24 PHEASANTS 



their distrust of the human, that it be- 

 comes quite difficult to catch more than 

 a ghmpse of a scurrying httle form, at a 

 coop of Prince of Wales chicks but a few 

 days old. That they are at least as 

 prolific and easy to rear as any other 

 pheasant is matter of common knowledge 

 to any who have given them a trial ; 

 while they seem to thrive better than any 

 of the others in wet seasons, as many 

 pheasant rearers — with a few coops of 

 Prince of Wales birds scattered among 

 the rest — noticed particularly during the 

 unkindly summer of the past year (1912). 

 Toleration of continued wet and damp 

 is the best character a new pheasant can 

 earn, sunless summers being practically 

 unknown in the native countries of 

 most of our recent introductions, and it 

 is in this respect, if in no other, that 

 the strain would seem to warrant a trial. 

 Wet weather plays havoc among wild 

 pheasants, and anything that may tend 

 to fortify the race against its evil effects 

 is worth careful consideration. 



