as 
Mr.  Peel  justly  observed  (if  I  may  quote  from  news- 
papers), "  the  bill  went  to  provide  remedies  for  two 
great  evils,  which  sprung  out  of  the  present  laws. 
First,  it  empowered  the  sale  of  game  i  and,  second, 
it  made  a  great  and  necessary  change  in  the  quali- 
fication" But  with  regard  to  making  game  private 
property — much  as  the  measure  would  be  to  my  own 
private  interest,  yet  I  cannot  conscientiously  say  that 
I  think  it  would  give  public  satisfaction.  The  most 
correct  man  would  for  ever  be  liable  to  get  into 
difficulty,  by  which  means  there  would  be  more, 
instead  of  fewer,  disputes  between  sportsmen  and 
occupiers  of  land.  To  conclude  then ;  I  shall  here 
repeat,  with  a  few  trifling  additions,  what  I  before 
suggested  through  the  medium  of  the  "  Star"  even- 
ing paper ;  and,  at  the  same  time,  apologise  for  pre- 
suming to  give  a  public  opinion,  which,  in  many 
respects,  may  differ  from  that  of  men  with  whom  it 
would  be  the  height  of  folly  for  me  to  suppose  that  I 
could  cope  in  either  talent  or  argument. 


GAME    LAWS. 

"  SIR,  April  12,  1824. 

"  I  beg  leave  to  suggest,  through  the  me- 
dium of  your  paper  (and  I  have  also  taken  the  liberty 
to  send  to  members  of  both  Houses  of  Parliament), 
the  mere  outline  of  what,  in  my  humble  opinion, 
would  be  the  best  improvement  that  could  be  made 
on  the  game  laws. 

"  Yours,  &c.  &c." 
"  To  the  Editor." 

Do  away  with  qualifications  (or  at  all  events  arrange  them  so 
as  to  be  strictly  just  and  consistent). 

Any  further  observations  on  this  law,  as  yet  exist- 
ing, for  qualifications,  would  be  an  insult  to  the  un- 
derstanding of  my  readers. 

A  five  guinea  licence  for  every  one  who  shoots  game  (except  a 
keeper,  who  should  pay  two  guineas). 

An  extra  guinea  and  a  half,  once  in  a  year,  could 
be  no  great  object  to  a  man  who  can  afford  to  buy  a 
gun,  and  can  also  afford  to  give  up  a  considerable 
portion  of  his  time,  and  to  keep  dogs,  and  supply 
himself  with  ammunition.  At  all  events,  if  this  duty 
should  reduce  the  number  of  shooters — sb  much  the 
better  for  the  birds ;  if  not — so  much  the  better  for 
the  revenue. 

A  two  guinea  licence  (similar  to  a  French  port  d'armes)  for 
every  one  who  carries  a  gun,  in  any  place  whatever  (off  his  own 
premises),  but  with  this  licence  only  a  gamekeeper  can  kill  game. 

(Let  a  man  who  shoots  without  a  licence  be  surcharged  by  the 
collectors  of  taxes,  as  they  are  the  most  vigilant  informers.) 


GAME    LAWS. 

There  could  then  be  no  complaints  about  the 
"  liberty  of  the  subject,"  more  than  his  paying  for 
any  other  diversion.  If  he  can  afford  to  carry  a  gun 
for  his  amusement,  let  him  assist  the  revenue  by 
paying  for  it. 

This  duty  would  only  operate  on  the  mere  idlers 
of  the  country,  who,  in  winter,  neglect  their  work  to 
go  about  with  a  gun  to  the  ruin  of  themselves,  and 
risk  of  their  own,  as  well  as  other  people's,  lives. 
Lest  it  should  be  argued,  however,  that  this  might 
throw  on  the  parish-books  those  fishermen  on  the 
coast,  who  could,  otherwise,  support  their  families  by 
shooting,  I  must  beg  to  inform  you,  that  these  are 
the  very  men  who  are  most  anxious  that  a  duty 
should  be  laid  on  guns,  in  order  to  prevent  their  being 
constantly  annoyed  by  the  idle.  I  am  credibly  in- 
formed, that,  a  short  time  ago,  a  petition  to  this 
effect  would  have  been  presented  to  the  House  of 
Commons  by  (I  think)  a  Mr.  B ,  from  the  fisher- 
men on  the  coast  of  Essex,  had  they  not  disobliged 
this  gentleman  by  poaching,  or  some  other  improper 
conduct 

Let  farmers'  bird-keepers  be  confined  to  the  use  of  a  pistol,  or 
fire-arms  not  exceeding  a  foot  in  length,  and  be  liable  to  a  sur- 
charge if  they  shoot  at  game  or  water-fowl. 

Many  a  "bird-keeper!"  have  I  caught,  both  at 
dusk,  and  at  dawn,  crawling  behind  a  hedge  after  a 
covey  of  partridges  that  were  feeding  on  a  barley 
stubble.  Such  little'  exercises  in  rural  sports  fre- 
quently go  on,  either  in  the  morning,  before  sports- 


GAME    LAWS.  423 

men  are  in  the  field ;  or  in  the  afternoon,  while  the 
legislator  is  at  the  first  course  of  his  dinner ;  his 
head  keeper  at  his  tea ;  and  the  under  keepers  watch- 
ing the  coverts. 

Many  a  "  bird-keeper !"  too,  have  I  seen  leaving 
the  good  farmer's  corn  to  the  generosity  of  rooks, 
while  he  had  skulked  off  to  the  river,  to  try  the  quality 
of  his  master's  gun  and  ammunition  at  a  duck  or  a 
moor-hen. 

A  freeholder  of  five  hundred  acres  (or  a  tenant,  with  the  con- 
sent of  his  landlord)  may  depute  a  gamekeeper. 

As  the  law  now  stands,  many  a  gentleman  is  living 
on  his  estate,  which  consists  of  more  than  a  thousand 
acres,  and  yet  has  no  means  of  obtaining  game  from 
that  very  estate  on  which  the  game  is  bred,  unless  he 
is  a  sportsman  himself,  or  invites  others  to  come  and 
shoot  for  him. 

Thus  the  man  of  ONE  thousand  acres,  if  he  is  not 
the  lord  of  a  manor,  is  to  be  left  dependent  for  ONE 
BRACE  of  birds  ;  while  the  lord  paramount,  with  his 
FIVE  thousand  acres,  could  perhaps  command  his 
FIVE  THOUSAND  head  of  game  in  a  season !  And, 
what  is  even  harder  again  on  the  former,  while  the 
occupier  of  not  so  much  as  one  hundred  acres  has  a 
right  to  appoint  a  keeper,  because  he  happens  to  be 
the  lord  of  a  manor !  All  this  may  be  thought  very 
clever  and  very  proper !  but,  unfortunately  for  me,  I 
am  so  blind  as  not  to  be  able  to  discover  the  pro- 
priety of  such  a  law,  though  it  requires  but  little 
penetration  to  perceive  its  monopoly  and  injustice. 


424  GAME    LAWS. 

Have  licensed  dealers  subject  only  to  the  magistrates. 

Every  person  should  have  the  power  of  legally 
obtaining  game ;  by  which  means  it  would  be  thought 
the  less  of;  and  there  could  be  no  excuse  for  dealing 
with  a  poacher,  or  other  unlawful  vend.  It  is 
very  hard,  that  not  only  a  respectable  tradesman, 
but  even  a  gentleman,  perhaps  with  high  rank  and 
immense  "funded  property,  cannot  command  a  brace 
of  birds  for  his  table  without  being  liable  to  a 
penalty.  The  unjust  severity  of  such  a  prohibition, 
therefore,  induces  many  opulent  persons  to  encou- 
rage this  illegal  traffic.  It  does  not  follow,  however, 
that  the  gentleman  is  to  turn  game-poulterer,  or  that 
game  must  be  made  private  property,  for  the  pur- 
pose in  question.  For  if  it  was,  the  farmer  might 
possibly  spoil  the  gentleman's  sport,  by  making  a 
trade  of  it ;  or,  if  thwarted  in  his  views,  might  then 
destroy  the  nests  of  half  the  birds  on  his  land.  But 
let  those,  who,  from  having  a  certificate,  and  per- 
mission to  shoot,  are  lawfully  in  possession  of  game, 
be  allowed  also  the  power  of  selling  it  to  persons 
who  are  duly  licensed  to  deal  in  that  article.  In 
short,  let  the  matter  be  so  arranged,  that  every  one 
may  have  a  lawful  means  of  procuring  game,  as  well 
as  venison,  or  any  other  luxury. 

One  hundred  pounds  penalty  for  buying  game  of  one  who  has 
neither  a  certificate  to  kill  it,  nor  a  licence  to  sell  it ;  and  let  the 
vender  have  the  power  of  turning  informer.  The  same  penalty 
of  course  for  one,  who,  with  neither  certificate  nor  dealer's  licence, 
shall  sell  game,  or  offer  game  for  sale. 


