The Washington herald., 1907-12-01
BY EDWIN VI. HAsRRoUck

II i naru matter Tor one person to
pick out a certain sport and say that il is
superior to all others But every lover of
the gun loves Auan shooting. and every
gunner looks forward from year to year
10 the time when he can HE himself away
TO the fields for a crack at Bob White
wonder II there is r solitary soul in
all the wide world who wouldn't develop
some strange sensations with Il flock Of
quail flushing under his very feet and
whirring away 10 cover in the twinkling
OF an eye? l wonder if there is a single
soul who wouldn't instinctively raise his
stick, his cane or umbrella. take imagi-
nary aim at the streaks Of brown and
say with the little darkey, oh ] wish't
had a gum There is sporting blood in
all OF US, and every variety of shooting is
fine sport-thc best of all while we are
al it-and quail shooting is one of the best
Of the best.
Fortunately FOR us mortaIs here in
Washington. we don't have TO go far
from home to enjoy tia few miles by
steam. trolley. or boat putting us right
in the midst of good country with birds
more or less abundant ! say more or
less because there are conflicting reports
this year as to the abundance Of the
game. Some have reported a scarcity.
while others, hunting in a different To-
callty have made good bags. and it would
seem that they are unevenly distributed
anc lying in certain favored sections.
quail shooting is the one sport known
10 the writer where the greatest diversity
of opinion prevails as TO equipment. for
We find expert testimony ranging all the
way from the 12-gauge successfully
through the Is. the %. and the little 2S
This last has come rapidly into favor in
the last few years. and by many is con-
Sidered the quail gun par excellence.
True. one doesn't have as big a charge Of
shot TO pour in. but if YOU will hold close
on TO your kind you can kill him just as
dead and at as great a distance as you
can with the twelve Moreover, the shells
are like peanuts. and double the number
can bescarried, and still you viii not have
50 big load as with larger gun. The
difference in weight of guns. too is some
thing when on an all-day tramp.
Pointer or setter!
As to dogs. a spirited controversy has
waged fer years and years as to whether
pointer or setter is best; years and years
from now the same topic viii be dis
cussed at every campfire. The truth is
that both are equally good. one is par
ucularly adapted TO one kind of country.
the other to another. A pointer works
better in the open, while his long-haired
brother is not bothered with briars and
tangle; although l have seen a pointer
work the briar patches until his tail was
whipped TO "A pulp and the blood ran.
but pointers as "a rule dislike thick cover.
Just so long as the dog is a good one,
i matters little what breed
II one viii be aheId with the first
streaks of daylight he will have a big
advantage over the man who doesn't get
there until an hour later. Not that he
viii get shooting at that time. but with
the first half hour of daylight the birds
begin calling. and for short time a good
idea can be formed of the number Of
covcys in the vicinity and their locations.
An hour later not a note will be heard
and If one has hunted couple Of hours
without success. were i not for having
heard them ut daylight one would very
readily conclude there We're no birds at
that place, and go elsewhere.
IN quail hunting. a little knowledge
Of the habits OF your game is q good
thing. To begin with, it should be re
membered that every flush has a given
area over which it flies. and that they
do not. as rule. wander far from
this territory Somewhere on this
range you are bound to find them. hav-
ing once learned Of a covy During
the morning, until about 10 or II
o'clock, they are feeding After this
they seek cover and may be looked for
in the thickets until about 3 o'clock I'm
the afternoon, when they again come
out for the evening feed. In this re-
gion, where so much thick cover is to
be found. one must make the best Of
the first flush, for every bunch will
start straight for the very thickest
tangle it can find. Following them.
one gets good snap shooting. as the
dog points them one at a time. This is
hard Shooting. but it offers some Of the
finest kind OF difficult shots.
Try to Fool the Hunter.
Don't blame your dog if he don't
find the birds where you saw them en-
Ter the woods. so soon as they struck
the ground they ran like deer. and
when he does find them. II may be at
some distance from the markdown.
Again, falling to find them, you may
be UP against one Of the tricks Of the
game Birds that have been hunted
a number Of times, grow wary. and. in
stead OF dropping TO the ground. take
literally 20 the tall timber and alight
in the trees. They seem 10 know that
they are not expected to be there. and
one can pass through grove of young
mines where a number bava r+or,,od
yet not flush one They are right
cute about knowing where they are
discovered. too. and viii dart away the
instant they find that you have located
them. When your dog works through
places like this. acts as If he were
at fault. and frequently throws his
nose into the air and shifts, search the !
trees-he is telling you as plain as he
can that the birds are not on the
ground.
"TrEst Your Dog Always"
In fact. to many, the marvellous work |
ing OF good dog. and the almost
human intelligence with which he
covers his ground, and finds and points
his bird. and the glad look of duty well /
done with which he lays the bird in |
your hand, is one of the chief pleas |
ures of the sport. Trust your dog al |
ways-he may fool you at times bur |
If he does, it is because he Is fooled /
himself He knows better than Won
whether birds are present. and il he 1
says so. take il for granted Every
body has TO learn his own lessons. and
the writer has sen a dog point in a
perfectly smooth field without a smear
of grass, and when two persons he