336 THE WILD-rOWLER. 



mation, that the King, going- in progress about the tenth year of his 

 reign, and finding little or no game wherewith to solace himself or 

 exercise his falcons, and being at " Bristow" in the Christmas en- 

 suing, he restrained all manner of hawking or taking wild-fowl 

 throughout England for a season, "whereby the land within few 

 years was thoroughly replenished again." * 



By the 13th Richd. II., stat. 1, cap. 13, laymen who were not 

 possessed of 40s. a year freehold, and clergy of £10 a year, were 

 prohibited from keeping dogs, or using ferrets, hays, nets, cords, or 

 other engines, for taking deer, hares, conies, or other gentlemens' 

 game, on pain of one year's imprisonment. It is conceived that 

 wild-fowl were at that period within the ancient definition of " other 

 gentlemens' game." 



The first statute ever passed in England, f specially afifecting the 

 sport of wild-fowling, was that of 25th Hen. VIII., cap. 11 1 — "An Act 

 against the Destruction of Wild-fowl." In the preamble of that 

 statute it is stated that, whereas before that time there had been 

 plenty of wild-fowl, as ducks, mallards, widgeons, teals, wild-geese, 

 and divers other kinds of wild-fowl, whereby not only the King's 

 most honourable household, but also the houses of noble men and 

 prelates of the realm, had been supplied with them at convenient 

 prices, and also the markets were sufficiently furnished with wild- 

 fowl : nevertheless divers persons next inhabiting in the countries 

 and places within the realm where the same wild-fowl had been 

 accustomed to breed, in the summer season, at such time as the old 

 fowl were moulted, and unable to fly, nor the J^oung fowl fully 



* Holinshed, vol. i., p. 374, quarto edition : 1807. 



t In Scotland several statutes have been passed concerning wild-fowl — inter 

 alia : 



James I., anno 1427. " Anent wylde foulis." 

 James II., anno 1457. " Anent the keping of wylde foulis that ganis to eit for the 



sustentacione of man." 

 James IV., anno 1493. " Anent the distroying of heron sewis." 



Mary, anno 1551. " Anent thame that schutis with guns at deer and wylde 

 foulis." 

 „ ,, " Anent the executione of the act maid vppon the prices of 



all wylde foulis." 

 „ anno 1555. " Anent the slaying of poutis, pleuver, mure foule, duke, 



draik, teil or goldeine." 

 ,, „ " Anent the execution of the actis maid for stanching of the 



slaying of wylde fouUs and wylde beistes with addi- 

 tioun." 

 X This statute was partially repealed by 3rd and 4th Ed, VI., cap. 7 ; was re- 

 vived by 21st Jac. I., cap. 28 ; and farther continued by 3rd Car. I., cap. 4, and 

 16th Car. I., cap. 4. 



