CAPTURE OF THE GANG. 73 



he shot, and then mounted the tree to examine 

 the nest, which he found nearly filled with dead 

 birds which the old hawks had procured during 

 their foraging expeditions for their young. The 

 latter were absent, but D. could hear their sharp 

 cries from different parts of the wood. His next 

 care was to set a trap in the nest without remov- 

 ing any of its contents, and he had not waited 

 long before he caught the female, with a young 

 chicken in her talons. He then proceeded to 

 empty the nest, and could scarcely trust his eyes 

 at the sight here he shook out upon the grass 

 for my inspection the contents of the bag there 

 were fifteen young pheasants, about the size of 

 quails some rather larger four young partridges, 

 five chickens, a bullfinch, two meadow pipits and 

 two larks, all in a fresh state. Puttock, the gar- 

 dener, who helped D. to remove them from the 

 nest, corroborated his statement, and I certainly 

 saw and counted the victims myself, all of which 

 had evidently been killed by a bird of prey. 



" The last operation of Denyer was to shoot the 

 young sparrowhawks, which, although nearly full- 

 grown and capable of flying, were unable to pro- 

 vide themselves with food. This he effected by 

 remaining quietly under the tree, until the birds, 

 whose gradually increasing hunger was evinced by 

 their louder and more frequent cries, by degrees 



