94 



THE CARRION CROW, 



jays, crows, and magpies, which had all large 

 families to maintain and bring up in the immediate 

 neighbourhood. 



Keepers may boast of their prowess in setting 

 traps (and, in testimony of their success, they may 

 nail up the mutilated bodies of carrion crows against 

 the kennel wall) ; but I am of opinion, that, if the 

 squire could ever get to know the real number of 

 pheasants and hares, which have been killed or mu- 

 tilated in those traps, he would soon perceive that 

 he had been duped by the gamekeeper ; and that 

 henceforth he would forbid him to enter the covers 

 in the breeding season, for the purpose of destroying 

 the carrion crows. The frequent discharge, too, of 

 the keeper's gun, though it may now and then kill or 

 wound a carrion crow, still will infallibly drive away 

 the game in the end, and oblige it to seek some more 

 favoured and sequestered spot. As to the setting of 

 poison, — a practice so common with these worthless 

 destroyers of crows, hawks, magpies, jays^ andravens, 

 which they are pleased to style feathered vermin, — 

 it is a well known fact that foxes, ducks, dogs, hogs, 

 and pheasants are all liable to fall a prey to the nox- 

 ious bait. Often has the disappointed vulpine sports- 

 man to mark down a blank day in his calendar^ on 

 account of his quarry having supped upon what was 

 laid to kill the carrion crow ; and I have reason to 

 believe that the fox sometimes loses his life, by 

 feeding on carrion crows which have died by poison. 



If we were to sum up, on one side, the probable 

 number of pheasants and partridges destroyed during 

 one season by the carrion crow; and, on the other. 



