The Book of Duck Decoys: Their Construction, Management, and History (1886)

Sir Ralph Frankland-Payne-Gallwey, 3rd Baronet, was one of numerous accomplished English gentlemen of the Victorian era. He, the third of six Yorkshire baronets holding the name Payne-Gallwey, was born on August 19, 1848, and died on November 24, 1916. He was educated at Eton, married Edith Alice Usborne in 1877, and was Magistrate for North Riding, Yorkshire. The couple had five children, of which their only son was killed in action in World War I. Payne-Gallwey was an extraordinarily talented engineer, historian, ballistics expert, artist, and sport hunter. These abilities are amply reflected in several books, some of which are considered to be among the most definitive of their subjects. Among the most notable are: The Fowler in Ireland … (1882); Shooting, Field and Covert … 2 vols. (1887), co-authored with Lord Walsingham; The Crossbow … (1903); Introduction to The Diary of Col. Peter Hawker, 1802-1853. 1903; The Projectile Throwing Machines of the Ancients … (1907); and Shooting High Pheasants … (1913).The present book, The Book of Duck Decoys … (1886), is clearly the most authoritative work on that subject.–Henry M. Reeves.