40 OUTDOOR LIFE IN ENGLAND 



them by me, thought it as well to leave my shoot- 

 ing alone, and being equally sure that they were 

 not likely to get any from my friend, thought it 

 as well to help themselves, and did so, as I am 

 aware, having more than once witnessed the per- 

 formance, which I, of course, duly reported. 



I may as well here remark, for the benefit of 

 the uninitiated, that the sooner a rabbit is 

 paunched after being killed, the better. Good as 

 rabbits are when properly treated and dressed, 

 they are well-nigh uneatable if allowed to remain 

 unpaunched, even for a single night. Of course, 

 as every sportsman is well aware, it is the 

 general custom for keepers to thus prepare them 

 before they are taken to the house. Even then 

 a careless or ignorant servant may completely 

 ruin them by hanging them too closely together. 

 This last remark applies equally to all game, 

 which should ever be kept well separated in the 

 larder. 



It has of late years been frequently the custom 

 to cross our English rabbits with foreign blood, 

 with a view to increasing their size, and this it 

 undoubtedly does ; all the same, I very much 

 doubt if such crossings have improved their sport- 

 ing qualities. Although I fully believe in the 

 value of fresh blood from time to time, I never- 

 theless consider that a more sporting animal is 

 produced without such foreign infusion, even 

 though it may be inferior in size and weight, 

 and infinitely handsomer. It has been stated 



