196 THE LANDRAIL. 



belonging to the Salmon Fishery of Low Bells, on the Tweed 

 near Paxton, is related by Yarrell, who, quoting from 

 Daniel's Rural Sports, says : " The men, while mowing, 

 cut the head from a Corn Crake that was sitting upon 

 eleven eggs; about twenty yards from this spot they had 

 nearly destroyed a Partridge in a similar way, which was 

 sitting upon eighteen eggs ; but, observing her, the mowers 

 took the eggs from the nest of the Corn Crake and put 

 them into that of the Partridge. Two days after, she 

 brought out the whole brood, which were seen running 

 about the island. The Partridge catered for them all, and 

 was observed to gather her numerous family under her 

 wings without any distinction." x 



This species generally leaves us about the beginning 

 of the harvest, a period of the year thus happily described 

 by Dr. Henderson : 



The flowers now fade on hill and dale, 



And faintly bees are humming : 

 The corn is rustling in the gale, 



And harvest days are coming : 

 The harping Crake has left the land, 



The Swallow soon will follow, 

 And many a merry harvest band 



Will meet in height and hollow. 



It is, however, seen later in the season. An example was 

 shot at Mellerstain on the 1st of September 1880; 2 and 

 Colonel Brown of Longformacus informs me that he got 

 two specimens at Cranshaws on the 8th of October 1884. 

 Mr. Hardy relates that in the middle of the winter of 

 1835 a Corn Crake was caught in Blackburn Eigg Peat 

 Moss, the site of which is now occupied by the railway. 

 He gives the following as a popular rhyme of Berwick- 

 shire, from which it would appear that this bird in former 



1 Yarrell's British Birds, fourth edition, vol. iii. p. 141. 

 a Hist. Ber. Nat. Club, vol. ix. p. 399. 



