FEEDING IN COVERTS. 61 



or had anything to do with in my time. I will explain what 

 I mean by catchpools : Choose any little slope or valley in 

 high and dry coverts where some command may be had of 

 the surrounding surface water after rain ; scoop ont a hole in 

 the earth's surface in the shape of a spoon or bowl, sloping 

 gradually all round to the centre and deepest part, which 

 need not be deeper than from eighteen inches to three feet, 

 according to width and length ; the edges, to admit the 

 water running into it freely, must be kept a little under the 

 earth's natural surface. Then puddle the whole of its face 

 with six inches of well-wrought clay, paving it with bricks 

 laid flat, and giving it all over a little coat of Portland 

 cement. Thus you have a first-class and lasting catchpit to 

 hold water most of the year, indeed the whole season. 

 Pheasants are expected to remain in covert for food and 

 safety from September to February, and then there is 

 certainly always plenty of water. After February the 

 pheasant likes to go further away, and, soon after the gun is 

 withdrawn, is pretty sure to get distributed about in search 

 of insects and various root. Pheasants rove about quietly 

 during their breeding season, but little is seen or heard of 

 them after April till corn harvest, as they live a quiet, 

 secluded life through summer. I have made catchpools by 

 casing them only with puddled clay. One disadvantage of 

 this is, in a long dry time the water gets low, and the clay 

 sides becoming exposed, contract, crack, and allow the water 

 to run to waste if they are not looked to when rain does 

 come. There is also another way in which I have had catch- 

 pools made where natural gravel abounds, namely, to make it 

 into concrete, and case the bottom and sides with this only. 

 It answers well, and saves the labour and expense of getting 

 bricks from a distance. Every feeder knows that dry barley 

 and buckwheat in sheaf, and stacked in the vicinity of the 

 preserves, and some pulled out and shaken about occasionally, 

 with a change of maize, will keep the pheasants in good 

 condition , but it does not occur to everyone that a good 



