KEEPERS AND KEEPEEING 433 



As to the exact terms of service, no general rules can be laid down. 

 Wages differ in different parts of the country according to local customs, 

 cost of living, etc. It may, however, be stated that it is a good xerms of 

 policy to pay keepers a fair living wage, not only with a view to ^*^'"^''='^- 

 securing good men, but also to let them realise that their services are 

 appreciated, and that they have a billet which it is worth their while to keep. 



Zeal may be further encouraged by periodically increasing the wages of a 

 keeper who by his personal efforts has improved the value of the shooting 

 under his charge. When this policy is adopted the criterion should be the 

 net improvement over a term of years, and not the chance bag of one lucky 

 season. 



Though the rate of wages may vary with local custom and payment 

 individual largesse, there can be no doubt on one point, viz., that n^trecom- 

 the emolument should be in "coin of the realm" and not in "kind." ^^^^^s*^- 



The keeper should be a keeper "first and last and all the time." 

 In England a garden or the grazing of a couple of cows may be a 

 desirable addition to wages ; in the Highlands a small croft may be a 

 necessity ; but in either case agricultural enterprise should be kept down 

 to the margin of personal comfort, and not regarded as a substitute 

 for wages, nor should it be allowed to afford a separate means of livelihood. 

 The keeper's place is on his beat, and not at the market - place watching 

 the sale of stock. Above all things a keeper should have no interest in 

 the sheep grazing on his beat. A man cannot serve two masters, nor should 

 a keeper practise his retriever in herding a ewe stock, or keep his nesting 

 ground quiet by pushing up the lately returned winter "hogs" to the high 

 ground. 



Many employers prefer their keepers to be married men, and there is 

 much to be said for the preference. A married man is less dependent 

 upon his neighbours for society than a bachelor, and so can go about his 

 business without attracting attention ; for the same reason it is often better 

 for a gamekeeper's house to be situated some distance away from other 

 habitations. 



In addition to the adequate payment of keepers, the establishment of 

 a pension fund is a question well worthy of consideration. There pension 

 is a Scotch maxim, " A stout heart to a stae brae," and a servant ^'^*' 

 who has to get his beat burned in the short time available in autumn 

 VOL. I. 2 E 



