294 THE BIRDS OF NORTHAMPTONSHIRE 



species, known as Reeves's or the Bar-tailed Pheasant 

 [Phasianus reevesi), though ^Ye have found it hardy, 

 easy to rear, and excellent for the table, our opinion 

 is, that as it possesses the roaming instinct in a still 

 higher degree than the Ring-necked species, and is 

 of a very wild and wary nature, it is not a desirable 

 bird, from a sporting point of view, except in very 

 large ranges of woodland, and from wdiat w'e have 

 heard from a friend who has been in the native 

 haunts of this fine bird in the mountains of Northern 

 China, w^e are inclined to think that it is more likely 

 to prosper in Scotland and in Wales than in our 

 midlands. The hybrids between this and the 

 Common Pheasant are beautiful birds, but not, so far 

 as we have been able to ascertain, prolific. 



The Pheasant, where not preserved in unreason- 

 able numbers, is a good friend to the farmer, from 

 the enormous number of wareworms and other 

 noxious insects which it devours, to say nothing of 

 its liking for the roots of various weeds ; but it 

 would be absurd to deny that grain forms its favourite 

 food, and a field of standing beans will, as is well 

 known, draw Pheasants for miles. It is very much 

 the fashion to feed the birds with maize, but, in our 

 opinion, the flesh of Pheasants which have been 

 principally fed upon this corn is very far inferior in 

 flavour to that of those who have found their own 

 living upon what the land may ofier them. 



The great question of " battue " shooting is not 

 one upon which we have the slightest desire to enter 

 the lists ; as sport, in the legitimate sense of the 

 word, we hold this fashion of shooting somewhat low 

 in estimation, though Pheasants flushed at a fair 

 distance, and put over the guns at a good height, are 



