214 A FEW WORDS ON FEN-LAND. 



that ancient cry mean, handed down by tradition for countless generations ? 

 The Geese know the meaning, though I do not ; for it urges them on, as 

 "gee" does the British horse. Has the word an affinity to the "lag" in 

 Grey-lag Goose?— concerning which cf. vol. i. p. 114 ; I suspect so. 



The " 'um " is said to mean " them ;" therefore we have only " lag " to 

 interpret, which bears a resemblance to the old Norse " lagda'' (laid by the 

 lea-). Probably it is something of this sort — " Catch them by the leg," as 

 nurses say to children " I'll catch you." 



Such a scene is here depicted in Mr. Pearson's faithful woodcut taken 

 from a sketch made by Mr. Vernon Howard, Master of the Boston School of 

 Art, on the road from Kirton to Boston, near to the former place, November 

 1877. (Plate CV.) 



The coloured lithographs of Mr. John Taylor's flock of 800 Geese were 

 photographed on purpose for this work, and have been faithfully reproduced 

 by Mr. Smit. They give a real representation of a Lincolnshire flock, and, on 

 a small scale, a good notion of the great droves of old days. The road is 

 the Horncastle one; and the Avater is Bargate drain, which divides Boston 

 from Skirbeck. (Plates CVI., CVIL, & CVIII.) 



At p. 113, vol. i., I have recorded the famous bet between the Lords 

 Rockingham and Oxford for 500 guineas. What do we learn from that 

 anecdote ? This, that the winner and the loser in that race were contending 

 about a thing constantly before their eyes. No one would make such a bet 

 now, because the state of things does not exist. 



It has been my endeavour in former articles to place upon record scraps 

 of bird-lore relating to the manners and customs of times quite gone, or only 

 just impinging upon my own day. 



Many of us can recollect the Christmas condition of the coaches on the 



