8 The Partridge Family 



worms, grasshoppers, crickets, the cutworm moth, 

 and probably a few others which the farmer is 

 glad to dispense with. In the destruction of 

 these the quail performs a service the value of 

 which, while it cannot be determined, unques- 

 tionably is great. Apropos of this point : lest 

 some of the well-meaning but frequently mis- 

 guided bird lovers should arise in their zealous 

 misunderstanding of actual conditions and ex- 

 claim, " Then, if quail do this, they should not 

 be shot ! " it must be borne in mind that the 

 entire protection of the quail would not mean a 

 speedy increase of useful workers and a corre- 

 sponding decrease of insect pests. The fact is, 

 that quail will not stand overcrowding. If they 

 did, it would be a simple matter to closely pre- 

 serve a few thousand acres until the tract became 

 literally alive with the birds. Experience has 

 taught that a certain number of acres will carry 

 only a certain number of quail. During the mat- 

 ing season, the males, like all gallinaceous birds, 

 are extremely pugnacious, and the mated male 

 will tolerate no possible near-by rival. Hence, too 

 many birds would surely mean trouble, war, and 

 confusion, and a consequent interruption of most 

 important business. It is quite possible, too, 

 that overcrowding would, as it does in the case of 

 closely preserved grouse, cause disease.^ In any 



^England is suffering this season (1901) a considerable loss of its 

 birds from this very cause. — Editor. 



