62 Partridge Shooting 



guard against during the breeding time ; but I should hke to tell very 

 briefly the misdoings of one other bird that I caught red-handed for 

 the first time this last summer. A pair of Red-backed Shrikes* had 

 a nest not far from a meadow in which were a few coops of Pheasants 

 and some Partridges, that we were compelled to bring up artifically. 

 The keeper told me he had been losing Partridges — the Pheasants 

 were, of course, much larger — for the last two days, and he could 

 not find out liow : Jays he thought. We walked together along the 

 fence bounding the meadow, the fence having two or three strands of 

 prickly wire running through it, and presently we heard the angry 

 chattering of the male Shrike, and saw the family, the mother and 

 four fully-fledged young ones, a little beyond him. While I was 

 examining them, I heard an exclamation from my companion, 

 who was examining the fence, and turning round, I found tliat his 

 attention was directed to the upper strand of prickly wire. Neatly 

 impaled on this were four or five downy Partridge chicks, their heads 

 battered in and brains picked out, otherwise they were sound. 



We may now turn to the last part of our subject, the value of 

 the Partridge as a sporting bird. Partridges may be attacked on 

 a big scale by three different methods. 



1. They may be shot over setters or pointers, in the same wav 

 as Grouse are shot on the Scotch non-driving moors. Tiiis form 

 of sport is but little followed in the majority of English counties 

 at the present time. Why ? Because of the presence of the much- 

 abused Frenchman ? Not at all. It is because of the altered 

 conditions of farming more than anything else : the machine-clipped 

 stubble, in place of the ragged stubble of 40 years ago, reaching half- 

 way to one's knees ; the machine-drilled roots, running regularly 

 in long, straight dringles, in place of seed sown by hand broadcast ; 

 and, lastly, it is owing to the difference between our modern weapons 

 and the old-fashioned muzzle-loaders then in use. After each shot, 

 a lengthened period had to be spent in reloading, and a good dog, 

 who was absolutely steady and would remain at the " down charge " 

 for as long as necessary, was a sine qua non. 



Shooting over dogs should, in my opinion, at the present time 

 be confined to those grounds where the birds are very few and far- 

 between, where there is little or no suitable cover {e.g., roots), but 

 much rough grass or moor-land, which holds a covey here and there 

 at long intervals. A brace or two of wide-ranging setters will save 

 an enormous amount of unnecessary labour, and materially add to 

 the prospects of the bag. In fact, without dogs on such a ground, 

 the chances of the sportsman shooting anything at all are not ver}- 

 rosy. 



2. They may be walked up ; guns and beaters making a line, 

 driving the birds from the stubbles into the roots, and then shooting 

 the latter. This is probably the commonest form of Partridge 

 shooting, and is certainly the most suitable for all small shootings. 



* See "Field," July 8, igir, p. 112, " Butcher bird killing young Partridges." 



