260 THE KEDWING. 



Roman Emperor. It was exported to Italy, and 

 fattened for sale. This bird is neither so wild nor so 

 wary as its near neighbour, the fieldfare ; it is, how- 

 ever, sufficiently cautious, and, when flying in num- 

 bers, takes a precaution, from which we have bor- 

 rowed our stratagem in war, that of stationing out- 

 posts, or sentinels, on some eminence or tree-top, 

 to give notice of the approach of danger. 



In the season of flight, as the bird-catchers call it, 

 these little creatures were formerly taken in great 

 numbers, in common with the woodlark and the 

 fieldfare, and, indeed, with all the other small green- 

 birds, by the nets and arts of the fowler. In the 

 autumn he prepares his machinery, his nets, his 

 ^r-birds, and his decoy birds. The net is from ten 

 to twelve yards long, or more, and two or three 

 wide. It is so formed, as to be easy to rise on either 

 side and encircle the birds, as any one may witness 

 who will follow the wheat-ear catcher on the Sussex 

 Downs. As birds in their passage fly against the 

 wind, the fowler lays his net to gain the wind, and if 

 it is easterly, he will lay his net as far to the west as 

 possible. His call-birds are selected carefully by the 

 sweetness and power of their notes. It appears that 

 these decoy birds never exert themselves more 

 powerfully than when thus luring the free birds of 

 their tribes into captivity. Linnets and larks, gold 

 and green finches, the bullfinch and yellow hammer, 

 the tit-lark, and a variety of others, can be used for 

 this purpose. The ^r-birds are those placed on a 



