The morning times., 1896-09-06
Shooting '''''''' i
Z For ::
g. &. Ducks.
EEEEEEEEE
BY DIANA cRosswAYs.

With the approach of autumn every
youth who handles a rifle begins to dream
golden dreams in which flocks OF birds
or ducks are the most enhancing feature.
Wild duck, or "shore shooting" as our
English friends call it. is delightful sport
although derided by some of the more
fastidious class of spOrtsmeD. In re-
turn, it may be stated that it is the only
reasonably cheap form of shooting left
To those of limited means.
Out on Long Island, or down on Toms
River, New Jersey, are ideal preserves
for those living in or near New York,
and each locality doubtless has Its own
grounds where shore shooting may be
carried on with success.
The methods of the shore shooter, as
well as the contents of his bag, differ
with the locality. On the long, wide, sandy
that may serve as cover, his success is
usually small, unless he goes out between
the lights and on the approach OF rough
weather 1t may be laid down as rule
in this kind OF sport above all others
that the shooter must rely almost en-
tirely on his own knowledge of his birds
and their habits, and his own skill ar.i
ingenuity in outwitting them. Rocky
coasts offer more opportunities and pleasant
surprises, but the shooters paradise is a
muddy estuary.
Hither come all sorts of wild fowl, and
If the locality be not too much shot over,
will afford good sport. The duck shooter,
like the poet is born not made, and indeed
no amount of instruction from manuals on
shooting, nor the possession OF a whole
battery of deadly weapons. will ever make
any one an expert
A few hints on the subject of shore
shootings may be OF use to the novice
who starts out for the first time this year,
and, as they are on the authority of an
expert, ought to be of use.
In the first place. the shore shooter
should start bctimes if he wishes for
anything like a good bag. for he must
not expect the birds will await his COM
ing. He must get there before they do.
He will first survey the ground, and choose
a suitable spot for his ambush. If there is a
ditch, well protected with bushes, he
will have little difficulty. The iDclosing
banks of reclaimed lands offer good posi-
tons. but they are mostly bare and un-
sheltered. and. in such case, the shooter
must construct screen OF sods and stones.
sea weed or other available material being
careful never to use anything foreign to
the locality, for the prey or quarry You
seek is knowing chap.
A good sportsman, but unused to this
kind of shooting, who found himself in
the nelghborhood OF an embankment
wild fowl, erected an elaborate screen of
laurel and other eyergreens. He tried it
every day patiently for week without
success, when be gave IL up in disgust,
vowing there wasn't duck in the place
Y ct "A night or two after his screen had
been torn down and few rough stones
built up in its place a well filed bag
rewarded his successor.
There may frequently be found in these
muddy estuaries small islets, mere
patches of turf, never quite covered
except at high tides. These form admir-
able stations for the local fowler, or one
who contemplates prolonged stay in the
neighborhood
The shooter who wishes to avail him
self of one of these makes his prepa-
rations long before the wild fowl put in