6o 



HISTORY OF DECOYS. 



CHAPTER V. 



Decoys in the County of Berkshire. 



Decoys in use. Decoys not in use. 



None. I Aldermaston Park. 



At AIdermasto7i Park, to miles WSW. of Reading, the residence of Mr. 

 Higford Burr, may be seen the remains of an old Decoy long disused. 

 It has not been worked within the memory of man, but numbers of ducks 

 still resort there in hard winters, as many as from 200 to 300 being seen at 

 one time. 



Decoys in the County of Buckinghamshire. 



This county is more frequented by wildfowl than is generally 

 supposed. That such was also formerly the case is evinced by the fact of 

 its having contained several Decoys, one of which, that at Boarstall, is now 

 flourishing. 



The neighbourhood of Thame is still noted for the number of Ducks 

 and Teal that visit it during hard weather. At Otmoor, 7 miles from 

 Thame, it is no unusual occurrence to see 1,000 acres of low land flooded, 

 and I need scarcely say haunted by numbers of wildfowl, a large propor- 

 tion of which are caught in the neighbouring Decoy of Boarstall. There 

 are also several large lakes and reservoirs in this county on which a great 

 many fowl congregate — notably at Shardeloes, Willesden, Stowe, Wotton, 

 and Halton. On the latter, it has been computed that as many as 3,000 

 wild waterfowl have been seen on its surface at one time during recent 

 winters. 



