THE BOOK OF DUCK DECOYS. | |
| The Ducks and Teal, on the other hand, did not appear in force until mid-winter; while "Pyntails" were always scarce and irregular in their appearance. These conclusions are not based merely on the returns for the first year, 1714, but are borne out by the returns for subsequent years. In 1716 the price paid for wildfowl thus captured rose to 10s. and the following year to 10s. 6d. per dozen, the purchaser being "Jno. Deal." In 1718 Joseph Woodwards ceased to be "Duckoyman," and in his stead one "Ben Carter" was employed, but either he was not so skilful as his predecessor, or wildfowl were never afterwards so plentiful. He never succeeded in taking more than 4,500 Wigeon in a season (this was in 1722), while Woodwards never took less than 5,200 of these birds in a season, and once captured 6,296 in five months. The months of December 1718 and January 1719 were, so to say, singularly unproductive. During the former month the Decoy was only worked on two days, the 22nd and 30th, when only forty birds, all Ducks, were taken. In January four days' work only produced fifty-three Ducks and twelve Wigeon. In 1720-2 the season was prolonged until the 3rd of March, but to very little purpose; for on that day only fourteen Ducks were taken, and the total number captured during the previous month of February was only thirty-three. In 1721 the price of wildfowl rose to 12s. per dozen, Mr John Deal still finding a market for all that could be spared from this Decoy. The following year he gave 12s. per dozen to Michaelmas, and 14s. per dozen from that date to the end of the season. In 1723 appears the entry, "Sold to Mr. Wm. Foster this years wild fowll att sixteen shillings per dozn." The same purchaser took all he could get the following year at the same price; and in 1725 and 1726 16s. per dozen was again the price given by Messrs. Darnoll and Basset. With the close of this season the MS. ends, and we are left in ignorance as to whether the Decoy was then given up, or whether the owner died and it changed hands, or what its fate was. It would be interesting to know when and why it was finally abandoned. To judge by the following summary, which is copied from the last page of the MSS. (all in the same handwriting), it would appear as if one reason for giving up the Decoy was the gradual falling off in numbers of fowl observable during the last three years in which it was worked-or, at least, the last three years of which an account has been preserved, and the consequent falling off in the profits, which dwindled from £81 to £69, and eventually to £33 only. | |
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