THE GROUSE 241 



should be the case I am unable to say, unless they 

 are able to secure a larger and better supply of 

 food. I do not, however, think that they can lay 

 claim to possessing any higher qualification from 

 a gastronomic point of view than their brethren of 

 other counties 



The hen grouse is rather smaller than the 

 male bird, which latter, unlike the blackcock, is 

 an exemplary husband and parent. Grouse are 

 peculiarly liable to disease. This has been at- 

 tributed to various causes. Mr. Corballis, in his 

 work 4 Forty-five Years of Sport,' goes very near 

 the truth, I suspect, in attributing it to the 

 want of pure water for the birds on several of 

 the moors, which are badly drained, especially 

 in the vicinity of peat-stacks, and are, in a dry 

 season, absolutely without a proper supply of pure 

 water, which is so essential for the well-being of 

 grouse. 



He very wisely suggests as a remedy that 

 means should be adopted to furnish such dis- 

 tricts with water of good quality. Old and 

 tough heather is also said to be a prolific source 

 of disease. This evil is easily remediable by care 

 being taken to burn the heather at stated periods, 

 thus securing a sufficiency of tender food for the 

 birds, if the burning is systematically carried 

 out. 



In winter, the plumage of the grouse under- 

 goes a slight change, the under parts being fre- 

 quently splashed with white. 



16 



