Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1921-12-16


are used by some as decoys, hardly a
commendab!e sport; but geese are
drawn to the decoys and shot this way
My proposition was altogether diff
ferent, although l have shot geese in
the several ways mentioned. The
geese, principally Canada Geese, with
( slate -colored backs and black collar,
fed along crooked river whose banks
were generally high and wooded. The
river WAS narrow. the current swift
and the water dark chocolate at times;
at other times It was clay color.
There was one place where the river
made loop, almost returning to its or
iginal channel. The distance across
was only a few hundred yards, Fol-
lowing the course of the river 1t is
three to four miles around. In this
loop was the favorite feeding ground
of the geese, although they travelled UP
and down the river. There were prob
ably several hundred geese in the VI
cinfty, 'fiocks containing dozen or
more. H-'' ". ''.r Er 7.at
- Matter of GeneraIship.
Goose hunting is phrely'a matter of
generalship. & The night before stop
ped at "a! farm house, some two miles
away, and long before day next morn
ing was on the way to the hunting
grounds A. young white boy, keen
witted and alert, went with me. We
crossed the river on a ferry boat, then
proceeded to inspect the water in the
bends. 1t was not long before We saw
down floating on the water, where the
geese had been preening their feathers.
This was a proof that they.were above
us. - Taking a. stand in thick place,
] sent the boy far around SO that he
would strike the river above the geese,
which was notthard to do, as he could
hear them at some distance from the
river. y, = - ~ -i''E r!sH2 ~!
1t was a long wait; / had told him
that when he struck the river, he must
come down slowly, getting as close to
the birds as he could before flushing
them. ',g., ~
Owing to his weight it requires con-
siderable flight before a wild goose can
rise above steep banks and trees.
Day,swas breaking now and a mist
clung to- the water, but too thin to OBJ
scure evision. ~
When | was almost worn out with
waiting and had come to the -conclus-
ion that there was hitch in the plan
a great quacking broke the stiffness OF
morning, an uproarious concert 'oi
sounds. In a few seconds the old gan
der, leading the flock, broke into view
around the bend and was next instant
alongside. Giving him good lead,
l. H. ,lnf ,r1 iYNN N
neck, killing him instantly and spin
| mid stream. With the second barrel
wounded a goose badly, but she went
| on, and was retrieved later. ta.
The old gander floated for while
| then lodged against a raft far out, sc
we had to go for boat to get him.
| The death of the leader had discon-
certed the flock and stray goose flew
over me further down the river, so low
that there was no trouble in bagging
him.
1t was getting on in the day, fol-
! much time was lost in retrieving the
| gander; so we concluded to give II
over until the afternoon.
About the turn of the afternoon, we
struck the river at point two miles
further down. There was no sign OF
down on the water, so we came out
circled into the hills and came TO the
river full thre, miles further on. Here
! down floated, plenty, of it, and my
| companion said he heard geese.
Accordingly he went around again
and drove the geese to me. My stand
was uncomfortable, for it was between
a big cottonwood and the river, with q
narrow space to stand on, hard against
! a canebrake. The gander in the lead
this time saw me and started across
the river where there was an opening,
so l dropped him, and the flock came
right over, allowing a fine chance
which netted another goose. This last
fell just outside the fringe Of trees
and when | went out, he appeared to
have been winged, and was balancing
himself, with his wing dropping. In
trying to retrieve him without bruising,
| he gave me lick on the back of the
hand with his wing that nearly wound
up my hunting. 1t was worse than
mules kick and the hand was swollen
for a month thereafter.
This was overlooked in the excite
ment of the hunt, for the geese were
| scattered badly; one was dead on the
other side of the river. Pee.
Another Flock in Sight.
Whlle we were consulting aS W Tic
next step, my companion pulled me
down quickly. A flock Of geese was
coming across the river, headed di-
rectly for our stand. for here hedge
of canes ran for some distance and
they appeared to be following it.
The boy killed two geese with his
first barrel and missed with the second.
l got one and wounded another which
we never got, but which was found
next day by countryman and caught,
as it could not fly.
Altogether that afternoon l got nine
geese and the boy three.
Getting Them Home.
Here we faced another problem,
namely, getting the geese home. 1t
was a four mile trip and walking was
the only way of getting there. We had
nine geese between us, for the three
killed in the morning had been sent
home. We divided up the best way
we could, but when the ferry was
reached. with two miles to go, we were
dead beat.
Fortunately, Zone of the grateful
recollections of a ife-time), a negro
happened along with a one-horse waS-
M, into which We niled the geese and