58 THE HOME OF A NATURALIST. 



not a scrap of fresli butcher-meat was to be had for 

 love or money — a thing by no means of unfrequent 

 occurrence in our island in those days. How could 

 one sign the death-warrant of the affectionate and 

 confiding creatures that flew to you whenever you 

 appeared for the crust of bread or oatmeal cake with 

 which your pocket was always well supplied, and whose 

 characters and dispositions you had been making an 

 interesting study ? To dine or sup off one of our pets 

 was not to be thought of. We could not have done it ; 

 and happily our father would listen to no appeals in 

 that direction. He peremptorily refused his permission, 

 and no one dared to attempt surreptitious slaughter. 

 The only thing allowed was an occasional exchange 

 with a neighbour, and even that was only in the case 

 of young birds — chickens, ducks, or geese. 



Multiplying of the stock to any great extent was 

 certainly not encouraged, rather discouraged indeed; but 

 the adults were allowed to live and roam about in peace, 

 and to die of old age or by accident as chance might 

 befall. 



It will be understood from this that our poultry- yard 

 birds — which, though I give them that name, were 

 never confined to any such limits as a poultry-yard — 

 were the reverse of profitable. Eggs we had certainly 

 in tolerable abundance ; but that was about all. Owing 

 to the predatory practices of raven and hooded crow, 

 the only kind of fowls we were able to keep was the 

 game variety, and these were always safe. If chanti- 

 cleer was at hand, these rapacious and wily robbers 



