HE country gentleman, who is attached to the many healthy and invigorating sports of the field,-who prefers residing upon his own estate to the too general practice of spending his income in foreign countries, or dissipating his resources in the vain and heartless excitements of the metropolis, and who is kind and obliging to all around him, is a blessing to the whole neighbourhood. Nevertheless, even the kindest and most obliging landlord is liable to be robbed by persons whom, probably, he never suspects; and amongst these there is one who may poach his covers with far greater

security than the professed poacher. This is the rabbitcatcher.

It may excite surprise that, on those estates where two or three keepers are constantly engaged, a rabbitcatcher, who travels from one district to another, should be at all employed. It would, indeed, appear that the keepers possess sufficient time and skill to keep down the rabbits by employing the necessary means themselves, without any material interference with their other duties. This, however is not the case; and the rabbitcatcher meets with employment season after season for several reasons, of which the chief is the greater facility he possesses in killing and disposing of the rabbits. For, that the rabbit-catcher, in labouring at his vocation, is enabled to effect more destruction than the keeper, is evident from the fact, that he is not only provided with every requisite for the purpose, but he can devote his whole time to the pursuit; while the attention of the keeper is directed to other parts of the preserved grounds. The rabbit-catcher uses ferrets, traps, snares, terriers, and carries a spade. By means of ferrets, the rabbits are forced from their burrows into nets placed at the entrances, and are thus secured. Occasionally they are dug out, when they cannot be forced from their retreat by any other means. The

steel traps, covered over with sand or earth, are placed within the burrows, previous to evening, when the rab

bits come out to feed, and left there during the night. The adoption of this plan, however, is attended with much destruction to other animals; as it not unfre

quently happens that a fox, in search of his prey, is caught during the night, and found with a leg or two broken the next morning by the rabbit-catcher, who instantly knocks him on the head with his spade; and, for fear of detection, immediately proceeds to bury him in the most secret and retired place. The follower of hounds is frequently disappointed by losing foxes in this way; and, instead of having a brilliant run, after carefully drawing all the covers, he cannot find a single fox. Many such instances have occurred, while the real cause of the disappointment is, perhaps, never suspected, or he has moved off to another estate, to effect the like destruction there.

The rabbit-catcher, also, frequently occasions much destruction amongst the pheasants, that are induced to approach the entrance of the holes to sun and plume themselves in the sand, or to scratch amongst the mould like the common fowl. When the rabbit-catcher finds a pheasant in one of his traps, he pops him into his own pocket, and either has him cooked at home, or sold to tavern-keepers or private individuals, for some small price. He sets his snares, too, in the several runs from the margin of the cover, or the hedge-row, to the places where the rabbits feed on the young corn clover, or other descriptions of grasses and vetches.

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Here there is much destruction accomplished, not only amongst the rabbits, but also amongst the hares, which often get caught in the wires, and are soon strangled. The rabbit-catcher is fully aware of the chance which he thus has of securing a fine hare; and, provided he is not seen by the keeper, he pockets the unfortunate victim with as much avidity as any pot-hunter. If he be discovered, he gives up the prize in the readiest manner possible, and expresses his sorrow that poor

puss has been caught.

It would be wrong to say that all rabbit-catchers are poachers; but the very nature of their calling enables them to get a hare, as well as pheasants and partridges, at any time therefore, let the keeper have a sharp look-out upon this worthy. The rabbit-catcher tries to be on good terms with the tenant farmers, who, in many instances, suffer much by the destruction which the rabbit makes in his growing crops; and hence he is inclined to think that the trap-setter is a good friend of his, by occasioning much slaughter amongst a breed which is so prolific, that, if not sufficiently checked, would almost overrun the farm. Sometimes the occupier owner of the estate to

of the land is allowed by the kill the rabbits himself; but, if a strong gorse cover is formed in any part of his farm, near the adjacent

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