ill further, he perceives it flying with all its might,
ever and anon prudently ducking down to avoid the second barrel.

This is one of the woodcock's best stratagems, and it succeeds ten times
out of twelve, at least with the tyros among sportsmen.

When fairly tired by its flight, the woodcock drops into the underwood,
and is then completely lost to the sportsman; for, once on the ground,
it runs with the greatest celerity, its wings working rapidly like a
couple of paddles, and vanishing beneath the leaves, falls fainting into
some snug corner.

In Brittany and in Lower Normandy this ornament of the table and delight
of the sportsman is found in great numbers at a certain season of the
year. In Picardy, and in the neighbourhood of Boulogne, I have sometimes
knocked over as many as twenty woodcocks in one day, while on the morrow
and the day following I could not flush three. Such is not the case in
Le Morvan, where they are, as we have before remarked, to be found all
the year round; the proper seasons, however, for shooting them are
three. These are, the month of November, before the rains set in; the
month of April, when they mate; and the sultry months of June and July;
the period of drought and of the dog-days. In the interim of these
epochs they are allowed to enjoy themselves, and suffered to fatten
quietly in their dark thickets. I shall, therefore, only notice these
three periods.

In foggy or cloudy nights, when the branches of the trees are dripping
wet, the woodcock, ensconced in its hole, feels no hunger, moves not,
and would not venture abroad for love or money; but should the sky
prove clear, and the moon shine forth, lighting up the forest paths, the
delighted bird steals from its dwelling, shakes its feathers, and
sallies forth on its adventures. For the woodcock, like poets and
lovers, is fond of the moonlight and the sweet perfumes of evening.
Hence it is that sportsmen in France call the full moon of November "the
woodcock's moon," and they hail its appearance with as much rejoicing as
do the foxes, wild cats, and poachers, all of whom make sad havoc
amongst the long-beaked tribe during this fatal period.

The woodcock has been described as an idle, heavy, timid, and stupid
bird, which passes the greater portion of the day in lethargic slumbers,
in gazing at the south, at the growing grass, or the falling leaves;
rejoicing only in silence and solitude; and such is the case during nine
months