THE HISTORY OF DECOYS. 41 



little else than wanton cruelty, danger, and clamour to the 

 other. 



The golden days of the decoy appear to have passed away ; and we 

 find that many of those places which were formerly kept up at con- 

 siderable expense are now merely employed as an ag-reeable recrea- 

 tion to the country squire, or some enterprizing clergyman who may 

 be fortunate enough to have a residence near the sea-coast, with a 

 decoy-pond attached to the glebe. 



Mild winters seldom afibrd the decoyer an opportunity of taking 

 wild-fowl in large numbers ; but in hard winters the chances are in 

 no way inferior to those of the good old times. The British islands, 

 from their position on the globe, offer so fair a retreat to the myriads 

 of wild-fowl, which are annually driven from northern latitudes by 

 the severity of winter, that there will always be sport for the wild- 

 fowler more or less in proportion to the strength and duration of the 

 frost. During the season of 1854-5, which was the sharpest winter 

 we have had for many years, several large flights were taken in the 

 English decoys. But no such great profits have been made of late 

 years as formerly, because of the negligence with which those places 

 have been attended. A clear profit of from £200 to £500 in a season 

 used to be but an average return for a complete decoy ; and many 

 instances of extraordinary luck are recorded (some traditionally known 

 to the author) — of £600, and even £800, being cleared from a single 

 decoy in one season. 



The author is also acquainted with the aged proprietor of an estate 

 in Essex, on which there is an excellent decoy-pond, now entirely 

 neglected and unused ; but which has in several seasons, some twenty 

 or thu-ty years ago, yielded the worthy old squire a clear £800 for 

 one year's profit ! as can be proved not only by the verbal testimony 

 of himself, his wife, and others living in the neighbourhood, but also 

 by a book of receipts and disbursements of that period. And this 

 is far fi'om being a solitary instance. Mr. Daniel, in his book of 

 " Rural Sports," says — " In 1795 the Tillingham Decoy, in Essex, 

 then in the occupation of Mr. Mascall, netted, after every expense, 

 upwards of £800 ; and the only bu-ds taken were duck and 

 mallard." 



The same author states that "in 1799 ten thousand head of 

 widgeon, teal, and wild-ducks were caught in a decoy of the Rev. 

 Bate Dudley, in Essex." 



Pennant mentions, that by an old account of the number of wild- 



G 



