Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-07-19

chicken, are netted and trapped by the thou
sand, many are killed by coming in contact
with the electric wires, as well a. shot in .
sportsmanlike manner, yet IL they still had
their nesting places in the prairies their num-
bers would not be perceptibly reduced.
ON THE PRAIRIEs.
The prairies have been broken up, and when
they now make their nests in the fields of the
farmer, their nests are nearly all broken up
and destroyed by the pillow in the spring.
Where parts Of the prairie are left for pastur-
age the farmer burns these patches over late in
the spring under the mistaken idea that it i'm
proves the young grass. This cuts up the sup
ply of grouse, and seriously reduces the number
each year. Many of the best snipe grounds
have been drained and some even thickly built
over, and the brakes and thickets where once
the woodcock abounded have been cut up and
cleared away. love of shooting is rapidly
spreading among farmers in the west, and
many of these mistakes are likely soon TO be
rectified. as they really should be the most eff
Gent preservers of the game. Wild pigeons
nave entirely disappeared. This is easily ex-
planned by the fact that the male birds go away
to feed in body and are followed by the
females. The latter are unattended and whole
flocks have thus been killed by netting them in
the breeding season. The same is also true Of
the male birds.
TO LEARN TO SHOOT.
To begin at an early age the practical ac-
quirement Of the art of shooting birds on the
wing is good thing, but any one who is able
to walk abroad and carry gun may attain fair
proficiency in it. The number of men whose
nervous temperament is such as to prevent this
are very few indeed Many have the natural
gift OF shooting and, with abundant practice,
induced by their love of the art, become dead
shots. BY following proper methods and
practclng much any one may become good
shot. Whenever convenient parents should let
their sons learn to shoot. There need be no
apprehension that an accident will occur, be-
cause the handling of guns prevents accidents
instead of causing them. Two Of the most i'm
portant things to success in the field are the
loading of the gun for the different varieties of
game and handling it when the bird is found
and takes wing. very common error is to
use shot Of a large size, with too much Of it
and too little powder. AS long as the gun will
burn il there is no danger of putting in too
much powder, but the timid man cannot be
made to understand this.
THE GUN.
/ can think Of nothing more like badly
loaded gun than a worthless watch, because its
deception exasperates the owner. A gun for a
boy should not be 50 heavy as to tire him in
carrying 1t; neither should it be a mere toy.
good serviceable article, such will inspire
his confidence by killing when held right, is
the kind to choose. In buying gun for boy
of fifteen, who is fairly robust double-bsrrel
DredCu-lOdueI Is pr6IcfdDl6 10 tn6 SluRIe-Ddr-
rel; although for a weak youth the latter
answers the purpose much better. The first
thing to learn, having provided the gun, is how
TO handle 1t properly. He should be able to
bring it up to his shoulder as clean and well as
II it was loaded. This exercise should be con-
| tinued until he is able to manage the gun with
as great ease and facility as his bat while play
ing base ball. A cardinal principle of this ex-
ercIse Is that under no circumstances should
the muzzle of the gun be allowed to point at
child whafhav loado1 mr.
loaded, in the house in the field, or, in fact,
anywhere. When the young man handles the
gun well unloaded, the next thing is to load.
BEGIN WITH LIGHT CHARGES.
For q breech-loader either the metal cases
or paper cases, if he does not wish to use them
more than once, may be used for his car
tridges They should be loaded lightly If
they are not, and the gun should kick, the
youth or Young man is very apt to fall into the
bad habit of closing both eyes when he pulls
the trigger, thus preventing him from ever be-
coming a good shot He should stand upright,
with his left foot in advance. and
the right a little back to steady him
self when he brings the gun to his
\ shoulder as if to deliver fire. At first the
cartridges should be loaded with three or three
and one-half drachms and ounce of No. or
3 shot. With these he may retire to a field or
some other safe place, and put up a target Of
paper foot square against a tree wall.
htn slAty Icct, ne may iOdu I'll .
gun. bring it up to his shoulder, with the left
hand extended to the end of the stock, being
careful to keep his finger from the top OF the
barrel SO as not to interfere with the sight,
taking aim along the top of single and along
the rib of the gun if dOuble-barrel, and when
he has taken aim pull the trigger.
TAKING AIM.
1t is natural for the beginner to shut his left
eye in taking aim, and this is proper. have
| heard men say that it is best to shoot with both
| eyes open, but do not agree with them Even
| i'll snap shooting most good shots instinctively
shut the left eye at the instant OF firing. After
| shooting the youth should load again and then
| examine the target to see how many shot he
put into it, and try again. The object OF this
| Is to get good, quick aim and to fire on the
| instant. with the gun firmly held and braced
against the shoulder. Too long a time should
not be taken IN aiming. 1t Is much better to
/ fire on the instant of taking aim. After the
! consumption of little powder and shot the
| young man will find that he can hit the target
every time with the center of the charge. Thi 9
| is the way to kill and he is now ready to begin
| on birds.
SHOOTING BIRDS.
| By exercising little care the young sports
man can get within twenty yards Of larks
These are good to begin on. When the bird
has risen, and no one should fire at one sitting,
| take quick aim and fire point blank at it.
| After trying his hand successfully on larks,
swamp biackbirds, swallows and SO on, he
will be ut to go out with the dogs after game
birds. A boy who can bring down one-thlrd
of the larks aud swallows he shoots at and one
out of every three or four swallows is sufi-
| GENTLY advanced to 60 into the field after game
L simply declare my honest convict ton.
although it may seem like boasting, when l
| say that can shoot game birds on the wing
! as well as any man who lives or ever did live.
Years of experience, shooting many m onths
| each year, have enabled me to arrive at as
much certainty as men usually attain in any
art. What | shall now relate may be foun
useful to old sportsmen as well az instructiv o
TO young ones.
on THE WING.
1t is a well-known fact that one half the shot "a
made in the field are at birds which fy across
the sportsman or go quartering of from him.
and most of the misses that occur are owing to
the failure of the shooter to hold forward
| enough so that the center OF the charge will be
upon the bird when the shot reaches him The
center OF the flight of shot should reach the
| line OF his fight just where he will be when the
line of the shot intersects his line of flight not
| where he was when the aim was made. At a
fast flying crossing pigeon hold from eight to
! ten inches ahead; at quartering bird from
! three To four inches. At bird going straig 1t
away close to the ground hold right on; il
rising, shoot high. At an incoming bird
shoot right at the head and rarely fail to kill
In applying these principles in the field the