PHRASEOLOGY OF A DECOY. | |
| The defendant reasoned that he had every right to fire at wildfowl in an arm or creek of the sea wherein the tide ebbed and flowed, and that was free to every one; and, further, that he had not ventured upon the land near the Decoy. But the Court held that a Decoy was protected by law, as were various other properties that required guarding against wilful damage. This case was also quoted in favour of the plaintiff. It is known as Carrington V. Taylor, is reported in I I East, 571; 2 Camp. 258; and the Decoy it occurred at was the one at Beaumont cum Mose in Essex in 1810. | |
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THE PHRASEOLOGY OF A DECOY. | |
| A Decoy is a cunning and clever combination of water, nets, and screens, by means of which wildfowl, such as Wigeon, Mallard, and Teal, are caught alive. A Decoyman is the man who works and manages the Decoy, and who by his art, as well as by his knowledge of the birds and their surroundings when in the waters of the Decoy, entraps them. The Piper is the dog used in Decoying. The Pipes are the long, curving, net-covered ditches in which the actual capture of the ducks takes place. The Screens are the reed shelters from behind which the Decoyman, unseen by the birds, practises his allurements on them. The Hoops are the curved rods of wood or iron, half circular in shape, that span the ditches like arches, and support the netting. The Head Shew is the spot at which the Decoyman first appears, when he gets behind the ducks to frighten them up the pipe they have been lured into. (See plate 1.) The Breast-wall is formed by the one or usually two screens that flank the right-hand entrance to a pipe on looking down it, and which shelter the Breast-wall Landing. The Draught of a Pipe is the part of the pond that, getting narrower as it leaves the main water of the Decoy, leads to the pipe's entrance. Reed Edges are the small beds of reed usually placed about halfway between the mouth of each pipe for the fowl to hide in, as is their custom at times. | |