PARTRIDGE SHOOTING.

As in the case of grouse shooting, I shall here first allude to the various birds likely to be met with on partridge manors, then the nature of that ground, the best dogs for the purpose of finding these birds, and the gun most suitable for the sport.

BIRDS FOUND ON OUR SOUTHERN MANORS.

The Common Partridge and the French or Red-legged Partridge are the only two varieties met with in this country, the latter being now very rare. Some years ago it was introduced, and bred in considerable numbers in Norfolk and Suffolk; but it was found to give such bad sport, that it has been almost exterminated.

The COMMON PARTRIDGE (Perdix cineria) is so well-known as to make it unnecessary to describe its appearance, and I shall therefore do little more than allude to its habits. The length of the cock bird averages twelve inches and a half, the female being generally a little smaller. The latter is also distinguished by having the chesnut-coloured patch round the beak of a lighter shade and smaller in size than that of the male, so that it does not extend backwards beyond the perpendicular of the eyes. The lower breast also is white, and does not put on the dark chesnut patch till the second or sometimes the third year. The bars on the flanks are likewise broader than on the male. Young birds before their first moult may be known by the absence of the red mark behind the eye and by the uniformly brownish-yellow shade of the ground-colour of their plumage, the bars being of a dark brown. Partridges pair in February, and begin to lay in April. The nest is made on the ground with a few leaves and bents, and the spot selected is generally either in mowing grass or clover, or in corn. The hen lays from twelve to twenty eggs, which are of an olive-brown colour, one inch and four lines long by one inch in breadth. From thirty to thirty-six eggs have been found in one nest; but in such instances, two hens must have laid in it, as not unfrequently happens. The partridge sits twenty-one days, and the general hatching time in the south of England is in the latter

part of June, but occasionally the young birds come out much earlier in the year. The young birds leave the nest directly, but they are carefully watched over by both the old birds till they are strong on the wing and able to take care of themselves. The stratagems of the old cock and hen to draw attention from their young ones are most marvellously interesting to the lover of nature, and sometimes lead to the belief that their reasoning power is of a high order. These manifestations, however, are considered to be purely instinctive, but they certainly assume at times the appearance of a higher order of mental power. Both the cock and hen will perform the most curious gyrations, turning and twisting about with apparently a broken wing, just as if they were in the agonies of death. This of course induces any inexperienced person to approach with the view either of giving assistance or of making a capture, but a near proximity speedily cures the attack, and the old hypocrite moves off just beyond the reach of the witness of his or her antics. In the meantime, the other partner has been leading off the young brood to a place of safety, where they are speedily joined by the one which has been playing off the tricks that have just been described. Two partridges, when together, are called a pair," and when, after the breeding season is over, they are unaccompanied by young, they are denominated "a barren pair," which may be either caused by having lost their nest, or from both being of the same sex, as will sometimes happen when there is a preponderance of either. The old and young together constitute " a covey." These during the day are seldom seen on the wing, unless they are disturbed, but when not on the feed, they frequent the hedge sides of grass fields or the banks of brooks, or they "bather" in the dusty banks of hedgerows, in order to get rid of the parasitical insects which infest their skins. In the morning and afternoon they are on the feed, which is either in the standing corn or in the stubble after it is cut. dusk they "call" to one another, and having assembled, they move off to their resting-place for the night, which is generally on seeds or grass, where they "jug" or nestle close together on the ground, with their heads directed outwards. They feed on corn and other seeds, varying their diet with a

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small proportion of insects. Early in the season partridges fly a very short distance, generally dropping in the next field when they are disturbed; but towards November they become very wild, and often fly for a mile or more, and at a great pace. On hilly ground they are particularly inclined to these long flights. The scent of the partridge is not so strong as that of the grouse, nor is the ground which they frequent so favourable to finding them as that on the moors; hence partridge shooting requires dogs with a better nose and more careful hunting than that of the grouse, and for this reason the pointer is preferred to the setter in the south.

