298 MORE POT-POURRI 



twenty-four hours. If this is really done, the eggs keep 

 perfectly fresh for weeks so fresh that they are not to be 

 distinguished from new-laid eggs, except that they poach 

 beautifully ; which, as everyone knows, a new-laid egg 

 does not, any more than a stale one. If the boxes are 

 tied together, it is no trouble turning them over beyond 

 remembering it. The natural history of this is that 

 when the egg is laid the germ is alive, and if the egg lays 

 on its side the germ is not only alive, but grows for many 

 days. When the germ in the egg has consumed its 

 nourishment, it dies from cold, and instantly the egg goes 

 bad. By putting the eggs end downwards, and turning 

 them daily, the germ dies at once and never grows, and 

 the egg remains good. Many will not believe this. I can 

 only say ' Try it.' If you either turn the box yourself, or 

 have anyone you can depend upon to do it for you, you 

 will not find that it fails. 



If you rub perfectly fresh-laid eggs with butter, they 

 keep for a long time. If they have been laid twelve 

 hours before the butter is applied it is no good. 

 Mrs. Eoundell says this receipt is of no use : perhaps 

 because she has not tried it with fresh enough eggs. 



The word ' egg ' reminds me of such an extremely funny 

 anecdote in Mr. Max Miiller's ' Auld Lang Syne ' that I 



must crib it. A certain Duke of M , being very fond 



of natural history, was much interested in some emus 

 which he possessed. Having occasion to go to town, his 

 agent wired to him : ' The emu has laid an egg. In 

 your Grace's absence we have taken the largest goose we 

 could find to hatch it.' 



I am told that the receipts both in my former book and 

 those in ' Dainty Dishes ' were considered extravagant. 

 I have now found a cheap little book, called ' Economical 

 Cookery,' by Kate Addison, which meets the want and is 

 true to its name. At the end are two or three most 



