A STUDY IN PERSEVERANCE 115 



sitting cock partridge from which the inference 

 might be drawn that the fox has a special aversion to 

 the sitting cock. 



Much nonsense of this sort is swallowed with good 

 faith by those not closely in touch with foxes and 

 game. We have an old book called " The Life of a 

 Fox : Written by Himself." In this we read that a 

 sitting bird acquires a thinness and flavour which are 

 abhorrent to the taste of a fox ; nonsense guised as 

 sense could hardly go further. It would be grossly 

 disparaging to the fox's skill to say that he fails 

 once in a hundred times when making a grab at a 

 sitting bird ; and we are sure that a cock partridge 

 does not take up the duties of his wife as often even 

 as a fox fails to bring off a catch. We have never 

 known a cock partridge to take the place of his mur- 

 dered mate on the nest, but every gamekeeper knows 

 he will rear the brood when the hen is killed after 

 hatching. 



We have a pretty story to tell ourselves about the 



perseverance of partridges. In a district where 



few were found, a pair had left the fields 



A Study an( j nested within a stone's-throw of the 

 in Perse- , , T . , , . , , 



veranee keeper s cottage. It stood in a green glade, 



sheltered on all sides by rambling old woods. 

 For four successive seasons this partridge pair nested 

 within a few yards of the same spot : and year after 

 year something upset their plans, and spoiled all 



