Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1902-09-18

methods, at least as regards the pur-
suit on a small scale, it is carried on
even more briskly than before. The
implements for sharing have in
creased in number, and are much i'm
proved, and on the other hand, the
number Of the hunted birds has de-
creased, the 'surest sign Of the disap-
Everywhere l heard the same com
plant from birdcatchers and dealers,
that during the last decade the num-
Der OF birds had yearly decreased and
that the business hardly paid any
more. On the one hand, the once
fiourishing export Of small birds has
nOticeably decreased, even in some
respects ceased entirely; on the other
hand, the price of the birds offered in
the italian markets has decidedly
risen. While for example, in the
! sos, one dozen ''piccoli uccelIi'' Qittle
birds)-that is to say, every conceiv
able kind, even robins and fnches
cost on an average from 80 to sc
! centesimi, and on warm days, wher
! the catch was very good and the eX
port not practicable, as little as five
centesimi,- price today for one
dozen Of the same birds has risen as
high as from 80 centesimi to one lire
Only the bitter-tasting sparrows
have remained comparatively cheap;
almost exclusively field sparrows, fol-
I have seldom seen a house sparrow
in market, and these, displayed daily
in large numbers, are to be had fol
from SO to 60 centesimi, or even less
When one sees the quantity Of birds
+offered daily for sale it seems hardly
credible that they can all be con.
sumed in one day, and in one place
1t can only be explained by the fact
that these small birds are a food or
delicacy for the poor laborer as well
as the rich man, and, above all, for
the countless foreigners in Italy just
at this season. Yes, I consider the
yearly increasing international hotels
as the chief consumers of innumerable
birds. The man of the people in most
Se1oSo iclo hlo III 10 SoChCu LII Tie
public kitchens, many of which | also
visited in my quest for information.
Here the birds, according to the taste
OF the consumer, are usually run on
to splits by the dozen, alternately a
bird, then a piece Of bread and sage
leaf, and roasted over a charcoal fire.
quarter of an hour suffices to cook
the small creatures in their own fat.
and then, with the bread roasted at
the same time, they are eaten on the
spot.
1 sa the largest number OF birds.
and certainly not fewer now than
formerly, in Milan and Florence, but
on the other hand there were not
nearly as many in Como and other
small towns. The reason for this
lies in the general disappearance of
the birds. While there were formerly
so many caught that all the markets
could be literally supplied and still
enough left over for expectation. to-
day the entire product of all Italy
barely suffices for it's own large cities.
: For that reason it would be a great
mistake to estimate the entire num-
Der of birds destroyed, from the large
quantity one sees in the above men
toned markets. These are gathered
from all parts, and in some cases
come from very remote districts. Bird
catchers and dealers at first hand
withhold their prey from their own
countrymen, because in the large
mand, they are suEer of higher and
steadier profit than in the small
places.
In Milan and Florence l saw large
quantities of birds, probably from
10000 to $4,000 daily. The kinds vary
naturally according to the season and
the corresponding migrations. During
my observations of last year early in
October the largest number of birds
consisted Of larks and robins; of the
latter on some mornings I saw as
many as three or four thousand in
market.
In many Of the robins l noticed that
the thigh bone was split, and learned
that these had been caught in ar
cneti (spring traps, in which case
the broken bone was unavoidable. 1t
seems most remarkable that so many
birds can be caught in this way, when
only one can be taken at the time,
and each trap requires so much time
and trouble to prepare and watch
For, even though the proportion of
birds caught in this way is small COM
pared to those taken in nets, | could
on many mornings count hundreds
with broken legs.
Next in number to robins and 1arks
come the various thrushes-
tunately, not only missed thrushes and
redwings, but also our beautiful song
thrushes. Moreover, with us also in
Germany, according to reliable stats
ties, about so per cent. of the so-called
field-faTes caught yearly are really
song thrC5hes, and about 40 per cent.
are other useful insect destroyers
Contrary to my former observations,
quail also are now offered for sale in
northern Italy. These, however, are
not caught here. but come from the
south, mostly from the Campagna and
the island of Capri. Moreover, quail
are destroyed in Egypt even more
than in Italy According to the
archaeological Monthly, the number
OF live quail exported from Egypt
during 1898 amounted to 1875, 40. of
which 1,0SS,490 went to France, $4,000
directly to England. 10000 to Italy