The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1907-11-03
CUNNING FOR MEADOW HENS.
Long Islanders Make the TIde Help Them
Big SnIpe scarce.

A city sportsman may walk all day after
meadow hens-Otherwise mud hen. Ameri-
can coot, clapper rail and Florida gallinule-
without bagging a single bird. They are
50 quick and 10 sny. running in the grass
instead OF rising on the wing, hat a fair
shot is the exception.
The country gunners on Long Island
have the best Of the shooting, but they
don't stalk the meadow mems on foot. To
them meadow hen shooting il purely an
aquatic sport and they don't dop around
in the mud after the game.
A Long Islander waits for the abnor-
mally high tides of the fall before setting
out for the meadows. Then he pushes over
the salt marshes in a fiat bottomed boat
and finds the shooting good.
The mems ave been flooded out Of their
hiding places and take refuge in the tus-
socks of grass, swimming or flying from
olump to clump on the approach Of the
boat. There are generally two in each boat,
one at the oars and the other in the bow
with the gun
Working in partnership the shooting is
generally good and a fair bag assured.
Often a native will be tempted by the fiood
tide to desert the oyster beds or fishing
for the day and go shooting.
Under these circumstances he will lay
the gun across the bow and standing amid
ship push the boat along with a pole. He
dTops the pole and grabs the gun for a
snap shot when a mud hen ia put up, a
change hat neCessitates quick work.
However slow about a boat under ordi-
nary circumstances, the native Long ISL
ander is as fast as creased lightning when
polling after mud hens, and as they are
fine shots the kills are by far more fire.
Quent than misses.
The big English snipe and yelIowleGs
are becoming more scarce each season
on Long Island, one cause being the build
ing OF cottages and resorts on the beaches.
but the small sorts have been quite plenti-
full. The snipe gunner takes his stand
on the beach at low tide. where he scoops
out a hole in the sand and banks il about
with seaweed, or he may simply hide in a
hollow OF the shore.
Then the decoys are placed in the wet
sand near the water and the hunter goes
into ambush. If there are any snipe feed
ing on the beach they will soon come flying
tunity to the gunner
The small snipe fly in hocks and the scat
tering shot from a double barrel gun will
bring down a dozen or more. Years z
there were thousands of snipe on the beaches
and fifty might drop at one discharge.
The big snipe fly in couples or in hocks
Of six Or a dozen, il any Of them now come
past at all. The outer beaches OF Great
South Bay and sand bars in the bay are
the faVorite haunts Of the snipe.
Once the most ealou inner would
begin --ipe shooting during August in
Connecticut. wind up that month and Sep
TENDER on the Great South Bay and then
follow the birds 20 Barnegat Bay and the New
Jersey shore, or even 20 Delaware and
Virginia. where rail and reed birds may also
be baRged with the snipe.
But snipc shooting in Connecticut is now
nothing to speak Of. and for every bird
there are a dozen gunners. Years ago
thew could be found in great tiOcks on the
salt marshes, especially after a period OF
stormy weather. but now only a few strug-
Cling birds are to be- seen. The sport IL
although far from being as OF old. when
even a novice could count On a good bag.