. Wild Spain ... records of sport with rifle, rod, and gun, natural history and exploration . ssquatted on the ground or resting in various attitudes ofrepose. Such big packs are inaccessible ; only once, thatwinter, did we seem to be really on the road to bulk of the geese—some seventy in number—appearedto be peacefully sleeping away the mid-day hours, some * That is, with two men behind the pony. We have since then,going single-handed, occasionally succeeded in oiitwittmg even theGrey Lag. 378 WILD SPAIK. sitting on the grass, others standing on one leg with headssnugly tucked aw
. Wild Spain ... records of sport with rifle, rod, and gun, natural history and exploration . ssquatted on the ground or resting in various attitudes ofrepose. Such big packs are inaccessible ; only once, thatwinter, did we seem to be really on the road to bulk of the geese—some seventy in number—appearedto be peacefully sleeping away the mid-day hours, some * That is, with two men behind the pony. We have since then,going single-handed, occasionally succeeded in oiitwittmg even theGrey Lag. 378 WILD SPAIK. sitting on the grass, others standing on one leg with headssnugly tucked away under their back feathers. We hadalready reached the critical point, and the ponies well knownow the importance of caution—step by step, with a haltat every fourth or fifth to crop a mouthful of grass, theyslowly advance. We had proceeded thus to within a shotand a half of the still silent geese, when from an interven-ing belt of rush there sprang a couple of the half-wild,black pigs of the wilderness. Away they scampered,jostling and fighting with each other in their fright, and. GREY LAG GEESE FLIGHTING—DAYBREAK. squealing as only pigs can squeal. In an instant thegeese were on the alert—every neck at full stretch, everyeye seeking keenly the cause of the unwonted uproar. Fromthe sentinel gander came the low, clear alarm-note—Honk! honk ! The rest were still silent, but they knewfull well the significance of those low warning notes. Afew seconds more and, despite our utmost care, the whole
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, bookidwildspainrecords00chapric
