314 THE BIRDS OF NORTHAMPTONSHIRE 



the variety of birds to be met with on their vernal 

 migration to some extent repay a sportsman of an 

 ornithological turn of mind. On the mainland of 

 Epirus in August and September, fair Quail shooting 

 may often be had in the cultivated lands, and in the 

 latter month the sport may be varied with a few 

 Great and Common Snipes, an odd Duck or two, and 

 the walking, though generally more or less " soft," is 

 comparatively easy. In the cultivated plains around 

 and below Seville vast numbers of Quails are bred, 

 and some are to be found at all times of the year, 

 though their numbers are much thinned in the 

 pairing-season by a clever method of calling up the 

 birds into a net. This bird is a great favourite in 

 Spain, and in every village street Quails are to be 

 found in cages, petted and made much of on account 

 of their song. Incredible numbers of this species 

 are netted during the vernal migration on many parts 

 of the Mediterranean shores, especially in Egypt and 

 the southern provinces of Italy. We remember 

 seeing a steamer at Messina, in the month of May 

 1874, one of whose officers assured us that she had 

 six thousand pairs of Quails alive on board, all 

 destined for the London market. The unhappy 

 birds are carried in low flat cages or boxes wired 

 only in front, and it is surprising what a very small 

 percentage of them die on the voyage unless " a sea " 

 happens to break over them ; they thrive well on 

 millet and soon become fat ; but in our opinion this 

 traffic should be prohibited, as the unfortunate birds 

 are caught on their way to their breeding-quarters, 

 and some of them, at all events, would afford sport at 

 a legitimate season when naturally fit for the table. 

 Quails will thrive for many years in confinement if 