GAME    LAWS.  425 

Perhaps  many  of  those  who  prescribe  laws  are  not 
aware,  that  most  poachers  are  in  a  society,  and  have 
a  stock  purse  to  support  each  other  ;  by  which  means 
they  are  enabled  to  snap  their  fingers  at  zfive  pound 
penalty.  But  a  few  hundred  pound  penalties  would 
soon  reduce  their  fund  to  a  state  of  bankruptcy,  and 
thereby  overturn  the  whole  concern. 

The  mutiny  bill  to  be  altered,  so  that  it  must  be  the  proprietor 
or  occupier,  not  the  lord  of  the  manor,  who  gives  leave  to  officers. 

For,  as  the  articles  of  war  now  stand,  it  appears, 
that  an  officer  is  liable  to  a  penalty  of  five  pounds 
for  shooting,  without  the  lord's  leave,  on  the  ground 
of  his  own  father,  where  this  very  lord  has,  perhaps, 
no  right  to  sport  himself! 

[I  might  go  more  into  detail ;  but  to  write  any 
thing  too  long  is  the  sure  way  never  to  have  it 
read.~\ 

The  foregoing  suggestions  having  met  with  great 
attention,  I  was  induced  to  address  to  the  Editor  of 
the  "  Star"  another  communication  on  the  subject ; 
which  will  here  follow,  with  some  additions : — 

"  SIR, 

"  As  you  did  me  the  honour  to  publish 
my  last  letter  of  the  12th  ult.,  on  the  game  laws,  I 
beg  leave  to  propose  an  amendment  in  the  act  for 
the  punishment  of  trespass ;  and,  at  the  same  time, 
to  transmit  you  a  few  more  observations  on  the  sub- 
ject of  the  game  laws  in  general.  I  am,"  &c. 


426     „  .  GAME    LAWS. 

TRESPASS. 

FIVE  pounds  PENALTY  (open  to  mitigation)  for  one  who  goes, 
or  wilfully  continues,  on  the  land  of  another,  after  he  has  received 
either  a  written  notice,  or  a  verbal  notice  in  presence  of  a  witness. 
One  half  of  this  penalty  to  go  to  the  collector  of  taxes  for  govern- 
ment, and  the  other  half  to  the  poor  of  the  parish  wherein  the 
offence  is  committed. 

The  defendant,  if  dissatisfied  with  the  decision  of  the  ma- 
gistrates, may  refer  his  case  to  trial  at  the  assizes,  &c.  j  but,  if 
he  lose  his  cause,  he  must  pay  the  51.  in  addition  to  the  damages 
that  may  be  awarded  by  the  jury ;  and,  in  this  latter  case,  the  51. 
should  go  to  the  plaintiff,  in  order  to  liquidate  his  costs,  or  any 
expense  that  might  have  been  incurred  by  the  trouble  which  the 
defendant  would  have  given  him. 

No  compromise  to  be  taken  for  this,  or  any  other,  penalty, 
unless  before,  and  with  the  consent  of,  magistrates.  It  should,  of 
course,  however,  be  arranged  so  that  information  for  the  penalty 
of  TRESPASS  could  be  only  laid  by  (or  by  order  of)  the  person,  or 
persons,  on  whom  that  trespass  was  committed. 

By  this  means  we  can  at  once  take  a  warrant 
against  the  poacher,  who,  if  a  shrewd  fellow,  and 
master  of  his  business,  would  clear  off  half  the  game 
in  a  small  manor,  before  he  might  be  detected  in  the 
very  act  of  poaching.  All  seizures,  bloodshed,  and 
danger,  might  thus  be  almost  wholly  avoided.  Only 
see  him,  even  with  a  spyglass,  at  any  time  on  the 
forbidden  ground  (so  as  to  be  able  to  swear  to  his 
person),  and  have  a  warrant  for  him  as  a  wilful  tres- 
passer*. By  this  means  also,  the  poor  farmer,  who 

*  I  one  day  happened  to  be,  for  some  time,  in  conversation 
with  one  of  the  shrewdest  fellows,  and  most  finished  poachers, 
that  ever  lived ;  who,  after  defying  all  his  pursuers,  has  left  off 


GAME    LAWS.       -  427 

has  no  money  to  go  to  law,  has  some  protection 
against  infringement  on  his  rights  by  the  man  who 
tramples  on  him,  from  this  very  circumstance.  But 
having  no  share  in,  and,  therefore,  no  profit  on,  the 
penalty,  he  has  no  temptation  to  take  any  advantage 
merely  for  the  sake  of  getting  the  2/.  10s.  himself. 
Any  person  thinking  himself  aggrieved  should  have 
the  law  open  to  him ;  and  the  risk  of  an  extra  5l.  in 
such  a  case  could  be  no  object. 

For  the  second,  and  all  future  wilful  trespasses,  on  that  same 
person  to  whom  the  offender  had  before  been  made  to  pay  the  5/., 
to  be  not  less  than  5Z.  nor  more  than  50/.,  at  the  option  of  ma- 
gistrates, 

Who  should  have  a  great  extent  of  discretional 
power  to  mitigate  the  penalty ;  as  this  law,  like  all 
others,  must,  of  course,  be  open  to  the  abuse  of 


the  trade,  and  retired  to  a  lawful  business.  He  laughed  at  the 
game  laws.  I  then  named  to  him  the  new  laws,  as  lately  pro- 
posed. He  smiled,  and  said,  "  that  won't  do."  I  next  named 
what  I  before,  as  well  as  what  is  here,  suggested ;  as  if  another 
act  contemplated  by  Parliament.  He  then  put  on  a  very  serious 
face,  and  said,  "  Upon  rny  soul,  sir,  that 's  the  only  plan :  that 
would  properly  do  them.  No  one  would  trust  a  man  for  100Z.  ; 
but  5/.  is  no  object  to  either  a  buyer  or  even  a  poor  man,  if  he  has 
got  plenty  of  friends  under  his  thumb  !  A  man,  too,  must  be  a 
poor  hand  to  let  people  see  him  at  work;  but  if  a  gentleman 
could  work  him  for  a  mere  trespass,  he  could  not  go  to  his  ground 
before  feeding  time" 

It  absolutely  requires  a  very  old  sportsman,  who  has  discovered 
all  the  secrets  of  poachers,  to  strike  at  the  roots  of  this  evil,  and 
not  legislators,  who  are  worthy  of  a  better  office. 


428  GAME    LAWS. 

tyrannical  persons,  and  there  might  occur  some  ex- 
traordinary instances,  where  it  would  become  de- 
sirable to  mitigate  the  punishment  as  much  as  pos- 
sible. 

If  the  defendant  appeals  from  the  decision  of  the  magistrates, 
to  a  court  of  law,  for  a  second  wilful  trespass,  whereby  the  penalty 
here  proposed  would  be  from  51.  to  50/. ;  let  him,  if  he  loses  his 
cause,  pay,  in  addition  to  the  damages,  whatever  sum  had  before 
been  awarded  by  magistrates. 

Amend  the  57th  statute  of  Geo.  III.  for  transporting  a  man 
who  is  found,  at  night,  armed  with  intent  to  kill  game ;  and  let 
it  be,  that,  if  he  makes  any  RESISTANCE  on  being  apprehended, 
he  shall  be  transported. 

If  not,  his  "  footing  it,"  for  a  month  or  two,  in 
the  tread-mill  would  be  quite  sufficient  punishment ; 
and  particularly  to  a  poacher,  who,  except  when  at 
his  nightly  business,  is  generally  one  of  the  laziest 
drones  in  existence.  This  little  "  training,"  too,  may 
perhaps  be  the  means  of  getting  him"  in  wind"  for  a 
more  industrious  life ;  and,  therefore,  of  tending  to 
the  support,  instead  of  the  starvation,  or  incumbrance 
on  a  parish,  of  his  unfortunate  family. 

All  game-shooting  (except  black  game,  muir  game,  and 
ptarmigan)  to  begin  on  the  1  st  of  October. 

By  such  an  arrangement  thousands  of  very  young 
partridges,  that  are  not  fair  game,  would  escape 
being  massacred  by  the  gentleman-poacher,  and 
falling  a  prey,  when  in  hedges  and  hassocks,  to  the 
dogs  of  the  pot-hunter.  There  would  be  avoided 


GAME    LAWS.  429 

many  disputes  between  farmers  and  eager  young 
sportsmen  (perhaps  the  sons  of  their  landlords),  who 
sometimes  cannot  resist  following  their  game  into 
the  corn.  There  would  be  an  end  of  destroying  a 
whole  nide  of  young  pheasants  in  standing  barley, 
which  is  so  frequently,  and  so  easily,  done  in  Sep- 
tember. 

