The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1892-08-06

tocracy, and they all know how TO get
them without bothering the village
marketman.
Professional poaching Is a far less
dangerous pursuit than it is usually
considered. During tho shooting sea-
SON all sorts OF village hangors-on are
pressed into service rs tbeaters' and to
| carry and fill the game bags. 1t is an
easy thing during the excitement to
hide n generous portion OF the game Of
convenient points from which II is
taken under cover OF night Clanor and
fright also break up the rucks or coveys
into detached files OF plleasants which
retreat as high as possible among the
branches Of larch and. fir, when the
poachers can easily take them from
their roosts at night by hand: Other
methods are smudging or smokingthem
into halt insensibility and knocking
them from their perches with clubs
corn. kernels into which short bristles
are inserted are greedily devoured and
the birds run choking to the hedges to
be easily taken by hand; while an in
genious and successful device is to fta
| hancock with artificial spurs, and
stealthily place him alongside q covert,
when the pugnacious pheasants cock
instantly responds to the game cocks
Growing challenge, when three or four
brace Of the valuable birds are easily
taken.
Pheasant shooting usually begins the
latter part OF October and closes with
tho final Christmas ''battue."
Notwithstanding high walls, gentle
ness OF keepers, and all possible pro
ventives, many pheasants leave the dc.
mesnes, seeking the outer hedges and
bog grasses, where they fall a prey to
the snares OF tenants and guns OF the
poachers. Therefore q few days before
pheasant.shooting begins, all the out
side help at the castle starts in a circle
from the demesne and concentrating
toward the same, shout and, beat
with a terrific hullabaloo, thus driving
many back within the preserves. Then
MILFORD and his friends dressed Us for
snipe.shooting on the moors and pro-
vded each with two double-barrelled,
breech-loading, center fire fowling-
pieces OF No. 12bore, a man for reload
ing and another for carrying cartridges,
begin the slaughter. The sportsmen
are stationed in advance at the edge OF
open places. Tho gamekeeper, who is
a sort Of master OF ceremonies, brings
his assistants or "beaters" into line
behind. Then they move forward,
perhaps ten yards apart, the
keeper, who knows every bush, hedge,
copse Of trees, directing the "beaters"
in every movement. In IN instant tho
preserve is aperfect bedlam Of yells aad
explosions. The men yell, "Hi.yi-i-i!"
as they "beat" the bushes, calling as
the startled birds flash from copse to
copso, "Cock to the rightl"-"Cock
above!h-"To tie left, cockl"-"Hi-yi-
i-il-cock, cock, cock!-Right ahead,
cock!"-while the death-dealing guns
answer with such rapidity that they
often get too warm to be held in the
sportsmen's hands. This goes on all
day, with an hour for 4 lunch OF stew
and beer at two, when the "beaters" are
furnished a liberal amount Of bread,
cheese and beer; and their assistants,
who follow the hunters with carts and
donkeys, by night have often gathered
up from 500 to 1000 slaughtered birds.
These are shipped direct to London to
dealers who provide hampers and tags,
and pay for the birds from four to six
shillIngs per brace.
EDGAR /. wAREMAN.