The sun., 1910-01-09

Not that, as many accustomed to Long
Island and Jersey wild fowl shooting
might surmise. cold, stormy weather Is
an essential FOR, good sport among the
OcrRccke geese and brant. Some OF The
finest cunning here Is to be had in what
the natives call --:Ak oa'm," with thc
sun shining out OF q Cloudless blue and
the temperature such .-at the shooting:
GOAT and sweater bAoome a burden and
the gunner can rest In his box stripped
down TO his shirt and trousers. With
calm to moderate weather and the tide
on the full ebb a man who knows his little
book can kill all the geese and brant his
conscience will allow him six days out
OF six.
On the food tide let him stay ashore
or ON the hOuseboat, cleaning his gun and
swapping stories. The lower the tide the
better the shooting. and the only blank
days are the days when the ebb sets in
so late that the gunner's effective time is
whitfield down to a minimum. Neither
goose nor brant will nop wing after food
when their instinct tells them the water
ia too deep For them to to getat 1t.
There are as many fine points to bat
terry shooting as to cactus leaf. Per-
haps the very hardest thing to do is 20
lie low and keep stock still. Nothing
must show above the sides Of the box,
at the head of which is a seventy five
pound block Of pig iron or lead. On this
head weight, with the scantiest OF cover
ings over 1t. rests the gunner's head.
Too plump a pillow would lift the head
too high. so comfort Is sacrificed TO oon-
cealment. just high enough so that by
craning the neck you can soan the water
on both sides and in front, not high
enough to have either head or hat popping
up over the sides OF the box, is the rule
and then wait, watch and when the right
time comes act.
At the end Of the first days work in a
sink box the inexperienced battery shoot
er's neck. shoulder and back muscles
will be one big ache; at the end OF the
second day he will wonder what on earth
10 the matter with his stomach muscles.
constant getting up and sinking back in
the box. II is some little time before you
get the knack OF lying quietly and COM
fortably on the fiat OF the back. the head
so arranged az to be able to keep
watch and ward without throwing an
or half dislocating the neck. Once that
is learned the true pleasure OF battery
shooting begins.
When in the box out out all black
black cap. black coat, black shirt. Curl
ously enough no color scares the goose
or brant so badly as black, and they can
see IL from an incredible distance. II Is
a fact that q red haired man, his cap OF =,
can sit up In the box and his flaming poll
will apparently attract rather than
~
pop into sight for just q jiffy and away
swerves the line Of honkers that only a
moment before was heading straight for
the stools.
Tan or khaki color is the most desirable
for clothing. Underclothing that COM
bines the minimum OF bulk with the
maximum OF warmth so as to obviate
whenever possible wearing a coat over
the sweater should be worn. The less
encnmbered the arms and shoulders by
superhuous clothes the better. In cold
weather one OF those paper waistooats
comes in mighty handy. especially as IL
takes UP little room.
4 cardinal point in bstee,y shooting is
quickness. Every second is precious
when the time comes. The gns-a spare
gun IL you shoot double barrel 10 pretty
nigh essential-should rest on either side
Of you, the muzxles protruding slightly
over the foot Of the box. the stocks close
up to the hand. The most convenient
place for the box OF shells is between the
The sight OF dock OF wild geese crossing
the rising or the setting sun is one that
never fails TO stir the blood Here at
Ocracoke the focks follow one another
in interminable procession.
=. There Is no mistaking geese even at
distance, where one black speck is just
like another black speck in size and con-
formation, so steady and straight IL their
businesslike alignment strung out in
strands OF black pearls silhouetted against
the sky. or in the familiar VS. or in arrow
heads with one long and one short barb.
The redhead 6y in smoky clouds, RATS the
ocraookans term the thick. closely packed
hocks; the brant zigzag up and down in
long. uncertain wavering lines, but the
Wild goose 10 the martinez OF flight and
keeps disciplined line with the precision
OF an aerial soldier
The birds that fly high are past praying
for. Either they have a settled notion
in their heads as TO just where they want
70 70 or esle. as is more probable.
from their lofty vantage they SEQ the
box and it's human contents. In any case
they seldom III ever come to the stools.
The birds that come snooping along
low. keeping a casual eye out for what is
devourable, are the prey for the decoys.
and wary as the wild goose undoubtedly
is. when he gets stupid nothing in Gre
alton can be more whole souledly stupid
he comes, big. noisy fellow that he is
honling and talking right into the de-
coys. and II he is In the mood nothing
short OF a pyrotechnic display or a brass
hand can prevent his committing suicide.
Brant. on the other hand. are as rule
silent as snowhakes. and very often you
will find them swimming placjdly among
your decoys al though sprung up from
some subaqueous trap.
In the battery shooting. while quick
ness ts essential, haste 10 fatal. More
birds are missed by shooting too soon
than shooting too late. The trick is to
lie without moving an eyelash and let the
birds work in close before sitting up in the
box.
There is nothing unsportsmanlike in
this. Distances on the water are very
deceptive, especially to the novice. and
many a straight aimed shot falls ineffec-
tive because the mark was really out OF
range. The goose TO be dropped clean
has. as the guide will tell you, got to get
IL down his teeth As the gunner sits
up in the box the goose gets up too. and
il is astonishing how such a bulky bird
can get up and how short time IL takes
him to get under full headway And the
brant. with his tremendous spread OF
wing. out Of all proportion TO his size OF
body, is a good deal smarter.
II is trick shooting rendered all the more
tricky by the narrow confines OF the box
and the consequent difficulty OF swinging
around on right and left quarterinR
birds. Some OF the prettiest shooting OF
the day is generally to be had at sundown
when the fowls, both geese and brant,
come smoking into the deooys fast and
low. singly, In pairs and trplets. In the
waning light the decoys appear at their
best, and the last hour Of the day. IL the
tida Il atiIl abb ia nf IN kaAn the 0tlnnar