THE COOKERY OF THE PHEASANT 233 



is fatal to intelligent gourmandise ; and we can only 

 say that those purists may as well leave game alone, and 

 content themselves with the somewhat insipid spring 

 chickens, which likewise lose by precipitate cooking. 

 But there is one remarkable feature with the pheasant, 

 and a pleasing trait it is. Keep him as long as you will, 

 within any reasonable limits, and the ' oysters ' with the 

 delicate pickings from the back are not only eatable, but 

 enjoyable ; whereas with woodcock, snipe, or plover, if 

 you are to enjoy the trail, you must sacrifice the bird, 

 and notably the thighs, with their splendid possibilities. 

 A warm controversy has been waged, by the way, 

 between the comparative attractions of the wing and 

 thigh of the pheasant. It strikes us that it is but the 

 old story of the shield seen from opposite sides, for 

 it is all a question of age and sex. We envy no one 

 who tries manfully to tackle the thigh of a middle- 

 aged or elderly male. But in our opinion no blanc 

 of the choicest pheasant can in any way compare with 

 the softly subdued, yet penetrating savour of a femi- 

 nine leg of ample proportions, and especially when 

 there is a gartering of the yellow fat. 



Talking of the yellow fat, naturally leads us on to the 

 question of pheasant feeding. We said that the phea- 

 sant owed much to adventitious circumstances, and 

 assuredly no game bird depends so much upon his 



