20 NATURAL HISTORY OP THE PHBASAJSTTS. 



"In a survey of tlie possessions of the Abbey of Glastonbury made in 

 1539, mention is made of a 'game' of sixteen pheasants in the woods at Meare, 

 a manor near Glastonbury belonging to the Abbey. 



" Tbe value set upon pheasants and partridges at various periods, as shown by 

 the laws fixing penalties for their destruction, seems to have fluctuated considerably. 



" By a statute passed in the eleventh year of the reign of Henry VII. it 

 was forbidden ' to take pheasants or partridges with engines in another's ground 

 without licence in pain of ten pound, to be divided between the owner of . the 

 ground and the prosecutor.' By 23 Eliz. c. 10, 'None should kUl or take 

 pheasants or partridges by night in pain of 20«. a pheasant, and 10«. a partridge, 

 or one month's imprisonment, and bound with sureties not to offend again in the 

 like kind.' By 1 Jac. I. c. 27, 'No person should kill or take any pheasant, 

 partridge, (&c. ), or take or destroy the eggs of pheasants, partridges, (&c.), in 

 pain of 20s., or imprisonment for every fowl or egg, and to find sureties in £20 

 not to offend in the like kind.' Under the same statute, no person was permitted 

 'to buy or sell any pheasant or partridge, upon pain or forfeit of 20*. for every 

 pheasant, and 10s. for every partridge.' By 7 Jac. I. c. 11, ' every person having 

 hawked at or destroyed any pheasant or partridge between the 1st of July and ' 

 last of August, forfeited 40s. for every time so hawking, and 20s. for every 

 pheasant or partridge so destroyed or taken.' Lords of manors and their servants 

 might take pheasants or partridges in their own grounds or precincts in the day- 

 time between Michaelmas and Christmas. But every person of a mean condition 

 having killed or taken any pheasant or partridge, forfeited 20s. for each one so 

 killed, and had to find surety in £20 not to offend so again." 



In Ireland, writes Mr, W. Thompson, m his natural history of that country, 

 "The period of its introduction is unknown to me, but in the year 1589 it was 

 remarked to be common." Fynes Moryson, who was in Ireland from 1599 to 

 1603, observes that there are "such plenty of pheasants as I have known sixty 

 served up at one feast, and abound much more with raUs, but partridges are 

 somewhat scarce." 



In Scotland the pheasant does not appear to have been preserved at a very 

 early period. Mr. R. Gray, in his work on " The Birds of the West of Scotland," 

 says: "The first mention of the pheasant in old Scots i^cts is in one dated 8th 

 June, 1594, in which year a keen sportsman occupied the Scottish throne. He 

 might almost have been called ' James the protector' of all kinds of game. In 

 the aforesaid year he ' ordained that quhatsumever person or persones at ony time 

 hereafter sail happen to slay deir, harts, phesants, foulls, partricks, or uther wyld 

 foule quhatsumever, ather with gun, croce bow, dogges, halks, or girnes, or be 

 uther ingine quhatsumever, or that beis found schutting with ony gun therein,' &c., 

 &c., shall pay the usual 'hundreth punds,' &c." 