The RED-LEGGED or FRENCH PARTRIDGE (Cacabis rufa), sometimes also called the GUERNSEY PARTRIDGE, has long been an occasional visitant to the manors on the eastern coast; but in the early part of the nineteenth century considerable numbers were imported and turned out in Suffolk and Norfolk. Being more hardy than the common partridge, it was hoped that a larger stock could be obtained, and this opinion has been verified by the result; but they are so injurious to sport by their habit of running before the dogs, and also so dry and insipid when put on the table, that they are now pursued to extermination. Still in some districts a few birds remain, but it is probable that in the course of ten years the breed will be almost unknown again. The old cock has the beak red, from which a black streak passes to the eye; in front of the throat is a black gorget, ending in streaks which descend on the breast; iris reddish orange; eyelids of a rich vermilion; top of the head with a line of white both before and behind the eye; all the upper parts of the body uniformly brown; wing feathers greyish black, with a brown margin to each feather; tail chesnut; breast pencil grey; under parts fawn colour; sides and thighs covered with feathers barred transversely with black and fawn-coloured marks on a pearl-grey ground, approaching to a pure white in some parts; legs and toes vermilion; a knob in place of a spur; claws brown. The length is about thirteen inches and a half in the male, the female being somewhat smaller. In other respects there is not much difference between the sexes, except that the plumage of the hen is not

so bright as that of the cock, and she has no knob in place of a spur. The flesh is white, dry, and tasteless, which is also another reason for the dislike which is taken to this bird by game preservers. They are stronger on the wing than the common partridge, and if they can be approached near enough when in the air, they afford good sport; but they run so far in front of the dogs before they rise, that a shot can seldom be obtained. Sometimes they perch on trees or hedge-rows, but this is not by any means a common habit with them. If they are in very great abundance, closeranging spaniels drive them up better than pointers, which latter dogs allow them to get out of shot. They make their nest in the same way and in the same places as the common partridge, and lay from fifteen to eighteen eggs, which are of a reddish yellow white, spotted and speckled with reddish brown; in length one inch and a half by one and a quarter in breadth. The young birds leave the nest directly, and are reared and fed in the same way as the common partridge.

The QUAIL (Coturnix communis) is recognised by the following characters :-Beak strong, shorter than the head, and with the upper mandible curved; nostrils basal, lateral, half closed by an arched membrane; feet with four toes, the anterior ones connected by a membrane as far as the first joint; tail short, rounded, recumbent, almost hid by the tail coverts. The colour is as follows in the adult male :-Beak brownish grey; iris hazel; top of the head dark brown, with a pale wood-brown streak of the same colour over the crown of the head to the nape of the neck; feathers of the upper parts brown, with lighter-coloured shafts, and each having a longitudinal streak of wood brown; wing primaries dusky brown, mottled with light brown; chin and throat white, bounded by two half-circular dark-brown bands descending from the ear coverts, and with a black patch at the bottom in front; breast pale chesnut brown, with the shafts of the feathers straw coloured, all the under parts yellowish white; flanks streaked with pale chesnut; legs, toes, and claws pale brown. The length seven inches. The female does not differ in size, but has no dark, half-circular marks down the sides of her neck, nor the black patch in front; and the

feathers on her breast are strongly marked with a small dark spot on each side of the light straw-coloured shaft. The young birds resemble the female, the black patch on the front of the neck not being assumed by the cocks till their second year. Quails are polygamous in their habits; the hen makes her nest on the ground, with the aid of a few bits of grass or straw; she lays from seven to twelve eggs, which are of a dull yellowish white blotched with umber brown, in length one inch and one line, and eleven lines in breadth. The period of incubation is about three weeks, the young birds, like those of the partridge, at once leaving the nest and feeding on insects, seeds, and green leaves. They are found in September in "bevies" (as the broods are called) on the stubbles, and many are killed on the eastern coast by partridge shooters. The quail is generally only a summer visitant to this country, but occasionally exceptions to the rule occur, and individuals are met with during the winter. Africa is the country where they chiefly spend this season, crossing the Mediterranean in countless thousands in April and March, and a few arriving in this country in May and leaving in October. Great quantities are imported alive from France, and are fed by the London poulterers on hempseed till they become fat. The flesh is considered a great delicacy, and coming as it does in the height of the London season, it is much valued. They fly quickly, and generally straight and low, but it is difficult to make them rise a second time after being once flushed.

The LANDRAIL (Ortygometra crex) is also, like the quail, a summer visitant, appearing in England about April or May, and leaving us in October or early in November. The generic characters are as follows:-Bill shorter than the head, thick at the base, subcultrated and compressed; lateral furrow of the upper mandible broad, and extending more than half its length; angle of the under mandible bending upwards, both being of an equal length; nostrils concave, lateral, linear, ovoid, pierced in a membrane occupying the furrow in the middle of the bill; wings armed with a spine, and having the second and third quill feather the longest; legs strong, of medium length, with the lower part of the tibia naked; feet four-toed; toes long, slender, and