MAGPIE FIELDS 155 



the evenings the fern owls or goat-suckers wheeled about 

 the verge for these and for moths. Rooks come to the 

 oaks in crowds for the acorns; wood-pigeons are even 

 more fond of them, and from their crops quite a handful 

 may sometimes be taken when shot in the trees. 



They will carry off at once as many acorns as old- 

 fashioned economical farmers used to walk about with 

 in their pockets, " chucking " them one, two, or three at 

 a time to the pigs in the stye as a bonne louche and an 

 encouragement to fatten well. Never was there such a 

 bird to eat as the wood-pigeon. Pheasants roam out 

 from the preserves after the same fruit, and no arts can 

 retain them at acorn time. Swine are let run out about 

 the hedgerows to help themselves. Mice pick up the 

 acorns that fall, and hide them for winter use, and 

 squirrels select the best. 



If there is a decaying bough, or, more particularly, one 

 that has been sawn off, it slowly decays into a hollow, 

 and will remain in that state for years, the resort of end- 

 less woodlice, snapped up by insect-eating birds. Down 

 from the branches in spring there descend long, slender 

 threads, like gossamer, with a caterpillar at the end of 

 each the insect-eating birds decimate these. So that 

 in various ways the oaks give more food to the birds 

 than any other tree. Where there are oaks there are 

 sure to be plenty of birds. Beeches come next. Is it 

 possible that the severe frosts we sometimes have split 

 oak trees? Some may be found split up the trunk, and 

 yet not apparently otherwise injured, as they probably 

 would be if it had been done by lightning. Trees are 

 said to burst in America under frost, so that it is not 

 impossible in this country. 



There is a young oak beside the highway which in 

 autumn was wreathed as artistically as could have been 



