38 NATURAL HISTORY OF THE PARTRIDGE 
That partridges should deliberately elect to bring 
forth a brood of delicate chicks in the middle of an 
English winter sounds improbable enough ; but, after 
all, it is the exception that proves the rule ; so the 
very fact that records of partridges incubating during 
the dead season are so difficult to enumerate, reminds 
us that there is, normally, a very general uniformity 
of practice amongst the nesting birds. Certainly the 
exceptions are surprising enough. No one would 
dream of looking for a partridge’s nest in December, 
not even in the Isle of Wight or any other warm and 
favoured situation in the south of England. Yet as 
recently as the year 1891 a brood of partridge chicks 
was discovered at Longframlington, in the county of 
Northumberland, in the middle of January. Their 
condition was the more remarkable because the 
weather during which their incubation had been 
accomplished was particularly broken and inclement. 
Ih warm springs young partridges hatch out as early 
as April and even March ; but such abnormal antici- 
pation of reproduction is irregular, and even rare. 
Not the least interesting point in the life history 
of the partridge is the remarkable fecundity of the 
female bird. Game-birds are generally prolific in the 
production of eggs ; indeed, we may accept their free 
laying as a rule of general application. The principle 
