158 PARTRIDGES 



10,000 birds hatch out, but wet seasons never gave me 

 the chance of seeing if the ground could carry this number. 



I think the ground should be shot over once, however 

 bad the year. If things are desperate, I go out on Sep- 

 tember 1st and walk up the coveys, killing the old birds 

 and sparing all the young. I have left a good stock every 

 year, but owing to bad seasons this is getting old and 

 weak. The stock generally is decreasing for the same 

 reason. 



In 1905 we killed 4123 partridges in eight days off 5000 

 acres, and in the same year 1350 partridges in two days off 

 800 acres. 



WITCHINGHAM HALL, NORWICH 

 (Notes by W. BARRY, Esq.) 



The extent of partridge ground on which my observa- 

 tions are based consists roughly of about 4000 acres. 

 The soil is mostly a light, sandy loam, none of it very 

 heavy ground. It is nearly all cultivated land, with a 

 few strips of old pasture intersecting it. The rotation 

 of crops is on the four years' system wheat, roots, barley, 

 hay. 



We have plenty of hedgerows for nesting. I have also 

 made a good many belts for birds to nest in, consisting 

 of furze, birch, broom, and hazel. These have to be kept 

 low and thin, otherwise partridges will not nest in them. 

 I generally throw up a bank with a thorn hedge on top 

 of it on each side of the belt, for shelter and dusting 

 purposes. I believe in finding every nest ; the keepers 

 visit them every two days. I attach the greatest 

 importance to this ; in no other way can the nests be 

 properly preserved. If a nest is destroyed, traps are at 

 once set and the vermin caught before it can do more 

 damage. If the nests were not watched, a stoat would 

 clear off nest after nest within a very short time. Another 



