Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1898-03-24
A Day with Quail. In Arkansas.
The American III.

$50 o'clock r. NJ. on Monday, at once
began to inquire about the quail shoot
ing around there, and who were the lead
ing sportsn1en A half dozen commercial
travellers were cracking jokes around
the stove, and I'm response TO my inquiry,
a chorus OF answers came back: why,
the old fellow that keeps this hotel Is a
great bird-hunter, and has guns, dogs.
and good horse and buggyr'
! l lost no time In hunting him up and
claiming relationship, for his name was
/ Miller, too. When we had arranged the
details and my heart was full of joy at
the prospect Of having great sport the
| next day, / was told that my shooting
| companion had to do the most Of his
| shooting alone because he had the repu-
tation Of being kind o. keerless" in
| handling a gun, and had shot so many
| people that they were all afraid of him.
/ asked the old man about this, and he
replied that he had shot a good many
men in his time, but it was because it
was rule of his never to let any man
beat him killing of EN-!
Are you a good shot?" he asked.
"Tolerable," said L. But if l am to
be shot for 1t, 1 can easily lower my
standardw
You amt in no danger" said he. so
long as you don't beat me shootin'! but
If you do that, L will either shoot you
or come so near dom of 1t that you'll
git nervous and can't hit a barn door!
Then / will not beat you or press you
very closely, for l am 1900 miles from
home, and If l am killed my family would
have a hard time getting my remains 10
Richmond, Va. Besides, it would be ex-
pensivei'
with the assurance that l was per-
fectly safe if 1 was careful not to push
him too closely on kills" we started
The day was an ideal one for our kind OF
sport, and the ground over which We
hunted lay between the Arkansas and
White rivers The fields were covered !
with the stubble of wheat and oats. rs |
a rule, but every now and then luxu-
RANT crop of corn with an abundance |
of black-eyed peas clinging TO the stalks. |
greeted our vision and made it altogether |
n paradise for Bob White Hitching our /
horse in the yard Of public school-house,
we left our overcoats and reserve ammu-
milton i'm the buggy.
In five minutes after we entered the
feld the dogs came to a point. we
agreed to shoot 10 the right and left, as
is usual on the rise of a bevy. and as Is
usual when such an understanding is had.
there was no right or left in the flight.
but a general scatteration. The old man
got two while I scored a clean miss
with both barrels. Seeing that | was a
novice, he began to tell me how TO hold
ahead on a "cross" bird, and a little
above on a rising bird Il having told him
how my birds were flying when / fred,
he very kindly said
Now, when we come TO singles, you
take the first shot and / will take EN-
after you miss EN-
| thanked him and told him he was
very kind TO give me the first crack at
hem. Although the birds few in every
Erection on the rise, they pitched into
orn-feld not far away, coming together
almost before reaching the corn One
fter another was pointed by the dogs,
nd they dropped 10 my gun. My COM
anton began to think that l was learn
n.y." He was gentlemanly and fair and 1
insisted upon my complying with the 5
greement that l should take the first {
hot but | refused TO do so after bag [
ing fourteen straight without his put
ing his gun 10 his face. From that tima I
n il was "every man for himself, ana
lay the best man win" n
Now here comes the point in my story. !
he mud I'm the corn-field stuck to our =
aet, and made the walking difficult. n
his gave me the advantage Of the old n
ian, and | was always up with the
ogs Coming to a point on the edge or =,
ne wheat-field, the birds ran few feet g
front Of the dog and squatted i'm the p
Jrn. l called TO him 10 como up quick Il
r, He used some language which cannot d
e found in either the Old or New Tesla h
tent about the mud and the corn-hills, cl
nd took his time. On getting up he ex- a
aimed: t.
Lord. look at 'em on the ground! r;
lin -t,..+ ! -,
ind to do it, What do you think Of it?" "
[ mildly informed him that all my
footing had been done with Virginia te
ntlemen." and in my country it was an
oked upon as ungentlemanly and un- re
D-n your Virginia gentlemen! What
want 10 know is, will you tell on me -.
hen you get back TO town." ~,
'Oh, no. l won't tell the boys But W
e you in the habit OF doing that sort W
thng?" ~
why no. 1 have not done such a thing o oe
VOC ! was boyr -
You can go ahead" said ], but your 20
IS are giving the lie TO that statement; ~
they are both watching you, and by u"
cir looks they are plainly inquiring. "a
ny in thunder don't you shoot? We vi
yer held them on the ground this long % 20
YOU beforen VI
tdlSlUS MS gun, MS lLSeT started To- |
I'd the trigger, but, hesitating, he pu
ked back at me and said: irI
II you tell on me IL Will ruin me!
never hear the last Of it," 10
Go on" said /, II will not tell on your pu
d l didn't-till now 20
We picked up six as the result Of his ia
'ked act, and OF those which went off tei
ropped two. while he killed one with Ma
second barrel.
never hunted with tairer man. and, So'
ring the little "ground-scrapIng" epi- rec
e, he behaved like "A gentleman all que
z. l think he must have had an eye at
hotel table that day. for he had mel
ouse full Of people, who were hungry MS
birds, and he took this short cut 10 val
them.
forgot TO mention that while ne Is a s
t-class shot, and thinks he can't pos ten
e miss them, he does fail sometimes. pas
we all do. We flushed two birds i'm this
open field when we were returning inu
ne. ] got mine and he made a clean
:. but while looking at the bird flying II
~ and "cussing'' himself for losing
b a good chance, the bird flew against a &
lrbedwire fence and fell dead. With
ell of delight he cried:
knOwed ! hit that bird" III
II not So on picking il up there mil
e no shot marks on f. simply the LONG | 49,,