130 A MONTH IN THE FORESTS OF FRANCE. 



landrail, and our bag consisted of these birds, carp, 

 and chub ; there were neither pike nor perch to be 

 taken with the line. The partridges here are of the 

 two sorts — those common in England and the red leg, 

 although I never saw the latter. They are alike very 

 scarce, though the cultivated land in the valleys that 

 intersect the woods is decidedly favourable for them, 

 as it would be for pheasants: of the latter there are 

 none ; neither are there any stags or fallow deer. I am 

 surprised at this, for in such an enormous tract of forest 

 and woodland, with the sanction of the Government, 

 the resident gentlemen might agree among themselves 

 to have both pheasants and deer, and thus enhance 

 the sylvan attraction. Quails and landrails, both in 

 considerable quantities, come to these vallejs. I killed 

 several of either sort during my stay, and saw on the 

 wing, and tasted, dressed in his vine-leaf, the delicious 

 little hec-figue. There are plenty of the common moor- 

 hen and dabchick in the river ; and in winter, in the 

 places of their resort, plenty of ducks, snipes, and 

 woodcocks. I killed a couple of whole snipes during 

 my stay. No one in this forest, or that I could see in 

 its vicinity, ever thinks of destroying either winged or 

 the lesser four-footed vermin ; so that fact, coupled 

 with the neglect of the necessity of a '^ port d'armes," 

 and every man and boy being in possession of a gun 