The  hot  weather  of  September  was  never  meant 
for  hard  fagging.  September  is  a  month  that  the 
agriculturist  should  devote  to  his  harvest,  and  the 
man  of  pleasure  to  sailing,  sea-bathing,  fishing,  and 
other  summer  pursuits.  But  when  October  arrives, 
the  farmer  has  leisure  to  enjoy  a  little  sport  after  all 
his  hard  labour,  without  neglecting  his  business ; 
and  the  gentleman,  by  a  day's  shooting,  at  that 
time,  becomes  refreshed  and  invigorated,  instead  of 
wearing  out  himself  and  his  dogs,  by  slaving  after 
partridges  under  a  broiling  sun  in  September.  The 
evenings  begin  to  close,  and  he  then  enjoys  his  party 
and  his  fire-side,  after  a  day's  shooting  of  just  suf- 
ficient duration  to  brace  his  nerves,  and  make  every 
thing  agreeable. 

Penalty  for  killing  game  out  of  season  to  be  not  less  than  5/. 
nor  more  than  50/.,  at  the  option  of  magistrates. 

One  regular  penalty  is  not  fair.  There  should 
rest  with  the  magistrates  the  power  of  making  a 
very  great  distinction  between  one,  who  could  prove 
that  he  had  killed  a  head  of  game  for  a  longing  lady, 


430  GAME    LAWS. 

or  a  sick  person,  and  another,  who  wantonly  de- 
stroyed it  in  open  violation  of  the  law. 

The  act  for  refusing  to  give  names  ; 

The  periods  for  killing  game,  with  the  mere  alteration  of  de- 
ferring partridge-shooting  till  October  ; 

And  a  proper  time  fixed  for  killing  hares,  which  has  never  yet 
been  done  ! 

The  act  for  killing  pigeons ; 

The  duty  on  dogs,  &c. ;  may  remain  as  they  now  stand  5 

Except  that  these,  and  what  few  other  laws  it  may 
be  necessary  to  extract  from  the  old  statutes,  should 
be  taken  from  the  chaos  in  which  they  are  at  present 
immured ;  made  as  clear  as, possible ;  and  compressed 
into  one  act  in  the  present  reign.  But  let  all  the 
contradictory  nonsense  about  Henry,  James,  Anne, 
&c.,  be  thrown  into  the  fire,  as  being  so  complex  as 
often  to  confuse  even  lawyers  themselves,  and  there- 
fore calculated  only  to  ensnare  the  unwary,  and  be 
a  subject  of  ridicule  to  every  man  of  common  sense. 

Game  laws,  or  any  other  laws,  admitting  them  to 
be  the  best  measures  ever  adopted,  may,  for  want 
of  being  consistently  arranged,  and  justly  modified, 
be  completely  changed  in  their  features,  and  laid 
fairly  open,  not  only  to  the  tap-diverting  sarcasms  of 
travesty  patriots,  but  to  the  just  criticism  of  respect- 
able people.  Yet,  however  judgmatically  the  game 
laws  might  be  arranged,  it  becomes  highly  necessary, 
that  these  laws,  as  well  as  every  concern,  if  rendered 
of  a  serious  nature,  should  be  supported  by  such 


GAME    LAWS.  431 

gentlemen  as  are  an  ornament  to  a  most  honourable 
profession,  and  who  are  always  the  first  to  open  for 
their  clients  the  doors  of  reconciliation.  But,  with 
regard  to  the  frivolous  points  that  are  repeatedly 
contending,  how  sincerely  is  it  to  be  regretted,  that  so 
many  expensive  lawsuits  should  be  for  ever  taking 
place,  and  particularly  about  the  game !  How  easily, 
in  many  cases,  might  they  be  avoided  to  the  greatest 
interest  of  both  parties !  For  instance,  if  any  little 
difference  occurred,  why  not  have  it  decided  by  a 
certain  number  of  gentlemen  chosen  by  each  party  ? 
To  the  decision  of  other  persons  it  must  come  tit 
last!  though  most  likely  before  a  less  competent  tri- 
bunal !  for  it  stands  to  reason,  that  a  promiscuously 
assembled  jury  cannot  be  made  such  perfect  masters 
of  every  circumstance,  as  persons  selected,  who  are 
ably  versed  in  the  subject  of  dispute  ;  and  especially 
as  the  final  decision,  in  a  court  of  justice,  may  be 
liable  to  depend  on  the  judgment  of  a  dozen  poor 
men,  who  can  scarcely  read  or  write,  or  even  under- 
stand a  single  point  of  an  argument. 

If,  therefore,  people,  who  have  the  honesty  to 
require  no  more  than  what  is  just  and  fair,  would 
also  have  the  good  sense  to  withhold  going  to  law  on 
ercri/  trumpery  altercation,  there  would  be  much 
more  happiness  among  mankind ;  and  there  could 
accrue  but  one  evil,  and  this  of  a  minor  consideration  ; 
which  is,  that  a  certain  proportion  (I  mean  the  dross 
only)  of  hireling  dons,  instead  of  being  arrayed  like 


432  GAME    LAWS. 

demigods,  with  their  notes  of  discord,  would  be 
obliged  to  resign  the  lion's  skin  for  the  more  certain 
revenue  of  a  methodist  preacher,  or  a  strolling  player : 
and  such  of  those  blue-bag  satellites,  as  are  scouted 
by  all  honourable  branches  of  the  law,  might  be  re- 
duced to  the  appointment  of  carrying  parcels  for  a 
coach  office,  or  wheeling  gravel  on  a  turnpike  road. 


General 


FOR  THE 

HEALTH  AND  COMFORT  OF  A  YOUNG  SPORTSMAN. 

THE  last  part  of  the  work  that  it  would  afford  me 
any  pleasure  to  dilate  on  is  that  of  cookery.  For  it 
is  an  old,  though  a  just,  observation,  that  we  should 
eat  to  live,  not  live  to  eat.  But  when,  by  adding  a 
short  paragraph  or  two,  I  can,  perhaps,  put  some  of 
our  young  sportsmen,  or  young  "  foragers,"  up  to 
what,  in  the  language  of  the  present  day,  is  called 
a  "  wrinkle,"  I  may  possibly  be  the  means  of 
saving  them  from  unnecessarily  hard  fare,  when 
quartered  in  a  pothouse,  on  some  shooting  or  fishing 
excursion.  As  many  of  the  little  publicans  chiefly 
live  on  fat  pork  and  tea;  or,  if  on  the  coast,  red 
herrings  ;  the  experienced  traveller  well  knows,  that, 
when  in  a  retired  place  of  this  sort,  where,  from  the 
very  circumstance  of  the  misery  attending  it,  there 
are  the  fewer  sportsmen,  and,  consequently,  there  is 
to  be  had  the  best  diversion,  we  have  often  to  depend 
a  little  on  our  wits  for  procuring  the  necessaries  of 
life.  If  even  a  nobleman  (who  is,  of  course,  by 

F  F 


434  MISERIES    OF    BAD    QUAIITEIIS. 

common  people,  thought  in  the  greatest  extreme 
better  than  a  gentleman  without  a  title)  were  to 
enter  an  alehouse,  the  most  that  could  be  procured 
for  him  would  be  mutton  or  beef,  both  perhaps  as 
tough,  and  with  as  little  fat,  as  the  boots  or  gaiters 
on  his  legs.  A  chop  or  steak  is  provided.  If  he 
does  not  eat  it,  he  may  starve :  if  he  does,  his  plea- 
sure for  the  next  day  is  possibly  destroyed  by  his  un- 
pleasant sufferings  from  indigestion.  He  gets  some 
sour  beer,  which  gives  him  the  heart-burn,  and  pro- 
bably calls  for  brandy,  or  gin ;  the  one  execrably  bad 
and  unwholesome ;  the  other  of  the  worst  quality ; 
and,  of  course,  mixed  with  water,  by  which  adultera- 
tion is  derived  the  greatest  part  of  the  publican's 
profit.  The  spirit  merchants  make  it,  what  they  call 
above  proof,  in  order  to  allow  for  its  being  diluted, 
the  doing  which,  so  far  from  dishonesty,  is  now 
literally  the  common  practice,  not  only  with  many 
respectable  innkeepers,  but  by  retail  merchants  them- 
selves. Our  young  sportsman,  at  last,  retires  to  a 
miserable  chamber  and  a  worse  bed  ;  where,  for  want 
of  ordering  it  to  be  properly  aired,  he  gets  the  rheu- 
matism ;  and,  from  the  draughts  of  air  that  pene- 
trate the  room,  he  is  attacked  with  the  tooth-ache. 
He  rises  to  a  breakfast  of  bad  tea,  without  milk ; 
and  then  starts  for  his  day's  sport,  so  (to  use  a 
fashionable  term)  "  bedevilled"  that  he  cannot  "  touch 
a  feather :"  and,  in  the  evening,  returns  to  his  second 
edition  of  misery. 

