"The Birds of Dumfriesshire." 25 



to seed-wheat in Kirkmahoe parish amounted to iTSSO annually, 

 besides injury to the potato crops. 



A rookery of about twenty nests existed close to Capenoch 

 House (Keir) in 1847. 



Recently when going through a quantity of letters to Sir 

 William Jardine I came across several references to this species. 

 The following are perhaps the most interesting : — 



The damage done by Rooks to crops is referred to in an Act 

 of Parliament of James I. of Scotland (May, 1424). 



A list of rookeries in the following parishes was drawn up 

 in 1844:— 



Dalton Hook, Halldykes, Oldwalls, Corrielaw, Y)v\sda.\e(sic), 



Balgray,* Jardine Hall,* Dinwoodie (Applegarth). 



Shaw* (Hutton). 



Raehills (Johnstone). 



Park Woods (Kirkpatrick). 



Leitherhall, Miln,* Gerthland* (Wamphray). 



Craigieburn* (Moffat). 



Those marked * were in existence in 1908; and possibly 

 others now to be seen were known by other names in 1844. 



On March 22nd, 1844, the members of the Lockerby (sic) 

 Farmers' Club, on account of " the great amount of damage done 

 annually to Turnips and other Crops by Rooks and Wood- 

 pigeons " requested proprietors in the district to reduce* the 

 number of the former as far as practicable, and " to kill Wood- 

 pigeons wherever they are to be found." 



In 1858 the following rookeries are mentioned: — Amisfield, 

 partly cut down; Raehills, destroyed by hurricane of 1857; 

 Woodcockair, partially destroyed by the same cause; Halleaths, 

 partially destroyed by some of the trees being cut down. 



Throughout his life Sir William Jardine seems to have been 

 in favour of checking, but not of exterminating, the Rook. 



The rookery at Jardine Hall (Applegarth) (p. 130) is known 

 to have been in existence in 1844; and about 1870, people used to 

 come there from Liverpool and other parts of Lancashire for the 

 rook-shooting in spring. 



The following is the list of Rooks killed in Dumfriesshire 

 in 1911, under the auspices of the Scottish Gamekeepers' Associa- 

 tion : — 



