When There Were Birds
Here’s a book dropped off at the St.Peter’s Book Sale . The authors throughly researched their topic, and came up with a damning indictment of the nation’s relationship with birds.
160 years ago the unenlightened people of Crawley paid children and adults a farthing per Sparrow head. Three people each killed over a thousand birds, whilst simultaneously eradicating nature’s balance against insect damage.
It wasn’t so long ago Birdwatching was a sport which involved shooting a rarely seen species, and if possible stuffing it.
Fancy writing a letter, how about plucking a live goose 8 times a year to create your quill?
Decorating your drawing room? Knock off a few pheasants or peacocks – after all nothing beats the natural world for colourful “wallpaper”.
Drab hat? Why not add a few plumes from the Great Crested Grebe.
Sadly this story didn’t make happy reading. There’s too much detail, and only the merest hints at better times ahead with things like the White Storks at Knepp.
Best taken with a glass of port, whilst under the duvet. The perfect cure for insomnia.
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