On  the  other  hand,  "an  old   campaigner  would, 


HOW  TO  AVOID  THEM  ;  AND  TO  CATER.     435 

under  such  circumstances,  do  tolerably  well,  and 
have  his  complete  revenge  on  the  fish  or  fowl  of  the 
place. 

His  plan,  knowing  the  improbability  of  getting 
any  thing  to  eat,  would  be  to  provide  himself  with  a 
hand-basket  at  the  last  country  town  which  he  had 
to  pass  through,  before  he  reached  his  exile  ;  and 
there  stock  it  with  whatever  good  things  presented 
themselves.  He  then  arrives  at  the  pothouse,  which 
the  distance,  or  the  badness  of  the  roads,  might 
oblige  him  to  do  the  previous  day.  His  first  order  is 
for  his  sheets  and  bedding  to  be  put  before  a  good 
fire.  If  he  arrives  too  late  at  night  for  this,  let  him, 
rather  than  lie  between  sheets  which  are  not  properly 
aired,  sleep  with  only  the  blankets.  He  then,  sup- 
posing he  would  not  be  at  the  trouble  of  carrying 
meat,  sends  for  his  beef  or  mutton.  Having  secured 
this  for  the  next  day's  dinner,  he  takes  out  of  his 
basket  something  ready  dressed,  or  some  eggs,  or  a 
string  of  sausages,  or  a  few  kidneys ;  or  a  fowl  to 
boil,  a  cake  or  two  of  portable  soup,  or  a  little  mock 
turtle,  ready  to  warm  ;  or,  in  short,  any  other  things 
that  the  town  may  have  afforded ;  and  with  this,  he 
makes  up  his  dinner  on  the  day  of  his  arrival.  If 
the  beer  is  sour,  and  he  does  not  choose  to  be  troubled 
with  carrying  bottles  of  other  beverage,  he  is  pro- 
vided with  a 

Little  carbonate  of  soda,  which  will  correct  the  acid;  a  little  nut- 
meg or  powdered  ginger,  to  take  off  the  unpleasant  taste  ;  and, 
with  a  spoonful  of  brown  sugar  and  a  toast,  he  will  make  tolerably 

F  F  2 


436  WHAT    TO    CHOOSE,  &C. 

palatable  that,  which,  before,  was  scarcely  good  enough  to  quench 
the  thirst. 

He  will  know  better  than  to  call  for  brandy  or  gin, 
but  will  order  rum,  knowing  that  that  is  a  spirit  * 
which  would  soon  be  spoiled  by  any  tricks  or  adulte- 
ration. He  will  have  in  his  basket  some  lemons,  or 
a  bottle  of  lemon  acid,  and  make  a  bowl  of  punch, 
recollecting  the  proportions  of 

One  sour, 

Two  sweet ; 
Four  strong, 

And  eight  weak. 

This  is  quite  the  focus  for  good  punch,  which  any 
shallow-headed  boy  may  remember,  by  learning  it  as 
a  bad  rhyme. 

It  may  be  necessary  to  observe,  that,  by  first  pounding  the 
sugar  fine,  you  can  of  course  measure  it  to  a  nicety,  by  means  of 
a  wine-glass,  as  well  as  the  lemon  juice,  and  the  other  liquids. 
Also,  that  half  the  acid  of  Seville  orange  juice  is  better  than  all 
of  lemon  juice ;  and  further,  in  making  punch  the  spirit  should 
be  used  as  the  finishing  ingredient ;  though  put  in  another  jug ; 
and  the  SHERBET  POURED  UPON  IT. 

But  as  to  the  improvements  of  pink  champain,  hot 
jellies,  arrack,  limes,  &c.,  it  would  be  out  of  place  to 
talk  of  such  luxuries  here,  though  of  course,  after 

*  If  a  sportsman  likes  to  take  a  flask  of  spirit,  as  a  guard 
against  cold,  a  stomach-ache,  &c.,  he  will,  I  think,  find  nothing 
equal  to  the  real  Highland  Scotch,  or  Irish,  whisky.  Or,  if  he 
cannot  get  this,  a  little  extrait  d' absinthe  Suisse  ;  from  Johnson's, 
or  Sargenson's,  Colonnade,  Pall-mall. 


PUNCH.  437 

professing  to  give  the  focus  for  good  punch,  it  be- 
comes a  necessary  caution  against  error,  to  except 
that  which  is  composed  with  all  the  dainties  of  an 
alderman ;  who,  by  the  way,  is  welcome  to  my  share 
of  them ;  as  well  as  to  that  of  the  gout  after  them. 
Here  we  have  spoken  of  hot  punch.  Now  for  cold; 
which,  being  merely  intended  as  a  cool  beverage, 
requires  to  be  much  weaker. 

For  this,  I  cannot  do  better  than  copy  a  receipt 
that  was  given  me,  some  years  ago,  when  quartered 
at  Glasgow,  where  cold  punch  was  universally  drank ; 
and  where  its  excellence  was  only  to  be  equalled  by 
the  hospitality  of  the  inhabitants.  It  is 

"  A  wine  glass  nearly  full  of  best  refined  lump  sugar  pounded. 
Twelve  ditto  of  cold  spring  water. 
A  lime,  and  half  a  lemon  Qor,  if  no  lime,  a  whole  lemon, 

which  might  yield  about  half  a  wine  glass  full  of  juice]. 
Two  M'ine  glasses  brimful]  of  old  Jamaica  rum. 
Let  the  sugar  be  well  melted,  and  the  lemons  thoroughly  amal- 
gamated with  it,  and  the  water,  before  you  add  the  spirit." 

Or,  to  be  much  more  brief,  I  will  say,  for  cold  punch, 

One  sour, 

Two  sweet ; 
Four  strong, 

Twenty  weak ; 

As  here  we  have  only  to  repeat  the  old  rhyme,  and 
change  the  eight  into  a  twenty.  If  I  could  make  it 
shorter,  and  more  simple,  I  would. 

For  those  worthies,  who  think  it  a  good  joke  to 
metamorphose  a  man  into  what  he  would  not  like  to 


438  COOL    BEVERAGE. 

be  called,  by  making  him  drunk,  this  beverage,  if 
introduced  by  way  of  a  sequel  to  wine,  is  one  of  the 
most  certain  to  answer  their  purpose :  because  it  is 
so  cooling,  and  grateful  to  the  thirst,  that  the  more 
he  drinks  the  more  he  requires  of  it,  instead  of  be- 
ginning to  find  it  unpleasant,  like  wine,  hot  punch, 
or  other  more  potent  liquors.  I  name  this,  not  as  a 
lesson  to  the  wag,  but  as  a  caution  to  the  unwary. 

With  materials  for  making  other  cool  portable  beverage  (merely 
to  quench  the  thirst)  almost  every  chemist  can  supply  you.  But, 
provided  a  packet,  the  size  of  a  pint  bottle,  is  not  objected  to, 
I  should  have  no  hesitation  in  preferring  that  prepared  by  Mr. 
Farley,  Charles  Street,  St.  James's  Square ;  as  what  he  calls  his 
"  effervescent  lemonade"  is  quite  free  from  the  taste  of  physic. 
My  name,  when  I  first  spoke  of  this  beverage,  was  not  even 
known  at  his  laboratory;  and  therefore  it  can,  of  course,  be 
merely  to  serve  my  readers  that  I  mention  it. 

Our  sportsman  will  then,  having  taken  care  to 
provide  himself  with  a  little  good  tobacco,  or  a  few 
cigars,  have  recourse  to  smoking;  which,  next  to  the 
sovereign  remedy  of  taking  a  little  purl,  before  you 
inhale  a  vaporous  atmosphere,  is  the  best  preventive 
from  catching  the  ague  when  ^w-shooting ;  and, 
perhaps,  one  of  the  greatest  preservatives  from  cold 
and  illness,  of  any  thing  in  existence.  Under  parti- 
cular circumstances,  therefore,  smoking  becomes  not 
only  justifiable,  but  sometimes  necessary.  It  is,  how- 
ever, the  last  thing  that  I  mean  to  recommend  making 
a  constant  practice  of,  when  not  required;  as  most 
people,  it  is  presumed,  would  consider  it  an  idle 
habit  to  become  every  day  absorbed  in  what  might 


