104 PARTRIDGES 



It is by no means every fox who takes 

 to hunting for partridge nests, but once 

 indulged in, the habit soon becomes con- 

 firmed and ineradicable in the individual. 

 The worst offenders are mangy foxes, 

 who alone hunt by day as well as night, 

 and old vixens seeking food for their cubs. 

 It is always advisable to keep a plentiful 

 supply of rabbits for the foxes, unless the 

 interests of forestry have to be considered. 

 Rabbits are the staple food of the fox, 

 and where they are to be had for the 

 catching, the foxes may refrain from 

 trying any novelties in the way of food. 



Many and various are the devices 

 employed to save the nests. The simplest 

 way is to surround the nest with a smell 

 which foxes dislike, such as handfuls of 

 grass dipped in 'animal oil/ rags soaked 

 in a mixture of oil of burnt hartshorn 

 and creosote or gas tar, or one of many 

 patent ' stinks ' now sold for the purpose. 

 These may serve their turn well enough 

 for a time, but the fox is full of guile, 

 learns to associate certain evil smells with 



