CATCHING HARES. 31 



these pots over his head, in the centre of 

 which two small holes are made for him to see 

 through, and when he gets into the midst of the 

 birds he pulls them by the legs under water, 

 fastening them to a girdle round his waist. 



The Calcutta market is well supplied with wild 

 fowl taken chiefly in this manner. It is also well 

 supplied with snipes. Their method of catching 

 them I have not seen, but have been told they 

 catch them in nooses and with nets, probably much 

 in the same manner as I have before described. 



The variety of wild fowl in Bengal is very 

 great. Mr. Taylor, the commercial resident at 

 Comercolly, had a collection of more than thirty 

 different kinds of wild geese, widgeon and teal ; 

 there is a species of widgeon or teal very common 

 throughout India, that roost and build their nests 

 in trees, and are known to Europeans by the 

 appellation of whistling teal. 



To catch hares requires three people; frequent- 

 ly an old man, his wife and child (a little boy or 

 girl) , compose the three. They carry with them 

 four or five nets, each of them about sixteen feet 

 long, and eighteen inches high ; these nets, when 



