21.
Extract from Peter Simple in The Telegraph
(to be taken with a pinch of salt!)
A letter from a certain County Planning Officer
to the Department of the Environment complains that
when the County Archaeological Officer of his
Department visited the site of a Roman villa he
noticed that "The greater part of the scheduled area
was occupied by badger sets" with the danger that
archaeological material was being or would be
destroyed.
Our Nature Correspondent "Redshank" writes -
"I have noticed, time and time again, how scheduled
sites - not only of Roman villas, but of prehistoric
earthworks and even early industrial remains - seem
to have an irresistible attraction for these animals.
"Badgers are usually careful to dig their sets
in such a way that archaeological material is not
destroyed. Only the other day I watched from behind
a stunted holm-oak as a badger, busy at his excava-
tions, unearthed in rapid succession several
neolithic arrow heads, pottery fragments from the
period of the Beaker Folk and some iron thumb-rings
of the type used by Vikings to guard again rheumatism.
"The sagacious animal was obviously puzzled by
the occurrence of these chronologically inconsistent
articles on the same site and laid them out carefully
for the inspection of the County Archaeological
Officer on his next visit."
---oOo---
No more Aldrin/Deildrin
These two pesticides should no longer be available
for general use. The Ministry of Agriculture Fisheries
and Food has requested suppliers that all stocks unsold
after 1975 should be 'destroyed. (Habitat Jan 76)