PLANS    TO    BE    ADOPTED.  439 

be  thought  an  agreeable  stupefaction  only  by  a  few 
jolly  fellows,  who,  if  I  may  speak  in  their  own  style, 
glory  in  being  able  to— drink  like  a  fish— sit  like  a 
hen — and  smoke  like  a  chimney.  The  old  sportsman 
then  retires  to  his  well-aired  bed,  where  he  is  pro- 
vided with  the  best  of  counterpanes,  a  good  box-  or 
gunning-coat,  or  a  cloak ;  and,  after  passing  a  good 
night,  he  rises  to  breakfast.  If  he  has  brought  no 
tea  with  him,  he  makes  palatable  that  of  the  place, 
by  beating  up  the  yolk  of  an  egg  (first  with  a  little 
cold  water  to  prevent  its  curdling)  as  a  good  sub- 
stitute for  milk  or  cream,  a  little  powdered  ginger, 
and  a  teaspoonful  of  rum.  He  then,  previously  to 
taking  the  field,  desires  a  man  to  prepare  some 
greaves,  which  he  might  carry  for  his  dogs,  or  get, 
for  them,  some  meat ;  and  deputes  a  person  to  the 
cooking  of  that  intended  for  himself;  which,  if  bad 
in  quality,  as  will  most  likely  be  the  case,  there  is 
but  one  good  and  easy  way  of  dressing.  This  I  shall 
now  translate  from  my  French  recipe :  vi%. — Let  your 
servant  take 

Three  pounds  of  meat,  a.  large  carrot,  two  onions,  and  two  turnips. 
[The  Frenchman  adds  also  a  cabbage:  here  John  Bull  may 
please  himself.]  Put  them  into  two  quarts  of  water,  to  simmer 
away  till  reduced  to  three  pints.  Let  him  season  the  soup  to  the 
taste,  with  pepper,  salt,  herbs,  &c.  &c.  He  must  then  cut  off 
square  about  a  pound  of  the  fattest  part  of  the  meat,  and  put  it 
aside,  letting  the  rest  boil  completely  to  pieces.  After  he  ha& 
well  skimmed  off  the  fat,  and  strained  the  soup,  let  him  put  it  by 
till  wanted. 


440  COOKING. 

On  your  return,  while  seeing  your  dogs  fed,  which 
every  sportsman  ought  to  do, 

Let  the  soup  be  put  on  the  fire  for  twenty  minutes,  with  some 
fresh  vegetables  (if  you  like  to  have  them),  and,  for  the  last  ten 
minutes,  boil  again  the  square  piece  of  meat  which  was  reserved. 
Another  necessary  part  of  the  recipe  also  should  be  prescribed, 
lest  the  dish  should  fall  into  disrepute.  To  prevent  the  deputy 
cook  from  helping  himself,  and  filling  it  up  with  water,  let  him 
have  a  partnership  in  the  concern ;  and  when  he  has  occasion  to 
quit  the  room,  he  should  either  lock  the  door,  or  leave  one  of  your 
relay  dogs  for  a  sentry. 

You  will  then  have  a  good  wholesome  gravy  soup 
to  begin  with;  and,  afterwards,  some  tender  meat, 
which  if 

Eat  with  mustard,  a  little  raw  parsley  chopped  fine,  and  a  few 
anchovies, 

you  will,  it  is  presumed,  find  an  excellent  dish.  A 
pot  of  anchovies  might  easily  be  carried  in  a  port- 
manteau, being,  of  all  the  luxuries  from  an  oil  shop, 
one  of  the  most  portable  and  the  most  useful. 

Nothing,  however,  is  worse  than  a  mock  anchovy, 
which  is  merely  a  salted  bleak,  or  other  inferior  small 
fish,  flavoured  with  a  little  anchovy  liquor  *. 

*  To  be  sure  of  having  the  real  Gorgona  fish,  I  have  always 
gone  to  Signor  Bassano,  who  removed  from  Castle  Street  to 
Jermyn  Street,  and  who,  I  believe,  has  not  yet  got  up  to  the 
tricks  which  are  practised  by  some  of  the  grandee  oilmen.  Since 
the  lust  edition,  however,  he  was  in  the  numerous  list  of  bank- 
rupts ;  but  has  now  resumed  business,  at  No.  4,  Carlton  Street, 
Regent  Street. 


MEDICINES.  441 

Be  careful  to  keep  anchovies  in  a  small  stone  jar ;  as  an  earthen 
one  might  break  with  them,  and  spoil  your  clothes. 

An  old  sportsman,  having  thus  far  subsisted  to- 
lerably well,  may,  afterwards,  with  the  help  of  his 
gun  or  fishing-rod,  be  enabled  to  fare  decently,  and 
enjoy  good  sport;  while  some  poor  helpless  exotic 
would  have  spurned  the  very  soil  of  the  place ;  left 
it  in  disgust,  before  he  had  killed  a  bird  or  a  fish ; 
and,  as  likely  as  not,  be  laid  up  and  fleeced  'at  the 
next  inn,  and  there  saddled  with  some  country  apo- 
thecary. 

To  be  as  brief  as  I  can,  on  this  uninteresting, 
though  possibly  useful,  head,  let  me  take  a  memo- 
randum of  the  few  portable  articles  that  contribute 
to  the  health  and  comfort  of  a  travelling  sportsman. 

A  medicine  chest  is  sometimes  out  of  the  ques- 
tion ;  otherwise,  a  chemist  would  direct  him  better 
than  I  could  presume  to  do ;  but,  as  I  speak  solely 
by  experience,  I  can,  of  course,  speak  with  some  con- 
fidence, on  the  very  few  things  of  no  bulk,  which 
may  be  here  noted  down,  as  likely  to  render  him 
essential  service.  But,  before  I  name  a  single  article, 
I  must  take  up,  in  my  own  defence,  one  observation, 
lest  that  observation  may  be  left  as  a  powerful  wea- 
pon against  me  in  the  hands  of  those  who  are  versed 
in  this  subject,  in  which  I  do  not  presume  to  have 
the  slightest  pretensions,  further  than  personal  ex- 
perience. In  short,  I  must  premise  with  saying, 
that,  what  would  be  an  effectual  remedy  in  one 
constitution  might  not  answer  with  another.  And 


442  MEDICINES. 

though  the  philosopher  tells  you,  that  every  man, 
before  he  attains  the  age  of  forty,  must  be  either  a 
fool  or  his  own  physician  ;  yet  the  doctor,  in  answer, 
affirms,  that  he  who  knows  a  little  of  physic,  knows 
a  great  deal  too  much !  This  point  I  leave  for  the, 
philosopher  and  the  doctor  to  settle  between  them- 
selves;  but  I  trust  they  will  both  agree  with  me, 
that  there  can  be  no  more  impropriety  in  suggesting  a 
few  common  medicines,  with  which  proper  directions 
would  be  given  by  the  person  who  sells  them,  than 
in  entering  any  other  kind  of  inventory  of  what 
might  be  useful  to  a  young  sportsman,  or  young 
traveller.  All  our  sporting  authors  have  boldly  taken 
the  field,  so  far  as  amply  to  prescribe  for  the  dog ; 
while  I  am  left  exposed,  under  ^Esculapian  batteries, 
by  having  to  prescribe  for  the  master. 

A  BOTTLE,  OR  PAPER  OF  MAGNESIA. 

As  a  generally  recommended  cure  for  the  heart- 
burn, by  correcting  acid  on  the  stomach ;  a  trifling 
preventive  to  the  gout ;  a  pretty  good  aperient  me- 
dicine, particularly  if  taken  with  acid,  which  gives  it 
somewhat  the  effect  of  Epsom  salts ;  and  a  very  good 
medicine  when  mixed  with  rhubarb,  which  counteracts 
its  coldness  on  the  stomach. 

(For  correcting  acid,  however,  /  always  prefer  the  use  of  salt 
of  tartar ;  but  this,  I  believe,  is  not  the  general  custom.  I 
merely  speak  of  it  as  I  find  it.) 


MEDICINES.  443 

SOME  ESSENCE  OF  PEPPERMINT. 

SEE  the  paper  round  it,  for  its  various  good 
qualities. 

A  FEW  CALOMEL  PILLS, 

and  the  ingredients  for  an  aperient  draught  on  the  following 
morning ; 

in  case  a  severe  attack  of  bile,  or  any  such  illness, 
should  require  something  beyond  a  mere  alterative. 

Calomel,  although  a  medicine  to  be  used  with  caution,  I  have 
always  found  to  be  the  most  effectual  recipe  to  cure  an  obstinate 
stomach-ache,  in  case  it  cannot  be  removed  by  a  cordial,  hot 
Avater,  essence  of  peppermint,  or  tincture  of  rhubarb.  Calomel, 
however,  being  a  mercurial  preparation,  would  deprive  you  of  a 
day's  sport,  by  the  indispensably  necessary  confinement  after 
taking  it. 

A  LITTLE  TARTAR  EMETIC, 

in  case  of  severe  indigestion,  or  a  dog  being  taken  ill.  This 
medicine,  given  from  a  grain  and  a  half  to  two  grains,  in  warm 
water,  will  sometimes  perform  wonders  among  common  people, 
Avho  are  subject  to  have  the  stomach  disordered  by  eating  vora- 
ciously of  bad  and  unwholesome  food. 

