A Protective Postponement
A definite change in the date for the open season has been suggested for Scotland. The black game have diminished in almost all districts and have clean vanished in some. The best way of restoring the population would doubtless be to put forward the opening of the season into October. Incident- ally the grouse are diminishing on the Western islands of Scodand, and there much the best way of keeping up the numbers is to import a few pairs, as partridge shooters import Hungarian birds. Not one but several correspondents from these islands have informed me, since the subject was first broached, that all their efforts to purchase fresh stock have utterly failed. It would still be possible on some moors to repeat Lord Walsingham's lamentable feat of killing a cool thousand of grouse to his own gun within the twelve hours ; and since this is so, it seems absurd that no grouse should be available for export to the islands where the stock needs replenishment. Is it really the case that no owner of a populous moor will allow a pair or two to be caught up ?
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