The Sun.
London, England, 1824-09-14 00:00:00

FIELD SPORTS FOR' SEPTEMBER.

(iltOtri TISE ANNALS OF SPORTINO.)
The mouth of September may be regarded as
Ittei.rrbrfloamberio,fuarrsrelliuvime:gb, itigedftleha)eediali:orlea:netstareiinbritesesdi:ter grouie, the first of Sep-
the SportStnan's Jubilee. By the time the shooter somewhat
VsviiiiausieleilaYunduiiff:reren;enseralenelly.
as remote as posilble frOM the habitations of than, and`fte-f
quently to be followed, even amongst the cloudj, • the shooter
is translated to the enclosures, where the partridge vrillbefound
quattered upon the husbandman: That this bird will, and Often
does, teed upon corn is a tact well well knovin, arid hence
an outcry has sometimes been raised against it ; in lacti
men in general, and farmers, perhaps, above all others,
are very apt to look on the gloomy or 'the worst side of the
question +444 -thus, *bile the ptirtrldge is condemned as
mischievous' amongst coin; the benefit which the groviing
crops derive from 'her exertions is entirely overfooked. The
day on which partridges are hatched, they will not quit the
spot, if undisturbed ; they remain for the most part under
the old bird, continually chirping, and the Stronger part; of
them frequently put forth their heads and show theinselves.H
After continuing in this state till the next morning, they are
led forth by the parent birds (the cocit is very assiduous on
these occasions) to ant hills, and other places, and fot a con;
siderable time they feed almost entirely on insects. They
are extremely fond of ants' eggs ; but they do not confine
themselves to these alone, as they seek and eagerly devour
all that infinite variety of insects found on the blades of grail',
the leaves, of plants, &c. and thus, in conjunction with the
swallow tribe, and other mall birds that feed upon winged
insects, prevent blight and mildew, which, in consequence,
seldom happen in this country, but which would very fre-
quently occur, were they not prevented in the manner just
described. If the subject be but slightly considered, it will
be perceived, that, at the period when partridges are hatch-
ed, the labours of the husbandman cannot suffer from their
depredations, as, at this time, the corn is, generally speak-
ing, not half grown ; hence it is evident they cannot subsist
on grain, even were they disposed so to do. In addition to
feeding on insects, partridges occasionally eat the blades of
grass ; and in this way di% subsist till the corn becomes ripe,
the ears of which they seldom attempt to pluck, except where
the corn is much beaten down. As far as relates to their
feeding on wain, partridges do little else in this. respect than
pick up what is shed or falls on the ground in the act of
reaping, or those other indispensable operations which corn
undergoes prior to its being housed t hence the reason why
partridges are uniformly found in the stubbles at certain
periods.

