Bird Notes and News 



67 



reveal remarkably practical knowledge of 

 woodcraft, that on the Hazel being notably 

 good all-round ; and the young Team of 

 Westonzoyland give much promise. Promis- 

 ing, too, is the work from Chedington. 

 Strictly speaking, Chedington is in Dorset, 

 but close to the Somerset border ; the 

 Team makes a first appearance, and shows 

 well that the principle of the Competition 

 has been grasped, for the work is very 

 genuine and pleasing. 



WARWICKSHIRE. 



Champion School. — Mancetter. 

 Challenge Shield. — Dosthill. 



For the third year in succession Mancetter 

 takes highest honours in its County, and 

 is accordingly precluded from holding the 

 Shield. The papers on Trees, in particular, 

 are exceedingly graphic and faithful. 

 Dosthill, with a set of admirable papers, 

 showing zeal, industry, and true feeling 

 for the work, thoroughly earns the Shield. 

 The Bird subjects are Peewit, Yellowhammer, 

 and Whitethroat ; the Trees, Sycamore, 

 Willow, and Holly. All are really interest- 

 ing reading, full of observation. Yet all 

 these children (and Dosthill furnishes two 

 Teams) come, with one exception, from 

 colliers' homes. Middleton School is an 

 old Shield-winner, and ranks again very 

 near the top. The young people here have 

 evidently a real enthusiasm for the study, 

 and they write accurately and prettily on 

 Tree-Pipit, Willow-Warbler, and Barn-Owl, 

 the Tree papers also being very well done. 

 Haselor must be commended on the selection 

 of two Birds out of the common way, 

 Kestrel and Green Woodpecker, and on the 

 knowledge gained of them. This School 

 is always remarkable for good drawings, 

 and this year excellent sketches illustrate 



all the essays. The Stratford-on-Avon Girls 

 have made noteworthy advance ; they have 

 watched keenly, record brightly what they 

 have seen, and draw very well indeed. 

 Last year the Judges thought this Team 

 showed want of enthusiasm ; no such 

 thought would occur to readers of these 

 pleasant papers. The Minworth Team like- 

 wise show observation and intelligence and 

 considerable observation, and use their 

 pencils prettily. The defect in these two 

 Schools is that they take too many day-to- 

 day notes from their note-books instead 

 of weaving them into an essay. Solihull 

 Girls' Schools makes a most promising 

 first appearance, their work consisting largely 

 of original matter, and being nicely set 

 forth ; the Birds include the Magpie, an 

 attractive species to study. These papers 

 also are illustrated. 



OPEN CLASS. 



First Prizes. 



Newburgh C.E. School (Lancashire). 



Felixstowe Ferry Council School 

 (Suffolk). 



There are a very large number of entries 

 in the Open Class this year ; and so many 

 good papers come from Lancashire, that a 

 County Challenge Shield may probably be 

 offered next year. The best set of essays 

 it sends, those from Newburgh, show close 

 and genuine first-hand observation and a 

 pleasant feeling for wild life ; the Tree 

 papers, thorough and sound, are accompanied 

 by admirable water-colour sketches. The 

 Felixstowe Ferry (Suffolk) papers were 

 written under exciting circumstances, the 

 school buildings being requisitioned by the 

 War Office ; but the work has not suffered ; 

 it is evenly good and interesting, and 

 prettily illustrated. Cartmell Fell's (Lanes.) 



