ON THK THEFT OF LIVK GAME. 117 



twine — the silken ones are best. These snares 

 being so set to face one end of the cover, the 

 thieves go to the other end, tap the stems of 

 the trees very cautiously as they come along, and 

 set all the pheasants rmming. They j)i'oceed 

 thus cautiously up to their snares, and take out 

 the pheasants that may be caught; when, revers- 

 ing the position of their purse-nets to make them 

 catch the other way, they then go to the other 

 end of the cover and reverse their beat, con- 

 cluding in the same way. If the covers are 

 narrow, and the pheasants many, this depreda- 

 tion takes up but little time, and the thieves 

 of the game are oflP with their valuable booty 

 before the drimken or neglectful keejDer knows 

 anything of the matter. I remember one of 

 these London men being caught at this work 

 by an old servant of mine, but not then in my 

 employ. He gave chase to the tAvo Londoners, 

 who ran for it, and very wisely selected the man 

 who seemed to have the heaviest pocket. This 

 man^ in jumping the wattled hedge out of the 

 cover, kicked his toe against the top binder, and 

 fell with his stomach against the edge of the 

 ditch in the field. The keeper very wisely 



