so distended with grain that it will turn aside the shot 
from a gun, fired at the bird as it flies head-on towards 
a sportsman. It will hold a sufficient quantity of turnip 
tops, when loosely shaken up, to fill a pint measure. And 
as these birds often travel in large flocks, returning to the 
fields day after day, there is hardly any limit to the 
damage which they cause. 
The pigeon is so wary, too, that it is difficult 
to approach it. Even when it is engaged in 
feeding two or three sentinels are always on 
the look-out. And as soon as the alarm is 
given the whole flock make off with such speed 
that it is almost impossible to shoot them. 
It seems rather strange that this bird should 
be so very plentiful, since it never lays more than 
two eggs in a single 
season. But the nest Pa ¥ 
is always placed so 
We ; ; / 
sts high up in the branches 
VG Ue of a tree or a tall bush | £ 
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