A  friend  of  mine,  with  nothing  whatever  but  this 
recipe,  has  been,  for  these  last  thirty  years,  the  suc- 
cessful quack  of  his  village ;  and  boasts  of  beating 
the  doctors  without  having  lost  a  patient.  How  far 
my  friend  may  be  justified  in  flying,  on  every  oc- 
casion, to  that  which  may  tend  to  weaken  the  stomach, 
I  leave  it  for  those  who  are  versed  in  medicine  to  de- 
termine;  notwithstanding  he  may  have  gained  the 
confidence  of  the  village. 


444  MEDICINES. 

(After  all,  too,  a  couple  of  wine  glasses  full  of  water,  taken  as 
hot  as  it  can  be  drank,  without  the  astringent  addition  of  either 
tea  or  spirit,  I  have  found,  would,  in  general,  relieve  indigestion 

Another  remedy,  which  is  very  lately  become  quite  in  fashion, 
is  to  swallow,  whole,  two  teaspoonsful  of  common  mustard  seed 
just  before  going  to  bed,  and  an  hour  before  dinner.  It  may  be 
taken  in  a  little  water.  I  have  proved  it  to  be  an  excellent 
remedy.) 

Remember,  that  a  DOG  requires,  of  tartar  emetic,  or  any  other 
medicine,  at  least  twice  as  much  as  a  MAN. 

HUXHAM'S  TINCTURE  OF  BARK, 

as  an  effectual  stimulus  to  brace  the  nerves  of  a  bad  shot.  The 
sportsman  has  only  to  take  a  dessert  spoonful  in  a  glass  of  water 
before  he  goes  orft.  The  less,  however,  all  stimuli  are  had  re- 
course to,  the  more  effectual  they  will  be  when  taken. 

When  for  a  short  time  in  Holland,  I  always  kept 
well  by  taking  a  teaspoonful  of  this  medicine  in  a 
glass  of  Madeira,  before  inhaling  the  air  of  the 
marshes. 

WHITEHEAD'S  ESSENCE  OF  MUSTARD; 

which  7  have  found  to  be  one  of  the  finest  recipes  that  ever  bore 
a  stamp,  for  preventing  or  curing  the  rheumatism. 

A  PIECE  OF  FLEECY  HOSIERY, 

in  case  of  a  pain  in  the  chest,  to  which  application  the  rubbing  in 
a  little  of  the  above  essence  may  be  added ;  and  continued,  for  a 
day,  after  the  fleecy  hosiery  is  no  longer  required ;  in  order  to 
prevent  the  pain  from  returning  when  you  leave  it  off. 


DENTIFRICE.  445 

SOME  COURT  STICKING-PLASTER, 

to  enable  you  to  walk  in  comfort  after  being  galled  by  a  water- 
boot. 

(See  directions  under  the  head  of  "  Water-boots.") 
I  have  now,  I  believe,  mentioned  all  the  articles  of 
my  pharmacy,  and  next  to  them  must  come  the 

DENTIFRICE. 

BRUSH  your  teeth  every  morning,  with  Spanish  Sabilia  snuff 
(which  may  be  had  in  perfection,  from  Fribourg  and  Treyer, 
Haymarket),  and  every  night  with  a  little  arquebusade,  or  brandy; 
and  keep,  in  the  bottle  containing  it,  a  small  piece  of  camphor. 
This  will  not  only  make  it  a  tenfold  greater  preservative,  but 
will  prevent  the  vassals  of  the  place  from  drinking  it. 

Never  put  cold  water  to  your  teeth,  but  always  use  it  luke- 
warm. 

If  any  thing  will  prevent  or  cure  a  tooth-ache, 
except  aperient  medicines,  to  reduce  the  inflamma- 
tion, or  the  sovereign  remedy  of  Mr.  Whiteford's 
patent  instrument,  it  will,  I  have  reason  to  think,  be 
that  which  has  been  here  mentioned.  At  all  events, 
some  of  the  first  dentists  in  London  and  Paris  admit, 
that  this  remedy  is  a  most  excellent  preservative.  I, 
therefore,  do  not  hesitate  to  say,  that  for  a  sports- 
man, and  particularly  for  a  wildfowl-shooter,  it  may 
be  worthy  of  insertion. 

I  have  been  lately  told  by  a  friend  who  rarely  errs  in 
his  prescriptions,  that  the  best  cure  for  a  tooth-ache  is 

One  tablespoonful  of  rum, 
Another  of  vinegar, 
And  a  teaspoonful  of  salt, 
mixed  together,  and  then  held  in  the  mouth. 


446  PREVENTIVES    FROM    ILLNESS 

But  if  the  foregoing  directions,  as  a  preventive, 
are  attended  to,  we  are  not  very  likely  to  require 
prescriptions  for  a  cure. 

I  shall  now  conclude  with  the  following  little 
hints : — 

First,  If  you  or  your  dog  should,  at  any  time,  get  a  severe 
blow,  let  the  wounded  part  be  instantly  fomented  with  water,  as 
hot  as  can  be  borne,  for  at  least  half  an  hour  5  and  you  will 
thereby  reduce  your  suffering,  or  impediment  from  sport,  to  at 
least  half  its  duration. 

Secondly,  If  you  burn  yourself  in  shooting,  or  otherwise,  wrap 
the  part  affected  immediately  in  cotton,  the  application  of  which, 
it  has  been  proved,  acts  like  magic  with  a  burn. 

This  I  was  told  as  a  recipe  that  had  been  adopted 
in  Paris ;  and  found  it  to  answer  extremely  well. 
But,  on  proposing  it  for  insertion  here,  to  an  old 
friend,  one  of  our  greatest  surgeons  that  ever  lived, 
he  assured  me  that  a  better  recipe  was  the 

constant  application  of  vinegar. 

Thirdly,  If  you  should  take  cold,  bathe  your  feet  in  hot  water ; 
if  a  little  salt  or  bran  is,  or  both  are,  added,  so  much  the  better. 
Get  into  a  bed  warmed,  with  a  little  brown  sugar  sprinkled  on 
the  coals  j  and  tane  some  whey,  or  whatever  you  can  get,  to  pro- 
mote perspiration. 

This  remedy,  simple  as  it  is,  will  often  prevent 
your  having  recourse  to  James's  powder,  &c.  and 
may  sometimes,  perhaps,  save  you  the  expense  of 
twenty  pounds  for  medical  attendance. 

Fourthly,  Never  fast  too  long;  and  avoid,  whenever  you  can, 
fagging  too  hard, 


AND    INJURY.  447 

or,  when  you  come  to  a  miMle  age,  you  will  most 
likely  begin  to  feel  it ;  and  perhaps  insomuch  as  to 
become  nervous,  and  lose  your  good  shooting.  Re- 
member this  advice,  and  see  who  will  last  the  longest ; 
you  who  do,  or  those  who  do  not,  follow  it. 

Fifthly,  Never  go  out  with  quite  an  empty  stomach  to  wait  for 
wildfowl ;  particularly  in  the  morning.  Should  you  wish  to  start 
before  any  one  is  up,  you  might  always  have  left  for  you,  over 
night,  a  crust  of  bread,  or  a  biscuit,  with  a  glass  of  milk,  which, 
•with  a  little  sugar,  nutmeg,  ginger,  and  the  yolk  of  an  egg,  may 
be  made  good  in  a  moment.  And  this  is  better  than  what  is 
called  a  "  doctor"  (rum  and  milk)  j  because  you  then  dispense 
with  taking  spirit  in  a  morning,  the  very  bad  habit  of  which 
should  always  be  avoided,  except  in  a  country  where  the  chances 
of  ague  might  justify  your  taking  a  little  purl ; 

Which,  by  the  way,  was  recommended  to  me  by 
one  of  the  first  medical  gentlemen  in  the  profession. 
Do  not  have  recourse  to  any  such  liquors,  unless  ab- 
solutely required  to  defend  your  health  against  a 
pestilential  climate ;  or  in  case  of  being  taken  with  a 
sudden  chill ;  when  a  small  quantity  of  spirit  and 
beer,  mixed  together,  if  not  thought  too  disgusting  a 
beverage,  might  sometimes  prove  one  of  the  most 
powerful  stimuli  to  warm  you,  of  all  things  that  an 
alehouse,  or  perhaps  any  other  house,  could  afford. 
If  going  out,  take  it  cold;  if  going  to  bed,  you  may 
have  it  warm ;  for  in  the  one  case  perspiration  is  as 
objectionable,  as  it  would  be  desirable  in  the  other. 

Sixthly,  Never  sit  down  in  wet  feet,  or  with  wet  clothes  on  any 
part  of  your  body ;  but,  if  a  change  is  not  at  hand,  keep  in  motion. 


