PTARMIGAN. 377 



state until the arrival of the dealers who make it a trade 

 to purchase up game : a single dealer will sometimes pur- 

 chase and dispose of fifty thousand Ptarmigan in the course 

 of the season. Sir Arthur de Capell Brooke calculated 

 that, in one large parish in Lapland, sixty thousand birds 

 were killed in one winter. Mr. Grant says, " I was assured, 

 when in Norway, that the number of Ptarmigan killed in 

 that country every winter, was beyond belief: two thou- 

 sand dozen was, if I remember right, the quantity exported 

 from Drammen in one ship for England last year ; and 

 great numbers are annually sent to the Copenhagen mar- 

 ket." Besides those received in this country from Drammen, 

 great quantities are also received in London during the 

 months of February, March, April, and May, from Bergen, 

 Drontheim, and other portions of the west coast of Norway, 

 from whence conveyance is obtained for them in the boats 

 which bring constant supplies of lobsters to the London 

 market. On one occasion, late in the spring of 1839, one 

 party shipped six thousand Ptarmigan for London ; two 

 thousand for Hull ; and two thousand for Liverpool ; and 

 at the end of February, or very early in March, of the year 

 1840, one salesman in Leadenhall Market received fifteen 

 thousand Ptarmigan that had been consigned to him ; and 

 during the same week another salesman received seven 

 hundred Capercaillies, and five hundred and sixty Black 

 Grouse. The prices of these birds in the market of 

 Drammen, as supplied me by Mr. Grant, are in English 

 money for 



8. d. 



A Capercaillie male, about . 20 



female . . .12 



A Black Grouse, male ... 08 



A Grey Hen, the female . . .06 



A Ptarmigan 04 



