Sporting scenes and country characters . pon his favourite pursuit with zeal and in a spot which would sicken and disgustothers, he feels himself at home, light-hearted, andjoyous; where some would be ill at ease with thecookery of the cabin, he is his own cook,—and havinghad the precaution to provide liimself with a pot ofanchovies, a packet of cayenne, a bottle of Tarragonvinegar, or a flask of oil, he can provide a good andsavoury dinner, when the poor, helpless, and merelyfashionable shooter would absolutely starve. Grouse shooting is a work of immense labour anddifficulty,
Sporting scenes and country characters . pon his favourite pursuit with zeal and in a spot which would sicken and disgustothers, he feels himself at home, light-hearted, andjoyous; where some would be ill at ease with thecookery of the cabin, he is his own cook,—and havinghad the precaution to provide liimself with a pot ofanchovies, a packet of cayenne, a bottle of Tarragonvinegar, or a flask of oil, he can provide a good andsavoury dinner, when the poor, helpless, and merelyfashionable shooter would absolutely starve. Grouse shooting is a work of immense labour anddifficulty, and to follow it up with perfect success re-quires the exercise of much courage, skill, and untiringexertion. The scene by which the sportsman is sur-rounded is peculiar, and fully calculated to awaken themost romantic feelings. He sees hills rise above hills,covered with heather of a sober brown hue, intermixed 168 GROUSE SHOOTING. with dusky purple. No majestic trees throw beneatha grateful and refreshing shade; no marks of cultiva-. tion are spread around; no traces of the abode of man,except the lone and distant cabin of the is a solemn and imposing gloom in the depth of GROUSE SHOOTING. 169 the valleys — an awful murmur in the descent of themountain stream — sometimes augmented into the roar-ing torrent; and when the masses of clouds roll overhis head, spreading around increased gloom and dark-ness, the rays of the sun, which suddenly dart betweenthem, present a contrast which gives to the scene itspeculiar and striking characteristics, and awakens feel-ings of loneliness unknown in richly-cultivated spots. It is of great importance to the sportsman that thegame should lie well; but this is seldom the case inunfavourable weather, or when the packs have beendisturbed by poachers or unskilful shooters, and con-sequently rendered wild. Under these circumstances,they cannot be approached within the distance of fouror five hundred yards ; and it is no very gr
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1840, booksubjectf, booksubjecthunting
