HISTORY OF DECOYS. 163 



described, has not been a success of late years, owing to less care being 

 paid towards keeping it quiet, its more successful neighbour at Iken 

 having monopolized so much attention and interest. 



It is, however, not in such a favourable position as is the one at 

 Ikcn, the public road, on which there is a great deal of traffic, being but 

 300 yards distant, and the village of Chillesford only a quarter of a mile. 

 There is also a steam corn mill in its vicinity. The opinion of the 

 Decoyman is, nevertheless, that if this Decoy had as much care and 

 seclusion bestowed upon it, as is the case at Iken, it would improve greatly 

 in its results. 



The Decoy is close to Butley Creek, a tidal estuary, that unites with 

 the River Ore, some 2 miles above Orford Haven. Its size is 19 acres. 

 The pond 2 acres, the remaining space being underwood and marsh, as is 

 the case at Iken. Its age is unknown, but it also appears on the estate map 

 of 1807. Its yearly average is from 200 to 300 fowl. 



Orwell Park Decoy. — About fifty or sixty years ago a Decoy was 

 constructed at Levington Heath, near Orwell Park, by Sir Robert Harland. 

 It is four acres in extent, and when in full working order had five 

 pipes. The present owner of the estate. Colonel George Tomline, 

 worked it for many years, and then gave up doing so for a time. He 

 states that the largest number of fowl he ever captured in one year was 

 3,000. In 1853, 2,380 were taken; in 1854, 2,279; in 1855, 1,803; 

 the total number of Ducks secured in eighteen years being 27,991, of 

 which 5,711 were Wigeon. At the present time only one pipe is worked, 

 in which during the season of iS 84-85 more than 700 Ducks were taken 

 by the end of November, but Colonel Tomline is now constructing a 

 second pipe with the assistance of one of the Skeltons. There are some 

 pinioned Wigeon here which breed freely, and the young birds are quite 

 tame. A curious circumstance is, that although the Decoy is within 

 300 to 400 yards of the Felixstowe Railway, the wildfowl appear to take 

 no notice of it. In sharp weather there are great numbers of fowl in 

 this Decoy, and Colonel Tomline has seen thousands assembled on the 

 ice, and informs me he has lately met with such success that he intends 

 fitting up the disused pipes again. 



This Decoy is 5 miles SE. of Ipswich, and a mile from the north 

 bank of the River Orwell, here a wide tidal estuary. It is three-quarters 



