Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1880-09-08

Bogardus, in his work on '.Field, Cove
and Trap Shooting" says that to make q
good bag of woodcock is feat the sports
man may well be proud Of To meet with
success in woodcock shooting, one mus
be an excellent snap shot and possess q
tireless nerve and muscular organization.
Besides, he must be familiar with the hab-
Its OF the bird. To an experienced eve,
woodcock ground is easily recognized.
This dainty little bird is an epicurean in
its habits, and q voracious feeder The
fat, angle and other worms which inhabil
the rich, soft and wet ground, are consid-
cred by the woodcock as the most dainty
morsels, and form its sole diet Among
the lowland and marshy places where the
ground is soft and loamy, the woodcock
loves TO dwell. II is nocturnal in its hab.
its. spending its nights in feasting, and
then at the break OF dawn Tetires to a
favorite retreat among the willows or tan
gled underbrush, and gently dreams the
daylight hours away. 1t is hard bird TO
hnd, and sportsman without a staunch
dog with agood nose, may almost tramp a on
bird before Ii takes to its wings, and it is
sharp eye of an experienced sportsman
catches sight Of bird in its day retreat.
The woodcock obtains its food by means
of its long-pointed bill with which nature has
furnished it, and on account of its resem-
blance 10 the snipe it is often mistaken for
this bird by farmers who occasionally flush
1t while making tours through the marshy
portions of their estates. The bird while
searching fer food, probes his bill deep
into the mucky spots where worms are
plenty, and his sensitive prober soon de-
tects the presence Cf the wood
cocks tempting morsel. For hunting
woodcock dog is almost absolutely neces-
sary. Nan does not like to penetrate the
marshy places and spots overgrown with
briars and tall weeds, where the bird Is
found, TO raise him from his hiding place.
and no. having the necessary olfactory re-
quisites to detect the presence of the bird
by scent may walk within step of his in
tended victim without flushing him. On
account of its tender feet and hide, il is al
most wicked to use pointer in woodcock
shooting among the marshes, though in
hunting the bird late in the season among
eA1S Soih a uctu ~
good advantage. For general wOOdcock
shooting the setter is much used. His coat
of long hair and feathered feet protect him
from the cutting swamp grass and poison
Gus briars, but the thoroughbred Sussex and
ST. Charles cookers are fast growing in pop
ulariiy for cover shooting. They ae merry
and astive workers, and when properly
broken and handled afford the shooter ex-
cellent sport
Generally speaking the woodcock is a
hard bird to hit. Josh Billings, in an ar
ticle on birds, says of the woodcock that
the first that is seen OF the iird is ''whiz,
and the last we see is a whirr" In shoot
ing among the saplings the shooter must
follow the dog and take his chances with
snap shots. In low underbrush and later
in the season among the corn fields, some
open shots are obtained. The uncertain
flight of the woodcock as he rises in his
zig Tag flight tends to distract the aim OF
the shooter, and the success Of the novice
is very uncertain.