GAME-COVERTS 167 



plentiful and regular in its appearance, 

 the pheasant cares little how big the 

 woods may be in which he is housed, the 

 desirable outline of the larger coverts 

 being rather determined by convenience 

 for shooting. 



Belts or strips of trees dividing the 

 fields are useful additions to a shooting, 

 especially on outside beats where they 

 often collect a goodly number of waifs 

 and strays which would otherwise have 

 never come to the gun. They should 

 be at least forty yards in width if they 

 are to serve any useful purpose, and 

 some thought should be taken, when 

 planning them out, as to the provision of 

 flushing spots, for shooting the average 

 belt in regular sections — a common 

 practice — is not conducive to good birds. 



Woods of great area are at all times 

 unhandy to manage, and must be heavily 

 stocked to repay the labour and cost of 

 beating, and to provide for the inevitable 

 wastage of birds. This disadvantage 

 becomes more marked if their general 



