OBSERTATIOyS OX BIRDS. 317 



ticularlr, when shooting in the ^Yinter, in company with two 

 friends, a woodcock flew across us, closely pursued by a small 

 hawk ; we all three fired at the woodcock instead of the 

 hawk, which, notwithstanding the report of three guns close 

 by it, continued its pursuit of the woodcock, struck it down, 

 and carried it off, as we afterwards discovered.* 



At another time, when partridge-shooting with a friend, 

 we saw a ring-tail hawk rise out of a pit with some large 

 bird in its claws ; though at a great distance, we both fired, 

 and obhged it to drop its prey, which proved to be one of 

 the partridges which we were in pursuit of: and lastly, in 

 an evening, I shot at and plainly saw that I had wounded a 

 partridge ; but, it being late, was obliged to go home with- 

 out finding it again. The next morning, I walked round 

 my land without any gun ; but a favourite old spaniel fol- 

 lowed my heels. When I came near the field where I 

 wounded the bird the evening before, I heard the partridges 

 cal], and they seemed to be much disturbed. On my 

 approaching the bar-way, they all rose, some on my right 

 and some on my left hand ; and just before and over my 

 head, I perceived (though indistinctly, from the extreme 

 velocity of their motion) two birds fly directly against each 

 other, when mstantly to my great astonishment, down 

 dropped a partridge at my feet ; the dog immediately seized 

 it, and, on examination, I found the blood flow verv fast 

 from a fresh wound in the head, but there was some dry 

 clotted blood on its wings and side ; whence I concluded, 

 that a hawk had singled out my wounded bird as the object 

 of his prey, and had struck it down the instant that my 

 approach had obliged the birds to rise on the wing ; but the 

 space between the hedges was so small, and the motion of 

 the birds so instantaneous and quick, that I could not dis- 

 tinctly observe the operation. Maekwick. 



Great Speckled Diver, or Loox. — As one of my 

 neighbours was traversing "VYolmer Forest, from Bramshot 

 across the moors, he found a large uncommon bird fluttering 

 in the heath, but not wounded, which he brought home alive. 



* I have known two instances of hawks dashing through a pane ot glass tc 

 seize canajy birds which were hanging near the window. — Ed. 



