232 The Amateur Poacher 



visible, and if stationary is more easily practised ; but 

 it is also effective even against small fish that swim 

 together in large shoals, for if the hook misses one it 

 strikes another. The most fatal time for fish is when 

 they spawn : roach, jack, and trout alike are then 

 within reach, and if the poacher dares to visit the 

 water he is certain of a haul. 



Even in the present day and in the south a fawn is 

 now and then stolen from parks and forests where 

 deer are kept. Being small, it is not much more 

 difficult to hide than a couple of hares ; and once in 

 the carrier's cart and at a little distance no one asks 

 any questions. Such game always finds a ready sale ; 

 and when a savoury dish is on the table those who 

 are about to eat it do not inquire whence it came any 

 more than the old folk did centuries ago. A nod and 

 a wink are the best sauce. As the keepers are allowed 

 to sell a certain number of fawns (or say they are), 

 it is not possible for any one at a distance to know 

 whether the game was poached or not. An ordinary 

 single-barrel muzzle-loader of the commonest kind 

 with a charge of common shot will kill a fawn. 



I once started to stalk a pheasant that was feeding 

 in the corner of a meadow. Beyond the meadow 

 there was a cornfield which extended across to a 

 preserved wood. But the open stubble afforded no 



