Practical Game-Preserving. 124 



nests reported other than within fair view of the roads 

 and paths should not be paid for. A free display of 

 notices of substantial reward for information as to egg- 

 stealing, issued by either the Protection Society or by the 

 individual preserver, exercises a very salutary influence 

 at nesting-time. 



The young birds as well as the mature ones will require 

 protection right up to the commencement of the shooting, 

 because the chance always exists of young and old birds 

 being poached alive. In fact, in certain districts this class 

 of game-stealing is very prevalent. The poaching which 

 occurs during the shooting season is of a different nature, 

 and will receive due attention in another portion of this 

 work; but it will be as well to deal with the kinds of 

 spoliation sometimes practised during the rearing season 

 now. They comprise, besides egg-stealing, hingling and 

 netting. 



Hingling is sometimes most extensively carried on, and 

 often proves very successful. It consists simply of driving 

 the birds into previously prepared snares. Either the 

 poachers walk the birds forward through the covert, or 

 have dogs trained to do so. The general idea is that the 

 snares or springes are placed at one end or side of the 

 covert. This is erroneous; most execution is done by 

 laying them about the centre. By this means the birds 

 are more thoroughly and safely driven backwards and 

 forwards, which is often done several times in succession. 

 In the early part of the year, when birds are being bought, 

 they are taken in fixed springes alive, otherwise in the 

 common snare. 



Plain snaring may take place wherever there is an 

 outlying pheasant or two along hedges, on the sides 

 of the brooks and wet ditches where the birds drink, or 

 around the feeding-spots. This kind of poaching is easy, 



