BRITISH GAME-BIRDS. 191 



at one time could call her own the great bustard 

 has passed away. This magnificent bird could at 

 one time be seen in England ; for the large bare 

 spaces at that time and the early part of the last 

 century that were to be found in so many counties, 

 were the haunts of the noble bustard. Some of 

 these were Wiltshire, Lincolnshire, Norfolk, Sussex, 

 Cambridgeshire, Yorkshire, Berkshire, and Kent. 

 As the cock-birds ranged from 15 lb., 20 lb., to 30 Ib. 

 in weight, they were sought after and finally exter- 

 minated. The Bird Preservation Act was not in 

 force then. One of our records of the past, which 

 is rigidly authentic, tells us that a keeper in Nor- 

 folk used to look for their tracks in the snow, and 

 then feed them with cabbage-leaves. The tender 

 heart-leaves are enticing to other birds beside bus- 

 tards. When they had fed well up to the bait, he 

 constructed a hide, put down more tender leaves, 

 well within shelter, and also within shot-range. 

 Then he placed a concealed battery of duck-guns, 

 pointing dead on to their feeding-place. When all 

 was quite ready, he tied strings to the triggers of the 

 guns, carried the strings back to his hiding-place, 

 put down more feed, and waited. The noble birds, 



