. Nature in downland. nging my glasses to bear on the patch,which was alive and moving, I discovered that it wasa party of fifteen magpies busily running about feed-ing and playfully chasing one another on the was to me a most astonishing sight; it is rare inEngland to see as many as fifteen magpies together,even where game is not preserved, and here I was ina corner of Sussex where pheasant-preserving is carriedto an extreme that occasionally excites the disgust ofeven the most enthusiastic sportsmen. Not far fromthe spot where I was sitting there was one smallproperty which was n
. Nature in downland. nging my glasses to bear on the patch,which was alive and moving, I discovered that it wasa party of fifteen magpies busily running about feed-ing and playfully chasing one another on the was to me a most astonishing sight; it is rare inEngland to see as many as fifteen magpies together,even where game is not preserved, and here I was ina corner of Sussex where pheasant-preserving is carriedto an extreme that occasionally excites the disgust ofeven the most enthusiastic sportsmen. Not far fromthe spot where I was sitting there was one smallproperty which was notoriously overstocked withpheasants, and yet because a big man was comingdown for one days shooting, the owner, not satisfied WEST OF THE ADUR 221 that his bu-ds would be enough, had just bought fivehundred more and put them in his woods. Theywere thicker on the ground than fowls on a poultry-farm, and tamer than fowls. Naturally, after catching sight of these miraculousmagpies, I thought no more about unhappy Otway,. Magpies but gave all my attention to them, and counted themat least fifteen times over to make sure that they werefifteen. Not many yards from them, near the lowhedge, a number of pheasants were sunning them-selves ; and by the side of the flock of magpies a coveyof nine or ten partridges were slowly and quietly 222 NATURE IN DOWNLAND moving about, searching for grain; and all about themand over the whole field of many acres the wood-pigeons in twos and threes and larger parties werealso quietly feeding, while fresh parties were con-tinually arriving. In that clear air and brightsunshine they looked lavender-coloured on the paleyellow stubble. The wood-pigeons scattered over thefield must have numbered six or seven hundred. Itwas curious and amusing to note the behaviour of themagpies, flighty, inconsequent, and perpetually inter-fering with one another, when thus seen side by sidewith the diligent, quietly-moving pigeons and par-tridges, each occupied with his o
Size: 1843px × 1356px
Photo credit: © The Reading Room / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, bookpublisherlondon, booksubject
