THE DUCK DECOYS OF ESSEX. 203
offering a reward of five guineas for information which would
lead to a conviction, appeared in the papers. The Rev. J. C.
Atkinson, who was born at Goldhanger in 1814, writing in 1861
stated that within his own recollection many decoys on the
Essex coast had been used constantly and successfully, which
in 1861 had been dismantled and unused for many years.
A LIST OF THE DUCK-DECOYS OF ESSEX WITH A
DESCRIPTION OF THEIR POSITION.
The numbers from 1 to 35 are used to indicate the same decoys
as in A History of the Birds of Essex. Cartographical exactitude
is not claimed for these numbers, and where this is desired the
numbers should be used in conjunction with the descriptions.
1. South Hall Decoy is in the parish of Paglesham, about
half-a-mile from South Hall and a mile S.W. from Paglesham,
on the north bank of the Roach, an arm of the Crouch. It
covers one acre and had six pipes, running E.S.E., S.E., S., S.W.,
N.W. and N. It has not been used for one hundred and fifty-
five years.
2. Southminster Decoy was situated on New Moor Farm
in the parish of Southminster. Nothing is known of the history
of this decoy. Investigations were made in 1897, but no one
could be found who remembered it, but a pool was found which
may have been the remains of the decoy.
3. Grange Decoy is situated in Tillingham Marsh, two
miles S.E. from Tillingham and three quarters-of-a-mile from
the sea. The pond is a little more than an acre in extent and
has six pipes. Payne-Gallwey, writing in 1886, stated that the
average yearly take was from 1,500 to 2,000 fowl, chiefly Wigeon,
and according to Christy, writing four years later', more than
once over 10,000 birds have been taken in a year, even recently.
Payne-Gallwey and Christy both state that there appeared to
be an inter-relation between this and the neighbouring Marsh
House Decoy. One pond would keep the lead in the number
of Wigeon taken for several seasons and then the other would
have its turn or the ducks might desert one in favour of the
other. Mr. J. Whitaker visited this decoy on July 19th, 1918,
when he found it in good condition, and he gives rough measure-
ments of the lengths of the pipes: No. 1 70, No. 2 70, No. 3 67,
No. 4 60, No. 5 70, No. 6 63 yards. The pipes were covered
with netting on wooden hoops, with side and top supports of
wood. The screens were 5 feet 6 inches high, the arch at entrance
of pipes about 12 feet and the water about fifteen feet wide.
Only two pipes had running back walls, as the growth of bushes