NATURAL HISTORY OF SOUTH AFRICA 



He visited a neighbouring colony of weaver birds, 

 and with a shot-gun demolished over a hundred 

 hanging nests with their living contents. He gloried 

 in the work of slaughter. He would exterminate these 

 rascally, thieving birds. Those he did not kill fled in 

 frenzied terror from the neighbourhood to safer 

 hunting grounds. He kept up this campaign for two 

 years. The third season I happened to visit him. 

 " Well, how are the crops ? " I asked. " Miserable ; 

 never had a poorer crop of forage, and what there 

 is of it is mixed with weeds." The next season was 

 worse ; the crop wasn't worth harvesting, and in 

 disgust he turned his cattle into it. I explained to 

 him that from the time the seed was harrowed into the 

 soil, the insects had been busy below ground and 

 above ground devouring the germinating corn, the 

 roots, and the tender growing plants. The surviving 

 plants were unable to outgrow and smother the weeds, 

 and consequently the latter grew and reached maturity, 

 scattering their undesirable seeds over his lands. 



If this farmer had confined his slaughter of the 

 birds to reducing to normal those species which had 

 increased abnormally, it would have been well for him. 



The head gardener of Sheffield Union, after 

 thirty-five years' experience of the economic value of 

 birds, says: — 



" In the trying summer of 191 1, bird-life played 

 a very conspicuous part in our efforts to combat the 

 ravages of insects. The birds generally known as 

 seed-eaters became prominent insect feeders. I can 

 say this from very personal experience, being respon- 



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