300 
BRITISH BIRDS. 
time the young are brought forth : as foon after- 
wards as the brood are able to waddle along, they 
are, together with their dams, driven to the conti- 
guous loughs, and fens or marflies, on whofe gralfy- 
margined pools they feed and thrive, without re- 
quiring any further attendance until the autumn. 
To thefe marfhes, which otherwife would be unoc- 
cupied, (except by wild birds) and be only ufelefs 
watery v/aftes, we are principally indebted for fo 
great a fupply of the Goofe ; for in almoft every 
country where lakes and marfhes abound, the neigh- 
bouring inhabitants keep as many as fuit their con- 
venience, and in this way immenfe numbers annu- 
ally attain to full growth and perfedion. But in 
no part of the world are fuch numbers reared as in 
the fens of Lincolnfhire, where it is faid to be no 
uncommon thing for a fmgle perfon to keep a thou- 
fand old Geefe, each of which, on an average, will 
bring up feven young ones. So far thofe only are 
noticed which may properly be called the larger 
flocks, by which particular watery difl:ri6:s are 
peopled ; and, although their aggregate numbers 
are great, yet they form only a part of the large 
family : thofe of the farm-yard, taken feparately, 
appear as fmall fpecks on a great map ; but when 
they are gathered together, and added to thofe 
kept by almofl: every cottager throughout the king- 
dom, the immenfe whole will appear multiplied in a 
ratio almoft incalcuiable. A great part of thofe 
