BE ON GOOD TERMS WITH YOUR TENANTS. 29 



sionally some beans will be certain to pi-event them from 

 wandering to your neighbour's woods. I should also recom- 

 mend yourpaying liberally the gamekeeper for the vermin 

 he destroys. I kept a book in which a price was paid for 

 each sort of vermin ; a cat's head, Is. ; hawks, weasels, 

 stoats, and polecats, 6d. each ; carrion crows, magpies, and 

 jays, 4(1. each. I found this plan answer well, and had 

 the vermin nailed up against some barn doors. A tom 

 cat that has once taken to the woods and fields is a 

 desperate poacher, and scorns to watch for such paltry 

 game as mice: in approaching his victims he is com- 

 pletely the tiger in miniature, crawling with the greatest 

 caution until he has well ascertained that by one spring 

 he can secure his prey.* It would be advisable to let your 

 tenants have the destroying of your rabbits, not by 

 shooting, as that would occupy much of the game- 

 keeper's time in coming to find out who it was when 

 he heard the report of a gun, but by trapping and 

 snaring. The snare to take a rabbit is set rather lower 

 than that for a hare. If a gentleman farms a hundred 

 or two hundred acres of his land, there would be no 

 difficulty in his having a sufficient supply of rabbits for 

 his family ; but if he has no taste for agriculture, in that 

 case his woods and plantations would furnish the rabbits 

 which the mistress of the house is usually anxious to 

 have, although the estate may be rented by the gentle- 

 man's tenants. I think it should be his main object to 

 be on good terms with them. To effect this he should 

 not screw up their rents too high, and always bear in 

 mind the maxim, " Live and let live ;" and if any of 

 the tenants are fond of a little coursing, he should, 



* "When young, a cat's ears should be cut close ; this will prevent his 

 poaching, as he is much annoyed by wet getting into his ears. 

 D 3 