448  SUBSTITUTES    FOR    LUXURIES. 

or  go  to  bed,  till  one  can  be  procured.  Or,  if  you  want  to  start 
again,  when  refreshed,  first  wet  your  feet  with  either  spirits,  or 
essence  of  mustard,  and  then  be  as  quick  as  possible  in  taking 
your  refreshment.  Many  people  prefer  applying  the  spirit  to  the 
inside,  instead.  This  is  not  so  well :  because  spirit  alone  always 
flies  to  the  head  ;  while  strong  beer,  on  the  contrary,  would  \varm 
the  body. 

I  shall  here  conclude,  under  this  head,  with  the  multum  in  parvo 
advice  of  the  great  Dr.  Boerhaave :  Keep  the  BODY  OPEN  3  the 
HEAD  COOL;  and  the  FEET  WARM. 

Having  now  mentioned  the  few  things  that  happen 
to  occur  to  me,  as  deserving  the  small  space  they 
would  occupy  in  the  baggage  of  a  sportsman,  who  we 
all  know  is  sometimes  in  an  exile,  where  he  might 
die  before  he  could  get  medical  assistance;  I  shall 
just  note  down  a  few  articles  as  desirable  for  his 
comfort,  as  the  foregoing  ones  might  prove  for  the 
preservation  of  his  life  ;  viz. 

Canastre  tobacco,  or  cigars  *. 

Cayenne  pepper. 

A  pot  of  anchovies. 

A  phial  of  lemon  acid. 

A  bottle  of  the  best  olive  oil. 

With  these  ingredients,  and  half  as  much  know- 
ledge as  usually  belongs  to  all  our  old  campaigners, 
he  may  perfectly  enjoy  his  dinner  on  fish,  flesh,  and 
fowl,  in  those  wild  places  where  they  are  most 

*  The  mildest,  and  perhaps  the  pleasantest,  tobacco,  for  those 
who  are  not  much  used  to  smoking,  is  that  called  Syrian ;  which 
(although  to  be  had  at  a  reasonable  price  of  Mr.  Ward,  1C, 
Piccadilly)  is  not  so  generally  known  as  it  deserves  to  be. 


SUBSTITUTES    FOR    LUXURIES.  449 

abundant,  but  where  we  are  the  least  able  to  have 
them  dressed  in  perfection.     For  example  :— 

There  is  no  better  sauce  for  a  wildfowl,  plover,  or  snipe,  than 
equal  quantities  of  olive  oil  and  lemon  juice.  Cayenne  pepper, 
when  mixed  with  a  little  vinegar,  gives  a  fine  relish  to  a  phea- 
sant, or  any  other  game.  With  good  oil  you  can,  in  most  places, 
during  the  fishing  season,  have  a  French  salad  made  with  the 
young  leaves  of  the  wild  dandelion ;  or,  in  the  shooting  season, 
a  German  salad,  called  in  some  parts  of  Germany,  I  believe, 
"  ha  r  to f el  salat"  with  slices  of  cold  boiled  waxy  potatoes.  Either 
of  these,  with  a  few  onions,  an  anchovy,  and  two  spoonsful  of  oil 
to  every  one  of  vinegar  (or  equal  quantities  of  each  to  the  German 
one),  make  a  very  good  salad;  or,  at  all  events,  a  good  substitute 
for  one,  where  perhaps  the  lettuce,  cress,  or  endive,  are  scarcely 
known  to  the  inhabitants.  Tarragon  vinegar,  for  salads,  is  gene- 
rally preferred  to  the  other  vinegar.  (Let  me  observe,  by  the 
way,  that  the  chief  art  of  dressing  a  salad  consists  in  wiping  per- 
fectly dry  whatever  it  is  made  with,  and  cutting  off  the  flabby 
parts  from  the  leaves  of  the  herbs.)  If  you  have  no  good  butter, 
for  your  fish,  you  will  find,  that  with  a  little  cayenne,  a  spoonful 
of  the  liquor  from  your  anchovies,  and  some  lemon,  or  vinegar, 
olirr  oil,  and  mustard,  it  will  be  perfectly  good.  Nothing  is 
better  than  a  dish  of  small  birds  fried,  and  eat  with  oil  arid 
lemon  juice ;  and  if  you  have  no  good  butter  to  fry  them  with, 
here  again  some  oil  must  be  your  substitute. 

If  you  have  no  biscuits  to  eat  with  your  wine,  or,  what  you 
may  drink  for  want  of  it,  cut  some  slices  of  raw  potatoe  very  thin  ; 
have  them  broiled,  or  fried,  brown  and  crisp  with  your  oil,  and 
sprinkled  with  a  little  Cayenne  pepper;  but,  in  dressing  them, 
let  the  slices  lie  independent  of  each  other,  or  they  will  become 
soft  by  fermentation.  If  you  wish  for  a  hash,  or  any  thing  dressed 
by  way  of  variety  from  plain  cooking,  you  can  always  give  it  a 
flavour,  if  you  have  cayenne,  lemon,  and  anchovy. 

In  short,  the  ingredients  here  named,  as  general 

G  G 


450  FINISHING    ADVICE. 

acquisitions  to  your  eating  in  comfort,  will  be  found, 
I  trust,  some  of  the  most  useful ;  and  I  therefore 
need  add  no  more,  as  I  neither  profess,  nor  wish,  to 
gratify  the  palate  of  an  epicure ;  but  have  merely 
attempted  to  show,  how  one  man  could  make  him- 
self comfortable,  where  another  would  starve,  by  the 
foregoing  hints  to  young  caterers  and  young  sports- 
men. 

Having  now  said  enough  as  to  taking  care  of,  and 
providing  for,  my  young  readers,  we  will  suppose 
one  of  them  to  have  arrived  at  the  miserable  hole 
alluded  to,  and  that  the  first  salutation,  after  the 
knock  at  his  bed-chamber  door,  in  the  morning,  is, 
"  A  wet  day,  sir  /"  and,  instead  of  being  able  to 
pursue  his  sport,  either  after  breakfast,  or  at  noon 
(the  most  usual  time  for  the  weather  to  clear  np,  if 
it  clears  up  at  all),  he  is  consigned  a  close  prisoner 
to  the  pothouse;  looking  alternately  to  the  wind- 
ward clouds,  and  the  plastered  walls  of  the  room ; 
hearing,  through  a  thin  partition,  the  discordant 
merriment  of  drunken  fellows ;  and  inhaling  the 
breezes  of  a  smoky  wood  fire,  with  the  fumes  of  their 
shag  tobacco !  In  such  a  predicament,  then,  how  can 
I  prescribe  for  him?  and  in  this  predicament,  I 
believe,  there  are  very  few  sportsmen  that  have  not 
often  been.  Why  here  again,  then,  I  will  endeavour 
to  give  him  a  little  advice,  though  I  hope  he  will  not 
think  I  am  beginning  to  write  a  sermon.  I  shall 
now  first  observe,  that,  of  all  things  on  earth,  to 
make  a  man  low  spirited,  unhappy,  or  nervous,  is 


FINISHING    ADVICE.  451 

to  get  into  a  habit  of  idleness :  and,  although  there 
are  many  young  people  that  would  pay  little  atten- 
tion, and  perhaps  laugh  at  me,  if  I  told  them  that 
"  idleness"  was  the  "  root  of  all  evil,"  yet  some, 
among  those  very  persons,  might  listen  most  earnestly, 
when  I  remind  them,  that  being  nervous  or  low 
spirited  is  of  all  other  things  the  most  likely  to 
put  even  a  crack  sportsman  off  his  shooting;  or  to 
make  a  young  angler  whip  off  his  flies ;  or  be  too 
eager,  and  therefore  unskilful,  in  killing  his  fish. 
Always,  therefore,  let  him  be  employed,  and  think 
no  more  of  the  weather,  till  his  man  comes,  with  a 
smiling  face,  and  says,  "  Sir,  it  will  do  again  now  /" 
when,  if  he  is  a  man  of  genius,  and  has  proper  re- 
sources, he  could  almost  have  wished  for  another 
hour's  rain,  in  order  to  complete  that  in  which  his 
mind  was  become  absorbed.  Supposing  the  hole  in 
which,  for  the  sake  of  a  fe\v  days'  good  sport,  he  is 
immured,  contains  neither  books,  nor  newspapers ; 
nor  even  stationery  good  enough  to  write  a  few  letters 
in  comfort  (which,  by  the  way,  he  should  always  be 
enabled  to  do,  by  carrying  a  quire  of  paper,  and  a 
box  of  Bramah's  portable  pens),  still  there  is  no 
excuse  for  his  being  in  sheer  idleness.  The  mere 
pocket  will  always  contain  enough  to  employ  suc- 
cessfully many  a  leisure  hour.  If  he  is  studying  any 
thing  particular,  he  may  be  provided  with  some  little 
volume,  the  most  useful  to  his  subject.  If  he  draws, 
he  may,  at  least,  make  a  sketch  of  the  hole  he  is  in, 
for  a  laugh  when  he  gets  home ;  or,  if  in  another 


