DESTRUCTION OF USEFUL BIRDS in 



fortunate enough to come across it. The corn 

 and yellow buntings are common enough. Each 

 and all of these birds may be encountered at one 

 time or another within a stone's -throw of my 

 home. A pair of turtle-doves generally make 

 their nest in the wych-elms near the house, and 

 last summer one of these birds rarely failed to 

 come down and mingle with my poultry at feeding- 

 time. I am looking forward to its return this 

 spring. The summer snipe pays me a short 

 visit at the period of its migration, and in frosty 

 weather numbers of common snipe frequent 

 my kitchen garden and the surrounding osier- 

 beds. The jack snipe also puts in an appear- 

 ance when working his passage to and fro on 

 migration. 



Keepers and gardeners will not be convinced 

 that, by slaughtering birds which do more good 

 than harm, they must of necessity do harm to their 

 own interests. Sparrows must be kept within 

 reasonable limits, and much the same may be said 

 with regard to the starlings, though I grieve to be 

 forced to make the admission ; but these birds 

 have increased so enormously in numbers of 

 recent years as to necessitate some drastic 

 measures being employed against them. But 

 that should not be considered a sufficient reason 

 for their wholesale destruction, and were this to 

 be carried out, we should suffer very greatly as a 

 natural consequence, for a reasonable supply of 

 starlings is essential to the well-being of a farm or 



