270 BIRDS OF NORFOLK. 
six couples in a morning.’* In the western Fens, 
however, Mr. Newton ascertained that they were both 
netted and snared. The formation and disposition of the 
snares is thus described by Mr. Lubbock :—“< Having 
found the hill, the Norfolk fowler prepares about a dozen 
pegs, sharpened at one end and split at the other: into 
the split he introduces the middle of a loosely-twisted link 
of long horse-hair, so as to form two nooses, one with 
each half of the link. The peg is then driven into the 
ground so as to be perfectly level with the surface, and one 
noose is placed horizontally, just raised by the herbage 
perhaps half an inch from the soil, whilst the other is 
disposed perpendicularly, the lower part resting on the 
ground. These snares are disposed on the outskirts of 
the hill rather than the middle, as the ruffs in their 
flutterings generally spring from the centre towards 
the circumference of this chosen spot. When a ruff 
is snared he, after an effort or two at escape, gives up 
the attempt and crouches quite close to the ground; 
the other birds also generally forsake the hill until he 
is removed (but this does not invariably take place). A 
vigilant look out must be kept upon the place where the 
snares are set, if the fowler wishes to reap the fruit of 
his labour. The stoat and the brown rat, both of which 
are abundant in the marshes, are very quick in dis- 
covering the captured birds and devouring them: should 
they feed upon one, it is useless to attempt snaring 
any more upon that hill, until a trap has given the 
intruder a coup de grace.” 
At the close of the breeding season young and old 
used to collect together “in large bodies,” as evidenced 
* This is nothing compared to the numbers formerly netted 
in Lincolnshire. Pennant speaks of forty-four birds taken at one 
haul, and six dozen in one morning; and states that one fowler 
would take from forty to fifty dozen in one season. 