452  FINISHING    ADVICE. 

style,  practise,  according  to  his  fancy.     If  he  is   a 
"  musician,"  and  away  from  an  instrument,  let  him 
learn  to  do  some  exercises  in  harmony,  for  no  man 
should  be  called  a  musician  till  he  does  know  har- 
mony.    If  he  is  an  author  or  a  poet,  he  can  never  be 
at  a  loss  :  or,  if  nothing  greater,  perhaps  he  may  be 
a  merry  fellow,  who  sings  a  good  song  over  his  bottle, 
and  therefore,  on  this  occasion,  by  being  provided 
with  a  "  Pocket  Nightingale,"  he  may  stock  himself 
with  songs  enough  to  enliven  all  his  associates  on 
his  return.     If  he  is  a  dry  fellow,  an  enemy  to  the 
Muses,  arid  an  admirer  of  only  that  which  is  tangible, 
he  may  in  his  retreat  con  over  his  pounds,  shillings, 
and  pence ;  and  be  amused  with  sketching  his  affairs, 
and  thinking  of  what  will  be  most  to  his  advantage. 
But  if  he  is  an  idler,  destitute  of  all  resources — 
why  I  will  not  say   "  Lord  help  him !" — but — let 
him  help  himself.     Let  me  advise  him  to  embrace, 
in  this  day,  a  moment  for  reflection,  and  consider  it 
as  an  example,  perhaps  of  many  hours  and  days  he 
may  have  to  spend,  at  an  age  when  he  has  no  longer 
youth  and  vigour  to  distinguish  himself  among  the 
field  of  sportsmen  ;    and  make  a  determination  to 
embrace  some  pursuit,  that  will  be  to  him  a  source 
of  future  amusement ;   and  he  will  then,   I   think, 
have  reason  to  consider  this  as  one  of  the  most  suc- 
cessful days  on  his  calendar. 


L  I  S  T 


OF  THE 


LONDON    GUNMAKERS. 


Anderson  &  Co.,  25,  King  Street,  Soho. 

Baker,  Ezekiel,  24,  Whitechapel  Road. 

Halt's  &  King,  29,  Tavistoek  Street,  Covent  Garden. 

Barnctt  &  Son,  134,  Minories. 

Barton,  J.,  5,  James  Street,  Haymarket. 

Beckwith,  William  Andrew,  58,  Skinner  Street,  Snowhill. 

Beddowes,  John,  7,  Maiden  Lane,  Wood  Street. 

Biven,  A.  F.,  16,  Regent  Street. 

Blake,  J.  A.,  252,  High  Street,  Wapping. 

Blanch,  John,  29,  Gracechurch  Street. 

Bond,  E.  &  J.,  45,  Cornhill. 

Bond,  William,  59,  Lombard  Street. 

Bowsted,  F.,  6,  Little  Alie  Street,  Goodman's  Fields. 

Brand  &  Potts,  70,  Minories. 

Egg,  Durs,  1,  Colonnade,  Pall  Mall. 

Egg,  Joseph,  1,  Piccadilly. 

Enty,  John,  31,  Chapel  Street,  Lisson  Green. 

Fisher,  Charles,  8,  Prince's  Street,  Leicester  Square. 

Forsyth  &  Co.,  8,  Leicester  Street,  Leicester  Square. 

Gough,  Daniel,  57,  Houndsditch. 

Green,  William,  31,  Duke  Street,  Manchester  Square. 


454  LIST    OF    GUNMAKERS. 

Grierson,  Charles,  10,  New  Bond  Street. 
Gulley,  Joseph,  254,  Oxford  Street. 
Hall,  Collinson,  46,  Upper  Mary-le-bone  Street. 
Harding,  James,  99,  Blackman  Street,  Borough. 
Hill,  John,  168,  Tooley  Street,  Borough. 
Homer,  Thomas,  6,  Queen  Street,  Tower  Hill. 
Jackson,  Richard,  28,  Wigmore  Street,  Cavendish  Square. 
Jackson,  Geo.,  15,  White  Hart  Yard,  Drury  Lane. 
Lacy  &  Witton,  67,  Threadneedle  Street,  and  68,  Fen- 
church  Street. 
Lambard  &  Butler,  22,  Great  Warner  Street,  Clerkenwell. 

<Shop,  151,  New  Bond  Street*. 
Residence,  26,    York  Street,    Glou- 
cester Place. 
Manufactory,      2,     Thomas     Place, 

Hampstead  Road. 
Leigh,  J.  46,  Leman  Street,  Goodman's  Fields. 
Lindsay,  A.,  28,  Coventry  Street,  Hay  Market. 
London,  William,  50,  London  Wall- 
Manton,  Joseph  -f-,  315,  Oxford  Street. 
Man  ton,  John,  and  Son,  6,  Dover  Street,  Piccadilly. 
Moore,  Charles,  77,  St.  James's  Street. 
Mortimer,  Thomas,  44,  Ludgate  Hill,  St.  Paul's. 
Mortimer,  Thomas  J.,  34,  St.  James's  Street. 

*  Memorandum  (May  31st),  Mr.  Lancaster  has  just  called  to 
inform  me  that  he  has,  this  morning,  paid  £100  deposit,  for  the 
purchase  of  this  house  in  Bond  Street,  and  will  open  business 
there,  on,  or  before,  the  24th  of  June,  (probably  before  this 
edition  is  ready  for  delivery.) 

f  Memorandum  (May  30th),  Mr.  Joseph  Manton  has  just 
called  to  inform  me  of  his  having  repurchased  the  lease  of  the 
premises  which  he  formerly  occupied,  and  his  intention  of  letting 
those  in  Hanover  Square,  and  establishing  himself  on  those  in 
Oxford  Street. 


LIST    OF    GUNMAKERS.  455 

Nock,  S.,  Regent  Circus,  Piccadilly. 

Nock,  Samuel,  180,  Fleet  Street. 

Parker,  William,  233,  High  Holborn. 

Parkin,  Thomas,  42,  Dean  Street,  Soho. 

Pritchett,  R.  E.,  3(j,  Chamber's  Street,  Goodman's  Fields. 

Purdey,  James,  4,  Princes  Street,  Leicester  Square. 

Rea,  John,  144,  Minories. 

Reynolds,  Tho.,  47,  Great  Prescot  Street,  Goodman's  Fields. 

Ridley,  Thomas,  24,  Chamber's  Street,  Goodman's  Fields. 

Ridley,  William,  21,  Chamber's  Street,  Goodman's  Fields. 

Riviere,  Isaac,  315,  Oxford  Street. 

Sherwood,  J.  and  W.,  67,  Upper  East  Smithfield. 

Smith,  Samuel,  6 1,  Princes  Street,  Leicester  Square. 

Staudenmeyer,  S.  H.,  32,  Cockspur  Street. 

Stevens,  Thomas,  4#,  High  Holborn. 

Sturman,  Philip,  9*,  Old  Street  Road. 

Tatham,  Henry,  37,  Charing  Cross. 

Turney,  J.,  24,  Castle  Street,  Holborn. 

Webster  8c  Co.,  3,  Warwick  Street,  Golden  Square. 

Wilbraham,  George,  26,  Goulsten  Square,  Whitechapel. 

Wilkinson,  James,  and  Son,  12,  Ludgate  Hill. 

Wilson,  Alex.,  1,  Vigo  Lane. 

Wilson,  William,  154,  Minories. 

Wright,  Robert,  44,  Great  Prescot  St.,  Goodman's  Fields. 


PRESERVERS  OF  BIRDS,  &c. 

(I  give  the  names  in  reply  to  numerous  inquiries  which  I  have 
hitherto  been  unable  to  answer.) 

Leadbeater,  Mr.,  19,  Brewer  Street,  Golden  Square,  who 
stuffs  for  the  British  Museum,  and  whose  competitors, 


456  PRESERVERS    OF    BIRDS,    &C. 

since  he  left  Mr.  Bullock's,  have  reported  him  dead. 
For  this  reason,  it  is  my  duty  to  let  the  public  know 
that  6f  poor  Mr.  Leadbeater"  is  still  alive  and  well ; 
and  stuffs  better  and  cheaper  than  any  one  I  have 
met  with.  I  luckily  found  him  out  just  in  time  to 
clip  the  wings  of  their  ornithological  fudge,  by  putting 
his  name  in  the  last  sheet  of  this  edition. 
Ware,  Mr.,  of  Southampton,  is  the  best  preserver  of  birds, 
&c.  of  any  one  I  know  in  the  country. 


THE    END. 


LONDON : 

PRINTED    BY    THOMAS    DAVISON,    WHITEFRIARS. 


14  DAY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

LOAN  DEPT. 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below, 
or  on  the  date  to  which  renewed.  Renewals  only: 

Tel.  No.  642-3405 

Renewals  may  be  made  4  days  prior  to  date  due. 
Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 


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