Nature is a kindly doctor--and though any accident to the flying or
running powers of a wild creature probably means death, miraculous
recoveries are to noted. Rabbits commonly suffer from broken legs,
whether from gunshot, trap, or other cause; but limbs often heal and
become serviceable members again. Nor is a broken wing always enough
to cause the death of a game-bird. Should the bird escape its foes
while the broken bone is setting, it may live to fly, if not quite as
well as ever. We noticed once that one bird in a covey of partridges
flew more slowly than the others; it was shot, and when picked up we
found that there had been an old wing fracture, and that the broken
ends had crossed and overlapped in setting. A curious case was that
of a partridge which was shot in the wing, and ran when followed
through the turnips by a retriever. Several times the bird sprang
above the turnips, attempting, but in vain, to fly; then, when the dog
seemed about to catch it, the bird gave a final spring, and this time
flew straight away. But after fifty yards or so it dropped to earth,
falling almost perpendicularly. The explanation seemed to be that the
fractured bone-ends had joined, and kept their place accidentally, for
the few moments of the flight.
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