236 TEN YEARS OF GAME-KEEPING 
and asked if he would buy some eggs. The keeper 
said he might, and asked the man to come inside 
while the eggs were tested for ‘settiness.’ From the 
inside of an old kettle nine eggs were produced, 
and each of them bore a pencil dot. Needless to 
say, the eggs were not bought ; but the poacher was 
very much sold. The chances are very much 
against the most energetic keeper catching an egg- 
poacher in the act. The majority of ‘ fair cops’ are 
due to luck. That is easy to understand. What I 
cannot understand is why, when there is a clear con- 
viction for egg-poaching, the full penalty so seldom 
is imposed. Five shillings for each egg stolen or 
destroyed is the penalty—framed, presumably, with 
the idea of preventing the offence. My opinion is 
that the full penalty should be imposed in all cases 
except when there is a reasonable inference that the 
eggs were taken to feed the hungry. To test the 
taste of pheasants’ eggs, I boiled one that had been 
laid only a day ; but I did not think it at all pleasant. 
A large game-farmer told me that he sold four 
thousand late pheasant eggs for restaurant purposes. 
I suppose they would have conferred on them by 
menu-makers the title, ‘CEufs de Pluvier.’ 
A good many eggs are stolen by country people 
to eat. Once, having a suspicion, I was lying near 
a nest in which were a partridge and two pheasant 
eggs—marked. A boy, on his way home from 
school, took them out, gave the two pheasant eggs 
