The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-09-27
DUCK HUNTERS WHO ARE RICH.
SOME Ways OF THE SUSQUE-
HANNA GUNNERS.
It's Fun. After q Different Kind Of Life.
to Lie In Rain and Sleet for . Chance
to Bring Down the Birds-What the
Guide Thinks OF the Men Who Hire Him.

to Bring Down the Birds-What the
Guide Thinks OF the Men Who Hire Him.
odd Dick is what they call him around
Spesutia Island and on the flats. He
probably has last name, but not one in a
hundred Of the gunners who come to the
lower Susquehanna River every fall and
spring knows it. 1t is enough for them
that he knows the place to get bag full
when no one else can bring down duck
and can make blind" and sneak box
better than any man in that part Of the
country.
"Old Dick" isn't much Of a talker when
guiding a party to the shooting grounds,
but occasionally he drops into one Of the
clubhouses when it's too stormy for any,
thing else, and after his pipe is filled and
loaded his listeners can get some good
ideas Of the offside Of the rich men who
sometimes drift down there for a week s
sport.
Good shots, yes, some Of 'em Of pretty
tol'ble,' said Dick between pipe puffs, and
the curious part Of it is I've seen a man
knock down blackhead after blackhead
who didn't know how to clean his gun
after it was wet-gave me something extra
to fix it for him.
Il took a man out last spring who brought
along as fine pair of barrels as you d want
to look at, but he didn't seem to be able to
shoot atlall. member we got up a brace
Of fine oanvasbacks at close range-dead
easy shot. knew he was an old hand from
the way he kept his nerve while waitin'
and the way he handled his piece. but
when they rose, the charge went way over
em.
I'VE waited half an hour and along came
four more-as pretty a shot as ever saw.
He fred just at the right time, but the shot
went all over the place--never near EN-.
He looked at the sights-they were the
telescope knd-to see if they were adjusted
| all right. took the piece apart and put it
together again, but there was nothin' wrong
with it. Seemed to be in first class shape.
Never had such luck, says he. The
thing must be hoodooed. Let me change
guys with you So he took my old muzzle
loader and took the new one. He killed
five out Of the next seven chances. Now.
says he, you finish the rest. III bet you'll
do better than / do It's an actual fact
gents, that knocked over the next three
one after another-two were high ones,
The next time he came down here he told
me he'd given the gun to friend in New
York who d done some tall shootin' withit.
Can tell an old hand at duck huntin?
Yes, sir Long before we gets to the blind,
he shows what calls his nerve. The right
sort will lay down In the boat with maybe
the rain and sleet peltin' their faces or per-
haps the snow GOVERN 'em up. Many q
day we gets weather that goes right to he
bone, through your top boots, buckskin
and fannels. I tell you man has to be
the stuff to stand 1t three or four hours
out there-not movin' except to take a
pull at the flask.
THE green ones get uneasy and fidget
around. They don't know a canvasback
| a snowstorm, and cuss me and everything
else because they can't get shot when
we can hear the guns poppin' all around
l can't say anything, cause it would only
make a row So keeps still, pockets my
money and then they goes back to the city
and tells their friends shootin's no good
here any more.
Then I've had others who went cut
! day after day when l told EN- the signs
were wrong for shootin'. and we didn
see bird, but they were just as well salts
fed-didn't seem to care. One man has
hired me reg lar every fall for the last five
years, and don't b'lieve he's killed half a
| dozen birds any time he's been here, though
he stays week or ten days on a stretch.
Il member the first time ! saw him
He had three or four guns and lot of
| handbags, and wore brand new duck suit
| as fine as any ! ever laid eyes on. Toe
p,,pa didn't look al If theyfH ayer boon
| used more'n once or twice He wes a good
| deal different from those I'd been putin
| up, and told him as we drove along we
didn't live in much style. Never mind,
| says he, L didn't come for that; came 10
| shoot He ate the ham and eggs and
bed early, tellin' me we'd go next day,
| rain or shine.
well, the next day was nasty. The wind
was wrong, leadn' from the blinds out
| into the bay, and there was a cold driv.n'
rain. 1t was the sort o weather that mai es
| you feel like bein' alongside a fire with a
| pipe and a glass of somethin' hot l asked
| him If he didn't want to wait over, but he
wouldn't hear to it, and so we started.
! +" He was game one. | could soc Ly
! his hands and face that he hadn't been
used to bein' out Of doors much. He was
| thin and nervous and his hands were white
as girls. We didn't see more than three
| or four ducks and two of EN- was divers,
| at that. / told him they was no good. but
he drove away at everything, and believe
would have fired at the decovs If | hadn't
told him to be careful not to shoot except
when he was sure he saw duck.
He knew little about gun. | had to
show him how to put one of his together
and pick out the best number cartridge to
USE Fact was the man couldn't tell the
difference between what was good for reed
birds and the kind we needed-but he didn't
pretend to know it all as some of EN- do,
and said he hadn't done much gunnin'
He watched me and initiated everything |
did. That day we never got bird, though
we was out eight hours, but he didn't seem
to care, and when we got back to the house
he ate like a horse.
There says he, pushin' back his chair
and pullin' out cigar, that the first time
I've been hungry in year The rest of
the evenin' he made me tell him stories.
He was there for week We went
out every day, but he never got bird till
the fourth day. Thena teal come along
right over the box. He was 80 excited
that he let go both barrels and the bird
came down so full Of lead that it WASH I
really worth pickin' out the shot. / never
saw man 30 tickled in my life. He acted
like kid jest out O. school, and had me
send 1t to the town, where 1t was packed in
ice and sent to friend Of his at some club
in New York.
u was interested in that man for he WASH Z
stuck on himself and gave him all the points
/ could about shootin' Before the week
was up he knocked down two or three more,
as they were flying pretty thick. Then
one night another telegraph despatch came