, .
At the commencement of the partridge-shooting, season, and
indeed during the month of September, partridges run about
the field where they have slept as soon as the grey light of the
morning enables them to distinguish objects; on these occa4
*ions they sometimes call (though not always) and fly to the
potatoes, or turnips, where they run and reed upon earths-worms
and such insects as they happen to meet with ; they thus con-
tinue till eight or nine o'clock, when they fly to the 'nibbles,
where they will he found till the near approach of noon, when
they seek sonic sandy, bank, with a southern aspect, for the
purpose of what is called basking; or, in other words, to expose
themselves to the rays of the sun, while,i with their feet and
wings, they contrive to cover their bodies with sand, and par-
ticularly to insert it among their feathers, in the same manner
as domestic poultry. They will continue thus, if undisturbedi
for a considerable length of time, perhaps till three o'clock; or
even later, when they again seek the atubbles, in which .they
remain till the approach of dusk ; they then go to the meadows;
and are very fond'of running amongst the after grass ; they
often spread themselves ; at length they call, and retire to the
sleeping place for the night. The sportsman is aware that, in
hot weather, to continue shooting from about eleven till three
o'clock is very distressing to the clogs, and seldom successful.
From the appearance of the conies, it is evident that partridges
this season, batched rather earlier than usual, and in the writer's
neighbourhood, and on the north-west coast generally, the
young partridges are not only uncommonly well grown, but
the conies are more numerous than usual, and consist of a
greater number of individuals.
In regard to the pheasant, though its habits are somewhat
analogous to those or the partridge, yet it differs, in some re-
spects, and is more prejudicial, to the corps of grain, though
by no means so injurious as is generally supposed. Like the
partridge, this bird feeds very much upon insects, and upon
blades of grass also; but it is more.granivoroits, whets quarter-
ed upon inclosed and cultivated grounds, though it becomes
plump and well fed in the woods and forests, 'where for grain
it substitutes acorns 'and almost any kind of wild berries The
greatest injury which the agriculturalist sustains from the
mischievous propensities of this beautiful bird it from its
scratching* the newly sown wheat ; this, however, might be
easily prevented by placing, a boy with a rattle to frighten it
away.
Of all the animals which are considered game, none is so
injurious to the farmer as the rabbit, though it scarcely comes
under this denomination. Rabbit-warrens may be very profit-
able upon sandy hills and in barren situations ; but if rabbits
are suffered to become numerous in well cultivated grounds,
they will be found extremely mischievous.
Nor can the " poor timid hare" be altogether exonerated
though, as, the principal depredations which she commits are
upon the young timber, it may be easily prevented by rub-
bing them with tar, lime, itc.. flares will visits, the gardens
in hard weather, anti teed upon the parsley, lettice, &c, and
the writer is scarcely ever without a visitor of this sort during
the winter season : contrary to custom, however, a hare made
its appearance upon a grass-plat in front of his dwelling in the
month of June of the present year, and has regularly presented
itself almost every evening since, though the distance from the
window (frequently left open) to the extent of the gras plate
just mentioned, is not more than thirty yards ; and hares
are not remarkably numerous in the surrounding country.—
' It is astonishing bow familiar these animals will become when
their approaches to the habitations of man continue unmolested.
Independently of shooting, coursing commences during the
month of September. There is no precise day appointed by
law upon which this amusement is to begin : this, therefore,
' sued; must always be regulated by the state of the cropi.—rtlare-h unt-
ing and lex-hunting generally commence tosewitt* latter
end of September.
par'
:stwisterl
as roirslri
roach,
hf,odrabcar.r batildmeahyu
bi,nuthhiischMreonwthbbeie!i u
to
leave the weeds anti get into des r water i they are saran In
health,, and firm in flesh, and will take a bait freely, especially
in the morning early, and /ilk in . the evening. Carp continue
this month to take a bait in still waters, its well as in streams,
peg
and are strong, fat, and in excellent condition for table. Perch
are nearly in full season, but the angler must use live fish baits.,
jacokthandlittePiklne the
if he expect to take the old or heavy ones.
still eagerly take the humble-bee, and harry-lung-legs, and also
cboamitipnregtftasy tfrienetloyc,o welljddilteiond,ityanadnabewgatutirtobepofuarvhouarab
Chubchosen
cgs is found in
abundance in all marsh meadows, especially about sun-set.—
Fly.fishing for trout is now rapidly on the decline.
evening.grassllop grasshoppers by day, and
rththeelahrgoeryw:leg

the rain descends on the tops of
ttvhheeerygrmohouuignhae-
-I,3loinpneinceolmourndosn; than
and ObforthtehemtoOlarßsiotitt frequently
bills
Ntoobtheizv
happens that while
tains the weather is remarkably fine in the valleys, and even
on the sides of the hills. Un er such circumstances grouse
may very justly be said to be followed amongst the clouds.—
The sight is highly interesting, particularly to those
who,
re..
siding in the interior parts of the country,
mountains for the first time.

Within a dozen years, not less than ten thou.
sand houses have been built in and about Stepney-fields. Some
years since, a builder, remarkable for wealth, parsimony, and
meanness of appearance, was erecting a great number of mat
houses; and being examined before a committee of the' House
of Commons, in regard to a projected Water Compfny, he was
asked how many houses he had in the neighbourhood ? Ile re-
plied, be did not know. " Have you three or four ?"—" More 1%
" Have you a dozen ?"_" More 1" " flare you twenty ?"
" More 1" " Have you fifty ?"__" I'll tell you truly," replied
Thomas Barnes. " I knew exactly how many I had when I
came out this morning, but I can't tell,
within fifty, how many
I shall have when I return I"—(.6corwmist.)