Nights with an Old Gunner and Other Studies of Wild Life

"Nights with an Old Gunner" - and Other Studies of Wild Life by C.J. Cornish. 1899; Seeley and Co.; London. Nicely illustrated with 16 full-page plates. Here are a few examples of the contents: The Wild Grey Geese of Holkham; Wild Fowl on Holkham Lake; The Terns and the High Tide; Sport in the Sandhills; Lobster-Catching with Hands and Feet; Prawns and Prawn Pools; Shore Birds' Nests in Brading Harbour; Sandbank Fisheries; The Birds of Parks; The Haunt of Our Summer Falcon; Owls' Nests and Owl Trees; A Game Farm in August; Fish and Fowl at Hampton Court; The White Horse Downs; Shooting on the Carrs; Netting the Old Canal; A Beaver Lake in Sussex; The Japanese Deer at Powerscourt...and more.

From the Preface: "The contradiction involved in a liking for field sports and a taste for observing wild animals in their hours of ease is an obvious one. But in such byways of sport as are mainly recorded here, phases of animal life are noticed at hours during which the creatures would otherwise not be seen, as, for example, throughout the winter nights when the 'Old Gunner' has kept watch for more than half a century on the marches, or at daybreak among the reefs where the 'Lobster Hunter' makes his daily search."

Condition:
Light soiling to the spine, and at the bottom-right corner of the front cover. Tiny cloth tears at the cover corners. Small cloth tears at the top and bottom edges of the spine. Tight binding with no loose pages. There are a few cracks at the spine in the 2nd half of the book - despite the cracks, the pages and covers remain firmly in place. The text pages are in very nice condition - clean with no notable issues found. Previous owner's bookplate affixed to the front pastedown - a tanned outline of the bookplate appears on the half title page. Overall the book is in Good condition.