Practical Game-Preserving. 222 



springe are both used also. As a rule, the latter will be set 

 amongst patches of high gorse, where it does not show up 

 when sprung. These ' ' engines ' ' are invariably employed 

 in and about the places where the grouse roost, and where 

 they sun themselves in the early morn, when they first get 

 on the move. The snares and hingles are generally laid 

 down at night, but the standing-springes are generally 

 reset when a bird is taken, as the sites chosen for their 

 position protect them from view, except they be actually 

 discovered (rather a remote contingency) by the casual 

 passer, such as a watcher or a keeper would be if not 

 actually looking for articles of this description. There is 

 no doubt that the number of grouse poached in this manner 

 in the few days before the Twelfth is very large, and, of 

 course, as the value of the snares and hingles is practically 

 nil, if the poachers using them come to the conclusion that 

 they are working upon an unfavourable or dangerous pitch, 

 they can easily renounce one lot of tackle and provide other 

 for more favoured localities. 



It will be seen that the grouse-poacher has very varied 

 means at his command, whilst the difficulties of preventing 

 them from being employed are, from the nature of the 

 surroundings, much greater than with other game-birds. 



