Whaling crews are bound by similar
customs, in which nice distinctions are made, and which have all the
force of laws.
Duck-shooting.--Wooden ducks, ballasted with lead, and painted, may be
used at night as decoy-ducks; or the skins of birds already shot, may be
stuffed and employed for the same purpose. They should be anchored in the
water, or made fast to a frame attached to the shooting-punt, and dressed
with sedge. It is convenient to sink a large barrel into the flat marsh
or mud, as a dry place to stand or sit in, when waiting for the birds to
come. A lady suggests to me, that if the sportsman took a bottle of hot
water to put under his feet, it would be a great comfort to him, and in
this I quite agree; I would take a keg of hot water, when about it. If
real ducks be used as decoy-birds, the males should be tied in one place
and the females in another, to induce them to quack. An artificial island
may be made to attract ducks, when there is no real one.
Crocodile-shooting.--Mr. Gilby says, speaking of Egypt, "I killed
several crocodiles by digging pits on the sand-islands and sleeping a
part of the night in them; a dry shred of palm-branch, the colour of the
sand, round the hole, formed a screen to put the gun through. Their flesh
was most excellent eating--half-way between meat and fish: I had it
several times. The difficulty of shooting them was, that the falcons and
spurwing-plovers would hover round the pit, when the crocodiles
invariably took to the water.
Pages:
336
337
338
339
340
341
342
343
344
345
346
347
348
349
350
351
352
353
354
355
356
357
358
359
360