The Sun.
London, England, 1844-11-26 00:00:00

BATTUE SHOOTIN .
TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN.
SlR,—Although a game preserver myself, and that
over come thousands of acres, I have seen with the
greatest pleasure the powerful attacks made by the
respectable portion of the press, and that, too, with-
out distinction of party, against the present extensive
system of game preserving; which, had it been pur-
posely devised with the intention of demoralising the
peasantry, could not possibly have been more success-
ful ; and this for the mere purpose of keeping up the
unsportsmanlike practice of battue shooting, enabling
a few cockneys to slaughter their game without the
healthy excitement and exercise which ought to be
the accompaniment of a day's sport; and I should
feel much obliged to any party, who professes " to
do unto others that which he would they shoukl do
unto him," to explain what difference there is in the
conduct of a man who exposes to the public gaze and
touch valuable jewellery, and then prosecutes the un-
fortunate who cannot withstand the temptation, and
the game preserver who keeps in a field adjoining the
miserable huts of half-fed peasants scores of hares
and pheasants, and then prosecutes them if they snare
one on entering their gardens to devour, perhaps, their
morning meal. All I know is, that both judges and
jurymen agree in denouncing the conduct of the former.
Game preservers prevent this by having made laws
constituting themselves both judges, and jurymen, and
executioners.
First, I will tell you my mode of game preserving.
Over a large tract of country I have only one keeper
(no watcher), who could never perform his duty ex-
cept with the good-will of the farmers. His instruc-
tions are, whenever a tenant complains that the game
is getting too plentiful, to go and shoot them down as
he would vermin, especially hares, which are doing
some mischief, be it much or little, every day in the
year ; and whenever any tenant wishes to have a hare,
he gets it as a right which he has acquired by having
fed the beast.
In this way my tenants are the best game pre-
servers, to an extent quite sufficient for a day's sport
with a day's exercise. The game is not so abun-
dant as to tempt a trespasser, who would, in all pro-
bability, be immediately detected ; for unless it is
very plentiful, a farmer detests a poacher, who breaks
fences, leaves open gates, disturbs stock, and if hard
pushed, makes no scruple of stealing poultry, or even
sheep, should an opportunity occur ; but when game
swarms, the tenant is forced to tolerate the poacher
to get rid of a worse nuisance.
I will now state a mode, which I trust will be as
successful with hares and pheasants as I have found
it to be with black cocks and grouse, and if so, its
practice would put a greater check to the present in-
tolerable extent of game preserving than any law
which can be expected from our present Legislators ;
for, however extensive are a man's domains, or how-
ever numerous his keepers, he must hare a boun-
dary ; and this plan has also the good effect of punish-
ing in the most severe manner such a neighbour as I
am unfortunately troubled with.
The keeper builds about thirty yards asunder, and
in the form of a triangle, three ricks of straw—one
of them hollow, in which to conceal himself; the
others with a sheaf or two of corn placed on the top.
These are placed in a corn field, near the boundary,
and they very soon collect an immense quantity of
both black game and grouse. After the birds are
accustomed to the haunt, the keeper hides himself in,
the one that is hollow, and with two or three double-
barrelled guns, gets several shots, at perhaps twenty
birds sitting at thirty yards distance ; the result you
may guess. Strange to say, as long as the keeper
remains unseen, the birds do not appear alarmed, al -
though their companions are dropping by their side,
and he generally fires all the guns before he emerges
to collect the spoil; he then conceals himself again,
when the same process is gone through, and this three
or four times of an evening, when an assistant is ne-
cessary to carry away the game.
By having similar stacks, a mile or two apart, and
visiting each only twice a week, game-preserving is
out of the question, especially when the land is rather
lower than the hills which the birds frequent in fine
weather, and for breeding, for the plan is most effica-
cious in misty weather; and even during rain, when
the birds descend in great flocks, for shelter as well
as food.
Of course it will be said that this is unsportsman-
like ; so it is, and so is battue shooting ; but this is
all that can be said against the former, while nothing
can be said in favour of the latter ; and if parties will
preserve game to the extent which it is the fashion to
to do, I know of no mode of administeringsuch severe
punishment without getting into the trammels of
the law.—l am, Sir, your very obedient servant,
A SPORTSMAN.