Waterbury evening Democrat., 1903-10-14
WILD-GUooE DRIVING.
Form of Sport Much Enjoyed by the Gunncrs of Warren County,
 North Carolina.

"I doubt if there is another place where wild geese are hunted after the method used on the Roanoke river in North Carolina" said New York sportsman who has hunted there, re- lates the New York Sun. Tn the first place, there Is no choicer haunt for wild geese than parts of the Roanoke river.
 "In Warren county the river is for miles succession of falls and rapids, and is unnavigable except by means of the peculiar fiat boats the natives use. The river is quarter of mile wide.
 For miles the shores are lined with oak and beech trees and all kinds of berry bushes and wild grapevines. Tn berries and grapes fall into the river in enormous quantities, and as they are carried down stream they lodge in the hollows of the rocks. It is this accumulation of palatable picking that attracts the wild geese in large numbers to that part of tho river.
 s.But the geese, after their kind, are extremely shy, and the difficulty of get ting about in a boat where they are feeding makes gunning for them, ex- cept in one particular way, rather bar Ten sport.
 Tt is not known who discovered that while wild geese on the Roanoke river would not sit and wait for the gunner to get within gunshot of them, they could be driven right up to the guns, but for time out of mind that is the way wild geese have been hunted in Warren county. N. c. The geese are driven to the blinds where the gun ners are hidden, something in the way grouse are driven on the English moors.. If goose driving is practiced elsewhere have yet to hear of the place.
 "In hunting wild geese on the Roam oke river, a blind for two men is built on the smallest rock that will give them sufficient foothold and well be- low some favorite feeding place for the geese The nature of the rocks and the hollows scatter the focks as they pasture, and while there may be hundreds of fowl in sight there will rarely be more than two or three to- gether
 After the gunners have taken their places in the blind third hunter makes his way in a boat up the stream l until he gets above lot of feeding geese. Then he works out into the river and drifts down with the current.
 'As he approaches the geese he be- gins to whistle, shrill and loud. He Sr%I %S.y h4 pr he may just whistle And he must be person of long and strong wind.
 When the geese hear the whistling they begin to gather into one flock. AS long as the man in the boat keeps whist1ing the huddling geese, although constantly moving along down stream, and ever out of gun range of the boat, will have no eyes or ears for anything else. Tossing carelessly along on the rap I Ids skilful driver will have g hundred or more geese drifting ahead of him, gazing wonderingly at him and listen | ing to his whistle, by the time they have drawn near to the blind. all well l punched, and offering great opportuni- | ty to the waiting gunners within. When the geese have been driven to within 30 or 40 yards of the blind the guns open on them.
 "The geese rise in such confusion 1 after the first fire that it is eas@ to pick up and use second gun on them before they have got out of range, and the driver is pretty sure to drop few as the frightened hocks wing over him in their flight up stream. in which di- rection they invariably speed It is great sport, this wild goose driving on 1 the Roanoke river, as any one will l nrrea who tries if nf1cA 2,