14 



THE CABINET OF NATURAL HISTORY 



great stateliness. After a few mancciivres of this kind, he 

 begins to strike with his stiffened wings in short and quick 

 strokes, which become more and more rapid until they run 

 into each other, as has been already described. This is 

 most common in the morning and evening, though I have 

 heard them drumming at all hours of the day. By means 

 of this, the gunner is led to the place of his retreat; though 

 to those unacquainted with the sound, there is great decep- 

 tion in the supposed distance, it generally appearing to be 

 much nearer than it really is. 



The Pheasant begins to pair in April, and builds its nest 

 early in May. This is placed on the ground at the root of 

 a bush, old log, or other sheltered and solitary situation, 

 well surrounded with withered leaves. Unlike that of the 

 Quail, it is open above, and is usually composed of dry 

 leaves and grass. The eggs are from nine to lifteen in 

 number, of a brownish white, without any spots, and 

 nearly as large as those of a pullet. The young leave the 

 nest as soon as hatched, and are directed by the cluck of 

 the mother, very much in the manner of the common hen. 

 On being surprised, she exhibits all the distress and affec- 

 tionate manoeuvres of the Quail, and of most other birds, 

 to lead you away from the spot. I once started a hen 

 Pheasant, with a single young one, seemingly only a few 

 days old; there might have been more, but I observed 

 only this one. The mother fluttered before me for a 

 moment, but suddenly darting towards the j'oung one, 

 seized it in her bill, and flew off along the surface through 

 the woods, with great steadiness and rapidity, till she was 

 beyond my sight, leaving me in great surprise at the inci- 

 dent. I made a very close and active search around the 

 spot for the rest, but without success. Here was a striking 

 instance of something more than what is termed blind 

 instinct, in this remarkable deviation from her usual ma- 

 noeuvres, when she has a numerous brood. It would have 

 been impossible for me to injure this affectionate mother, 

 who had exhibited such an example of presence of mind, 

 reason, and sound judgment, as must have convinced the 

 most bigotted advocates of mere instinct. To carry off a 

 whole brood in this manner, at once, would have been 

 impossible, and to attempt to save one at the expense of 

 the rest, would be unnatural. She therefore usually takes 

 the only possible mode of saving them in that case, by de- 

 coying the person in pursuit of herself, by such a natural 

 imitation of lameness as to impose on most people. But 

 here, in the case of a single solitary young one, she instant- 

 ly altered her plan, and adopted the most simple and effect- 

 ual mean for its preservation. 



The Pheasant generally springs within a few 3^ards, with 

 a loud whirring noise, and flies with great vigour through 

 the woods, beyond the reach of view, before it alights. 



With a good dog, however, they are easily found; and 

 sometimes exhibit a singular degree of infatuation, by 

 looking down, from the branches where they sit, on the 

 dog below, who, the more noise he keeps up, seems the 

 more to confuse and stupify them, so that they may be 

 shot down, one by one, till the whole are killed, without 

 attempting to fly off. la such cases, those on the low^er 

 limbs must be taken first, for should the upper ones be first 

 killed, in their fall they alarm those below, who imme- 

 diately fly off. This plan is more usually followed by 

 persons residing amongst the mountains, and who are un- 

 skilled in shooting on the wing; and the dogs employed 

 by them, are of the springing spaniel, or of some small 

 breed addicted to much barking. But in the lower coun- 

 tries and by sportsmen, the Pheasant is hunted with setter 

 or pointer dogs, and is a very difficult bird to shoot in con- 

 sequence of its great shyness, as it most commonly keeps 

 in the thickest cover, and will fly at the near approach of 

 the dog or sportsman, unless indeed the dog be particularly 

 trained to this kind of hunting. They are pretty hard to 

 kill, and will often carry off a large load to the distance of 

 two hundred yards, and drop dead. This bird, after its 

 first or second flight, still finding itself pursued, often 

 resorts to stratagem by either taking shelter in the fork of 

 some tree, where it will remain immoveable, and suffer its 

 enemy to pass immediately under it, or it will settle at the 

 root of some thick bush or tree, and remain so until almost 

 trodden upon; it will then rise, and darting off behind this 

 intervening object, completely elude its pursuer. 



In deep snows they are usually taken in traps, commonly 

 dead traps, supported by a figure 4 trigger ; at this season, 

 when suddenly alarmed, they will frequently dive into the 

 snow, particularly when it has newly fallen, and coming 

 out at a considerable distance, again take wing. Another 

 manner of catching these birds, is by fencing off with dead 

 brush-wood to the height of three or four feet, some narrow 

 thicket, generally resorted to by them, and leaving it im- 

 passable except through several holes placed at regular 

 distances, into which nooses made of horse-hair are sus- 

 pended; the Pheasant, after running along the fence, finds 

 no other passage, attempts to get through these holes, and 

 is almost sure to fall a victim to these artifices of the coun- 

 try boys. Sometimes in the depth of winter they approach 

 the farm house, and lurk near the barn, or about the 

 garden. They have also been often taken young and 

 tamed, so as to associate with the fowls; and their eggs 

 have frequently been hatched under the common hen; but 

 these rarely survive until full grown. They are exceed- 

 ingly fond of the seeds of grapes; occasionally eat ants, 

 chesnuts, black berries, and various vegetables, and in the 

 spring of the year the tender buds of the young sassafras. 



